Help with Nano Reef Tank

[chrissohk]

I have a 10 gallon nano tank I started 6 weeks ago. Added coral 3 weeks ago. Both are soft corals. Didnt start out well but having dosed Alk twice, Ive seen a slight improvement in the coral health.

Parameters:
Salinity - 1.026
Ph - 7
Alk - 11

I just have a couple of question:
1) Would consistent water changes (weekly) be enough to maintain the coral health?
2) Are any other additives needed to help increase coral health?
3) What are signs to look out for increasing health of corals?
4) How do I help my corals grow?

 

[Ef4life]

For a 10g with soft corals water changes should be just fine.

With what you have you shouldn’t even need to dose, i will say you should do some more research on dosing, soft corals really don’t need the stable high levels of alkalinity or calcium to grow, that’s the lps and especially the sps Corals.

And your reef is still young, it takes time for a tank to really get into a groove. Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank.

 

[MattR]

These are just my opinions to your questions.
1) Depending on the corals you keep. Some corals like soft and lps are "less demanding" meaning they pull fewer nutrients out of the water to help them grow. SPS is more demanding and would require dosing as they take a lot more out of the water. By doing water changes you are removing harmful and toxic compounds and replacing them with what he corals need.
2) With such a new tank and the corals you have, feeding is most likely not going to do a lot of good right now. Stick with weekly water changes. Worry about that a little later
3) Basically a "happy" coral is one that's open and colourful. Some corals are faster grower than others and some may just need more time to get used to your tanks water.
4) Every fish tank (salt, fresh, reef) comes down to keeping water. By doing proper husbandry to your tank, providing the best water will allow an environment for these animals to go and thrive!

Hope this helped

 

[andrewey]

I would stop dosing alkalinity. Not only is it not necessary, it's probably doing more harm then good. With a 10 gallon tank, all your "dosing" can come from water changes.

1) Yes.
2) Nothing else at this point. Focus on proper lighting, flow, and consistent water changes. I wouldn't mess with any additives with softies only with a tank this new. Try and weather the storm of the new tank uglies- that should be your only priority.
3) Growth, good coloration, adequate polyp extension
4) Focus on stability. Difficult in a 10 gallon, but doable. Easier with softies.

 

[reefpunk707]

7 pH seems a bit low.
Are you testing mag and calcium too?

I don't think a 10 gal would really need dosing but best to see what and how much tanks using I would do a water change and test at least alk mag and calcium then test again in a week or a few days before your next water change and see how much things have changed.
You can tell if your corals are happy if they're polyps are extending and they aren't bleaching or receding.
Keeping them happy or helping them grow would need stability and the right parameters. And proper lighting and flow.

 

[El_Guapo13]

If you can get other test kits to test other parameters, that could help. Afterall, alkalinity might not be the problem. It could be a higher than recommended nitrate or phosphate level. There could be ammonia. Calcium and magnesium could be low. Just a few possible things that could stress out corals.

Also, lighting could be too strong, or not strong enough. Same with flow.

 

[NS Mike D]

BRS did a video a few weeks back showing off all the employee tanks going from cubicle yto cubicle. Apparently, having a reef tank is a work requirement.

They arrived at a cubicle with 2 identical nanos side by side. One had all the bells and whistle to maintain precise conditions where the second one was maintained with simply weekly water changes. Guess which one was doing better? Yup. Proof a nano can be excel with weekly water changes. (and the occasional rip clean/sand bed rinse but that is another story for another day).

11dkh is on the high side, leaving less room for error and soft corals have way less alk demands that say sps corals. (but heed the advice on test kits and testing all the major parameters)

 

[Jonify]

Congrats on the new tank! Usually you would want to wait a little longer before putting in coral ... coral love stability, and initial stability takes some months to achieve. But like others have suggested, you should be just fine with regular water changes and will likely never need to dose in a reef that small. But to your questions:

1) Would consistent water changes (weekly) be enough to maintain the coral health? (absolutely!)
2) Are any other additives needed to help increase coral health? (not likely)
3) What are signs to look out for increasing health of corals? (color and polyp extension)
4) How do I help my corals grow? (regular water changes, good flow, adequate lighting)

 

[ShepherdReefer]

Congratulation on the new tank, I think your PH is a little low. What about the Calcium levels? Alk 8-12dkh, Calcium 380-420 ppm, and Magnesium 1250-1350 ppm.

 

[FragileReefer]

I was asking similar questions two years ago and as long as you continue to observe your tank and research what you see you will do great! Everyone gave great advice and keep reaching out. Two big lessons I learned are I recommend using a salt with elevated levels for waterchanges, it will help with keeping the levels up between waterchanges. And to maintain that level of maintenance, stick to the soft corals. Once you start adding corals that make a skeleton you will need to dose. I went a little crazy with montipora and my ALK was dropping 1 dkh a week with two waterchanges per week. So stick with the zoas, mushrooms, leathers, anemones and don't catch acan fever! They will grow in our small tanks but it will mean eventually getting a doser. Good luck and change that water.

 

[chrissohk]

Congratulation on the new tank, I think your PH is a little low. What about the Calcium levels? Alk 8-12dkh, Calcium 380-420 ppm, and Magnesium 1250-1350 ppm.

for the time being im not able to get calclium testers, do you think water changes and adequate lighting is enough to keep the corals healthy

 

[chrissohk]

If you can get other test kits to test other parameters, that could help. Afterall, alkalinity might not be the problem. It could be a higher than recommended nitrate or phosphate level. There could be ammonia. Calcium and magnesium could be low. Just a few possible things that could stress out corals.

Also, lighting could be too strong, or not strong enough. Same with flow.

for the time being are consistent water changes enough to keep the coral healthy because they seem to be doing quite well right now.

 

[Aquavaj]

Weekly water changes will be more than enough for just 2 soft corals. If your nutrient levels are low enough you can even go every 2 weeks. Unless you plan on going heavy sps you may never need to dose. Routine testing will tell you whether you'll need to or not.

The corals are probably perking up now not because you're dosing alk but because they've adjusted to your lighting, flow, and general water parameters.