Macdaddynick1
Valuable Member
That makes sense, high po4 stalls calcification too. You need to have po4 and no3 in an acceptable range. Good luck with your battle.
Low absorption
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PicassoDan
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I think the combination of high Alk (10.25dKH) and low phosphate could be the problem. I would target Alk in the 8.0-8.5dKH range. Do you have a low-range phosphate test kit, like the Hanna 736? An actual number would help diagnose.
Spare time
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Well I think what I would try is dosing amino acids. I would also raise the blue channels more if it was my tank but that all depends on how your par is.
Amino acids do not need to be "captured" like other foods do and are easily used/taken in by corals
Amino acids do not need to be "captured" like other foods do and are easily used/taken in by corals
Spare time
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Higher alk results in more growth. The only corals that do not do well with higher alk would be acros.
Gary Inwood
Active Member
I am adding reactor with rowa phos this week and i am running a bio pellet reactor too.
Dennis Cartier
Valuable Member
Two things jump out at me with the OP's post. Low nitrate and no phosphate and a fuge. You are going to need phosphate for coral growth and even coral health. Having undetecable phosphate will likely cause you problems long term.
The other things that comes to mind is trace elements. Unless you have a very comprehensive water change schedule, having a fuge can deplete your trace elements. I have experienced this on multiple occaisions. Are your SPS looking healthy or are they paling out and looking 'thin' (the tissue)?
My suggestion is to look into lowering your fuge light period and perhaps try some trace element additives. I like the Red Sea Coral Colors program (just for the traces) and have found corals respond well when they are deficient in trace elements.
The other things that comes to mind is trace elements. Unless you have a very comprehensive water change schedule, having a fuge can deplete your trace elements. I have experienced this on multiple occaisions. Are your SPS looking healthy or are they paling out and looking 'thin' (the tissue)?
My suggestion is to look into lowering your fuge light period and perhaps try some trace element additives. I like the Red Sea Coral Colors program (just for the traces) and have found corals respond well when they are deficient in trace elements.
adamsfour
Active Member
Thanks I do add trace elements manually. Sorry should have mentioned that. Presently I run fudge 14 hours and I really like the idea cutting back. Seems to be a common theme among the replies. What do you recommend cut it back to maybe 1/2 to 6-7 hours.
NanoDJS
Valuable Member
What your going down the path of is called , nutrient uptake. The basic principle is when your dkh/cal/mag are correct you can "uptake" nutrients much more easily. I keep my dkh at 9 for mixed reef , lots of SPS , my system uptakes around 30-40 ppm Cal a day and around .5 -1.0 of dkh daily. 80 gallon tank.
Dennis Cartier
Valuable Member
I would probably drop it by 25 - 33%, say 8 hours, and monitor your nitrate and phosphate closely. You want to see an impact from the change in photo period to know that the increase in nutrient availability has an effect on any (hopeful) change in coral growth/health.
Randy Holmes-Farley
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high alk increases demand for calcium
