Mattgsa 315 gallon build

[mattgsa]

I'd do the dry version of Tm all for reef, if you work out dosing the levels you need are affordable. (No effect on pH or salinity/micro elements)

If it is over budget for the dry powder version of all for reef, go to two part and use that til your reef is more mature, then go calcium reactor.

If you go to calcium reactor now, you will only make your existing pH problem worse.

I think I'm going to stick with two-part dosing. Or I may just get a new Kalk reactor. The PH dropped like a rock last night. It's amazing how much of a difference the Kalk makes.
Of course we also had a dinner party at the house last night, I'm sure that didn't help either.

 

[GBRsouth]

I think I'm going to stick with two-part dosing. Or I may just get a new Kalk reactor. The PH dropped like a rock last night. It's amazing how much of a difference the Kalk makes.
Of course we also had a dinner party at the house last night, I'm sure that didn't help either.

If you go for a new reliable kalk stirrer reactor (which I think is a good plan for your tank long term) you might find you can combine dosing the dry version of all for reef with that to meet your current dosing needs, given your relatively low stocking levels of coral at the moment. This combination would avoid the salinity issues with two part dosing.

If the all for reef (carbocalcium) is too expensive for your dosing requirements then agreed, go to two part dosing and combine with the new kalk stirrer.

If it's affordable for you to run right now, (I can't remember if you already do this) I'd hook up a CO2 scrubber to your system as well or an airline to outside the house for your skimmer. Either or both of these would help your pH.

 

[mattgsa]

If you go for a new reliable kalk stirrer reactor (which I think is a good plan for your tank long term) you might find you can combine dosing the dry version of all for reef with that to meet your current dosing needs, given your relatively low stocking levels of coral at the moment. This combination would avoid the salinity issues with two part dosing.

If the all for reef (carbocalcium) is too expensive for your dosing requirements then agreed, go to two part dosing and combine with the new kalk stirrer.

If it's affordable for you to run right now, (I can't remember if you already do this) I'd hook up a CO2 scrubber to your system as well or an airline to outside the house for your skimmer. Either or both of these would help your pH.

I think I'm going to let it ride longer, it looks like the PH is on its way back up. If I don't have to worry about PH, I don't think I will go back to Kalk. I really like the idea of All for the reef, it looks like I will need a lot of it just to maintain the system now. But I think I will order some and see how it goes. I also really like the simplicity of it.

Here's the PH as of this morning.

 

[mattgsa]

I think I'm going to let it ride longer, it looks like the PH is on its way back up. If I don't have to worry about PH, I don't think I will go back to Kalk. I really like the idea of All for the reef, it looks like I will need a lot of it just to maintain the system now. But I think I will order some and see how it goes. I also really like the simplicity of it.

Here's the PH as of this morning.

Perhaps not, I don't know if I can justify 200 dollars a month

 

[GBRsouth]

Is that dosing calculator working out the price of the liquid all for reef or the price of the dry powder carbocalcium? And is it based on your tank size or your current alk and calcium uptake?

 

[mattgsa]

Is that dosing calculator working out the price of the liquid all for reef or the price of the dry powder carbocalcium? And is it based on your tank size or your current alk and calcium uptake?

Alright, I was looking at this the wrong way. After redoing the calculations, assuming the above dose is correct, the large container of powder would last 278 days. I'm wondering how that compares to my Kalk.
I have decided to get a new Kalk reactor for the purpose of raising PH, however, in the future when kalk can no longer keep pace with the demand, I will certainly look at adding All for Reef. I really like the simplicity of it.

 

[mattgsa]

Here are some Corals I got from Battle Corals. I put them at the bottom of the tank since they were looking a little stressed and I didn't want them getting blasted by light. As you can see I need to get a frag rack. The only problem right now is none of them were labeled so I don't know what any of them are.

 

[mattgsa]

OH YAH!!
My first one

 

[mattgsa]

I've been working on stabilizing PH. I trying to get my PH to stay above 2.2. Disregard the dip, that was from me cleaning the probe in some mild acid.

I'm also still working on getting rid of algae. It's too short to try and pinch and siphon off the rocks, and I don't want to add fluconazole to the tank. I was watching Reef Therapy on YouTube, and they suggested turning off the whites and reds in the lights. So I have been trying that, and I think the algae may be turning brown. It could also be wishful thinking.

 

[GBRsouth]

Good results on stabilising the pH. If the algae is too short to pinch with your fingers, if you can be bothered, stainless steel tweezers and siphon tube into filter sock is another option.

 

[mattgsa]

Good results on stabilising the pH. If the algae is too short to pinch with your fingers, if you can be bothered, stainless steel tweezers and siphon tube into filter sock is another option.

I don't think I have the time. I was thinking about a hydrogen peroxide bath for the rocks. It's just that all the things I try the algae just comes right back. Which tells me I have not solved the underlying problem. The other problem I have is the corals are doing good, and I don't want to jeopardize their progress either. Since it is only growing on the rock is it possible it's a problem that will pass in time? In the past, the algae were growing on everything, now just the rocks. I'm wondering if it is living on something in the rocks and when all that is consumed it will go away on its own.

 

[mattgsa]

This is an older picture. The fluconazole took care of a lot of it but it's starting to come back. If only I could determine with any certainty what type of algae it is.

 

[GBRsouth]

I think as your tank matures it will just go away anyway. Bit hard to tell for sure in the photo, but it does not seem to be Bryopsis so I wouldn't worry too much about it. You could work on it bit by bit with a syringe of peroxide solution targeting it. That shouldn't affect corals at all as it will be too dilute by the time it gets to them.

 

[mattgsa]

I think as your tank matures it will just go away anyway. Bit hard to tell for sure in the photo, but it does not seem to be Bryopsis so I wouldn't worry too much about it. You could work on it bit by bit with a syringe of peroxide solution targeting it. That shouldn't affect corals at all as it will be too dilute by the time it gets to them.

Do you think I would need to take the rocks out of the water first, or just spray them in the tank?

 

[GBRsouth]

It can be sprayed in the tank. You want to target small areas of it at a time and have the syringe close.

 

[mattgsa]

It can be sprayed in the tank. You want to target small areas of it at a time and have the syringe close.

I took out some of the worst rocks and sprayed them down with peroxide, and then ran out of peroxide. I ordered a gallon of it online. I will try treating the remaining patches with a syringe.

 

[gibbers]

Thank you very much for following along.
The tank is 72.5x24.5x29.5

Looking forward to seeing this build. I am Doing one very similar 72x36x31. Should be here next week

 

[mattgsa]

Looking forward to seeing this build. I am Doing one very similar 72x36x31. Should be here next week

That's great to hear, be sure to let me know when you start your build thread. I would love to follow along. I upgraded my tank to a 315, 96x30x24.

 

[gibbers]

That's great to hear, be sure to let me know when you start your build thread. I would love to follow along. I upgraded my tank to a 315, 96x30x24.

Build Thread - 350 glass cages build

Following along, I think you picked the right company to build your tank. Joe is great to work with along with a lot of other people there in TN on the Glass Cages team @mehaffydr thanks so much. really appreciate the support. I am really proud of the team!

www.reef2reef.com

 

[mattgsa]

Alright, last night I added a new MP60 to the system. So I now have 2 maxpect 350's, 2 mp60's, and 2 nero 5's. I have an MP40 but it's currently not in the system.
I think I'm going to try this to solve the algae problem

Treating Bryopsis Algae With Brightwell Aquatics Hydrat-MG | Reef Builders | The Reef and Saltwater Aquarium Blog

There’s many different kinds of nuisance algae that can cause problems in the reef aquarium and Bryopsis can be one of the worst, or one of the ‘best’ depending on your perspective.

reefbuilders.com