monti cap question

[pdxmonkeyboy]

Huh. What was your mag at when you tested it? Most of the time magnesium is very slow to leave the system. I typically add mag like once a month, maybe once every two months.

I say this as seachem probably knows this and there is only a very small trace amount of mag in your mix. Perhaps not enough for your system.

If your mag was really low then you may need to back off a little on your alk because as your mag level is correct, now your alk will increase (where before your suppressed mag was limiting your alk).

I hope this makes sense.

Like most things reef chemistry.. randy explains it much better than i ever could.

https://www.advancedaquarist.com/2002/11/chemistry

 

[manilaboy1vic]

ive tried to read so many articles on this..

my mag was 1150 ish.. i added mag and it tested (15ml, instruction said to add 40ml) around 1270s now.. i actually did back off the Alk..

i also tested alk about an hour after dosing the mag.. there was no real change.. but we'll see what it does tomorrow.

and i reduced my alk for tonights dose, also calcium is going again, since last i tested it was at 400.. im doing equal parts now and will cont. to test.

ive been testing every night at around 1o or 11..

tomorrow im testing when i wake up and then at night again.. all 3 elements..

 

[Reeferdood]

If I may,
I would ditch your 2 part and go with something like B ionic. When you use a ionically balanced mix it will become easier to maintain levels in the long run. You will have to test and add magnesium too but at a much lower dose than Ca & Alk. Also, you don’t want to stop dosing one part or the other in ionic mixes, this will get things all out of whack. They are articles out that can explain this in greater detail if you google it...
My .02

 

[manilaboy1vic]

If I may,
I would ditch your 2 part and go with something like B ionic. When you use a ionically balanced mix it will become easier to maintain levels in the long run. You will have to test and add magnesium too but at a much lower dose than Ca & Alk. Also, you don’t want to stop dosing one part or the other in ionic mixes, this will get things all out of whack. They are articles out that can explain this in greater detail if you google it...
My .02

Yea i was thinking of switching to B Ionic.. I believe they have Mag in there soln too.. but mag is easy enough to test for. BTW the cap looks worse today.. going to check params after my coffee.. like i said tho, my routine cal/alk testing has been at 10pm-11pm at night.. so.. im just doing a pop test now in the AM to see where its all at.

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

BrS two part is dirt cheap. Here is a whole kit with jugs, mix, and pumps. And it comes with magnesium. The refills are stupid cheap as well.

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/2-pa...xF2zuwQxM7_1S9t_0eYK0M5DrH_PCPORoCwTEQAvD_BwE

I would raise your mag more. Mine is currently 1500. It was over 1600 because of the instant ocean salt i was using. Point being, it is hard to get mag to a level where it is too high but it can get to where it is too low.

Once you get cal and alk balanced you can just check your alk regularly as they both uptake the same.

I would STRONGLY suggest you pick up a hannah alk meter. They are pretty cheap and they are SOOOO easy. There are only two steps you can mess up.. adding water to the vial and adding the reagent. It literally takes about a minute to test your alk and you never have to ask yourself... is that pinkish blue or bluish pink LOL.

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

Oh yeah, i forgot. Although you do need to get your chemistry in order, it is likely just fading because its new and it is angry about the move.

I bought a beautiful kung pow monti frag for $250 and watched it turn to a faded greyish brown. It just stayed like that for about 3 months before it decided it was happy.

 

[Brian W]

Ive had trouble growing WWC Grafted Monti but I can grow red monti and green monti all day.

I put my grafted monti on the sandbed and it started coloring back up!

I am slowly raising it back up to see where a good resting location will be for it.

Hope this helps!

 

[manilaboy1vic]

BrS two part is dirt cheap. Here is a whole kit with jugs, mix, and pumps. And it comes with magnesium. The refills are stupid cheap as well.

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/2-pa...xF2zuwQxM7_1S9t_0eYK0M5DrH_PCPORoCwTEQAvD_BwE

I would raise your mag more. Mine is currently 1500. It was over 1600 because of the instant ocean salt i was using. Point being, it is hard to get mag to a level where it is too high but it can get to where it is too low.

Once you get cal and alk balanced you can just check your alk regularly as they both uptake the same.

I would STRONGLY suggest you pick up a hannah alk meter. They are pretty cheap and they are SOOOO easy. There are only two steps you can mess up.. adding water to the vial and adding the reagent. It literally takes about a minute to test your alk and you never have to ask yourself... is that pinkish blue or bluish pink LOL.

ok ill add more mag:

test results this AM:

Alk: 143 ppm/8dkh (hanna)
Cal: 360 (api)
Mag: 1260 (salifert)

Dosing equal parts now: 45ml or alk/cal

Im betting when i test alk at 10/11pm it'll be back down to 130ppm +

Just added 10ml more of mag.. but isnt 1260 within spec??

So all together Ive added 25ml of Mag.. the bottle suggested 40ml.. but since my two part has mag in it.. im going easy with mag.. how much is too much mag in a system?

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

Too much mag? 1800? 2000?

Here, if i were in your shoes i would do the following:

1. Add mag until 1500 then dont test for a month.
2. Order bionic or brs two part kit.
3. Continue dosing alk at what you were.
4. Dose 5ml more calcium than alk for the next week or so to get your calcium to 440.

Its not that hard. When you add one, the other goes down. Add cal..your alk goes down and vice versa.

So Quiz time.. what will happen to your alk during the week when you are adding slightly more calcium? That is right, it will go down a little even though you are adding the same amount of alk. Dont sweat it though, it wont be that much.

This method is preferred as it is gradual instead of saying oh, my cal is low and dumping cal in and then.. dude, what the heck.. now my alk is low! So you add alk.. OMG.. my calcium is now low.

I have a mantra for water chemistry and it may be a good idea for you to learn it..

"YOU CAN NEVER FIX CHEMISTRY NOW"

you can start to fix it, but it should never be fixed instantly. Phos, nitrate, cal, alk, these are all things that are fixed over days or weeks, not in an instant. Everyone wants things to be where we want them, but that isnt how things work. You create systems to affect change and let them work.

 

[manilaboy1vic]

Too much mag? 1800? 2000?

Here, if i were in your shoes i would do the following:

1. Add mag until 1500 then dont test for a month.
2. Order bionic or brs two part kit.
3. Continue dosing alk at what you were.
4. Dose 5ml more calcium than alk for the next week or so to get your calcium to 440.

Its not that hard. When you add one, the other goes down. Add cal..your alk goes down and vice versa.

So Quiz time.. what will happen to your alk during the week when you are adding slightly more calcium? That is right, it will go down a little even though you are adding the same amount of alk. Dont sweat it though, it wont be that much.

This method is preferred as it is gradual instead of saying oh, my cal is low and dumping cal in and then.. dude, what the heck.. now my alk is low! So you add alk.. OMG.. my calcium is now low.

I have a mantra for water chemistry and it may be a good idea for you to learn it..

"YOU CAN NEVER FIX CHEMISTRY NOW"

you can start to fix it, but it should never be fixed instantly. Phos, nitrate, cal, alk, these are all things that are fixed over days or weeks, not in an instant. Everyone wants things to be where we want them, but that isnt how things work. You create systems to affect change and let them work.

haha. the problem prior to this.. the alk was low and the cal too high.. lol, now its the other way around.. so im going 1:1 for a couple days.. just gonna let it ride.. the ca has mag in it, and 1260 is within spec..

im thinking the fading of the cap is due to low nutrients in the tank, been seeing undetectable on phos/nitrates for a month now, or that its in a new env.

 

[chrisl10]

haha. the problem prior to this.. the alk was low and the cal too high.. lol, now its the other way around.. so im going 1:1 for a couple days.. just gonna let it ride.. the ca has mag in it, and 1260 is within spec..

im thinking the fading of the cap is due to low nutrients in the tank, been seeing undetectable on phos/nitrates for a month now, or that its in a new env.

Whatever you do , make the changes slowly, you have advice on changing this and that all over the place. One at a time and see what happens

 

[Steve McGlamery]

Too much light.My montis bleach if my light is to high.

 

[PhreeByrd]

I'd also suspect the high light level as the cause. You're chasing the tank chemistry like a dog chasing its tail, while the more likely culprit is the high light level. IME Monti's are highly adaptable to water chemistry, but need much more time to adjust to new light levels.
Assuming other SPS in your tank are stable and happy, I'd give the monti some shade for a few days and then much more slowly acclimate it to full light.

 

[manilaboy1vic]

I turned the intensity down.. this is what i see per vivids site regarding monticaps:

Lighting Requirements: Moderate to high (PAR 250-400)

at max now it should see 200 par..

montipora is my first sps, casue its supposed to be easy.. heh.. yea right.. i have a susnset monti in there too.. been in there about 3wks longer than the cap.. its not doing too hot either.. started that guy on the bottom..

but pls tell me undetectable nitrates and phosphates are also playing a role? even my zoas arent doing that great.. easiest coral right? been running gac/gfo for years.. didnt really care about corals much but id like to have my corals doing better..

i took my gfo/gac offline.. and my skimmer has been performing the best ive ever seen, no comp with the gac/gfo..

i tried a monti cap a couple years ago.. it grew but color faded.. as well.. also a couple years ago, gac/gfo 24x7, water changes every two weeks.. ive never really had a full on GHA outbreak or Algae issue.. the only that ive battled in the past that actually made me do something extreme was cyano outbreaks.. and by extreme, i mean, i deleted my sandbed.. and since deleting my sandbed (end of april), still no detectable levels of nitrates or phosphates.. last water change was probably mid may..

ive been feeding a mix of mysis/brine/cyclops/reef plankton/coral feast (sf bay foods) twice a day..
also dosing seachem zoo and phytoplankton.. i do want to see some detectable levels of phos/nitrates but i dont want to deal with a full on GHA outbreak either.. so im leaving my skimmer running while gfo/gac are offline..

i do have a LMB and Coral Beauty in there for grazing just in case.

the par on the PMK is jumping around from 160 to 250. .avg probably at 200 par

 

[manilaboy1vic]

i really should of fragged that monti cap and put pieces in dif. parts of the tank to see where it did best.. i guess ill have to do that on the next cap if this thing dies..

i dunno why but i love monti caps.. i think they look so awesome and i cant grow one for the life of me.

 

[PranK]

Please keep us updated. I'm in a similar position. My numbers are good though nutrients low and my monti is just fading and has small bits of algae on it now. I'd love to hear about your progress.

 

[PhreeByrd]

Vivid may be correct as far as their lighting recommendation, but that doesn't mean the coral was kept under that light level before you received it. OP, It sounds like you're on the right path as far as most things go, and I'd still give the monti some shade for a few days and then gradually increase the light to the desired level over the course of 2-3 weeks. Corals on wild reefs often undergo low light conditions from storms and cloudy conditions, but they survive this without issues.

I feed my tanks pretty much the same way with the same frozen foods, although I only feed once per day, and have done this for years with the same livestock and corals. I don't rinse or clean frozen foods - the little stuff you'd be rinsing away is excellent coral food. Everything in my tanks is healthy and happy, fish are fat, active and healthy, and all corals have great color and growth. I don't dose my tank with anything except 2-part to maintain the alkalinity and calcium.

Corals sometimes do react negatively to being placed in a new environment, but they most often recover if water conditions are favorable and stable. Stability, IMO, is the key. You could try target feeding with appropriate micro food sources. Might help, and shouldn't cause any complications since your nutrient level is low. Observe the monti closely and you can see when its polyps are out. That's the time to target feed it if you choose to do that.

Turn off all your pumps, or at the very least, your skimmer when you feed. After the fish have eaten the larger foods, turn on circulation pump(s) to allow the corals to feed for a while before turning everything else back on. I actually turn off the return from the sump to isolate the display tank during feeding.

 

[manilaboy1vic]

this cap maybe toast.. i hvae lowered the light intensity, the moved it more to the back right corner.. still no signs of phosphates in the system.. just skimming, no gfo/gac..using hanna for the phos.