Montipora placement, flow, and lighting

[Devan Patel]

Hello everyone,z I recently purchase a Montipora and forgot to test my parameters before I left because since it is a “restarted” tank. I kinda bought it as a tester coral, to see how my tank does with it. I want to make it an sps dominant tank so decided to start with monti. I’ll attach a pic of my tank before I had a large crash.

First pic is a before and after pic from a crash of Dino’s. I’m going to test the water right now. But placement wise I was maybe thinking top of the big rock on the left.

Will attach parameter in one second..

Also I have two ai hydra 32 hd.. I currently run very light settings just because it was a fish only tank after the crash. What settings should I put it on for the monti, and future sps coral.

The lighting I put are not the actual settings I’m running though right now, just fyi!


And my dosers are turned off right now, was dosing alk and calcium. And my sat is instant ocean reef

Test:
Nitrite-0
Phosphate:.25
Nitrate:40 ppm
calcium: 490
Alk: 12.3

I honestly don’t know how these are so high. I’m not dosing anything and there’s just fish in here and practically no light. I just did a 20 gallon wc on a 50 gallon. I honestly don’t get it lol. So what should I do?

See if I can Return it to the store tomorrow?

 

[Devan Patel]

Bump

 

[FUNGI]

what type monti? if its a cap, best to mount lower tank, as it will create shadows/no light areas underneath, and you will be limited to what you put below it......

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Lol there is actually no question on your post. Monti likes high light and high flow.

 

[bluemon]

No one will be able to answer you questions since it has so many other variables. (like the light it was grown in, PAR level of different areas of tank, your preference in color temp, etc...)

The best you can do right now is place it where you want it and see if it thrives

 

[Devan Patel]

what type monti? if its a cap, best to mount lower tank, as it will create shadows/no light areas underneath, and you will be limited to what you put below it......

No clue. I just updated my test results though.

 

[Devan Patel]

No one will be able to answer you questions since it has so many other variables. (like the light it was grown in, PAR level of different areas of tank, your preference in color temp, etc...)

The best you can do right now is place it where you want it and see if it thrives

Just updated test results

 

[Devan Patel]

No one will be able to answer you questions since it has so many other variables. (like the light it was grown in, PAR level of different areas of tank, your preference in color temp, etc...)

The best you can do right now is place it where you want it and see if it thrives

Just updated test results.

 

[Devan Patel]

Lol there is actually no question on your post. Monti likes high light and high flow.

alright, just updated test resukts

 

[bluemon]

Do you have a refugium?

If you don't, your nitrates are high because nothing is consuming them without lights on

 

[Devan Patel]

Do you have a refugium?

If you don't, your nitrates are high because nothing is consuming them without lights on

I just have a skimmer, but also should I see if I can return the monti tomorrow?

 

[bluemon]

I just have a skimmer, but also should I see if I can return the monti tomorrow?

Montis can be a bit more forgiving on nitrates than other sps ime so I think you should be fine. Try to find a way to export nutrients. A skimmer is not enough. Or feed fish less

Is there a reason you kept the light off all this time??

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

So what’s the issue? You just got the monti today and not sure if you should put it in your tank?

It looks like a typical red monti cap, they are usually pretty hardy and grow like weeds.

Was your phosphate test taken with API test kit? It always says .25

Personally I would put it in the tank if you want to try. They are generally inexpensive in case it doesn’t make it. It’s a good test coral IMO

 

[Devan Patel]

Montis can be a bit more forgiving on nitrates than other sps ime so I think you should be fine. Try to find a way to export nutrients. A skimmer is not enough. Or feed fish less

Is there a reason you kept the light off all this time??

because of how high the nutrients were. And bc I went threw gha outbreaks and then during treatments for that then cyano. I finally just turned the lights on a light setting about two weeks ago. So everything is done fine. Before it was just natural sunlight lighting the tank up. Are the other parameters ok? They are awfully high

 

[Devan Patel]

So what’s the issue? You just got the monti today and not sure if you should put it in your tank?

It looks like a typical red monti cap, they are usually pretty hardy and grow like weeds.

Was your phosphate test taken with API test kit? It always says .25

Personally I would put it in the tank if you want to try. They are generally inexpensive in case it doesn’t make it. It’s a good test coral IMO

I wasn’t sure with my parameters being that high. And wasn’t sure what lighting to put tbh flow I got down but lighting got no clue. Also it came with a serpent star fish should I add it too the tank?

 

[bluemon]

I wasn’t sure with my parameters being that high. And wasn’t sure what lighting to put tbh flow I got down but lighting got no clue. Also it came with a serpent star fish should I add it too the tank?

It wasn't a serpent star.
Just a micro brittle star. It stays that small and is good cuc.

My question is, without a refugium, how are you planning on keeping the nutrients down in order for you to keep sps?

The problems like algae gha will come back the moment you turn the light back on for coral

 

[Devan Patel]

It wasn't a serpent star.
Just a micro brittle star. It stays that small and is good cuc.

My question is, without a refugium, how are you planning on keeping the nutrients down in order for you to keep sps?

The problems like algae gha will come back the moment you turn the light back on for coral

that’s my problem I’m not sure. I was doing fine until the crash. Basically neglected the tank cause I thought it could run itself. and that’s also another reason why I didn’t have the lights on. so what should I do, because I have no idea.

 

[bluemon]

that’s my problem I’m not sure. I was doing fine until the crash. Basically neglected the tank cause I thought it could run itself. and that’s also another reason why I didn’t have the lights on. so what should I do, because I have no idea.

Why did the tank crash?

My suggestion is to make a refugium.

You have a sump, right? Even a small refugium will go a long way. Dedicate a section of the sump to chrow chaeto in

 

[Devan Patel]

.

 

[Devan Patel]

I neglected water changes from the tank, which then led to high nutrients. Which then led to some corals dying then clean up crew which built up ammonia and killed one of my fish. Then I had a massive Dino outbreak. And that was the main thing that had wiped out the tank since I didn’t have any knowledge on it. Now I finally got it decently under control. But when I turn on the lights it’ll probably go insane. The system is a waterbox 50.3 AIO. So I’m not sure really where to put the chaeto. I’m running a skimmer, carbon. GFO, and a fluval phosphate remover filter pad, then filter floss.