FL_Reefer
Valuable Member
You have a great collection and all your corals look amazing! Can you shed some light on your husbantry? What are you doing for nutrient control? Are you doing water changes and if so what %? Your collection is envious!
My acro collection aka my obsession
- Thread starter Reefnjunkie
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
Husbandry is very basic at this point, frag tanks are bare bottom so they get detritus siphoned out every 2 days which takes just a couple minutes, I've hook the holds a filter sock over the sump so I just hang the siphon tube on it and the 4 tanks get done quickly.
I have to keep the flow pumps clean 2-RW-4s in 2 frag tanks and 2- WP25s in the other tanks, the 2-QT tanks presently each have just 1-WP25. Depending the how high the water level determines WP vs RW. The power heads get an acid bath about every 2-3 months. That's about it besides scraping the glass for the frag tanks.
My display has sand so I'll stir the sand since I'll get dark areas that will show. I'd say I do maybe a 50 gallon water change (on 650 total gallon system) about every 6-8 weeks. I vacuum the sand so have minimal if any areas of sand that get to an anaerobic state for bacteria. I siphon the sand out in sections over the course of time using the vacuum so I'm replacing it with new sand. If the sand vacuum doesn't pull enough out I will literally stick just the tube in and siphon just sand.
Basically I don't have 'old' sand in my tank more than 4 months, it's being stirred and or replaced.
My old 400 I didn't do this which I don't know had any impact on healthiness of the corals but I like the idea of less detritus build up over time. Steve Weast and others who've systems I admire incorporate the "rotation" or replacing the sand over time.
Nutrient control I give all the credit to a skimmer rated for 750 gallons and a neck cleaner, the "swabbie" I know is responsible for low levels, my PO4 last checked using my electronic UL reader was 0.00 and NO3 is 2.
I dose ME polyp extender which replaced Acropower, acros seem to like it better and I don't get any extra PO4 build up.
Sorry for the long write up that basically says I keep the pumps clean, the sand cleaning I don't think has anything to do with the happiness of the acro since on the old tank (I replaced the tank with the same footprint due to seam issues-i just replaced it before it leaked
) I didn't do that.
I've got a monster Ca Rx that keeps things rock solid stable which is critical
Sorry for the long write up with so little substance LOL
I have to keep the flow pumps clean 2-RW-4s in 2 frag tanks and 2- WP25s in the other tanks, the 2-QT tanks presently each have just 1-WP25. Depending the how high the water level determines WP vs RW. The power heads get an acid bath about every 2-3 months. That's about it besides scraping the glass for the frag tanks.
My display has sand so I'll stir the sand since I'll get dark areas that will show. I'd say I do maybe a 50 gallon water change (on 650 total gallon system) about every 6-8 weeks. I vacuum the sand so have minimal if any areas of sand that get to an anaerobic state for bacteria. I siphon the sand out in sections over the course of time using the vacuum so I'm replacing it with new sand. If the sand vacuum doesn't pull enough out I will literally stick just the tube in and siphon just sand.
Basically I don't have 'old' sand in my tank more than 4 months, it's being stirred and or replaced.
My old 400 I didn't do this which I don't know had any impact on healthiness of the corals but I like the idea of less detritus build up over time. Steve Weast and others who've systems I admire incorporate the "rotation" or replacing the sand over time.
Nutrient control I give all the credit to a skimmer rated for 750 gallons and a neck cleaner, the "swabbie" I know is responsible for low levels, my PO4 last checked using my electronic UL reader was 0.00 and NO3 is 2.
I dose ME polyp extender which replaced Acropower, acros seem to like it better and I don't get any extra PO4 build up.
Sorry for the long write up that basically says I keep the pumps clean, the sand cleaning I don't think has anything to do with the happiness of the acro since on the old tank (I replaced the tank with the same footprint due to seam issues-i just replaced it before it leaked
) I didn't do that.I've got a monster Ca Rx that keeps things rock solid stable which is critical
Sorry for the long write up with so little substance LOL
FL_Reefer
Valuable Member
No need to apologize, all of us reefers know we can talk for hours, lol. Thanks for sharing! So you don't run any type of reactors for PO4? I'm liking the cal reactors more and more these days.
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
A few years back I ran a PO4 reactor using Reef Interest PO4x4, it's a polymer I believe but not certain, but it was much cheaper than the GFO I was using for the size of my system. I had the pump on my skimmer break and long story short by the time it got replaced PO4 raised to .25. The corals looked great but I wasn't liking that level. It was shortly after I added the swabbie which my APEX turns it on every 6 hours for 2 minutes so its running at 100% efficiency 24/7/365. It's a big difference when the neck of the skimmer is "dirty" and not skimming at its best.
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
MattV Orange Envy (take that Walt Disney 
)
)
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
FWIW, that pic was taken under all Blue T5-certain corals just pop under blue so I had to share.
I just bought a new full frame camera and hope to get better at photographing my acros-this was an attempt at that and i was pretty pleased with the result
Thanks for looking
I just bought a new full frame camera and hope to get better at photographing my acros-this was an attempt at that and i was pretty pleased with the result
Thanks for looking
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
KingBlingTX
Active Member
Nice collection!!
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
I dont think its having the impact it did intially-polyp extension that is
Acropower did the same, acros went nuts for a while and then not much noticeable difference.
Im on my second 32oz bottle and will see. Yesterday i turned off the frag tank pump so the ME stayed in the frag tanks vs the entire system. It easier dosing 100 gallons vs 650 and honestly my acros in the display are large enough LOL
Acropower did the same, acros went nuts for a while and then not much noticeable difference.
Im on my second 32oz bottle and will see. Yesterday i turned off the frag tank pump so the ME stayed in the frag tanks vs the entire system. It easier dosing 100 gallons vs 650 and honestly my acros in the display are large enough LOL
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
That del fuego is over 2' side to side hahaha
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
Here's the Orange Envy
Here's the Walt Disney
Granted Disney needs to grow more to really compare but IMO the Orange Envy is nicer
Here's the Walt Disney
Granted Disney needs to grow more to really compare but IMO the Orange Envy is nicer
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
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Reefnjunkie
Acropora Junkie
I think I've had it for about 4 years but the trimings i cut are mini colonies LOL
I had to cut it back a few days ago
