Nothing grows

[JurisHP]

My 13 year old reef tank is fine, but not awesome. While my corals don’t really die, they also don’t grow. AT ALL. Same with my macroalgae in my fuge. I’ve got stable parameters, excellent equipment— nothing grows. Any advice?

 

[Jedi1199]

Do you have a dartboard we can toss at? LOL ok just kidding. We are going to need a lot more detail before we can even begin to give an answer here.

Lights? Filtration? Tank size? Define not growing? Water parameters?

 

[JurisHP]

Do you have a dartboard we can toss at? LOL ok just kidding. We are going to need a lot more detail before we can even begin to give an answer here.

Lights? Filtration? Tank size? Define not growing? Water parameters?

 

[JurisHP]

Do you have a dartboard we can toss at? LOL ok just kidding. We are going to need a lot more detail before we can even begin to give an answer here.

Lights? Filtration? Tank size? Define not growing? Water parameters?

Lol ok. Radion G5 Blues (3), NYOS Protein Skimmer, 180g, 45g Bashsea sump, Salinity: 1.026, Ca: 450, Mg: 1200-1300, Alk: 8-9, Nitrates and Phosphates are always high. Not growing means — they just stay at the same size.

 

[Jedi1199]

Lol ok. Radion G5 Blues (3), NYOS Protein Skimmer, 180g, 45g Bashsea sump, Salinity: 1.026, Ca: 450, Mg: 1200-1300, Alk: 8-9, Nitrates and Phosphates are always high. Not growing means — they just stay at the same size.

OK, what exactly are you trying to grow?

My first instinct says lighting. What intensity and spectrum are you running? Have you mapped the PAR across your tank? High phosphate "could" be a problem but I'm not really sure. I usually run a bit high but I am not having that problem.

 

[piranhaman00]

What is your alk consumption per day?

 

[Jedi1199]

The other point that strikes me..... 13 years?

Has it always been this way? Is this recent? Are you running without water changes? Do you dose? If so, with what? How much? How often?

If this is NOT new, what's changed?

Again, you give us a pretty blank slate to take shots at here.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

"phosphates are always high" - how high? Everything I've always read tells me higher than .5 will stop/hinder coral growth.

 

[Dburr1014]

Lol ok. Radion G5 Blues (3), NYOS Protein Skimmer, 180g, 45g Bashsea sump, Salinity: 1.026, Ca: 450, Mg: 1200-1300, Alk: 8-9, Nitrates and Phosphates are always high. Not growing means — they just stay at the same size.

What is high? For some that's 0.1 and others it's 1.0
How long have they "not grown"? Is this since the tank was set up? That's a long time.

Edit; both of you beat me! Ha

 

[Jedi1199]

"phosphates are always high" - how high? Everything I've always read tells me higher than .5 will stop/hinder coral growth.

I actually need to correct myself... My phosphates usually are below .5

Perhaps that is the problem?

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I actually need to correct myself... My phosphates usually are below .5

Perhaps that is the problem?

It could be yes, high phosphates stop skeletal growth in lps sps, but I've not seen any reference to soft corals being affected by high phosphate. Phosphate should be somewhere closer to .1

This article is written by our own Mr.Holmes Farley and explains a bit more http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-09/rhf/index.php