Sps won’t encrust/grow issues

[WIReefer]

Having some issues with my sps I have a decent amount of sticks in my tank have really great pe on all my acros expect for one the one stick started to get brown tips the other day... well anyways they all look great but that one just haven’t seen much growth at all won’t even encrust the plug or any new growth any idea what’s going on? Tank is almost a year and a half old. Started with 55 pounds of dry rock and 5 pounds of live rock I have great coralline algae growth. I dose kalk to keep alk stable only fluctuates .05-.10 a day if that. Drip overnight with a 1.1 ml doser. Have a 6 bulb sunpower over the 55 gallon tank. Only thing I’m not sure of is par, started all corals on sand bed and moved up slowly weekly. Beginning of this week I started dosing amino acids started with half the recommendation dose. Any idea why I’m struggling with these? These sticks on pictures where added to tank about 6 weeks ago.

Parameters:

Ph: 8.3 (apex)
salinity: 1.025 (Milwaukee)
No3: 5 (Red Sea)
PO4: 0.04 (Hanna)
Temp: 77 (apex)
Alk: 8.19 (trident,Hanna)
Mag: 1249 (trident)
Calcium: 438 (trident)

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

How long have you had them? They look really fresh and clean (no algae on the plugs). My frags take at least 3-4 weeks to see any progress and then 4-6 months to completely encrust and then they start to branch, and that’s the fast ones. I have some that have done almost less than nothing for a year. Then I have some that are about to breach the surface in the same amount of time.

 

[WIReefer]

How long have you had them? They look really fresh and clean (no algae on the plugs). My frags take at least 3-4 weeks to see any progress and then 4-6 months to completely encrust and then they start to branch, and that’s the fast ones. I have some that have done almost less than nothing for a year. Then I have some that are about to breach the surface in the same amount of time.

I thought I stated that above, but they have been in about 6 weeks. But I struggle keeping my PO4 up.

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Btw I would get your po4 up 0.10-0.12 for frags with your alk or let your alk drop to around 7.5

 

[WIReefer]

Btw I would get your po4 up 0.10-0.12 for frags with your alk or let your alk drop to around 7.5

Think I need to start dosing PO4

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

I thought I stated that above, but they have been in about 6 weeks. But I struggle keeping my PO4 up.

It’s still pretty early in general but they look a little pale/stressed in the pics. Feed your fish some more. Renting a par meter would be a wise decision if you’ve caught the sps bug

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Think I need to start dosing PO4

What are your nutrient export methods

 

[WIReefer]

It’s still pretty early in general but they look a little pale/stressed in the pics. Feed your fish some more. Renting a par meter would be a wise decision if you’ve caught the sps bug

Sounds good! Yeah I’ve been feeding a ton! Was reading 0.00 with the Hanna for a while... I’m adding one more fish this weekend as well.

 

[WIReefer]

What are your nutrient export methods

Do a 10 gallon water change every Sunday system volume is 80 gallons. I don’t run a skimmer only filtration is filter socks. Don’t have much in sump but some live rock and filter sock.

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Do a 10 gallon water change every Sunday system volume is 80 gallons. I don’t run a skimmer only filtration is filter socks. Don’t have much in sump but some live rock and filter sock.

How much is a ton?

 

[WIReefer]

How much is a ton?

Spot feed corals once maybe twice a week with reef chili mixed with aminos, have 4 fish and feed two cubes in morning and 3 cubes at night. So roughly 4-5 cubes a day.

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Spot feed corals once maybe twice a week with reef chili mixed with aminos, have 4 fish and feed two cubes in morning and 3 cubes at night. So roughly 4-5 cubes a day.

Dang
That is a ton for only 4 fish unless they’re sharks and rays. Makes me concerned that you’re going to have a no3/po4 bomb go off when your rocks hit their saturation point.

 

[WIReefer]

Dang
That is a ton for only 4 fish unless they’re sharks and rays. Makes me concerned that you’re going to have a no3/po4 bomb go off when your rocks hit their saturation point.

Haven’t been doing it that long but think I’m going to start dosing PO4 so it raises instead of dumping all the food. Though I musst say they eat most of it! Lol my fish are getting fat haha

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Haven’t been doing it that long but think I’m going to start dosing PO4 so it raises instead of dumping all the food. Though I musst say they eat most of it! Lol my fish are getting fat haha

Yeah but they produce waste and it’s getting bound up somewhere other than your corals since you don’t have a skimmer, chaeto etc. The same will happen if you start dosing po4. I think I would just let your alk drop to 7.5

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

How high are your lights mounted?

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Is it just these 2 frags that are giving you issues? Do you have established encrusted sps colonies?

 

[WIReefer]

Is it just these 2 frags that are giving you issues? Do you have established encrusted sps colonies?

All sps are giving me problems. No colonies other than two colonies of pocillopora. Lights are mounted 9 inches above water

 

[WIReefer]

Is it just these 2 frags that are giving you issues? Do you have established encrusted sps colonies?

What do you run your PO4 at?

 

[Acrofiend]

I’d drop the lights a few inches and rent a par meter.

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

I

I’d drop the lights a few inches and rent a par meter.

My po4 runs 0.12-0.15
Don’t drop your lights until you know your par. How many hours are they on? Do they ramp up and down?