The "SPS bug" has bitten...need some guidance.

[Dpate]

My flow consists of only the return pump and the IM spin stream nozzle.

I sometimes wonder if that alone isn't too much.

It’s not enough! If it were mine,I would slap an MP-10 on one end to increase in tank flow.

 

[André Brasil]

Not enough turn over or not enough flow points?

 

[Dpate]

Both

 

[André Brasil]

Both

How much turn over would be sufficient in your opinion?

 

[Dpate]

I don’t think it’s a function of your return pump seeing as you have a good return nozzle but I really don’t believe you can reach the desired in tank flow without some supplemental in tank flow generator ( sorry if I’m redundant
But I’ve had a few cocktails!”) Again, an MP10 would do wonders for your fish and corals!

 

[ReefSlice]

Your filter turn over is fine, I'd throw a small jebao in there and call it a day if you don't want to drop big bucks on an mp10.

 

[André Brasil]

The idea behind not adding a pump is the display real estate being so precious. It's one of the things i like about my tank, not having any equipment on the display. But if it's an importante factor, ill look into it!

 

[Dpate]

When keeping corals, flow is of huge importance!
Right behind light and stability! I only suggest the mp-10 cuz it’s my favorite, that being said, there are a million to choose from,
I would add a couple of my favorite sayings:
Reefkeeping is like race car driving, the faster you go,, the harder you crash!
And
Buy cheap buy twice!
GOOD LUCK!

 

[mattzang]

can't really help since i have to this point been unable to keep an SPS from bleaching out myself, but your tank looks awesome.

i also told myself SPS weren't for me, but I've tried 3 to this point. birdsnest and stylo, now trying a green digi. the more i see of them at stores or in youtube videos, the more i appreciate the colors and overall look of them.

 

[wranodj]

Stability, stability, stability. Temp, pH, alk, etc. Patience, lots of it, nothing good comes quickly. Can mix kalk in separate bucket, let settle and use supernatant. Mrs. Wages will be fine . Acropora like FLOW.

 

[mtraylor]

;Stig

 

[DzidtheReefer]

Currently i have a 60gal mixed reef with sump and about a month ago i got into SPS.

I do not have an ATO, but my system loses about 3cups of water a day, so i manually add water everyday and for now.... its keeping my system stable for 7 months so far....

i have 2 acros that ive been able to keep happy by doing 2 10gal water changes a week with flow provided by an mp40. I use red sea pro salt because of its elevated levels, and everything seems to be thriving. I feed fish about 3times a day, and coral about 3 times a week and so far so good.

One important thing i should mention is that i had to redo my aquascape due to my bubble coral not liking the increased flow. For lighting i am running an ecotech xr30 and added an AI prime above the acros for additional lighting. So far so good

 

[DzidtheReefer]

Currently i have a 60gal mixed reef with sump and about a month ago i got into SPS.

I do not have an ATO, but my system loses about 3cups of water a day, so i manually add water everyday and for now.... its keeping my system stable for 7 months so far....

i have 2 acros that ive been able to keep happy by doing 2 10gal water changes a week with flow provided by an mp40. I use red sea pro salt because of its elevated levels, and everything seems to be thriving. I feed fish about 3times a day, and coral about 3 times a week and so far so good.

One important thing i should mention is that i had to redo my aquascape due to my bubble coral not liking the increased flow. For lighting i am running an ecotech xr30 and added an AI prime above the acros for additional lighting. So far so good

 

[vetteguy53081]

Keep levels as stable as possible. While we desire to achieve certain readings/goals, chasing numbers to reach a desired level will poise more harm than benefits. raise or lower numbers gradually. Its never an emergency but rather a desire to alter numbers- no need to rush
Flow definitely needs to be increased as the sps are on their way to tissue recession and death.

 

[MissyTwitch]

Sps Advice:
- stability is key.
- aquaculture survives better than wild
- never have temp >80’c [sps don’t tolerate it very well => white out/STN/Death], 75-79 good range [try to keep within a level of 2’]
- keep magnesium 1250-1500, <1250 tank gets cloudy cause calcium to precipitates if Calcium at correct levels
- keep Calcium 400-450
- Alkalinity 8-10. Less than 7 leads to white out/STN/Death
- potassium <400 leads white out/STN/Death
- potassium >470 leads to burnt tips
- Get a Par meter to measure par at different levels in tank. Less than 20o=> browning/no growth/can lead to death. Initially when new sps introduced into tank start sps at where par is sps. Sps don’t tolerate dramatic changes in par when going at higher levels of par. It’s not necessary to go 400+ if using LEDs, but can be done if slowly. Personally I’m a fan of both gen4 radion pros and orphek atlantik, but others do well with T5s, hybrid systems, Metal Halides.
- read up on zeovit/low nutrient tanks => lot of stable tanks come from zeovit set up. Once stable if you want to move on to cheaper and different things do it slowly.
- Tangs are the safest fish in sps tank and help keep algae growth down with the higher par levels. More tangs => more poop => more food for sps
- Algae scrubbers => help keep ammonia/nitrates/phosphates low, but not zero. If your using a protein scrubber be careful you can strip nitrates/phosphates/ammonia to zero =>zeroing these out can lead to white out/STN/Death to SPS. If you choose to opt out and not use a protein scrubber use some type of filtration system to pull out detris [filter socks]
- sps release toxins and fight keep them a distance apart if you can and give them space to grow. Zoas/Leathers release toxins that can kill sps. If your going to do a mix’d Tank have charcoal and/or ozone to help deal with the problem. If using ozone it makes your tank really clear )....but it increases your par by 100+ in an established system [big change up in par => Death to sps]
- maintaining calcium/alkalinity/magnesium => calcium reactor....pain in the butt to set up, but worth it once zoned in. Reborn a little bit more expensive for media but worth it cause it also releases rare elements. Totally colored up my sps.
- issues with alkalinity => Alk reactor
-Flow is important to SPS. To low is death. Medium to high =>happy sps) . If sps is in a zone that’s too high you’ll see one side that’s having problems.
-you’ll start to notice you’ll have one coral that’s the most sensitive to changes. Pay attention to it will be a measure as to if something is wrong with your tank
- low nutrient systems have problems with brown Diatoms/dyanoflagellate. They are taking advantage of no competition as a lot of the other algae/phytoplankton/zooplankton die off with lack of phosphates/nitrates/ammonia. Pain in the butt.....a few ways to help get rid of it => create competition [live phytoplankton/zooplankton]. Either culture it yourself and have daily dosing or buy it from where it’s available. Another way to do it let your tank get dirty [increase nitrates/phosphates]. It’s ok to have it a little elevated, not the end of the world.
- starting sps in a new system.....bad idea. Let it get established for 3-6 mo first

 

[Crustaceon]

Some thoughts here. Since your tank is so tiny and looks like pretty much no livestock is in it aside from coral, I have to wonder if nitrate levels are enough of an issue yet to even warrant water changes, which can affect stability, especially in smaller systems. As many people here have mentioned, keeping Sps coral is all about stability and making unnecessary adjustments to hit certain water parameters like swiftly reducing a completely fine nutrient level through a water change can stunt coral growth or even kill otherwise healthy colonies. This is why many of us say, “don’t chase the numbers”. Shoot for a range and do as little as possible to your tank that will affect water parameters. So let’s say your nitrates are at 10ppm. If left unchecked and no additional food is added to the tank to rot and turn into additional nitrates and phosphates, those levels will drop on their own as your corals grow and develop really nice coloration. But as the nitrates get too low, they’ll stop growing as much, will fade in color and will likely develop tissue necrosis. The key here is testing and keeping those nutrient levels where they should be and taking action to adjust them to reasonable levels only if you have to, gradually and hopefully as infrequently as possible.

As for dosing and salinity, invest in an auto topoff system and get yourself a dosing pump for two-part. Jebao makes a super cheap and pretty reliable in my experience three-channel model for around $60. It’ll take care of your alk, calcium and magnesium dosing and for a small tank, will be a very simple, precise and economical way to give your corals what they need. BRS sells starter mixes and I could see $50 worth lasting you a full year with you tank’s current dosing demand.

Safe ranges:

Alk 7-8.5
Calcium 400-450
Mag 1400-1450
Nitrates 5-10
Phosphates .01-.05
Temp 76-83
Salinity 1.023-1.026
Ph 8-8.4

 

[vetteguy53081]

Sps Advice:
- stability is key.
- aquaculture survives better than wild
- never have temp >80’c [sps don’t tolerate it very well => white out/STN/Death], 75-79 good range [try to keep within a level of 2’]
- keep magnesium 1250-1500, <1250 tank gets cloudy cause calcium to precipitates if Calcium at correct levels
- keep Calcium 400-450
- Alkalinity 8-10. Less than 7 leads to white out/STN/Death
- potassium <400 leads white out/STN/Death
- potassium >470 leads to burnt tips
- Get a Par meter to measure par at different levels in tank. Less than 20o=> browning/no growth/can lead to death. Initially when new sps introduced into tank start sps at where par is sps. Sps don’t tolerate dramatic changes in par when going at higher levels of par. It’s not necessary to go 400+ if using LEDs, but can be done if slowly. Personally I’m a fan of both gen4 radion pros and orphek atlantik, but others do well with T5s, hybrid systems, Metal Halides.
- read up on zeovit/low nutrient tanks => lot of stable tanks come from zeovit set up. Once stable if you want to move on to cheaper and different things do it slowly.
- Tangs are the safest fish in sps tank and help keep algae growth down with the higher par levels. More tangs => more poop => more food for sps
- Algae scrubbers => help keep ammonia/nitrates/phosphates low, but not zero. If your using a protein scrubber be careful you can strip nitrates/phosphates/ammonia to zero =>zeroing these out can lead to white out/STN/Death to SPS. If you choose to opt out and not use a protein scrubber use some type of filtration system to pull out detris [filter socks]
- sps release toxins and fight keep them a distance apart if you can and give them space to grow. Zoas/Leathers release toxins that can kill sps. If your going to do a mix’d Tank have charcoal and/or ozone to help deal with the problem. If using ozone it makes your tank really clear )....but it increases your par by 100+ in an established system [big change up in par => Death to sps]
- maintaining calcium/alkalinity/magnesium => calcium reactor....pain in the *** to set up, but worth it once zoned in. Reborn a little bit more expensive for media but worth it cause it also releases rare elements. Totally colored up my sps.
- issues with alkalinity => Alk reactor
-Flow is important to SPS. To low is death. Medium to high =>happy sps) . If sps is in a zone that’s too high you’ll see one side that’s having problems.
-you’ll start to notice you’ll have one coral that’s the most sensitive to changes. Pay attention to it will be a measure as to if something is wrong with your tank
- low nutrient systems have problems with brown Diatoms/dyanoflagellate. They are taking advantage of no competition as a lot of the other algae/phytoplankton/zooplankton die off with lack of phosphates/nitrates/ammonia. Pain in the butt.....a few ways to help get rid of it => create competition [live phytoplankton/zooplankton]. Either culture it yourself and have daily dosing or buy it from where it’s available. Another way to do it let your tank get dirty [increase nitrates/phosphates]. It’s ok to have it a little elevated, not the end of the world.
- starting sps in a new system.....bad idea. Let it get established for 3-6 mo first

This is what i consider SOUND ADVICE. Well done!

 

[MissyTwitch]

Sps Advice:
- stability is key.
- aquaculture survives better than wild
- never have temp >80’c [sps don’t tolerate it very well => white out/STN/Death], 75-79 good range [try to keep within a level of 2’]
- keep magnesium 1250-1500, <1250 tank gets cloudy cause calcium to precipitates if Calcium at correct levels
- keep Calcium 400-450
- Alkalinity 8-10. Less than 7 leads to white out/STN/Death
- potassium <400 leads white out/STN/Death
- potassium >470 leads to burnt tips
- Get a Par meter to measure par at different levels in tank. Less than 20o=> browning/no growth/can lead to death. Initially when new sps introduced into tank start sps at where par is sps. Sps don’t tolerate dramatic changes in par when going at higher levels of par. It’s not necessary to go 400+ if using LEDs, but can be done if slowly. Personally I’m a fan of both gen4 radion pros and orphek atlantik, but others do well with T5s, hybrid systems, Metal Halides.
- read up on zeovit/low nutrient tanks => lot of stable tanks come from zeovit set up. Once stable if you want to move on to cheaper and different things do it slowly.
- Tangs are the safest fish in sps tank and help keep algae growth down with the higher par levels. More tangs => more poop => more food for sps
- Algae scrubbers => help keep ammonia/nitrates/phosphates low, but not zero. If your using a protein scrubber be careful you can strip nitrates/phosphates/ammonia to zero =>zeroing these out can lead to white out/STN/Death to SPS. If you choose to opt out and not use a protein scrubber use some type of filtration system to pull out detris [filter socks]
- sps release toxins and fight keep them a distance apart if you can and give them space to grow. Zoas/Leathers release toxins that can kill sps. If your going to do a mix’d Tank have charcoal and/or ozone to help deal with the problem. If using ozone it makes your tank really clear )....but it increases your par by 100+ in an established system [big change up in par => Death to sps]
- maintaining calcium/alkalinity/magnesium => calcium reactor....pain in the *** to set up, but worth it once zoned in. Reborn a little bit more expensive for media but worth it cause it also releases rare elements. Totally colored up my sps.
- issues with alkalinity => Alk reactor
-Flow is important to SPS. To low is death. Medium to high =>happy sps) . If sps is in a zone that’s too high you’ll see one side that’s having problems.
-you’ll start to notice you’ll have one coral that’s the most sensitive to changes. Pay attention to it will be a measure as to if something is wrong with your tank
- low nutrient systems have problems with brown Diatoms/dyanoflagellate. They are taking advantage of no competition as a lot of the other algae/phytoplankton/zooplankton die off with lack of phosphates/nitrates/ammonia. Pain in the butt.....a few ways to help get rid of it => create competition [live phytoplankton/zooplankton]. Either culture it yourself and have daily dosing or buy it from where it’s available. Another way to do it let your tank get dirty [increase nitrates/phosphates]. It’s ok to have it a little elevated, not the end of the world.
- starting sps in a new system.....bad idea. Let it get established for 3-6 mo first

Should be ‘F not ‘C for temp. I use the metric system texting my peers that I didn’t realize I used Celsius instead of Fahrenheit. Oops..,..also when talking about par it should state when introducing new sps start them at a lower par ~250 in the tank,

 

[André Brasil]

Well, I would like to thank you all for the time you put into these great comments!

Not doing water changes would be great, but it does make me nervous, as I don't test for nutrients at all (nor am keen on doing). In my 11g I have a clownfish and a cleaner shrimp. My cuc and filtration keep the tank completely algae free. Even film algae in the glass takes its time to appear after a scrubbing. Would dosing kalkwasser through the ATO really allow for a water change free system?

 

[Crustaceon]

Well, I would like to thank you all for the time you put into these great comments!

Not doing water changes would be great, but it does make me nervous, as I don't test for nutrients at all (nor am keen on doing). In my 11g I have a clownfish and a cleaner shrimp. My cuc and filtration keep the tank completely algae free. Even film algae in the glass takes its time to appear after a scrubbing. Would dosing kalkwasser through the ATO really allow for a water change free system?

The problem with not testing for nutrients is that you tank can actually become too clean for coral and will kill them. This isn’t about keeping algae off of your glass because honestly, most people with sps still have to wipe film algae and scrub green dot coralline off of their panels every few days. You really should do a nitrate test at least once a week to get a baseline on how much to feed the tank and when a water change would be needed or not. Salifert nitrate tests are cheap, really easy to do and only take about 5 minutes. IMO you need at least 2ppm nitrates in your tank (5ppm works for me and others like having even more). It’s worth it but be prepared to manually clean your tank more than you do now.

 

[PatW]

I would suggest dosing two part. The alkalinity is dosed by adding soda ash that has been dissolved in RODI. The calcium is dosed by adding calcium chloride dissolved in RODI.

For SPS, you want stability of salinity, calcium and alkalinity. You want low levels of nitrates and phosphates but you want some. Less than 5 ppm nitrate and around .03 ppm phosphate.

You want quite a bit of flow and if possible variable flow.

And you want a bunch of light.