discussion on what people are dosing in SPS dominated tank

[duke62]

SO the key i realize is water quality for SPS so i dont want to have a debate on that but im curious of what people are doing for colors and growth.my growth has just started to come into play with a couple of acros and i know it takes times to feel secure in your setup before they start to take off but im not happy with my colors.now im not sure if its the intensity of the blue LED in my tank thats taking away from the blues and purples in my SPS or im just not supplementing the right additives.i just changed my salt to reef crystals and i have been using zeozyme for the past 3 weeks and i also dose coralvite and i am trying a very small dose of iodide.all in the past week or two.i have also tried feeding my corals two little fishes marine snow and new life spectrum reef micro feeder.i use the marine snow every 5 days and spectrum every 3 days.i am noticing i a having a hard time getting my alk higher.right now im bordering on 8.5 t0 7.3 dkh and trying hard to get it up.im dosing 25ml of alk and want to bump it up to 35to 40 a day just nervous on adding to much in a day.bottle reads on esv 1ml per 4 gallons.i have 100 total gallons in my system.i was thinking of adding 7 ml for every 4 hours but dont think it will be enough.i have added just around 35 pieces of SPS in a time period of 3 months and havent lost a piece yet knock on wood.i know i should be more patient.some told me the recipe is survival comes first then growth then color.without a huge debate with things people supplement i want to know what people are using,size of the tank and results.please dont critisize others.i feel thats why people wont post what they are doing

 

[Mattl22]

I have a 75gal tank with 15 gal sump I use kalk in my ato and a cal reactor as far as dosing I use zeozym not currently though, at the moment I'm using prodibo biotim bioclean and reef booster I also just started reef pearls every3 days !
Using po4x4 and phosban and running more carbon than most ppl

 

[prattreef]

I think you are correct when you say that water quality is the key. If you have prisitne water with low nutrient levels ( too low is not ideal either IMO). Your SPS should exhibit good natural coloration. Playing around with all kinds of additives and supplements etc. seems to work for some, but I think this quest for technicolor colors is misguided and unatural. If you take care of the basics that allow your corals to grow and thrive, your colors should take care of themselves. And no, I don't like the hyper pastel colors of Zeovit etc. tanks.

 

[Mattl22]

While I totally respect the less is more approach too reefing it just didn't work for me the zeozym and probiotic products r what really brought my tank out of a slump !!!!!

 

[jerl77]

cal,mag and alk

 

[duke62]

ok i know about alk cal and mag as im sure most SPS reefers know also no nitrates and low PO4 i already said water conditions is key.and im starting to take off when it comes to my acros.not shooting growth but encrusting and new branches forming and growth on them.like i stated i dont want to discuss the basics of keeping SPS.im looking for supplements for color.i know everything we add in the tank should be measured by testing which is EXTREMELYimportant when adding anything..maybe some new european supplements that have not been discussed that someone is using.

 

[prattreef]

While I totally respect the less is more approach too reefing it just didn't work for me the zeozym and probiotic products r what really brought my tank out of a slump !!!!!

I have no doubt some of these products used appropriately can have positive influence. What do you mean by " brought my tank out of a slump"?

Did you add whatever you added in an attempt to improve husbandy and health of the system or specifically to improve color?

 

[Mattl22]

I couldn't shake dinos!!!!! Had them for months did everything short of breaking down my tank and starting over !! My parameters where spot on ! My po4 was low I know because my sps color was good no browning I finally tried zeozym and was amazed at results !!

 

[jerl77]

oh you want all the secrets i see ha ha ha ha i told you mine:eat:

ok i know about alk cal and mag as im sure most SPS reefers know also no nitrates and low PO4 i already said water conditions is key.and im starting to take off when it comes to my acros.not shooting growth but encrusting and new branches forming and growth on them.like i stated i dont want to discuss the basics of keeping SPS.im looking for supplements for color.i know everything we add in the tank should be measured by testing which is EXTREMELYimportant when adding anything..maybe some new european supplements that have not been discussed that someone is using.

 

[duke62]

The zeozyme if used properly is an amazing product.ive seen a positive in my system since using it.it breaks down phosphates and reduces nitrates.ive seen more growth in my sps then i have in the weeks before using.

 

[prattreef]

I couldn't shake dinos!!!!! Had them for months did everything short of breaking down my tank and starting over !! My parameters where spot on ! My po4 was low I know because my sps color was good no browning I finally tried zeozym and was amazed at results !!

Ah, I see. Revamping the bacterial populations in a system with those kinds of problems can definately be a huge benefit.

 

[smoq]

I love that one from the old thread

"Solbby has the right idea to start, (Stop F---ing with the tank) was some of the best advise I ever got.


Kedd"

Trying to achieve technicolors, as Randy stated, is stepping on a thin ice and from my experience, some sps corals will not look more colorful than in nature, whatever you do to them. If I wanted a lsd colored tank I would have to get all my frags from reputable vendors like wetthumb or cherry corals, but then my reef would look fake. So instead, I have some nice sps, but what I am proud of is the green hydnophora that grew into nice colony and looks like a piece of an ocean and not a stick glued to a piece of mosaic tile.

 

[duke62]

i hear you with the natural look of a reef but if everyone wanted that 10k MH would be the only bulbs recommended.it gives it the look of the natural sea and better growth.LED and t-5 with blue actinics would not be sold.i love the look of a colorful reef as do many others just trying to get the colors out is a challenge.

 

[Mattl22]

Duke I'm totally with u and have bought a bunch of frags from wet thumb to try and achieve the crazy coloration in my tank to each there own ! I want my sps to look nuclear lol!!!

 

[pauliwalnuts]

BRS Kalkwasser
BRS ALK
BRS CAL
BRS MAG
KZ Phol's Extra Special
KZ Potassium Iodine Floride

 

[smoq]

I have leds and I like to look on the blues only sometimes, but I can't fool myself into thinking that a montipora spongodes will melt my eyes so I look instead for the unusual shape it forms when it grows into colony. That is why my favorite sps are millies because their apperance create a sense of movement in the tank that never gets old. And don't get me wrong, I do like to buy an expensive frag from time to time to see it grow into rainbow of colors, but I simply cannot afford it most of the time so I am happy with what I have. I think the best of keeping a sps tank is seeing how it all grows and how you literally creating future liverock

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

BRS Kalk
KZ Potassium Iodine Floride

Plus 1 With Kalk and potassium
How much you add of potassium?
I also dose vodka and mag

 

[DEL]

I've been trying to figure out which of the stuff that I'm dosing is adding to the coloration of my sps.

Red sea pro skim
Red sea amino acids
Brightwell magnesium
Brightwell coralkolor
Lugols iodine (pharmaceutical grade)
Vodka

Or, is it my LEDs with t5 (purple blus, blue plus)

I really have no way of knowing

 

[duke62]

well DEL you didnt start dosing all those at one time or add your LEDs at the same time.when did you start seeing a difference in colors.also adding iodine ive heard is a waste because as soon as it enters te system it turns into iodide so i heard adding straight iodide is safer then iodine.

 

[DEL]

well the crazy thing is..there aere some corals that lost their color..or were a diff color when i got it..and after a few weeks..now its a different brighter color..and thanks for the info about iodine. im still confused but ill raad it again and figure it out...but i think #1 to me is stability and my hand is not in the tank as much anymore