medi Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Well I am having a few issues keeping SPS alive. I placed a small frag of green birdnest in the bottom of my tank and within 4 hours all of the tissue had receded and the frag was completely dead. All other SPS has just slowly died off after a couple of weeks. Everything else in the tank including zoas, softies, LPS, anemones and all other livestock has thrived. I do a 5G water change bi-weekly using red sea and RO/DI that test 0 TDS A little about my setup: 34G solana, coralife 150W MH with 2 65W PC actinincs, MH bulb is a 14K phoenix, all bulbs are 1 month old, stock protein skimmer, 1 K2, 1 K1, and 1 K nano, 1/2" DSB, approx. 40 Lbs. LR, running actinics for 12 hrs, and MH for 7 hrs, modified fuge in back compt. packed with chaeto, running chemipure elite and carbon in the last compartment. Temp. runs between 77 and 80. Supplements: every 1/3 day - Reef roids, frozen rotifiers, Kent's coral accel, Kent's strontium and moly, Kent's lugol's iodine As needed, very seldom - turbo CA and KH buffer Last water test was: SG - 1.025 NO3 - 5 PPM NO2 - 0 NH3 - 0 PH - 8.15 KH - 10 CA - 440 MG - 1300 Phospate I stopped testing because it was always 0 SPS is my favorite coral and would love to be able to keep it, but I am getting more than a little frustrated. Any ideas? Thanks for the help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mcallahan Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 I have no scientific evidence to back up my claim, but adding all those supplements sounds like a lot. I've talked to several people who have lots of reef experience who swear that the more you try to control (supplement) everything, the worse off you are. Just ask Bruce to dose his display tank. He just eyeballs everything and look at that tank. Bruce steered me away from strontium/moly early on as he suggested they were basically poison and were not really needed. Another rule to stick by is "if you can't measure it, then don't dose it" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdavis735 Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 good point mark.i totally agree.i run my calcium reactor for alk anc calcium,and every several weeks i might if i remember add 4 drops of lugols.i run phosphate remover and carbon in 2 seperate reactors.that is pretty much it.so far i have had great luck."knock on wood".oh yeah i never feed corals.only fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mcallahan Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 Also, 1 K2, 1 K1, and 1 K nano seems a little much for a 34G Solana...I think 1x#1 and the nano would do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdavis735 Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 that is very true to mark.i literally blew the flesh off an sps by having it too close to a power head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medi Posted July 6, 2009 Author Share Posted July 6, 2009 sounds like good advice. Maybe I will try holding off on the supplements for awhile, with the exception of reef-roids because I have seen incredible growth after using it. Also, I don't know if the flow is too much only because everything is pointed directly towards the front, and nothing is directly in the flow and I have seen tanks that have ALOT more flow than what is in mine. Anyways I am fixing to change all of them over to a MP20. I could be very wrong about the flow, and am very willing to remove a couple if necessary. Mark- Do you mind telling me where you got a good deal on the poly-lab? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mdavis735 Posted July 6, 2009 Share Posted July 6, 2009 that mp20 should be nice.i have seen videos on you tube of solana's with a nice wave from an mp20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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