Questions on getting started with the right setup

[Brat]

I kinda figure several years down the road. So that's that they are primarily used for SPS corals. Looking at some of the websites, I am not really big on SPS. I really like LPS, soft corals, mushrooms and polyps. I really love a lot of LPS because of the large fleshy polyps.

 

[Bifferwine]

I'm in the same boat. Just never got the itch to keep a lot of SPS.

 

[Brat]

SPS corals don't interest me. I think it's because I like movement in the water and they look like big pretty rocks in the water to me. That's the only way I can explain it. Although I am found of these:
http://www.vividaquariums.com/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=05-5057-10
http://www.vividaquariums.com/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=05-8025-10
http://www.vividaquariums.com/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=05-5340-10-10

can you tell I like the color blue? I can see my tank being called the Blue Ocean. :)

 

[Bifferwine]

Unfortunately corals will change colors in different tanks, depending on the water quality and lighting :(

Just because you buy it blue is no guarantee that it will be blue in your tank.

 

[Brat]

so it could change to pink? yuckie! I'm not a fan of pink. so even if a coral is called the mighty blue coral it could change to orange or something? Would that still mean it's healthy or would something be wrong?

Also, I'm looking at supplements and was wondering what type and brand do you use for your tank? I was looking at Brightwell Aquatics brand for trace minerals, iodine, magnesium, strontium, calcium and vitamin supplements for the fish food. Figuring out what to feed the animals was the easiest part. I figure live and a mix of frozen and flake food.

 

[yote]

SPS corals are the worst about changing colors.They usually turn brown,but its possible to turn other colors as well.
I like the Brightwell products.Been using the calcium and alkalinity more than anything.But all my corals seem to go into feeding mode when I add their zooplankton.
But if you do regular water changes,you wont have to worry about adding the trace minerals or the iodine.Dont add any thing your not testing for.
And avoid the flakes and pellet foods,they contain ash which is just a form of phosphates.Frozen is better for your tank.

 

[Bifferwine]

Yote is right, only use frozen foods. Flakes and pellets = algae.

If you do regular water changes, you probably won't need to dose any of those things except calcium. Salts contain a balanced amount of the trace elements and minerals that you need. Doing a water change not only removes waste from your tank, but it adds back the minerals and elements that get depleted over time. The rule of thumb is that if you don't have a test kit to show you're deficient, you don't need to dose for it. If you just dose things that you think you need without testing first, it's easy to overdose your tank.

For the fish food, most people (myself included) use Selcon.

 

[Brat]

thank goodness I won't need all those things then. I was really hoping I wouldn't. I was planning on making water changes each month.

Thank goodness I can leave flake foods out of the equation.

do any of you culture your own live phytoplankton? I was looking at it and it sounds like a good idea.

 

[yote]

Heres how I look at phytoplankton.Its just a free floating form of algae.So the waste the fish produce will cause enough to grow in the tank to sustain the phytoplankton feeders.
I've noticed that when I DID feed the phyto,I usually had an algae outbreak.So I dont use it anymore and I only use the zooplankton once a week.
I might be tottally off in my thinking,but thats just my experience with it.

 

[Bifferwine]

I've never cultured my own phyto. There's a local guy in town that does, and bottles it. It's cheap and easy for me to just buy it from him.

 

[RyanG]

A lot of fish breeders use a concentrated algae for feeding rotifers. Its called Instant Algae Rotifer Diet.

 

[Brat]

with a new reef should i worry about adding phytoplankton and rotifers? Shouldn't there be enough in the beginning from the live rock and sand?

 

[Bifferwine]

You don't need to worry about that off the bat. Most corals that you start off with will get their nutrition from the light and whatever your fish are producing in the water column. Lots of LPS like to be target fed, but usually that's bigger pieces of food like mysis or krill. Your filter feeding corals (like SPS) will benefit from the addition of coral food to the water.

 

[daugherty]

look up reef nutrition (sp) i just watched a presentation about their products today and is is very intresting they sell everythingthing that you need from live rotofers and the food for them and they will tell you everything that you need to groe your own.

 

[Brat]

Yeah! I just saw them. I bookmarked them as well. I figure after having my tank up for a year maybe every six months I will buy some rotifers and pods and put them in my refugium to replenish the tank I guess.

I also found these people. Indo-Pacific Sea Farms that also sells a lot of things that are found in live sand. So when I get starfish I can try and keep up with their appatite by keeping the sand bed stocked with what it needs to continue to work. I hear some people will change out a little sand in their sand bed once a year just to add the biodiversity back to the tank.

Oh, I also wanted to ask you guys about Carbon in filters and what type of filtration do you use with your sumps. Why do you not leave carbon in for more than a week every month and what type of filtration do you guys use and why?

 

[yote]

I hardly ever use any carbon.But I change 25 gallons a week out of my 75 gallon tank(103 total gallons).I do keep on hand,just in case I need it.
I dont run any kind of mechanical filtration.Just a 30 gallon sump/fuge with 2 skimmers.The reason I dont use filter media,is it can build nitrates if its not rinsed or replaced pretty regular(once a week).

 

[Brat]

I don't mind changing the media filter every week as I'm used to doing that with my other tanks.

I was thinking about changing 50 gal. a month for the 300gal tank.

 

[Bifferwine]

You'll probably need to do water changes more often than once a month. 10% of your water volume once a week or 20% every two weeks is a good way to go. When I'm not out of town, I usually do 30 gallons a week on my system (300 gallons total). I've been working out of town so much lately that I haven't been able to do a water change in about 5 weeks. And in my tank, if I let it go for that long, I really start to see a difference in the health of my corals. Which reminds me, I need to make water today to do a water change!!!

 

[Brat]

well, water changes aren't hard to do anyways and so doing them every two weeks or once a week sounds good to me. 10% of 300gal would be 30gal. I could do a 50gal. watch change each week. That's fine with me doing water changes once a week. When it comes to tank maintenance I prefer to do things more frequently anyway. Which reminds me, it's time to change fishies water.

If I keep a carbon filter in the sump and change it out every week will it do any harm to the system? I know I am asking so many newb questions and I totally appreciate you guys helping me out.

 

[yote]

I dont think it would hurt anything.