what additives should i be adding to my tank?

[JPReef]

Right now im adding:

Weekly:
Cycle

Daily:
Kent Marine - Liquid Calcium
Kent Marine - Pro Buffer dKH

For the corals:
Kent Marine - PhytoMax --- Every other day.

My concern is when i blow off a spot on a piece of live rock its white.

I'm still having a huge issue with diatoms. Their covering my tank completely. BUT, thats not the question i need answered.

I'm worried that my live rock could by dying off of coralline algae since every spot i can see on them is white.

What else should I be adding to help the coralline grow?

Also, what should I add to the tank to get ready for adding corals?

[BlueSi4]

First of all you should test the water and post it, which might help people a little bit as far as giving you advice.
I had the same problem with the rocks turning white, and after a while they started going back to normal.
Since i added a couple corals i've been dosing a B-Ionic 2 part solution, one part being alkalinity the other part being calcium.
Make sure you test for calcium and alkalinity before you get that though, because if your parameters are on the specific range, you don't need to use that.
Also, how's your PH? PH might be another reason why your rock is white...

[poppin_fresh]

You should never add anything with out know if you need too. What is "Cycle" and why are you adding it? What are your calcium and Alk levels? With no corals yet, you are probably adding the Kent stuff with nothing to uptake it. You say you add Phytomax for corals, but say you have no corals.

If I were you I would relax on adding stuff for a while. My guess is that the diatoms (if thats what they are) are being fed by all the suppliments. I would not use the growth (or lack there of) of coralline as an indication of how the tank is doing.

[BlueSi4]

Have you tested any parameters?
Could you post them up, such as salinity, nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, calcium, alkalinity, Ph.
Also, how frequently you do water changes?
I'm not sure what kind of setup you have or if you even have a thread with all that, but in order for people to help you, it's good to know what you have!

[JPReef]

Originally posted by poppin_fresh
You should never add anything with out know if you need too. What is "Cycle" and why are you adding it? What are your calcium and Alk levels? With no corals yet, you are probably adding the Kent stuff with nothing to uptake it. You say you add Phytomax for corals, but say you have no corals.

If I were you I would relax on adding stuff for a while. My guess is that the diatoms (if thats what they are) are being fed by all the suppliments. I would not use the growth (or lack there of) of coralline as an indication of how the tank is doing.

Sorry, didn't think when i posted that. I have 2 little zoo frag corals i got for free from a LFS because he said their not doing well. So i don't really consider them right now.

I'm actually meaning when i add expensive corals that i wouldn't want to see die. SO.......is PhytoMax ok to add for corals then?


Ok. I didnt know i had to write a book about parameters before I asked a single question. Im really trying not to lose my cool about this but my patience is running thin with this diatom problem. I've done a ton of reading on this forum and with the site having so much traffic the search button seems useless and is usually disabled. I know i could have a premier membership, but i feel i shouldnt have to just to find out something quick and easy without wasting someones time with the same repeated questions.
(sorry im venting a little)

So anyway, all i really wanna know is if there is anything i should get that i might have to add later for coralline growth, corals, and possible weekly additives. I see all these people adding kalk reactors, phosban reactors, and dosing equipment with actually explaining what they are helping with and why they need them.

As far as checking parameters, my ammonia is 0, nitrite 0, and nitrate is always 10-20ppm. I know its high but ive been trying to figure out why. Im going to take out a sponge filter that i have been using in the sump in between baffles for micro bubbles. Hopefully that helps.

Anyway, PH is 8.2 but Alk and Calcium have been hard for my to test because the colors are so close together for alk and the calcium test kit i have is so confusing i don't even know if i did it right. Even if i did i dont feel that it is correct. Ive got a Red Sea and API test kit for everything but calcium. I have the Hagen kit for calcium.

And for the Diatoms, my last resort is buy a "Diatom Filter" and stirring up everything and using a syringe to blow off the rocks and turn off the sump and run the filter, HOPING this works. Heh, i feel like im loosing my mind with all of this.


PLEASE! Help me keep my sanity.

[BlueSi4]

I have Diatoms, i had them when i cycled my tank, and they came back after i removed the live sand and crushed coral.
Equipment is also a big part of equation. You said you're running a sump, do you have a skimmer? If not, you should try to get one, since they will clean the water and remove waste.
I've been told that sponge filters don't really work, and that they tend to be a problem.
Until a couple weeks ago, i was running a HOB filter with a sponge, carbon, and those rocks to remove ammonia, and i don't think it really worked out. So i took everything out and just added a poly filter and chemi-pure, since then it seems like the water is a bit cleaner, and parameters are a little bit better.
Also, getting better test kits might give you better and more accurate readings. I know people recommend Salifert test kits, but they tend to be expensive. I've been using Instant Ocean and so far it's been giving me really accurate readings.

As far as corals go, you're gonna need either T5 or MH lights for them to survive and thrive, there's been people that are using PCs, but T5 or MH work well. Besides that, they need to have a good PH which you have, nitrate would be good if it was 0, but your 10-20ppm might be because of the test kit.

One last thing, if you only have fish and live rock, i would not dose any products for a bit, maybe a week or two, and see if you notice any changes. I wasn't dosing anythign and my tank was doing pretty good, just had some Red Slime algae but that's about it.

Goodluck!!

[JPReef]

this is after 12hours of the live crushed coral substrate being clear of diatoms after i sucked them out.



Also, read my info. it shows my current equipment.

[BlueSi4]

Yea, that is worst than i thought, i think you might have a bigger problem. What kind of water are you using?

[JPReef]

RO/DI water with a Silicate Removing filter.

[BlueSi4]

Wow, you're using almost the same things i'm using, yet i don't have that problem.
I was told to remove the crushed coral out of my tank since it tends to accumulate detrius and apparently is a phosphate and nitrate factory, but i'm not sure.
I think you should maybe try to do a search on diatoms or ask some experts around here about that problem, since i don't really know what else to tell you.

[JPReef]

im going to cut back on my feeding and my photo period and see what happens from there. Im also going to get rid of my damsels and hopefully that cuts down on the bioload.

[JPReef]

Bump for help!

[phenom5]

what additives should i be adding to my tank?

only the ones you test for.

but Alk and Calcium have been hard for my to test because the colors are so close together for alk and the calcium test kit i have is so confusing i don't even know if i did it right. Even if i did i dont feel that it is correct. Ive got a Red Sea and API test kit for everything but calcium. I have the Hagen kit for calcium.

Salifert test kits for Ca & Alk are so worth the money. easy to read, they use titration instead of the color matching like the less expensive kits.

as far as additives, you could go with a 2-part additive, like B-ionic (there are homemade recipes that you could use that would be a little more economical), a Ca reactor (may be a little more than you want to get into at this point), or you could drip kalk (may be your best bet).

im going to cut back on my feeding and my photo period and see what happens from there. Im also going to get rid of my damsels and hopefully that cuts down on the bioload.

cutting back on the feeding is a good idea. wouldn't worry about the lights, algae is a nutrient issue, not a light issue.

what's your water change schedule?

I've done a ton of reading on this forum and with the site having so much traffic the search button seems useless and is usually disabled. I know i could have a premier membership, but i feel i shouldnt have to just to find out something quick and easy without wasting someones time with the same repeated questions.

here's a little tip for non-premium RC members. in the main menu section on the RC home page click on search tools, enter in your keyword(s), make sure the search reefcentral.com radio button is selected, and there you go. not as good as the other search function, but it works pretty well.

[JPReef]

Thanks a ton. Finally some clarity for my poor brain. Thanks guys for the info. MUCH appreciated.

OH, and the water change schedule is 10-15% weekly. around 10-15g since total water volume is about 90g.

[BangkokMatt]

All the advice you have received is good. Particularly, don't add anything unless you test for it. As a starter, the test kits you should get are Calcium, Alk and magnesium (once you've cycled). I recommend Salifert kits. Don't use cheap, inaccurate ones.
Try running a phosphate remover such as Rowaphos and run it through a phosban reactor. It will help with the diatoms. Also, if possible set a refugium ad grow some algae. It uses nitrates to grow. Diatoms are ugly but not system threatening though you do have them bad. Good luck