could it be the water?

chappy121 · #1 08/05/2006, 01:49 PM

Need a bit of help. This is the situation
1) water quality is good: (although not perfect)
Temp SG pH Ca Alk NO3 PO4 Mg
80 1.027 8.2 420 8.6 0.2 0.03 1260
2) Everything grows rather quickly: XM 10k 250 W lighting
3) Have a flame angel that picks a bit but at 180g the tank is rather big for him to bug everything
4) I dont dose anything beyond what the ca reactor provides, I do provide Zooplex twice a week

Problem: only some SPS corals have polyp extension during the daylight hours, most only extend at night and very little, and brain corals never do well.

Could it be the water? Do I need to dose something? Could the flame angel be the entire cause of the problem. Please help I would really like to keep brains and get full polyp extension.

For those that want to know more about my tank here is a thread I posted not too long ago.
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=884010

Thanks!

bllfish · #2 08/05/2006, 02:27 PM

Try putting the brains on the sand at the bottom of the tank. Could be too much light.

darkreefer21 · #3 08/05/2006, 02:49 PM

sps likes flow thry pmoving them to differnet areas or adding mor flow to or tank

needyreefer · #4 08/05/2006, 03:19 PM

I agree with bllfish, what kind of lights do you have on the tank? Also where are the corals placed?

chappy121 · #5 08/05/2006, 06:55 PM

the brains are on the sand. there is plenty of flow as i run a dart on the sump return and a dart through a ocean motion 8 way. i have 2 250w 10k XM halides and 1 250w 20k XM, and two supplimental t5 actinics.

it is just odd because the brains were in a 72g with the same lighting (2 XM 10k 250w) and they did great. all i can think it would be is something in the water.

bllfish · #6 08/05/2006, 07:11 PM

Checked you thread - great tank and setup. Ca might be a little low 420 vs 450 and SG a little high 1.027 vs 1.025. Any cleanup crew bothering them? Maybe one of the corals near by is secreting something that is irritating the brains.

chappy121 · #7 08/05/2006, 07:47 PM

cleanup crew is just blue legged hermits and astrea snails. and there is nothing near them. the only thing that bugs any of the corals is the flame angel. i have this feeling everything is related. the brains and the SPS extension.

any other thoughts? could there be something in the water i should test for? or something missing?

McCrary · #8 08/05/2006, 07:50 PM

Your calcium should be fine, but you may want to lower your salinity a little. Your open brains are probably suffering because of the lights you have on the tank. Mine never did well in my tank because of the lighting. Chaotic water flow is critical for success with SPS. If you are not already running Tunze Streams than it might be wise to invest in a couple. IMO, they are the best powerheads for an SPS tank. Good luck.

chappy121 · #9 08/05/2006, 08:34 PM

Thanks bullfish regarding the tank. it was fun to build, but of course as soon as you are done there is something you would change. now i wish i had 400w lights and could run the XM20k's.

never thought the lights would have too much power for the brains. that is interesting...

bllfish · #10 08/05/2006, 08:50 PM

Have you tried diffusing the light on an area where the brains are. You could put a couple sheets of screen on top and see what happens.