survey on what you use????????

[tomt]

What suppliments do you use and recommend in your reef tank? Do you use a buffer? DTS plankton food do you like it? thanks for all your input please!:D
Tom

[turtlespd]

I use only Liquid life, its almost the same as Dt. Other than that maybe i add alittle buffer to raise my alk..but im not sure that has any benifical results. Do a water change when in doubt ..hehe

Paul

[Project Reef]

I don't add jack to my tanks when I run a calcium reactor.

If you don't have a reactor, then b-ionic is all you need. That and you're regular water changes and you will be straight.

[Nanook]

Calcium Reactor with ARM media, monthly water changes, daily phytoplankton, fish food....blood sweat and tears.


Nanook;)

[Floridiot]

Proj & nanook - Don't either of you also add iodine?

[Nanook]

I never do...just water changes. I haven't read of any specific, proven benefits of adding iodine, have you? Thanks,


Nanook

[Floridiot]

I haven't read of any specific, proven benefits of adding iodine, have you?

Read anything? No. Personal experience? Yes. Protein skimming removes iodine from the water quickly. I used to add about 5 drops of lugol's every morning to my 135 gal. when I had it set up. After adding iodine, my pulsing xenia would go like crazy. If I missed a day, they would barely pulse. I've heard that adequate iodine levels are also very beneficial to SPS.

I have been out of the hobby for a few years, and am just now getting back into it. There may be some new thoughts on iodine additions that I'm not aware of. I've seen nothing but good from adding iodine in my own personal experience.

[sumpfinfishe]

I use these four basics in the third week of every month as skimming and natural absorbtion will decrease these amounts.
The first three are by Kent: phytoplex,calcium,and essential elements and the fourth is Seachem's IODIDE. All have been used in my reef for almost five years and "I would'nt leave home without them".
just my opinion,s.f.f.

[Reefanatic67]

I use B-ionic (Alkalinity, Calcium, and Magnesium) on a daily basis and add Iodine, Strontium, kalkwasser and Coral Vital on a weekly basis. Additionally I change 5% of water weekly.

[gregt]

2 part Ca and alk additives, and lots of food. My growth rates are through the roof.

Iodine is highly toxic in larger amounts, and there is no reliable test kit for it. There ain't no way I'm adding a toxic chemical that I can't measure to my reef.

[MikeRyan]

I use Seachem for most everything ... Reef Advantage Calcium & Reef Builder ( 2 to 1 ratio ), Reef Buffer, Reef Iodide, Reef Stontium, Reef Plus, Reef Advantage Magnesium. I also run Seachem Purigen, Phosgard & Matrix Carbon. Tested for all parameters for a year and a half to determine usage and have reached a comfortable feel for what the tank needs on a daily or weekly basis. It is a 55gallon with 50# live rock and 80# crushed coral (smaller grain) and sugar size ... lots of critters in the dsb. There are three fish all doing well ... desjarni sail fin, green chromis, six line wrasse as well as lots of hermit crabs, astrea snails and a sand sifting star that may be removed if he impacts the critters in dsb ... so far not a problem. There are lots of corals ... trumpets, green anchor, green frogspawn, closed brain, meat, phonograph (elephant skin), tons of star polyps, three four kinds of leathers, and a giant sinulari. The live rock is covered with coraline and bivalves, spunges, and several mushrooms, most very small. There is also some calurpa that grows in tucked away places that the tang cannot get to.
Excuse the long windedness and the spelling

[MyReefTank]

Seachem makes a very reliable Iodine test kit. I test weekly.
You can also take some water (Here in STL) to tropics on the weekends to Dwain. He is a water chemist. He does Iodine test too.

In my opinion iodine is a key to my success with Xenia and
othe soft corals. I would hate to see what my tanks looked like with ou it. I like the Kent Tech Iodine, it is a time released formula
that my friend Ian Poole from Kent marine sent me. I would give it a try. Lugols is good...but is is very strong. I have found tell tale
signs when I use to much. Diatoms seem to bloom in the tanks when I have od' a little. Just be careful and follow directions.

I use seachem buffers, garlic extreme from kent replaced the super priced Garlic from Eco. Kent makes a vitamin c supplement
I reccomend too. I used to use Weiss products..but I like the general idea here...no ingredients...no put in tank.

I use the kent Strontium/Magnesium as well.
Seachem Calcium to supplement reactor ad well
as some kalk about once a week too.

Oooo...alomost forgot! The new Kent Liquid reactor!
Ian sent that too, pricey if you buy it...but it gets the KH
up and adds calcium.

D

[MyReefTank]

GregT Which 2 part you use? B-Ionic...it has Iodine! Read the label if that is the one you use. I think ll the two parts do.
I used to use it...but man it will skyrocket that kh if you use it
as the directions say.


D

[Project Reef]

Originally posted by Floridiot
Proj & nanook - Don't either of you also add iodine?

Actually I take back what I said about ONLY adding adding b-ionic or using a reactor.

I Do add Lugol's solution iodine, in the acclimation container which holds the new coral, roughly 10 drops for 3-4 minutes.

[MyReefTank]

I have read that somewhere before Project.
Do you like the results?


D

[Old Yeller Tang]

Iodine is toxic in large doses, but softies like xenia and shrooms thrive with the stuff if dosed properly. Right now, I'm dosing with Kent's Tech CB, parts A&B. Can't wait to get my reactor though!

[Project Reef]

I have yet to have an SPS coral RTN on me. knock knock

[DJ88©]

Never dose a thing. Feed the tank, my Ca RX and water changes.

I won't dose anything I can't measure reliably..

Project,

Are you saying you haven't had RTN because of the Iodine? If so I don't think there is any way you can prove that the statement you made is true or false for that matter.

It's like saying that I haven't been eaten by a tiger today because I am wearing only one sock.

[Project Reef]

Originally posted by DJ88

Project,

Are you saying you haven't had RTN because of the Iodine? If so I don't think there is any way you can prove that the statement you made is true or false for that matter.


No. All I'm saying is that I add Lugol's solution to the my acclimating container which holds the new corals, and I've never had a coral RTN. Knock Knock.

[MyReefTank]

I like projects idea of dosing the SPS during acclimation.
I sit here in the office looking at a Monti Capri that bleached.
Maybe I'll put on one sock only while I acclimate...never hurts
to experiment, that's how electricity was discovered.

Ayyyy?


D

[DJ88©]

Still confused..

I don't acclimate at all for the most part.. The last time I did a month later the colony from another established tank RTN'd. Yet I take wild colonies, DON'T acclimate at all and they are growing as fast as any colony in my tank in less than a month with colours to match. One was given to me by a LFS as it was dropping tissue upon arrival. I didn't acclimate, snapped off the branches that were losing tissue, put some glue over the stumps and in two months it has new branches growing over the old stumps and it is flourishing.

To me the statement of putting lugols in and saying it is saving you from RTN is the same as the one sock saving your from being attacked by a tiger.

Can't prove either one is true. I am just trying to say there is no logic behind the statement. And really no way you can prove it either.

But if it keeps you happy.. go for it.

[Project Reef]

Originally posted by DJ88

But if it keeps you happy.. go for it.

You're right, there is no logic behind it. It just keeps me happy.

[64Ivy]

I use a calcium reactor and kalk, DTs twice a week and an occasional shot of magnesium.

[jerronman]

I use Bi-ionic to maintain CA and ALK. Lugol's iodine, Strontium and a very small dose of Phytoplankton( about a 1/4 of the smallest reccomended dose.

[golfish]

I use a calcium reactor and a kalk reactor. I feed a couple flake foods to my fish.