Best additive for coral growth?

[childress5tyler]

I was wondering what additives (if any) you add for coral growth. CUrrently all i use is the 2 part B-ionic calcium and alkalinity additive and kent marine coral excel. I also target feed some of my coral...currently i have 3 heads of hammer coral, 2 heads of frogspawn, 1 small/medium size long polyp toadstool leather, a group of duncans, 1 or 2 ricordeas, and some assorted zoas...any advice for coral growth would be great

 

[btldreef]

Water changes.
Even two parts shouldn't be used unless you're testing your water and it needs to be adjusted.
I do not like Kents Coral Foods, most of it is bottled garbage that isn't doing anything but fowling you're water.
I do spot feed my duncans and deep water zoanthids 3x a week. I like to treat my duncans as if they're a non photosynthetic. I feed them fish food while I feed the fish, it's usually Mysis shrimp.
Hammers, Frogspawn, etc get spot fed once a week with fish food, but sometimes I skip.
I add Rods Coral Food or Reef Nutrition Oyster Feast once a week, but this is more for my non photosynthetics and SPS.
But for what you currently have, water changes, good water quality and good lighting is enough. And remember, fish food is fertilizer to corals.

 

[childress5tyler]

So I should stop adding the additives that I am now? and I've never had luck spot feeding my zoas, any hints to it? what do you feed them cause i usually only spot feed with brine shrimp or mysis shrimp

 

[btldreef]

Are you testing your water before adding?
I don't like the Coral Excel, that I'd stop adding.
I just squirt fish food towards the deepwater zoas when I feed the fish. If you don't have deepwater zoas, they're less likely to eat. I feed my fish PE Mysis, and San Francisco Bay Brand Emerald Entree, SFBB Spirulina Brine, SFBB Mysis, SFBB Angel and Butterfly, SFBB Marine Cuisine, Cyclop-eez, Hikari Mysis, shaved salmon, Rod's food, Reef Nutrition Arcti-Pods, and algae sheets. It's always a different mix of a few things, I rotate through them all.

 

[snakeblitz33]

And now I come along and fill your head with different possible ideas.....
Get a high quality salt mix. Tropic Marin Reef Salt, Aqua Vitro, Saltwater Correct, etc. You may pay a little more for it, but it's decent salt, and will keep your water parameters stable.
Get your nitrate and phosphate down as absolutely low as possible... protein skimming, algae scrubbers, water changes, Fluidized Granular Ferric Oxide... whatever it takes. The cleaner your water the better. Nitrate 0, Phosphate 0.
Feed Eric Borneman's Coral Food Recipe according to his directions. It will help your corals tremendously. If you have an oversized skimmer, it may not work as well. Feed your corals a variety of foods, mysis, brine, suspended live plankton, rotifers, anything live is better. Don't use anything bottled, because it just ends up collecting in your skimmer cup or decaying and ending up as algae on the scrubber screen.
Test your water for Calcium, Alkalinity and Magnesium and Salinity. Over time, as you use Calcium chloride and Magnesium Cloride, your salinity levels will increase. It won't be much but you should still test your salinity at least once a month, to keep it constant. Calcium should stay between 440 to 460ppm. Alkalinity should stay around 10 - 12 dKh and Magnesium should stay around 1350- 1400ppm.
Tank maturity - It also has to do a lot with how well the system is established. Like it or not, as your tank matures, the more effective it is at growing corals.
If you can grow coralline algae like crazy, you can grow corals like crazy. Figure out how to make your coralline explode and then find out what combinations of food and lights is the perfect system. Once you've discovered this, you are well on your way.
Keep researching

 

[tur4k]

Kalkwasser drip.
- Helps to stabilize alk, calcium and ph with out adding chloride ions
- precipitates phosphates
- improves skimmer performance

 

[snakeblitz33]

He's using a two part solution, that's why I gave him the two part advice.
Kalkwasser drip is great, if you can learn how to dose it properly.