Coral growth---what am I doing wrong?

[dory36]

Maybe I'm just impatient, but my corals show absolutely no growth at all. My tank has been up and running since February, my levels are: nitrate 0, nitrite 0, ammonia 0, ph 8.2, salinity 1.024, and we use additives on a regular basis. I have PC lighting of 260w that run from 10 am to 9 pm and MH lighting of 350w that run from 3 pm to 10 pm. Any suggestions or ideas?
:needhelp: :thinking: :notsure:

 

[mpls man]

this is my lighting schedule. pc's on from 10 am to 11 am MH'S from 11am to 7 pm then pc's from 7pm to 8, for a total of 10 hours. I also feed my corals every other day with Dt's phytoplankton, phyto max, coral accel, and chroma plex, and they do very well, just some ideas, also what is your calcium level at ? that can sometimes make a difference? see if any of these things help. :happyfish

 

[fmelindy]

Also corals can in some cases take a very long time to adjust to their new environment before they actually show any signs of growth. so there may not actually be anything wrong.

 

[mpls man]

that is very true, my 75 gal has been going for 2-1/2 yrs, be sure to take your time also.. :happyfish

 

[ophiura]

You have a VERY young tank. Even if what you test is perfect, there are loads of other parameters that are fluctuating. For this reason, I tend to discourage rushing into getting corals.
What corals do you have?
What fish do you have?
How often do you do water changes?
RO or tap water?
What is your tank temperature?
What additives do you add?
What is your calcium and alkalinity at?

 

[dory36]

As for corals we have hammers, xenia, candy canes, brain coral, sun polyps, alvepora, zoos, and a bunch of mushrooms.
As for fish we have 7 chromis, 1 maroon clown, 1 yellow tang, 1 scooter blenny, 1 sand sifting goby, 1 firefish, and 1 wrasse (fairy?).
I do a 10% water change every weekend and I use saltwater from my lfs. I replace with RO/DI when my water evaporates. I've never used tap.
My tank temp starts off at 78 degrees and usually creeps up to 80-82 by the end of the day. If I remember to use the fan in my canopy it'll stay at 78 all day.
We use something called B-Ionic (it's a 2 part dosing) on a regular basis.
I don't do any tests for calcium or alkalinity, but the last time my lfs tested my water they said those two were perfect.
Thanks for the help and suggestions, guys!

 

[dory36]

I forgot....I also have two torch corals and a bubble coral.

 

[ophiura]

How long have you had these corals, and how fast do you expect them to grow I would watch that temperature fluctuation. Also I STRONGLY recommend you purchase quality alkalinity and calcium test kits so that you can keep track of those, ESPECIALLY if you are dosing for them. If you get them out of wack, that can cause trouble. How often do you get your water tested?

 

[dory36]

Thanks, Ophiura! Some of those corals I've had almost a year (mushrooms, hammers, candy canes, torch, xenia, and the bubble). The others I bought from February to now. I have my water tested once a week. As far as growth goes, I guess I just want to see some. I'm not expecting a forest or anything (but that would be nice!). Also, my sea urchin sometimes knocks coral over and my husband likes to move things around every once in awhile whenever we buy new rock or just whenever he feels like it. Could this be inhibiting growth?

 

[texasjenn]

just a thought here...your calcium needs to be around 450 ppm for optimal coral growth. Do you dose with Kalkwasser?

 

[meadbhb]

Hiya,
I wonder if bring the temp up to about 80 all day would help. These are tropical creatures and temps between 80-82 would be more ideal. I've got my tank at these temps and have had my hammer go from 3 to 5 heads as has my candy cane. I've also got brains, mushrooms, a bubble coral, a yo stone and two types of star polyps.
However, you do need to test for calcium. You can easily overdose it and mess the chemistry of your tank up.
Meadhbh

 

[ophiura]

So you had another tank and then moved them into this one?
Yes, constantly rearranging things can have negative effects. Basically the animals need to "reacclimate" to every change in flow, potentially in lighting (top of tank to bottom or something). So I discourage constantly moving them around. :yes:

 

[dory36]

Yes, we started out with a Nano Cube and then upgraded. I'll tell my husband to keep his hands out from now on! I'm also going to test for calcium from now on and try to keep my temperature more even. Thanks, guys! You're the best! :jumping: :cheer:

 

[golfish]

Originally Posted by Dory36
we use additives on a regular basis.

Might want to cut these back some or all together...other then Ca and ALk there's really no need for em.
Like mentioned already, your tank is still new. It really hasn't even gone though all the cycles that new tanks go though.

 

[andretti]

Hey Dory...Andretti here. How's your summer sanity goin'? Where were you last Saturday when I began setting up my 300? :thinking: :notsure:

We have a lot in common besides teaching America's future leaders (yikes); we have all the same corals. :jumping: Great minds think alike hey?

 

[dory36]

Hey, Andretti! :joy: How's your 300 going? You'll have to post some pictures---I can't wait!
I have to go back to work next week for 4 days. I'm doing some curriculum planning for next year. It'll be good for me to do something constructive....I went a little crazy at the mall this afternoon. OOPS! How's your summer going?
Anyway, back to my corals....my husband dropped by this lfs on his way home this afternoon.
They had just gotten in a shipment of corals and he bought one. HOWEVER, he didn't know what it was and it wasn't "out" so he doesn't know what it even looks like!!

I was able to figure out what it was (goniopora) and he just plopped it in our tank with no acclimation whatsoever and it really didn't come around ever tonight, so I don't know if it will tomorrow or not. And the thing is, he tried to buy some goniopora a few weeks ago and I told him no way!