Coraline anyone? I can't seem to get any :)

roboticfish

Member
Hello,
I figured I'd ask the experts as i can't seem to figure this out. Starting from the beginning....
Starts the tank in August of 2008 was a 55 Gallon FOWL. In June 2009 i upgraded to 75G as my fish were growing and wanted to give them more room. I have the same rocks since 2008 ( 70-80 LBS ) , Up until Dec 1st 2010 i was using regular light that came with the tank, then upgraded to colarlife T5's.
I have no Coralline at all but maybe a cm or two. I have combated a red slime issue since getting my t5's.
Running T5's : 8 hours a day. 7AM-9AM and 1PM -6PM.
Feeding: Plankton Dry in morning (1 pinch)
Brine or Mysis/Squid at night (one cube)
Fish: Foxface, Dogface Puffer, Green Spotted Puffer, ScissorGoby, Purple Pseudo, Algae Blenny. 10 or so random hermit crabs.
I understand the tank is to small for the Dogface and im in the process of finding him a new home( raised him from a tiny baby about the size of a quarter..
Calcium is perfect, PH is perfect, Ammonia is 0, Nitrite is 0, Nitrate is 20.
Running a red sea prizm protein skimmer. HOB Cascade 1000 and a custom built Wet/Dry.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Also perhaps im over feeding?

 

lsboogie

Member
Flow and calcium (if I'm not mistaken) are the major things needed for coraline. You say calcium level is perfect, but what exactly is perfect? What type of gph is your tank running with what kind of phs?
Side note:..I really hope that anchor is plastic...
 
S

saxman

Guest
What has worked for us is pre-buffering our RODI top-up and make-up water. It keeps our pH and buffering capability up and the coralline is almost a nuisance, but not quite. All we do is add a small measuring spoon (it's one of those "dash" "pinch" spoons so I can't tell you how much, but we experimented and landed on that). We add it to the 5 gal carboys and aerate them at least overnight. If you like purple, that will do it for you.
 

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by saxman http:///forum/thread/384872/coraline-anyone-i-can-t-seem-to-get-any#post_3373329
What has worked for us is pre-buffering our RODI top-up and make-up water. It keeps our pH and buffering capability up and the coralline is almost a nuisance, but not quite. All we do is add a small measuring spoon (it's one of those "dash" "pinch" spoons so I can't tell you how much, but we experimented and landed on that). We add it to the 5 gal carboys and aerate them at least overnight. If you like purple, that will do it for you.
+1

Welcome to the site!
Keep calcium level at 400 to 450. Get a rock with it on it and use a hard tooth brush (mark it FISH ONLY) and rub the rock with it under a power head to seed the tank.
 

roboticfish

Member
Yea my Calcium is 410 and i have one koralia ( is this enough?).
My anchor is plastic and it said it was rated for saltwater... bad idea? My wet/dry does about 500GPH but the water coming in from the wet/dry return isnt giving much flow.
another powerhead?
Can anyone share a picture of what it should look like? I feel my rocks just turn green or get red slime. The toothbush thing sounds like a good idea, So buy a new rock with decent growth and hit it with the brush a few times?
Oh and thank you for the welcome :D
 
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