Coraline Help

[glenn1217]

I have had my 56 Bowfront setup for 2 years now and was wondering why I don't have alot of coraline growth. The coraline that is on the rocks my corals came on is not spreading and seems like it is dying. I have added Purple-up and that did not help.
PH 8.1
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 0
Nitrite .5 ppm
Salinity 1.022
What else do I need to test for?
I have 192 Watts of PC, with new bulbs.
I really want it to cover the DIY rock a little bit.
Thanks

 

[azaintcold]

Test for calcium. You want it around 400-450 ish. It is what coraline thrives off of . That and good water parameters.

 

[stanlalee]

keep calcium in that range (400ish) and keep replenishing strontium and magnesium via routine water changes and wait 3-6 months.

 

[lobstergrabber]

Something else you might want to try is to buy one or two pieces of live rock that have a large portion covered by corraline. You need something to seed the tank and I don't see a whole lot if any on your rocks either. Just an idea.
Rich

 

[thud]

Use a toothbrush and brush the coralline off of some of your live rock.
Doing this will leave coralline spores floating freely in the water that will eventually attach to your tank walls and other areas to grow.

 

[glenn1217]

Originally Posted by lobstergrabber
Something else you might want to try is to buy one or two pieces of live rock that have a large portion covered by corraline. You need something to seed the tank and I don't see a whole lot if any on your rocks either. Just an idea.
Rich
Thanks for the info. The live rock I have in there was covered at one time. I think I will test for calcium first.

 

[dmjordan]

coraline needs calcium ~450, magnesium ~1350, and dkh ~8-12

 

[monalisa]

Originally Posted by thud
Use a toothbrush and brush the coralline off of some of your live rock.
Doing this will leave coralline spores floating freely in the water that will eventually attach to your tank walls and other areas to grow.
I agree that this will work as well, but calcium needs to be in the 400-450 range. What kind of salt are you using. There are some salts that just don't seem to have the oomph you need for building coraline.
I never heard of a 56 bowfront...was that a special order? Cool...
Lisa :happyfish

 

[glenn1217]

It is the same as a 46 gallon, but taller. I was using I.O. salt, but just switched to Coralife. Those are the only brand they sell at my tiny LFS. I do a 5 gal water change weekly with RO, and will test for calcium. Are there any other tests, like for Mag and DKH that I should get? I have read people on this site say that Calcium and Alk are hard elements to balance. Do I need an Alk test too?

 

[monalisa]

Originally Posted by Glenn1217
It is the same as a 46 gallon, but taller. I was using I.O. salt, but just switched to Coralife. Those are the only brand they sell at my tiny LFS. I do a 5 gal water change weekly with RO, and will test for calcium. Are there any other tests, like for Mag and DKH that I should get? I have read people on this site say that Calcium and Alk are hard elements to balance. Do I need an Alk test too?
IO salt was NOT very friendly to me as far as calcium. When I switched to Oceanic, my calcium came up greatly and my coraline has taken off. Actually this has been tested (by myself) a number of times. I also noticed with IO that...and this MAY be coincidental...the algae growth in my tank (the bad algae) took off. JME... When I switch back to Oceanic, things go back again...IDK...

Lisa :happyfish