My live rocks are not colorful!

[solly]

I have had live rock in my tank for a few months now and it is starting to show just a few spots of pink and green, but not near enough to make me happy... am I just impatient or should I buy a few nice pieces from local dealer (we are lucky and do have a good one that I found after purchasing what I have online) Would adding some mature pieces speed things up? How about additives? I read just tonight on another site that live rock needs calcium, strontium and magnesium supplements to grow their best colors. I assume if I add these things I would also have to purchase test kits and test for them.. I use RO/DI water and do weekly water changes, have a protein skimmer and the best light that will go on my tank, which isn't great since it's a 35 gal hex and the only light that will fit it is the cheap one it came with, but I do put the best bulb I can find and change it every 6 mos.

 

[flower]

Originally Posted by solly
http:///forum/post/3205868
I have had live rock in my tank for a few months now and it is starting to show just a few spots of pink and green, but not near enough to make me happy... am I just impatient or should I buy a few nice pieces from local dealer (we are lucky and do have a good one that I found after purchasing what I have online) Would adding some mature pieces speed things up? How about additives? I read just tonight on another site that live rock needs calcium, strontium and magnesium supplements to grow their best colors. I assume if I add these things I would also have to purchase test kits and test for them.. I use RO/DI water and do weekly water changes, have a protein skimmer and the best light that will go on my tank, which isn't great since it's a 35 gal hex and the only light that will fit it is the cheap one it came with, but I do put the best bulb I can find and change it every 6 mos.

Keep your calcium at 350-450 and keep phosphates down…the coraline will come. Spots are the beginning. In a year or two you will be going crazy trying to keep the stuff off. Plastic covers quicker than rock. So power heads and intake output tubes will get covered first.
A nice well covered piece will also speed things up, I read you can get a NEW toothbrush and turn off the skimmer and under the power head rub away and the coraline will seed the other rock.