Please dont flame me

[michaeltx]

Originally Posted by SteveChouinard
So RO water once a month will = no algae
not exactly it will help control it though. you will always have some sort of algae in the tank but not like what your seeing now and it will take time because of what you have in there now will continue to feed until its gone.
Mike

 

[stevechouinard]

Salinity is at 1.023 which I am told is good am I right?

 

[sk8shorty01]

Originally Posted by reefkprZ
I dont undersdtand why people blame algae growth on lights

no matter what spectrum bulb you have algae cannot grow without the nutrients it requires.....
The quote of the day!!! This is a great point reefkprZ, the light is just one of the many needs algea needs to grow.

 

[michaeltx]

yeah for a fishonly its a good salinity once you start getting corals you will want to bump it up just abit to about 1.026 or so its better for the corals.
Mike

 

[stevechouinard]

bulbs are White and acentic stock bulbs that came with my Satillite lighting system

 

[ameno]

your gona have a cycle, using some of the old water will help to make the cycle shorter.

 

[stevechouinard]

Originally Posted by MichaelTX
yeah for a fishonly its a good salinity once you start getting corals you will want to bump it up just abit to about 1.026 or so its better for the corals.
Mike
OK will keep that in mind how long of a period of time should the bump take to no harm the fish

 

[michaeltx]

2-3 days is fine your not jump 10 points just a few you just dont want it all at one time.
Mike

 

[stevechouinard]

Originally Posted by ameno
your gona have a cycle, using some of the old water will help to make the cycle shorter.
So what causes it cause I would think everythings the same except the glass surrounding it

 

[bigarn]

Not to confuse the issue .... but those are SG readings not salinity. A salinity reading of about 35ppt is about perfect for a reef system.

 

[stevechouinard]

I would think using all of my old stuff in the new tank and adding 20 gallons of new water would be the same as a good water change so why would it cycle

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by SteveChouinard
I would think using all of my old stuff in the new tank and adding 20 gallons of new water would be the same as a good water change so why would it cycle
once you change everything over tyour ghoing to disturb the sand bed stirring up detritus, your going to lift some of your anoxic zones into aerobic environment killing some anoxic bacteria chances are you will have a short amm spike as the system settles itself in again.

 

[saltn00b]

something you may be missing is Phosphate testing. PO4 builds up in older systems as the calcerous materials absorb as their maximum potential and it starts to enter the water column with no where to get locked up. this causes algae blooms and inhibits / kills corals. being that you dont have corals, you never needed to test for this. This can happen regardless of how often you do WC's, although WC's help. i would suggest testing for this and if they are high, either swap out or purchase and add some new CURED LR.

 

[stevechouinard]

Originally Posted by reefkprZ
once you change everything over tyour ghoing to disturb the sand bed stirring up detritus, your going to lift some of your anoxic zones into aerobic environment killing some anoxic bacteria chances are you will have a short amm spike as the system settles itself in again.
Ok so when I switch the tank what should I do with my fish... Will taking water only from my tank and putting it into a 15 gallon spare tank provide a decent home for a clown and a coral beauty??? or will that cycle too???

 

[stevechouinard]

Bump

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by SteveChouinard
Ok so when I switch the tank what should I do with my fish... Will taking water only from my tank and putting it into a 15 gallon spare tank provide a decent home for a clown and a coral beauty??? or will that cycle too???
I would put the fish in too, and just treat with amquell plus to neutralize the ammonia.

 

[flricordia]

Fish would probably do fine in a tank with no water changes as long as parameters were stable, it's when you start keeping corals then it comes down to trace elements and whether the corals just survive or thrive.

 

[chilwil84]

one of the other things that build up with time without waterchanges are the hormones(think that is what they are) that the larger fish release to control the growth of smaller fish in there area the same thing goes for some types of coral in a closed system

 

[ophiura]

I probably missed it in here, but what test kits are you using, how old are they, and have all these readings been double checked at an LFS?

 

[stevechouinard]

Originally Posted by ophiura
I probably missed it in here, but what test kits are you using, how old are they, and have all these readings been double checked at an LFS?
Dr. Wellfish is the brand its is less then a year old and yea I bring my water to the lfs every time I go