SPS Coloration!! HELP

[jurichar]

OK...i've had several of these sps frags(monti cap, monti dig, and 2 acro's) for about 1.5-2 months now. Well they are growing like weeds. I would say they have gotten at least 1/3 -1/4 bigger. But the problems is that they are not really coloring up well, i saw the parent corals and they were colored great...why wont mine color up. EAch of the pieces is getting SLIGHTLY better, parts of the acros will have a very bright haze to the skin, but probably only 5-10% of the total frag and several of the polyps are colored.
WHY is this?? what could be wrong?
I thought possibly nitrates so i bought a salifert kit today (i was using a cheap nitrate dip stick) and the water couldn't have been clearer.... a perfect 0
nitrites 0
Ammonia 0
alk is about 8-9 dka
Ca is ~400
Ph 8.2
I use oceanic salt and i chang about 7 gallons of my 70 gallon display (100gall system) every 2-3 weeks???
Lighting is 2x150hqi (20k) that sit about 2 in off the water line (long story) and 2 96 watt pc sticks 1 -10k and 1 actinic?
The only thing im thinking is that i may have the frags too close to the lights. They are placed in the rockwork about 6-8 in below the water line sooo approx 8-10 in below the glass shield of the halide.
Any suggestions?
I can post pics

 

[viper_930]

My first thought was that they're actually too low, not too high. I have about 14 different SPS in my 36g with a 150w DE halide + 2x65 watt PCs and there is definitely a noticable difference in color between the corals at the top vs. at the bottom. I try to keep as many of my SPS as close to the surface as possible, but I have so little room. I have pieces between 2-10 inches deep and the coloration is directly proportional to how high they are placed.

 

[jurichar]

This is a horrible pic....its the best recent pic i have...sorry its actinic. I circled the placement of the sps in red (obviously lol). The lowest one, far left, is the monti cap. The pic looks skewed, but the highest one is about 6 in off the water line, and the lowest is about 10.
Keep in mind that the bulbs are only 1-2 in off the water line....VERY CLOSES.
I figured i would bake them if i put them that high.....but i will if you think it will be beneficial.
On a side note, at my lfs store today (beautiful store) they had all of their sps in the middle of the tank and it was at least 3 foot deep (big tank) and they said they were using 2x250 20k xm moguls. The coloration was BEAUTIFUL....(so i bought some new frags )
?!?!?!?!

 

[murph145]

hmmm did they brown up when u got them cuz sps can brown up for a while when introduced into a new tank then slowly regain color as they grow out...
another thing is your phosphates how are those?
im thinking that u dont need them as high as u think that u do if ur bulbs are that close to the water i wouldnt put them up too high i see sps that do great under 250's that are about 3' below the light

 

[jurichar]

they were definatly brown when i got them, and they are regaining their color but VERY slowly...if this is normal, then possibly i just need to wait it out....i just want to make sure im not messing anything up . I dont know what my phosphates are, i will need to get a test kit for those as i do not have one currently. I'll try to do that sometime this week. I just put 2 clams in today, i've heard they chew up phospates so maybe i'll see some improvement if this is and issue???
Thanks for all the help so far!!! if anyone else can think of anything that would be very appreciated!

 

[viper_930]

Check the phosphates as murph said.
What kind of equipment are you running? Skimmer? Fuge?
How much water flow do you have?

 

[murph145]

yea clams can stand dirty water but i dont think they will make the water phosphate free....
id say give it time they will grow out and into some nice color.... usually happens in the new growth areas....
and if u could tell us more like viper is askin that might help pinpoint other issues

 

[jurichar]

I will definatly look into phosphates.
As far as equip, i have:
-70 gal display w/ probably 60-70lbs lr...you can see in the pic
-20 gal dedicated fuge w/ 2.5in live sand and a mixture of cheato and the calupra?? algae
-small "fuge" that is located behinde the display tank w/ LR rubble and lots of filter pads
-Small skimmer is also included in the "sump" setup
-Auto-top off the supplements kalk - but i just started using this
See attached pics

 

[jurichar]

pics 3 and 4 are before i put my return pump in...there is a rio 1700 that circulates the water through that system.....btw, kindof ignore the dates on the pics. This setup was a transfer from and established 55 gal system to this new setup. So the setup isnt as new as it may appear by the pics!

 

[viper_930]

I'm not sure what kind of skimmer that is, but it doesn't look very big. If it were me, my first priority would be to upgrade that. SPS do not like nutrient-rich environments.

 

[jurichar]

viper,
i agree with you about the skimmer, but my levels are all perfect. i just bought salifert tests to confirm it. is there a need to upgrade this equipment even if your levels are good.......(confused)
now i'm confused

 

[caillou]

I think you need more flow, that won't solve your problem but it helps plus I don't see your s.g.(specific gravity) posted in your params anywhere.

 

[jurichar]

Originally Posted by Caillou
I think you need more flow, that won't solve your problem but it helps plus I don't see your s.g.(specific gravity) posted in your params anywhere.
sorry.....sg is 1.025 held right on with a float valve auto top off

 

[murph145]

id say even with good water condition a good skimmer is necessary for sps ... id say ud want a nice oversized skimmer if ur plannin on keepn sps happy

 

[jurichar]

ok...we'll i suppose i need to look into an upgrade. Any recommendations??
justin

 

[murph145]

u lokn for something in sump correct?
ASM and MRC are good brands
EURO-Reefs are good but way overpriced

 

[jurichar]

some "beside" the pump would be optimal!
Thanks for all your help murph

 

[jurichar]

sorry my last post didnt make any sense...thats what happens when you try to post from you PHONE! Anyway, im looking for something outside the sump because as you can see by the pic of my sump/fuge....i dont have a whole lot of room in there.
Also, i have the flow turned wayyy down on my fuge/sump, i would say it probabaly sees at a maximum 200 gph probably less. Would this adversely affect the skimmer performance???

 

[jurichar]

another update!!!
I got a salifert phosphate test kit today...yep they are 0 also. I also got a saliferts Alk test too.
So here are my most recent stats
S/g: 1.025 - refractometer
Temp: 79-80
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate: 0 -salifert
Phos: 0 - saliftert
Ph: 8.1-8.2
Ca: 440
Alk: 9.6 dkh salifert
Could my skimmer really be causing my problems???
I should also add that i just bought a yellow/pink bird's nest the other day and it seems to be doing OK so far, its only been 4 days though.....lol its not brown yet.