# How many here have sps corals



## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

How many here have em? Post your statagys and thoughts on keeping them.
TIA


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## Trillion (May 10, 2004)

if a sps is one of those clam looking things that look like a pair of lips sticking out of some thing, and brains I plan on getting one of or a couple of eaach when I get my two metal halide fix'es.

And some of those things that look like they have branches, not gargonias, they kind of look like they are 3D if you look close.

I'll find out the name of them next week I know you probably have no idea


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

I do. i have a few acros, stags, montis, and pocillipora.

3 things in my opinion for healthy sps

1 CLEAN WATER. i had a little acro that i bought when it was green, did well until my tank crash. was in crappy water for a month and browned completely. when i got my tank back up and running, it started to color back the first day. now after 4 days it is half way colored back

2 Light MH all the way

3. FLOW lots and lots of random flow. in a week, i will be running 1,200gph for my main pump, i may get two eductors on the outlets if i want more flow and then 3,000 gph from two seio 1500's this is in my 125.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

No trillion sps are small polyped stony corals.
Ilninio trust me you will like the eductors. Do you have a pressure rated pump?


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

picking up some this firday. i want to get some monti, some caps, and acorpora.


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## Trillion (May 10, 2004)

Raptor said:


> No trillion sps are small polyped stony corals.
> Ilninio trust me you will like the eductors. Do you have a pressure rated pump?


my bad see I knew I didn't have no business in this room :laugh:

still learning though I guess.

thisll be a good topic to learn from


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

i think i will too. unfortunateally i do not have a pressure rated pump. i have a genx4/pcx40 pump. pumps1190 gph

rbp i hope you have a good(not jebo,seaclone,etc) skimmer and halides for the acro. however montipora can grow under normal flourescant light. if this is your first sps stick with montis first. you will brown your first few sps probabally.. if theyre not montis.


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## jiggy (Jun 27, 2004)

all sps, clam, zoa, ric reef here.. intense lighting, intense flow, fresh/pristine water via waterchanges, overskimming, and light feeding.. 
i have 2 400w 14k halides, 80x flow, and do a water change twice a week before every topoff..


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Thats a pressure rated pump ilninio, The pcx40 is the same as an iwaki 55rlt.
rpb the addiction begins. LOL
My tank is 85% sps 10% lps and 5% zoa's and rics.


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

jeeze jiggy, i thought my weekly 25% water changes were nuts. bi weekly...


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## jiggy (Jun 27, 2004)

i do them before i topoff, because thats when the water has the highest concentration of whatever is in it...


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## -=BOB=- (Mar 6, 2003)

*Post your statagys and thoughts on keeping them...*

Well, mine aquarium is dominated by stonies, mostly acroporas (ok there is one pavona cactus and Pocillopora attached to overflow -colony born by polyp bailout)

i try to keep it as simple possible, strong lighting, hardcore current and pure water-.. About pure water, I realized ticket is to avoid animals which require additional feeding (brain corals, feather dusters, bubbles, sun corals.... I try to avoid also loading the tank with useless display fishes )

My strategy is more or less based on BB aquarium with radical water current where all junk is lifted off bottom (impossible with sand bed) and flushed to sump.. Furthermore in sump there is joy of overskimming and active chemical filtration based on roaphos and active carbon, they altogether prevent accumulation of DOM and unwanted chemical compounds..
And as for the chemical stability in my aquarium , major player is simple H&S calc. reactor which provide calcium carbon. for corals optimal growth and keeps my Ph stable.. thats it..

View attachment 107292


View attachment 107307


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Hey bob long time no see, Whats up? Are you still running zeo?


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## -=BOB=- (Mar 6, 2003)

hi Rap..







, ah nothing much.. things happened in my life that forced me to work more and sit less behind computer... but nothing changed, still into aquariums and so..

I stopped dosing zeovit couple of months back, got frustrated with some minor probs like cyano, availability of zeo chemicals etc.. still think system works but, IMO any other approach can provide similar results with devotion and if one knows what is he doing of course.. 
I siphoned all sand out placed another streamer inside ... really happy with results so far..


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## jiggy (Jun 27, 2004)

-=BOB=- said:


> *Post your statagys and thoughts on keeping them...*
> 
> Well, mine aquarium is dominated by stonies, mostly acroporas (ok there is one pavona cactus and Pocillopora attached to overflow -colony born by polyp bailout)
> 
> ...


ur acros look browned out.. i think prestine water is key, but ur corals also need to be fed, via fish waste.. so feedign heavier good food is also key.. thats y overskimming is a must..


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## -=BOB=- (Mar 6, 2003)

*ur acros look browned out.. *

well, you got a point there, I could offer something lame , like bad shot or something but it is true they could be much brighter... mostly I buy browned acroporas (they are much cheaper to get, and and its easier to get lucky with those than with bright colored specimens cultured in seas..) but thats still young setup and slowly they'll regain colors, I hope.., Way I understand it there are two major reasons for browning in these corals - nutrient rich water and weak lighting, I'm curious about how things are going to turn out in this aquarium and I'll post some pics in upcoming months so we can see difference..









*but ur corals also need to be fed, via fish waste.. *

I agree, all corals need to be fed , at some point.. thats why they have polyps in first place.. There are however debates and different approach to this issue.. While in USA is widely accepted idea that ALL corals are going to benefit strongly by additional feeding by different coral food mix (idea led by Borneman, Calfo, Sprung and other authorities in this hobby) In Europe and Japan hotshots argue that Acroporids don't need additional feeding, they say fish waste and detritus ((which you'll turn into the feeding storm by blasting it out of rock when performing water change ) is all food they need.. I'm really no expert just following mentioned strategy so I cant argue about is it enough or not.. just trying to learn things out of own experience.. Remains to be seen.. so far I feed magnifca (anemone) serpent staqres and fishes.. but time will tell if i realise I should do it I can always start feeding corals.. so far so good , they live, grow , have white tips and encrust at the base.. they look ok to me..

*.. overskimming ...*

for it they say its also bad cause it removes not only bad stuff but good trace elements from water, thats probably true as well...might effect colors or otherwise health on longer run but again I don't like to play with additives without knowing exactly what and why...there is so much of coral food and adds on market but most is regarded as junk which is to pollute water or mess up water chemistry (which I dunno sh*** about...







) so my personal opinion and policy on that issue is if its not broken don't fix it...


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## Genin (Feb 4, 2003)

i got my first acro last week so i'll chime in on how things are working in about a month or 2 with my feedback.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Cool, Another sps junkie. LOL this hobby is too damn addicting!!


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## Trillion (May 10, 2004)

WOW nice sps guys those pics were very nice.

Any way to respond to the add again I myself FINALLY found out what sps are today, and do plan on getting some when I get my halides and VhO.

Damg they grow slow though.

guess its a patient hobby though.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Well it will require alot of understanding with water chemistry.
So get the knowledge. 
I suggest you read alot of articals from randy holmes farley.
I'll get some links up tonight for ya and anybody else that wants to learn.
You have to commit to learn, of waste you money on dead corals.
They are not forgiving like soft corals, and lps.


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## Alexraptor (Jan 30, 2003)

I keep a Hydnopora frag that is doing dandy, under only two Arcadia 15w tubes(marine white and actnic), i got it for free, it was a sad little thing with bare skeleton and a little flesh in the middle, but, it survived, and its reclaimed the entire old skeleton and has grown larger


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

hydnophora is a very very very hardy sps. tolerates high nutrients and low flow unlike most others.


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## jiggy (Jun 27, 2004)

my reef was only an sps/clam/zoa reef at one point.. but now im turning it more into a mixed reef for the 'natural' look, as if u were going diving.. the theme of the tank is indo-pacific.. i have gotten a frogspawn, rics, acans, echinos, blastos, and micros


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## illnino (Mar 6, 2004)

^^^^^^^^pics.....


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## ICEMAN330824 (May 30, 2006)

NICE TANK!

ICEMAN!


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## Alexraptor (Jan 30, 2003)

Before when i first got it









Today, under 15w marine white and 15w blue actinic

















I think there might be something superior with the arcadia tubes to other 15w flourescents, because as i said, ive never had a single coral suffer from lack of light, brains, zoo's, buttons, candy cane, shrooms ect ect ect.


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

well it took me a while but to day i picked up a blue acro. for halides i have hamiltons 175. but i plan to change out to 400 watt pfo's, like this week. hopefully it wont brown, but if it des it should recover when i change to 400's. correct?


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

You shouldent have a problem unless you have high nitrates above 5 ppm or po4 levels abobe 0.05. If your coral turns brown that is most likely the problem.
Do you drip kalk, or add calcium clhoride?


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

not yet but i plan to start, right now i dont have much demand for calcium, and waterchanges are keeping me steady. i think i may order a reactor oce i start to get more sps corals. also it is starting to extend polyps today.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

A kalk reactor is a good option. You can diy one or buy new/used.
Or a dosing pump with a 2 part home brew would work great as well.
Or even make or buy a kalk dripper and drip kalk at night. Its not the easiet to keep up on so i never liked doing that everynight.


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

i have looked at kalk reactors, they look easy enough to diy. also i AM ordering my dual 250's in the morning.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Cool! Looks like youre getting there, Your corals look healthy.


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

well my acro seems to be getting more collorful. when i first bought it most of the collor was concentratted in the tips but now seems to be spreading down the arms.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Any updates????


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## rbp 4 135 (Mar 2, 2004)

ya unfortunately, i went on a week long vacation i left my neighbor to take care of my tank. and measured out portions of food and nori, i had rescued a sail fint ang form a 29 gallon the week earlier. apparently he fed the frozen meaties but not the dried nori, so my tang ended up deing which caused some imballances. it would have probably been ok but some how my skimmer sucked in a small piece of rock and jammed the beckett. the acro is either dead or extreemly bleached, and now i have tons of gha.


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## Genin (Feb 4, 2003)

oh man that sucks. sounds like when i went away. i came back to a couple dead corals and a hurting anemone that died a couple days later.


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