Maintenance Advice

[chadmace]

So I have had my 125 up since March. I have a slight cyano problem on my sand at the moment so that brought me to thinking....am I really doing all that I should be doing? Any advice on what I could add to my routine to improve my water parameters, etc? Here we go....

I have about 175g of total water volumn. I do 25g water changes weekly. I use Instant Ocean salt, RO/DI water, and aerate my water 24-48hrs before the water change.

I use a turkey baster to blow out my live rock weekly at best.

I clean my skimmer weekly. I have an ETSS 800 w/collection cup. The cup will be about 1/2 full in a week. This skimmer requires weekly cleaning to keep the neck clean of sludge. *This is done in conjunction with water changes.*

Well, thats about it. I dont have much coral wise so I dont really need to dose anything. My lights are only about 2 months old. My carbon is about 2-3 weeks old. I have chaeto in the sump w/live rock and about a 3" sand bed.

Any suggestions? Advice? I never really thought about maintenance...just figured I was already doing what was needed.

 

[jake65]

Sounds like you doing everything right, what type of lighting do you have and how much flow do you have going in the tank?

 

[Krish]

Sorry to hear about your algae troubles man, but the good news is, algae sometimes goes in cycles even in an established tank If nothing much has changed in your tank in a while, then the cyno may just be the result of a small cycle and may just run it's course and dissapate. However, in the meantime, a few thoughts that came to mind was, how often do you clean your sump? I know every sump I've had, I had to vaccum it out weekly because of all of the detritus that settled in there Even just pumps alone can house a bunch of waste that can fuel algae to grow, Then there are sponges, socks etc that need to be cleaned regularily. I can see where the carbon can become a problem as well. Not so much the fact that the same carbon is used for 2-3 weeks because a lot of people do that, but the fact that it is sitting in the tank/sump for 2-3 weeks straight without being rinsed off and just collecting detrius/waste also fueling algae to grow (if you don't clean it regularily). Overflows as well build up with detritus/waste and over time accumilate and degrade water quality so these are a few things you can maybe look into. Something is fueling it so if you can find the source, then you can help eliminate it more quickly...

Just a few thoughts! Hope everything works out for you

 

[jedimike]

Increased flow will help. Try getting some indirect current over the sand. It can be tricky to do. I usually try to bounce a powerhead flow off the front of the glass. Of course you can also invest in some sand sifters to keep that top layer clean. It may be that your live sand is not very diverse with life. I've heard good things about Garf Grunge but have yet to try it myself.

 

[steven11]

Hey Chad - Since I have seen your system a few times and know that it is setup right, i will give my piece. I dont think it is anything that you are or are not doing, I think Krish is on the right track as far as a cycle. Your live rock was fresh out of the ocean, talk about hitchhickers, which may be a reason. I dont know how long rock takes to be truely "fully cycled." Also, you dont have many corals to compete with the algea for the nutrition. Right, wrong or indifferent, if you have corals eating up the nutrients, you wont have the algea. I know that it would be better to find the soarse but that could take all of the fun out of the hobby. You just need to find what works for you and the tank. If you want more chaeto, let me know. If it makes no difference, you can always take it out. Talk to you soon!

P.S. Maybe we can make a trip out to Tracy's for some more coral. All it will cost ya is a bottle of rum and some starfire shot glasses, he will believe anything you say.

 

[salmonslayer]

Don't Forget to have some cash on hand. No more mister nice guy

 

[Damsel13]

:badgrin::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:LOLOL

 

[steven11]

Thats what the liqour is for. You no remember!

 

[chadmace]

Sounds like you doing everything right, what type of lighting do you have and how much flow do you have going in the tank?

Currently 2 250 Watt MH with Reeflux 12k bulbs that are around 2 months old. I plan to add a 3rd MH sometime soon.

I have about 4,800 gph for flow including my returns. I have a MAG 12 that I figure is about 900gph at the head. 2 Koralia 4s (1200gph) and a Seio 1500.

 

[chadmace]

Some good replies here. Lets see what I can do.

"Sorry to hear about your algae troubles man, but the good news is, algae sometimes goes in cycles even in an established tank If nothing much has changed in your tank in a while, then the cyno may just be the result of a small cycle and may just run it's course and dissapate. However, in the meantime, a few thoughts that came to mind was, how often do you clean your sump? I know every sump I've had, I had to vaccum it out weekly because of all of the detritus that settled in there Even just pumps alone can house a bunch of waste that can fuel algae to grow, Then there are sponges, socks etc that need to be cleaned regularily. I can see where the carbon can become a problem as well. Not so much the fact that the same carbon is used for 2-3 weeks because a lot of people do that, but the fact that it is sitting in the tank/sump for 2-3 weeks straight without being rinsed off and just collecting detrius/waste also fueling algae to grow (if you don't clean it regularily). Overflows as well build up with detritus/waste and over time accumilate and degrade water quality so these are a few things you can maybe look into. Something is fueling it so if you can find the source, then you can help eliminate it more quickly..."

My tank overflows to my 25g sump which sits higher than my 29g fuge/return. The sump overflows to the fuge, which flows to the return, then back to the tank. Every week when I do the water changes I syphon out the 25g sump. I leave the fuge be....except for messing with the Chaeto, etc.

My plan for the Carbon will be to replace it every over week or what not. Its not that pricey so I'm not too concerned. After about a week or so I noticed some detritus that made its way into there, but with the way my filtration is set-up it stays pretty clean.

No sponges, socks, etc in my system at all.


"Increased flow will help. Try getting some indirect current over the sand. It can be tricky to do. I usually try to bounce a powerhead flow off the front of the glass. Of course you can also invest in some sand sifters to keep that top layer clean. It may be that your live sand is not very diverse with life. I've heard good things about Garf Grunge but have yet to try it myself."

It seems that flow over sand is really tricky in the fact that once the flow moves the sand to where it likes it you have the same problem all over again. Alternating flow would solve that but wont be feasable until I replace my tank. (Its a little scratched so I'm replacing the glass and going with a closed loop at that point.)

I have a Mural Sand Sifter....but he is only one man. :eek2: Also have some Nassarius (sp?) Snails though it wouldn't hurt to get more. Dont have any hermets at the moment since I heard they can butcher the snails for their shells.


Steven....I can always take your route. If you never test then your water is always pristine. :badgrin: Yesterday when I left to the Seahawks game I had cyano over a majority of my sand, and some on the rocks I am growing out some Zoa frags on...several hours and a few beers later and I returned to see zero cyano anywhere. So I think going forward I just need more beer.

I guess ultimately I wanted to make sure I was doing what I should be doing. I had taken care of saltwater fish only tanks in the past and from what I have learned over the past few months it makes me amazed that those fish stayed alive. Made me re-think what I was doing and sort of wonder what others do. Since there really is no one right way to go about things in this hobby its always good to read up on what works for others and see if it is something you want to implement into your routine.

Thanks for the posts....and remember Steven...it doesn't take liquor at all....I'll just distract him again while you make some frags.

 

[steven11]

Good to go on the frags Chad. Lets say we make a trip this weekend.

As far as your tank, i vote for you doing to much and not allowing your tank to settle in.