overdo on bulb change.. some ??s

[jennmac415]

I am a little overdo on replacing all of my T5s, by a few months, ...getting ready to order them now... but anyway, for the last month or so, I have been getting this brown algae on the tips of some of my sps... my question is ...what is the effect on SPS when the T5 bulbs start to diminish and need to be replaced? Also, some of the SPS that had great color before are losing some of their brilliant color...any ideas?


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[jdmcivicek9]

the spectrum on your lighting is off which is probably why they are losing color and also becoming the right spectrum for algae to start growing also another effect is they wont grow as fast...i would change them!

[Toddrtrex]

If you have algae going on the tips of your of some of your SPS, there are other issues going on. Algae would only grow on dead tips.

[jennmac415]

thanks for your replies... could the tips be dying because of the shift in spectrum from my bulbs?? on these particular sps the rest of the coral is still doing fine...

[Toddrtrex]

IMO, no. If memory servers, burnt tips are caused by Alk issues, what is your alk at?

[60Cubed]

But algae grows better in crappy light. Change your bulbs it will help a lot.

[Toddrtrex]

But, only if there are enough nutrients in the water to feed the algae.

I really don't think the aging bulbs are the issue behind the dead tips.

[jennmac415]

I need to check my alk... the tips don't reaaly look dead... just have this brown algae on them... but i am fairly new to sps, so maybe i just don't what dead tips look like...

[Toddrtrex]

It is sometimes hard to tell growth on the tip from a dead tips, since sometimes they are both white. But, the fact the algae is growing on them makes me want to say that they are dead. The only time I have had algae growth on a tip is when it was dead (( in my case after the SPS in question touched my milli )).

The white in this picture is all new growth, but no algae.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y189/toddrtrex/Down59_12_8.jpg

[jennmac415]

ok I think the white tips on my sps are growth... looks the same as above picture. the coral that has the most of this brown algae on the tips is a bright orange/red digi that I recently moved.. it IS more under the return than it had been before and sits very high in the tank, so maybe it IS getting somewhat burned by the alk when I dose it...and couldn't it be from the light s also?

[Toddrtrex]

It might have been growth at one time, but healthy new growth won't have any algae growing on it. There is a chance that the alk is burning the tip when you dose.

With you being over due by just a few months I don't think the bulbs are causing the issue. I have noticed that anytime a tip dies ( in my case from touching another coral ) that algae will grow on it in short order, and my bulbs are only a couple of months old.

[Brewen]

Yep the only time I have had problems with burnt tips is when I had ALK problems. I do not believe it is a older bulb problem. JMHO

[jennmac415]

thanks... going to check my alk now...it ususally runs around 9-10.. but like I said I did move one of the corals that has the most algae on its tips and it more in the path of the return, it may be getting directly hit with the alk as I add it to my sump.