jer77
03/21/2006, 04:46 AM
Ok, I built a tank recently thats like a clam tank I guess, really shallow like 18'' and shaped like a square 3'X3'. I have small to medium sized sps corals and frags plus some zoanthids, xenia, and green star polyps frags. I have one one 250 watt MH 20000k, but I am adding another 10000k soon, plus 2 VHO 36" bulbs in a reflector. I have a mag 7 pumping the water out of 2 outlets, plus I have 2 maxijet 600's in the tank. I have a 40 gallon sump, which I made big just to add more water volume. It is separated into a large refugium, space for the aqua-c skimmer, and the pump. Theirs no fish, there was a percula that died, but snails and crabs. I add kalkwasser and ocean's blend as needed, plus phytoplankton, sps powdered food, and test the water for everything as needed.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0071.jpg
My questions are how high should I keep the light above the water since the MH bulb is about 2' above the corals, and the VHO's are a little closer. I am adding a brighter 10000k bulb soon too. Also I'm not too experienced with sps since this is the first time I've tried keeping them so I'm not to sure what to expect. Like I don't know how fast they're supossed to grow. Or how the diseases act. Is it ok to keep xenia, zoos, and star polyps in the tank. I use carbon and test it to make sure its still good. Plus how close can I keep the corals together. Now some are as close as 3-4". I have experienced a lot of bleaching at first. This was because I probably added the corals too soon. Now they are growing I can tell and changing colors. I'm wondering if I should put a light onto the sump and add some macroalgae, or use it for live rock or something.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0070.jpg
These pics I have the 10000k bulb in. You can see some of the bleaching on one coral. I had to turn off the pump to take these.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0082.jpg
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0071.jpg
My questions are how high should I keep the light above the water since the MH bulb is about 2' above the corals, and the VHO's are a little closer. I am adding a brighter 10000k bulb soon too. Also I'm not too experienced with sps since this is the first time I've tried keeping them so I'm not to sure what to expect. Like I don't know how fast they're supossed to grow. Or how the diseases act. Is it ok to keep xenia, zoos, and star polyps in the tank. I use carbon and test it to make sure its still good. Plus how close can I keep the corals together. Now some are as close as 3-4". I have experienced a lot of bleaching at first. This was because I probably added the corals too soon. Now they are growing I can tell and changing colors. I'm wondering if I should put a light onto the sump and add some macroalgae, or use it for live rock or something.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0070.jpg
These pics I have the 10000k bulb in. You can see some of the bleaching on one coral. I had to turn off the pump to take these.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/79338DSC_0082.jpg