U.K. SPS dominant Reefspace
 

Hi all,

My names Gareth and I live in the UK. I have been keeping marine for 2.5 years (I did have a small spell back when I was a teenager but technology wasn't as good).

2.5 years ago I bought a small 105 litre AIO tank which I developed into this http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...467bd09d9d.jpg

6 months ago I bought my first home which meant a much needed upgrade, but this time round I planned on tackling SPS. Below is the set up:

Tank: clearseal reefspace 900 (275 litres with sump)
Rock: 10kg real reef rock
Sand: 10kg reeflowers pearl white
Power heads: maxspect gyre 150 & jabeo rw4
Overflow: oceonlife
Lights: 2 X xr30 pro gen 3 (SPS AB+ at 70%)

Sump:
Filtration: 225 micro filter sock & 20 litres siporax
Skimmer: Nyos 120
Heaters: 2 X 200w tmc run by stc1000
Carbon: pharmaceutical carbon in bag
Return pump: vectra m1
Dosing: kamoer 3 way pump dosing alk (50ml/day, calc 50ml/day & mag 1ml/day)

Water: 100gpd 4 stage RO unit with backwash running constant at 0 TDS

Fish:
Hybrid scopas tang
1 X common clown & 1 X black/white clown (paired)
Banghii Cardinal
Tailspot blenny
Purple firefish
1 X male & 1 X female green mandarin
2 X Yasha gobies with 1 X pistol shrimp (not sure if the gobies are still alive)
Timor wrasse
Red lines wrasse

CUC:
2 X cleaner shrimp
6 X nassarius snails
2 X hermits
5 X other snails
1 X pin cushion urchin
2 X strawberry conch

Corals:

LPS:
Green branching hammer
Purple branching hammer
Red trachy, purple trachy & green trachy
2 X Lobos
Trumpet frag
Dragon soul favia
Blastos
War coral
Duncan's

SPS:
Ice fire echinata
Red suharsonoi Acropora
Elegans Acropora
Red planet Acropora
Strawberry shortcake Acropora
Acropora sarmentosa
Tri colour Acropora
Acropora gomezi
Acropora Valida
Acropora spathulata
Purple monster Acropora
Tierra deal fuego Acropora
4 X tenius Acropora
Golden nugget Acropora
Hurlocks Acropora
2 X Unknown Acropora
Green and silver/blue branching montipora
Forest fire montipora
Superman montipora
Mystic sunset montipora
Hirsuta montipora
Orange encrusting montipora
Red and green plating montipora
3 X millipora

Majority of the SPS are frags which are growing and basing well. Others are a mix of small to medium colonies.

FTS: (only have blue ones which are recent. Will add a day time one tomorrow)
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...2effcfa1a8.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...c452e761bb.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a37bc5dd96.jpg

Coral pics to follow.

Thanks for looking

Gareth

Some coral pics
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f28ccc943c.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...90b5c50ce5.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...0979be514f.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...3ca08a537c.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...3c078564b0.jpg


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http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...2a3cd40eb0.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...7f8fb32eb3.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f33f42d0ed.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...272555e723.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...42278c96ac.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...485203d995.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...405963767a.jpg


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Need to invest in a dslr as iPhone pictures don't do the tank justice


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http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...02e31341e2.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...86f8f1b323.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...6379183534.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...bb6d58f0bc.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a93c5a9bba.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...d44f68c1dd.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...13a27d8af5.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...b38ff65412.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...e71b5ed62d.jpgm
This has gone a strange green with red colour. It was all green. Not sure if it was low light. I've moved it to a better position nowhttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...65dbe5d12a.jpg


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U.K. SPS dominant Reefspace
 

Mandarins dancing tonight, watch in HD https://youtu.be/6JLnY4hJX70


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Time for some Sunday pictures...

Acropora elegans http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...770d5f21b5.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...c6bbf87ad9.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...d7a94b2fb3.jpg

Ice fire echinata http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...e3f47151df.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...0ff22f4378.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...84827a8bfa.jpg

Red suharsonoi http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...7e5fe66f43.jpg

Forest fire montipora http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...fe3f7a5f77.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...b7600f0031.jpg

Branching green montipora ?ID http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...6efec29798.jpg

Blue/silver branching montipora http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...1229f5f377.jpg

Strawberry shortcake http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f902a9925f.jpg

Red planet http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...6c3f99ad58.jpg

Hurlocks http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a29d42e593.jpg

Red dragon, green plating and red plating http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...5803c2a546.jpg

Green tenius http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...2d03a908c2.jpg

3 different blue tenius http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...29169a7ad5.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...898d24e557.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f55ea8c796.jpg

Tri colour http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...786d58727e.jpg

Nana http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f3c7b2c43a.jpg

Gomezi http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...275b87f1ce.jpg

Spathulata http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...1632adecc0.jpg

Tierre del fuego http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...272f816a52.jpg

Purple monster http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...390a170587.jpg

Sarmentosa http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...220d4d0a46.jpg

?another nanahttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...7137903717.jpg

Unknown green acro http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...4251449529.jpg

Some millipora frags (colouring up nicely but hard to get in pics. One is turning pink and the other appears to be rainbow but early days) http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...217e5a6c8f.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...c78dca2f5c.jpg

Pink pocclipora (I think) with granny apple smith zoas http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...1620b09585.jpg

Zoa garden http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...4fb6381663.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...06ef91019e.jpg

Orange encrusting monti http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...28c44a1b64.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...ec7bebb7a4.jpg

Mystic sunset monti http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...d2593390ed.jpg

Superman monti http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...dec041c141.jpg

FTS's http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a2e5661c5f.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...b445c60709.jpg

Glorious! Looks great. Would love to here more about the parameters you are keeping (alk, ca, mg, no3 and phosphates), your feeding schedule. Also how long did you take to get the radions to 70% (did you start at 70% or lower and gradually increased). I also have radions but struggling to get the best color from my sps


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Thanks,

Params are as follows:
Alk : currently 7dkh (normally 8-8.3 but as the sps have grown the alk is getting used up really fast. Currently dosing 110ml (balling)

Calc: 420 (75ml daily)

Mag: 1350-1380 (4ml daily)

No3: 0.5
Po4: 0.008
PH: 8

Currently have 12 fish. I feed twice a day. I only feed frozen. RS mysis with brine shrimp twice a day and sometimes throw in red plantkton.

I dose iodine once a week (3 drops)

As for the lights I started at 40% and increased this by 10% a month via acclimation. Almost at 80% now. Using the coral lab SPS ab+.

Any more questions fire away

Gareth

Great. I started out with high dkh in hopes of fast sps growth; around 12dkh. Also ramped lights to radions to 85% from 55% really quickly (2 month ; also using a/b program). I have undetectable nitrates and very low (often undetectable) phosphates. This combination caused the burning of some of my sps frags. Now running lights at 55 , alk at 8.5 and trying to overfeed a bit to get color back. We'll see!


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Maybe the quick rise to 85% was to blame. I started to get signs of STN on some corals but seems to have rectified now. In my simp I only have 20 litres siporax, skimmer and carbon. Do you run a reactor?


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I have a skimmer a gfo phosban reactor and a fuge with chaeto; also have a deep sand bed in display and a large filter bag of seachem matrix in sump


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Notice that you - like me - are also posting on a The other forum... more comments there too [emoji6]


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Haha true, I actually post on 4. Your the only one to have commented on this one. The others have more history [emoji4]


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You ain't kidding! 1 page versus 17! I enjoyed reading your ur thread - cracking tank and progress man - something to aspire too!


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I only recently started the thread on here as UR has been my main one from set up. Thanks for the kind words. Just checked out your thread on UR (haven't given a proper read) and looks very nice. See your risking open top with the wrasse [emoji85] brave man lol nice selection of fish too

Thanks for giving it a look. Re - open top; yep a bit of a risk but a low risk given the species and the feel of the tank at the moment. I think most fish are capable of jumping and certainly some species are more likely to jump then others. Clowns can jump; blennies can jump, firefish can jump and wrasses can definitely jump; flashers are especially notorious for this. I kept the clown and firefish for over a year with an open top; the firefish likes to hide in his favorite rock at the first sign of trouble. The canary wrasse also likes to hid in the sand or around bottom rocks when disturbed. The leopards are not too jittery. The tank is pretty peaceful - all inhabitants get along, so no chasing that Would end in a fish jumping out. I like the look of the open top so decided to keep it like that; hopefully I will no have to eat my words in the near future [emoji28]


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Here's some recent pictures. Have been selling off majority of my LPS to free up the sand bed and focus on the SPS. Had to increase alk dosage as the corals are taking up so much. Everything seems to be going smoothly at the moment
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...a5a09ad0fe.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...9752c66911.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...f4eceeb5fb.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...e924ade5bd.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/2016...7f6185ecc5.jpg


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Today I took advantage of coral passions 20% sale and took home a yellow tail tamarin which has been quarantined for 4 weeks. Had my eye on it for the last few weeks but never pulled the trigger and knew it wouldn't be around for long...so snapped it up in the sale. To avoid putting stress on the fish by being he only newbie I also bought a small cleaner wrasse. Both settled in well instantly and the cleaner was straight on to his duties. The only bit of aggression at the moment is the tang towards the yellow tail but this should settle quickly. Here's a short video to show them both just after putting in the tank https://youtu.be/UIGJEfdqZ1w


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