For posterity, ease of reference (for me), and another entry into the supporting members giveaway I will use this thread to track the progress of my new nutrient export and tank maintenance routine.
Background:
I have a (roughly) 100-gallon mixed reef where seemingly only the sunset monti and a couple of acros grow. The two sides and back are fairly caked with coralline from an explosion early in the setup. The tank has been going since Feb. 2023.
I have heard that coral snow and mb7 work well to clarify water and lower nutrients. I have been snowing for a bit, but no mb7.
(relevant) Equipment:
3x kessil 360s
2x skimmers maxing out in effectiveness at 100 gallons. One Reefbreeders, one OIAIO
filter socks
maxspect gyre 350
Hanna n, p, and k testers
icecap probe for salinity and temp.
API for calcium
Roughly 200# dry rock, 10# TBS live rock
60-100# aragonite and crushed coral
Stocking:
Powder brown tang - 5-6"
Kole tang - 4-5"
FIlefish - 4"
falko hawkfish - 4"
2x black ocellaris clowns - 2"
springer damsel - 1"
fighting conch
3-6x small hermits
serpent starfish
(maybe) long spine urchin
asterina starfish
hypothesis
With the addition of Microbacter7 and clean to my normal routine, I will see a decrease in nutrient levels to a level that supports ideal coral health.
Method
I will add coral snow twice a week, dose microbacter 7 and microbacter clean per the bottles' recommendations for "difficult" or "neglected" (whatever they call it) tanks. After the initial two weeks of heavy dosing, I will alter my snow with the addition of the MB7 and drop dosing to weekly.
I will not dramatically change my other maintenance (or lack thereof) from weekly glass scraping, sock changing when I remember (historically tied to scraping and snow), water changes every "few weeks" (realistically 15-20 times a year, whatever that breaks down to be). I will continue to dose carbon when I remember, but am in transition from vinegar to vodka. Alkalinity and calcium are dosed via auto-doser and I use Randy's 2-part with soda ash. Evaporation is replaced via auto-doser as well.
All of these activities will happen after work, as I don't do anything tank-wise before.
Background:
I have a (roughly) 100-gallon mixed reef where seemingly only the sunset monti and a couple of acros grow. The two sides and back are fairly caked with coralline from an explosion early in the setup. The tank has been going since Feb. 2023.
I have heard that coral snow and mb7 work well to clarify water and lower nutrients. I have been snowing for a bit, but no mb7.
(relevant) Equipment:
3x kessil 360s
2x skimmers maxing out in effectiveness at 100 gallons. One Reefbreeders, one OIAIO
filter socks
maxspect gyre 350
Hanna n, p, and k testers
icecap probe for salinity and temp.
API for calcium
Roughly 200# dry rock, 10# TBS live rock
60-100# aragonite and crushed coral
Stocking:
Powder brown tang - 5-6"
Kole tang - 4-5"
FIlefish - 4"
falko hawkfish - 4"
2x black ocellaris clowns - 2"
springer damsel - 1"
fighting conch
3-6x small hermits
serpent starfish
(maybe) long spine urchin
asterina starfish
hypothesis
With the addition of Microbacter7 and clean to my normal routine, I will see a decrease in nutrient levels to a level that supports ideal coral health.
Method
I will add coral snow twice a week, dose microbacter 7 and microbacter clean per the bottles' recommendations for "difficult" or "neglected" (whatever they call it) tanks. After the initial two weeks of heavy dosing, I will alter my snow with the addition of the MB7 and drop dosing to weekly.
I will not dramatically change my other maintenance (or lack thereof) from weekly glass scraping, sock changing when I remember (historically tied to scraping and snow), water changes every "few weeks" (realistically 15-20 times a year, whatever that breaks down to be). I will continue to dose carbon when I remember, but am in transition from vinegar to vodka. Alkalinity and calcium are dosed via auto-doser and I use Randy's 2-part with soda ash. Evaporation is replaced via auto-doser as well.
All of these activities will happen after work, as I don't do anything tank-wise before.
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