sps query

[sps_dude]

my metal halide is 150 watts ... suspended above the water at around less than 2 feet..... not sure of the actual distance of the MH to the water surface....but its less than 2 feet..my tank is roughly 16 inch deep...using a 10,000 k metal halide bulb (sylvania)......Is this enough to keep acropora....i dont seem to have luck with it...all other sps corals like brain and scroll coral seem to survive well(been having them for 1 year plus) .... i am worried that the light is too far away from the tank....is this ture? if you have any hints or tips feel free to message me...your tips are greately apprecieated

[reefer guy]

what's ur tank size? brain is not sps and it needs not too strong a light anyway. also, lights is just one of the factor to consider to keep sps corals; ur water quality, water movement also plays a big factor to gain success...

[yazid]

Your lights is less than 2 feet away from the water surface?... that's too far I think.

You will lose a lot of light intensity.

Move it closer... I think minimum 9"...

And put you acros near the surface...

BTW, if your brain cannot survive, it might not even be the light issues. What about water parameters?

[Achilles Tang]

2 ft is extremely far away!

Your lights should be maximum 12 inches away if you use high wattage lighting like 400w. Too high up and you lose intensity!

Some people bring down their MH lights as low as 3 inches or 4 inches. Just be careful about water splashes and the reflector spread may become narrower.

[Morgan]

Hi sps dude

Welcome to the money draining world of the sps

From your description, I don't think it is the problem with the lights.

Your brain and scroll are surviving but are they really doing very well?

Basically what I meant is that are they reallly growing.....

Sps require much better condition than what brain and scroll need, that is why you find that people keep lps for a few months in their tank but cannot maintain sps alive for more than a few weeks.

Check all your water parameters, water quality should be excellent anything less than that then you should not even try to move into sps keeping.

Usually to maintain good water quality, we the bioload low ie. you will not see alot of fishes swimming in the tank

Hope that this help.

[LinkinPark]

Usually to maintain good water quality, we the bioload low    ie. you will not see alot of fishes swimming in the tank

Hi Morgan

Bioload: If I have lots of LPS and SPS and no fish, will the waste from the corals be high? Is there a limit on the number of corals (in term of bioload) we can have? (besides space, chemical warefare etc)

(I asking this in the context of coral, not to compare with fish.)

[Morgan]

LP

Unlike fishes, you do not feed the corals all the time, so there is very little waste products. These waste can be skim out with a good skimmer.

With DSB and a good refugium running, PO4 and NO3 will not be a problem.

Perform regular water change to remove other waste /chemical from the water that the skimmer and refugium cannot export.

I always recycle the water to my fish only as it is a waste to throw water into the drain.

[LinkinPark]

Morgan,

[sps_dude]

thanks for all your replys fellow reefers ....wee to answe all your questions....'

reefer guy my tank is only 3 feet in length and for....

Morgan... all my corals have not exactly grown (not that i have noticed ) but they are opening really well.... thanks for all your replies again

[sps_dude]

hmm....i am just a 16 year old newbie dying to have sps corals growing in my tank.....so sorry...i thought since the brain polyp is small hence i thought its a sps...pardon my mistake......

[SpiderOne]

isnt brain.. one of the biggest polyps u will find around??