One additive that absolutly helps coral?

[steallife904]

Ok so been in the game a long time, have used about any additive you can think of at one time or another. I moved recently and pretty much did a restart on my coral. I also switch to brightwell neomarine salt mix. So far (4 months) I have don't nothing but weekly water changes and spot feeding coral. At the moment everything is looking good. I started to think maybe I should get some amino or reef fuel, maybe dose iodine... etc. Then I stopped and ask myself if all is well why??? I honestly cant even say that in the past when I did dose stuff it made a difference.

So my question is, if I am not chasing numbers... just dosing something to help color up or speed up growth. Is there any additive that is a must have or absolutely works? Or should I just keep it simple and just feed and water change?

[Uncle99]

I use aqua vitro fuel.
I dose iodide to between .03-.06 for leathers, gorgonians and shrimps.
I dose phyto for my filter feeds.

I used RS colours for about 12 months......see no difference in colour.

[crankbait09]

I dose Alk/Cal, do water changes every 2-3 weeks, and feed maybe once a week. Other than that, I don't add anything unless I have to.

[hkgar]

What type of corals?
For SPS and LPS maintain levels of Alk, Ca and Mag
Best "supplement" for corals is fish poop.

[Misled]

Originally Posted by hkgar

Best "supplement" for corals is fish poop.

Another vote for poop.

[lolgranny]

+1 on the fish dookie


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[CAPT_Dave]

If you feel you must dose or feed something beyond the basics, BRS did a BRS Investigates controlled experiment on coral food and growth rates. Search their channel on You Tube. They found measurable results for Reefroids and their own Reef Chili, which I use and seems to work. At least I think I get more growth in montis and replication in Zoas and Acans. Next on the list was everything else including poop, which I guess was part of the control group. Poop is free, so....

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[WVfishguy]

Is kalwasser an additive? I use that a lot. Also, the calcium in this batch of Instant Ocean I have is so low (330 ppm) that I'm adding Turbo Calcium to the mixed water in the barrel to raise it to 400.

[homer1475]

+3 or 4 or 5, heck I didn't keep score......


Anyways, fish poop is all your corals need for supplementation.

[Fourstars]

Cal Alk Mag phosphates nitrate. The last two only for mature well maintained tanks,. Feed multiple times daily. Also I dose Iron for Cheato growth.

[steallife904]

Ok so seems like I should stick with keep it simple. And as for coral I am pretty much LPS only now, played in the SPS game in the past but have a 2 year old now so decided a year ago to cut back and go simpler. Right my calc/alk and mag levels stay where I want them with the waterchanges so I will just stay with that and feed them. I am due to add more fish. tank is a 5ft 150 and only have 5 fish.... thanks to a mean long nose hawk, he makes it hard to add anything but that's another thread .

I guess the only other additive which someone mentioned I was on the fence about is something like fuel or amino acids. What exactly do they do or the benefit that feeding doesn't? Is this something that actually makes a difference? Any harm in adding?

[Fourstars]

Snake oil. You get all the amino acids you need from feeding.

[Uncle99]

Amino acids is like foods and wastes already broken down into a form which can be used metolbolically be the corals. This, plus regularly feedings to corals with feeding responses, as well as broadcast for filter feeders allows the corals to grown faster., but this, does not happen overnight. Since my corals grab at, hold onto, food particles, I am of the school of thought that they "enjoy" this. Yes, most of the food comes from its zoo, but additional foods allow the coral to use the energy for growth, not just survival.

But of course, good light is all that it "needs"

[hkgar]

Originally Posted by Fourstars

Cal Alk Mag phosphates nitrate. The last two only for mature well maintained tanks,. Feed multiple times daily. Also I dose Iron for Cheato growth.

phosphates nitrate - yup, that's what the fish poop is providing. It's kind of like a farmer spreading fertilizer (manure) on the crops.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2253547

[Fourstars]

Originally Posted by hkgar

phosphates nitrate - yup, that's what the fish poop is providing. It's kind of like a farmer spreading fertilizer (manure) on the crops.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2253547

Correct, not a lot of poop in my tank with low fish load and bare bottom. Zero nitrate/phosphate after 3 years, so I have to dose. which gives me more control.

[hkgar]

Originally Posted by Fourstars

Correct, not a lot of poop in my tank with low fish load and bare bottom. Zero nitrate/phosphate after 3 years, so I have to dose. which gives me more control.

It's all about the type of tank you want and will enjoy. I keep a lot of fish (17, see signature line) and feed very heavy, so I can have beautiful SPS. Heck my 3 tangs + the Two Barred Rabbifish, go through two large Romaine lettuce leaves/day

[Fourstars]

Absolutely! I envy your poop.

[Misled]

That's just wrong!!!!

[WVfishguy]

Before I began reading RC, I was under the impression reefers kept as few fish as possible in order to keep reef tanks nearly sterile. It's nice to see I'm not keeping too many fish.

[cody6766]

Sterile is not the way to go, IMO. I like to overfeed and over waterchange. I also like to feed corals as well as fish. I don't have a favorite brand, but coral food helps LPS in a big way. It also helps the microfauna that help keep your tank alive.

There are a lot of GORGEOUS 'sterile' tanks out there, but I prefer mine to be a little more like the real thing.

[dkevink]

Fish poo, just not too much.

[hkgar]

Originally Posted by dkevink

Fish poo, just not too much.

They will poo what you feed them.

[RioReefr]

Originally Posted by Fourstars

Snake oil. You get all the amino acids you need from feeding.

I have no vested interest in Seachem, but since using their Reef Fundamentals additives a couple of months ago all my Corals look fantastic. #1/#2 bottles are the basic Calc/Carbonate 2-part. But #3 bottle (Reef Plus) contains a mixture of Vitamins, Minerals and Amino Acids.

I struggled mightily with my Hammer (Euphyllia) Colony slowly dying away and no one seemed to know why. I literally went from a 30+ bud colony down to about 5 buds. I was going to toss this Coral because there was a wide speculation there was a parasite(s) living in this coral and eventually work its way to the others.

After watching some BRS videos, I can't remember the exact one but Randy mentioned they used amino acids on a daily basis. I took just thought it was "snake oil" and another money-waster. BUT, I got the Reef Fundamentals on Amazon for less than $20 and everything now looks fantastic. IN FACT, my Euphyllia branches are now growing tiny, tiny little buds.
Also, my Devils' Hand Leather coral looks amazing. The polyps extensions are truly fascinating. It used to gloss over/close up like every 2-3 weeks and now maybe does that every 6 weeks.

BTW, I used to use something called Reef Coral Frenzy. I didn't see any noticeable difference using it or not using it. So now, I don't use it all. To me it is just another food source to "muddy" the water. I stick to the Hikari sinking pellets which all the fish seem to live.

To each their own, but this is just my 2 cents worth of experience.

[hkgar]

No question that amino acids enhance corals. That's what fish poop produces - amino acids, at least that is my understanding. Rather than buying amino acids, I just feed heavy and make sure I have a sufficient nitrate export method (carbon dosing).

[RioReefr]

Originally Posted by steallife904

One additive that absolutely helps coral?

Seachem ReefPlus.

(I wish I had used it earlier when I started in this hobby .... considering it just costs $10 AND I'd rather use an additive than feed "heavy" and pollute the tank. To each their own though.)