Seeing a variety of methods to keep corals - what's the best approach?

[numin8r]

Hello all,

I have a 30 gallon tank that's a mixed reef and it's coming up on being setup for one year.

I am dosing All for Reef, Bacto balance, ZeoBak and Zeofoods. I don't have an ULNS but working on it. I just have one doser at the moment for All For Reef and everything else is manual. I am looking into adding Kalk to my ATO to help with PH.

I have seen some great SPS/Acro tanks on IG and here are some of there methods.

Tank 1: Heavy SPS
Tropic Marin Syn-Biotic Salt, Balling, Amino Acids and Trace

Tank 2: SPS tank
Reef Moonshiner method

Tank 3: Acro tank
Tropic Marin Pro Salt, Tropic Marin Balling, Aquaforest Components Strong traces, 10 % week water change.

I am just looking for recommendations and what method to try. Should I stick with what I'm doing or change it up?

I am thinking about switching to TM Bio Actif or Syn-Biotic Salt (was Black bucket Red sea pro, and just bought the blue bucket but haven't opened it yet. My alk is 7.8) and continue with TM All For Reef. I don't want to continue to buy products that are not going to help corals grow and try to keep it simple. I know there are other methods out there but I am just highlighting the few that seem to be doing well and not that complicated.

 

[CBonito]

Just use a salt with a reef emphasis (red sea coral pro works good, but choose your own) and All for Reef. With 10 percent changes every week, you don't need to make things any more complicated than they need to be. If the tank will eventually be heavy on SPS then you're going to need to go to a precise dosing regime to keep up with it. And if you're testing as you add things, you'll have a good feel for your demands and what you'll need to do next from there. There is no "best", only what's best for you and your own system. No two are the same and results are like...you know what.

 

[numin8r]

i have 16 frags in my tank. Some OG sps/ Oregon tort, and other higher end.

The black bucket has a 12 dkh and my tank is around 8. So the blue bucket will be better but I want to use tropic Marin.

I am going to use all for reef and see if I need to continue with carbon dosing. And look into adding trace in the tank

 

[CBonito]

i have 16 frags in my tank. Some OG sps/ Oregon tort, and other higher end.

The black bucket has a 12 dkh and my tank is around 8. So the blue bucket will be better but I want to use tropic Marin.

I am going to use all for reef and see if I need to continue with carbon dosing. And look into adding trace in the tank

If you feel a lower alk salt is better for you to work with how you are doing things, then perfect.
The nice thing when using AFR is that the salt itself ultimately matters very little, unless one better suits your routine. AFR is awesome until you get to a point where certain components are consumed faster than the others.
Then you'll get to a point where you have to set up some sort of automated testing/dosing to get it done and get part of your life back. I'm getting close myself.

 

[BigMonkeyBrain]

I am looking into adding Kalk to my ATO to help with PH.

Kalk will give you 20-ppm calcium per 2.8 dkh alk. Simple yes to raise PH if you want to raise both Calcium and alk.

I would suggest Soda Ash - sodium carbonate if low PH ( high demand ), or Baking Soda - Sodium bicarbonate if PH just need a little adjustment.

Probably happens !

“So let it be written, so let it be done”

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I am just looking for recommendations and what method to try. Should I stick with what I'm doing or change it up?

I am thinking about switching to TM Bio Actif or Syn-Biotic Salt (was Black bucket Red sea pro, and just bought the blue bucket but haven't opened it yet. My alk is 7.8) and continue with TM All For Reef. I don't want to continue to buy products that are not going to help corals grow and try to keep it simple. I know there are other methods out there but I am just highlighting the few that seem to be doing well and not that complicated.

I'd be wary of thinking the latest and greatest additives are going to make a big differences.

What is best is like asking what car is best.

There are lots of different roads to success, and to failure. If you follow everything someone else does, you are likely to have similar success over time.

If you follow only part of what someone does, then you cannot use their tank as any indication of whether the parts you chose to emulate are going to give similar success.