Sps weekly growth pics

[Jimmy 4]

This is by far the fastest I have ever seen a coral grow. I am fairly new to sps so this may be a common occurrence to some, but not for me so I am going to take a picture of this once a week and post them just for fun. I have posted the first two pics in a different thread so sorry for the duplicates, but I want to start this from the beginning.

Tank Info:
20 long
4.5 gallon HOB fuge w/ live rock, live sand, and cheato.
4x24watt sundial T5
Weekly 5 gallon water changes
Not dosing correctly at the moment, but will be in the near future (especially if a get a milli at the swap)
I do add some kend Ca (10 drops), Mg(20 drops), and Iodine (5-10 drops) half way between waterchanges. I know this is a bad way of dosing, but test kits seem so expensive for what they are.

I think that this is a Miami Orchid staghorn acro. Not entirely sure though.
Day 1ish
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0753.jpg

Week 1
sorry no pic :(
Week 2
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0775.jpg

Weeks 3
I changed my camera setting to be brighter because it seems that my pics are dark on LCD monitors.
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0792.jpg

[lr9788]

Nice growth there!

[Mike Bennett]

Lighting? Dosing? info?

[OldNemo]

What size tank and lighting? Looks great!

[Jimmy 4]

Tank info added above

[RaysReef]

25% W/C makes a huge difference IMO. If I could afford to do that every week I would too, once my tank is established. Nothing beats fresh saltwater.

[Jimmy 4]

It is easy and cheap to change 25% weekly when it is only 5 gallons. I don't think that I could handle changing 25% weekly on any tank 75 gallon and over.

[spsick]

25% W/C makes a huge difference IMO. If I could afford to do that every week I would too, once my tank is established. Nothing beats fresh saltwater.

Ditto, consistancy always wins. You do however need to get test kits, or that consistancy wont last especially with such small volume.

Looks good, thin branching stags tend to be fast growers. Especially in a non-skimmed system (as long as you can keep nutrients under control).

[Brent]

good job man, whatever you are doing and it's working for you just keep foinf it. I am learning that there are few right and wrong answers in this hobby as I progress further along. If it works rock it, if it doesn't work try something else.:beerchug:

[Jimmy 4]

I cannot edit the original post so here is week 4 a little late. lol




I think that this is a Miami Orchid staghorn acro. Not entirely sure though.
Day 1ish
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0753.jpg

Week 1
sorry no pic :(
Week 2
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0775.jpg

Weeks 3
I changed my camera setting to be brighter because it seems that my pics are dark on LCD monitors.
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0792.jpg

Week 4
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0824.jpg

I now have flatworms too. I plan on siphoning them for a couple of weeks then I will try flatworm exit. So don't buy anything from me for a while. ;)

[SuperSteveMan]

Sweet! keep them coming!

[BeerNut]

If you plan on using Flatworm Exit, use it sooner rather than later. There will be less toxin release due to lower flatworm numbers.

[mattb]

Flatworms exit isn't particularly effective, you have to OD it pretty heavily to reduce fws. It's not a Miami orchid, the species name escapes me, but they are pretty commonly maricultured. DANG, it's funny how fast you forget this stuff when you don't have a tank!!!!! It's an A parilis, that's what it is.... They get really nice when grown out.

[REEFSTOCK]

I wouldn't be worried about the flatworms.
If you really feel the need to rid the tank of them, I would only do it if you are QT everything going in your tank, EVERYTHING, and or are done putting new things in your tank.

JIMO

[CaptainGreg]

Nice growth, Why is it not growing onto the plug more?

[Jimmy 4]

If I don't get rid of them people won't buy anything from me if I ever sell stuff.

And I don't think that this kind of coral is encrusting, so I doubt that it will ever grow on the plug. I am probably wrong though.

Thanks for the ID mattb.

[Jimmy 4]

week 4
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0824.jpg

Week 5
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0850.jpg

[Jimmy 4]

I am going to change this to every other week.

Week 6
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0891.jpg

[wolmutt]

Do you have rust colored flat worms?

[Jimmy 4]

They look brown to me. Soon I will be using flatworm exit on my tank once a week for three weeks. I just need to catch my sexy shrimp and move them to a different tank.

[Fb Joe]

Get a green coris, you'll never see a FW.

And when you want to be sure that they're all gone/ if it jumps (not a jumper IMO)/ or you want to sell him, then use the exit.

A lot easier to prevent a nuke if the population is reduced to just a few FW.

[Jimmy 4]

I think that a sixline will do the same thing. Maybe I could borrow my brothers. I will be trying flatworm exit on the 24 aquapod today. There are zoas, mushrooms, one fish, and only a few flatworms (It is hard to find one) in the tank.

[David Grigor]

Nothing is a guarantee but I have all four of these in various tanks:

sixline,
green coris,
yellow coris,
melanurus.

and take care of them. Doesn't eliminate them but controls them to where you rarely see one.

Green coris is the ugliest of the crew but does the best job.


While I've used/tried flatworm exit, it too has never 100% erradicated and there is some risk involved. Usually about 6 months later you will start to see the population begin to rise again.

IME: Best just to find a method ( fish or siphon during tank maintenance ) to try to control them and let be.

[wireefman]

Nothing is a guarantee but I have all four of these in various tanks:

sixline,
green coris,
yellow coris,
melanurus.

and take care of them. Doesn't eliminate them but controls them to where you rarely see one.

Green coris is the ugliest of the crew but does the best job.

i have a yellow corris, and i never was at "plauge porportions" but i notice fewer and fewer each day

[Jimmy 4]

I have a 20 gallon so borrowing my brothers sixline for a short while seems like the best option. When I get the 45 cube going I want to get a mystery wrasse, but a 45 may be too small for one.

[David Grigor]

i have a yellow corris, and i never was at "plauge porportions" but i notice fewer and fewer each day

Ya know, you can have all of these fancy flasher wrasses, rare clown this and rare fish that but.........

Now that my yellow coris is about 4-5 years old and mature, The flourescent orange and green markings on its face ( similiar to a lunar ) and yellow and orange on the fins, its a real looker. I wouldn't trade it for anything...... whether it never at another flatworm or not..... Even better, the fish was given too me.

[wireefman]

Ya know, you can have all of these fancy flasher wrasses, rare clown this and rare fish that but.........

Now that my yellow coris is about 4-5 years old and mature, The flourescent orange and green markings on its face ( similiar to a lunar ) and yellow and orange on the fins, its a real looker. I wouldn't trade it for anything...... whether it never at another flatworm or not.....

hey now.... i got rare clowns as well...... but i do agree with you... the yellow coris is just a stunning fish, and now that he is acclimated and out and about.... a great social fish as well mines about 2 inches in length

[Jimmy 4]

So I used FWE on the 24g aquapod. I watched the few flatworms that I could see shrivel up and die, and then 30 minutes later a bunch of mini brittle stars climbed out of the rocks looking pissed off. I guess that a bunch must have been hiding in the rocks. So far so good....I am running carbon and will be doing a water change in 1 hour.

[Fb Joe]

Nothing is a guarantee but I have all four of these in various tanks:

sixline,
green coris,
yellow coris,
melanurus.

and take care of them. Doesn't eliminate them but controls them to where you rarely see one.

Green coris is the ugliest of the crew but does the best job.

Holla! The coris is doing its job I see? :beerchug:

Yes if I did a wrasse I would choose that. Unless you're tanks BB, then you gotta do a sixline

[Jimmy 4]

This coral is still doing good. Here is an update.

Week 6
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0891.jpg


Week 8ish
http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0977.jpg

[CaptainGreg]

Got time an money... Weekly water change is the ticket... TwincitiesReefer does the same thing.. Weely water change and his stuff grow like crazy.

I think I am going to do more water change...:biggthumpup:

[Screwtape]

Great pics, what I think is interesting is that it's not encrusting at all. It thinks it's still attached to a colony and doesn't feel like it needs to encrust any more. :gay1:

[mrbeachbum2]

Nothing is a guarantee but I have all four of these in various tanks:

sixline,
green coris,
yellow coris,
melanurus.

and take care of them. Doesn't eliminate them but controls them to where you rarely see one.

Green coris is the ugliest of the crew but does the best job.


While I've used/tried flatworm exit, it too has never 100% erradicated and there is some risk involved. Usually about 6 months later you will start to see the population begin to rise again.

IME: Best just to find a method ( fish or siphon during tank maintenance ) to try to control them and let be.

I wonder if these two would work well together yellow coris and a
melanurus. . . ..


Awesome growth. :biggthumpup:

[Jimmy 4]

Got time an money... Weekly water change is the ticket... TwincitiesReefer does the same thing.. Weely water change and his stuff grow like crazy.

I think I am going to do more water change...:biggthumpup:

Doing weekly water changes on a 20 gallon doesn't take much money/time.

It is odd that it hasn't encrusted, and I wish that it would. Maybe I should break it off and place it on a rock.

[Jimmy 4]

It is still growing. I wonder if the arms will ever split, or if it has to be broken off to split.

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_0977.jpg

http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t233/frit0114/RCA_1021.jpg

[Brent]

Is that a green ORA birdsnest to the left of it? Stylophora of some type?

[Jimmy 4]

It is a green birds nest. I was holding it for someone and it is no longer in the tank.