questions on water quality

J

jkburton1s

Member
ok well my buddy comes by the other day to look at my tank and tell me what he thinks is wrong and why im not getting growth and being able to keep some of the sps and lps i was wanting. well we put some water in a bucket and low and behold its yellow tinged.( my buddy has a b.s. in biology with a minor in marine bio. and a masters in chemistry) so now i got a solids problems. well i put a reactor full of floss in the display tank to help and then put floss in the sump to help get it out , but im still not having much luck. then i put a reactor with carbon in it as well. water is still a little yellow and im not sure what is going on. ive cut my feeding back to about 1/2 of normal. so i understand now i have actually made my lighting a little stronger by taking out some of the yellow in my tank, and having new bulbs as well. but im not for sure how to get my water even cleaner. i have a skimmer but its not a great one. works as good as fishing in a barrel full of water with not fish.
so long story short, what are some things i can do to make my water quality even better. so far im changing water weekly, adding carbon, using floss, and decreased the feeding. whats left???beat_dead_horse
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
The floss will likely not help unless cleaned VERY regularly.

What are your test results? Yellow water is never good, but if your test results are normal, then you have a contaminant entering your water either through your water source, salt mix, overfeeding, or other things present in the tank.

Many people run carbon at all times, and that will certainly help, but water doesn't just yellow on it's own, so the best bet for "cleaning up" the water is figuring out where the yellow is coming from.
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
Ditto to C-O-D.

Many things can "Tint" the water and one such problem is indeed DOC's which a good quality skimmer will help remove.

Another could be "Tanins" leaching from something in the tank.

I would:

  • A) increase carbon (make sure it's QUALITY carbon) use (amount and time)
  • B) Increase water changes (frequency and amount)
  • C) Improve skimmer (replace or modify existing one)
  • D) Be VERY cautious with filter floss or anything similar....

Remember yellow water is blocking a LOT of light from reaching your corals.

Also make SURE the water is actually yellow and not just "mimicking" yellow due to light or container issues....
 
J

jkburton1s

Member
well i had a ton of macro algae in the sump and i cut out 2/3 of it , he told me that it could be leaching, im gonna take some water out here shortly and put it in the bucket to see if things have changed any. ill keep an update. however i wish could haveing a lot of live rock in the sump keep some solids in the column?
 
BigAl07

BigAl07

Administrator
RS STAFF
I don't think having more LR in the sump will do anything for you here at all.

Also it helps to take your MAcro Algae out and occasionally "rinse" it in some WC change water. You'd be shocked how much JUNK is in there :)
 
J

jkburton1s

Member
so does anyone else have any good ideas on better water chemistry. im thinking of using a 5 gal bucket and making a filter system
 
framerguy

framerguy

Well-Known Member
jkburton1s said:
so does anyone else have any good ideas on better water chemistry. im thinking of using a 5 gal bucket and making a filter system
Click to expand...

barring getting a good skimmer (which I highly recommend) then the next best option is the bucket filter. IME...and I have tried the bucket...there is NO substitute for a quality skimmer and I will never be without one again.

Using carbon 24/7 is a good idea at all times. It's a simple thing and it works.

No one has mentioned ozone and can be very effective in polishing water but great care must be taken to keep the ozone out of your home air and should be researched thoroughly before attempting.

I still think upgrading the skimmer is a good answer for you.
 
J

jkburton1s

Member
so what skimmer should i look at getting. i dont have the room for a insump skimmer as of now. i have a couple of options. i have a 40 gallon rubber made that i could turn into a sump or i could use the tub as a skimmer only tub that is tied into the sump. kinda awkward on my build i didnt know i was gonna add on . so it would go 75gal DT then 40 gal DT then 40 rubbermaid refugium then 40 sump or i have a 29 that i could use as what ever. just need to know how to tie it all together. i have a rio hf 32 as my main return pump so after calculating im getting about 1000gph flow to the 75+40 DTs so thats about 10x turnover w/o my power heads. im doing lps and softies . well any more help is greatly needed and appreciated
 
molsen187

molsen187

Member
if you don't have the room for an insump skimmer, the aqua c remora skimmer is a great hob skimmer. i have one on my 55g and it works awesome.
 
A

ARA

Member
Another for proper skimmer!,...you could use more carbon, and change it out regularly, (weekly) and as chipmunkofdoom2 pointed out, if you insist on using floss/foam, clean it all the time,..don't let it sit.
Get a nice skimmer.
 
J

jkburton1s

Member
i think im gonna modify my sump for use with a intank sump. i have a 40 gallon rubber made im gonna stick under there untill i find how i wanna build it. its a 40 breeder, so im gonna modify it and make it how i want it to be
 
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