Marine Beta

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Redfish
Discus Member
Posts: 983
Joined: Sun Oct 25, 2009 6:49 am
My SetUp: AGA 150g 48x30x25, Reef Octopus Skimmer, Bio Pellet, Phosphate, Carbon reactor. Mostly a SPS coral tank with a few zoas a Green Polyp Toadstool, a Chalice or two and a couple of Scollys thrown in there. Top Off System and dosing pump system for Calcium and Alk.
Location: D'Iberville Mississippi

Marine Beta

Post by Redfish » Fri Mar 01, 2013 6:18 pm

Ok, as much as I hate to do this, I am thinking of moving my favorite fish, the Marine Beta out of my tank. He is a great fish, beautiful fish and doesn't bother anyone in the tank. My reason for wanting him gone, I just can't seem to get him to eat pellet food. I have a plan to try and get him to eat pellet food one more time, if I can't, he has to go. I have been working my way towards SPS corals, feeding our tank just Mysis Shrimp is keeping my Phosphate levels just to high and I can't get them down, they stay around 0.20, I want them as close to 0.00 as I can get. If you might be interested in him, give me a shout.

Shadow1
Discus Member
Posts: 257
Joined: Thu Sep 29, 2011 1:59 pm
My SetUp: 300DD Reef, 30 Nuvo Breeding Clowns, 30 QT/Grow out.
Location: Hattiesburg, MS

Re: Marine Beta

Post by Shadow1 » Sat Mar 02, 2013 7:20 am

Have you tried rods? Or Roggers foods? Both are all natural combination foods, BB keeps rods I think, I have been feeding Roggers and every fish and the corals tear it up. All natural do not have the link but look them up. Test your last rinse water from the Mysis are you sure that is where the PO4 is coming from? I feed Mysis too and may have to stop as you know I got nitrates stopped but not phosphates.

Xfactor1315
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Re: Marine Beta

Post by Xfactor1315 » Sat Mar 02, 2013 12:14 pm

.02 Po4 would be a better number to shoot for. Zero will cause coloration issues with your sps. I have started feeding more to try to raise mine.

Redfish
Discus Member
Posts: 983
Joined: Sun Oct 25, 2009 6:49 am
My SetUp: AGA 150g 48x30x25, Reef Octopus Skimmer, Bio Pellet, Phosphate, Carbon reactor. Mostly a SPS coral tank with a few zoas a Green Polyp Toadstool, a Chalice or two and a couple of Scollys thrown in there. Top Off System and dosing pump system for Calcium and Alk.
Location: D'Iberville Mississippi

Re: Marine Beta

Post by Redfish » Sat Mar 02, 2013 7:45 pm

I posted in the Algae Scrubber Forum that I am in about the 0.20 Phosphate number that I am maintaining in my tank, feeding Mysis Shrimp, taking my Beta out of my tank to go to feeding just pellets. I should add, the Phosphate number does drop when I do a water change, but it doesn't take long for it to start climbing back up, the more I feed the fish. These guys in the Algae Scrubber Forum are pretty much the experts when it comes to Algae Scrubbers and what they can do, what I can expect from my Scrubber when its fully seasoned. I pretty much asked them if I would be able to keep my Beta, continue to feed the Mysis Shrimp and get the Phosphate number down to say 0.05 or less and be able to maintain that number, I really don't want a 0.00 Phosphate number, but I don't want 0.20 either. Its not like I am in a hurry to put SPS corals in my tank well I guess that isn't :lol: true but a couple of months isn't going to hurt. This is my last shot at keeping SPS corals, so I want everything as right as I can get it before the first coral goes into my tank. Richard, just wondering, what is your Phosphate number in your tank? I can get mine to drop to about 0.13 to 0.15 after a water change, when the next water change comes in two weeks its up 0.20, if I streach the water change to three weeks, its 0.26 to 0.30 I am using a third of a small bag of PO 4X4 in the reactor. I could most likely over a couple of weeks add more PO 4X4 to the reactor, get the Phosphate number down faster and that would allow me to put SPS corals into the tank. I just don't want to do it that way, I would rather see just what the Scrubber can do.

Shadow1
Discus Member
Posts: 257
Joined: Thu Sep 29, 2011 1:59 pm
My SetUp: 300DD Reef, 30 Nuvo Breeding Clowns, 30 QT/Grow out.
Location: Hattiesburg, MS

Re: Marine Beta

Post by Shadow1 » Sun Mar 03, 2013 7:04 am

Mine has been running at.12 pretty consistently after I took the GFO off line, tried to increase feedings to raise nitrate so the PO4 would drop to no avail so far. It is a balancing act to make it work I think when your scrubber takes off if you can increase nitrates the phosphates will fall. From my research it seems for every 8 points of nitrate dropped you can drop one point of phosphate, that's using carbon or scrubber or both so without the nitrate you can't drop the phosphate.

My solution is I bought a 5 gallon bucket of GFO from Gerwin yesterday and going back with it. Really did not want to but the phosphate battle is my last hurdle, most everyone I have met with those beautiful SPS systems are running it, so it seems to be the easiest way to maintain. I tried the po4x stuff and can't get it to work.

Counted corals yesterday, right now I have 97 different SPS corals in 2 separate systems, all growing color is not good on most, remember I feel I owe you a frag or two when you get ready.

bwren1
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Re: Marine Beta

Post by bwren1 » Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:17 pm

I feed my beta dried krill and he loves it

gbrendonk
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Re: Marine Beta

Post by gbrendonk » Fri Mar 08, 2013 1:06 pm

I don't know that cutting the shrimp will help,I have at least 15 sps corals thriving and I only feed the shrimp everyday. Chateo helps my phos stay down.

Redfish
Discus Member
Posts: 983
Joined: Sun Oct 25, 2009 6:49 am
My SetUp: AGA 150g 48x30x25, Reef Octopus Skimmer, Bio Pellet, Phosphate, Carbon reactor. Mostly a SPS coral tank with a few zoas a Green Polyp Toadstool, a Chalice or two and a couple of Scollys thrown in there. Top Off System and dosing pump system for Calcium and Alk.
Location: D'Iberville Mississippi

Re: Marine Beta

Post by Redfish » Fri Mar 08, 2013 8:34 pm

I don't know this for a fact :) someone suggested it to me, and it kinda makes since to me. What they think has happened is: the phosphates have been so high in the tank for so long that it has absorbed into my live rock and it now leaching out into the tank. At some point the Phosphate level should start to drop because of the 4x4 and the Algae Scrubber. I am in no hurry for it to drop, but I do want to get that number down a pretty good bit and be able to maintain the lower number before adding SPS corals to the tank. I have been thinking of removing a few more pieces of Live Rock out of the tank also, not sure about that idea though. The way I think :roll: the more rock you have the more places for corals.

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