MAAST Kyptonite Candy Cane growth contest

[hobogato]

This idea originated with a member in Dallas on the DFWMAS boards, but we (BOD) thought it would be a fun contest to try here with MAAST as well. We have modified the contest to fit in here.

MAAST has acquired single head frags of kryptonite candy cane grown out in the tank of one of our own members. Each participant in the contest will receive one frag free of charge. The rules of the contest are as follows:

1. You must be a charter member to participate.
2. To participate, you must post your intent in this thread along with some basic tank specifics (size, lighting, maintenance/feeding habits, etc.).
3. All participants must pick up their frags at the February meeting or within one week after the meeting from one of the two designated board members.
4. All participants are asked to provide monthly updates with pictures in the thread created for contest updates.
5. All participants must agree to never sell or trade frags from this specific colony (honor system), however they may be included in the frag exchange program. The colony you grow out as a participant is yours to keep.
6. The winner and runner up for the contest will be asked to write a short article about their tanks for a subsequent issue of the MAAST newsletter.

The maximum number of participants will be 30. If we have more than 30 members who wish to participate, only the first 30 will be allowed to participate. This contest will run for 9 months ending November 30, 2010. The prize given to the winner and runner up will be announced at a later date (we are still working on that :wink_smile: )

The winner will be determined by the number of separate heads on the participants’ colony at the end of the contest period. In the case of equal numbers of heads, larger size will be the determining factor.

Registration for the contest is now officially open and will continue until Thursday, February 25, 2010.

Any web members who become charter members before registration ends may apply to be participants.

[hobogato]

Participants:

1. ShAgMaN
2. saabtech
3. BSJF
4. corruption
5. Gseclipse02
6. maelv
7. cowboy572
8. REBridges
9. rockmp
10. Gilbert
11. EuroMom
12. HoppyBunny
13. Third Coast Tropical
14. jennabee
15. Rychek

[hobogato]

16. stangchris
17. GoneReefing
18. RayAllen
19. SKNR
20. NateDogg
21. 4fun
22. secretweapons22
23. acropoorer
24. txmike2
25. marissa21
26. smalls (pending charter confirmation)
27. ErikH
28. photek1051
29. marcusgonzales210
30. alexdmg

[ShAgMaN]

I intend to enter the MAAST Kryptonite Candy Can Contest and abide by the rules given. My frag will be grown in a 150 gal. aquarium with intense LED lighting and secret feeding techniques. Not really…I’m not to sure how to go about this, since I’ve had a frag for well over a month and it’s still around the same size. Still, sounds like fun so I’m in.

[Kristy]

What a fun idea! Let's see some sign-ups everyone... :)

[saabtech]

i want in please.
125g tall tank. i have LED, MH and CF lighting. i have a frag of this same coral and it is under the CF and mod flow and doing well.
i plan on a differant placement with this frag and under differant lighting and will record differances in growth. feeding will be rather basic.

[BSJF]

Me too.

150 g tank, w/2 250w HQI MH and 1 150w HQI MH, with T5 supplement lighting. Will place mid to bottom of tank. Feed like I feed my other trumphet acans, sun corals, mostly overfeed from fish, but sometimes spoil them rotten and supplement w/strontium and iodine, coral vite, and/or essential elements.

Guess I'd better figure out when/where the meeting is and try and make an appearance. This is a good reason to get my butt out of the house!

[Kristy]

Guess I'd better figure out when/where the meeting is and try and make an appearance.

Well, since you asked...

"Fragging FUNdamentals"
Jeremy Johnson, of Reefs2u
Sunday, February 28, 2010 (2:00 - 4:00)
Bass Pro Shop Upstairs Conference Room
17907 IH 10 W San Antonio, TX

[corruption]

I'll join in on the fun!

75 gal standard tank, 2x250w HQI, 2x54w T5, 2x30w LED, will be fed the same variety the rest of my tank regularly gets (mysis, cyclops, prawn eggs, and a slurry of many frozen foods), likely mid-height in the tank.

Whee!

-Justin

[Gseclipse02]

me 5

87g+- 8 foot tank 15 inchs tall ( really shallow) 2-4*54w t5HO

I will not spot feed the coral just let the lighting do the work

[ismvel]

Sign me up please

60g cube
250w MH 10K bulb right now w/ 2x24w T5 HO actinics, but plan on switching to either a 14k or 20k bulb here in the next couple of months.

Feed 2x a day with red rice and beans....oh sorry the puerto rican came out of me. I meant with a homemade mix.

And I am not so good at reading, so I didn't quite understand #5, so I will be selling MY WINNING COLONY for hmmmmmm...:sarcastic: 1 million dollars :sarcastic:

;)

[cowboy572]

I'll join in on this.

I currently have a 110 gallon tall, with 2x250 watt MH and 4 65 PC watt antinics. Will spot feed (coral frenzy and DT"S) and place on a differentt level than my current candy canes. Would like to see how it will do under my new Phoenix 14K bulbs. (Thats if they ever get here, thanks to the snow storm)

[NateDogg]

very nice.. This is one of my favorite corals in my tank. I can't wait to see how and what everyone feeds. lots of updates please.

[REBridges]

Count me in (membership fee just sent in through PayPal) Will send in my info..wanted to get my spot and post in quick!

My intent is to have a fun and educational contest of the aquarium hobby. No matter the outcome (win or lose) its all about the joy and pleasure of it.

Specifications: 29 biocube tank with dual circulation pumps and fluorescent lighting, with LED Lunar lights

Will spot feed mid level in my tank with a mixture of coral frenzy, zoe, and phyto twice daily in small doses. Tank consists of multiple fish and vast amount of coral and coral frags.

[rockmp]

Count me in also.

60g cube with 250w Mh and 2x65w PC. I feed a variety of frozen foods everyday.

[Gilbert]

Id like to enter the contest also.
tank: 55 gallon
lighting: 2x175watt MHs and 2x110 VHO actinics
feeding: when ever i have time to watch my tank (weekends mostly)
flow: high (2x mod mj, K2, K3)
water quailty: idk, but everything is alive so must be good

[Europhyllia]

I want to participate!
size: 125g tank
lighting: T5 (ATI fixture 6x 80w)
maintenance: the usual 5-8% weekly water changes, starting solid vodka dosing soon
feeding habits: day and night -whenever one of the critters looks at me

[HoppyBunny]

Yay...I want to play!

110 Tall, T5 - Solar Flare 6x54w, feed a couple times a week (coral frenzy and ova) and the corals also get some goodies from Rod's when I feed the fish, will probably be placed mid level (just like everyone else it seems!)

[Third Coast Tropical]

feeding habits: day and night -whenever one of the critters looks at me[/COLOR][/SIZE]

That seriously made me laugh

[Third Coast Tropical]

I suppose I will enter this....

Tank it will go in is 29 gal biocube with moderate flow.....150 w 14000K MH and 28 w actinic.....Feed tank inhabitants daily, ranging from frozen mysis and spirulina enriched artemia to live rotifers and newly-hatched artemia.

[Pennies2Cents]

I am glad to see a lot of participation in this thread/contest. It will definitely be one to keep our eyes on.. :)

[jennabee]

Sounds like a fun time, and we've been out of the loop for awhile and ready to participate again.. Count us in.:blushing:
We have a 220 gal. and run only T5 lighting and feed a variety of food.

[Rychek]

I"m game:

30 gal long with 4 36" T5s on an IceCap 660.
Weekly - bi-weekly water changes.

I can't make it to the meeting, but can coordinate a pickup with the designated BOD. Thanks!

[Big_Pun]

im throwing my name in the hat on this one, this is awesome i cant believe i just noticed this thread, this could really help see what our diff setups and husbandry habbits affect the growth of this coral

65g tank, 29 gallon fuge, 250w hqi, sunlight supply penadant, coralvue ballast, 14k reeflux bulb, fuge only has cheato and 6 red mangroves(bare bottom), coralife skimmer,tank has mix of sps, lps, softies, 2inch sand bed, i do about 15 gallon water change spread out thru the month, reef crystals salt, dose b-ionic everday, AOT on the way, feed misis and blood worms, flakes and pellets to fish, lps gets misis, and i also use coral frenzy 2 times a week

[Europhyllia]

im throwing my name in the hat on this one, this is awesome i cant believe i just noticed this thread
I know. I didn't look at it earlier because I saw the title and thought: That's nice but I don't have a kryptonite candy cane to participate with...

[hobogato]

im throwing my name in the hat on this one, this is awesome i cant believe i just noticed this thread


...2. To participate, you must post your intent in this thread along with some basic tank specifics (size, lighting, maintenance/feeding habits, etc.)...


please :)

[corruption]

To expand on the tank specs -- is there going to be a 'data sheet' of sorts for entry of information? Maybe something standardized that at the initial check-in for the contest is filled out, and edited if any changes are made.. It would be interesting to compare growth vs light/feeding regimen once the contest is over.. :)

-Justin

[GoneReefing]

I'll participate. Been wanting to get some candy canes.

Tank specs 75gal, 4x54w T5HO, Will be fed the on same schedule as my sun coral and acans.

[hobogato]

that is a great idea justin, i am sure we can incorporate it into the results thread somehow.

[corruption]

Something like this would likely be sufficient for the uncontrolled observations we'd be making on everything, I'd think:

Tank Volume (Including filtration)
Method(s) of Filtration Utilized
Lighting Configuration (the more detailed, the better IMO -- brand/spectrum if possible)
Food Types and Feeding Regimen
Tank Placement (Relative to light source in inches)
Estimated Flow Rate (water flow equipment listing would be sufficient too -- most of us can surmise general ideas about flow just knowing the hardware)
Tank Parameters (the whole range if possible)

...I can't really think of any other details that would be real relevant towards the potential conclusions off the top of my head... Most of the details would be a consistent unless you willfully changed something -- but it could just be posted with the update pictures as part of the routine..

-Justin

[RayAllen]

Id like to get in on this Ace.

29g BioCube, Standard PC lighting. Medium flow in aquarium. Feed a mix of krill and ocean nutrition and flake. Water changes now everyother week. Filtration Sapphire skimmer, 30lbs of Liverock. Various corals. Shrooms, zoas, kenya, palys and acans.

[Europhyllia]

Any web members who become charter members before registration ends may apply to be participants.
just noticed that...you guys are so clever... ;)

[SKNR]

I would like in as well, I have never done a candy cane coral so this is going to be interesting


150 gallon tank, 30 gallon sump, 10 gallon fuge
2x250 MH, 2x110 T5 super antinic , 2x55 PC
5 gallon water changes weekly
Feed flake, variety of frozen foods , (want to make my own but still have not)
Mostly Zoas, a few mushrooms and one torch coral,

[NateDogg]

I was going to pass.. I have some in my 29g biocube, but.. I wonder how it would do in a 3g pico. It has stock lighting and a penguin 100 filter on the back. I feed cyclops and coral food in that tank on a daily basis and do weekly water changes. I have a great spot for it and would like to try if every is cool with that. We can donate frags from this when done correct? I have wanted to frag mine and am nervouse about it. I thought it would be something else I could document in the end.

[hobogato]

no problem nate, added you to the list :)

[4fun]

ok i think i'll play
tank 215g display 40g sump 12g fuge
light 2 400 watt 14k 12" from water and T-5 comb not sure what they are
flow 1 Koralia 2, 2 Koraila 3, 2 koraila 4
50g water change once a month

[secretweapons22]

I would like to join as well.

30gal cube 25 gal fuge
150watt pendent light 14k
MP10 and mag 5 for flow
Feed every other day.

[hobogato]

:innocent2:


just noticed that...you guys are so clever... ;)

[acropoorer]

Can I play? If so count me in.

175gal oceanic converting to 360gal homemade tank by summer.
3-400 watt halides with luminarcs - stays same in new tank
2-5' vho actinic converting to 6 - 6' and 4 - 2' vho actinic
Bulk feed every other day
Change water out of guilt

[hobogato]

oh, i guess dale :)

[hobogato]

still a few spots left...

[txmike]

I want in
Will go in 13 gal JBJ all stock.
Will move in 4 to 6 weeks when the 130 has finished cycle.2 400w MH ,8 T5 50gal sump.
feeding is all over the place.

[marissa21]

i would also like in if u still have room 4 one more
by the way i have just became a charter mem. yea baby!!! :bighug:
i have a 30 gal tank by the way with pc lighting

i payed via pay pal but dont know how long it take to become a member.

[Big_Pun]

i would also like in if u still have room 4 one more
by the way i have just became a charter mem. yea baby!!! :bighug:
i have a 30 gal tank by the way with pc lighting

i payed via pay pal but dont know how long it take to become a member.

thank you for becoming a charter member, good luck with your tank, any questions just ask

[smalls]

If theres room left ill give it a go. not a charter member but getting paid later today and will send in payment and info.

Tank info I got a nano cube 12. plan on upgrading to the 28g in the very near future. Tank 1yo with mostly softies and one clown (Beldar) + cuc, moderate to high flow and feed a combo of dry food and mysis with chromaplex and pytoplex for the softies and euphyillia. Have high lighting with a 150w 20k de halide.

*paypal sent*

[ErikH]

OMG, ok....
75g with 100g sump
750w halides
96 w t5

Will have 110g with 1k light.

:) I will own you all. :)

[txmaverickmh]

Erik, you have 750W MH OVER a 75G TANK???????????? Whoa baby, nuclear power or crazy typo!!! Oh wait, do you mean 3 250W MHs? Still that is a tone of power, no wonder those zoas grow so crazy!

mh

[Third Coast Tropical]

OMG, ok....
75g with 100g sump
750w halides
96 w t5

Will have 110g with 1k light.

:) I will own you all. :)



Great....lol...So, this is now a race for second?

[Big_Pun]

Great....lol...So, this is now a race for second?
i just built a special frag rack that extends to the middle of my tank dead center about 9 inches from the surface, what now erikh

[bjgf15]

Great....lol...So, this is now a race for second?

There's a lot more to growing coral than simply light... especially one that isn't particularly light demanding. I wouldn't count anyone out of this until it's over.

[Third Coast Tropical]

There's a lot more to growing coral than simply light... especially one that isn't particularly light demanding. I wouldn't count anyone out of this until it's over.


Seems like everything grows in Erik's tank...whether it be from all his light, or the hand of a coral god...it all grows ...

[REBridges]

btw...my charter membership went through....so im clear now! :)

[hobogato]

great, fixed.


btw...my charter membership went through....so im clear now! :)

[hobogato]

also fixed yours marissa

a few more spots left...

[ErikH]

LOL I will overfeed and water change daily if that's what it takes Chris!

WHAAAAAAAAAAT? :)

[Europhyllia]

Oh you boys don't even know what overfeeding is... :rolleyes:

[ismvel]

3. All participants must pick up their frags at the February meeting or within one week after the meeting from one of the two designatedboard members.

Do we know who these two unlucky folks will be? I was hoping to pick up the winning...yes WINNING....specimen at the meeting, but I won't be able to make it. Just found out my son has a soccer game in Round Rock on Sunday.

[hobogato]

good question, i am thinking i will be one here on the NE side and someone on the NW side will be the other.

one more day to sign up...

[hobogato]

ok, looks like 27 participants, this should be fun to watch!

i will be sending a pm to all participants today about pickup options, please respond before the meeting if possible.

[rocketeer]

Oh... How did I miss this?

Jack

[hobogato]

gilbert has removed himself from the competition, so we have one spot if you want it jack

[hobogato]

luckily, we had three extra frags at the meeting and three new charter members who wanted to participate!

i am sending messages to those of you who didnt make the meeting momentarily with pickup info.

thanks to everyone for participating, i will get the official contest thread up and running soon :)

[Europhyllia]

Would it be okay to ask:

how was the mother colony kept? flow? light?

[hobogato]

high flow, high light - in a mostly sps dominant tank

[ErikH]

WOOT.

[HoppyBunny]

Let the games begin...I am excited! It is going be fun to see how frags from the same mother colony do in so many different setups.

[hobogato]

here was the box o frags just before handing them out
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/febmtg/DSC06354.jpg

first frag out of the box went to ms. julia herself ^
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/febmtg/DSC06355.jpg

[Gilbert]

gilbert has removed himself from the competition, so we have one spot if you want it jack

yeah sorry about that ace, wish i could have gone.

[hobogato]

no problem gilbert, sorry you had to drop out. hopefully we will do another one after this one concludes...

[rocketeer]

Here's mine mounted. Love the color.

Jack

[ErikH]

Yes, but have you fed it yet? :D
They do appreciate light!

[Mr Cob]

Here's mine mounted. Love the color.

Jack

Looks nice! THX for posting the pic up.

[RayAllen]

Update on mine

The first couple of days it was full and open, the last couple though its been shrunken and deflated. Whats really odd is the same day I brought home a teal candy cane as a door prize and it has looked great from day one. Same flow, light and area of the tank.

Weird

[Europhyllia]

Mine made it through the terrible times my tank went through and is now eating happily. The color is a little shocking. Any way to encourage it to tone down a little?
RA, I always heard that the Krypnotites want more light and more flow than other candy canes. Not sure if that helps.
I am just glad mine is alive and eating :)

[RayAllen]

hmm, from what ive candy cane coral all have the same requirements, no matter what color. I will raise it up higher in the tank and see if that helps for more light.
Thanks Karin

[Mr Cob]

I have had the same colony of Kryptonite for almost 2 years and it has gone from MH to PC to T5 and back to MH. As well as low flow to heavy flow.

It did not grow at all under my PC bulbs in my Aquapod and low flow but did not die either...it grew steadily under T5 with mild flow and it as grown at exponential rates under the surface of my current 14k 250w MH lighting with high flow.

So, my experience with this coral is that it LOVES high flow and direct intense light. I started with one head and now have 17+ heads....with over half grown in just the last couple of months.

I have heard the same results from other reefers...BUT as Ray stated the consensus of online material states otherwise....which makes this contest even more intriguing to watch. The results will speak for themselves.

One factor I never compared was feeding...I do not feed mine...and have never fed them...so, I would think that someone using PC bulbs or that might have them in low flow and low light would definitely benefit from feeding.

[RayAllen]

Thanks for the insight Rob. I will try spot feeding it and moving it up to the top of the tank. Hopefully this perks it up.

[Europhyllia]

I see a difference between the regular and the krypto even in feeding. The regular only seems to accept food at night for me. The Krypto will grab and eat any time day or night and eats whatever.
It's one of the most endearing qualities of this coral! :bighug:

[txmike]

What are you feeding? I have mine in stock 13 gal JBJ .Will try to snap a pic tonight and post.

Mike

[Mr Cob]

If this contest comes down to feeding...you guys better step up your game, because Karin is the saltwater reef feeding QUEEN...and I don't mean over feeding.

[RayAllen]

Im going to pick up a turkey baster tonight. Like you rob ive never spot feed my candy canes either.

[txg8gxp]

Turkey baster are ok, but kinda messy. The kent sea squirts are well worth the money. You do need to drill out the hole in them to use mysis. Just my 2 cent. Good luck everyone.

[NateDogg]

did you use a bit? what size? the squirt can be frustrating with the original hole.

Turkey baster are ok, but kinda messy. The kent sea squirts are well worth the money. You do need to drill out the hole in them to use mysis. Just my 2 cent. Good luck everyone.

[txg8gxp]

I used a tapered unibit. I didnt have to go much bigger, so small bits in a standard drill bit set should work fine.

[Europhyllia]

I initially enlarged the hole and it worked fine. Then my little one played with it and the tip came off. Guess what it works even nicer with no tip. Much less force when it dispenses. In retrospect I might have left the tip as is and used it with the small hole for phyto stuff and with no tip for mysis, etc.
It works either way.

[txg8gxp]

Sure, tell us now that I drilled mine out...:)

[Europhyllia]

I know. Sorry. I didn't think of just taking the tip off until the baby messed with it.
It works great either way. Wouldn't want to be without a sea squirt...

[alienspacepirate]

I'm not in this contest but I've had a frag of kryptonite candy cane now for two years. I only have 4 heads and I've only seen it split a few times. At one point it fell and killed all the heads but one, so I started over as of a year ago.

I didn't know I needed to feed this coral and will be looking at these posts to see what food works best. I mixed some aquadine and fed that but after a few minutes the heads will open up again and I suppose it doesn't like it.

Six months ago I did see a head 'eat' a whole few inches of algea over the course of two days and it had split soon afterwards.

I have PC lighting 4x65 watts 55gal setup. I had the frag on the bottom of the tank but moved it now up midway in the tank and it seems to open up much more.

[allan]

Dude, I feed mine at four am three times a week, and often they will open again for another bite.

I picked up six or seven heads of teal from th z28s early last summer. When I got home they had broken in half and now I have two colonies (20-30 heads per colony). In my exp the neon don't grow as fast for me but they are hearty eaters much like the teals.

Both of the colonies are about about the size of a softball and during the night they open and look "hairy".

[ErikH]

I feed them by hand, one mysis at a time. ;)

ITS SOOOOOOOOO ON! :D

C'mon where's the smack talkin'? LOL

MY CANDYCANES > YOURS. LOOOOOLLL

Mine has two mouths and ate two PE Mysis yesterday. It likes my lights, which is bad for y'all! :P

How many mouths do your candys have?

[Mr Cob]

This is funny. Man...

Karin...the feeding queen
Ray...nano tank for up close care
Allan...has kryptos that are eating before you even think about waking up
and Erik who feeds cubes to each mouth by hand!

LOL!

Looks like we have a contest!

[Europhyllia]

two mouths = luck of the draw! Mine had part of it's head cut off AND lived through the dark days of my tank. It's now got a full head and is eating. That's good enough for me.

My money is on Allan. He feeds his every day at the same time his special Allan mix and I bet he talks to them too!

[ErikH]

I GOT STILTS, LETS DO THIS. :bigsmile:

LOL

[Milly]

Hey hey hey... I do NOT talk to my coral. You would have to just be weird to do much more than lovingly caressing the coral. Talking to them is just strange... since they don't have ears, you know?

[Milly]

Dang, my daughter's computer, I'll be right back.

[Europhyllia]

You would have to just be weird to do much more than lovingly caressing the coral. Talking to them is just strange... since they don't have ears, you know?
:innocent2:

[smalls]

Wel havnt been able to find the camera. Could use the ole cell phone if need be. Frag is in tank and doing well. Currently have him on the bottom of the tank in a medium flow area. Will try to get a pic up soon for contest rules :)

[hobogato]

yeah, i will get an official contest thread up soon and then everyone can start posting updates.

[allan]

I'm glad our last meeting covered fragging candycanes... here's how I did it a few weeks ago... while moving a power head I dropped it on my colony and ended up with several frags.

Fortunately they all survived. Whew! They're Gloria's favorites.

[RayAllen]

Mine has swelled up nicely again. Still only one mouth, but its alive and im happy with that.

[Big_Pun]

same here, its very happy no new growth

[Shu]

dang I am a little late on this. Wish I could of participated.

[Rychek]

I finally got mine mounted last week. It's a large head, much larger than the teals I had before my tank crashed (only one little head survived).

http://i212.photobucket.com/albums/cc246/Rychek426/KryptoniteCandyCAne.jpg

[ErikH]

I fed mine four mysis at the same time! :D

[ErikH]

FOUR!

[ErikH]

sorry I like the competition!

[RayAllen]

sorry I like the competition!

OH YEAH! I fed mine steroids:ph34r:

im just happy mine seems to like my tank with my boring PC lights.:)

I stopped spot feeding but feed a mixture of frozen every other day and it seems to be catching food.

[ErikH]

Steroids? Is that amino acids in the coral world? L

[alienspacepirate]

bah.. ive not gone my four to split yet in the last several months. Im feeding too.. one nearly swallowed an entire scallop even. LOL

[hobogato]

ok, i got the official contest progress thread up here:

http://www.maast.org/showthread.php?58792-MAAST-Kryoptonite-Candy-Cane-growth-contest

i am going to close this thread so there is no confusion as to where updates should be posted.