Coming on nicely. Slow and steady is a great base to a successful tank.
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50g Sumpless Tall Mixed Reef and 60g Full Mixed System
- Thread starter Sasha T
- Start date
Sasha T
Member
Update on the new system: Fully up and running, all parts are functioning, need to finesse the skimmer a bit to optimize bubble generation and placement (cut an airline hose in half to create a seal around the top to affix the cup, drop a magnet in to hold it in place). Not sure how I'm going to hold them to the frame, but the last big step will be to buy and paint with black a couple pieces of thin plywood to mount on the sides and front to hide the sump, and some fiddling with the wiring to make it all accessible outside the enclosure, keeping the back open so the moisture doesn't start condensing on wires or the "roof".
Sasha T
Member
Just blasting the rocks and sand to get the algae into the water column, then sending in the bubbles to get it all into the overflow and onto the filter pad.
Nitrates are currently sitting at 23 ppm... I'm getting restless to get this started... probably going to pick up A/Ni kits or have my water tested tomorrow (I only have API kits for those two parameters, which are coming up 0 but...) so I can get some kind of timeline to put in fish orders. I've never had a blenny, and I like the way they look and the way they function in a reef. I also want to move some of the coral from my old system into the new one because it's getting a little crowded.
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Sasha T
Member
Fish drama aside, it's been some time since the last time I blew dinoflagellates/diatoms off the substrate and rocks, with little to no return, replaced instead with green film and hair algae. Reading 0/0/<10, 1.024 SG. Will need a couple more snails for the rocks and glass, and I'd like to get some crustaceans in.
One thing I had not anticipated moving from a sumpless to plumbed system: holy crap does it lose water fast. I've tried reducing the contact time and "spray" of water as much as I can, but it still evaporates far quicker than I expected, and with the warm weather not even here yet I'm sure it will help keep the system cool, but damn.
One thing I had not anticipated moving from a sumpless to plumbed system: holy crap does it lose water fast. I've tried reducing the contact time and "spray" of water as much as I can, but it still evaporates far quicker than I expected, and with the warm weather not even here yet I'm sure it will help keep the system cool, but damn.
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Sasha T
Member
System Update
My newly acquired Wyoming White and Standard Occ that I've had for about a year seem to get along well, and are usually sleeping together. I have a rainbow BTA that has been introduced to the tank that I'm hoping to make a home for, which will hopefully, eventually, host them and their brood.
I still love my elegance coral. She's a little overgrown, and she straight up murders any coral that gets close to her, but she's still my baby.
I bought a pair of feather dusters from @BigAlsLondon, and wonder why I never added them before. They're both red/brown and white, but the texture of their feathers and their biology is really interesting. I had one of the lose its crown, and after not seeing the tube closed for a few days used a scalpel to remove the excess of the tube, and the worm(s) have regrown their feathers and are feeding.
(Yes, shame on me for taking pictures with dirty glass. I need to get a hold of a Tunze Nano. The Magfloat is good for diatoms but not anything heavy, and the Flipper on the other system takes quite a few swipes to remove encrusting algae and coraline)
The "Older" system. I've started calling the one pictured the "open ocean" reef since it's much deeper than the more recently built "shallow/shore reef"
Definitely getting crowded, the devils hand has been moved to the Shore system, and I've made frags of most of the zoas. I think I'm going to break apart my not-so-G-SP and sell off the pieces so that I have more room for the acan and euphilia. (I also have about 8 green anemones and one rainbow in the floating box in the upper right that I would like to find homes for)
I still love my elegance coral. She's a little overgrown, and she straight up murders any coral that gets close to her, but she's still my baby.
I bought a pair of feather dusters from @BigAlsLondon, and wonder why I never added them before. They're both red/brown and white, but the texture of their feathers and their biology is really interesting. I had one of the lose its crown, and after not seeing the tube closed for a few days used a scalpel to remove the excess of the tube, and the worm(s) have regrown their feathers and are feeding.
(Yes, shame on me for taking pictures with dirty glass. I need to get a hold of a Tunze Nano. The Magfloat is good for diatoms but not anything heavy, and the Flipper on the other system takes quite a few swipes to remove encrusting algae and coraline)
The "Older" system. I've started calling the one pictured the "open ocean" reef since it's much deeper than the more recently built "shallow/shore reef"
Definitely getting crowded, the devils hand has been moved to the Shore system, and I've made frags of most of the zoas. I think I'm going to break apart my not-so-G-SP and sell off the pieces so that I have more room for the acan and euphilia. (I also have about 8 green anemones and one rainbow in the floating box in the upper right that I would like to find homes for)
Your elegance is looking amazing. So many people have a hard time with them. I personally love feather dusters as well. If/when I go big again, there will be some in there.
Sasha T
Member
Side by side comparisons of my fastest growing SPS coral, pictures taken an hour ago on the left, vs on the right as they appear in my post from May 26. Quite happy with the growth rate of these colonies, but they have been offset by some devastating LPS losses. (Not the elegance, you would hear me screaming about that)
I will probably do a post outlining all the mistakes I've made, and what I learned. (Maybe in a different thread?)
Montipora Cap from BigAlsLondon
Nauti Spiral, one of my first SPS in the system
Acropora from Copperkills
Acropora from another local reefer
I will probably do a post outlining all the mistakes I've made, and what I learned. (Maybe in a different thread?)
Montipora Cap from BigAlsLondon
Nauti Spiral, one of my first SPS in the system
Acropora from Copperkills
Acropora from another local reefer
Attachments
Sasha T
Member
Side note, my oldest nonGSP colony continues to grow in "smoke stack" shapes, although now it's reached the rock and I'll have to do some scraping/pruning.
Lights on, polyps out
Lights off, no polyps
I have NO idea why it's growing this way. The frag originally had something that looked like a "skin tag", but the rest of it kept curling and...
Lights on, polyps out
Lights off, no polyps
I have NO idea why it's growing this way. The frag originally had something that looked like a "skin tag", but the rest of it kept curling and...
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Sasha T
Member
On the back of this small, miniscule dinoflagellate issue, just a friendly reminder to check and replace your RODI media... /vomits
*To clarify, this is the dino mass after I blew clear my rocks and injected a bunch of micro bubbles by causing a wave pump to suck in air. One jar with holes and filter floss in the bottom, most if it was pulled out. Nice thing about dinos is that they trap gas bubbles pretty easily, which makes skimming them off easier
Sasha T
Member
3 months of growth on my first lobophylia
Bunch of baby buds on one of my oldest hammer corals.
Bunch of baby buds on one of my oldest hammer corals.
tom55228
Inactive Since Crash
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2013
- Location
- Toronto, Ontario
Amazing I just noticed this on a few of my stuff this weekend
Sasha T
Member
The buds on the euphylia/hammer? I've noticed one or two before, but they don't seem to be adding skeleton under the new polyps, they're just making the "parent" stems a little hairy.
Sasha T
Member
Got my hands on a 40x microscope, and took a few photos of my phytoplankton culture. Wasn't able to get clear views of the phyto but it was interesting
This is a flatworm that I've recently found starting to propagate.
This is a flatworm that I've recently found starting to propagate.
Sasha T
Member
Fuck my life...
Noticed the "drip drip drip" at about 10:30, just finishing getting things in hand 2 hours later.
Water was pooling from the middle of the 'tank at the bottom.
Bottom is tempered glass, so I assume that means that the glass having failed is very unlikely, and much more likely that it was the seal?
Perfect timing... not only am I going to cut my trip to Niagara short, but depending on what the situation is I might not go at all, there are a number of pieces in here I would hate to lose...
Noticed the "drip drip drip" at about 10:30, just finishing getting things in hand 2 hours later.
Water was pooling from the middle of the 'tank at the bottom.
Bottom is tempered glass, so I assume that means that the glass having failed is very unlikely, and much more likely that it was the seal?
Perfect timing... not only am I going to cut my trip to Niagara short, but depending on what the situation is I might not go at all, there are a number of pieces in here I would hate to lose...
Sasha T
Member
Rise from your grave!
(react with "mad" if you know where that's from lol)
Surprisingly enough to me, most of the coral that could not fit into the back-up system (including but not limited to birdsnest and a chalice, the latter has been notoriously difficult for me to keep) actually survived the week and a half in a Rubbermaid bucket, as well as a couple inverts that I missed when resettling the overall population. Have to say, very happy to have a 36x18 footprint to work with. Still need to wrangle some of the cords and resecure the piping, and I have zero idea as to a stocking list for fish but... back in business, baby!
Sasha T
Member
Both systems back to normal
Still need to re-mount some coral so the substrate in both is a little cluttered, plus I am sitting on a number of frags. but all is good (b'.')b
Still need to re-mount some coral so the substrate in both is a little cluttered, plus I am sitting on a number of frags. but all is good (b'.')b
Sasha T
Member
The "main"/oldest reef six months later. FINALLY have a euphylia garden.
"Newer" system. The frogspawn and hammer have grown quite well, as has the lobophylia. I'm very hands-off with this system, mainly growing out anemones in the basket and having a separate system for the leathers away from the SPS.
"Newer" system. The frogspawn and hammer have grown quite well, as has the lobophylia. I'm very hands-off with this system, mainly growing out anemones in the basket and having a separate system for the leathers away from the SPS.
Sasha T
Member
Semi random pre-new years post:
I love these little guys.
Seriously, I love my sexy shrimp. I like inverts in general, but I've had a number of setbacks when it comes to inverts
Cleaner shrimp are interesting critters, but mine likes to steal food from the LPS, and is big enough that it irritates any coral it steps on
Peppermint shrimp, same as above
Mithrax (emerald) crabs are a bit of a hit or miss solution to bubble algae, and I've been lucky with them but there are plenty of stories of them gaining a hunger for coral flesh, plus they're rather shy
Sea stars and porcelain crabs are shy as well
I do love my tuxedo urchin, it is an algae destroying machine, but unfortunately it destroys ALL algae, meaning I can't keep some types of macro algae in the same system
I've yet to find, much less house acropora crabs so...
Sexy shrimp, on the other hand, have been model citizens so far. My zoas on the side of the tank that the sexies have claimed as "theirs" look amazing (not saying it's entirely their doing but they definitely haven't hurt things) as do the LPS. I often sit and watch them cleaning the polyps of LPS and zoas, where I imagine they're picking off dead tissue and waste, as well as (albeit temporarily) increasing water movement over the coral as they walk around. Little coral gardeners, and I hope to add some more soon.
Sexy shrimp are imo sexy indeed. That is all.
I love these little guys.
Seriously, I love my sexy shrimp. I like inverts in general, but I've had a number of setbacks when it comes to inverts
Cleaner shrimp are interesting critters, but mine likes to steal food from the LPS, and is big enough that it irritates any coral it steps on
Peppermint shrimp, same as above
Mithrax (emerald) crabs are a bit of a hit or miss solution to bubble algae, and I've been lucky with them but there are plenty of stories of them gaining a hunger for coral flesh, plus they're rather shy
Sea stars and porcelain crabs are shy as well
I do love my tuxedo urchin, it is an algae destroying machine, but unfortunately it destroys ALL algae, meaning I can't keep some types of macro algae in the same system
I've yet to find, much less house acropora crabs so...
Sexy shrimp, on the other hand, have been model citizens so far. My zoas on the side of the tank that the sexies have claimed as "theirs" look amazing (not saying it's entirely their doing but they definitely haven't hurt things) as do the LPS. I often sit and watch them cleaning the polyps of LPS and zoas, where I imagine they're picking off dead tissue and waste, as well as (albeit temporarily) increasing water movement over the coral as they walk around. Little coral gardeners, and I hope to add some more soon.
Sexy shrimp are imo sexy indeed. That is all.