Redhawk45's 12g Nano-Cube - 1 1/2 years old!

[redhawk45]

Here's an updated picture of my 12g Nano-Cube DX, after 4 months of hard, intense work...hehe.

 

So far, my critters are: 1 Ocellaris Clownfish, 1 Black Clown Goby, 7 dwarf Blue-Legged Hermit Crabs, 1 Peppermint Shrimp, 1 Cerith snail (which, incidentally, did bury itself immediately upon placing in the tank), 1 Star Polyp, 1 Yellow Polyp (Sun Polyp perhaps...got the question to this and the other coral in the Coral Forum), and a Stylophora (Not sure at all, see Coral Forum) coral. Got a large tuft of green algae in the tank on one rock, and the back of the tank, thanks to a brush, will be wiped off tomorrow after all the worrying about the gunky slimish stuff on the back of the tank.

 

So, whatcha think? Other than the green algae prob, it's going pretty well. Soon my pump will be upgraded to the Maxi-jet 900 (tomorrow) and next week I'll get the Hydor Flo Rotating Deflector on there to boost some more water movement.

[cheryl jordan]

Sounds like your are on your way, getting new pumps is a good idea the stock pumps suck.

 

If you cut back the hear algae a turbo snail may eat it, but it probably will not eat when it is that long.

 

Nice looking clownfish

 

Cheryl

[redhawk45]

I had my tank for over a year now. I had set it up January 13, 2010, and now it's exactly 1 year, 3 months old. Wow...it has been a trial that I swore to myself I wouldn't do again. Uh, huh...sure! lol

 

Attached is the updated photos of my tank. Things have changed, some things have matured. Can you imagine I battled green algae blooms, slime algae blooms, not cleaning for a full month and a half, adding a few handfuls of sand to create another slime algae attack which decimated 3/4ths of my inverts, to this. As you can see, I'm still battling the slime algae, but I'm doing it the old fashion way, the way I got rid of the stuff before I even did the handfuls of sand. True, I wouldn't have had the slime algae at all if it wasn't for Pet Solutions stupid dead coral they sent me. I didn't know it was dead until a week later, and by then the slime algae took hold.

 

In the meantime of that going down, I had bought other corals, for which two are doing super, while 1 died and another seems like it's dying. The Watermelon Zoa has spread out from the place that I put it - yes, zoas are semi-aggressive, and if anyone tells you differently, screw them...lol. I think the only thing that might stop it is slime algae...wish me luck after i get the slime algae out of the tank. lol.

 

The CCGC Aquacultured Evergreen Starburst Polyp, or suppose to be a GSP variant, still is baffling me. At the very top of the tank I had placed it (at the time, I didn't know it was so easy to break the bond of epoxy putty) This thing hasn't moved off it's plug at all! It's a freakin miracle, considering other people's experience with GSP. Maybe my variant is a deformed kind? Come on, my zoa reached over to two other rocks with ease that had more gaps between them than this plug has...lol.

 

I'm saddened to know that I may have scrubbed my Yellow Button Polyp to death. I used a soft toothbrush to brush off the slime algae off the rock, but they have yet to pop back out of their 'holes' to fully be out. I'm gonna put a picture of that in the coral forum to have others tell me something I may already know.

 

I still have 1 clownfish, 1 black goby, watermelon zoas out the butt, ESP or GSP, whichever to want to call it, and one hermit.

 

I hope to expand to a 24g DX JBJ Nano-Cube this summer, and transfer what I have left over to that by fall.

[redhawk45]

bump

[redhawk45]

Bump again. What, no one wants to comment?

[gena]

That's great growth with your zoas!

 

Do you have the surface skimmer that came with the NC12? Maybe that might help with your slime trouble. When I take mine off I immediately see the slick at the surface. That may be blocking light to your tank and causing the slime. Just a thought If you don't have one, I believe you can buy them separately.

[redhawk45]

I got the skimmer, but because of the powerful powerhead in the back, the back of the tank becomes dry while the front of the tank actually overflows when I use the surface skimmer. I can only do it when the water evaporates enough, and then I have to have a constant eye on it all...put it on, wait a few minutes, take it off, then put it on again. The dang thing it's a pain in the butt, really. I'll be happy when i upgrade to a larger tank, for I can get a protein skimmer for it and that can help skim the surface without using that surface skimmer.

 

But yea, I was thinking of that a bit. There's something about my lighting that is just off. I bought new bulbs last year and replaced them - they should last for at least 9 more months. They're the same kind of 10000k/7100k 50/50 PC lights, but a different brand. Then again, when I changed the bulbs, my slime algae nearly disappeared after a while, it was just my stupidity with adding old sand to the tank that gave me that bloom.

 

But, thanks about the zoas! I never thought they'd grow so fast. I think i bought that frag in August 2010, and now it spread that fast. This summer I'm gonna have to buy a fragging kit so I can frag that stuff and trade with others.

 

That's great growth with your zoas!

 

Do you have the surface skimmer that came with the NC12? Maybe that might help with your slime trouble. When I take mine off I immediately see the slick at the surface. That may be blocking light to your tank and causing the slime. Just a thought If you don't have one, I believe you can buy them separately.

[redhawk45]

Another thought on the upgrade for this summer. If - and I do say if - I can get the cyanno controlled and cleared out of the 12g, I may have a fighting chance to keep the 12g instead of upgrading.

 

That's my biggest concern at this point of why I would want to upgrade in the first place, plus having more space. Right now I'm thinking of getting some snails to help combat this cyanno outbreak - either eatting it or sending it into the water column so it can get sucked into the sponges in the back of the tank. Thx to those in the Invert Forum, I may have an helping hand at this battle.

 

If the tank gets cleaned up pretty well, I'll use the cash I was going to upgrade with and put it to stocking the tank with more corals and a few more CUC. I miss my hermit crabs, and my one hermit left in the tank is looking so lonely...lol. Anyway...can you imagine what I could do with $500 bucks in my pocket to go towards corals suitable for my tank? For one, I may try to get some small rocks or LR to close up the back part of the rock structure to help me out a bit. I know, I know...a little at a time, otherwise I may crash my tank....if that's possible with more LR. I mean, the last coral I had was on LR, and it didn't disturb the balance of my tank:P

[redhawk45]

I just noticed the huge difference between when I first started my tank and now. Well, not real huge, but a big one. It's so funny, the first pic is a month after I started, second one 4 months in, and the last taken the beginning of this month. All the hassles, all the excersize...lol. I wouldn't toss my tank away just because I'm getting tired of getting rid of algae or cyanno..it's just too damn addicting! lol.

 

See the difference?

[gena]

Eventually you will get that cyano under control. What have you tried so far? I think I read, at some point, that certain snails will even eat the cyano. Have you tried Chemi-pure elite?

[redhawk45]

Well, it's nearing a year and a half, and no matter how many people have put down my 12g Nano-Cube because of the PC lighting...well, go jump off a cliff! lol. Sure, the lighting may or may not promote the red slime algae, but what I can tell you is the last bout of it was due to my stupidity. It looks to be under control after a huge let go (2 months or around there) due to the death of my mother in the end of May and the death of my 8 1/2 year old cat Blackie. I'm totally surprised my tank didn't crash...but it sure helped control the red slime algae, even if I had to lose my peppermint shrimp. As to the Candy Cane...apparently it was dead when I bought it - reason why it would never open up. Unfortunately, unless I actually see it open and alive upon buying, I won't buy any hard corals.

 

I've got updated photos of my tank, and I had asked Pacific East Aquaculture to have some upclose photos of my new additions of corals - but that'll be in the coral page...hehe. At least here you can tell how tiny they are and where I placed them.

[redhawk45]

Well, I just ordered up the Red Slime Remover from Foster and Smith...freakin expensive! Anyway, I'm tired of the red slime algae, for it's starting to take over the new coral I have in the tank. I have thoroughly thought it over..I'd rather have the green hair algae than this stuff, and I think it's about time I bought something that will work.

[redhawk45]

Well, Ultralife Red Slime Remover looks to have done the trick. I just did a water change, and have to wait for the water to clear (everything to settle down) and for the coral to pop open so i can take another photo. I also got the green mushroom finally glued down, and had to reglue a zoa frag. Hopefully things will settle down now so I can start having a pretty reef like everyone else!

[gena]

Well, Ultralife Red Slime Remover looks to have done the trick. I just did a water change, and have to wait for the water to clear (everything to settle down) and for the coral to pop open so i can take another photo. I also got the green mushroom finally glued down, and had to reglue a zoa frag. Hopefully things will settle down now so I can start having a pretty reef like everyone else!

Awesome

[redhawk45]

New coral arrangement after defeating red slime. I put the green mushroom on its side - hoping the CorAffix will hold it there. The birdsnest died, so that's gone. I should have bought the cauliflower coral I seen instead of that. Most of the zoa frags haven't opened up yet: two of four zoas are open, and the Rhodactus is slightly open. Perhaps by tomorrow things will be back to normal.

[redhawk45]

After two years, my tank is finally starting to be established enough that coralline algae is growing. I still have a slight problem with red slime algae, but it's not to the extreme. I did lose three more corals...two zoas and a yellow button, but that's my own stupidity and lack of time. But, at least my way is proving to me which corals are hardy. I do have the green mushroom still, along with the zoa that was by the yellow button polyp and the rhodactus, but that looks to be shrinking on me for some reason and I can't understand why. Again, no coral on the two lumps of LR you see in the previous photo.

 

I finally have noticed where the low flow areas are, which usually is where a bit of the brown algae and red slime algae still grows. Unfortunately, they don't make a Hydor Koralia small enough to help get more flow there. I would need a Nano of the nano! I'm almost thinking of getting some LR pieces and put it in the low flow areas, which usually are on the sand bed between the fist sized piece of LR and the large LR, and over there to the left of the Watermelon Zoas on the rock with the caves. I'm not sure if it's safe at this stage to add more LR, but I could ask. I don't want to turn out like the sand ordeal where it gave me a load of slime algae.

 

There's still work to be done, but man...two years! LOL.