100g Macro Setup

[NinjaBum]

FTS 18 October 2011

 

 

 

28 October 2011

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stocking list as of 10 October-

Fish-

Red Firefish

Blue Mandarin

Yellow Clown Goby

Forktail Blenny

Rainford's Goby

Yellow Prawn Goby

 

Invertebrates

CuC of Dwarf Ceriths

Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

 

 

Current Macroalgae-

Botryocladia

Ulva

Shaving Brush

Flame Algae

Ochtodes

Caulerpa Sertalaiodes

Caulerpa Cupressoides

Caulerpa Paspaloides

Cailerpa Mexicana

Codium sp.

Gracillaria sp.

 

Coral

Pink Clove Polyps

Green Turbinaria

Brown Polyps

Colt Coral

Kenya Tree

 

 

I would like to have a few euphyllias, an elegance coral, as well as some sun coral and blue clove polyps.

 

 

 

 

Equipment-

2x Korallia 750 powerheads

1x 700 gph powerhead circulating my overflow/sump are behind the tank

1x 200W Heater

15w UV Sterilizer

 

Lighting-

5x54 Watt T5 HO fixture 11 hour photocycle-

2x ATI Aquablue Special

2x ATI Blue Plus

1x KZ Fiji Purple

 

Parameters-

 

Temperature- Hovers between 73-75 depending on the time of day

 

NO3- 20ppm

 

PO4- 0.50-ish ppm

 

Alkalinity- Still a bit high, around 15dKH but I have fairly impressive growth on some of the macros so far despite that.

 

SG- 1.024

 

PH- 8.0-8.2 depending on time of day

[NinjaBum]

Think I have my aquascaping a little better situated. I added some deeper sand on the right side and some rocks that are half above the sand.

 

This was how it looked when I was done-

 

 

 

But I still wasn't happy with the area on the left. It didn't look very natural to me. So this is how it is presently-

 

 

 

 

I've started putting cleaned powerheads and equipment back in. It won't be too long now

 

I'm going to put Caulerpa Mexicana and maybe some other caulerpa over on the back left and left to start overgrowing that area.. Grape caulerpa will be on the far left and wherever it wants to go. The rocks on the left and middle will have the red's and corralimorphs I'll be putting in there- Botryocladia, Ochtodes, Halymenia, and Gracillaria. I made the sand pretty deep on the right side for a couple of tube anemones.

 

I think I'm going to wait on the aquamag-rocks for the browns til I see how the system is doing with the others.

[drunkenmonk21]

Looks good so far!! I like option # 2, I love shrimp You could always make the right side a bed of caulerpa , or some oar grass or something of the sort, have some sargasm growing up that side.

 

When do you plan on adding some macro to it?

[NinjaBum]

Yeah, the idea was to have something similar to a grass bed, but with caulerpa and tube nems.

 

I will be adding water soon, probably within a week or so. The only thing stopping me then is more salt and NO3 and PO4 additives.

 

I like the second choice as well. My hands just aren't as immaculate as they were when I had cleaner shrimp attacking them when I moved things around .

[drunkenmonk21]

Yea always get a manicure when your working on the tank lol, my peppermints are starting to do the same thing now, I cant put my hands in my tank without being attacked by shrimp. Im planning on getting a couple sexys in the near future when I get my ric bed done.

 

I dont think I could handle mixing 100g of saltwater in one day myself lol luckily you can mix it right in the tank.

[NinjaBum]

So it begins. Have some C. Ashmeadii in there to test the waters. Been in a couple of days and seems to be holding up well. Resists the current and looks like it's sprouting new runners which is good.

 

 

 

 

 

The biggest frond in there is about 10" by itself

 

 

Have some macros from John and LA reefs coming. John's are coming in tomorrow and LA reef coming like 2 weeks from now cause I missed their shipping cutoff and I'm gone next week XD.

[animalmaster6]

Sounds like it's going to be awesome!

 

I like the idea of having a variety of fish but a good amount of small inverts also. Wrasses sound like a good idea but inverts are fun too.

[keydiver]

awww yeahhh. Pics Paul, we need pics!

[NinjaBum]

Haha as soon as my diatoms are a little better lol. Yesterday morning they were completely covering the sand and last night they started breaking up so I'm hoping I'm near the end of their reign.

[drunkenmonk21]

Ah come on we've all seen diatoms Did you get your shipment of macros in yet? Cant wait to see it all in the tank!!

[NinjaBum]

Hehe yeah, but it's gross in there. I got the box from Tim (keydiver) and everything looks great. Still waiting on some from LA Reefs, who knows when that will get here, I've been trying to email them and they haven't responded in about a week and a half, and another order from Gulf Coast Ecosystems. Getting some dwarf ceriths from John pretty soon.

[NinjaBum]

How it looked before a week ago-

 

 

 

 

 

How it looks now. They are crappy pictures because the water is so cloudy. I just turkey basted macros to remove diatoms from them so there's a ton of crap floating around.

 

 

 

[NinjaBum]

Edited some details in OP.

[keydiver]

that's what my new macro tank looked like a week ago. Now it's spick and span. Shouldn't give you too much trouble as it's mostly sandbed

[NinjaBum]

that's what my new macro tank looked like a week ago. Now it's spick and span. Shouldn't give you too much trouble as it's mostly sandbed

 

Yeah, I checked my PO4 levels upon coming back, they were 0.8ppm when I left and I noticed the Caulerpa had slowed its growth. My Hannah PO4 checker said 0.0ppm. Lol The diatoms and Caulerpa blew through that fast. I dosed some more enema today so it reads back up by .30ppm.

 

Did you manually remove or did they disappear on their own?

[1.0reef]

I have that! Do you know whats it called? I got it as a 1 penny macro algae on reefcleaners.

[awpong]

I have that! Do you know whats it called? I got it as a 1 penny macro algae on reefcleaners.

 

Flame Algae

[NinjaBum]

^What he said

[keydiver]

yep, flame algae. One of my faves.

 

I just added some ceriths and nass to stir up the sand towards the end of my cycle, and they were gone within 3 days

[NinjaBum]

yep, flame algae. One of my faves.

 

I just added some ceriths and nass to stir up the sand towards the end of my cycle, and they were gone within 3 days

 

Hmm, alrighty. I ordered 100+ dwarf ceriths and some larger snails since I need to add a cleanup crew anyway.

[keydiver]

just don't put turbos or mexican turbos, they will decimate your macros. I like nerites for macro tanks too, but they're kind of annoying because they're intertidal and always climb out.

[NinjaBum]

just don't put turbos or mexican turbos, they will decimate your macros. I like nerites for macro tanks too, but they're kind of annoying because they're intertidal and always climb out.

 

Yeah. I had nerites and always had to go and do a sweep of my floor to make sure they didn't excape. I have screens now, but I'm going to stick with Ceriths and dwarf Ceriths now.

[NinjaBum]

FTS 14 September

 

Water is still a wee cloudy. Calcium precipitation.

 

 

 

 

 

Diatoms slowing their growth. I've noticed the powdery green film algae on the glass competing with it so I think it's towards the end of its cycle.

[keydiver]

most excellent! Looking forward to see it once the cycle is fully over.

[NinjaBum]

most excellent! Looking forward to see it once the cycle is fully over.

 

 

Yessir. CuC is in now. Diatoms are already starting to show noticeable reduction in area. Water is still a little cloudy. I'm wondering if perhaps it isn't from a bacterial bloom than from calcium. I drop in some pellets every so often since I have no fish in there and I want the CuC to have something to eat til then.

 

I think when everything is settled I'm getting a Saddleback Butterfly.