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Coral Vue Hydros

My 22 Gallon Mixed Reef


Dr. Pete

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Latest FTS 7/12/2013

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Current Equipment
CAD Lights 22 gallon tank
Spectrapure RODI 90 GPD
Refractometer
AI Sol with controller
Bubble Magus NAC QQ protein skimmer
Vortech MP-10
stock pump

Rock and Substrate
Premium Fiji Live Rock (Live Aquaria)
Tropic Eden Reef Flakes

 

Invertibrates

Cerith snails
Dwarf cerith snails
Nassarius snails
Nerite snails
Turbo snail

Red snapping shrimp

Emerald crab

Blue Crocea

 

Fish
Ocellaris clownfish x2
Female yellow watchman goby
6 line wrasse
Royal gramma

 

Corals
Zoanthids
Frog spawn
Anchor coral
Ricordea
Acropora millepora

Acropora tenius

Birds of paradise

Blastomussa

Caulastrea candy cane

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I bought 22 lbs of select premium Fiji live rock from Live Aquaria. The rock looks great. It smells like the sea and is covered in pink and green coraline algae. They provided me with a variety of shapes. I particularly like the shelf-like pieces. They'll make nice platforms for corals. Hopefully, the die off has been minimal.

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My first attempt at aquascaping.

 

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Here's what I settled on. I haven't glued it together yet so let me know if there are any obvious errors. It took me a few hours, but I'm happy with the way it came out.

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And so the cycling begins. My ammonia and nitrites are off the charts. :unsure: I'm going to follow the recommendations of Live Aquaria. 50% water changes once per week until ammonia and nitrites are 0. Wish me luck!

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From the live aquaria website. This was also included with my rock.

 

Method B: Curing process of live rock for the new aquarium that DOES NOT contain fish, corals, or any other marine animals.

Live rock may be used to cycle a new marine aquarium. Follow the manufacturer's directions on the installation of all filtration devices and accessories. Fill aquarium with freshly mixed saltwater with a specific gravity of 1.023-1.025. Activate all filtration equipment, check for leaks, and set heater and/or chiller to the desired temperature of 72-78°F.

Note: Mechanical filtration will need frequent cleaning during this cycling process.

 

Rinse each piece of live rock in a small bucket of saltwater to remove any loose organic matter, debris, or sand.

Place live rock into the aquarium to create a stable foundation for corals or decorations.

Keep the lighting system off during the cycling period in order to reduce the likelihood of undesirable algae growth.

Gently scrub the rocks periodically with a new nylon bristle brush or toothbrush to remove loose white film or dead material.

Perform 50% water changes weekly while siphoning out any organic matter and loose debris that accumulates at the bottom of the aquarium.

Measure and monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels in the aquarium weekly.

When both ammonia and nitrite levels are zero, perform a 50% water change on the aquarium.

After 24 hours, check the pH of the water and adjust as needed to achieve the desired level of 8.1-8.4.

 

Great start! 50% water changes per week? Hmm, first time hearing that type of method.

 

 

Thanks for looking. B)

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I finally was able to mount my light with the help of my father-in-law. We took a piece of 1/2" conduit and bent it with a pipe bender. We cut with a pipe cutter, roughed it with a sanding block, spray painted it black, and then drilled two holes. It was then just a matter of strapping it to the back of the stand, screwing in the light, and tying up the wires. The total cost for materials was about $8.00 at home depot.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Added a second ocellaris.
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Neon Gobies
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Some nice purple coralline growth
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Black banded Trochus snail
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Cerith snail eggs
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New ricordea
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  • 6 months later...

Is that the same goby from May? If it is kudos, he looks very healthy! Everything looks happy and healthy. FTS imo!

It is the same goby. He's a piece of work. He somehow manages to eat pieces of food as big as his head. I'm surprised he hasn't choked on them before. He also sends the six line packing if he gets too close to his layer. He's a pretty entertaining fish.

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:D I love gobies. I had a yellow watchman for a few years in my 12g NC named Sean Connery. The name suited him so well.

My daughter calls this one snow flake because he used to be all while, but now he has some gray bands and blue spots. Is it normal goby behavior for him to take a mouth full of sand and then sift it out his gills?

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Yes that is normal. They sand sift looking for food/critters to eat.

 

My daughter calls this one snow flake because he used to be all while, but now he has some gray bands and blue spots. Is it normal goby behavior for him to take a mouth full of sand and then sift it out his gills?

What acrab said. Not only that it keeps your sand sparkly white and clean! Very beneficial for the sandbed.

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Yes that is normal. They sand sift looking for food/critters to eat.

Thanks for your thoughts.

 

What acrab said. Not only that it keeps your sand sparkly white and clean! Very beneficial for the sandbed.

I hadn't thought about it this way before. Makes sense though. He's like a little vacuum cleaner. :lol:

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Top down shots...

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This one started from just one head

 

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Hopefully the bleached bit heals

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Still don't know what this one is called. It was labeled blue bottle brush, but it doesn't like anything like the one listed on ORA's site. If anybody can offer an idea, I would appreciate it.

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Here's another pic of the same. It's seems to have grown quite a bit though. :)

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I really love your rockscape. One of the nicest I've seen!!! Those flat rocks look awesome in the scape. The top down is great as well :) I hope you figure out what your mystery SPS is...it has amazing color!!!!

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