uniquee1 Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 Hey guys!! first time reefer here and I have finally picked up a tank!! Got myself an Aqueon Evolve 8 running off of craigslist for about 70 bucks!! everything included..sand live rock(hopefully) and he even threw in a Green Spotted Puffer fish...not to sure of him and am worried that's to small of a tank for him but hes a baby right now very tiny... Anyways, more about the tank. Aqueon Evolve 8 everything stock right now don't know what I should really upgrade to later etc. The tank is a mess and has some algae growing in which id like your tips on cleaning up etc. lol. CUC is in here of a few I believe. looking to get some more though. Heres the tank algae and all in its first state of just getting everything in it. Havent checked parameters yet but the guy made sure everything was ready to go etc. Gave me the saltwater back when we transferred everything. the scape isn't set yet don't really know at this moment what to do with it but ill be thinking of some ideas!! So excited to get everything running and have a awesome journal. hope you guys follow along and would LOVE tips etc on it. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 11, 2014 Author Share Posted February 11, 2014 Plans: To start basic. I want to get the hobby down and learn as much as I can. Plenty of people have told me to not start this hobby with a small tank but im interested in it and wanna start small with a challenge ^_^. Corals are an obvious and im excited to pick which ones I want in. Gonna go with some Zoas and maybe some Ricordia. not sure if that's a good combo or not advice would be welcomed. MAYBE another fish. I know I have the one fish in here right now the Puffer..but for how long I don't know. let alone is it to small for him..don't know. but I didn't want him to die or go to some home with no care so I took him to help the little guy out. Maybe a wrasse? Maybe some shrimp? guess we will see with further updates. Talk to you guys soon with further updates!! Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 14, 2014 Author Share Posted February 14, 2014 Updates: 2/13/2014 Power has been down past 2 days due storm we had here in SC. Got the power on finally was worried for my tank and my Puffer..Hes doing alright. eating and swimming lively in the tank. happy that the water temp is warming up!! Was at 60.6 when i finally got the heater back on for him...we're up to 69 degrees F...thank gosh for that little guy hes stoked.. Due to the disaster that struck with the tank and power I Did my first testing for nitrates and pH nitrates: 0-2 roughly im guessing it seems. pH: 8-8.2 againg roughly guessing just from the cards given in the test kit. Hopefully you guys can tell me that these numbers are pretty good given the age of the tank which is 4 days old although the water has been cycled for months now from what im told by the guy that i bought it all from.. More updates soon!! Buying a new stand for the tank tomorrow as well as some other goodies like a surge protector LOL..Pics to come of the new Scape and stand tomorrow hopefully!! Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 14, 2014 Author Share Posted February 14, 2014 Updates: 2/14/2014 Got my stand!! Its not a typical saltwater fish tank stand but its sturdy and gives it at a good eye level for the tank!! Real happy with the way it looks on it etc. Good space for supplies and other things under it as well!! Tonight is gonna be a fun night..probably trading in the green spotted puffer possibly towards some corals as I have learned they are not compatible with zoas and palys thats a shame i like the little guy too. Also gonna be buying a new CUC..i havent seen any in the tank. might even get my some new live rock as well considering i really dont like what i have in the tank right now. Id really love some input on here. i know the tank isnt showing much but i see plenty of people have viewed my post..im a rookie and would love some advice and tips on making a good reef etc Link to comment
gena Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Great looking tank. The stand looks perfect for it . Ricordeas and zoas are a great combo. Getting rid of the puffer, as cute as he is, is the best thing for him. I don't know their requirements, but I know they are adorable, and if they were compatible with a pico, more people would have them. So I'm guessing, they need a LARGE tank LOL. Just take it slow on the setup. If you get new rock, go for live rock. You'll have fun watching all the critters pop out of it. If you don't have any algae yet, hold off on the cuc. Adding new rock, you may get a cycle. Though it will probably be a short one. When you start seeing the brown dusting (diatoms), add some snails. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 see when i got this tank everything was already done. the cycle etc. i checked all the levels and there were fine. the rock has been in the tank etc. although being a rookie reefer i wonder if the tests were right (API Master Test Kit) its all been established so there was some algae already in the tank. theres some purplish algae already on the rocks as well. so thats why i was gonna go CUC. Thanks for the post too appreciate it!! Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 saw this on my thermometer...have no idea what it is lol..is it a bristle worm? should i be worried? Link to comment
debbeach13 Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Welcomw to NR. Cute tank. I agree the puffer will be better off in a bigger tank. I think Gene was saying if you get some more live rock you may have a new mini cycle. If you are going to add rock do it now and let the mini cycle happen before you put in livestock. I know it is hard but try not to rush it. You want the livestock to live. Have you tested for any thing else or just nitrate and PH? Good luck with the tank. Read some of the threads about the exact tank you have. You can never read to much in this hobby. Link to comment
JR! Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 saw this on my thermometer...have no idea what it is lol..is it a bristle worm? should i be worried?photo1.JPG yep it a bristle. there are a good part of a cleanup crew. nothing to worry about Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 hey thanks deb!! totally hear what you and gene are saying for sure. i plan on putting in some more live rock today and scaping some more again. no at this time i havent tomorrow is the first maintenance day so i will be testing for everything that came in the master kit. yep it a bristle. there are a good part of a cleanup crew. nothing to worry about thank you miller! glad to have a clean up crew in there!! LOL. scared the crap outta me specially being a first timer HAHA Link to comment
JR! Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 haha happens to all of us. i did the same thing Link to comment
gena Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 thank you miller! glad to have a clean up crew in there!! LOL. scared the crap outta me specially being a first timer HAHAI'm sure there's more where that one came from too . I've never had a problem with bristleworms....always welcomed them into my reefs. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 Update: 2/15/2014 Welp I officially have a scape i like! bought some new rock today and placed it down...my goal was to allow enough spots for corals to grow but at the same time for critters to hide and feel comfortable. i kinda feel like there is still alot of open space..not sure if thats good the way it is or if i should improve it somehow... below is my new scape!! further i went i picked up some new CUC for the tank for the existing rock and sand in the tank..got a total of 6. 3 snails, 3 crabs. picture of the some of the little guys below ^_^ finally to finish off the day i picked up my first coral!! So happy although i have no idea what it is LOL..i just know it reminds me of a xenia but im almost postitive thats not what it is...I dont have a picture of it opened up but right now its completely opened up and so far looks pretty happy i think. As far as food goes maybe someone can tell me should i have brine floating in the water or direct feed it? is the light good enough? would love to know exactly what i have too. LOL. other pictures can probably give a better view but this one is a side view of the little guy.. Planning on ordering some zoas from Reef Chicks..any experiences or reviews? My LFS tried telling me about designer zoas and how your basically only purchasing the few polyps that are the ones you want..the rest that grow wont look like that...any truths? Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 okay so i noticed today that my coral is very drooped over..is this something i should be worried about?? Link to comment
gena Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 okay so i noticed today that my coral is very drooped over..is this something i should be worried about??Looks like a kenya tree. It's not unusual for it to be droopy and mad after going into a new tank. If it continues to look pissed, try moving it to a lower light area. How are the snails doing today? All alive? What your LFS told you doesn't make any sense to me. The new growth will look like the old growth. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 okay. well i turned on the light this morning and stuff and he opened up and is more upright this time haha.. snails and crabs are still alive and moving so far it seems. not sure about that. for example, i absolutley love the incredible hulk zoas and he tried telling me that the polyps you pay for are the only ones that will look like that when the new growth happens..idk lol. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 well i turned on the lights and hes lookin perfectly fine. maybe the night led's arent enough light for him?? Link to comment
debbeach13 Posted February 17, 2014 Share Posted February 17, 2014 Looking good alot of corals close or get small when the lights are out. Then they open up and get big when the lights have been on for awhile. Nothing to worry about. Sounds like the store might be trying to discourage you from buying online so he can sell more stuff to you. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 17, 2014 Author Share Posted February 17, 2014 thats what i was thinkin deb. hes a pretty good guy but being new and only really having two stores to my avail leaves me worried LOL. was gonna put my order in last night to reef chicks for some corals and they wanna charge 45.00 for shipping overnight...is that normal? Link to comment
Fishstiks Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 Nice little tank. If you have not yet done so, I would find that puffer a new home, asap. He might be cute and small now, but GSP's grow to 6+ inches, and will eat everything else in your tank. Unfortunately, they need tanks of at least 50 gallons or more per puffer. If you have not lost your cuc already, it wont be long. Puffers LOVE snails and hermits. I had one in a brackish 40 gallon tank for a while, and he was a fiesty little guy. Eventually, I had to take him to my LFS for a bigger home. and yes, that is a pretty standard charge for overnight shipping for corals. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 thanks for the input Fishstiks!! yeah he hasnt touched my CUC yet but ive been worried about him being in my tank. hes quite the active one though lol. im probably gonna be bring him to my LFS sooner then later and looking at something more nano friendly... okay i wasnt sure if i was like getting ripped off on shipping charges or somethin lol. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 19, 2014 Author Share Posted February 19, 2014 Updates: 2/18/2014 did my first water change today!! 1 gal water change in the tank for an 8 gallon...any advice on this? I dont know if I should be doing more or less in the tank...what you all think? Going to test levels later tonight once everythign settles down. Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 21, 2014 Author Share Posted February 21, 2014 Update 2/20/2014 well tank is still lookin good. fish and all CUC are still in the tank running alive!! even found a small little starfish it looks like... Ive run into something though that i dont know if its a cause for concern. but at the top of my tank is a decent amount of bubbles. additionally there looks to be alot of...salt? i think at the top just sitting there..in the pics below you can sorta see it but they dont really display what im talking about all that well..i did water change yesterday about 25%..ive also noticed that since that change the pump every so often will blow out a big wave of salt specs it looks i think... any ideas here guys? any worries? looks like the water on the top of the tank is a bit stagnant and not moving is this why? all those little specs is what im talking about..looks like salt to me Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 Update: 2/23/2014 Picked up some more corals!! So amped for them bought them from my LFS for 50 bucks for 3 frags. now these arent the best looking frags but i did buy the ones that i thought had some potential and i love the colors.. Bought 2 discs with Zoas on them..dont know the name of them but love the colors..they are interesting and i wanted to do something different. Bought another coral very small for 10 bucks. Ricordea!! to date my most favorite coral so far..something about them lol. idk... Pics to come!! Water Changes tomorrow as well. Kenya tree is doing fantastic as well will have a new shot all together. One last thing..i noticed that my crabs have taken a liking to the are where i put the Ricordea matter a fact one is right on it doing something to it...is it eating it? should i be worried? Link to comment
uniquee1 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 Update: 2/24/2014 Did 3 gallon water change out of my tank today. parameters are all looking good except for my pH levels..im a bit concerned. its showing roughly around 7.4 dont know if i should be worried about this and what i should to adjust it. Link to comment
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