Custom 20g Zoa Garden

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

 

I am still having an issue with my Zoa's losing their skirts. Previously I was convinced that my Sexy Shrimp were the culprit, but the problem continues. While I do think they were irritating the Zoa's and sometimes nipping at them I now believe I have an issue with both too much light and low Alk.

 

I read about the light being an issue just by coincidence. While many say that Zoa's can handle any light I am not so sure. I was blasting my DUO at 100% for several hours a day and the fixture is about 6" off the water. The tank is shallow as well. Saturday I turned down the intensity and also moved several of the Zoa's in trouble down to the sand and in shade. I think I can already start to see the skirts appear again as if they were not eaten, but fully tucked in while the face of the Zoa still shows it colors. I am really hoping I can save these 6-7 frags as they are my nicer ones!

 

I just ordered the DOS for this tank too. I use it on my bigger tank and love it. I am having a hard time keeping my Alk above 8 and I would like it to be at 9. My Ca is also on the lower end, but not as concerning to me as Zoa's likely do not use much of it. I would like to get some coraline algae growing through.

 

I am going to test Mag again tonight and dose if needed.

 

My TIDE from Dave arrives today! I will be sending back my DUO so he can install the longer neck so that I can mount the light higher above the water and more center. I hope to have a buddy over in the next weeks to teach me how to frag. Pretty pumped for that!

 

Take care.

[metrokat]

Picture?

[NYfishies]

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

 

Thankfully we are seeing improvement in our injured frags. They have not lost their skirts, but rather tuck them away and show the face and color. Now that I have decreased the intensity of the Duo and moved most of the injured ones in the shade the skirts are starting to show.

 

Received our frag tank light yesterday - a beautiful Nanobox Tide which replicates the color pattern of the Duo. Talk about sexy...

 

 

Dave makes an amazing product. I just love the design. I messed with the light on the gooseneck and by accident unscrewed it the entire way. Anybody who reads this and has a Nanobox just be aware that the bolt inside the casing is not attached to the casing and will fall loose around the several wires running through the gooseneck directly attached to the LED board. It took me a long time to hit the threads and tighten again. Dave responded promply to my concerning emails. I am still concerned I may have pulled the wires too much in an effort to catch the thread, but all the LED bulbs are lit and look to be in good order!

 

I decided it is time, especially with the frag tank being put into play, that we need to start dosing with a system and not manual as I have been. The Neptune DOS will arrive tomorrow. I have been having issues keeping the Alk up (Mag steady at 1300 ppm) so I figured if I am going to invest this much in amazing Zoa's they need to be treated accordingly! I absolutely love the DOS on our Fusion40. It will be used much less on the Zoa garden as the demand for Alk will be much less and the Calcium will be used essentially to encourage coraline algae growth. In the Fusion40 we have a very diverse mixed reef including several SPS so the DOS pumps out 24 ml of Alk a day and 14 of Calcium.

 

Did I tell everybody about Mark Short? If you need Gel Filter because you cannot take phone pictures under blues without it looking awful then go here:

 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/357078477811022/

 

$5 shipped. Game changer. I spent months researching how to use my iPhone 6 to capture quality actinic pictures and this is the only thing I have found to work to my liking. You do not need to do any balancing or editing, just hold the gel filter over the camera and shoot.

 

Thanks for following!

 

 

[metrokat]

I was about to suggest turning down the light after looking at thos epictures, glad it's working out. New light looks great. Hope you guys are doing well.

We should get together for drinks, y'all are welcome to come over or we can meet somewhere.

[NYfishies]

I was about to suggest turning down the light after looking at thos epictures, glad it's working out. New light looks great. Hope you guys are doing well.

We should get together for drinks, y'all are welcome to come over or we can meet somewhere.

 

Would be great to get together! When are you in the city next? I would love to show you our tanks. We will have to set something up and come out and see yours as well!

 

I installed the DOS today. Tight fit - thing is huge, but does the job very well. I need to add some touch up paint to the gooseneck. Some of it peeled off when trying to screw the light back on. Once I do that I will hide all of the wires behind the red pipe.

 

 

Added the below frags this week. They are acclimating in the Frag Tank at the moment. The first 6 are from Zia's breakdown of his tank. The rest are from VW Reefs. Very happy with both orders! The system now has about 80 different types.

 

Blue Hornets

Killer Rainbows

UFOs

Goblins Vomit

Whammin Watermelons

Pink & Golds

Wanna Be Chaos

Darth Mauls

Sweet Hawaiians

Rainbow Hornets

Petroglyphs

Gobbstoppers

Twizzlers

Green Galaxy

Scarface

Blue Agave

 

Here are a few pics. They ate not long before so some are still closed, but most have already opened (received today).

 

[metrokat]

Nice list. The pink and golds though... be very careful, they will take over the tank.

[NYfishies]

Nice list. The pink and golds though... be very careful, they will take over the tank.

 

I am concerned about this. I thought that as well when I saw them (he tossed in as a freebie). They remind me of my Pink Pixies (might be my only Paly that I know of) and they seem like they could take over so I am trying to determine if I want to remove those from my display tank.

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

 

Just off the phone with my LFS who called to check in on the tanks (which is pretty cool). He recommends I removed the GFO from the media reactor and put it in a nylon bag and leave it in 1 of the sump chambers. Then, only run carbon through the media reactor. This way the GFO will not be as efficient in stripping the water of Phos. I thought that was a really good idea so I will give it a try.

 

He also recommended for me to stop using ROX 0.8 carbon as it is also too efficient for such a small system. He mentioned that it will strip even the vitamins from the water. I called BRS and they recommended to try Bituminous carbon.

 

There are just so many variables! Can't say I don't enjoy figuring it all out!

 

Anybody have any comments on these recommendations before I give them a try?

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

Dave @ Nanobox worked his magic and returned the DUO with the longer gooseneck back within just a few days. The Tide resides over the frag tank again and both are controlled by the Bluefish mini. The DOS is only dosing Alk at the moment, but keeping levels very consistent with 2.4ml per day. The tank is now complete with equipment. My bank account is happy about that...

The white gooseneck was just not working. Humidity = peeling anytime you touch it. We decided to go with black which I am very happy with. Adds a nice contracts to the overall color scheme. Pics are below.

We are very happy with the way the design has turned out. The tank is stocked with Zoa's (there is always more room and the wish list is vast). Their health improves daily now that we have removed predators, lowered light and maintained the Alk.

I will post more shots of the Zoa's next week when we return from vacation. I think a week without seeing them will be good for me - lol. In the meantime here are how things are looking. No camera yet, but the gel filter + iPhone 6 Plus camera does a fair job in capturing the actual colors of the Zao's. We have about 80 at this point.

Excuse the shower scrubber in the front corner. That's the pod condo.

Thanks for following!

[metrokat]

Looking good!

[metrokat]

I just wanted to say that y'all have the fattest mandarin I've seen in a very very long time.

I tried to get a good picture of her tonight, she was feisty and had her fins on display but the pics didn't turn out.

Suggest she be re-named Miss Piggy.

[NYfishies]

I just wanted to say that y'all have the fattest mandarin I've seen in a very very long time.

I tried to get a good picture of her tonight, she was feisty and had her fins on display but the pics didn't turn out.

Suggest she be re-named Miss Piggy.

 

I just saw this! I am so glad you got to see her get all munchy. Now that we have her eating both pods and blood worms I think we won't have any problem keeping her a fatty! Love the name Miss Piggy, that will have to be her nickname. Thank you again for helping!!! Mexican soon???

 

Here are a few updated pictures using the gel filter on 100% blues with no editing. Hard to take clean shots with the iPhone and glare on the top of the water from the DUO. Cannot wait for Cyber Monday to get a nice camera!

 

Things are filling in nicely. I just took the Pink & Golds out yesterday as they were starting to take over. Also, moved some other Paly's over to the bigger tank as the garden is filling up and I still have quite a few Zoa's that I want to add. I will update the list of what is in the garden this weekend and try to post pics of each.

 

Thanks for following!

[NYfishies]

Here are some individual shots with names. There are 61 different types in there so taking me some time to take all the pictures. I am using an iPhone 6 Plus with a orange tint gel filter held over the lens with no editing outside of cropping.

 

WWC Twizzlers

Emerald Mauls

NYCK NY Mets

Tyree Rastas (top) & Red Hornets (bottom)

Fruit Loops

Blue Suns

Red Hornets (top) & NYCK Electric Smurfs (bottom)

Rainbow Hornets

Jokers

Green Galaxy

LC Viscous Vixens

O.G. Blue Hornets

Latin Lovers (started half the size and are finally growing out)

NYCK Eternal Flames

Candy Apple Reds

Darth Mauls

Bam Bams

Blond Blue Eyed Bitches

Wanna Be Chaos

Tutti Frutti

Pink Zipper

LC Petroglyths

Vulcan Blood

[Pinner Reef]

I like where this tank is going. It'll be awesome when it fills in completely.

[NYfishies]

I like where this tank is going. It'll be awesome when it fills in completely.

 

Thanks, I cannot wait until more of the colonies start hugging up against each other.

 

I have another 30 on my wishlist and I am afraid that won't all fit!

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

 

Added a few more Zoa's the past few weeks. Absolutely Fish in Clifton, NJ was having a yearly sale so I grabbed some for basically nothing there and also some gems from Brian @ NYCK.

 

From Brian I picked up:

 

Bowsers (5p)

Phenomenons (3p)

Snitches (4p)

Chocobos (5p)

Pink Sakuras (not sure yet on the ID) (2p)

 

From Absolutely Fish I picked up:

 

Orbitrons (4p)

Lunar Eclipse (2p)

Blue Orgasm (not sure yet on the ID) (8p)

The garden is growing in great. I continue to feed Reef Roids / Reef Chili / Acropower every other day and Mysis / Brine / Bloodworms every day. The fish are all fat and happy. They get along great.

Over 95% of the polyps are open while the lights are on. All lashes/skirts have grown back since the Sexy Shrimp attacks and the lights being too intense.

My Alien Anti Venoms ( ) and my Goblins on Fire are not doing well. I hope they pull through - other than that all are healthy.

I switched to Instant Ocean Reef Crystal Sea Salt Marine Mix. I figured Tropic Marine Pro Reef was overkill for this tank as I dose it anyway. Pro Reef had low Alk too (7 dKh). Cuts maintenance cost down using IO.

I bought a clip on Macro/Wide Angle lens for my iPhone. It works wonders. The problem I faced right off the bat is my inability to get close enough to the zoa for it to focus. You need to be within inches. Not sure how I will overcome this until I frag them and put them in the FT. There I can just grab the plug and hold it close to the water line.

Here are some pics using the new lens together with the orange gel filter. The distant shots just simply do not justify what it looks like in person. I wish the colors wouldn't fade so much the further back I stand. A real camera will eventually overcome that!

 

These were taken without the lens.

 

Thanks for following along. I can't wait to start fraggin this hoard of beautiful Zoa's! There are just so many.

[NYfishies]

Hey guys,

 

Added some goodies from Macna (which was awesome)!

 

Picked up some:

 

Adonis

 

WWC Wild Aces

Emeralds on Fire

WWC Purple Ups

Purple Hornets

I will snap a pic of the WWC Purple Monsters tonight and try to get some other good shots with the clip-on macro lens.

That brings the total count to 74 different types of Zoa's in the garden!

[NYfishies]

Hey guys,

 

Just an update to my tank log.

 

I switched from Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt to Instant Ocean Reef Crystals and I screwed up by not mixing the salt long enough. I've always mixed the Pro Reef for just 2 hours or so and never had any issues. Well, the IORC need mixed 24 hours. I essentially burned my garden with a water change. The salt particles likely smacked against my zoas forcing them to close. I am also noticing that the colors are turning black on some of them such as my BBEB's, They used to be the most amazing orange - now that orange is dark and nearly black. In time it will color up again.

 

By the way the reason I switched salts was because Pro Reef has low Alk and IORC has between 9-10 which is where I want to be. I am of the opinion that maintaining steady Alk is the most important aspect to water chemistry. I will dose the others as needed such as Mag which is a bit low in IORC.

 

I also was dealing with very low Magnesium and Iodine levels. I cannot directly attribute that to the salt mixes, but I will say that is negatively effecting the color and growth of my zoa's. Now those are in check.

 

I've added some new frags to the tank this week. Got them from a fellow reefer for a great deal.

 

KH Sunbursts

 

Paradise

After Burners

AC Krackens

GGC Space Monkeys

Polar Ice Caps (hard to get a good shot of these because they are blue)

My Adonis are growing babies!

I stopped using GFO in my media reactor and the verdict is still out on that. Due to the salt mix issue I cannot tell if the zoa's like the dirtier water. I now see some algae growth though and the glass needs cleaned more often. Given my hefty feeding regime I may toss a bag of phosguard in the sump to help combat the phos.

I have a massive baby snail infestation. I do not believe they are sundial snails (which would result in many of the problems that I am having due to salt mix). I strongly believe that they are Collonista snails which will do no harm to the zoa's and graze on the algae.

I am having a bit of an issue with too many pods in my FT. They are everywhere. All types of pods too. They crawl all over the zoa's. My Spotted Mandarin keeps them in check in the DT, but I am at a loss of what to do in the FT.

I wish i could take some good FTS, but I just do not like the way it looks right now. I am very picky. I have moved several frags from the DT to the FT to let them heal.

Thanks for tagging along!

[NYfishies]

Hey all,

 

Picked up some more coral yesterday from my friend Brian at NY Coral King. He delivered 2 nice Acan frags and a Favia frag for our bigger tank and 4 very sexy Zoa's for the garden.

 

This one has no name yet. We tend to believe it is some super morph of an Utter Chaos. I can't even begin to explain how bright orange this thing is. There are 2 polyps thus far and I believe we have a very slow grower on our hands.

 

JF Atomic Sunrise

NYCK Star Struck

JF Hot Lips

So while I have been dealing with water quality issues due to the change of salt around the same time there has been a population boom of Collonista snails. These tiny little guys are actually great algae grazers and I have not witnessed more than a few seemingly passing across a Zoa rather than eating at it.

So many of my very healthy Zoa's are just straight up closed right now. When I move a damaged Zoa to the frag tank they seem to open up fine and stay that way.

This has me believing that the tiny snails are so large in population that they are constantly irritating the Zoa's. I believe rather than manually trying to remove the hundreds of them I will let nature play its course and move Zoa's down to the frag tank as needed to keep them healthy. I believe that in due time the Collonista snails will run out of food and the population will perish naturally.

I must say this little garden has certainly been a piece of work! Zoa's are so finicky and there are so many different ways for them to be unhappy/unhealthy. At some point - many months and perhaps years down the road I hope to gather all of this info and create a list of problems with the remedies!

Happy reefing!

[Nanofreak79]

Hell ya!, sorry I missed this one. Soooooo any threads, I can't keep up with them all. Nice tank, also a great collection.

[NYfishies]

Hey guys,

 

It has been awhile since I have updated and frankly it is because I have not been happy with where my garden has gone. I have been battling several different issues since MACNA (coincidence).

 

1. Switched salt from Tropic Marin Pro Reef to IORC. Slowly blended the 2 together to transition from 1 to the next. Always mixed salt using a heater and power head for ~2 hours with Tropic Marin. That was a bad idea with IORC. I burnt my garden when I went 100% IORC and mixed for 2 hours. Lesson learned - 24 hours.
2. Baby snail and amphipod infestation. Nightmare. Freshwater dipped everything. Seems the amphipods are gone and most of the snails, but some still remain. The amphipods seemed to have torn up the flesh of the zoas which led to a bacterial infection. I have been Furan-2 dipping for a week.
3. Now I deal with all of the other types of smaller pods as they infest my frag tank and irritate, but do not nibble, my zoas.
4. Algae bloom due to tank being about 6 months old. I only realized this as an issue to the zoas today. Blowing it off with a turkey baster works on most as I always do this anyways, but some of the algae is caked on so I will continue to Furan-2 dip to try and loosen the algae/fungus.
5. Lighting... why does every zoa have to be different? Struggling Bowsers which were placed center frag tank under the Tide. I am only running my lights around 45% on blues and 25% on whites. I continue to move them around to try and find sweet spots.

On a positive note I do feel like I have learned a great deal about the care of zoas and I am confident that it is progress from here. We lost about 10% of the garden. Some may be tough to replace, but we move on. Trying to save some of the higher end zoas in an effort to keep them to frag and trade for some we lost.

 

We have another tank which is a 40G mixed reef. 2 weeks ago ASD had a live sale and we took advantage. Bought a TON of SPS, but also several zoas for the garden. Here they are.

 

Rainbow Stunners

 

Sunflowers

Frilly Bam Bams

Midas Flames

Candy Apple Orange

Forgotten Treasure

PHE Red Rings

[Nanofreak79]

Damn pests! I like melanarius wrasse for keeping all pests away from my z and p collection.

losing zoas sucks and is part of the game. gotta love it. don't the bowsers or candy apple moph like high light.

[NYfishies]

Actually I am learning that the CB Bowsers prefer lower light. I am having an issue with the lashes not coming out and this in my experience is caused by too much light and/or pests (damn Sexy Shrimp!!).

 

The CAO so far have enjoyed being in the center of the frag tank. It looks like they will like more light.

 

I really am saddened by the fact that my DT is down to like 15 morphs. Everything else is in the FT and doing either really good, recovering to just ok or melting and potentially doomed.

[Nanofreak79]

Oh man......I feel ya on the Z and P die off, being crazy annoying, with the unexplained melting and just basically not on the up. I actually had my original z and p tank crash, I lost 3/4 of my collection in that tank. I did have some in my other tank but not enough to make up for it. I'm actually going to start trying to frag them into a very small frag tank, something like the new acrylic ones from ocean box.

 

 

 

 

Anyway, bro, I hope things turn around for ya. Interesting how one can have different outcomes with the Bowser and CAO.

I'd also be interested in a polyp or two of the purple hornets...