TheKingInYellow Posted March 14, 2015 Share Posted March 14, 2015 So after the sad and horrible demise of my 20g shallow due to a powerhead eating the sandbed a few years back, I have been reefless. This is no longer the case. The hardware: Microreefs 3g (old school glass) w/ cover Microreefs 4 x 1w LED light strip Aquaclear 20 (with carbon and carbon foam) Hydor 8w heater The tank has a 2-3" sandbed of Caribsea aragonite, and 3.5lbs of cultured Marco rock in one big lump. Tank was also kickstarted with Prodibio Start-up, figured it couldn't hurt. Tank has been stable, no algae, no ammonia/NO2/NO3. Seems like the combo of cultured rock and Prodibio cycled everything right away. Stocking just happened yesterday and consists of a 1.5" Wheeleri Goby and Pistol shrimp pair who are currently in hiding. I'm trying my luck one a shard of green Monti Cap up high, some blue/green and green/orange Rics mid-tank and a small colony of green/purple Zoas down low. Pics to follow. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 So the pistol shrimp and goby haven't been seen since they were put in. They did really well when acclimatizing, no signs of stress, and they both wandered and explored a little when added to the tank so I had high hopes for them. If they are burrowed somewhere in the back of the rock I won't be able to feed them unless I magically locate them. Ideally they will surface for a feeding today, or tomorrow at the latest. If I can't find them after that, it's not good news for the livestock Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 Thanks, I was really excited to get a paired set and if they don't make it I'm going to be pissed. I'm confident the tank is good for them, but they acclimatized at the store and then in my tank in less than a four hour window. That may have been too much stress. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 15, 2015 Author Share Posted March 15, 2015 There has been a sighting: Offered some brine shrimp but it was ignored. Not that surprising. I'm going to try and find a sinking food option to offer as well as the brine tends to float. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 16, 2015 Author Share Posted March 16, 2015 Woke up to a cloudy tank this morning. Wasn't sure what was going on until I saw a plume of sand kicking out from under the rock. Look who showed up! Camera phone pics so hardly the best, but it's something. Click to embiggen! The shrimp took some brine, but I'm not sure that the goby did. Both seem perky and have coloured up nicely. Looks like good news! Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 17, 2015 Author Share Posted March 17, 2015 Shrimp ate again tonight, the Goby just watched the food :/ Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 17, 2015 Author Share Posted March 17, 2015 Shrimp is eating voraciously, and the Goby took a bit of brine this morning, hooray! Going to head out at lunch and try and get some alternate foods to see if he is keener on something like Mysis or Formula One. I know to feed him twice a day so some variety wouldn't hurt. The Monti Cap is looking grim, I may be pushing my luck under only 4w of LEDs. The Rics and Zoas look great though, so if the Monti kicks off I'll just grab some more of them. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 Damn Goby is still not eating. I'm going ot have to try and source some live pods to get the sandbed going and maybe he will sift out some food... Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 20, 2015 Author Share Posted March 20, 2015 The Goby is now eating semi-regularly. Sinking shrimp pellets seem to be the big hit but I'm not sure how they are nutritionally. Haven't seen the shrimp in two days though, so I suspect it might be molting. Water quality is fine, not a hint of algae or diatoms anywhere. The Monti is not going to make it, so I'll likely pull the frag and pick up more softies. Zoas and Rics are a given, but I need something else that can go up top with low light but take the high flow coming right off the HOB. Maybe a Cyphastrea? Link to comment
PatrickO Posted March 21, 2015 Share Posted March 21, 2015 When I got my goby/pistol pair I didn't actually SEE either of them eat for over a week so I wouldn't worry about it. Now when I feed the goby comes out and swims all over the tank eating everything in sight. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 21, 2015 Author Share Posted March 21, 2015 Not to worried yet anyhow. The shrimp ate like a horse the first three days so I wonder if he might actually be molting. First glimpses of diatoms in the tank but very minor. Might dose the Prodibio start up again. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 21, 2015 Author Share Posted March 21, 2015 Woo hoo, shrimp sighting! I did a big (50% or so?) water change now that there is a bit of diatoms, and swapped the polish pad and carbon in the filter for carbon foam and a half unit of Chemipure. Time to let the tank settle in and hope to get some coral growth. If things look good in two more weekends I'll add some more softies and a Meteor if I can find a frag. I've noticed the blue/green Rics on the right of the tank really stretching during the lighting period, and I'm thinking I may be too low for them as well. Suggestions on a light for this? I only want the softies so something like a Nanobox or whatever is overkill, but 4w of LED might be too little. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 22, 2015 Author Share Posted March 22, 2015 Went ahead and ordered an eBay 7x3w PAR30. Cheap just so that I can find a fixture that I like and ensure that it's going to work in the limited space I have. Assuming it goes well I'll upgrade to a BoostLED or Coral Compulsion light with better colour. That Coral Compulsion 18k looks sweet, but it's about $100CDN to get here after shipping :/ Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 22, 2015 Author Share Posted March 22, 2015 Found a cheapass swingarm lamp at Walmart for $15 today, should work fine with the PAR30. So I feel good that I found a fixture, but I feel filthy for going to Walmart. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 25, 2015 Author Share Posted March 25, 2015 The shrimp and goby have gone back in to hiding. I can't feed them if I can't find them and I'm starting to get worried again. A little diatom in the tank still but nothing terrible. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted March 27, 2015 Author Share Posted March 27, 2015 Diatom bloom in full swing, no other signs of algae. Feeding the goby is inconsistent his colours are great and he looks plump when he's out. The pistol is in hiding but he pops up every now and then. I suspect he's feeding after lights are out. I want to add a little more movement and colour to the tank but obviously another fish is not going to happen. I'm thinking about a larger ornamental shrimp, maybe a peppermint or skunk cleaner? Link to comment
Mkidd Posted March 27, 2015 Share Posted March 27, 2015 I think a peppermint shrimp will be a great investment. They're great characters in the tank. Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted April 1, 2015 Author Share Posted April 1, 2015 Skunk cleaner is in the tank, yay! I think my Zoa colony has Zoa Pox, boo! Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted April 2, 2015 Author Share Posted April 2, 2015 Skunk cleaner is doing great, eating directly from my fingers and molted last night. Of course, the Goby and Pistol are both AWOL for the last four days. How the hell am I supposed to feed them? It's driving me nuts! Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted April 2, 2015 Author Share Posted April 2, 2015 Added two Trochus snails as well, they are doing well although I had to move one off the top of my HOB filter this morning. I have no idea how it even got up there. Link to comment
gulfsurfer101 Posted April 2, 2015 Share Posted April 2, 2015 Damn this a clean looking tank. Almost looks like a Drs. office in there. Congratulations on getting back in the hobby! Link to comment
TheKingInYellow Posted April 5, 2015 Author Share Posted April 5, 2015 I was getting ready to pull the rock and look for a Goby corpse when the little bastard decided to show up tonight. I pumped a bunch of Formula One into the tank with a syringe and the Skunk Cleaner immediately scared him off and devoured everything. Hopefully he gets some :/ Trying to keep this Goby fed is going to drive me nuts. I'm considering taking him back to the store and getting something that will swim around, but this tank is 12" x 8" so I can't think of anything that would be happy. Link to comment
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