uisge-beatha Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 Hi Everyone, After lurking and learning for about 5 years, I'm finally in a position to start my own SW nano aquarium. This tank will be an experiment in eco-friendly reef-keeping; I'm going to do my best to raise only aqua-cultured organisms, and to keep the power and water consumption low. A quick note about my user name: uisge-beatha ("u-ska-bay'-ah") is the Gaelic word for whisky, but the literal translation is "water of life". So on to the tank... Tank: JBJ 24 gal open-top NanoCube Lighting: Current USA Orbit Marine 18" LED array Circulation: Maxi-Jet 1200 Powerhead: Koralia Nano 425 I chose the 24 gal NanoCube because I liked the volume and the footprint, and because the AIO tank meets my needs as a SW beginner. I kept the stock surface skimmer, but removed the bioballs and all but one of the sponges. Chamber #1 holds one stock sponge, as well as the small sponge from my quarantine tank's HOB (an AquaClear 20), whenever the QT is not in use. Chamber #2 currently has a temperature probe, and will probably be a refugium once I figure out a neat and tidy way of lighting the space. Chamber #3 holds the heater and a Maxi-Jet 1200; I intended to run the stock circulation pump, but accidentally snapped its ceramic impeller shaft during the fresh water test. I'll find another use for the stock pump once I find a replacement shaft. The open-top allows me to use LED lighting, which reduces the power consumption and eliminates fan noise. So far, Im really impressed with the construction, programmability, form factor, and the light distribution of the Orbit Marine array. Im not planning to raise SPS or clams in the near future, so hopefully the intensity will be sufficient for LPS etc. I'm constructing a custom stand for the NanoCube that will allow me to store a UPS, a small QT, and top-up water underneath the DT. It's constructed of 3/4" hardwood plywood, and will have a curved-front drawer and curved-front doors to match the front contour of the tank. Please excuse the glare in this photo: The tank is currently empty except for 20 gal of sea water (RODI and Instant Ocean). I've got the temperature dialed in, and the salinity where I want it after a fiasco with super-saturated sea water. Let's just say that weighing salt mix while a toddler is "helping" you keep count is not recommended. Parameters are currently: Temperature: 79 deg F Specific gravity: 1.025 ppt pH: 8.2 Calcium: 340 ppm Alkalinity: 8 The calcium is lower I'd like, but I'm planning to switch to Reef Crystals once I'm finished this 50 gal bag of Instant Ocean. I'm currently awaiting delivery of some uncured Florida LR. I'll update this thread once the rock arrives! Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted November 25, 2015 Author Share Posted November 25, 2015 The rock is on the way! I'm hoping that the USPS, CBSA (the customs people), and Canada Post all play nicely together... Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted November 30, 2015 Author Share Posted November 30, 2015 My aquacultured LR from Dan at gulfliverock.com arrived today, and was in surprisingly good shape (and smell) considering it took 7 days to get here (as expected). Nicely packaged - double bagged, heat packs, individually wrapped rocks.The rock itself is absolutely gorgeous, and, at one time, contained some amazing stuff: multi-coloured coralline, sponges galore, at least 3 types of macroalgae, feather dusters, clams (including one 3" long), snails, and at least seven corals!! I also got some (dead) critters, including 2 cucumber-type organisms, a teensy urchin (RIP little guy), and a 1/2" crab. The crab looked kind of unfriendly, though, with those pointy claws - suspect he was a gorilla crab. Most of the lovely life on the rock was dead due to the extended shipping time. However, I'm hoping that some of it may eventually come back - I'm going to do a soft cycle to preserve as much life as possible. 17 lbs of rock, taking a bath Lots of life!! Baby star coral... ... and Mama star coral. Very sad this one didn't make it. Cup coral, or maybe tube coral? Brain coral (top middle of rock) I've placed the rock in the tank, and added sand (10 lbs Arag-Alive Fiji Pink). I'll post a picture of the rockscape once the dust settles. Now the fun begins!! Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 1, 2015 Author Share Posted December 1, 2015 Ack!! Ammonia is already between 2.0 and 4.0 ppm (API test) A water change is in order. Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 1, 2015 Author Share Posted December 1, 2015 The sand is starting to settle, so here's a picture of the preliminary rockscape. I'm planning to pick up some dry rock from the LFS to create a bit of height, so the scape will change. Cloudy tank shot Left side Unhappy brain coral - seeing a lot of skeleton here May have to move this guy - I didn't see him initially! Ominous looking black spot? Or... not? Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 1, 2015 Author Share Posted December 1, 2015 Just about to do my third 25% WC in less than 24 hrs. Ammonia is currently around 2.0 ppm (API test). I've been squirting the dead stuff off the rock with a turkey baster, and I'm changing water as fast as I can make it - very glad I decided to buy a RODI filter! The limiting factor is actually heating the water - I've started pulling my main heater from the DT temporarily to have two heaters warming the new water. We have overnight guests arriving on Friday. I think I may have to send them a message: "Please excuse the stinky house. We currently have death and decay happening in a big tank of water in the corner of the living room." Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 2, 2015 Author Share Posted December 2, 2015 Day 3: The cycle is proceeding - nitrites are up to 0.5 ppm. The ammonia is still really high for a soft cycle. It spikes to 4.0 ppm before water changes, and doesn't really go below 2.0 ppm after. However, it's the best I can do, since I've been changing out 5 gal as soon as each batch is ready. Quote Link to comment
Reefer69 Posted December 2, 2015 Share Posted December 2, 2015 That live rock is gorgeous Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 3, 2015 Author Share Posted December 3, 2015 Day 4: We're making progress, here - the ammonia level didn't rise over night. So far, I think I've changed out 35 gal of water on a 20 gal tank. Cycle parameters this morning (before WC) were: ammonia 2.0 ppm nitrite 1.0 ppm nitrate 20 ppm (API test, so all we really know is it's higher than yesterday) In other news, I finished the bag of Instant Ocean I had, and picked up some Reef Crystals. I expect this change will raise my calcium level over time to something a bit more LPS-friendly. Everything in the tank is looking pretty rough right now, but I'm hoping that the clean-up crew will tidy up the decaying macroalgae, etc., once they arrive. HOLD THE PRESSES.... we have signs of re-growth! Looks like a bit of green macro algae, not sure what type. Hopefully more good things will follow! Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 Day 5: Ammonia is definitely coming down. Planning to do a bit of rockscaping today. ammonia 0.5 ppm nitrite 1.0 ppm nitrate 30 ppm (API test, so... grain of salt) Quote Link to comment
2020reef Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Looks great so far Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 6, 2015 Author Share Posted December 6, 2015 Day 6: Ammonia is close to zero today - this rock seems to be cycling quickly! Of course, all the shipping-related die-off resulted in plenty of ammonia to feed hungry bacteria. The next step is to wait for the nitrites to fall, wait for some diatoms to arrive, and work on stabilizing the tank after the cycle. ammonia 0.25 ppm nitrite 1.0 ppm nitrate 60 ppm (API test) I think I'm going to ask Santa for a better nitrate test. Here's the preliminary rockscape. I tried to create a couple of shelves at different levels, but I'm a bit worried about fish getting stuck in the crevices between the rocks. 1 Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 8, 2015 Author Share Posted December 8, 2015 Day 8: Nitrites are starting to fall, so hopefully the cycle is almost finished. No diatoms yet. I'm seeing lots of bleached out coralline, but I expect this will come back. I've been making small WC (approx. 1 gal) each day for the last few days to reduce the nitrates while stabilizing and refining the tank chemistry. ammonia 0.0 ppm nitrite 0.75 ppm nitrate 20 ppm (API test) temp 78.4 deg F salinity 31 ppt (yesterday's reading, see note below. I'm slowing bringing this up to 35 ppt) pH 8.0 calcium 380 ppm alkalinity 10 dKH phosphate 0.25 ppm In other news, my hydrometer is misbehaving today... I know, they're normally so well behaved and reliable! Actually, I've had fairly good performance from the hydrometer so far. I've found that the trick is to keep the needle seasoned by giving it a 24 hr soak in salt water every few days, and to fill it using a pipette to eliminate bubbles on the needle. I've also calibrated it a few times with a reference solution, so I know it reads about 1 ppt high. I suspect the current problem is that I haven't seasoned the needle in a week. That said, I'm hoping that Santa brings me a refractometer. I'm even willing to purchase and wrap it for him! Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 8, 2015 Author Share Posted December 8, 2015 So this is interesting... Mama star coral, a 3" HH on my LR, has gone from stark white to light beige, and today is showing teensy white dots in the middle of many of the "stars". Zombie coral? Quote Link to comment
Nano sapiens Posted December 8, 2015 Share Posted December 8, 2015 Never count a coral out. I've had some 'come back' after more than 6 months of visually dead skeleton. Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 8, 2015 Author Share Posted December 8, 2015 Thanks! I'm hoping for the best, as this rock came with at least 7 corals plus macro, sponges, etc. Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 9, 2015 Author Share Posted December 9, 2015 Looks like the star coral is probably siderastrea radians. I've got some Two Little Fishes Marine Snow on hand - I'm thinking about seeing if she's hungry. Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 9, 2015 Author Share Posted December 9, 2015 Day 10: Very excited today! Despite 7 days shipping and a less-than-soft cycle, the large siderastrea radians (aka lesser star coral) is most definitely alive, AND I think the manicina areolata (aka carribean rose coral, open brain coral) is coming back to life!! It's puffing up a little and looking less skeletal, but it has a loooong way to go still. I've got the rose coral about 8" under my lights (Orbit Marine LED array), which puts it at about 100 PAR according to the manufacturer. It's sitting about 10" from a Koralia Nano 240 powerhead. I hope it's happy there, because it's attached to my only really nice flat piece of rock, and I'd like to leave the rock where it is as a high light shelf (relatively speaking). ammonia 0.0 ppm nitrite 0.35 ppm nitrate 20 ppm Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 11, 2015 Author Share Posted December 11, 2015 Day 11: Cycle looks to be nearing completion, and my thoughts are turning to livestock... and quarantine. When I built my tank stand, I specifically included space inside for a small quarantine tank, because I knew I wouldn't be likely to use a QT if I had to look at it! My intention is to use the small QT for inverts and coral frags, and to use an old 10 gal for quarantining nano-sized fish when needed. I'm only planning to have about 4 fish in this tank, so I probably won't need to pull out the larger QT very often. Initially, both QTs will time-share a heater, lights, and Aquaclear 20 HOB (the sponge for the HOB lives in one of the back chambers of the DT when not in use). If I need to do any copper treatment for fish, I'll pick up a second set of equipment so as not to poison the coral & inverts with residual copper. I'm planning to quarantine the CUC for a week or so, mostly to get a good look at them and make sure that the shells aren't harbouring anything nasty. I'm a bit concerned, because my LFS seems to have less than ideal stock - last time I was there, they had a bit of a fish infestation in their bristleworm tank. Happily, their prize-winning aiptasia didn't seem to be adversely affected by those pesky fish. ammonia 0.0 ppm nitrite 0.15 ppm nitrate 10 ppm 1 Quote Link to comment
Anden Posted December 11, 2015 Share Posted December 11, 2015 Nice rocks. following so you remember to post during startup/cycling. Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 14, 2015 Author Share Posted December 14, 2015 Day 14: It was a big day on the reef today! Ammonia and nitrites had been at 0 for 3 days, the algae was starting to grow, and there was lots of dead stuff to be cleaned up from the cycle, so I decided it was time to pick up a small CUC: 1 emerald crab, 3 blue-legged hermit crabs (plus some extra shells - hopefully they leave the snails alone), 2 astrea, 3 cerith, and 3 nassarius snails. My plan is to add CUC members as needed, so that I don't end up with roving gangs of hungry hermit crabs shaking down the snails for food. Now... ahem ... about the quarantine thing: I decided to risk not quarantining the CUC, because i) they're relatively low-risk for introducing nasty beasties to the tank, and ii) I was concerned about them having enough to eat in the quarantine tank. I did have a close look at their shells, and brushed off anything questionable with a (new) soft toothbrush. I'm hoping that it wasn't a rash decision. After acclimatization, they all settled down for an afternoon snack of algae and/or detritus. My 8-year old decided that "Eric" the emerald crab was the only one who needed a name. My 3-year old thought that Eric was the most terrifying life form he'd ever seen, until he saw Eric "waving" at him. Now they're best buddies. In other news, I thought I saw a baby anemone today. On closer inspection, it was actually the feeding tentacles of a hitch hiker cup coral! ammonia 0.0 ppm nitrite 0.0 ppm nitrate 5 ppm temp 78.1 deg F sp. grav. 1.023 <-- Planning to slowly raise this to about 1.025 pH 8.1 calcium 440 ppm alkalinity 10 dKH phosphate 0.25 ppm Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 14, 2015 Author Share Posted December 14, 2015 I've noticed some new critters that I can't ID. They're white, translucent, fan-like things about 2-3 mm across the fan. You can only see them in profile against a dark background. So far, I've noticed about six of them in three spots. They could be baby feather dusters, or maybe hydroids. They open and close the fan about once a second, and retract it into a very tiny tube. The fan looks sort of flat, and they turn it in the current. They were hitch hikers on the Florida LR, which does show lots of old feather duster tubes on its surface. Any one have a guess as to what they might be? Edit: Over at the ID forum, they think these guys are probably tiny feather dusters. Thanks to all who responded! Quote Link to comment
bryanthelp Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Wow lots of life on those rocks! Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 16, 2015 Author Share Posted December 16, 2015 Day 16: Today (technically yesterday, I suppose), I discovered a circle of Hell that Dante forgot: scrubbing 7-year-old dried algae from an old 10 gal tank, which is destined to be the fish QT. Why not pick up a new tank? Because I'm cheap, and I'm stubborn! Tomorrow, I'll hopefully have a chance to set up the fish QT. I've had the filter pad from the QT's AquaClear HOB brewing in the back chambers of my DT for a month, but I want to run the tank for a few days with a chunk of shrimp to make sure the biological filter is adequate before I add any fish. I didn't check the tank parameters today because I have a proper nitrate test kit arriving tomorrow. There might be a few things in the package to be tucked under the Christmas tree, as well. Oh!! I almost forgot - the halimeda is growing back, as well as a nice dark red macroalgae that I haven't ID yet (maybe gracilaria). Quote Link to comment
uisge-beatha Posted December 17, 2015 Author Share Posted December 17, 2015 Day 17: Help!! Oh noes!! What are these tiny white spots on my glass?!? Is it ich?!!! Just kidding.... they're snail eggs. ammonia 0.0 ppm nitrite 0.0 ppm nitrate 5 ppm <-- with my NEW Salifert test. This number I actually believe! I'll try to post some tank shots tomorrow to show what's died and what's coming back to life on the rocks. Quote Link to comment
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