Sword Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 CURRENT FTS 8/06/09 Previous FTS: 6/24/09 5/18/09 5/16/09 4/20/09 4/13/09 3/24/09 3/18/09 3/08/09 -Equipment- -JBJ Picotope -12" 2x18 watt Dual Satellite Compact Fluorescent Fixture -Reef Master Liquid Test Kit and Master Liquid Test Kit Saltwater -Theo Heater 50 watt -Aquarium Systems Synthetic Sea Salt Reef Crystals 50 gallon mix (bag) -AquaClear 70 Powerfilter -Coralife Digital Thermometer -Sybon Refractometer -Aqua-Tainer 7 Gallon Jug -Approx. 6lbs of assorted live rock -Approx. 5lbs of live sand -Koralia Nano -8' Vinyl Airline Tubing -5g Bucket -2g Bucket -NanoMag - This thing is awesome. Highly recommended. -Chemi-Pure Elite -Livestock- -Invertebrates (1) Nassarius Snail (1) Blue-Legged Hermit Crabs (2) Cerith Snails (1) Emerald Mithrax Crab (1) Nerite Snail (1) Sexy Shrimp (Thor amboinensis) (1) Tiger Goby (Elacatinus macrodon) -Coral Zoanthus sp. Yellow polyps (Parazoanthus gracilis) Blue Clove Polyps Ricordea yuma Ricordea florida Montipora sp. Green Star Polyps -Maintenance- Top off tank twice daily (morning and night) 25-50% Water change every 5-7 days - test parameters Spot clean with the turkey baster once in a while Link to comment
Gerber77 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Congrats on the new tank, that an anemone. A st thomas rhodactis (mushroom) is similiar and youll be able to keep in youre tank with the lighting upgrade. I would definitely go for the trio of sexy shrimp. As far as corals start off with the softies like zoas and shrooms. Sound like youre gonna have a good tank. Good luck and to NR Link to comment
Lalani Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 That is a BTA, bubble tip anemone, not for beginners and definitely not for a pico. Is it in your tank or are you thinking about putting it in there? Link to comment
Gerber77 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 That is a BTA, bubble tip anemone, not for beginners and definitely not for a pico.Is it in your tank or are you thinking about putting it in there? He took a pic of it at Seaworld. Link to comment
Sword Posted February 22, 2009 Author Share Posted February 22, 2009 Yeah, just looked it up. Looks like a RBTA. Shame, it was so pretty. Link to comment
Gerber77 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Maybe a few years down the road youll be able to keep a large established tank and you can have one. Perfect way to move up from the pico after learning how everything works Link to comment
Sword Posted February 22, 2009 Author Share Posted February 22, 2009 How does my selection of equipment look? Anything you guys would change or think I should add to this order? Going to place it within the next couple of days. Link to comment
fiction101 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Who says you can't keep a bta in a pico!? My lfs has had one in their 2g aga for well over a year. Link to comment
BlueAbyss Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 I bet they don't feed it (often) Hey Sword be careful mixing hermits and snails, some hermits consider snails to be sources of food and a new home! I've heard that Trochus snails are more resistant to this. Just a thought. Your plans for equipment look good, are you planning on trading out the impeller in the AC70 for one from a smaller model? Oh yeah, welcome to NR! Great source of information on the hobby, the many (many!) pages found here. Link to comment
Sword Posted February 22, 2009 Author Share Posted February 22, 2009 I may use a smaller impeller if I can find one at the LFS. Which model would be best to use? Link to comment
fiction101 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 It splits every few months, they actually have a skunk clown in the same tank that hosts it, which also hasn't grown at all. They seem to be dwarfing all their live stock in it. Link to comment
Aeridne Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Who says you can't keep a bta in a pico!? My lfs has had one in their 2g aga for well over a year. Hey fiction, what's that purple coral in the front right of that pic?? Your tank equipment list looks good to me, just need the live sand and live rock. Are you planning on moddifying your ac70 into a refugium? As for mixing your own salt water and water changes, I cheat in that area, because I just buy saltwater, already made and perfect from my lfs for $1 a gallon... I just take a gallon water jug there when I want to change my water and fill it up. I figure that if I were to mix my own water for such a small tank, it might be more cost effective to just buy the already made water. If you do water changes every two weeks, then it ends up being cheaper than buying and mixing your own (for such a small tank. water changes IMO are around 1to 1 1/2 gallons), and if you do water changes every week, then it comes out to about the same minus shipping. Plus, you also have to buy the RO water to mix the salt with, but you have to buy that anyway for top offs and it's around 15-25cents per gallon. Anyway, I'm also new to this hobby, so you can ignore me if you want But that's the math I worked out for myself and it's worked out so far, especially since I run my tank on a budget (I don't cut quality, obviously). If you want to mix your own water, the supplies you're ordering will work for sure I may use a smaller impeller if I can find one at the LFS. Which model would be best to use? ac50 or ac20 impellers are most popular on nano-reef Link to comment
fiction101 Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 Oh those are blue/purplish clove polyps. Link to comment
Aeridne Posted February 22, 2009 Share Posted February 22, 2009 It splits every few months, they actually have a skunk clown in the same tank that hosts it, which also hasn't grown at all. They seem to be dwarfing all their live stock in it. Oh those are blue/purplish clove polyps. Thanks! I like those mucho. Link to comment
becact Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 You're off to a good start with your equipment list. I would drop the water change kit and save the money, though. You will need a hydrometer or refractometer for mixing. All you need to do is mix your .5 gallons or so, and heat it up in a sink filled with hot water by placing the bucket into the sink. It should get up to temp in no time. When doing water changes for my 14 gallon tank (about 2.5 gallon changes), it only takes 10-15 minutes to warm up the water in the 5 gallon bucket. I check the tank temp with a cooking digital thermometer, and match the temp when heating up the water. You'll want to buy a 5 gallon bucket or two from home depot, and keep one filled with RO/DI from your LFS. You use it for other stuff besides changes and top offs, like washing out your hydrometer if you get one, and cleaning the test tubes of the test kits. I would just wipe the glass off with a paper towel and do away with the magfloat. They can scratch your glass if they get sand in them. You're off to a good start, though. I just moved my 14 gallon from my bedroom to the living room, and already want to get a picotope to fill the vacant space now. By the way, I'm from Orlando too. PM me if you need advice on LFSs or anything at all! Link to comment
NeenasReef Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Yeah, I'd skip on the mixing kit.. everything in there is too powerful for the amount of water you'll need... a bucket, a thermometer, a spoon and a strong stirring arm is all you'll need- the only thing in there that's really worth anything is the refractometer and you can get those for a fraction of the price at other sites. I have the single satellite on my tank and i love it! Good luck! Link to comment
maverick Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 +1 on dropping the mixing kit. For my 2.5g i just use one gallon jugs to pre mix my salt water, then i put it in my sink and fill it up with warm water and wait until it gets the right temp, shake the hell out of it and do my water change. Link to comment
Sword Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 I guess the consensus is to drop the mix kit then Which refractometer and thermometer would you guys recommend? Also, how is the salt mix I picked out? Link to comment
NeenasReef Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I guess the consensus is to drop the mix kit then Which refractometer and thermometer would you guys recommend? Also, how is the salt mix I picked out? I use Reef Crystals (pretty sure its the same thing your talking about) and everyone in my tank seems to be happy with it. I dont think there is really a consensus or a study out there that proves one to be better than the other, as long as its for reefs (and not a fish only mix) you should be ok... I know that there are alot of digital options out there but I personally prefer the ol' mercury thermometer... less chance for error, but then again i havent really looked into the digital options soooo im not the best judge for that. As far as refractometers, I dont have one, stuck with a hydrometer... fail... although I am in the market for one... Link to comment
Aeridne Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I use a coralife digital thermometer. Some people say their off, so I tested mine against a normal non-digital, and mine's right on. It's nice for quick readings and the little probe can extend down into practically everywhere so can you check any place in your tank. I also use a hydrometer i'm not proud of it. I just dip and check several times to see if my reading is the same and tap it to get the bubbles out of the arm. I'll eventually upgrade, but since I get my water from a controlled source and don't mix it myself, I feel that I just have to worry about my specific gravity dropping due to evaporation. The RO top offs solve the problem anyway. Link to comment
angelacbishop Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 It splits every few months, they actually have a skunk clown in the same tank that hosts it, which also hasn't grown at all. They seem to be dwarfing all their live stock in it. Splitting doesn't neccessarily mean it's healthy. They split more often when they're stressed. Link to comment
Sword Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 Thanks for the feedback guys, I really appreciate it! Going to be placing the order tomorrow. Any input on the list of things I'm planning on ordering? (screenshot of my BigAl's "fishnet") Edit: I need to add a digital thermometer to that. Link to comment
PSYS Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I got my Coralife digital thermometer on eBay for, like, $5. Just make sure you get the name brand Coralife and not the cheapo version from China or Hong Kong. I know some people have reported having issues... but so far, mine seems to be right on point. Sounds like you're off to a good start. Link to comment
Sword Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 I got my Coralife digital thermometer on eBay for, like, $5. Just make sure you get the name brand Coralife and not the cheapo version from China or Hong Kong. I know some people have reported having issues... but so far, mine seems to be right on point. Sounds like you're off to a good start. The Coralife Thermometer is like $6.50 on Big Al's. Not terrible. Think I should splurge and get the refractometer or will that hydrometer be fine for now? I feel like I'm being really hesitant, but I want to measure twice (or thrice) and cut only once, y'know? Link to comment
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