streakr22 Posted April 2, 2011 Author Share Posted April 2, 2011 One of my electric blue hermits bit the dust. Not sure why. Maybe that baby whelk I found has something to do with it but I've never seen it attacking anything. I've been a little peeved with the anemone because it moved to the back side of the rock scape between the rock and the back wall so the clowns barely have any room to move around while hosting it. I'm on the fence as to trying to move it again or not. We shall see. I'm really just hoping it will move on its own. Maybe if I point the koralia in that spot he will move. In other news, I've really been considering how much I've enjoyed this hobby so far despite any setbacks I have come across. I've liked it so much so that I'm seriously considering an upgrade later this year sometime after I've saved up enough money. Lately, I've been eyeing the RSM 250 Pearl White. I really like the clean looks of it and I don't want to deal with the hassle of a DIY setup. Here's my wishlist for the next setup: RSM 250 Pearl White with stand 50lbs dry rock from ReefCleaners (if the starter kit rock isn't any good) 60lbs CaribSea Fiji Pink Sand Vortech MP40 (once tank is completely cycled) JBJ ATO with Aqualifter My focus is really starting from scratch with absolutely no hitch hikers. Once the parameters stabilize I'll add a CUC from ReefCleaners. What do you guys think? Should I go down this route? I know the RSM is spendy but I think if i went for something with less volume or quality I won't be satisfied. Well who am I kidding? I don't think we're ever satisfied in this hobby but this should keep me occupied for a while. I really don't want to get another CAD mainly because there have been too many issues with the tank and stand and their customer service that the cheaper price is not worth the hassle. Peace of mind has a hefty price and I'm willing to sacrifice a little more cash to achieve it. In the meantime I will definitely continue to stock my current tank. I pretty much have the four fish I want and need to work on adding more corals. I'm really interested in getting some zoas and rics going. Unfortunately my LFS doesn't carry very good quality coral so I'll either need to have them special order coral for me or I can order them online. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 4, 2011 Author Share Posted April 4, 2011 Went to the LFS to get some RODI and came home water and more coral! I got one colony of various zoas and one colony of GSP. I'll add some pics once they open up more. Link to comment
reef-luva Posted April 4, 2011 Share Posted April 4, 2011 ....sweet tank, I really like the set up....corals are hard to pass up.... Sometimes I leave all plastic at home and just take the cash I need to buy water!!!...hahaha Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 5, 2011 Author Share Posted April 5, 2011 ....sweet tank, I really like the set up....corals are hard to pass up....Sometimes I leave all plastic at home and just take the cash I need to buy water!!!...hahaha Thanks Reef-Luva! I'd do that too but I rarely if ever buy anything with cash. Zoas and GSP have opened up nicely. I saw my coral banded shrimp pick tear at a GSP polyp right before bed last night I'm going to kick that things butt! If it does it again I'm trading it in for a blood shrimp. Pics in a few! Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 9, 2011 Author Share Posted April 9, 2011 Here's a pic of the zoas I got. At least I think they're zoas. I'll upload a pic or two of my new rics and vice zoas once I can get a good shot of them. I also ordered some new bulbs for my 4 bulb fixture from cadlights. I'm not completely satisfied with the stock bulbs that came with it so this is what I'll be going with once they arrive next week: (front) ATI Blue+ ATI Aquablue Special ATI Purple+ ATI Blue+ (Back) Link to comment
demaria36 Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 Here's a pic of the zoas I got. At least I think they're zoas. I'll upload a pic or two of my new rics and vice zoas once I can get a good shot of them. I also ordered some new bulbs for my 4 bulb fixture from cadlights. I'm not completely satisfied with the stock bulbs that came with it so this is what I'll be going with once they arrive next week: (front) ATI Blue+ ATI Aquablue Special ATI Purple+ ATI Blue+ (Back) Oooh, let us know what this combo looks like! I'm following along as I have recently set-up a 22g cadlights and just ordered the Petmountain Nova Extreme T5 special posted by Weetabix in another thread. I heard ATI are killer bulbs! Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 10, 2011 Author Share Posted April 10, 2011 Oooh, let us know what this combo looks like! I'm following along as I have recently set-up a 22g cadlights and just ordered the Petmountain Nova Extreme T5 special posted by Weetabix in another thread. I heard ATI are killer bulbs! I'll let you know once they're in. I just performed a 2 gallon water change. I'm beginning to replace my Oceanic Sea Salt with RedSea Coral Pro. Once I get the tank cleaned up a bit I'll take a FTS. Stay tuned... Link to comment
savageajc Posted April 10, 2011 Share Posted April 10, 2011 Tank looks good, love the aqua-scape. and NICE pic of your clowns/nem! Link to comment
demaria36 Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 UPDATE!!!! FTS 1/28/11 FTS 3/5/11 Things have moved around in these last few months. I took out about 10lbs. of the live rock so now the tank is left with 15 or so. I like the look of this scape better and its much easier to clean behind the rock now. Been trying to tackle a slight algae problem as you can see here: I thinking being more frugal with my feedings and making sure weekly water changes are performed will help. I've also ordered a Hydor Slim Skim protein skimmer to help. So far I've been doing top-offs by hand but that is becoming a daily chore. So, I broke down and ordered a JBJ ATO and Aqualifter pump with a 4 gallon square bucket to hide in my tank stand. I'm sure this will help stabilize the health of my tank too. I see this as a good investment. Here are some of the latest pictures of my livestock: Engineer/Convict Goby Emerald Crab (+1 baby hitchhiker not pictured, not sure what color it is yet) Red Leg Hermit Crab x2 Blue Leg Hermit Crab x2 Random Snail Coral Frag I've had since December Not shown: Blue Damsel because she's too damn fast to get a good pic and the Coral Banded Shrimp because she's always hiding behind the rockwork. More updates to come. I have two other corals and some more snails and hitchhikers to take pictures of so stay tuned. As always: comments, questions, and advice are always welcome. I was curious to know what 4 gallon reservoir you were using since I also have the jbj ato and the 22g cadlights stand Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 I was curious to know what 4 gallon reservoir you were using since I also have the jbj ato and the 22g cadlights stand Black Four Gallon Bucket from aquahub.com. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 New photos for tonight. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 Monday morning. New bulbs should be here in a few days. I'm waiting with antici...........pation! Link to comment
demaria36 Posted April 12, 2011 Share Posted April 12, 2011 Looking good, hope you like the bulbs! I eventually wanna try 2 ATI Blue plus and a Fiji purple and maybe a GE 6500K combo, but I wanna see what yours looks like first. So your 4 gallon reservoir bucket fits on one of the sides of your stand? I assume our stand design is the same with a vertical piece inside down the middle and two small shelves right? I measured and think I have 10" on either side and i think your four gallon bucket fits just right. Is this true? Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 12, 2011 Author Share Posted April 12, 2011 Looking good, hope you like the bulbs! I eventually wanna try 2 ATI Blue plus and a Fiji purple and maybe a GE 6500K combo, but I wanna see what yours looks like first. So your 4 gallon reservoir bucket fits on one of the sides of your stand? I assume our stand design is the same with a vertical piece inside down the middle and two small shelves right? I measured and think I have 10" on either side and i think your four gallon bucket fits just right. Is this true? Thanks for the compliments! The stand has one shelf in the middle with no vertical piece inside. I have the 4 gal bucket placed on the bottom to the right. It fits perfectly under the shelf. I'll take a picture tonight to give you a better idea. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 Here's what my stand looks like inside. Don't mind the mess. Link to comment
demaria36 Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 Here's what my stand looks like inside. Don't mind the mess. Thanks for the example! Mine has a piece down the middle for support and then two little shelves on either side. Weird how they'd make the exact cabinet two different ways! I have to find a reservoir that is about 9 1/4" wide to fit my stand Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 14, 2011 Author Share Posted April 14, 2011 New Pics tonight - trying to improve on my photo taking and editing skills. Any feedback is encouraged! FTS Orange/Red Spot Blenny Posing Green Star Polyps + Vermetid Snail + Scarlet Reef Hermit Zoa Colony - ID anyone? T5VHO Cool White + Actinic + LED Moonlights Zoa Colony - Actinics + Moonlights only (slightly blurry) Orange/Silver and Neon Green Ricordea Florida Another FTS Link to comment
demaria36 Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Nice new pics! how you liking the new bulb combo? Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 Nice new pics! how you liking the new bulb combo? I am very pleased with it. The pics don't really show how different the colors are. Its a bit more blue with some purple/pink thrown in there. No yellow at all. The color of the corals and anemone really pop now. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 20, 2011 Author Share Posted April 20, 2011 Update. My RBTA has been slowly bleaching out and I didn't really notice until I compared pictures I have now to pictures I took of it when I first got it. For now I'm going to be hand feeding it every couple days to see if I can bring it back. It still inflates nicely, even bubbles its tips. The clowns don't seem to mind the difference but I'm really hoping to bring it back. Maybe my new bulb combo has stressed it. Not sure yet. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted April 21, 2011 Author Share Posted April 21, 2011 Pic of new light combo Miami Vice Zoas Green Florida Ricordea Link to comment
streakr22 Posted May 2, 2011 Author Share Posted May 2, 2011 New scape. I had some dry rock leftover from my Fluval Edge project so I've added it to this tank for now. I'm digging the rock wall look. Link to comment
knight420 Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 yeah for sure man love the reef wall Link to comment
_Mitch_ Posted May 5, 2011 Share Posted May 5, 2011 Looks great. Can't wait to see the 'scape once the new rock matures and gets some coralline on it. Link to comment
streakr22 Posted May 5, 2011 Author Share Posted May 5, 2011 Looks great. Can't wait to see the 'scape once the new rock matures and gets some coralline on it. Thanks me too! After I come back from my vacation the end of this month I plan on adding some more coral. I've seen quite a few I like from different sources. I've ordered from coralmorphologic.com before and their specimens were very good. I'm looking to try from ReefGardener.net next to get some SPS. Link to comment
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