Reef Rain - A Cube's Life [Bc14]

[gena]

Nice update! Doesn't it feel absolutely wrong to cut into a new tank? I know it's stuff we have to do to make it run better...but it makes me cringe!!!!

[uwwmatt]

Nice write-up Rain. The tank is looking good. Remember not to put all your equipment on the same GFCI plug. You wouldn't want your heater or something else to trigger the outlet to cut power when you were gone and have your main return pump shutoff along with the rest of the stuff. Your tank would end up crashing without the oxygen exchange.

[jojoe972]

I have to say you have a great right up going and cutting the tab perfectly and sanding, wow. Mine isnt that perfect, lol.

 

Yea I like cats but outside cats

[Rain24]

Enjoying the updates, keep it up Rain!!

 

Thanks, qwik! Glad someone is enjoying the blatherings of a newbie.

 

Yes I do, I like ur scape alot!! I like ur stocking plans, although later you may find u want more swimming fishies, I have the candy cane pistol and it made my ywg so much more active but he is tiny, like the size of a dime!!

 

Thanks again, brando. I know what you mean about possible wanting a swimming fish. Both of the fishes I have in mind right now are perchers or bottom dwellers (the goby when he has a shrimp). There may be changes once the time is right to start getting fish.

 

The tank looks good so far! I really like your LR. Interesting shapes.

 

Following.

 

Thanks, rb! I'm liking the live rock too, even though things are starting to flake off it and float around.

 

Nice update! Doesn't it feel absolutely wrong to cut into a new tank? I know it's stuff we have to do to make it run better...but it makes me cringe!!!!

 

Oh my gosh. You have NO idea how hard it was for me! This is my first tank, so all that banging to get the false floor out and that cutting??? Inside I was like "Nooooo...my baby!!!"

 

Nice write-up Rain. The tank is looking good. Remember not to put all your equipment on the same GFCI plug. You wouldn't want your heater or something else to trigger the outlet to cut power when you were gone and have your main return pump shutoff along with the rest of the stuff. Your tank would end up crashing without the oxygen exchange.

 

Thanks for stopping by, matt! Honestly right now it's all on the same plug still. We're working on getting it separated out. This means plugging it into an entirely separate GFCI, right? That's going to take a bit of work, but I totally get why it's a good idea. Thank you for that tip!

 

I have to say you have a great right up going and cutting the tab perfectly and sanding, wow. Mine isnt that perfect, lol.

 

Yea I like cats but outside cats

 

jojoe, like I told gena...this is my baby right now. I didn't want cracked plastic in the back. I know, I have first tank syndrome and all that. I'm trying not to worry about all the stuff that's growing on it. There are tiny hairs of algae, some dark red stuff growing that I can't identify, purple bumps that I have to identify still and just things flapping around on the rocks like dead bits. Ewwww.

 

A couple of days ago, we saw a tiny little snail - probably no more than 3mm in length. Of course now I can't find him again. He was cute. Poor Shelbert, lost and alone in that tank. Last time we sighted him, he was near Fanny, the tiny little fan/featherduster thingy that I found in the back of the tank.

 

I am also trying to resist the urge to scrub the rocks. I just took a turkey baster to blow off a bunch of detritus on them since I'm going to change the filter floss today anyway.

[squirrelieygrrrl]

sweet rain!

 

exciting isnt it?! dont worry too much about all the different stuff that came on the rocks, populations will boom and wane. all part of the fun if you ask me. love how youve been so detailed on your set up. your photo skills are far better than mine were when i first started. some of my first shots were a travesty!

[jojoe972]

haha your funny..... turkey basting is ok but no need to do it right now. Just watch and change your floss should be fine lol.

[Rain24]

sweet rain!

 

exciting isnt it?! dont worry too much about all the different stuff that came on the rocks, populations will boom and wane. all part of the fun if you ask me. love how youve been so detailed on your set up. your photo skills are far better than mine were when i first started. some of my first shots were a travesty!

 

Thanks for visiting the thread, squirrel! It is SO exciting to me that I can't help but document it. I keep finding new things growing on the rocks and it all ends up in my tank journal (a paper one that I keep). I really should photograph some of them. Despite trying not to worry, I can't help but worry over every new nodule. There is this wine red stuff that is growing all over the rocks. I'm hoping it's red coralline. Seems so from some pics I saw on Melev's reef.

 

The photography thing is a work in progress. I found my other lens that has a 1:2 macro on it. I'm going to try shooting with that and see how it goes. The ones I took with my regular lens is still kinda poopy.

 

haha your funny..... turkey basting is ok but no need to do it right now. Just watch and change your floss should be fine lol.

 

I know, I'm hovering. But everything is so cool right now, how could I not? Man, I had so much patience waiting for the tank to get wet. Now that it is, I'm just dying to add something to it. I won't though - not until it's ready. For now I'll just have to be content with pods and odd things growing.

 

Must...not...scrub. GAH!

[urbaneks]

Off to a very nice start. I have a feeling this is going to be a great reef. I also really like the way you do your updates. I may have to steal shamelessly here.

[Rain24]

Off to a very nice start. I have a feeling this is going to be a great reef. I also really like the way you do your updates. I may have to steal shamelessly here.

 

Uh-oh. Let's hope the tank lives up to your feeling, urbaneks. I'm certainly aiming to keep a very clean tank. Of course I'm saying that just as algae is starting to grow on the rocks. Just yesterday though, I moved the rockwork away from the back wall so I could clean back there. It was sort of driving me crazy that some of the rocks were leaning against it.

 

Thanks for visiting the thread and your kind words. I had to do something to format my updates so that I could find it a lot easier when I go back and read it later.

[gena]

How's the testing going? Any new developments? I got impatient and added some coral to my tank. Parameters are holding steady so I think I'm ok

[Rain24]

Yay gena! Um...HELP! It's day 12 of the cycle and so far my parameters are as follows (not that it changed much from the last time I posted):

 

SG: 1.026

ph: 8.0 - 8.2

Ammonia: 0

Nitrites: 0

Nitrates: 0

 

Here's the deal though, I never really saw a rise in those numbers. And here I was hoping for some clear signs that it's cycling. The tank now has algae - just all sorts of green and brown stuff that is making me unhappy. No water changes yet. What do I do now? Wait a bit more? Change water? Keep testing?

 

Little tube worms can be seen in the tank now. The little fan/feather duster seems happy as can be. I need to take more photos so I can identify some of this stuff that's growing.

[Maddevil1]

Yay gena! Um...HELP! It's day 12 of the cycle and so far my parameters are as follows (not that it changed much from the last time I posted):

 

SG: 1.026

ph: 8.0 - 8.2

Ammonia: 0

Nitrites: 0

Nitrates: 0

 

Here's the deal though, I never really saw a rise in those numbers. And here I was hoping for some clear signs that it's cycling. The tank now has algae - just all sorts of green and brown stuff that is making me unhappy. No water changes yet. What do I do now? Wait a bit more? Change water? Keep testing?

 

Little tube worms can be seen in the tank now. The little fan/feather duster seems happy as can be. I need to take more photos so I can identify some of this stuff that's growing.

 

Well I guess a couple of questions. (Sorry, I dont feel like reading through everything again = lazy ) 1) What test kits are you using? 2) Was the LR cured when you put it in the tank? So, either you have bad test kits or if the LR was cured when you put in the tank, you might have had a small mini cycle, if any. If your tank has been setup for a couple weeks and you have not seen any rise in the parameters, then you tank is most likely cycled and with the presence of alage, its time for your CUC. I wouldnt go all crazy with the CUC either. I have 2 emeralds, 4 snails and 1 conch and they do the job. Just try to get snails that eat the type of algae you have currently. If the algae on the rocks get too long and out of hand, you can take the rocks out individually and scrub the algae off, that way the snails can eat what is left. No need for a water change just yet. Get CUC and monitor your nitrates. If they remain 0, do a water change either before you add fish/coral (assuming that will be in a couple of weeks) or do a water change a week after you add fish/coral (assuming you'll add fish/coral within the coming weeks).

[BigBad82]

love the scape, this is gonna be a great little tank!

[gena]

Sounds like you had a mini-cycle! By brown do you mean the powdery diatom looking stuff? If so, I'd say you are ready to add your cuc. I personally would do a water change, and then add a small cuc. I just ordered mine from reefcleaners. They will give you suggestions on what to put in your tank. The total was $12 for my package!!!! Great deal!!!!! I'm sure yours will be similar since we have similar size tanks.

 

You should post a fts pic. of your tank so we can see the algae you are talking about.

[Rain24]

Well I guess a couple of questions. (Sorry, I dont feel like reading through everything again = lazy ) 1) What test kits are you using? 2) Was the LR cured when you put it in the tank? So, either you have bad test kits or if the LR was cured when you put in the tank, you might have had a small mini cycle, if any. If your tank has been setup for a couple weeks and you have not seen any rise in the parameters, then you tank is most likely cycled and with the presence of alage, its time for your CUC. I wouldnt go all crazy with the CUC either. I have 2 emeralds, 4 snails and 1 conch and they do the job. Just try to get snails that eat the type of algae you have currently. If the algae on the rocks get too long and out of hand, you can take the rocks out individually and scrub the algae off, that way the snails can eat what is left. No need for a water change just yet. Get CUC and monitor your nitrates. If they remain 0, do a water change either before you add fish/coral (assuming that will be in a couple of weeks) or do a water change a week after you add fish/coral (assuming you'll add fish/coral within the coming weeks).

 

Maddevil - I used API test kits and the live rock that I bought was cured. It came from Premium Aquatics and was in the tank within 24 hours. I'm seeing some bubble algae and hair algae and some stuff that I can't identify. I'd love to scrub the rocks. I wonder if that will scrub off the coralline too? The problem is that these rocks don't stack too well, getting them back in will be interesting. But I'll do what it takes to get rid of this algae. Thank you for the tips!

 

I briefly considered an emerald crab because of this bubble algae. I have plans for sexy shrimp in the future though, so I'm not sure if it's a good idea or not.

 

love the scape, this is gonna be a great little tank!

 

Thanks, BigBad. I've peeked into your pico thread. That's a cute little tank you have there!

 

 

Sounds like you had a mini-cycle! By brown do you mean the powdery diatom looking stuff? If so, I'd say you are ready to add your cuc. I personally would do a water change, and then add a small cuc. I just ordered mine from reefcleaners. They will give you suggestions on what to put in your tank. The total was $12 for my package!!!! Great deal!!!!! I'm sure yours will be similar since we have similar size tanks.

 

You should post a fts pic. of your tank so we can see the algae you are talking about.

 

My stuff isn't as brown as most of the diatom pics that I see. I thought I saw more brown stuff before, but it went away. What's left does seem powderyish in places and some of them look like tufts of dried grass.

 

Oh wow...only $12 for the CUC? Does that include shipping? If so, that would be awesome.

 

I'll be taking another FTS. I'm sort of leaving the tank dark most of the day today though to see if that'll help stop this algae from growing. It's weird, I have this stuff that looks sort of like dill or fennel leaves, but I don't think it's bryopsis (at least I'm hoping it isn't - I used saltwater from our LFS and distilled water for topoffs). That stuff is growing on the glass too. I don't have film algae, but I have this. Go figure.

[squirrelieygrrrl]

uh oh....

 

sounds like byropsis to me. for your sake lets hope not! ive been battling that crap for over a year. we definitely need some pictures. does it have a blue/green metallic tint to it? or a more wiry appearance to the base?

 

in regards to the algae, have you tested phosphate? imo this may be the source of the prob.

 

i think your totally safe to add a cuc, though if it were me i wouldnt scrub the rocks. if you feel its necessary though it shouldnt remove any of the coraline. im definitely of the school of thought that its better to target the water quality than the algae directly. that being said it sounds to me like your just going through the new tank motions.

 

are you running carbon/gfo? that will definitely help a bit if you arent.

[Rain24]

uh oh....

 

sounds like byropsis to me. for your sake lets hope not! ive been battling that crap for over a year. we definitely need some pictures. does it have a blue/green metallic tint to it? or a more wiry appearance to the base?

 

in regards to the algae, have you tested phosphate? imo this may be the source of the prob.

 

i think your totally safe to add a cuc, though if it were me i wouldnt scrub the rocks. if you feel its necessary though it shouldnt remove any of the coraline. im definitely of the school of thought that its better to target the water quality than the algae directly. that being said it sounds to me like your just going through the new tank motions.

 

are you running carbon/gfo? that will definitely help a bit if you arent.

 

Oh no. No, no, no. Not the dreaded bryopsis! No metallic blue tint that I can detect. It's a very green color and very fine at the base.

 

I don't have a phosphate test kit yet. I guess I may have to get one. Should I get the Salifert one? I'm not running anything yet in the back except filter floss. Let's see, what do I have here? Chemi-pure and Purigen. Will either of those work?

 

Here's a pic of the biggest one. My cameras are having a heck of a time focusing on it. It's about 1 1/2" long now:

 

What's this dill-like algae?

[squirrelieygrrrl]

Oh no. No, no, no. Not the dreaded bryopsis! No metallic blue tint that I can detect. It's a very green color and very fine at the base.

 

I don't have a phosphate test kit yet. I guess I may have to get one. Should I get the Salifert one? I'm not running anything yet in the back except filter floss. Let's see, what do I have here? Chemi-pure and Purigen. Will either of those work?

 

Here's a pic of the biggest one. My cameras are having a heck of a time focusing on it. It's about 1 1/2" long now:

 

What's this dill-like algae?

 

 

oh rain,

 

i hate to do this to you, that sure looks like byropsis to me. the variety i have takes on an almost metallic color, and its awfully wiry. though what ever you have has that byropsis look to it. try goggling and looking through the images to see if you get a match.

 

i hear the salifert tests are pretty good id highly reccomend getting a P04 kit of some kind.

 

i run chemi-pure eilite and it does wonders for nutrient control. i tried purigen and never really cared for it, also i hear the aluminum based phosphate removers arent as good as the grannular ferric oxide (gfo) ones. though i think it really its probably a personal preference, i find the purigen is a little too dense and getting enough flow through it is tough.

 

when i use the chemipure elite i usually split an 11oz bag in half. its totally fine to take off the zip tie and pour out what you dont need to use later. just make sure your knot in the bag is nice and tight.

 

what ever you do dont try to pluck it away while the rock is in the tank, it will just spread. stuff like that tends to break up in little bitts and settle in other places when you try to manually remove.

[Rain24]

Well...chit. Some of those bryopsis pics do look similar to what I have.

 

Any suggestions on a GFO brand? Also, I should get a handle on this little outbreak before I put anything in, right? I hope I don't lose my little fan worm when I take the rocks out for plucking. How about water changes?

 

Squirrel, I am SO sad!

[squirrelieygrrrl]

i hate dropping stuff like that on people.

 

i should have clarified, chemi pure elite does have gfo in it. imo, manual removal of byropsis is an exercise in futility.

 

kents tech-m magnesium supplement can kill it, though i personally havnt had any success with it. mostly because every time i add it to my system my trachy bleaches a little.

 

ive also heard that some people have been having success with hydrogen peroxide.

 

though really probably the best thing you can do for your tank is to get an ro/di system and make your own water. that way you know exactly what your putting in your tank. lfs water is typically mixed at a low salinity, and as a result levels are often low in the major elements.

[Rehype]

Hey rain it does look like bryopsis to me as well.I wouldnt panic though your tank is still going through its cycling phase so its possible this first run in with bryopsis might just be a phase in your tank cycle. I would recommend not to add any livestock until you get everything in check though.. excess nutrients will only exacerbate the problem. I would recommend shortening your light cycle(maybe even go a few days without light) and just let your tank finish cycling.Then run carbon and or chempiure to help get rid of excess nutrients.

[Maddevil1]

If you look in my thread, Post #112 pg6, you see what my algae looked like, it looked very similar to what yours looks like now in the beginning. Whether it was byropsis or not, beats the hell out of me. I took the rocks out, gave them a good scrubbing with a brand new toothbrush and the turbo snails did the rest. Never saw it again.

Edited March 2, 2011 by Maddevil1

[gena]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. The tank is new so it shouldn't be too hard to eradicate. If you can do it, maybe try what maddevil suggested. It looks like the same algae he had. It certainly would be easy to pull your rock out without inhabitants. Getting them back together the same way would be the trickiest part. But, didn't you say earlier you wanted to epoxy the rocks together anyways? Or, maybe that was someone else

 

I had bryopsis. It took awhile to get rid of it. I treated it with the elevated magnesium and it eventually did work. Before you do that though...maybe try scrubbing. That durn pesky algae!

 

oh....and my total was $12.29 (includes shipping) for my CUC through Reefcleaners! Can't beat that!

Edited March 3, 2011 by gena

[Rain24]

i hate dropping stuff like that on people.

 

i should have clarified, chemi pure elite does have gfo in it. imo, manual removal of byropsis is an exercise in futility.

 

kents tech-m magnesium supplement can kill it, though i personally havnt had any success with it. mostly because every time i add it to my system my trachy bleaches a little.

 

ive also heard that some people have been having success with hydrogen peroxide.

 

though really probably the best thing you can do for your tank is to get an ro/di system and make your own water. that way you know exactly what your putting in your tank. lfs water is typically mixed at a low salinity, and as a result levels are often low in the major elements.

 

It's alright. I'd rather know than not know, although I have to admit I was rather bummed about having bryopsis in my very first tank. I'll save the Kents Tech-M as a last resort. Unfortunately, I don't have any Chemipure Elite, just the regular Chemipure. I wonder if that'll do for now?

 

Hmm. Perhaps this will convince the hubby to get our own RO/DI sooner, although the LFS water has been testing at 1.026 on my refractometer.

 

 

Hey rain it does look like bryopsis to me as well.I wouldnt panic though your tank is still going through its cycling phase so its possible this first run in with bryopsis might just be a phase in your tank cycle. I would recommend not to add any livestock until you get everything in check though.. excess nutrients will only exacerbate the problem. I would recommend shortening your light cycle(maybe even go a few days without light) and just let your tank finish cycling.Then run carbon and or chempiure to help get rid of excess nutrients.

 

If you could have seen my face when you also confirmed that it was bryopsis. I'm not in a hurry to stock the tank, specially now that it has this little outbreak. Right now the tank is in dark mode. No light for me. It's next to a window though. I wonder if I should throw some cloth on top of it to block out any excess light?

 

I do have Chemipure (just the regular one), but no media rack. I'm assuming I can still just toss it in the back under the drip tray that holds my filter floss, right?

 

If you look in my thread, Post #112 pg6, you see what my algae looked like, it looked very similar to what yours looks like now in the beginning. Whether it was byropsis or not, beats the hell out of me. I took the rocks out, gave them a good scrubbing with a brand new toothbrush and the turbo snails did the rest. Never saw it again.

 

Wow, that is quite the outbreak you had there! Mine isn't that bad yet, but it's spreading.

 

Well, good thing I didn't start plucking! I even had my new aquatic forceps out to tweeze the living daylights out of them. I told the husband to come home with a cheap, new toothbrush so we can scrub. He's not going to be thrilled about the restacking. I hope the featherduster survives this bryopsis issue.

 

I wouldn't worry about it too much. The tank is new so it shouldn't be too hard to eradicate. If you can do it, maybe try what maddevil suggested. It looks like the same algae he had. It certainly would be easy to pull your rock out without inhabitants. Getting them back together the same way would be the trickiest part. But, didn't you say earlier you wanted to epoxy the rocks together anyways? Or, maybe that was someone else

 

I had bryopsis. It took awhile to get rid of it. I treated it with the elevated magnesium and it eventually did work. Before you do that though...maybe try scrubbing. That durn pesky algae!

 

oh....and my total was $12.29 (includes shipping) for my CUC through Reefcleaners! Can't beat that!

 

That was me, gena. I was planning on epoxying, but I'm not 100% set on the scape yet. Plus, I fiddled with it and broke a couple of little pieces off. My current plan is lights out with potential brushing.

 

Hey, at least I'm not alone in experiencing bryopsis, right? I'm in good company!

 

I guess it's almost time to check in with Reefcleaners, what with the algae and no sights of a cycle in sight and all.

[oncorhynchus]

Rain, are you going to run a media rack? Chaeto might out compete that algae for nutrients.