gupebreedr Posted October 4, 2011 Author Share Posted October 4, 2011 The transition is complete and the dust storm has settled, so as promised here's a couple pics of the new and hopefully improved setup. I've included a shot of my new piece of live rock. I was hoping to catch and show the two arms that jet out from the center of it but this picture does not really show it all that well. Reminds me of an open clam shell and it's about 3 inches deep.. What do you think of the new scape, too much LR, is it too vertical? IMO, it adds a bit of height and makes the tank look bigger. In the FTS it appears as though the LR is touching the sides of the tank but it really is not. I can get my Nanomag between the glass and the rock. Glass is still a bit dirty and there is a bit cloudiness left over from the exchange. FTS New LR Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 5, 2011 Author Share Posted October 5, 2011 Just a quick update on my tank if for no other reason, it's a log of my testing parameters. LOL I don't know if it was the transfer or the addition of a new piece of LR or both but my parameters have really headed north. My current readings are Ammonia 1.0ppm Nitrites 5.0 ppm Nitrates 40 ppm These have basically doubled over night. Going on another hunt to find some Chaeto today. A fellow board member just clued me in on another LFS in my area that I was not aware of. The tank has cleared up nicely after yesterday's transfer from the leaker. I'm really starting to like the new scape. Not much else to report today.. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 Latest update as today 10/6/11. My test parameters are falling, woohoo. Doin' the happy dance!!!!! I also managed to obtain some Chaeto yesterday for my modded AC70 fug. Purchased 2 ounces from one of my LFS, @ $2.00 per ounce. Started to get some green algae growing on right side of tank in the sand. Not much else to report today. I've not seen any new hitchhikers. Current test parameters. Amonia Zilch, 0, nada Nitrates .50 ppm Nitrates 20 ppm Link to comment
SouthFlorida_Tron Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Zomg................................................... Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 Zomg................................................... Zomg................................................... ???? That's a new one for me. Link to comment
SouthFlorida_Tron Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 Zomg................................................... ???? That's a new one for me. In the beginning...................................., Rob's 10 gal Nano Reef adventure. Options Nice title, nice scape. Link to comment
DIstudio Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 looking good Rob, sorry to hear about the leaker. I just drilled a ten last night of course I cracked it on the very last hole, right at the end...oh well at least ten gallons aren't that expensive right!? I noticed a small leak at the very top of my current ten, right at the seam. I'm not worried about it, just dropped the water level about half an inch. Gives me more reasons to hurry up with the 40 project...which is going very slow lol. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 looking good Rob, sorry to hear about the leaker. I just drilled a ten last night of course I cracked it on the very last hole, right at the end...oh well at least ten gallons aren't that expensive right!? I noticed a small leak at the very top of my current ten, right at the seam. I'm not worried about it, just dropped the water level about half an inch. Gives me more reasons to hurry up with the 40 project...which is going very slow lol. Hey, thanks for the kind words. Wow, sorry to hear about the cracking 10G. That really sux big time. Hey at least your leaker is someplace where you can deal with it until you finish up with your 40 project. (Hint, hint, get off your tail end and gett'er done!) LOL I know mine was leaking somewhere around the base as I could not see any trace of leaks along any of the sides. I'm just glad it happened before I really had everything up and running and with livestock in it. Rob Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 6, 2011 Author Share Posted October 6, 2011 For the first time since I set up this tank I can finally say I'm getting a bit excited and anxious. Things are starting to look good and my parameters are heading south. * * * * Looking for some input on the following questions. * * * * In your opinion, what the most hardy of corals that I should add first. Next weekend is payday and going with the assumption that my parameters are all good to go, I would like to a piece or two. I'm still trying to decide on new lighting for this setup. The more I look and research, the more confused I get. I really want to go with LED. Was thinking about two PAR30 bulbs from Boostled but would much rather have a complete fixture, something that looks a bit better then having two exposed bulbs dangling above the tank. I would like to keep the cost under $200.00, any suggestions????? Oh, and DIY is not really an option. So there it is, thanks in advance for all the encouragement, comments and suggestions. Ya'll are the bomb. Rob From the beautiful Sunshine State. Link to comment
JoelRHale Posted October 6, 2011 Share Posted October 6, 2011 GSP and Mushrooms are hands down the easiest corals to keep. I think the Ai Nano dropped in price to $299. There might be cheaper fixtures out there, but I wasn't researching smaller lights. That's the cheapest I know off the top of my head. Without going DIY LEDs aren't really that cheap. I'm not sure of the par values but stunner strips are used in FW. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 GSP and Mushrooms are hands down the easiest corals to keep. I think the Ai Nano dropped in price to $299. There might be cheaper fixtures out there, but I wasn't researching smaller lights. That's the cheapest I know off the top of my head. Without going DIY LEDs aren't really that cheap. I'm not sure of the par values but stunner strips are used in FW. Thanks for the info, it's greatly appreciated. The Ai Nano at $299.99 is a bit more then what I really want to spend at this point but I will check it out. Stunner strips, I've already checked out at my LFS and I was not impressed and I doubt that they would work. I'm not in any super big rush to get new lights but would like to get something before I really start stocking the tank heavily. I may just decide on the two BoostLED par30's. I can get the two bulbs with shipping for right around $150.00. Heck, the par30's are easy to move around in the event I ever want to upgrade to a different setup. Thanks again. Rob Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 Okay, so I come home tonight from a real lousy night of league bowling and decided I would once again check the parameters on my tank. Low and behold this is what I found...... WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!, I'z really doing the happy dance now. I'll run another round of tests in the morning and if all check out I'll go out and obtain the start of my CUC. I can't believe how quickly all the tests went south. I guess the addition of the Chaeto yesterday really helped out. Link to comment
JoelRHale Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 If dimming isn't a huge factor for you then those bulbs are awesome and you'll be super pleased woohoo for the params! If you are absolutely certain your amm and trite are 0pmm your cycle is done and you can add your CUC. I'd do a 10-25% WC first though (or while you acclimate them) Link to comment
A1ramsey Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 SWEEET rob, its there! I can tell your excited on getting your tank going haha. Love the LR you got there scape is awesome. This is going to be a very neat tank to watch grow out. Hopefully it test good in the AM so you can get the cuc in there and get them to work. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 If dimming isn't a huge factor for you then those bulbs are awesome and you'll be super pleased woohoo for the params! If you are absolutely certain your amm and trite are 0pmm your cycle is done and you can add your CUC. I'd do a 10-25% WC first though (or while you acclimate them) Joel, Many thanks. Dimming is not a major factor but it would be a nice feature. I noticed a lot of talk about an Aquastyle LED DIY kit that I'm going to research a bit more. I'm not keen on a DIY project but it seamed like it might be easy enough as long as I have some sort of wiring diagram. I have a friend at work that would also be willing to help me with the wiring if I need assistance. Again, I'm going to research and follow a few threads that are posted. I ran another set of tests this morning and all is well. In addition I performed a 10% WC. Just returned from the LFS with a few critters. They are acclimating now. Will post pic's when they are settled in. Thanks again, your input is greatly appreciated. Rob Link to comment
DIstudio Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 very cool! so thats what the test kits are supposed to look like lol Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 SWEEET rob, its there! I can tell your excited on getting your tank going haha. Love the LR you got there scape is awesome. This is going to be a very neat tank to watch grow out. Hopefully it test good in the AM so you can get the cuc in there and get them to work. Austin, Thanks much for helping me though some of the rough times and keeping motivated. All my tests came back fine this AM. Did a 10% WC and all is looking good. I popped over to Marine Warehouse and picked a few critters, 6 Florida Nassarius 4 Blue Leg Hermits. 2 really small Zoofrags from the $5.00 bin. Didn't want to overdo the bioload. Payday is coming up so if all remains good I'll add a little bit more then. In the mean time I at least have something to look at. WooHoo! B) Will post some pic's when I get them all settled in. I'm still trying to decide on what I want for fish. Was really wanting a Royal Gramma but I may go another route. Thanks again for all your valued help and motivation. Rob Link to comment
A1ramsey Posted October 7, 2011 Share Posted October 7, 2011 Austin, Thanks much for helping me though some of the rough times and keeping motivated. All my tests came back fine this AM. Did a 10% WC and all is looking good. I popped over to Marine Warehouse and picked a few critters, 6 Florida Nassarius 4 Blue Leg Hermits. 2 really small Zoofrags from the $5.00 bin. Didn't want to overdo the bioload. Payday is coming up so if all remains good I'll add a little bit more then. In the mean time I at least have something to look at. WooHoo! B) Will post some pic's when I get them all settled in. I'm still trying to decide on what I want for fish. Was really wanting a Royal Gramma but I may go another route. Thanks again for all your valued help and motivation. Rob Your welcome man, thank you for the kind words! Glad your test still showed good this morning , I know you probly already now this but keep up with those water changes I think with keeping a pico/nano thats what keeps a tank healthy and happy. Haha that's the best part of setting up a tank is when the cycle is all done, you put your first critters in there. I'd watch mine forever, watching hermits do there thing and just plan what I would do next in my head. A royal gramma would be cool but it might get to big for that tank, I'm sure if you got a small one and kept it till it grew out it would be fine. Might want to ask some other people about that though. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 And then there was life............. Well the tank cycled and it was time to add some critters. Please forgive these shots, I'm surely not a photographer and my digi camera is old and does not take close up pictures very well. I'm sure some of the problems could be user error as well. hehehe Here is a real poor shot of one of my hermits clearing a path of algae. He went right to at as soon as I released him. My two small zoofrags. I slightly enhanced their colors so they could be seen. I really like the top one, it shows two different types, orange and green. I'll see how these new additions fair and will most likely at a bit more later next week. It's payday on Thursday!!! LOL Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 7, 2011 Author Share Posted October 7, 2011 Your welcome man, thank you for the kind words! Glad your test still showed good this morning , I know you probly already now this but keep up with those water changes I think with keeping a pico/nano thats what keeps a tank healthy and happy. Haha that's the best part of setting up a tank is when the cycle is all done, you put your first critters in there. I'd watch mine forever, watching hermits do there thing and just plan what I would do next in my head. A royal gramma would be cool but it might get to big for that tank, I'm sure if you got a small one and kept it till it grew out it would be fine. Might want to ask some other people about that though. Indeed, WC's are important and I plan on dong 10 to 15% per week. Most likely more as the population increases. I was really amazed how quickly everything came to life after I released them into their new little world. The hermits went right to it, chowing down on some algae. The snails scurried off and the zoo's open up in about 15 minutes. So all seams well. Can't wait for payday to come around so I can add a few more critters. Speaking of payday, how's the job hunting going? Hopefully you've got some leads and you'll be back, gainfully employed real soon. You know, we need to get together sometime and hit the local LFS's. Link to comment
A1ramsey Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Indeed, WC's are important and I plan on dong 10 to 15% per week. Most likely more as the population increases. I was really amazed how quickly everything came to life after I released them into their new little world. The hermits went right to it, chowing down on some algae. The snails scurried off and the zoo's open up in about 15 minutes. So all seams well. Can't wait for payday to come around so I can add a few more critters. Speaking of payday, how's the job hunting going? Hopefully you've got some leads and you'll be back, gainfully employed real soon. You know, we need to get together sometime and hit the local LFS's. Glad everything is doing good in the tank and happy. The job hunting is going good going to take my drug test tomorrow, and I pretty much have the job cause my old boss hooked me up good with this place so the $$$ will hopefully be coming in soon thank god. And yea we should meet up at one of the lfs sometime this week?! Any updates on your tank? Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 10, 2011 Author Share Posted October 10, 2011 Glad everything is doing good in the tank and happy. The job hunting is going good going to take my drug test tomorrow, and I pretty much have the job cause my old boss hooked me up good with this place so the $$$ will hopefully be coming in soon thank god. And yea we should meet up at one of the lfs sometime this week?! Any updates on your tank? Austin, WTG on the job hunt. It's good when you have a network like an old boss helping out. Got to get some money rolling in so you can stock that 10gal when it ready. Speaking of tanks, did you see the post I put up yesterday about the 2 gal. pico tank kit from Walmart? I ordered one!!!!! Nice little kit for $30.00... Here's the link in case you missed it walmart pico tank Not much new to report on my setup other then I'm getting a horrible green algae growth. It resembles a diatom bloom but it's green. It's mostly on the sand and glass. It comes off easily but comes back in full force in a matter of an hour. After I cleaned the glass 3 times in two hours yesterday, I decided to shut off the lights for the day. That didn't make my zoas happy but they will survive. I think my hermies are knocking out my snails. I'm seeing empty shells that I've never seen before. My Chaeto is going nuts, I swear it's doubled in size in the 4 days that I've had it. Been keeping up on my testing just in case the addition of the livestock threw off the bioload but all is great Ammonia 0 Nitrite 0 Nitrates between 5 & 10. I'll do another WC Wednesday morning. Hey let's plan a LFS get-together for this week. I'm open anytime on Wednesday or earlier in the day on Thursday. Let me know if either of those days work for you? It's payday and I'll have a few bucks to spread around. LOL Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 10, 2011 Author Share Posted October 10, 2011 Not much new to report other then this green algae is a PITA. I ordered a 10G CUC pack from Reef Cleaners, I hope it arrives quickly. Oh, my chaeto is going crazy. Took a huge clump of it out of my AC70 and just threw it in the tank. I've cut down the photo period as well, not too sure if my zoo's are too happy about it. Cleaned my filter cartridge and added fresh carbon to it. That's about it for today. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 13, 2011 Author Share Posted October 13, 2011 A happy yet sad day in my nano world. Yesterday I added some coral and fish to my setup. The coral included Trumpet, Frogspawn, Paly's & GSP. I also added two tank raised baby false perculas clowns. The largest measures in at about and 1 1/8" and the other slightly less then an inch. I don't normally name my fish but could not help but giving these two a name. So I decided on Bert and Ernie. Ernie is short for Ernestine. LOL They both adjusted quickly and ate like little pigs. Can't supply any pics just yet as you will see why in the next paragraph. Now for the sad news. I turned on my lights this morning and they crapped out. Bummer huh? I should not complain too much about it, the fixture is over 6 years old. But on the bright side so to speak. I just ordered two BoostLED lamps and kits. I hope they arrive quickly so my new corals won't be without light for too long. From what I've read about BoostLED, they are super quick in getting orders shipped out. I elected to get my bulbs with the following configuration, 2 royal blue, 2 cool white, 1 neutral while / 60 degree. I received my reef CUC from Reef Cleaners today also. Great job John, I'm impressed. Will post an update when my bulbs arrive arrive. Link to comment
gupebreedr Posted October 14, 2011 Author Share Posted October 14, 2011 Had to share this!!! My two baby clowns decided they wanted to host with my frogspwan. They have been together since I introduced them two days ago. I've seen no aggression what so ever. They even sleep together and I mean sleep together. So here they are Bert and Ernie!!!!! Oh, they are little piggies, always looking for me to feed them. I'm sorry for the poor pics, my camera just does not do good close ups or tank shots. Link to comment
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