albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Get Out of My Tank! - - - Fish Removal Tips & Tricks © Steven Pro and reefkeeping.com Removing fish is at times necessary but can be a real hassle especially in reef tanks, and can really stress the fish, or fishes, if you keep chasing it and chasing without actually catching it. Steven outlines a number of tricks from various sources that he suggests you may want to try and use, without getting your fish hurt or stressed, or maybe end up not even catching them after trying and trying. Link: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-06/sp/ Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Some Fish Traps, but there are many more types, including DIY ones You can find the DIY ones by using a search engine ... Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) Information on Miracle Mud for your Substrate (developed by Leng Sy -1989) With details and several videos of Tanks on which it is used. It is an alternate media that can be used as a substrate and according to the reseller does not require as much of it as DSB's need that use other materials. Informational article. If you plan on using it, do some more research to be certain that you will be satisfied with how it works and what it does for your tank. Miracle Mud® is a product of EcoSystem Aquarium®. Miracle Mud is comprised of up to 80% oceanic mud, harvested from deep waters, and is then dried on land. The remaining 20% is a formulation of minerals and trace elements that make Miracle Mud a true “MIRACLE.” The mineral and trace element composition is as follows: Aluminum, antimony, barium, beryllium, bismuth, boron, bromine, cadmium, calcium, cerium, cesium, chromium, chloride, cobalt, dysprosium, erbium, europium, fluorine, gadolinium, gallium, germanium, gold, hafnium, holmium, indium, iodine, iridium, iron, lanthanum, lithium, lutetium, magnesium, manganese, molybdenum, neodymium, nickel, niobium, osmium, palladium, phosphorus, platinum, potassium, praseodymium, rhodium, rubidium, ruthenium, rhenium, samarium, selenium, silicon, silver, sodium, strontium, sulfur, tantalum, tellurium, terbium, thallium, thorium, thulium, tin, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, ytterbium, yttrium, zinc, zirconium. Link : http://tinyurl.com/cmtyulz for more information and to watch the Videos. Albert Edited September 21, 2012 by albertthiel Quote Link to comment
atoll Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Hi Albert, I am far from the fastest typer but have just sat down and penned the following brief article on how I make some of my own fish and coral foods so here goes. Cheap and easy DIY foods for marine fish and corals. Some background first I think is in order. I have been making my own cheap marine fish and coral foods for more years than I care to mention and certainly I was making them back in the 80s. At the time I was warned that I was playing some sort of Russian roulette with my fish and corals and that I run the very real risk of introducing disease and death to my precious life forms. Well after all these years I can tell you I have never experienced any such issues with the way I process my foods. After all public aquariums and the like have been feeding fresh marine foods for years. We have been told that the only safe foods for our aquariums were gamma irradiated foods if the foods originated from the oceans. I am not going to go into detail here but much evidence on what I am about to tell is available on the net. However what the manufacturers of frozen foods for the hobby failed to inform the purchasers of their gamma irradiated foods is that the process of gamma irradiation knocks out/kills or nullifies (call it what you will) beneficial vitamins in the food they have irradiated. Reports of fish going blind after prolonged feeding of only gamma irradiated foods have been recorded in the past. OK let’s cut to the chase and get to the what and how’s as I have all ready given you the what for’s above. First the what, the foods I prepare myself. Mussel, cockle, scallops, shrimp of all kinds, squid, mackerel and white bait. All must be fresh or frozen and uncooked. Now the equipment etc I use. A sharp (very sharp) small knife, a food processor, (I bought a small cheap one from ASDA UKs Wall Mart for £9 approx $12) it might be best in the interest of domestic harmony to buy your own rather than use processor from she who must be obeyed, a small spoon and some empty and cleaned yogurt pots and some vitamins such as Selcon, New Era Lipsome. I have even used Abidec liquid Children’s Multivitamins the choice is yours. I will deal with the processing of the fish first white bait and mackerel. If you buy your fish frozen then defrost it first by immersing it in fresh water until defrosted which should not take long at all. Head tail and de fin the fish then gut it. By doing this you are removing the organs most likely to contain any disease etc not that I think there is much likelihood to there being any such issues in the first place esp. after processing. The cleaned fish is then put in another container of fresh water for 5 minutes. At this point I will say if you are making food to feed the likes of Lion fish and other gross feeders then the white bait needs no more processing and can be frozen or fed to the fish either whole of or cut into chunks or simply refrozen to be used later. For smaller fish and corals then the chosen food as in shellfish is simply and quickly defrost as above, if frozen or if fresh de shell the shellfish and shrimp and put in some clean fresh water for 5mins. They are now ready to go into the processor and are mashed checking every now and again on the size of the small pieces you wish to make be careful not to completely liquidise all the food. I add no vitamins at this point to the food before freezing. I process each food in turn and when finished add the foods to the yogurt pots by scooping it out with the small spoon ready for freezing. I then cover the pots with cling film and pop them in the freezer. When I come to use each I simply pop the food out of the pot and either cut a chunk off or grate the food and let it defrost for a while. Of course you might like to put the processed foods into ice cube makers or other to freeze the choice is yours. Before feeding I add a few drops of the liquid vitamins and let soak for a few minutes. Apart from my own foods I also feed flake and other commercially available marine fish and coral frozen foods. Which I alternate between feeds. All very simple and easy to do and not time consuming at all. Pic of my cheap and cheerful mini food processor. A few of my yogurt pots containing a variety of the foods I process. Les. Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) Hi Albert,I am far from the fastest typer but have just sat down and penned the following brief article on how I make some of my own fish and coral foods so here goes. Cheap and easy DIY foods for marine fish and corals. Some background first I think is in order. I have been making my own cheap marine fish and coral foods for more years than I care to mention and certainly I was making them back in the 80s. At the time I was warned that I was playing some sort of Russian roulette with my fish and corals and that I run the very real risk of introducing disease and death to my precious life forms. Well after all these years I can tell you I have never experienced any such issues with the way I process my foods. After all public aquariums and the like have been feeding fresh marine foods for years. We have been told that the only safe foods for our aquariums were gamma irradiated foods if the foods originated from the oceans. I am not going to go into detail here but much evidence on what I am about to tell is available on the net. However what the manufacturers of frozen foods for the hobby failed to inform the purchasers of their gamma irradiated foods is that the process of gamma irradiation knocks out/kills or nullifies (call it what you will) beneficial vitamins in the food they have irradiated. Reports of fish going blind after prolonged feeding of only gamma irradiated foods have been recorded in the past. OK let’s cut to the chase and get to the what and how’s as I have all ready given you the what for’s above. First the what, the foods I prepare myself. Mussel, cockle, scallops, shrimp of all kinds, squid, mackerel and white bait. All must be fresh or frozen and uncooked. Now the equipment etc I use. A sharp (very sharp) small knife, a food processor, (I bought a small cheap one from ASDA UKs Wall Mart for £9 approx $12) it might be best in the interest of domestic harmony to buy your own rather than use processor from she who must be obeyed, a small spoon and some empty and cleaned yogurt pots and some vitamins such as Selcon, New Era Lipsome. I have even used Abidec liquid Children’s Multivitamins the choice is yours. I will deal with the processing of the fish first white bait and mackerel. If you buy your fish frozen then defrost it first by immersing it in fresh water until defrosted which should not take long at all. Head tail and de fin the fish then gut it. By doing this you are removing the organs most likely to contain any disease etc not that I think there is much likelihood to there being any such issues in the first place esp. after processing. The cleaned fish is then put in another container of fresh water for 5 minutes. At this point I will say if you are making food to feed the likes of Lion fish and other gross feeders then the white bait needs no more processing and can be frozen or fed to the fish either whole of or cut into chunks or simply refrozen to be used later. For smaller fish and corals then the chosen food as in shellfish is simply and quickly defrost as above, if frozen or if fresh de shell the shellfish and shrimp and put in some clean fresh water for 5mins. They are now ready to go into the processor and are mashed checking every now and again on the size of the small pieces you wish to make be careful not to completely liquidise all the food. I add no vitamins at this point to the food before freezing. I process each food in turn and when finished add the foods to the yogurt pots by scooping it out with the small spoon ready for freezing. I then cover the pots with cling film and pop them in the freezer. When I come to use each I simply pop the food out of the pot and either cut a chunk off or grate the food and let it defrost for a while. Of course you might like to put the processed foods into ice cube makers or other to freeze the choice is yours. Before feeding I add a few drops of the liquid vitamins and let soak for a few minutes. Apart from my own foods I also feed flake and other commercially available marine fish and coral frozen foods. Which I alternate between feeds. All very simple and easy to do and not time consuming at all. Pic of my cheap and cheerful mini food processor. A few of my yogurt pots containing a variety of the foods I process. Les. Wow, thanks for the very detailed information Les. I agree that since what you use is really intended for human consumption to begin with, that I doubt that there would be any disease causing organisms in there, and that after everything you put the foods through, that if anything untoward would be in there, that the way you prepare it would destroy whatever may be in the food anyway. And yes, given the prices of some fish and coral foods at an LFS or online, preparing one's own, at least a good portion of it, will save the Hobbyist a good deal of money over time. Thanks for all the info. BTW some now buy fish roe (not treated) at Far Eastern food markets, and use it to feed fish and corals. I have not seen any articles about doing so but there must be some and if I find any, I'll post them. Great info. Thanks. Albert Edited September 21, 2012 by albertthiel Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Cyanide and its Unfortunate Use in the Marine Ornamental Fish Industry © Steven Pro and reefkeeping.com For those aquarists who don't know, the use of cyanide to collect animals has been a long standing problem in the marine ornamentals trade. Cyanide has been used for several decades as an "anaesthetic" to knock out fishes and facilitate their capture. The origins of this practice have been debated; it either began in Taiwan in the late 50's or in the Philippines in the early 60's (http://www.spc.int...Cyanide.htm). When it began, however, is of little concern. What is disturbing is that even though its use was first brought into question in the 70's, it is still being used commonly in some parts of the world today. Link: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-01/sp/index.php Albert Quote Link to comment
eitallent Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Do-it-Yourself Frozen Food for your Tank © Steven Pro and reefkeeping.com Link: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2008-01/diy/index.php Albert This a brilliant article. Thanks, Albert. Quote Link to comment
atoll Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Wow, thanks for the very detailed information Les. I agree that since what you use is really intended for human consumption to begin with, that I doubt that there would be any disease causing organisms in there, and that after everything you put the foods through, that if anything untoward would be in there, that the way you prepare it would destroy whatever may be in the food anyway. And yes, given the prices of some fish and coral foods at an LFS or online, preparing one's own, at least a good portion of it, will save the Hobbyist a good deal of money over time. Thanks for all the info. BTW some now buy fish roe (not treated) at Far Eastern food markets, and use it to feed fish and corals. I have not seen any articles about doing so but there must be some and if I find any, I'll post them. Great info. Thanks. Cheers Albert, I forgot to add that when I prepare squid which I didn't really go into I often find squid eggs which I also use as food. I have not seen fish roe for sale here but we do have a good fish market with eastern foods so I must check them out. Les. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 This a brilliant article. Thanks, Albert. Thanks eitallent ... glad you liked it and I hope a lot of others benefit from it as well Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Response to atoll's messageCheers Albert, I forgot to add that when I prepare squid which I didn't really go into I often find squid eggs which I also use as food. I have not seen fish roe for sale here but we do have a good fish market with eastern foods so I must check them out. Les Les: Thanks for the additional tip and yes you should be able to find the roe at some of those stores but make sure it has not been "treated" with some product or additive. Albert Quote Link to comment
atoll Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Les: Thanks for the additional tip and yes you should be able to find the roe at some of those stores but make sure it has not been "treated" with some product or additive. Albert YVW Albert and yes for sure there needs to be no additives in Roe or come to that any other foods we buy with the intention of making for our fish and corals. Les. Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 This a brilliant article. Thanks, Albert. Read the one by Les as well eitallent ... he has a full explanation as well. He posted it today. Albert Quote Link to comment
atoll Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) Read the one by Les as well eitallent ... he has a full explanation as well. He posted it today. Albert thanks for pointing eitallent to my post Albert. I have just one footnote to add to that post. Some people do not go to the length of removing heads ,tails and the guts etc from food fish before processing I however do as can be read on my posts. The reason some people leave these body parts on and in is that they rightly say many fish will also eat these body parts and in the case of the guts they are also eating what the food fish has eaten recently and is contained in the food fishes gut. That is fair enough but the reason I remove these body parts is simply to reduce further any possibility of introducing disease along with those body parts. Maybe that is over kill and not necessary of me. I am not 100% sure but what I do know is that I have not had any issues from the food I have processed they way I do over the many years I have been making it. We have a saying in the UK and perhaps you also have the same in the US " The truth of the pudding is in the eating" Edited September 21, 2012 by atoll Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 YVW Albert and yes for sure there needs to be no additives in Roe or come to that any other foods we buy with the intention of making for our fish and corals. Les. Thanks for the YVW ... good I know that acronym (there seem to be so many nowadays that just to keep up one needs to sometimes try to figure out what they mean ... And yes no preservatives or color enhancers, etc. .. but I think that the Oriental/FarEastern Supermarkets do not add any AFAIK. Happy Reef Keeping ... and thanks for that link yesterday on the new method that is now used amongst others at the Amsterdam and Antwerp (out of all places - as I am from there) Aquariums. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 My Cabbage Coral - Update - What it looks like this Morning Here is what my Cabbage coral looked liked as I posted before due to water change and stirring up rocks and sand and doing some general cleaning, or maybe it was just because it decided to put out that film to get rid of unwanted material and compounds, as it would do from time to time anyway: And here is what it looks like this morning: Just about back to normal. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 thanks for pointing eitallent to my post Albert.I have just one footnote to add to that post. Some people do not go to the length of removing heads ,tails and the guts etc from food fish before processing I however do as can be read on my posts. The reason some people leave these body parts on and in is that they rightly say many fish will also eat these body parts and in the case of the guts they are also eating what the food fish has eaten recently and is contained in the food fishes gut. That is fair enough but the reason I remove these body parts is simply to reduce further any possibility of introducing disease along with those body parts. Maybe that is over kill and not necessary of me. I am not 100% sure but what I do know is that I have not had any issues from the food I have processed they way I do over the many years I have been making it. We have a saying in the UK and perhaps you also have the same in the US " The truth of the pudding is in the eating" Yes we say: "The truth is in the pudding" .. but I guess it means the same or just about. Whether it is necessary to do so (removing head, gut etc.) I am not sure but I guess it is better "To be safe than sorry" ... So yes that is indeed a good point and those making there own food can decide for themselves what they want to do. You opted for the "safest" method, and that is what I would have done too. BTW .. on the iPhone issue ... no solution yet but it seems to have happened to tons and tons of people. The net is full of complaints about it and "what do I do now?" but no fix or response from Apple yet. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Nice Clam from Tail Fins © and More images on http://www.facebook.com/tail.fins.7/photos Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Coral Fragmentation and Propagation Tips © Anthony Calfo and reefkeeping.com The industry of coral propagation seems to be reaching a state of enlightenment where the knowledge of fundamental procedures for the simple division of reef invertebrates is becoming time tested and even commonplace. It is wonderful to see so many corals in captivity that once were thought to be impossible to keep alive not so long ago now routinely pruned like shrubbery. In gross terms, the captive propagation of coral may be categorized by the action of the event: induced passively, naturally occurring or imposed. Passive induction would include strategies of division that neither result in the immediate production of a free-living clone, nor will they necessarily occur unassisted. Rather, such techniques are methods for spurring budding through fission. Some examples of induced passive division include slicing or notching the periphery of the stolon mat of hardy soft corals such as Star Polyp (Pachyclavularia) or nicking the exposed and illuminated stalk of a leaning (or forcibly tilted) stalk of an Alcyoniid, which often spurs the budding growth of beautiful multi-stalked colonies. Great for beginners and more advanced aquarists alike. Plenty of tips and techniques are explained in detail including tools needed. Link: http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-06/ac/feature/ Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Filter Floss in mechanical Filter Question from a Member who emailed me Here is the question: I have a cannister filter on my 30 gallon tank and also a HOB filter but it is a small one so I cannot put a lot in it. I use floss to trap dirt but it seems that it clogs quickly and I go through a bag of it real fast. I want to know whether I can take the floss out and rinse it and clean it and then reuse it. Can I do that or is that not recommended? Thanks for your help. R---- : I understand, and agree that filter floss can get loaded with detritus and particulate matter quickly, depending on how much "dirt" and "particles" are moved into the water column by your fish that sand stir, and when you clean the inside of the tank and disturb the sand, or when a power head is aimed a little too low and blows sand into the water that then gets stirred up and sucked into the canister filter and in the HOB. That would indeed clog up the filter floss and reduce the flow through it, and depending on how it is positioned it can even make your HOB overflow on the sides and front and maybe even on the back depending on what brand you have. The same goes for the canister filter although that one will not overflow, but the flow rate through the canister will get slower and slower, depending on how clogged the filter floss or whatever else you use in there gets (some hobbyists use a sponge like material for mechanical filtration in canister filters). I understand your concern about the cost of having to purchase a lot of bags of filter floss and therefore your question. Although you could try and rinse it properly under tap water and get it from being brownish, and full of particulate, to go back to being white or near white. That may work but IME you cannot never get it totally clean and some dirt will remain stuck in it. That dirt when you put that filter floss back in your filters will eventually decompose and increase the nutrient levels in the tank (mainly nitrates and phosphates but possibly also organics and maybe even silicate depending on what was trapped). So even though I can be done, I would suggest that if the floss is really brownish and filled with particulate and detritus, that you do not rinse it and re-use it. It would in that case be far better to use fresh floss. Now there may be a way around this if you really want to save on spending money for floss, and that is: Do NOT wait till the floss is really dirty and polluted, but take it out every few days when it is still fairly clean and does only have a small amount of particulate trapped in it. Then rinse it very well and squish it in your hands under flowing water and do so till its color is back to white and the brownish matter that was trapped in it is gone. If you do so and clean it every few days, you should IMO be able to re-use it maybe say twice or maximum three times before you replace it with a new batch. I am not in favor of doing so but it would be a way to make your bags of floss last longer, and I think that as long as you really rinse it well under hot water that it should not create a problem for you or for your tank. Note though that whenever you rinse something in a sink that there may be soap residue in there and that you have to be very very careful not to get any soap on the floss or you will have issues, especially if you have a skimmer, as that one will foam like mad if soap gets in the water. Plus your fish and corals will not be "happy" to use a euphemism. In fact if too much of it gets into the tank's water you fish could die and your corals could too. So be very careful when you rinse the floss if that is what you are going to do. I would fill a bucket with hot water first if I were to use what you suggest and rinse the floss in the bucket and replace the hot water as often as is needed till your floss is clean. As I said I would personally not do it (rinse the floss) but if you want to do it anyway then use the method I described above and do not wait to clean it for a long time (every 3 or 4 days is probably a good time frame to use). You can try it out and see if that is ok for you and if not, then go back to replacing it with clean floss or whatever material is used (in the canister make sure that the inflowing water HAS to go through the floss first before going through the other compounds you have in there, and the same for your HOB filter). Hope this answers your question. Not many hobbyists would use this method especially since you can probably buy filter floss online for a lot cheaper than what it is sold for at LFS's. Also when you clean the floss you may want to rinse your bags that contain other media as well (again in a bucket so you do not get soap on them). Happy reef keeping. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) A few Random Pictures from Father Fish (Fla.) © Father Fish (LFS) Fla. and the owners of the actual photos Link: http://www.facebook.com/fatherfish Albert Edited September 21, 2012 by albertthiel Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Reef Zeed Bangkok Thailand © Reef Zeed and its owners Link : http://www.facebook.com/reef.zeed Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Giant Anemones by Reef Zeed Bangkok © Reef Zeed and its owners Link: http://www.facebook.com/reef.zeed/photos Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 More Giant Anemones by Reef Zeed Bangkok © Reef Zeed and its owners Link: http://www.facebook.com/reef.zeed/photos Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Activated Carbon : Efficiency and Longevity and Quantity - Technical Analysis A 2 Part Article by Researchers from Penn State University These are Technical Papers intended for those who really wish to learn a lot more about GAC and how efficient they are, what they remove, how fast, and for how long, including their impact on DOC Granular Activated Carbon, Part 1: Modeling of Operational Parameters for Dissolved Organic Carbon Removal from Marine Aquaria © Ken S. Feldman, Lauren F. Vernese, Karl T. Mueller, Kelly M. Maers Part 1: http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/1/aafeature1 . . . . . . . . . . Granular Activated Carbon, Part 2: Modeling of Operational Parameters for Dissolved Organic Carbon Removal from Marine Aquaria © Ken S. Feldman, Lauren F. Vernese, Karl T. Mueller, Kelly M. Maers Part 2: http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2008/2/aafeature1 Note: The articles are very technical and analyze the parameters listed in the heading in great detail, and as you read on, and get to some of the conclusions, you may be surprised at what the researchers found and what their conclusions are. Great info, but not all that easy to understand as these are scientific studies done by truly qualified researchers using scientific methods and terminology, but giving you a good deal of information that may be quite different from what manufacturers and sellers of GAC claim and state regarding quantities to use and longevity of their products. Albert Quote Link to comment
albertthiel Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 (edited) Pictures of my Tank taken this Afternoon (I) Tank is doing well and no issues with water chemistry or other parameters. Cleaned tank this morning and did a 15% water change and replaced all chemical compounds I use. Took Pictures this afternoon Albert Edited September 21, 2012 by albertthiel Quote Link to comment
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