THE OFFICIAL ASK ALBERT THIEL THREAD

[spazizz]

What kind of pipefish?

 

I plan on getting two clown gobies, because they are easy to pair and I want to try my hand at breeding them or at least observing their life as a mated pair. If I breed them I wont feel as bad about not buying CB fish. But sadly there are not CB clown gobies, Id also get CB green banded gobies in heart beat if I found local source. Not sure if green banded gobies live as long as clown gobies though.

Thats easy, pipefish and clown gobies

 

Very low stocking ... maybe two fish e.g. as Paul said Pipefish, or maybe a Citron Goby and Pipefish ... Definitely small and non aggressive fish and a cover over the tank to prevent fish from jumping, just in case. It may not be necessary depending on what you select but it is safer.

 

Another choice would be a Citron Goby and maybe a Bi-0color Blenny ...

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

 

A question posed on another forum about Oxydators and the risk of a leak with my answer below.

"If the container leaks, for whatever reason, Are you in danger of a tank crash ?"

The chances of a container leak are less than your tank leaking somewhere. The container (acrylic) is sealed with a screw stopper. I have never heard of one of the screw stopper Oxydators ever leaking. There are lots of things more likely to crash your tank than one of these leaking. If your poured 1/2ltr of peroxide into your tank or it leaked quickly then of course it would probably crash your tank. However I can't honestly see one of these leaking. I have head of the lot smaller "D" version leaking as the user didn't put the PUSH cap on it properly but it didn't crash his nano tank.

 

I fully agree Les, most unlikely that one would leak and I have never come across a post where anyone brought up the fact that theirs did. If as you say the unit is put together correctly it is just about impossible for it to leak.

 

And agree also on your last remark on the D model ... a small amount getting into the tank because the unit is not correctly assembled would not cause a tank to crash

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

An interesting article on Redox by Randy Holmes-Farley.

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-12/rhf/feature/

 

Good article indeed Les

 

Albert

[atoll]

I know the guy posting it Albert and I think he was just trying to be a little mischievous as it is another doubter of the Oxydators worth. here is another such person who put forward questions with my replies and I know he has not been complimentary on the use of Oxydators in the past.

 

" Originally Posted by ******

 

Question. "are these not less likely to be needed in larger tanks? My mv sits at about 430 without uv, or ozone etc etc, just a naturally high level. It drops to about 350 if I turn the skimmer off."

My answer

"WOW! that is high. I guess it's a question of high redox V whats left that an Oxydator would oxidise but with a redox so high I doubt an Oxydator would do much to improve water quality apart from push your redox even higher which could be dangerous and I doubt you would wish to do that. You will already have super saturation of oxygen in your tank as you know Matt. Even 350mv isnt bad at all and often quoted as a very good value. I guess you could go as high as 450mv ish but would you want to go above that as I doubt it?"

His reply

"No I wouldnt want to go higher. Funnily enough turning on the 440w UV doesnt really make it rise that much..maybe up to 450 but since the cycling algae blooms went I havent had the UV on. And ozone is a non starter with >400 mv. Thats why I was asking...in larger tanks there will be larger skimmers, larger surface to volume ratio and probably a higher redox. I dont quite agree with, but I get the use of oxydators in a nano but where do they fit in with larger tanks?. I cant imagine a 500 gallon tank with low oxygen".

My reply.

"All things in proportion *****. As you know not all large tanks have a high surface to volume ratio. many run high levels of Ozone as in many public aquariums. Many have high stocking ratios, feed a lot etc etc. Yes they mostly run large skimmers as well. The likes of the Blue Planet in Ellesmere port and other aquariums have to run commercial ozone units to achieve good water quality along with massive skimmers. I guess it's all a mater of degree, you have no need for ozone but many run it to achieve high redox.

There are also a lot of people with large tanks that don't have a redox meter and won't even know what their redox is which is fine and look and health of their tank is more important. Nice to know what your redox is however. I had a friend with a 350 gallon tank who run an Oxydator "W" in his sump and he had no redox meter and didn't know his tanks value.

I only ever had a 130 gallon tank I ran 2 Oxydator "A" in many years ago to achieve a redox of over 400mv. In those days we didn't feed much nor did we have the quality foods we have today, in fact I mostly made my own back then. I was never really impressed with UV esp as a redox raiser. I don't run UV now even though I have a couple as I believe healthy fish to not get the likes of white spot but then I feed 4 times a day hence the value of my Oxydators in keeping my water quality high but I digress and that is another subject altogether."

Les

[albertthiel]

What kind of pipefish?

 

I plan on getting two clown gobies, because they are easy to pair and I want to try my hand at breeding them or at least observing their life as a mated pair. If I breed them I wont feel as bad about not buying CB fish. But sadly there are not CB clown gobies, Id also get CB green banded gobies in heart beat if I found local source. Not sure if green banded gobies live as long as clown gobies though.

 

Any Pipefish really would do if you decide to go that route

 

And on the Gobies ... yes you sure could try that and see if you can pair them and then watch what goes on .. raising any fry though is not likely unless you have a special set up for raising fry.

 

As to the life span of the Yellow versus the Green Banded .. I do not know of any major difference in their life span, particularly in captivity. Perhaps a search on the net may reveal some more info but a quick search I did was not indicative of any major difference between their life span in captivity. A more in depth search may reveal more though.

 

Hope that helps

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

 

I know the guy posting it Albert and I think he was just trying to be a little mischievous as it is another doubter of the Oxydators worth. here is another such person who put forward questions with my replies and I know he has not been complimentary on the use of Oxydators in the past.

 

" Originally Posted by ******

My reply.

 

Thanks for sharing that Les ... it is a difficult topic and the answer is not going to be unique as is IMO going to depend on the shape of the tank (top surface area as you state) and the load and also the feeding ... so I do not think one can make one single recommendation or statement of fact regarding the need or not of an Oxydator, an ozonizer, etc ...

 

It is IMO going to depend on too many factors.

 

Good exchange of info though and thanks for sharing that

 

Albert

[Paul.b]

 

As to the life span of the Yellow versus the Green Banded .. I do not know of any major difference in their life span, particularly in captivity..

 

Hope that helps

 

Albert

I don't know the difference either but I have far better luck with yellow clown gobies than green ones. The green ones hardly ever move and don't seem to ever want to go out of their way for anything, including food which they wait to come to them. Clown gobies swim much more and will travel a few inches for a meal. They also spawn continousely if you feed them live worms, but in spawning they will kill your acropora corals.

 

[albertthiel]

I don't know the difference either but I have far better luck with yellow clown gobies than green ones. The green ones hardly ever move and don't seem to ever want to go out of their way for anything, including food which they wait to come to them. Clown gobies swim much more and will travel a few inches for a meal. They also spawn continousely if you feed them live worms, but in spawning they will kill your acropora corals.

 

 

Thanks for sharing that info Paul

 

Albert

[spazizz]

Most pipefish Ive seen seem to big for a 5 gallon.(6-8 inches)

 

If i go with clown gobies im going to pick the green ones. Ive read people keeping them for 10+ years.

Any Pipefish really would do if you decide to go that route

 

And on the Gobies ... yes you sure could try that and see if you can pair them and then watch what goes on .. raising any fry though is not likely unless you have a special set up for raising fry.

 

As to the life span of the Yellow versus the Green Banded .. I do not know of any major difference in their life span, particularly in captivity. Perhaps a search on the net may reveal some more info but a quick search I did was not indicative of any major difference between their life span in captivity. A more in depth search may reveal more though.

 

Hope that helps

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

Most pipefish Ive seen seem to big for a 5 gallon.(6-8 inches)

 

If i go with clown gobies im going to pick the green ones. Ive read people keeping them for 10+ years.

 

Sounds like a plan

 

Here is some info on them http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+2971+159&pcatid=159

 

Albert

[pismo_reefer]

Just wanted to say, it's totally cool of you to donate your time and knowledge.

Thanks, Albert.

[albertthiel]

Just wanted to say, it's totally cool of you to donate your time and knowledge.

Thanks, Albert.

 

You are most welcome and thank you for the kind words. Much appreciated

 

Albert

[Paul.b]

Bluestriped pipefish are by far the easiest and smallest pipefish available. I kep them all the time and they breed often.

Here are a couple at a feeder.

 

 

And a pregnant male.

[albertthiel]

Bluestriped pipefish are by far the easiest and smallest pipefish available. I kep them all the time and they breed often.

Here are a couple at a feeder.

 

 

And a pregnant male.

 

Thanks Paul

 

Albert

[Paul.b]

Last night we went out to dinner on the boat like we always do in the summer and had shrimp with ziti and brocklirob, clams on the half shell, fried calamari with hot pepper infused olive oil and a couple of oysters. This is all about crustaceans and mollusks so it is really a fish post.

[albertthiel]

Last night we went out to dinner on the boat like we always do in the summer and had shrimp with ziti and brocklirob, clams on the half shell, fried calamari with hot pepper infused olive oil and a couple of oysters. This is all about crustaceans and mollusks so it is really a fish post.

 

Fish related for sure

 

Albert

[Reefwiser]

Looks kind of Shrimp' y

[albertthiel]

Looks kind of Shrimp' y

 

Sure does indeed ... but that is Paul's staple food I think : breakfast lunch and dinner and even for snacks

 

Albert

[Paul.b]

OK, I did it again. I wasn't going to collect so much but I can't help myself so I collected another couple of thousand amphipods, snails and mud and threw it into my tank. It looked like a swarm of weirdo's going into a Lady GaGa concert. They are all over the place. I also may remove some snails as there really are to many. I want every rock in my tank to be loaded with amphipods and I think I accomplished that. I am going back tomorrow with my Grand Daughter, Greta because I want to teach her about fiddler crabs, horseshoe crabs, shrimps, worms etc. She doesn't yet get the concept that there are so many different types of creatures in the sea, but she names them all Greta.

 

[Paul.b]

 

Sure does indeed ... but that is Paul's staple food I think : breakfast lunch and dinner and even for snacks

 

Albert

Yes It is, I like to sit on the back of my boat and collect clams and mussles then sit there and eat them like M&Ms right from the sea. It's how we are supposed to eat.

[albertthiel]

OK, I did it again. I wasn't going to collect so much but I can't help myself so I collected another couple of thousand amphipods, snails and mud and threw it into my tank. It looked like a swarm of weirdo's going into a Lady GaGa concert. They are all over the place. I also may remove some snails as there really are to many. I want every rock in my tank to be loaded with amphipods and I think I accomplished that. I am going back tomorrow with my Grand Daughter, Greta because I want to teach her about fiddler crabs, horseshoe crabs, shrimps, worms etc. She doesn't yet get the concept that there are so many different types of creatures in the sea, but she names them all Greta.

 

 

Well it looks like your tank is going to be over populated by pods for some time .... but that is good ... the fish and corals will love it.

 

And true teaching them the names of all the creatures when they are really young is a super idea ...

 

And the Family looks great Paul

 

Albert

 

Yes It is, I like to sit on the back of my boat and collect clams and mussles then sit there and eat them like M&Ms right from the sea. It's how we are supposed to eat.

 

That is called SUPER Fresh for sure

 

Albert

[atoll]

One of the most common mistakenly asked questions popped up again by a newbie on a facebook forum yet again and the answers were shocking Question " how many fish can I keep in my "X" gallon tank" people waded in with numbers. My reply was " Its not about numbers it's about size of fish, habitat and what cirals etc you have. All too often people concentrate on numbers. EG 6 x 1"neon gobbies do not equal a 6" tang" The people answering should know better IMO. This is another instance where a new comer to the hobby incorrectly advised could make a BIG costly mistake due to poor advice.

[Paul.b]

Its also about the temperament of the fish. You can keep a large anglerfish or eel in a relatively small tank but an angel or copperband would not fare to well as they need to swim, where as an anglerfish would be happy just eating Mrs. Pauls fish sticks and watching National Geographic.

[albertthiel]

One of the most common mistakenly asked questions popped up again by a newbie on a facebook forum yet again and the answers were shocking Question " how many fish can I keep in my "X" gallon tank" people waded in with numbers. My reply was " Its not about numbers it's about size of fish, habitat and what cirals etc you have. All too often people concentrate on numbers. EG 6 x 1"neon gobbies do not equal a 6" tang" The people answering should know better IMO. This is another instance where a new comer to the hobby incorrectly advised could make a BIG costly mistake due to poor advice.

 

Yes it is indeed amazing how often that comes up and how in the majority of cases the advice given is absolutely wrong and erroneous.

 

Good point Les. It seems that that is one of the question that newcomers get given inaccurate advice to all the time unfortunately.

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

Its also about the temperament of the fish. You can keep a large anglerfish or eel in a relatively small tank but an angel or copperband would not fare to well as they need to swim, where as an anglerfish would be happy just eating Mrs. Pauls fish sticks and watching National Geographic.

 

So very true Paul ... so very true !!

 

Albert