Nuvo 16

[dormreefer]

Brown spots are Diatoms, key part of the cycle, they consume Phosphate and Silicates. Only be wary off them if the don't go away completely within 4-6 weeks.

 

Corals look nice! I've been meaning to check out salt water livestock or "Serenity" as their new emails says. I managed to get a bunch of stuff for 40% before their remodel.

 

Corals look good, can't really give you a 100% on any but they look good!

 

Just a tip, if you buy from Top Shelf you can ask them to adjust their lights to closer match your tank colors in order to give you a view of what they would look like in your tank!

[dougiek]

Brown spots are Diatoms, key part of the cycle, they consume Phosphate and Silicates. Only be wary off them if the don't go away completely within 4-6 weeks.

 

Corals look nice! I've been meaning to check out salt water livestock or "Serenity" as their new emails says. I managed to get a bunch of stuff for 40% before their remodel.

 

Corals look good, can't really give you a 100% on any but they look good!

 

Just a tip, if you buy from Top Shelf you can ask them to adjust their lights to closer match your tank colors in order to give you a view of what they would look like in your tank!

 

Yea I figured that's what it was and was glad to see it. I still have Purigen and PhosGuard in there so I guess I'll just keep them both in there for the time being. Was going to remove the PhosGuard but I'll keep it in there now.

 

As for the corals, yea I love them! Serenity (lol) had a pretty good selection even being that I was there at like 6pm after the game. They said not all of the corals were in the right sections so you might find $30 corals in the $15 section which is how I feel I got a sweet deal on that large zoa frag. Smallish heads but still there must be at least 40+ on there. Now that I look at it, there must be like 70 on there lol. And yea I wish I would have been there for that sale -___- It's decent looking. Pretty good selection but the store is lacking the clean visual appearance that Top Shelf and Living Reef have. I guess in their defense they did just remodel and open and weren't completely done with the remodel but it doesn't seem like they are ballin out over there so maybe they couldn't stay closed any longer.

 

And yea, a guy that helped me at Saltwater Livestock did that for me. I didn't ask at Top Shelf though. They had a sweet horseshoe crab too. Only about 1.5" across. If they can get a smaller one I might snag one up until it outgrows the tank (which the guy said they grow relatively slow). I like unique and different things and that is definitely in that category (along with the sweet octo they have too and wish I could own). We'll see.

 

Also, should I do anything about the diatoms? Get more crabs? Or just let it ride. There were 6 hermits to start and I'm assuming they are all still in there.

 

Finally, how should I go about putting the corals on the rock more permanently, like with glue? The GSP already fell off it's rock so it is really easily knocked off the base rock because the snails like to climb on my corals. The zoas are attached to a rock that looks glued onto the plug which doesn't seem like it will be a problem to detach and glue down. I don't know what to do about the mushroom though? It's attached to a rather large and unsightly rock that I don't want in there but not sure how to go about removing it and attaching it to the tank rock. Help?

[dormreefer]

I'm thinking 3rd looks like a monti on second look. I'm interested in seeing how it grows, never seen one like that.

 

I'd stay away from Horse Shoes they need big tanks and room to burrow. Plus they are STUPID as babies lol, they will knock over everything. I'd add 3-4 Nassarius snails to your CUC to start stirring the sand naturally for you now you are seeing the cycle is progressing. Other than that standard w/cs and let nature do its thing.

 

For corals super glue works best, stick with ones that only contain cyanoacrylate nothing fancy, the gel stuff seems to work the best for me!

[dougiek]

Yea I don't remember what it was or maybe we just said it was a nice piece and never knew what it really was. It seems to show a little growth and it spreads outwards sort of like how a mushroom grows. Also it seems to have a bunch of tiny distinct mouths that cyclopeze got stuck in when I pipetted some onto it. It looks cool though regardless.

 

And hmm I'll consider that ha. Worst case I could just trade it in when it grows too large. There really isn't anything for it to knock over. Unless it climbs rocks which I don't think they do. I'll get some of those snails too though.

 

Yea that's the kind of glue I have. It was a 2 pack I think for $1.99 which I figured was a good deal. I don't know what to do with the mushroom though. I hate the rock it's attached to but I'm not sure how to take it off. I read you can't glue it down so idk what to do with it.

[sfg]

i have the same tank.. And if you don't want to add liverock to your main display area, get a good bit of small pieces (about 2-3 lbs worth) and put them in the back area where the return pump is located.

 

I have about 12 lbs in my main display area, and about 4 more in the back.

 

I also have a Kessil a150 10K on mine.. love it!

[dougiek]

Oh true. I didn't even think about putting some back there. Any specific reason why you put it back there? And well I found that piece that works with the display too.

 

Yeah the guy at Top Shelf said 1 Kessil would work great on this tank. We shall see maybe near the holidays =p

[dormreefer]

i have the same tank.. And if you don't want to add liverock to your main display area, get a good bit of small pieces (about 2-3 lbs worth) and put them in the back area where the return pump is located.

I wouldn't advise that. General conclusion these days is liverock outside of the display in a confined area is a nitrate trap. It's better off keeping it out front with the CUC and display flow. Plus it gives a spot for more corals!

 

Speaking of flow how are those spin streams?

[dougiek]

Yea I put it out front anyway. The flow seems pretty decent, nothing crazy. The spin function helps them reach as much of the tank as possible and they rotate at different speeds so it really is random.

 

Noticed a brittle star chilling underneath one of my plugs that I just kept on the top because it had coralline. I moved it to the back and under it was the star - which quickly crawled into a hole right after that.

 

Had to go to Target today for a few things and stopped in PetSmart (for my planted tank) and Living Reef on my way home. Their Nuvo looks so sweet now. They added a bunch of acans and other cool things. I got convinced (easily) to pick up 2 other really cool looking corals (1 of which was in the Nuvo). I'll post pictures below.

 

Also, none of them could identify the coral for me either. I showed them a picture of the 3rd one. They ended up sending the picture to the guy that owns Saltwater Livestock and asking him. Turns out it is an "Encrusting Pavona" or Cactus Coral. It's a sweet piece and according to LiveAquaria it's an SPS coral too.

 

Here are the 2 new ones. I don't know offhand what they are so if you know, post it!

 

This is a pretty big piece the owner sold me for $10. He did say it has sweepers at night and to leave about 2 inches between it and other corals. So, keeping that in mind, its toward the bottom on the left side underneath the mushroom.

 

This is the coral that was in their Nuvo display (not the exact piece but same type) and it looked awesome. Said to place it near the top in decent flow, so that's where it is. Looked amazing under their blue lights, so hopefully this will pop out at night when the blue LEDs are on. ($25)

 

 

 

FTS

 

 

My clown was either messing with the shrimp or trying to pick at something very close to it. Either way it was making the shrimp really anxious lol. Thankfully neither made a move.

[dormreefer]

The first new coral looks like an Aussie war too me! Nice colors once they settle down. Second looks like an encrusting Monitipora another SPS. I'd watch the SPS closely they are very finicky and great for using as a water quality indicator. I'm not sure long term how well they will grow under your lights, that was LRs issue, so it may be an excuse to start saving for a christmas gift to yourself

[dougiek]

Ah yes. I don't remember exactly what, but I remember he said War Coral. Then went on about the sweepers at night =p It's a pretty big piece and I'm pretty sure it was worth way more than $10 but the guy was really nice and must have thanked me for my business like 3 times lol. The other is prob what you said. I was thinking Montipora too.

 

Who's LR?

 

As for the light...seriously haha. Although I might not have to wait that long. Once I finally get my first paycheck from Microsoft it will be for $900 which is a pretty good chunk of change. Although it won't come until the end of October I don't think. Regardless...I'm not sure what light to look into. I like that people recommend Kessil for it doing a good job but I really like the ones that have dimmability as well as the ones that you can change the spectrum of...but also aren't a million dollars. Also, it's got to look relatively sleek as it has to match the flow of the tank. You wouldn't go putting monster truck tires on a Lambo now would you?

[dougiek]

Also, the Monti (provided it is that) like I said, looked way better under their blue LEDs and does under my nightlights. Here's a pic of it with the nightlights on.

 

 

Seriously, why is the iPhone so awful at taking these pictures with the blue lights??

[dormreefer]

I'm pretty sure the Monti is a "Sunset Tyree" which are pretty expensive frags so nice find! We get a lot of nice Aussie war around here but a large one probably should be around 20-30 so another good find lol.

 

LR=Living Reef got lazy spelling

 

What do you do for Microsoft?

 

Also Kessil makes an adjustable fixture but it is around a hundred bucks more. That's my one thing about the a150's is the light to me resembles sunlight which is perfect for the animals, not so good if you want corals to pop. With a good LED unit your corals should fluores pretty well in the day also!

 

And yep...Iphones well...hate blue

[dougiek]

Yea that's why I got them. I figured they were probably more expensive than what I was paying so I mean cmon, at that point you have to do it! =p

 

And I'm a Microsoft Campus Rep and basically I'm part of a group called UCrew and theres 3 of us at UCF and we just represent Windows, Microsoft, Xbox and all that good stuff.

 

I really like the AI Sol, but $399 is a ####load of money to drop on one item. I could maybe get $80 for each light I have on the Nuvo but still, theres a lot left to get lol. It's also moreso my parents would be so pissed if they found out I spent that much on something for my fish tanks - as they already don't like that I have spent so much already.

 

Yeah, clearly they do. It literally takes the worst pictures I've ever seen of it when the blues are on -__-

[buddythelion]

Yea that's why I got them. I figured they were probably more expensive than what I was paying so I mean cmon, at that point you have to do it! =p

 

And I'm a Microsoft Campus Rep and basically I'm part of a group called UCrew and theres 3 of us at UCF and we just represent Windows, Microsoft, Xbox and all that good stuff.

 

I really like the AI Sol, but $399 is a ####load of money to drop on one item. I could maybe get $80 for each light I have on the Nuvo but still, theres a lot left to get lol. It's also moreso my parents would be so pissed if they found out I spent that much on something for my fish tanks - as they already don't like that I have spent so much already.

 

Yeah, clearly they do. It literally takes the worst pictures I've ever seen of it when the blues are on -__-

 

So this is a coral thread, but the first thing that the thread scrolled me to was this post and that you're a microsoft campus rep. I immediately thought of the Halo commercial with the Spartan on campus... LOL. I love Halo.

[dormreefer]

I really like the AI Sol, but $399 is a ####load of money to drop on one item. I could maybe get $80 for each light I have on the Nuvo but still, theres a lot left to get lol. It's also moreso my parents would be so pissed if they found out I spent that much on something for my fish tanks - as they already don't like that I have spent so much already.

Get the AI Sol do it! But you'll want the controller there's another 50 lol...I'm not looking forward to the next visit from my parents. I think I can explain the lights, but the Reef keeper lol But in fairness its my money from my job.

[dougiek]

Haha yea, Halo is pretty awesome.

 

Lol yea, that's my argument too...but my mom kind of handles all my finances ha so there's no way to really hide my purchases unless it's cash. Getting $400 cash is a little difficult lol. I just really like how much customizability it has. Like the cloud cover and random storm features. I just think thats awesome and kinda makes your tank cool to watch a different times because of the lights. Also, aren't they coming out with the ability to control it with your iPhone? Would you need the actual controller still though?

[dougiek]

Oh. My. God.

 

So far from being a Nano lol, but still....WOW.

 

[eawonko]

I've sort of read through some of this thread. I just wanted to add that with that fuzzy mushroom, careful, because it will take over your rock very quickly. It spreads like wildfire and isn't easy to peel off like green star polyps are. Also, I'm curious as to why your LFS doesn't educate you on the frags that you are purchasing. I work in the veterinary field, so maybe education is second nature to me, but at the store my boyfriend works weekends, they educate buyers on their purchases, esp. to the beginners. I know having a store, esp. a small business, making sales is the goal, but I certainly think that educating people on their buys is important...even if that means steering people away from some pricey objects that could be a big money maker.

 

I will say though, I too like the look of dry rock in a nice new set up. My next tank will be a nice big FOWLR tank that I want as "white" as possible. I'm not a fan of the fake coral and what not and just want focus on all the fish I love.

 

Again, I didn't really have much time to read through every single thing posted, but I did see your question about gluing down. I use glue and epoxy to get frags glued down...also, when you do use the glue, use more than what you think if enough. Make a bigger bubble and press down and hold for a few seconds. When glue hits water, it hardens, so when making a bubble big enough, the center won't harder and when you press down you "open" the bubble up.

[dougiek]

Ah I mean the stores are really good. I just don't remember the names of the stuff I buy because I mostly buy what looks cool. I generally ask them what they would get after I show them a few things I was thinking of. They are pretty knowledgeable about the stuff, I just don't always remember it all. But usually they are pretty good about stuff. Although I don't remember them mentioning that about the mushroom though.

 

But oh alright. I did have some trouble with the glue hardening before I could put it on the rock so next time I'll keep that in mind.

[eawonko]

Ah I mean the stores are really good. I just don't remember the names of the stuff I buy because I mostly buy what looks cool. I generally ask them what they would get after I show them a few things I was thinking of. They are pretty knowledgeable about the stuff, I just don't always remember it all. But usually they are pretty good about stuff. Although I don't remember them mentioning that about the mushroom though.

Oh yes, Fuzzy mushrooms spppreeeaaaadddd if all is well in your tank. I had a Tonga branch in my old tank that started with 4-5 mushrooms and in a couple months the entire branch was covered with 25-30 shrooms. They eventually spread to another rock close by that I still have in the 150 and that rock is being over taken. I'm about to pull that whole rock out and just take to the LFS and get some store credit for it. There are so many of them and trying to get them off at this point will be a PITA. I try not to keep any softies in the 150 because of the fast growth and spread and taking up valuable real estate for my colored stix. If I get a change later today, I will snap a picture to show you what a 4 pound rock of fuzzies look like.

[dougiek]

WOW...okay. So long time since I've updated this (the uploading of pictures is a pain and I'm lazy so I always kept putting off updating). Anyway, the tank looks amazing and has been coming along very nicely. Have added way too many toys and spent way too much money in the past weeks...but hey, that's the hobby right??

 

Anyway...heres a short recap in my absence.

 

This is a huge piece of a blue chalice/pink eye that I got for my birthday from my dad. He had bought it when they were here for a football game and then told me a little later there was something waiting for me at the fish store. Anyway, it had a little bleached spot on the end when I got it and things just turned south when I got it into my tank at home. No idea why, water params were great. Only attributed it to fluctuation in salinity. Long story short - this expensive coral was dying and took it in to figure out a solution and best bet was to cut off the dead parts and hope for the best with what was left. This is the original piece.

 

What's left

 

An awesome chalice frag that Living Reef in Waterford let me have for the sake of my loss of so much of that expensive chalice (it was bought at Living Reef).

 

DRUM ROLL PLEASE.......

I talked my parents into going 50/50 for a new light and I got the Vega with the new controller! JUst laid it on the cover until I built and stand (which came out wonderfully for my lack of experience and tools for that matter lol) and this is a relatively recent FTS.

 

A piece of ORA Birdsnest that I had my eye on but waited until I got my new lights.

 

Sweet acan that is very cool to feed...devours mysis.

 

CURRENT FTS as of 11/27/12

 

So, a short recap including things not shown/mentioned above:

-Got the AI Vega/new controller

-Built a stand

-Got the JBJ Auto Top Off

-Few new corals (ORA Birdsnest, acan, chalices, red zoas, torch, hammer)

-Some snails

-Flame Angel

-Yellow Watchman Goby

-Tiger Pistol Shrimp (got today)

-Horseshoe Crab

-Pom Pom Crab (I never see it)

-Some starfish (i think, theyre babies) that must have come on my piece of live rock

-Eheim Auto Feeder (for short breaks and as a last resort for long ones)

-probably some other things I'm forgetting

 

 

----------------

In other news....my GF took me to the Florida Aquarium for part of my birthday gift! Still doesn't beat the Georgia Aquarium (so awesome) but was fun nonetheless!

 

 

 

Nice little wine stopper she bought me there (had to turn the whites up to get the tank to show up decent)

[buddythelion]

Tank's looking great! That chalice they gave you as compensation looks really killer too.

[dougiek]

I posted the picture of the wine stopper on facebook earlier and 2 people actually messaged me about possibly being interested in setting up a tank! Made me smile =p

 

And yea, very nice of them! Not sure if the coral was dying due to the health I got it in or something with my tank (either fluctuating salinity or lights, cause the water was fine) but regardless I lost more than half of a $50 (on sale from $100) coral. He let me pick out a free $20 piece and suggested that one. Living Reef is definitely one of my 2 stores I like.

[Spirofucci]

Your tank is beautiful, love the scape! I'll bet you are digging that light!

[dougiek]

Thanks! I had pictured something along those lines when I was thinking about my tank and thankfully found all those rocks in the same place and it worked out perfectly!

 

The light is pretty awesome. Once I finally got it hung it made the tank look awesome! Only thing I was disappointed about is that the Director (their iphone/computer app to control the lights) isn't free like I thought but rather $129! BOOOOOO!