A Maiden's Voyage- town house pics, getting more organized

[FlowerMama]

I was considering that same skimmer but skipped it because of some of the reviews. Curious to see it in action on your tank. See your still dealing with some micro bubbles from the pics. Btw what are the dimensions on the 34? If i missed it somewhere in the thread Sorry.

 

The 34 is 30 X 18 wide and 17 high. I just turned it on so there will be microbubbles, will take probably a week to break in and that won't happen. I did the mod with the airline tube. It's dead quiet- I don't hear anything. I hear my AC70 because I don't have a full tank and it's the waterfall effect right now.

[FlowerMama]

More pics. On one of the rocks I have what look like the heads of dill in the garden or like little green umbrellas. There are probably 5 tiny clumpings. I can't get a good pic at all. If anyone knows what it is let me know. I'm going to start researching.

 

More colors.

 

 

 

Next 2 pics have polyp extension on the corals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[FlowerMama]

Oh, and here's the ammonia reading for today. 1.

 

So, it's progressed Fri .5, Sat 1, Sun 1.5 then I did a 20% water change, put in the Jebao and started breaking in the skimmer.

Then it went down to 1.

 

I assume I should let the nitrate now get higher than 1.5 before I do the next 20% water change. The fact that there is also macro growing (those umbrellas and other small ones) that's probably taken up some ammonia. I didn't put anything in to start the cycle because I figured there'd be enough dying naturally. I did though test the water in the little cup container that I have each of the mantis in and ammonia had skyrocketed from 2 days ago when I gave new water and a little to eat. I dumped 80% of that water into the 34 and then refilled with the Evolve 8 established water. At least I can recycle that to help the 34.

[gena]

Looks great! The ones with polyp extension are porites.

[FlowerMama]

Looks great! The ones with polyp extension are porites.

 

I thought so from when I saw them in your thread back when. Did you also get those little green umbrellas, what look like dill flowers? I couldn't get a pic because they're only just over 1 cm and they're thin, camera couldn't focus. They're not filled in where they might be wine glass, they were really just the spokes.

[gena]

 

I thought so from when I saw them in your thread back when. Did you also get those little green umbrellas, what look like dill flowers? I couldn't get a pic because they're only just over 1 cm and they're thin, camera couldn't focus. They're not filled in where they might be wine glass, they were really just the spokes.

Yes, I think I know what you are talking about. They are very cool looking, but mine disappeared.

[FlowerMama]

I checked the ammonia today, down to .5.

 

Even though I was trying to break in the skimmer I turned it off. Don't think it's a good idea. I also threw in half a cube of brine shrimp to get the cycle going even more. I wouldn't mind if the ammonia was going down because the nitrite was going up. I have no detectible nitrite. I even threw in 2 cups of the high ammonia water of the mantis shrimp the other day. With that I don't see myself doing any water changes. This cycle needs to move. I also threw in about 8 more cups of sand so the biology in that will probably help.

 

I found a little guy in the right mantis tank but sadly when I moved him into the big one he didn't make it. Unless he's just stunned. I'm still going to show a pic because while he was a brittle star I hadn't seen one that was evergreen in color and he was beautiful. darn. it.

 

 

 

 

[gena]

Too bad for the star. Hopefully there are more!!!!! Did you put rock in the mantis tanks?

[FlowerMama]

Too bad for the star. Hopefully there are more!!!!! Did you put rock in the mantis tanks?

 

I went to the local shop over there and picked up some, more expensive and doesn't look good but it'll do the job. I probably still need to get more. I'll try at the other shop.

[1.0reef]

I have hundreds of stars I can send if you want them lol

[FlowerMama]

I know there are probably more things but I haven't seen them yet. I saw one white brittle. I haven't seen any snail but the one and haven't seen him again. Saw the one brittle star that's in there. Haven't seen the tiny clear shrimp but he's tiny and clear. Haven't seen any hitchhiker crabs or anything.

[gena]

I know there are probably more things but I haven't seen them yet. I saw one white brittle. I haven't seen any snail but the one and haven't seen him again. Saw the one brittle star that's in there. Haven't seen the tiny clear shrimp but he's tiny and clear. Haven't seen any hitchhiker crabs or anything.

I'm sure you have some HH crabs. I've gotten them with each KPA rock order. Just tonight I saw the orange headed crab...it's a "bad" crab cuz it has the pointy pincers. It has really grown! I also have an emerald HH crab that's in my sump.

[PRJ]

I hope I end up with cool hitch-hikers, too! Geez! Lookin' good!

[Rollermonkey]

Totally jelly of that rock.

 

Mine, despite being "LR" was so barren, I didn't get indication of my first worms of any kind for a year, so they could have actually come in on a frag. (And probably did.)

[FlowerMama]

Ok, this is just nuts. So I turn around to take a pic of the mantis tank and I see something dangling underneath the rock, when I turn it over it's another brittle star!!. I moved the whole rock over and when shaking didn't work, I picked him off w/ the mega tweezers. Neat thing, when you do that they stiffen up, it must be a defense mechanism, like playing dead. He's BIG. Each leg was 2 inches long. It's weird, like I have some Karma thing going on, not knowing what to do w/ the 20 then mantis fall out of the sky. Lost a brittle star, found a big one.

 

 

 

Oh, and I took the 1/4 inch acrylic and had Lowes cut off an inch for me. I glued it on to the glass of the baffle. Doesn't look pretty but now it should for sure be functional. It'll be behind doors below the stand anyway.

 

[FlowerMama]

Gena, this is just a weird cycle, is this normal? I went up by .5 each day to 1.5, do the 20% water change, add waves and it went down .5 each day. Given what's happened do you think I should just leave it alone now and see what happens?

[FlowerMama]

Well, I was using an API test kit for Ammonia and Nitrite.

 

Ammonia

.5

1

1.5

1

.5

.25 today. No nitrite. I checked Nitrate w/ my salifert kit .25

 

Is it possible to have a short if not nonexistent nitrite cycle???

 

Oh, and look..... He must've been playing dead or just stunned, he was still the whole evening and later it had it's legs curled under it's body. This morning.......

 

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Boy, I'm having luck w/ pests. I hope it stays.

[Gramophone]

Your brittle star is so cute! Glad to hear you're having luck with the "good" pests and not the bad ones!

[gena]

Gena, this is just a weird cycle, is this normal? I went up by .5 each day to 1.5, do the 20% water change, add waves and it went down .5 each day. Given what's happened do you think I should just leave it alone now and see what happens?

Sounds like you are having an extremely fast cycle. What all have you been running during the cycle? I know you said you ran the skimmer, but turned it off.

 

I would wait another week or two. Make sure you drop food in there for the critters during that time. I swear...you got super duper rock!!!!!

[FlowerMama]

I only threw in half a cube of brine shrimp 2 days ago because I thought the ammonia cycle was stopping so I wanted to jump start it again. I'm going to throw some brine shrimp in there right now. I haven't done anything otherwise. I thought the skimmer was hindering the cycle so I stopped it. And one last pic of one of my rocks. I will tell you that there are an increasing amt of little things I see in the rocks, little white fuzzy hairs or a little dot of color here & there. I'm getting something maroon/purplish, maybe a macro.

 

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Sounds like you are having an extremely fast cycle. What all have you been running during the cycle? I know you said you ran the skimmer, but turned it off.

I would wait another week or two. Make sure you drop food in there for the critters during that time. I swear...you got super duper rock!!!!!

 

 

Your brittle star is so cute! Glad to hear you're having luck with the "good" pests and not the bad ones!

 

Yeah, he's definitely not the maroon/brown & white like the one in my Evolve 8. I DO hope though that the bigger one is a good one versus bad one.

 

YOU KNOW WHAT GUYS? taking pics under a Kessil is hard, sometimes I want it more blue, sometimes more lavender, sometimes nothing but white and the gazillion in betweens. You can't set your camera for so many white balances. I just got it to where I was happy with how the Evolve 8 pics were going. Now I'm stumped. Maybe I need to just get a little video camera. This will be a work in progress again, at least it's always learning.

[gena]

You definitely are having less die-off than what I had with their rock. My ammonia got up to the highest it could get within the first few days. You are just having an ultra fast cycle!!!!

 

Did they overnight your rock????? I'm pretty sure they sent mine priority mail. Maybe that's the difference?

[FlowerMama]

Yeah, I couldn't pass it up when they said $267.50 for overnighted for 35lbs (and they gave me 38). That's 7.64/lb. You should see some of the ugly rock one lfs has here for $8.50 then the other has it jacked up to 12.99 even though it has lots of coralline.

[FlowerMama]

So, I have to wait anyway, since Fri I leave to Phoenix and come back Tues. Then I'm hoping Randi and I can get together, get the fuge in and overflow. My concern I have is that the mantis tank has a long way to go for cycle and every 2 days I'm emptying out the dirty water into that that tank and replacing w/ established but if I can't get them in the tank before then I'll relocate each into a container maybe 3x the size and sit them in the tank and Randi can check on 'em. Nothing in the big one to feed but a little brine shrimp. I also decided to put a touch of Reef Bugs and Coral Frenzy in the 34 just now, lights out now for that tank. Once I see diatoms I'll put my order in w/ Reef Cleaners. I know Tamberav said I should get something like a turbo for the mantis tank since it's much bigger than shrimp. Would turbo eat macro though? Because I will put that in there.

[Tamberav]

ohhh.. I wouldn't trust a turbo with macro. eeek! If you get a reefcleaners CUC, it will take those little mantises awhile to kill all those snails, especially if you feed them. My small one has plenty of live snails in my fuge.

 

My peacock is a piggy though, if you drop in 5 snails, she will gather up all 5 in her clutches at once.

[FlowerMama]

ohhh.. I wouldn't trust a turbo with macro. eeek! If you get a reefcleaners CUC, it will take those little mantises awhile to kill all those snails, especially if you feed them. My small one has plenty of live snails in my fuge.

 

My peacock is a piggy though, if you drop in 5 snails, she will gather up all 5 in her clutches at once.

 

I surely got mixed up w/ something you said then. I assume I can probably put some colonistas in the mantis tank from the Evolve. Since they're little and they'll clean up. Do they eat those? Even though the mantis are really small I can't foresee putting them in until I have a lid. Maybe the 34 will get diatoms when I'm gone and when I come back maybe the mantis tank will be almost there by the time the reefcleaners order comes.