Dpolt's Mixed Reef Tank. (New Shark Diving Pictures).

[dpoltsdsu]

Harlequin Shrimp on some Zoanthids

 

[dpoltsdsu]

Update 5-20-16

 

Today was a large maintenance day for the reef. I do 2-3 of these a year and I think they play an integral role in keeping the tank clean and pristine. I completely vacuum the back chambers, replace a little more than half of the sand bed, and clean the pumps and power heads. This time, I replaced the sand with sand that is more fine. I really like this look and I think the tank looks better with the new sand. I think it is extremely important to clean the rocks and, sand, and back chambers to prevent the build up of detritus which can lead to issues in the longevity of a reef tank.

 

Future stock

 

I have decided to trade my Harlequin Shrimp with a friend's Pistol Shrimp. I added a little extra sand to be ready for this change. I have a Yellow Watchman Goby so I look forward to them pairing up. I also am selling my clam. Although I love it and it is doing very well, it's simply getting to large for my tank and I think it is making the tank look smaller then it is. I'm going to add an Acan garden to tyhe bottom midle of the tank with the money I get from the Clam.

 

Future Equipment changes

 

For those of you who have not followed this build, I run a very simple set up. I like to keep an ecosystem in my tank which means I try to cater to the needs of a multitude of different species. For me, I have found that running a simple setup with minimal equipment has worked. In fact, my tank has run with no skimmer, no dosing, and no mechanical filtration. With that said, as my SPS continue to get bigger, I have decided that I need to start dosing Calcium and Alkalinity. I bought some B- Ionic and plan on slowly starting to dose the tank.

 

Another change I plan on doing is to try to incorporate live foods into my feeding regiment. Live foods pollute the water less, are healthier for the tank, and promote a more diverse and immersive ecosystem. To do this, I plan on making the large back chamber of the aquarium into a refugium. I have added a light and a couple of rocks and will be adding some pods back there as well. I also am constructing a small setup to breed Copepods. Together, I am optimistic that I can supply about half of the tanks food by having a large and continuous supply of live Pods.

 

That is all for now, sorry for the long update. Hopefully it was interesting to some of you, hope everyone's tanks are doing well

[J-Ranko]

Tank is looking good and healthy! I'm surprised you were able to avoid calc/alk dosing all this time despite the growth in the SPS and Duncan.

 

I like your simple approach, and I'm definitely looking to try and keep mine simple despite the urge to buy all kinds of reef gizmos.

[dpoltsdsu]

Tank is looking good and healthy! I'm surprised you were able to avoid calc/alk dosing all this time despite the growth in the SPS and Duncan.

 

I like your simple approach, and I'm definitely looking to try and keep mine simple despite the urge to buy all kinds of reef gizmos.

 

I was surprised as well; they had good color too. I am not going to dose a lot, just enough where the levels go up a little bit

[dpoltsdsu]

Here's some pictures of the tank with the clam removed and the sand added. I actually really like how it came out. I enjoy the sandy area to the right and I think it gives the scape a cleaner look.

 

I think the two branches of Branching Briarium that have grown horizontally over the sand is now much more noticeable as well. The Yellow Watchman Goby and Pajama Cardinal have frequented this area pretty extensively and the Cleaner Shrimp enjoys to hang upside down on the two branches. I think a couple more Acans or other bright corals would look great in the bottom rock structure, however, I'm still very pleased on how the reef is looking as a whole

 

 

Overhang

 

 

[dpoltsdsu]

5-31-16

 

Well, my dad has informed me that he is taking me on a trip of a lifetime to celebrate graduation.

 

A week from now, I will be in Tahiti, diving the reefs and enjoying some island relaxation. I will have my Gopro so I will be sure to post plenty of video and pictures on here of some of the wildlife I spot on the reef. I am also in the process of getting SCUBA certified so I can go on a couple diving excursions while there. It will be very interesting seeing some of the creatures in my tank out in the wild. We're staying on the island of Moorea which supposedly has some great shark diving, (which is number one on my bucket list), so I am hoping I will be able to get in the water with some sharks!

[dpoltsdsu]

I'm starting to get a bit carried away with the SPS...

 

[dpoltsdsu]

6-2-16 Update

As you can see, the reef is still doing very well. The corals are all healthy and seem to be thriving. My SPS are all showing great polyp extension and color, even my new Acropora. The reef is almost completely filled in with coral which is the look I envisioned when I first made this aquascape. I hope the SPS continue to grow vertically to fill in the top part of the water column.

 

It's been challenging creating a nano reef where SPS, LPS, and soft coral all can live, however, the outcome has been really rewarding. It's really cool seeing the movement, color, and texture of all the different corals when they are so close together.

 

Here are a couple of pictures of the reef.

 

 

 

[dpoltsdsu]

I have arrived in French Polynesia! I am staying in a bungalow in Moorea and it is a dream come true. It is the most beautiful place I have ever been to. Today I get to Scuba for the first time in the ocean so it should be a great day. I'll post plenty of reef related pictures as I think it is interesting to see the things we keep in our aquariums out in the wild!

[dpoltsdsu]

The island of Moorea

 

 

There's a window in the floor of the room that allows viewers to look over the reef that presides under the bungalow. It's like having an always changing aquarium. As I type this, a group of Lemon Peel Angelfish are cruising over some of the rocks. This morning, a small Sea Turtle cruised right under the viewing panel. There's also a resident Regal Angelfish that occasionally will come into view. I am trying to get a picture of it because the colors of this fish are incredible. More to come later!

 

[dpoltsdsu]

Today while diving, I tried to look for species that we commonly keep in our reef tanks. To my surprise, I actually found quite a bit. Here's a list of some of the species kept in our aquariums that I spotted today:

 

Regal Angelfish Yellow Angelfish

Coral Beauty Angelfish 6 Line Wrasse

Bicolor Angelfish Red Firefish

Lemonpeel Angelfish Yellow Tail Damselfish

Scopas Tang Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp

Convict Tang Banded Coral Shrimp

Naso Tang

Blue Green Chromis

Black and White Chromis

[dpoltsdsu]

I finished my 6th dive yesterday and was able to get my SCUBA certification. The last dive was absolutely incredible. The water was clear, there wasn't much of a current, and the sea was abundant with life. The reef was very healthy and we saw a multitude of different marine life including a Manta Ray, multiple sharks, and even a large Napoleon Wrasse! Here are two pictures of a Lemon Shark and a Black Tip Reef Shark that we saw yesterday!

 

 

[Newstead]

I don't know how I missed your thread, but WOW. Love your tank and the description and pics of your trip and dives are amazing. Hope you will share some videos as well!

[dpoltsdsu]

I don't know how I missed your thread, but WOW. Love your tank and the description and pics of your trip and dives are amazing. Hope you will share some videos as well!

Thanks! I appreciate it; I will have some videos of the trip up on YouTube this week.

[dpoltsdsu]

Here I am with a Blacktip Reef Shark behind me. This took A LOT of tries but I'm pretty happy with the end result. I can now say I have a picture of myself with a shark behind me!

 

[Newstead]

Thanks! I appreciate it; I will have some videos of the trip up on YouTube this week.

Please post the link when you do. Have hone back and read the entire thread - excellent!

[dpoltsdsu]

Please post the link when you do. Have hone back and read the entire thread - excellent!

Glad you enjoyed it! I will be sure to link it after I post it!

[dpoltsdsu]

The reef outside the room! You can faintly see a beautiful Regal Angelfish making its way up the reef in the bottom middle of the picture.

 

[dpoltsdsu]

More reef shots! (The reef is not nearly that brown, the sun was not playing well with my camera).

 

 

 

Today was a great day snorkeling on the reef. I was able to see some really interesting stuff including a huge Moray, a school of 200+ Convict Tangs, and a Reef Octopus which was a really interesting sight. I was able to get a video of the Eel and the big school. I'm excited to edit all the footage I have taken.

[metrokat]

How long did you have the fish for? I personally think they are great and should be considered in more nanos

I had him for a few months, sold him to a friend a I get to see him whenever I visit them, he's happy and fat in their frag tank.

Awesome diving shots, are those little yellow tail damselfish?

[blizzardscout2]

It sounds like you are having an awesome time with your dad. What a surprise and a great way to celebrate graduating. Your reef looks awesome by the way, I should take advice from you! I love that photo of you with the shark. How big were the lemons?

[jimmyree]

Nice pics, you officially made me miss scuba diving.

[dpoltsdsu]

I had him for a few months, sold him to a friend a I get to see him whenever I visit them, he's happy and fat in their frag tank.

Awesome diving shots, are those little yellow tail damselfish?

 

Those blue fish looked to me like they were Blue Devil Damselfish. The Yellow Tail Damselfish that I saw generally hung out right next to the rock structure as opposed to hovering over it like a lot of the other Damsel species there.

It sounds like you are having an awesome time with your dad. What a surprise and a great way to celebrate graduating. Your reef looks awesome by the way, I should take advice from you! I love that photo of you with the shark. How big were the lemons?

 

It was certainly a trip of a lifetime. Thank you! The Lemon Sharks that I saw were actually a lot larger than I anticipated. If I were to guess, I'd say the smaller ones were around 6-8 feet long while some of the large ones were closer to 11 feet. They dwarfed us when they would swim past us.

Nice pics, you officially made me miss scuba diving.

 

Thank you! It is such a surreal feeling being down there. You should try to go again!

[dpoltsdsu]

Probably the coolest picture I got all trip. The quality isn't great but there is a large coral colony, a Blacktip Reef Shark, and a Manta Ray all in one shot. You can see the Ray in the background of the picture. Diving is incredible.

 

[dpoltsdsu]

Update 6/25/16

 

The Reef is doing very well. Nothing much has changed over the past couple weeks. The SPS in the tank are growing extremely well and everything else seems to be thriving as well. I introduced two Peppermint Shrimp to knock out a couple of Aiptasia that I saw and the pest anemone's were gone before the night ended. I love those little shrimp.