{ RoT_Reef: {[ PicO_20G, NanoBox_Duo, KZ ]}} // New pics 12-16-2015

[defender.TX]

Put the Acro up high. Cant wait to see it take off!

 

-Dave

 

That was the plan - I tried to move it last night but couldn't get the base of the frag plug off. Time to bust out the Dremel! The polyp extension is already insane, though. I really can't wait to have a big colony.

 

I love this build (it inspired my PicO purchase). I love the sleek look of the Duo with the system. Sweet acros, too.

 

Thanks! I appreciate it, especially considering that it was Nano-Reef that inspired me to get into reefing in the first place.

[D Z]

Get yourself a pair of Stainless steel bone cutters. They are great for fragging if you end up wanting to do so, but are even better for cutting the base of frag plugs off. I had a hard time for a while, but once I invested in some bone cutters, it is like cutting butter.

[defender.TX]

Get yourself a pair of Stainless steel bone cutters. They are great for fragging if you end up wanting to do so, but are even better for cutting the base of frag plugs off. I had a hard time for a while, but once I invested in some bone cutters, it is like cutting butter.

 

That's a good idea. I tried to do it with a pair of Milwaukee Nail Cutters (which worked on the ceramic frag plug) but they just wouldn't cut the plastic/acrylic material of the plug that the Acropora frag is on. I guess a proper frag kit is in order.

[D Z]

I don't think you need to get a full frag kit, but a good pair of bone cutters is a must. You can get away with a pair of cheap snips from home depot, but they will eventually rust shut and be unusable.

[defender.TX]

Is there a difference in stainless steel and quality from brand to brand? Is there a specific brand that works best, or will something like the "Oceans Wonders Coral Stony Bone Cutter" from BRS work?

[defender.TX]

Updated Photos! I got my new frags mounted.

 

 

 

 

[defender.TX]

 

[kimberbee]

Nice setup!

[defender.TX]

Nice setup!

 

Thanks! I wish it were bigger but for my lifestyle right now it's perfect.

[D Z]

Is there a difference in stainless steel and quality from brand to brand? Is there a specific brand that works best, or will something like the "Oceans Wonders Coral Stony Bone Cutter" from BRS work?

Well, you do have to be careful to not buy some cheap "SS" off of amazon or ebay, but generally I would think anything for sale at a major distributor like BRS should be ok. These would also be another good option:

 

http://www.marinedepot.com/Boston_Aqua_Farms_Stony_Coral_Cutters_Coral_Propagation_Tools_for_Saltwater_Aquariums-Boston_Aqua_Farms-BA1311-FIMTCP-vi.html

[defender.TX]

The "Joe the Coral" Acropora I just put in my tank is already coloring up nicely. The greens and blues are more noticeable now. I'm keeping nutrients as low as possible and dosing 10 drops of Pohl's Xtra daily. It's too soon to comment on growth but I hope it takes off.

[defender.TX]

Speaking of my Acropora coloring up (pardon the distortion, it's top-down and I couldn't get parallel to the water):

 

 

I did not alter the color or saturation of this photo at all.

[Jay Wee]

Speaking of my Acropora coloring up (pardon the distortion, it's top-down and I couldn't get parallel to the water):

 

 

I did not alter the color or saturation of this photo at all.

 

Looks like the Coral Vitalizer and Pohl's Xtra is really working. Damn I gotta get in on that blue potion.

[defender.TX]

Looks like the Coral Vitalizer and Pohl's Xtra is really working. Damn I gotta get in on that blue potion.

 

As long as your tank is small enough I think they are great! If you have a tank larger than say 35 gallons it doesn't make sense to pay for the blue bottles and you might as well go full Zeovit. For an AIO, if you can keep the nutrients low enough, I think they really do make a huge difference. I'm thinking about adding the Amino Acid for my SPS.

[defender.TX]

Test day today and the results are in:

 

NO3 0 ppm

Ca 450 ppm

KH 9 dKH

Mg 1100 ppm

 

Looks like my magnesium is low, I'm going to be testing again to see if I messed up and miscounted drops during the test or if I need to start supplementing. I don't currently dose anything.

 

Also, when using the Red Sea Reef Foundation Pro test kit, does anyone know how far you're supposed to go during titration? IE, do you just keep putting in one drop at a time until you see the color change or do you keep putting in one drop at a time until the color matches closely the color on the card?

[defender.TX]

I'm still trying to figure out what's going on with my foundation elements to determine if I need to start dosing or not. My tests yesterday (1 week from my initial tests, no water change):

 

NO3 0 ppm

Ca 425 ppm (-25 ppm from the previous week)

KH 8.5 dKH (-.5 dKH from the previous week)

Mg 1400 ppm (note - I did this test incorrectly the first time around)

 

I think that gives me a pretty good baseline foundation element uptake. I'm going to test again next weekend before my water change to see if the decline is fairly consistent. Then I'll figure out if I need to dose and if I should do 2 part or kalk.

 

Also, my wife put together a nice frag kit for me as an early Christmas present, so I'm going to be rearranging some corals to get ready for more SPS - more to come...

[defender.TX]

Sometimes things don't go the way you planned them. I wanted to add a Yellow Striped Prawn Goby and Pistol Shrimp pair to the tank, so I picked a pair up from Austin Aquadome. Unfortunately, the Pistol Shrimp was upside down and practically dead in the bag by the time I got home. I added him to the tank anyway to see if he would recover, but he didn't make it. The Prawn Goby was doing fine, and even ate a few times for me, but then I found him in the grasp of my Torch:

 

 

The Torch ate him whole over the course of the next few hours. Eventually only his head was poking up out of the mouth, and then nothing.

[D Z]

Damn, that sucks. Sorry to hear that. You cant even bring it back for store credit!

[TeamIM24]

That is terrible. Ugh...

[defender.TX]

Yea he was really small and it happened at night so I think he just got caught up in the torches sweepers. Also, it can give a pretty nasty sting - my clowns have tried to host it a few time and they eventually give up after they each have a couple good black stings on them.

 

I would get rid of it except that I love the way it looks...the reef is a harsh environment I guess.

 

In other news, I'm having a really hard time keep my nutrients up in this tank. My nutrients are so low (undetectable Nitrates and Phosphates) that my skimmer doesn't even have anything to skim a lot of the time. I feed twice a day (mysis and sinking pellets from New Life Spectrum), dose 4 drops/day of KZ Coral Vitalizer, and dose 1 scoop of BRS Reef Chili twice a week or so. I'm really not sure what else I'm supposed to do to keep nutrients up in the tank besides feed more.

[D Z]

Yea he was really small and it happened at night so I think he just got caught up in the torches sweepers. Also, it can give a pretty nasty sting - my clowns have tried to host it a few time and they eventually give up after they each have a couple good black stings on them.

 

I would get rid of it except that I love the way it looks...the reef is a harsh environment I guess.

 

In other news, I'm having a really hard time keep my nutrients up in this tank. My nutrients are so low (undetectable Nitrates and Phosphates) that my skimmer doesn't even have anything to skim a lot of the time. I feed twice a day (mysis and sinking pellets from New Life Spectrum), dose 4 drops/day of KZ Coral Vitalizer, and dose 1 scoop of BRS Reef Chili twice a week or so. I'm really not sure what else I'm supposed to do to keep nutrients up in the tank besides feed more.

I am pretty much having the same problem. I feed pellets 1 - 2 times a day, frozen(switch between mysis and reef frenzy) at night, and reef chili/nurticell 2 times a week. I do a drop of coral vit and 1ml of pohls xtra every day(except days that I feel the reef chili/nutricell). My plan is to add another 2 fish and start to add a second feeding of frozen per day. Then, see if that brings the nutrients up a bit. Not sure what else we can do TBO.

[defender.TX]

I am pretty much having the same problem. I feed pellets 1 - 2 times a day, frozen(switch between mysis and reef frenzy) at night, and reef chili/nurticell 2 times a week. I do a drop of coral vit and 1ml of pohls xtra every day(except days that I feel the reef chili/nutricell). My plan is to add another 2 fish and start to add a second feeding of frozen per day. Then, see if that brings the nutrients up a bit. Not sure what else we can do TBO.

 

I agree, I was trying to add more bioload by getting another fish in the tank and upping my feedings, but the torch had him for dinner. I'm not sure if I want to waste another $19 trying to get a prawn goby in the tank or just start heavily dosing amino acids and target feeding my LPS.

[defender.TX]

So I was looking at my purple stylo tonight under the actinics right before sunset, and I noticed that I was seeing some green in my purple stylo. Very odd, and very faint, but the more I looked, sure enough I saw fluorescent green in parts near the skeleton of the stylo. Turns out, I think I have a Reefgen "J & L's Purple and Green Milka Stylo" (or something extremely similar). Kind of neat.

[defender.TX]

I have a Christmas BRS Gift Card burning a hole in my pocket...I'm thinking about picking up a Phosphate Hanna Checker or maybe another blue bottle? I hear that KZ Amino Acid is great for SPS.

 

I also have another order to Unique Corals in the making. Dreaming of some shortcake for this tank. More to come on that.

[defender.TX]

Time for some side by side growth analysis over the past month. The "before" photos were taken when I received the corals the week of thanksgiving and the "after" photos were taken this morning. First up, my Acropora "Joe the Coral":

 

 

 

 

 

Next, my Eagle Eye Zoas:

 

 

 

And, just for fun, a pic I liked of my Torch: