A first-timer's tank thread! (29g biocube)

[Lizz]

hi again!

 

well i'd planned on waiting a little longer, but i couldn't resist labor day sales and we ended up getting ourselves some coral. 3 pieces from a LFS and 3 online.

 

we got the LFS corals on saturday.

 

first up, is some green star polyps:

it's got more of a minty/pastel green rather than a neon green. it looked different than the other frags and i liked it best. i know it can be a bit of a weed, so i chiseled down an extra chunk of rock and gave the GSP it's own little island away from the main rock that it can cover and then i can cut back and keep isolated. it's doing really well, i think! it was fully open the morning after we brought it home.

 

next up is a rock with a few mushrooms:

i think they're doing okay too? they shrivel up and puff back out a couple of times a day seemingly at random. they came on a big chunk of rock so i made sure to give it a swim in a coral dip before placing it in my tank.

 

lastly, we have the world's saddest finger leather:

i don't know what's going on with this guy. he's only fully puffed up, extended and turned the proper color once in the past 6 days. it gets little raised polyp nubs like you can see in this pic, but other than that it stays looking withered and sad. i know leathers can 'shed' so i guess i'll just keep waiting to see what it does.

 

that brings me to the stuff i bought online which arrived today...

 

 

first up, ORA pink birdsnest:

a decent sized frag, i think. looks good. have it sitting low in the tank for the time being. i'm super nervous i'm going to accidentally kill it and not realize until it's too late.

 

next up, an ORA green toadstool:

so far this one is the exact opposite of my finger leather....had a rough trip via fedex, but within an hour it was happy as could be with all it's nice green polyps extended. so happy about that!!

 

and lastly, my favorite...ORA hyacinth birdsnest:

i love this frag!!! the shape is great and the colors are SO PRETTY. don't know how much SPS i'll end up with as i like a lot more softies, but i have this vision of my two birdsnests growing big and covering the top shelf of my rock like a crown for my tank. hopefully one day!

 

the fish are doing well. they are still best friends. there has been some feeding drama because the orange one is SO small it's been having a tough time and spitting everything out. also no matter how little i feed it seems like so much of it just ends up polluting the tank. as such, i've been doing a lot of water changes to stay on top of it....it's so tedious though. i ordered a skimmer to help, too.

 

as for whats next, i'm going to try and figure out how bright my LEDs should go. i haven't taken them higher than 35% because they seem SO bright. i've had them dimmed even more today on account of the new additions. i know birdsnests like a lot of light, but i'm still paranoid i'll accidentally blast them with too much. if anybody has any LED insight or tips, i'd love to hear it!

 

also, i tiny snail fell into the powerhead today. sounded like a blended and scared the crap outta me. poor little fella.

[hey]

Wouldn't worry about the leather mine will shed regularly and I swear they are shedding more often than they are eating although I feed a ton and overskim to compensate. Corals look good, I actually plan to put a few birdsnests in mine once the softies grow out some and I can predict where I will have the space.

 

Keep an eye on your ca and alk if they start growing quickly they can really suck it out of the water to where you may end up having to do more frequent water changes to support them. If you do a lot more sps you will most likely have to dose instead of water changes as it becomes more practical.

[GtTap]

I like how its coming along.

[Lizz]

my leather still looks droopy/sad/gross and everything else looks great. installed a tunze 9001 skimmer a few days ago and replaced my media and my water is looking super crystal clear again for the first time since before i started cycling...pretty happy about that, obviously. my diatom bloom looks like it's on it's way out too! the sand bed is 95% clear (previously was probably 75% covered in brown algae). my skimmer seems to be collecting too much water in the cup and i'm not quite sure on how to fix this (there's not a lot online about this product yet as it's pretty new) but i'm going to keep experimenting with the air valve and the water level too find a sweet spot for it.

 

i also decided i hate all the API test kits after ditching the nitrate test and buying a salifert test at a LFS and it being SO much easier to use and read so i ordered some other salifert tests online that will also make my life easier.

 

a pretty boring update, but hey. i'm hoping everything continues to go well and maybe in two or three weeks we will think about getting our next fish. i already know i want it to be a helfrichi firefish. fancy/pretty!

[Lizz]

long time no update!

 

well the tank has been chugging along pretty well. i have had an ongoing issue with microbubbles from my tunze 9001. it's super annoying and i am considering contacting tunze directly.

 

i have to do a bigger photo update maybe later this weekend with all our new corals and such, but for now meet the new resident we picked up tonight:

 

 

this is Lala the helfrichi firefish! he/she has been in the tank for just under an hour and they already seem happy as a clam. our female clownfish yoko is VERY interested in the interesting new interloper. our male clownfish shoe seems like he could not care less. anyway, lala is swimming happily in the tank and not trying to hide at all which i am very happy about!

 

here's another pic:

she (i'm just gonna go with 'she' here) is the prettiest! she also has been exploring the rockwork in ways the clowns seem to have no interest in so far. i hope yoko doesn't pick on her at all and they all become buddies. our clowns have had the tank to themselves for around a month now so hopefully they feel secure enough in their home to not be bullies.

[ninjamyst]

beautiful firefish!!

[wildbill79]

I just got a Firefish today too. He is replacing my Yellow Watchman Goby. How is your doing? I will try to get some pics up tomorrow. Tank is looking really good by the way. Love the choices in livestock.

[Lizz]

I just got a Firefish today too. He is replacing my Yellow Watchman Goby. How is your doing? I will try to get some pics up tomorrow. Tank is looking really good by the way. Love the choices in livestock.

 

oh no! what happened to your goby? is it detailed in your thread? i'll go check it out. i also look forward to seeing your firefish, they're all so pretty. so far ours seems to have a great disposition and likes to be active in the front of the tank.

 

 

beautiful firefish!!

 

thank you! they are my favorite. when i saw firefish for the first time i was convinced they would be a fish we couldn't keep in our tank for whatever reason but when i found out they were suited to peaceful nano reef tanks, i just knew i had to have one! i love our little clowns, but i think the firefish will become the star of the tank.

[Lizz]

ugggh so today i saw a creature most loathsome and dreaded hanging out in my rock work this morning.

 

aptaisia.

 

i am pretty sure i know where it came from (will get to that in a bit) and needless to say i was/am worried and annoyed. this morning after i had my last crossfit foundations class (brutal, in case you were wondering), we stopped by the LFS and grabbed some aptaisia X and when we got home i promptly and hopefully blasted it's ass into oblivion. i'll be keeping an eye out for more but hopefully that was the only one that had managed to pop up in my tank on it's own so far.

 

 

anyway, here is some saturday night pic spam while jk and the baby are out picking up dinner!

 

 

a new zoa frag i got from a local reefer about a week ago. i realized i need to start collection zoas to provide cover for alllllllllll my bare and lonely rock.

 

rasta zoa. the colors aren't normally my thing but it was only a couple of bucks. i wasn't sure if it would even make it because it looked pretty warped and melty...but after a week it has started to open a bit and i think it's actually going to be okay eventually!

 

this frag was being called a 'twizzler'. zoas seem to have the dopiest names. it's a cool black/red/purple one. still very tiny, but again, only a couple of bucks.

 

blue ricordea. maybe florida? no clue.

 

another ricordea. much smaller, but multi-colored!

 

my miracle candy cane coral! when i got this one (for under $10) it was super stressed and had lost most of it's flesh and the skeleton/crown was visible. just one week later and it seems to be bouncing back nicely! it's not super full and puffy yet, but it's getting there!

 

hyancith ora birdsnest

 

and regular pink ora birdsnests. had these for around a month now. no clue if they are doing well or growing but i am pretty sure they aren't dying at least! they started browning while down on the sand acclimating but both pinked right back up when i moved them to the top of the tank and increased the lighting a bit. the hyancith one doesn't have super dark purple polyps anymore but the polyps still fully extend. these photos are mostly reference for me to compare them against in another month or so.

 

ora mint pavona.

 

moved my ora toadstool to the top/back of my tank to the very top of my rockwork and it is LOVING it. i love this guy!

 

ora purple montipora. okay so remember the aptaisia? i am pretty sure it rode in along this big ugly chunk of frag mount the monti came on. in addition to the appy that was in the rockwork, i found another smaller one on this frag that i also blasted. and after taking this picture i finally did what i should have done all along but was afraid to do (was worried i'd break the monti) and popped it off that ugly ass rock and mounted it to a tiny plug instead:

 

after. MUCH better.

 

coraline algae is exploding ALL OVER my rockwork and i am soooo excited about it! i thought it would take much longer, honestly.

 

my star polyps are starting to encrust and spread

 

new st. thomas mushroom. i think this is my favorite right now. it's just soooooo beautiful! i want to get more of these.

 

tiny little pink & black paly i picked up for a couple dollars

 

random zoa frag that was included free with another frag purchase

 

okay this venus fly trap paly colony is normally the moooost beautiful vibrant green color but of course when i want to take pictures of it, one of my hermits is harassing it. figures.

 

lala is still super happy in her new home!

 

yoko the big boss lady clownfish

 

ok the palys are starting to open back up again post-crab harassment

 

shoe, the little orange clown.

 

yoko and shoe enjoying dinner

 

and one last shot of lala the beautiful helfrichi!

 

thanks to any/all of you who check out my thread!

 

still need to get a new FTS, but my camera battery died right after that last pic. next time!

[wildbill79]

Wow! You've got some nice stuff going! Your zoas are sweet and the Birdsnests are sweet. Branching out to a lot of other corals too. Very nice diversity. You are right, zoas do have dope ass names!

[Lizz]

thank you!

 

i wish i had an infinite amount of money to buy corals with. i unfortunately have expensive/very specific tastes (i love so many of the ora corals!) so i have to buy tiny frags and few and far between. one of the reasons i started to collect zoas (which i need anyway!)

 

things on my list to get:

 

-a white w/ pink tip elegance coral

-a purple torch (i got a tiny frag of this last week but it had brown slime and and died in a couple of days)

-possibly a pretty colored frogspawn or hammer

-a pink duncan

-a pink open brain coral

-another monti cap....maybe a blue polyp or pink polyp

-another st. thomas mushroom. one of the kind with pointier bubble in an orange or reddish color

-more ricordea (yuma and florida)

-more zoas. ideally some pink types and maybe some with blue.

-a long polyp sarcophyton leather

-maaaaaaybe a pink or white bubble coral if i don't get a frogspawn.

[Lizz]

finally got around to taking a new front tank shot!

 

 

nothing super exciting to report...everything is just doing it's thing for right now! levels are good, all creatures seemingly happy and healthy. now i just need more money for corals....for the first time since i got the tank, buying new clothes won out over buying new corals/fish this week.

[Lizz]

so i picked up 3 heads of a pink duncan at a LFS this weekend for a great price and i LOVE it so much! it's the exact pearly shade of pink i'd wanted, so when i saw it i knew i had to have it. it opened up fully within a couple of hours and is doing great:

 

 

i couldn't get any other photos without lala the firefish photobombing me, though...

 

 

[gena]

Hi, Lizz!!!!! Awesome tank, inhabitants, and photography!!!!! That duncan is like the perfect shade of pink . I'll be following along .

[kimberbee]

Cute firefish! Is she out a lot?

 

I want a 4th fish that's active and out cause all three of mine hang out in the back corner!

[ninjamyst]

so jealous your firefish is always out!

[Lizz]

Cute firefish! Is she out a lot?

 

I want a 4th fish that's active and out cause all three of mine hang out in the back corner!

 

so jealous your firefish is always out!

 

she's out the entire day! is that rare for a firefish? i have my lights on a timer where it's gradual blues into whites over the course of an hour and a half (and reverse at night) and she comes out of the rocks at the first sign of blue light and is out the whole day until the last bit of blue ticks off and then she goes into her cave within 10 seconds and is inside for the night. she prefers the right half of the tank (and the clowns stick to the left) but she swims all around the tank throughout the day...except for the back corner where the clownfish pair sleep and 'host'. she's front and center right now!

 

 

Hi, Lizz!!!!! Awesome tank, inhabitants, and photography!!!!! That duncan is like the perfect shade of pink . I'll be following along .

 

aw, thank you!!!

[GtTap]

Looking good Lizz keep it coming. wish i could get better pics. What camera are you using?

[chumpy]

great write up I have enjoyed your journey ,

[Lizz]

Looking good Lizz keep it coming. wish i could get better pics. What camera are you using?

 

i have a canon 5dMkIII and use my 100mm 2.8L macro and my 35mm 1.4L for most of the shots. my actual real-life job is photography though, so i don't just have nice equipment lying around for fun, haha.

 

i still need to practice, though....i think i have a lot of room to improve. taking good photos in an aquarium is totally different than other situations, that's for sure!

[GtTap]

i have a canon 5dMkIII and use my 100mm 2.8L macro and my 35mm 1.4L for most of the shots. my actual real-life job is photography though, so i don't just have nice equipment lying around for fun, haha.

 

i still need to practice, though....i think i have a lot of room to improve. taking good photos in an aquarium is totally different than other situations, that's for sure!

Well your off to a great start.

[ninjamyst]

i have a canon 5dMkIII and use my 100mm 2.8L macro and my 35mm 1.4L for most of the shots. my actual real-life job is photography though, so i don't just have nice equipment lying around for fun, haha.

 

i still need to practice, though....i think i have a lot of room to improve. taking good photos in an aquarium is totally different than other situations, that's for sure!

 

omg, drools over the 5dMkIII and 100mm macro. Your pictures so far are great =). Just an amateur here, but I also had alot of trouble initially with tank pictures. Things got a lot easier after setting a custom white balance and taking pics with pumps off. My fav way to take pic now is top down because the LED lights really give the corals a nice pop.

[gena]

 

 

she's out the entire day! is that rare for a firefish? i have my lights on a timer where it's gradual blues into whites over the course of an hour and a half (and reverse at night) and she comes out of the rocks at the first sign of blue light and is out the whole day until the last bit of blue ticks off and then she goes into her cave within 10 seconds and is inside for the night. she prefers the right half of the tank (and the clowns stick to the left) but she swims all around the tank throughout the day...except for the back corner where the clownfish pair sleep and 'host'. she's front and center right now!

 

 

 

aw, thank you!!!

My LFS guy told me that the helfrichi are known to stay out and even draw out the other types of firefish that like to hide. He suggested I get one for my orange that would hide all the time. They are pricey and I didn't want to do it at the time so I got another orange FF. This one stays out most of the time. I guess they all have different personalities . But it's not unusual for the helfrichi to stay out all the time.

 

BTW...cute name for her .

[Lizz]

super long time, no post!

 

my tank still lives, as do all of the fish. i've had some growing pains, but here is what we are working with these days:

 

 

at first i didn't think there was THAT big of a difference, but when compared to my last FTS last october, i guess there has been some development!

 

here is that one for reference:

all the SPS in my old FTS died. my mint pavona did manage to encrust to some rock before it went and that seems to be slowly re-growing..we'll see. i'm also trying my luck with a new ora birdsnest...so far so good. my mushroom rock has been moved to a shadier area on the side and has EXPLODED. my sad old finger leather that sat shriveled and despondent for literally MONTHS finally showed up to the party and is huge and happy. my duncan has gone from 3 heads to 10+ (they're all still small though), my green tyree mushroom is 5x as big...it detached from it's higher rock and then settled itself a couple inches lower.

 

so, as i said, all my fish are still going strong. my clownfish pair are still reclusive jerks who hide in the back corner all day. :/ my helfrichi firefish has been acting funny the past couple of days and hanging in her cave a lot, but for the rest of the past few months she's always been front and center.

 

i've added a yellow clown goby who i named butternut who refused to eat (that i could see) for the longest time. then we went away for a week and i was sure he'd be dead and gone by the time we got back, but nope...he's still here and now he eats normally! we also added a neon goby named 'little blue'. we are done with fish for this tank now.

 

some more pics:

 

usually social lala the helfrichi has been cave dwelling this week. here she is making an appearance today.

 

frogspawn (? i was told frogspawn but it looks hammer-y to me...?) up in the left near clownfish corner

 

happy torch

 

ric garden

 

zoa & paly party

 

even more zoas

my beloved bubble mushroom that abandoned it's post and detached from it's previous rock while we were away and got lost in the rockwork for awhile...i found it weeks later, super shriveled sand sad looking and gave it a new home...it's re-attached itself and finally starting to bounce back.

 

blurry pic of butternut the clown goby.

 

 

and i guess that's it for now!

[gena]

It looks GORGEOUS!!!

 

 

My clownfish hide out in the corner all day too. Makes me sad because they are so beautiful and I'd like to SEE them sometimes LOL.

 

Can you get a shot of those blue mushrooms that exploded for you on the side in the shade? I can kind of see them in the FTS but if you have a moment to get a good shot of them that'd be awesome .