Shark's pico 4 gallon

[moores38]

Check your magnesium, I'll bet its low. If you raise your mag to about 1500, that'll zap most of the algae almost overnight. Your corals should be fine for a short duration. After the algae is gone do a water change and you'll be good to go!

[seabass]

How can I remove cyano manually?

You can siphon it out during a water change. If you want, you can remove the rock, scrub it off in a 5 gallon bucket of saltwater, then return it.

 

Where can nutrients come from?

Nitrate can come from organics (dead organisms, waste products, left over food), on the rock and in the water that are getting broken down. Nitrate and phosphate can come from poor source water. Phosphate is usually imported by feeding.

 

I used premixed saltwater from my LFS for the last WC and topp off with RO/DI.

I used to use water from one of my local stores until I tested it. I would either get my own RO/DI unit or purchase distilled water (and make my own saltwater from that).

 

Check your magnesium, I'll bet its low. If you raise your mag to about 1500, that'll zap most of the algae almost overnight. Your corals should be fine for a short duration. After the algae is gone do a water change and you'll be good to go!

That has not been my experience.

[shark565]

I kept the water which i syphoned during my WC. My plan now is to take the rock out give it a very good scrub, then I am going to put it back and turn off my lights off untill any algae left die. After that, I am going to do a 50% water change and I think that should kill the algae. Is this a good plan?

P.S. I know other people who use water from that LFS and they don't have any problems and in the tanks in this LFS they haven't got any algae exept for coraline.

[seabass]

I am going to do a 50% water change and I think that should kill the algae. Is this a good plan?

It's not that large of a tank, so I'd personally just change it all out. But that's just me.

 

P.S. I know other people who use water from that LFS and they don't have any problems and in the tanks in this LFS they haven't got any algae exept for coraline.

The best thing you could do is test it. If you get RO/DI from them, use a TDS meter to check it; it should read 0 TDS. I'd also get a decent low range phosphate test kit.

[shark565]

I have RO/DI from them at the moment and I am going to try to find a TDS meter. I am going to change it all or at least as much as I can. Is there any danger for the snail,because of the big WC?

[seabass]

http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-TDS-3-Handheld-Carrying/dp/B000VTQM70/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1421010279&sr=8-4&keywords=tds+meter or http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-TDS-4TM-Meter-Thermometer/dp/B001RK38LU/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1421010279&sr=8-12&keywords=tds+meter

 

Just put the snail in some tank water during the water change. Match temperature and specific gravity, then it should be fine.

[shark565]

There is something very strange happening in my tank. When I got home my snail was sitting on the top of the tank glass, I immediately put him in the tank, but he started crawling out again. I checked my salinity and It was low . I added some salt and managed to put it back in order. The snail settled on the sand again. After several hours, I checked it again and It was low again, I fixed it ,but I don't know the reason why is it dropping. I haven't top off and I don't have ATO. Any ideas?

 

P.S.Also, I bought macro elements long time ago,when I was starting my first tank and I haven't used it since then. There is dosage per litre should I dose or?

[seabass]

There should be no need to dose anything at this point.

 

My guess is that your hydrometer is giving you inconsistent readings. You should never add salt directly to your tank. If specific gravity is low, you normally let evaporation raise it back up. That, or do a partial water change with water at the correct specific gravity. Maybe you should invest in a refractometer.

[shark565]

I will look at the things closer these days. May be I have been mistaken at reading the hydrometer. After turning the lights off I see how some GHA is falling off the rock , I am going to keep it that way untill Friday. Is the green algae growing on my rocks cyano or it can be something else? I couldn't scrub much of it.

[seabass]

Is the green algae growing on my rocks cyano or it can be something else?

If it's long, it's probably just GHA. If it's thin, and coating the rock, then it's probably just micro algae (which is natural and harmless).

[shark565]

I did a little rescape. As for algae they are very thin you can see them on the photo. The GHA is mostly in the little hole on the left rock, I couldn't remove it mannualy. So, now I am waiting for the little GHA left to die and then doing the WC and ordering the maxi mini. Is that right?

http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/Suit565/media/2015-01-12224352_zps5b4580aa.jpg.html'>

[seabass]

I like the rocks vertical like you have them. Remember, coral will want a ledge and good light. Speaking of which, the lighting in the pic looks kind of weak and focused in the middle. Are you using a flashlight to get this picture?

 

What does it look like if you rotate the rock so the cliff side in facing the back?

 

The green algae appear to primarily be micro algae (the same stuff that we scrape off the glass). This is pretty normal. Some people use how frequently they need to scrape it off their glass as a way to measure the phosphate level.

 

With the bulk of the hair algae gone, you snail will probably be able to keep up with the hair algae. That's good.

 

Just make sure your tank isn't going through any issues before you add the anemone. Remember, these anemones will get the bulk of their energy from the light (still wondering about the last pic).

[shark565]

Should I start the normal day cycle or I should wait more? If I put the lights back on, I am doing the WC too.I think I flipped them the way you said and it is awesome. I like it a lot more. The photo was a bit darker because of the camera. The two rocks are very well lighted and the front of the tank is a bit darker. Here is a photo:

http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/Suit565/media/2015-01-12234640_zpsc5053bb3.jpg.html'>

[seabass]

I might wait just a couple more days on your light cycle (just because it looks like you've made real progress on the algae). Give the tank a little time with the lights on its normal cycle before adding the anemone. That way you can see if the light is going to cause the algae to come back, without the anemone in there.

 

The spotlighting effect isn't necessarily bad. However, if you raise the light up a bit, does the light spread through the tank more evenly?

[shark565]

I can't raise it because I made my fixture and it is not very good DIY. I am going to do what you said about the algae.

I bought a sunsun internal filter to use the powerhead as wavemaker. The powerhead is 450l/h, I have put it into the tank and now the surface is receiving a very good flow. Should I put the powerhead somewhere else ? (you can see it in the right corner where the intake for the filter part is.

When i turned it on it blew away some sort of purple film of the rock. Is that coraline algae and if it is does that mean I have a good water quality?

Final question, the guy in the LFS said that I don't need to change the water again due to the fact that i have phosphate remover. Should I do the WC or it is not necessary?

Here is a pic of the tank:

http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/Suit565/media/2015-01-14185702_zps774fba21.jpg.html'>

[seabass]

Coralline won't blow off of rock no matter how strong the flow is. This is likely Cyano; and no that's not an indication of good water quality. Many will say that increasing flow is good when you have Cyano. It can help keep organics in suspension, so that your filter(s) can remove it.

 

The tank is only 4 gallons of water, so I personally don't think it'd be such a large task. It won't hurt anything. However, if you don't want to, then don't. It's your tank to do what you want with it. It's just easier to do now then when you have more livestock in it.

[shark565]

Is it a good idea to point the head to the stone so the cyano can't hold on the rock? I am going to do the WC. I am concerned about having nutritions leading to cyano. How to prevent the cyano from comming?

[seabass]

Is it a good idea to point the head to the stone so the cyano can't hold on the rock?

That would be fine for now (but you don't need to). However, coral will not like the direct flow, so you'd have to change it before adding coral.

[shark565]

Tommorow, I am doing the WC. Can I get a trumpet coral or a duncan(depending of what's left in my LFS)? I think I am going to place it on the sand bed if it is a trumpet or somewhere on the rock if it is a duncan. When I get my maxi mini , I am going to cover it with something until the maxi mini finds its place. I know I am a little impatient , sorry for that.

[seabass]

Definitely don't cover the anemone. You'd be better off just reducing the flow until it settles. If you are that worried about it killing your coral before it finds a permanent home, hold off on getting the coral until after the nem finds a spot.

[shark565]

No, I am not going to cover the anemone, I was planning to put something around the coral. I saw a picture of acans with something like a plastic cylinder around them. It was used to prevent the hermits from taking the food from the coral. This is where the idea came from. For example a cylinder made from a plastic bottle. Is that okay? Also, what type of food should I take for the maxi mini and the trumpet/duncan?

[seabass]

I suppose that might work. The PVC rings that you mentioned are usually just used for feeding. It will impede the flow, so be careful how long you use them. Don't overfeed any of them, the get the bulk of their energy from the lights, but feeding them a little once a week is a good practice. They will be getting some stray food and fish waste too. Some like to use mysis shrimp, but really almost anything that you are feeding your fish should work.

[shark565]

I am very excited,because several hours ago I finnaly bought my first coral(ducan). After the WC, I placed it and then I went out. When I got home, It was fully exended and I also fed it. I bought tetra marine fish food. It was amazing how this little guy took all the food with its tentacles and slowly put it in its mouth. I am planning to take a trumpet too these days and I am going to order the maxi mini.Some pictures:

http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/Suit565/media/2015-01-15211901_zps1a75a3a7.jpg.html'>

http://s1378.photobucket.com/user/Suit565/media/2015-01-15211849_zpsd3b8f45f.jpg.html'>

[seabass]

That lighting kind of freaks me out. If the camera is picking up the light that way, the PAR numbers have to be very different from the bright to the dim areas.

[shark565]

May be it is ,because I am playing with my exposure. I don't know how to make the photo to look exacly as I see it right now. What about the coral ?