Teenyreef's IM40 Not-So-Teeny Tank - August FTS

[gena]

Bummer, sorry . This has been my experience with BTAs. They get into trouble. I love them so much but I won't ever have another until I can dedicate an entire tank to just them, catered to their needs, and a bunch of clownfish .

[teenyreef]

Bummer, sorry . This has been my experience with BTAs. They get into trouble. I love them so much but I won't ever have another until I can dedicate an entire tank to just them, catered to their needs, and a bunch of clownfish .

Yeah, this is what I was worried about, so I'm glad I tried it without much stuff in the tank. Nothing else seems to be bothered by it, fortunately.

 

The little nub that I put in the specimen box looked like it was melting this morning, unfortunately.

 

On the other hand, now that I've had this setback, I'm really feeling challenged to try again. I hate failure and it usually just makes me mad enough to keep at it until I succeed.

[Slowtwitch]

FWIW, I've had better luck with larger BTAs staying put longer. The little ones liked to float off. Just make sure you put it where it has a nice deep dark crevice to slide it's foot into

[teenyreef]

FWIW, I've had better luck with larger BTAs staying put longer. The little ones liked to float off. Just make sure you put it where it has a nice deep dark crevice to slide it's foot into

It was melted when I got home tonight

 

I'll try another one with sponges on the pumps and make sure the foot is in a deeper crevice.

[dropped]

FWIW, I've had better luck with larger BTAs staying put longer. The little ones liked to float off. Just make sure you put it where it has a nice deep dark crevice to slide it's foot into

 

 

Just make sure its a good place before you do that as its really hard to get them out of such a place if you need to move them.

[teenyreef]

 

 

Just make sure its a good place before you do that as its really hard to get them out of such a place if you need to move them.

My goal is to get it where I want it and have it stay there

[ninjamyst]

sorry to hear about the BTA =(. live and learn right?

[Kyl]

I wouldn't leave the power head off at all, just put that sponge guard on it. If you do leave pumps off it will attach, but when that flow is back on it probably won't be happy and will start walking / detach to find a better spot again.

 

My RBTA walked, detached, got stuck on the sponge guard and also squeezed through the overflow grooves in my fusion 10. He spent the better part of a day stuck to the sponge guard, but since settling down he hasn't walked in months (apart from a tiny bit of vertical movement during the last water change).

[markalot]

Can you out the circulation pumps in wave mode? This helps prevent the anemone from getting stuck, though BTA's can be downright dumb about it. I've got two now and worried this is about to happen to me. Not sure why I hang onto my anemone.

 

Sorry about yours, think twice before getting another IMO. If you make them happy they get BIG.

[jstuver]

I plan to turn my tank into an anemone/softy tank in the near future. I have never turned off power heads either when adding the ones I have had in the past I put them where I would like them and hope they stay but half the time they will just wander and find their spot.

That anemone was beautiful!

[teenyreef]

Thanks for all the advice everyone! They had more rbta's at the Lfs just like this one - they are so pretty I'm going to try again if they still have any.

 

I can run in wave mode, that's my standard daytime mode. At night they run continuously at a lower speed. So I think adding the foam covers will help.

 

If it gets too big then I have a great excuse for a big tank

[Bowen1022]

Sorry to hear about the nem loss. Everything else is looking great though! When is the next FTS scheduled?

[Tamberav]

I say don't give up!! They can be fussy at first but once they find a spot, they seem to sit still. When I got mine I had the pumps off until it attached and then turned them on so it could move into where it wanted (wasn't far for mine). I did it when I was home and just baby-sat them but foam covers should help too.

 

Even when I moved 400 miles and changed tanks, they didn't bother moving again but I think that was just luck.

[teenyreef]

Sorry to hear about the nem loss. Everything else is looking great though! When is the next FTS scheduled?

Hopefully this weekend!

I say don't give up!! They can be fussy at first but once they find a spot, they seem to sit still. When I got mine I had the pumps off until it attached and then turned them on so it could move into where it wanted (wasn't far for mine). I did it when I was home and just baby-sat them but foam covers should help too.

 

Even when I moved 400 miles and changed tanks, they didn't bother moving again but I think that was just luck.

Thanks, Tamberav!

[aviator300]

How is the tunze skimmer working out for you? I have a ghost in the 30 and micro bubble hell.........thinking of going with the tunze instead.

 

Looking good to!

I also had a ton of micro bubbles from my Ghost skimmer in my Fusion 20 at the start and I made one little, bitty change that cleared them up completely almost overnight. All the photos and diagrams I've seen show the skimmer positioned with the skimmer intake toward the overflow intake chamber and the skimmer outflow grate toward the pump chamber. All I did was turn it around 180 degrees and after 2 days, no micro bubbles. It's still skimming well and producing fairly thick light brown skimate.

[StinkyBunny]

I think we have the most indestructible GBTAs on the planet. M's went through the weir, not once, but twice. Instead of the damn things dying we ended up with not 2, not 3, but 4 more friggin' BTAs to sell off. I'd give you the red and Fiji Lightning Strike I have here if you were closer. If you kill our BTAs, reef keeping isn't for you, lol.

[Slowtwitch]

I think we have the most indestructible GBTAs on the planet. M's went through the weir, not once, but twice. Instead of the damn things dying we ended up with not 2, not 3, but 4 more friggin' BTAs to sell off. I'd give you the red and Fiji Lightning Strike I have here if you were closer. If you kill our BTAs, reef keeping isn't for you, lol.

Send those nems to me with the leathers. I've got plenty of room for them to get big.?

[StinkyBunny]

I don't think anyone understands this race we have. We bought M's 130D, how we got back into reef tanks. So we drive 60 miles west. We get there and this 130D has 90 lbs of live rock, 2 Percs, 7 BTAs, a 1/2 dead Caulastrea, 2 peppermint shrimp, 3 hermits and I shit you not 10 lbs of GHA. M weighed it as she scrubbed the rocks off before we redid the tank.

 

From the stress, we went from 7 to 11 in a 130D. We sell them for $20 ea, they're not super striking, but they're bulletproof. In 5 years she's sold $460 worth of CP BTAs.

[teenyreef]

I also had a ton of micro bubbles from my Ghost skimmer in my Fusion 20 at the start and I made one little, bitty change that cleared them up completely almost overnight. All the photos and diagrams I've seen show the skimmer positioned with the skimmer intake toward the overflow intake chamber and the skimmer outflow grate toward the pump chamber. All I did was turn it around 180 degrees and after 2 days, no micro bubbles. It's still skimming well and producing fairly thick light brown skimate.

I think I tried that on my little Ghost in the 10g tank but it didn't help. On the other hand, after I finally gave up and just turned it up all the way (I decided to just live with the noise), it works perfectly. No bubbles and the skimmate is great. The best part is, after it ran like that for about a week, it got way quieter.

 

Or I just got used to it. Either way I'm happy with it.

 

In this tank, though, the Tunze is the bomb. Works great, super quiet, no bubbles.

I think we have the most indestructible GBTAs on the planet. M's went through the weir, not once, but twice. Instead of the damn things dying we ended up with not 2, not 3, but 4 more friggin' BTAs to sell off. I'd give you the red and Fiji Lightning Strike I have here if you were closer. If you kill our BTAs, reef keeping isn't for you, lol.

If I get desperate I'll hit you up for one of your cockroach BTA's!

I don't think anyone understands this race we have. We bought M's 130D, how we got back into reef tanks. So we drive 60 miles west. We get there and this 130D has 90 lbs of live rock, 2 Percs, 7 BTAs, a 1/2 dead Caulastrea, 2 peppermint shrimp, 3 hermits and I shit you not 10 lbs of GHA. M weighed it as she scrubbed the rocks off before we redid the tank.

 

From the stress, we went from 7 to 11 in a 130D. We sell them for $20 ea, they're not super striking, but they're bulletproof. In 5 years she's sold $460 worth of CP BTAs.

10 pounds of GHA

[teenyreef]

OK, so I was weak and I went back to the LFS and I'm trying again.

 

The new one is pretty similar to the last one, but it's bigger. Powerheads are off until the foam guards show up.

 

20160823-untitled-072.jpg by TeenyReef, on Flickr

[ezcompany]

I wouldn't feed the rbta too much once in settles in, as it may outgrow your tank too quick.

[teenyreef]

I wouldn't feed the rbta too much once in settles in, as it may outgrow your tank too quick.

Thanks! I'm actually OK with that - I have a 90g FW tank that's just waiting to be converted to SW. I just need a bullet proof excuse first

[jack1978]

OK, so I was weak and I went back to the LFS and I'm trying again.

 

The new one is pretty similar to the last one, but it's bigger. Powerheads are off until the foam guards show up.

 

20160823-untitled-072.jpg by TeenyReef, on Flickr

Uh oh......you've been bitten by the BTA bug!

Nothing better than a clown/nem combo....or a porcelain crab in the BTA.....neat to watch the interaction.

Good luck, she looks pretty.

[aviator300]

I think I tried that on my little Ghost in the 10g tank but it didn't help. On the other hand, after I finally gave up and just turned it up all the way (I decided to just live with the noise), it works perfectly. No bubbles and the skimmate is great. The best part is, after it ran like that for about a week, it got way quieter.

 

Or I just got used to it. Either way I'm happy with it.

 

In this tank, though, the Tunze is the bomb. Works great, super quiet, no bubbles.

If I get desperate I'll hit you up for one of your cockroach BTA's!

10 pounds of GHA

Teeny. My ghost is very quiet and was that way from the start. All you can hear is a small, faint hissing sound. It also pulled a cupful of fairly thick green skimate the first week it was running. In light of these two good things I just mentioned, maybe they sent me a defective one Hahah.

[dropped]

Thanks! I'm actually OK with that - I have a 90g FW tank that's just waiting to be converted to SW. I just need a bullet proof excuse first

 

It looks Hungary to me.... Better feed it!