Kimber's Old Tank Thread

[kimberbee]

It's BONUS time!! 

 

My husband got a nice hefty bonus this year - Most of went right into our savings, another big chunk went towards paying off my husband's Wrangler, and a small portion we're splitting to buy ourselves a few things we've been wanting. 

 

He's spending his share on Jeep parts, of course... 

 

I'll be making a few tank-related purchases, starting with 4 RFAs from SaltCritters - an order that I just placed this morning. 

 

I'll be getting one or two more orders in, and have been working on a wish list to decide whether to buy things I need (consumables/equipment) or things I want (corals/fish). Also balancing that between getting a little something for both tanks, so here's what I have to pick from so far:

 

Supply order: new heater, test kit reagents, chemipure blue

KPA order: gorgs and fun inverts for the 20

LFS or Unique Corals: ~3 euphyllia frags for the 25

Fish order: Unlikely - I'm still trying to decide what fish I want to add to the 20... wrasse, cardinal, or some other swimmer... and the 25 is not ready for the mandarins or pipefish I'm hoping for

[Wonderboy]

Awesome! Can't wait to see the RFAs!

[kimberbee]

The RFAs arrived yesterday!!

 

Firstly - Of-frickin-course we had a snow storm all day Monday and into Tuesday. I swear I checked the weather and saw that it was just going to be chilly (mid-30's). So Tuesday morning, when it was in the 20's and windy, I started watching the door like a hawk the moment I saw my package was out for delivery. 

 

Secondly - SaltCritters is located in my state!! Only about an hour and a half away!! But, that's ok. Shipping was only $25 and it saves me the hassle of a 3 hour drive that would not likely be during Liam's nap time. When you have a 1-year-old, convenience is key!

 

Ok, on to the package!! Arrived in a small box, styrofoam insulation, wrapped in newspaper, in a plastic bag... Then each nem was in it's own little double bagged, heat sealed (?) pouch, with about a cup of water. There were also two heat packs that were still warm. I was really impressed with the packaging. It was really easy to open, because it wasn't a knotted up plastic bag that I had to hack through with scissors. 

 

They all looked great in the bags, though a little shrunken. I was able to match them up exactly with what I had purchased - which is always a concern of mine when buying wisiwyg. 

 

Temp acclimated in their bags for 30 mins. Cut all flow in my tank, placed the nems, left them for 20 minutes, and then flow back on. They attached quickly and look great!!

 

 

And this morning, still sleeping. They've moved slightly:

 

[Ratvan]

Just now, kimberbee said:

The RFAs arrived yesterday!!

 

Firstly - Of-frickin-course we had a snow storm all day Monday and into Tuesday. I swear I checked the weather and saw that it was just going to be chilly (mid-30's). So Tuesday morning, when it was in the 20's and windy, I started watching the door like a hawk the moment I saw my package was out for delivery. 

 

Secondly - SaltCritters is located in my state!! Only about an hour and a half away!! But, that's ok. Shipping was only $25 and it saves me the hassle of a 3 hour drive that would not likely be during Liam's nap time. When you have a 1-year-old, convenience is key!

 

Ok, on to the package!! Arrived in a small box, styrofoam insulation, wrapped in newspaper, in a plastic bag... Then each nem was in it's own little double bagged, heat sealed (?) pouch, with about a cup of water. There were also two heat packs that were still warm. I was really impressed with the packaging. It was really easy to open, because it wasn't a knotted up plastic bag that I had to hack through with scissors. 

 

They all looked great in the bags, though a little shrunken. I was able to match them up exactly with what I had purchased - which is always a concern of mine when buying wisiwyg. 

 

Temp acclimated in their bags for 30 mins. Cut all flow in my tank, placed the nems, left them for 20 minutes, and then flow back on. They attached quickly and look great!!

 

 

And this morning, still sleeping. They've moved slightly:

 

They look incredible and it is always a relief when what you received matches the photos of your orders. How long do they normally take to settle in place?

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

3 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

The RFAs arrived yesterday!!

 

Firstly - Of-frickin-course we had a snow storm all day Monday and into Tuesday. I swear I checked the weather and saw that it was just going to be chilly (mid-30's). So Tuesday morning, when it was in the 20's and windy, I started watching the door like a hawk the moment I saw my package was out for delivery. 

 

Secondly - SaltCritters is located in my state!! Only about an hour and a half away!! But, that's ok. Shipping was only $25 and it saves me the hassle of a 3 hour drive that would not likely be during Liam's nap time. When you have a 1-year-old, convenience is key!

 

Ok, on to the package!! Arrived in a small box, styrofoam insulation, wrapped in newspaper, in a plastic bag... Then each nem was in it's own little double bagged, heat sealed (?) pouch, with about a cup of water. There were also two heat packs that were still warm. I was really impressed with the packaging. It was really easy to open, because it wasn't a knotted up plastic bag that I had to hack through with scissors. 

 

They all looked great in the bags, though a little shrunken. I was able to match them up exactly with what I had purchased - which is always a concern of mine when buying wisiwyg. 

 

Temp acclimated in their bags for 30 mins. Cut all flow in my tank, placed the nems, left them for 20 minutes, and then flow back on. They attached quickly and look great!!

 

 

And this morning, still sleeping. They've moved slightly:

 

yay for new nems . I'm almost thinking of turning the waterbox 20 into a rock flower and algae paradise

2 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

They look incredible and it is always a relief when what you received matches the photos of your orders. How long do they normally take to settle in place?

Usually right away. Unless your me and have wandering nems

[kimberbee]

Just now, Ratvan said:

They look incredible and it is always a relief when what you received matches the photos of your orders. How long do they normally take to settle in place?

I had never ordered from them before, so that added to my nervousness!!

 

If you mean attaching after first placement, up to 30 minutes. One tried to stick to my hand as soon as I pulled it from the bag! That one attached to the rock within minutes. 

 

If you mean show it's full size and settle into a favorite spot... I'd say up to a day to fluff out - one of the nems has increased significantly in size since first placing it. They were all about 1in when placed, and the biggest one is now about 2in across. Some will stay where you stick them for months, even years, if they like the spot. Some will constantly be on the move.

 

Rock flower anemones are the only anemones I've ever owned so I can't speak to how they move compared to others. But there is a reason this is an RFA/gorgonian only tank. They can/will move closer to other corals and someone usually looses that fight. The first two I ever owned were very small - 1/2 inch maybe and quickly hid in the rocks, withered away and died. I usually try to purchase larger sized ones cause they are not as delicate.

 

I know you're interested in them, so I figured the extra info would be helpful!

[Ratvan]

6 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

I had never ordered from them before, so that added to my nervousness!!

 

If you mean attaching after first placement, up to 30 minutes. One tried to stick to my hand as soon as I pulled it from the bag! That one attached to the rock within minutes. 

 

If you mean show it's full size and settle into a favorite spot... I'd say up to a day to fluff out - one of the nems has increased significantly in size since first placing it. They were all about 1in when placed, and the biggest one is now about 2in across. Some will stay where you stick them for months, even years, if they like the spot. Some will constantly be on the move.

 

Rock flower anemones are the only anemones I've ever owned so I can't speak to how they move compared to others. But there is a reason this is an RFA/gorgonian only tank. They can/will move closer to other corals and someone usually looses that fight. The first two I ever owned were very small - 1/2 inch maybe and quickly hid in the rocks, withered away and died. I usually try to purchase larger sized ones cause they are not as delicate.

 

I know you're interested in them, so I figured the extra info would be helpful!

Definately interested in them if i ever find some at an affordable price 

Thank you for the info, very much appreciated

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

7 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

I had never ordered from them before, so that added to my nervousness!!

 

If you mean attaching after first placement, up to 30 minutes. One tried to stick to my hand as soon as I pulled it from the bag! That one attached to the rock within minutes. 

 

If you mean show it's full size and settle into a favorite spot... I'd say up to a day to fluff out - one of the nems has increased significantly in size since first placing it. They were all about 1in when placed, and the biggest one is now about 2in across. Some will stay where you stick them for months, even years, if they like the spot. Some will constantly be on the move.

 

Rock flower anemones are the only anemones I've ever owned so I can't speak to how they move compared to others. But there is a reason this is an RFA/gorgonian only tank. They can/will move closer to other corals and someone usually looses that fight. The first two I ever owned were very small - 1/2 inch maybe and quickly hid in the rocks, withered away and died. I usually try to purchase larger sized ones cause they are not as delicate.

 

I know you're interested in them, so I figured the extra info would be helpful!

Rock flowers are my absolute favorite. I have one rock flower that's up against a discoma mushroom and the where the mushroom touches the nem the side of the mushroom has been "burnt' to take the shape of the rock flower. It's pretty wild to see.

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

@Ratvan I'll try and get a pic later when I get home. It's pretty neat. The acans don't seem to mind touching the flowers though, I find that pretty weird.

[Ratvan]

7 minutes ago, DSFIRSTSLTWATER said:

@Ratvan I'll try and get a pic later when I get home. It's pretty neat. The acans don't seem to mind touching the flowers though, I find that pretty weird.

Actually leaning towards Acans at the moment for the 5.5G can get 2-3 Head Frags for £10-30, good to know that RFA's dont seem to bother them

 

https://zoamarines.co.uk/collections/acans?sort_by=price-ascending

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

12 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Actually leaning towards Acans at the moment for the 5.5G can get 2-3 Head Frags for £10-30, good to know that RFA's dont seem to bother them

 

https://zoamarines.co.uk/collections/acans?sort_by=price-ascending

Those are pretty. Just watch out for the Echinata acans… those need to be away from everything as they are super aggressive

Google them and the pics of the destruction lol. I got to witness it first hand

[kimberbee]

13 minutes ago, DSFIRSTSLTWATER said:

@Ratvan I'll try and get a pic later when I get home. It's pretty neat. The acans don't seem to mind touching the flowers though, I find that pretty weird.

It's interesting what corals/inverts can/can't be friends. I had an RFA and setosa get into it, and strangely (to me) the RFA started winning. I don't remember now what was overpowering the RFA, but I only had a mixed reef for a few months before moving out everything that wasn't an RFA... 

 

Oh, they do get along with my purple plating sponge. 

[Ratvan]

Just now, DSFIRSTSLTWATER said:

Those are pretty. Just watch out for the Echinata acans… those need to be away from everything as they are super aggressive

Yeah I read about that, and they're the cheaper ones too. Sneaky.

 

@kimberbee what sort of size are they? (please not in terms of US Coins, that means nowt to me!)

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

1 minute ago, kimberbee said:

It's interesting what corals/inverts can/can't be friends. I had an RFA and setosa get into it, and strangely (to me) the RFA started winning. I don't remember now what was overpowering the RFA, but I only had a mixed reef for a few months before moving out everything that wasn't an RFA... 

 

Oh, they do get along with my purple plating sponge. 

One of my other nems is close to my blasto and they seem to be ok. I'm sure they've touched before and no harm no foul, but yeah, it's pretty cool to see what gets along.

[kimberbee]

16 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

 

@kimberbee what sort of size are they? (please not in terms of US Coins, that means nowt to me!)

Vendors should list size range on websites - most I've seen sell between 2-4.5cm. Some will sell smaller, but I try not to purchase them smaller than 2cm. They get lost in the rockwork so much easier when they are tiny. 

 

The ones I just got are about 3-4cm. The largest one in my tank is probably about 8cm, and I've had it 4-ish years. I've seen people claim they get 18cm, but I've never seen proof. 

[Ratvan]

6 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

Vendors should list size range on websites - most I've seen sell between 2-4.5cm. Some will sell smaller, but I try not to purchase them smaller than 2cm. They get lost in the rockwork so much easier when they are tiny. 

 

The ones I just got are about 3-4cm. The largest one in my tank is probably about 8cm, and I've had it 4-ish years. I've seen people claim they get 18cm, but I've never seen proof. 

Sounds like a good idea, I have found some that are being sold inside of Ceramic Bio Media, so probably much too small for the price

[Wonderboy]

1 hour ago, kimberbee said:

Vendors should list size range on websites - most I've seen sell between 2-4.5cm. Some will sell smaller, but I try not to purchase them smaller than 2cm. They get lost in the rockwork so much easier when they are tiny. 

 

The ones I just got are about 3-4cm. The largest one in my tank is probably about 8cm, and I've had it 4-ish years. I've seen people claim they get 18cm, but I've never seen proof. 

I have seen one that has to be 16-20 cm - I thought it was a mini maxi at first. I'll snag a pic when I can.

[ECLS Reefer]

I've been stalking SaltCritters for a while now. When I have money (and I don't, after buying yarn and pods and a few supplies) I will probably try them out since it looks like they do you right with shipping. Thanks for posting that information!

[spectra]

CM wtf...…………. you talking Christopher Marks here...……….. this is Murica we use inches  

 

 

[kimberbee]

For those of you not following me on Instagram - I'm planning to do a live unboxing and q&a. The q&a form is on my stories, but I've only got two questions so far. I'm hoping for at least 2 more good ones. The little form will be up on my stories for about 4 more hours. Or I'll take questions from here too. Otherwise I'll probably goggle "most asked questions about reef keeping" to find a couple more. 

 

😊

[kimberbee]

Tanks have been on autopilot the past few weeks. 

 

My kitty is sick and that's been taking up a lot of my time and energy lately. I've posted about it in a few places, but in case you haven't seen - he was diagnosed with kidney disease just before Thanksgiving. His longevity depends on how he reacts to treatment, which really just means we have to wait and see. 

 

I let myself have a pity party about it for a few weeks, but life goes on. 

 

I'll get back to tank stuff shortly. 

[kimberbee]

Lagoon Update for January 2020:

 

 

The 25 gallon lagoon has been trucking along just fine. I do need to do a deep cleaning of the rear chambers and pumps, buuuut, I'm lazy. The mushrooms are gigantic and bothering my hammers, and my little hammer frags keep getting shifted and are falling over in the sand. Not much algae, except what's growing on the dead rw-4, and I still have diatoms on the sand bed. I don't get it. 🤷‍♀️

 

The whole left side needs a little work... I have 3 neon toadstools and a sinularia that just don't look good where they are at. The black sun coral is on the struggle bus headed to nowhere good. And then the previously mentioned hammers - 4 frags totalling 6 or 7 heads. I need to get that junk pile sorted. 

[kimberbee]

Flower Garden Update for January 2020:

 

 

This tank has been pretty easy. The 14 RFAs seem generally happy and have mostly stayed put. Gorgonians are doing well despite that the rw-4 went caput a couple months ago. 

 

I have algae on my grubes, but that has been on ongoing issue for years, if I'm being honest. The diatoms in the sand are worse in this tank than in the lagoon and I really don't understand why. I'm also having a weird heater issue: the heater was set at 78, but the tank was only 75. Then I bumped the heater to 80 and the tank was only 76. I cautiously set the heater at 82, and the tank still sits at 76. Here's another 🤷‍♀️

[WV Reefer]

11 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

Flower Garden Update for January 2020:

 

 

This tank has been pretty easy. The 14 RFAs seem generally happy and have mostly stayed put. Gorgonians are doing well despite that the rw-4 went caput a couple months ago. 

 

I have algae on my grubes, but that has been on ongoing issue for years, if I'm being honest. The diatoms in the sand are worse in this tank than in the lagoon and I really don't understand why. I'm also having a weird heater issue: the heater was set at 78, but the tank was only 75. Then I bumped the heater to 80 and the tank was only 76. I cautiously set the heater at 82, and the tank still sits at 76. Here's another 🤷‍♀️

It’s seems no matter what I set my heaters on, even different heaters, my tanks settle around 75°. I don’t fight it anymore. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I often think about trying it without the heater at all. 

[kimberbee]

1 hour ago, WV Reefer said:

It’s seems no matter what I set my heaters on, even different heaters, my tanks settle around 75°. I don’t fight it anymore. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I often think about trying it without the heater at all. 

It wasn't an issue before I got this new heater a few months ago. I do wonder if return pump flow matters. If the return pump is gunked up and slow, would the water cool off enough by the time it gets circulated to the display? I'll have to clean up the pump and see...