Lula_Mae Posted August 12, 2017 Share Posted August 12, 2017 6 minutes ago, samnaz said: I've got a 2.5 gal I got to practice painting the back black. I'll use that to practice drilling too. I'm kinda nervous. My brother builds guitars and is a drill pro so I'm thinking I might have him do it. Spray painting is easier than I thought it would be, just be sure to tape off what you don't want to get painted (can use newsprint or something too, my dad made use of the cardboard that the tank came with when he helped me do it)! Drilling I can't help with lol. I just know to go slow and easy (but I've never tried it). 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 12, 2017 Author Share Posted August 12, 2017 Just now, Lula_Mae said: Spray painting is easier than I thought it would be, just be sure to tape off what you don't want to get painted (can use newsprint or something too, my dad made use of the cardboard that the tank came with when he helped me do it)! Drilling I can't help with lol. I just know to go slow and easy (but I've never tried it). I actually already did the practice with the black paint a long time ago. Before I bought the Nuvo Black, which has a black back so no need to paint it Quote Link to comment
Lula_Mae Posted August 12, 2017 Share Posted August 12, 2017 5 minutes ago, samnaz said: I actually already did the practice with the black paint a long time ago. Before I bought the Nuvo Black, which has a black back so no need to paint it Oh! Haha I guess not then. But that would probably be perfect to practice drilling on so you don't crack the nice tank! 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 13, 2017 Author Share Posted August 13, 2017 I can't tell if my sexy shrimp are fighting or playing. I've never seen them do this before. IMG_0428 by Sam Naszradi, on Flickr That's supposed to be a video... I can't figure out how to post a video. Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 13, 2017 Author Share Posted August 13, 2017 I guess you can't unless you use youtube or vimeo so nvm. Quote Link to comment
Thunder Goose Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 On 7/4/2017 at 9:42 AM, samnaz said: Well... in my eyes that doesn't exactly cancel it out, but that's just me. And I care too much about protecting the ocean, more than anything else, even jobs (unless the job is helping the ocean, like collecting invasive species, replanting corals, research, etc). I know, I don't belong here on this forum, haha. Where can I find a thread for your all-aquacultured-except-for-the-shrimp tank? I want to know more about this. I started Tranquility Base as all aquacultured except inverts until I had to move stuff from my other tank over. It's easy to find coral frags aquacultured (I got quite a few locally, from other reefers). Fishwise there are enough good options unless you have your heart set on something particular. (Bonus, I've heard Bangaii cardinals are hRvested from a place that they're invasive!) There are also some places that focus on ethical collecting. In lower income communities, being able to sell live fish can help encourage protecting reef habitat. It takes some effort but you can have a reef tank without harming wild reefs. Inverts are a bit more challenging but you will occasionally find captive bred (mostly snails) and you can find ethically harvested inverts. It's a lot harder, though. 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 20 hours ago, Thunder Goose said: I started Tranquility Base as all aquacultured except inverts until I had to move stuff from my other tank over. It's easy to find coral frags aquacultured (I got quite a few locally, from other reefers). Fishwise there are enough good options unless you have your heart set on something particular. (Bonus, I've heard Bangaii cardinals are hRvested from a place that they're invasive!) There are also some places that focus on ethical collecting. In lower income communities, being able to sell live fish can help encourage protecting reef habitat. It takes some effort but you can have a reef tank without harming wild reefs. Inverts are a bit more challenging but you will occasionally find captive bred (mostly snails) and you can find ethically harvested inverts. It's a lot harder, though. To be honest, I'm not really interested in fish and have little desire to keep one. Plus I don't want to commit to feeding 3x a day, and I don't want a lid on my tank. Although, I have considered the awesome and invasive Lionfish, and the ORA Mandarin. Unlikely it'll happen though. Inverts all the way. Unfortunately, it is much harder to find those. Hoping that more will be successfully bred and available in the future. I'm all for putting the effort in, it's the least I can do. I enjoy my piece of the reef a lot more knowing wild reefs weren't harmed for it... It's my thanks to the ocean for making my reef possible in the first place Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 26, 2017 Author Share Posted August 26, 2017 I've seen one of my Hidden Cup Corals devour a Cerith snail many times. I'd love to know if it's actually able to suck the snail from it's shell and eat it. There's usually at least one snail near the Cup Coral. I assumed the snails were attracted to it because I feed the coral so often. Or maybe they're just empty shells the coral spit out. My cup corals are definitely my favorite thing in my tank, by far. I wish I knew how to get them to reproduce faster. I started with one a year ago, now I have two... It amazes me seeing some of the huge colonies of cup corals in peoples tanks, seems like it would take years. 3 Quote Link to comment
Thunder Goose Posted August 26, 2017 Share Posted August 26, 2017 Cup corals are a seriously underrated coral that are well suited to a nano tank that you look at close up. Love mine. Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 27, 2017 Author Share Posted August 27, 2017 11 hours ago, Thunder Goose said: Cup corals are a seriously underrated coral that are well suited to a nano tank that you look at close up. Love mine. I agree, seriously underrated. I'm surprised they're not one of the most sought after corals tbh. 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 28, 2017 Author Share Posted August 28, 2017 Alright, I'm going for it. Drilling, plumbing, sump... here I come. I can't tell you how many hours I've spent trying to understand this crap. My head hurts. Here's what I've decided on so far: - Glass-Holes 700 GPH Overflow Box and Return - Bubble Magnus Curve 5 Skimmer - Trigger Systems Ruby Sump 30 (25 gallons) - Trigger Systems Crystal ATO (5 gallons) annnnd now I'm broke. Still need a return pump (perhaps Sicce Syncra 1.5), and PVC pipes and fittings. I have to decide on the layout first, and I'm totally lost/have no idea what to do. This is soo not fun. But it'll be worth the it in the end, I'm sure. 1 1 Quote Link to comment
mitten_reef Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 That is one serious shopping spree. Can't wait to see the whole system put together. 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 10 hours ago, micoastreefing said: That is one serious shopping spree. Can't wait to see the whole system put together. Indeed it was. Luckily most of the shopping spree took place on forums so I got some crazy deals. I can't wait either, hope it does not disappoint. If only the new tank wasn't going in the same place as the old one. I would've had it up and running months ago. Quote Link to comment
TatorTaco Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 I think this is going to be a kick-butt setup once drilled. I'm super interested in a reef tank that is LPS heavy with no fish. My wife was asking me what fish I was planning to stock in a new tank I'm setting up a few nights ago. I was puzzled. I hadn't put any thought into actually including a fish. LOL. 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted August 31, 2017 Author Share Posted August 31, 2017 3 hours ago, TatorTaco said: I think this is going to be a kick-butt setup once drilled. I'm super interested in a reef tank that is LPS heavy with no fish. My wife was asking me what fish I was planning to stock in a new tank I'm setting up a few nights ago. I was puzzled. I hadn't put any thought into actually including a fish. LOL. I think so, too. I have pretty high hopes for this one.... Considering all the time (and money) I've put into it, it better kick some major butt. It certainly will compared to the current setup, at least. You might be the only other fish-less reefer I know of. Nice to know I'm not completely alone, hah. I'm just here for the corals/invertebrates. I find them fascinating. Some are so brilliantly simple like sponges, and others unbelievably complex and intelligent like the Cephalopods. 2 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted September 3, 2017 Author Share Posted September 3, 2017 My tank is one year old today! Took some photos with my old Canon Rebel XTI that I haven't touched in 10 years (most of these are underexposed and too red, forgive me). 3 Quote Link to comment
Weetabix7 Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 59 minutes ago, samnaz said: My tank is one year old today! Took some photos with my old Canon Rebel XTI that I haven't touched in 10 years (most of these are underexposed and too red, forgive me). This is beautiful!!! Happy Bday Samnaz Tank!!! 1 Quote Link to comment
Lula_Mae Posted September 3, 2017 Share Posted September 3, 2017 Happy Tank-iversary! Beautiful pics! 1 Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Photo dump... Gold Hammer and Cowrie Duncan and babies My favorite Montipora "Zombie Juice" Montipora A new Cyphastrea More of the Duncan Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 Cowrie The black sponge has completely taken over the base of my Frogspawn, and it's now sprouting multiple arms (not sure what to do about this, if anything?....) Hidden Cup Coral, Phyllangia americana Cyphastrea (either Meteor Shower or Jingle Bell, I forget) One of my thousands of Stomatellas 1 Quote Link to comment
Lula_Mae Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 2 hours ago, samnaz said: Cowrie The black sponge has completely taken over the base of my Frogspawn, and it's now sprouting multiple arms (not sure what to do about this, if anything?....) Hidden Cup Coral, Phyllangia americana Cyphastrea (either Meteor Shower or Jingle Bell, I forget) One of my thousands of Stomatellas Gorgeous pics! That black sponge is freaky. Maybe take the frogspawn out and expose the sponge to air/scrub it off with a toothbrush outside the tank? I once had an encrusting black sponge that loved the low flow areas and kept taking over rocks. Yuck! Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted September 20, 2017 Author Share Posted September 20, 2017 11 minutes ago, Lula_Mae said: Gorgeous pics! That black sponge is freaky. Maybe take the frogspawn out and expose the sponge to air/scrub it off with a toothbrush outside the tank? I once had an encrusting black sponge that loved the low flow areas and kept taking over rocks. Yuck! Tbh, I think sponges are really cool and I don't want to kill it unless it's bothering or hindering the growth of the Frogspawn. In the pic the Frogspawn looks pissed but that's just cause it was late at night and it wasn't fully extended. During the day though it fully extends and looks happy and healthy. I'm concerned that it won't ever be able to sprout new heads though, because the sponge is covering the entire base. I think I might try to peel it off with a razor or something and stick it to the underside of a rock instead. 1 Quote Link to comment
Lula_Mae Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 2 minutes ago, samnaz said: Tbh, I think sponges are really cool and I don't want to kill it unless it's bothering or hindering the growth of the Frogspawn. In the pic the Frogspawn looks pissed but that's just cause it was late at night and it wasn't fully extended. During the day though it fully extends and looks happy and healthy. I'm concerned that it won't ever be able to sprout new heads though, because the sponge is covering the entire base. I think I might try to peel it off with a razor or something and stick it to the underside of a rock instead. That might work, I would def. do it outside the tank though as I've heard of sponges spreading like wildfire if scraped off inside the tank lol. The sponge I had was just gross looking and would've happily grown over any other life on the rock so it had to go! Quote Link to comment
samnaz Posted September 24, 2017 Author Share Posted September 24, 2017 Tonight, I drill the tank... With any luck, it'll look something like this: 2 Quote Link to comment
schgr.cube Posted September 25, 2017 Share Posted September 25, 2017 Good luck!! 1 Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.