Where the Wild Things Are: 100 Days (rezing the thread)

[Pjanssen]

You are out of control

[lkoechle]

2 minutes ago, Pjanssen said:

You are out of control

I have things very well handled thank you.

[lkoechle]

and it begins! Next update after stuff is in the tank this afternoon! 

[spectra]

Well it is now evening..........................

[skoechle]

Just now, spectra said:

Well it is now evening..........................

She's been working on the post for a while 

[lkoechle]

Soooo...  Today was pretty epic.  I started two tanks today: the creature feature and this tank.

 

To rein in my enthusiasm and to not harrass @jedimasterben for the sticky note because I had TRUSTED HIM to post it, I decided to play Mortal Kombat with @skoechle instead of us harassing everyone on NR last night.  AHEM clearly, I should've been on here harassing everyone  At about 6:30 I was awoken with an e-mail saying my package had shipped and would arrive at the airport at 11:25 AM.  So I did a pre-coffee rampage because I'm a monster in the morning but it got ish done.

 

I posted that sticky and let the saltwater flow!  I put in 10 gallons to allow 4 for displacement, started the koralia and began heating the water.

 

At 11:25 AM @skoechle texts me he is on his way to the airport.  And by 12:40 we have this:

 

And what did we order?

Super live rock and super live sand.  Fresh from the ocean, packaged with water (not wrapped) and put on an airplane this morning.

 

How live is that sand?

 

Well, has you sand ever come with snails, whelks, hermit crabs, AND A CARIBBEAN CLINGFISH?!

 

Clingfish.  My first view, I noticed the sand moving of its own accord while @skoechle was dumping it.

 

Clingfish being clingy.

 

He made friends with our magfloat.

 

And how live was that rock?

 

 

Can you spy the pistol shrimp?  He's been very angry ever since.  

 

 

Baby crab

 

 

Tube coral

 

Short end

 

Barnacles and tunicate

 

 

Red Porcelain Crab, currently on the rock I put in the mantis tank.  Clearly, I need to move this crab to the "safe" tank.

 

Same with this Nass.  He was in the scoop of sand I put in the mantis tank apparently...

 

I thought this was a sponge, but the more I look at it, the more I'm thinking some kind of encrusting coral?  

 

No idea what this is, but it looks cool!

 

Pretty sister tanks 

 

I'm planning on lots of water changes.  A 4 gallon change tomorrow.  I get my ammonia kit tomorrow so I can test and then see how often I need to change.  I am running purigen and carbon.  I want to reduce loss of life.  Everything was actually really fresh, only one rock smelled and that was only when you put it under your nose.  That one went in the mantis tank so I will be doing much more water changes with that one. 

 

AND THIS WAS ONLY THE FIRST SHIPMENT!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9 minutes ago, spectra said:

Well it is now evening..........................

I got your epic right here.

[Derrick1980]

33 minutes ago, vlangel said:

My girls have totally got the idea of eating from the new food bowl. As soon as I turn off the powerhead they head for the bowl.  Samson is another story, he is usually oblivious. That forces me to personally feed him with the turkey baster but even then he lets the girls beat him to the snick!  He is a bit thin and the girls are all little heifers.

I love reading about your tank and it's inhabitants.  I have a Samson as well, my blue chromis.. my wife named him.  My Doris is like your girls, she commands the most space in the tank and has a very good appetite.  She also is getting fat.  I read that puffers will eat until they can no longer swim, but float along with the current.  Makes me reavaluate how much I'm feeding her, and my other Saddled Toby.   :-/

[metrokat]

What an awesome start! The life on that shipment is unbelievable. Are you sure it is a pistol shrimp? it is likely to be a mantis.

Your encrusting coral appears to be a colonial tunicate colony. I could be mistaken but when it starts inflating you might be able to tell better.

 

On 5/5/2017 at 4:13 PM, Mariaface said:

I think our Fish Nerds group is going to have to treat me to grown up drinks on my birthday this year... 

Malibu bay breeze won't cut it forever   

(loving the IG posts by the way!) 

Oh PFFFT! You get offered plenty of real alcohol when you come over. Glenlivet is all you are allowed the next time. No more excuses.

[skoechle]

Just now, Derrick1980 said:

I love reading about your tank and it's inhabitants.  I have a Samson as well, my blue chromis.. my wife named him.  My Doris is like your girls, she commands the most space in the tank and has a very good appetite.  She also is getting fat.  I read that puffers will eat until they can no longer swim, but float along with the current.  Makes me reavaluate how much I'm feeding her, and my other Saddled Toby.   :-/

wrong thread bro... has nothing to do with our tank

[lkoechle]

Just now, metrokat said:

What an awesome start! The life on that shipment is unbelievable. Are you sure it is a pistol shrimp? it is likely to be a mantis.

Your encrusting coral appears to be a colonial tunicate colony. I could be mistaken but when it starts inflating you might be able to tell better.

 

Oh PFFFT! You get offered plenty of real alcohol when you come over. Glenlivet is all you are allowed the next time. No more excuses.

Yeah, 100% sure.  He's in the photo of the live rock.  I touched him and he got angry and started running all over.  He started snapping as soon as we got him in and has hardly stopped. he's  the top image:

 

And that coral did appear to inflate a little bit before the lights went off.  I'm still figuring our the orbit marine and have it on its preset coral acclimate.  So I didn't get a lot of time to look once the water cleared before lights out.  

 

Super excited for the next stuff.  I'm really hoping the clingfish gets comfortable a little more so I can feed him.  I've read that they'll eat mysis and stuff.   So fingers crossed!

[Derrick1980]

4 minutes ago, skoechle said:

wrong thread bro... has nothing to do with our tank

Well excuse me.. I wouldn't want to ruin your thread by posting irrelevantly as you and many others did in my tank journal threads.  I quoted that from vlangel when I was reading her thread and it put it here because my messages updated.   You may not care about her tank but I do.  Lighten up, at least you haven't had non-tank related chatter in your thread since you started it.  I have.  It sucks.

[spectra]

17 minutes ago, lkoechle said:

Soooo...  Today was pretty epic.  I started two tanks today: the creature feature and this tank.

 

To rein in my enthusiasm and to not harrass @jedimasterben for the sticky note because I had TRUSTED HIM to post it, I decided to play Mortal Kombat with @skoechle instead of us harassing everyone on NR last night.  AHEM clearly, I should've been on here harassing everyone  At about 6:30 I was awoken with an e-mail saying my package had shipped and would arrive at the airport at 11:25 AM.  So I did a pre-coffee rampage because I'm a monster in the morning but it got ish done.

 

I posted that sticky and let the saltwater flow!  I put in 10 gallons to allow 4 for displacement, started the koralia and began heating the water.

 

At 11:25 AM @skoechle texts me he is on his way to the airport.  And by 12:40 we have this:

 

And what did we order?

Super live rock and super live sand.  Fresh from the ocean, packaged with water (not wrapped) and put on an airplane this morning.

 

How live is that sand?

 

Well, has you sand ever come with snails, whelks, hermit crabs, AND A CARIBBEAN CLINGFISH?!

 

Clingfish.  My first view, I noticed the sand moving of its own accord while @skoechle was dumping it.

 

Clingfish being clingy.

 

He made friends with our magfloat.

 

And how live was that rock?

 

 

Can you spy the pistol shrimp?  He's been very angry ever since.  

 

 

Baby crab

 

 

Tube coral

 

Short end

 

Barnacles and tunicate

 

 

Red Porcelain Crab, currently on the rock I put in the mantis tank.  Clearly, I need to move this crab to the "safe" tank.

 

Same with this Nass.  He was in the scoop of sand I put in the mantis tank apparently...

 

I thought this was a sponge, but the more I look at it, the more I'm thinking some kind of encrusting coral?  

 

No idea what this is, but it looks cool!

 

Pretty sister tanks 

 

I'm planning on lots of water changes.  A 4 gallon change tomorrow.  I get my ammonia kit tomorrow so I can test and then see how often I need to change.  I am running purigen and carbon.  I want to reduce loss of life.  Everything was actually really fresh, only one rock smelled and that was only when you put it under your nose.  That one went in the mantis tank so I will be doing much more water changes with that one. 

 

AND THIS WAS ONLY THE FIRST SHIPMENT!!! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I got your epic right here.

 

Looks good and I am sure you husband runs when you put those gloves on  

 

and as for epic.......well am waiting to see the epic algae outbreak on those rocks......you hopefully get lucky and have a very small cycle.

 

[skoechle]

Just now, Derrick1980 said:

Well excuse me.. I wouldn't want to ruin your thread by posting irrelevantly as you and many others did in my tank journal threads.  I quoted that from vlangel when I was reading her thread and it put it here because my messages updated.   You may not care about her tank but I do.  Lighten up, at least you haven't had non-tank related chatter in your thread since you started it.  I have.  It sucks.

I know, it happens, just pointing it out... Maybe thought you would want to repost it in the appropriate thread.

[jedimasterben]

My advice would be to not bother with an ammonia test kit or water changes for right this second - get a Seachem Ammonia Alert badge and just read free ammonia in real time, and use Seachem Prime or Alpha to oxidize any ammonia present. This will knock down the harshness of the cycle to almost nothing and it will be over very quickly.

 

Edited May 11, 2017 by jedimasterben
Frickin autocorrect

[1891Bro]

7 minutes ago, Derrick1980 said:

Well excuse me.. I wouldn't want to ruin your thread by posting irrelevantly as you and many others did in my tank journal threads.  I quoted that from vlangel when I was reading her thread and it put it here because my messages updated.   You may not care about her tank but I do.  Lighten up, at least you haven't had non-tank related chatter in your thread since you started it.  I have.  It sucks.

And people call me a dick?

[1891Bro]

That is some great stuff. Awesome start. If it all acme fully submerged the bacteria won't have died off. It's the other stuff possibly dying that you should be concerned with. Being that fresh I bet you have very few issues. 

[skoechle]

4 minutes ago, jedimasterben said:

My advice would be to not bother with an ammonia test kit or water changes for right this second - get a Seachem Ammonia Alert badge and just read free ammonia in real time, and use Seachem Prime or Alpha to oxidize any ammonia present. This will knock down the harshness of the cycle to almost nothing and it will be over very quickly.

 

Ammonia Alert Badges already on order and come in tomorrow (LFS ran out). We are currently dosing with Fritzyme9 to help. Didn't think about using Prime although I know we have a bottle of it for our freshwater tank.

[lkoechle]

Just now, 1891Bro said:

That is some great stuff. Awesome start. If it all acme fully submerged the bacteria won't have died off. It's the other stuff possibly dying that you should be concerned with. Being that fresh I bet you have very few issues. 

Yeah, all the rocks smelled great except for one which got put in the mantis tank so that's the tank I think will have cycling issues if they come up.  The contest tank I think will be in fairly good shape.

[jedimasterben]

5 minutes ago, skoechle said:

Ammonia Alert Badges already on order and come in tomorrow (LFS ran out). We are currently dosing with Fritzyme9 to help. Didn't think about using Prime although I know we have a bottle of it for our freshwater tank.

You're already off to a good start then

 

Dump that prime in, yo, it will be the biggest savior of the life you got in there so far!

[lkoechle]

1 minute ago, jedimasterben said:

You're already off to a good start then

 

Dump that prime in, yo, it will be the biggest savior of the life you got in there so far!

How long will it work? Like is it on going (ie there's no ammonia NOW but in 3 hours...) I mainly use it as a dechlorinator for the FW tank.

[Weetabix7]

[spectra]

Oh and that light is crooked  sorry but @stellablue  knows that wouldn't fly in my house............

[metrokat]

35 minutes ago, lkoechle said:

Yeah, 100% sure.  He's in the photo of the live rock.  I touched him and he got angry and started running all over.  He started snapping as soon as we got him in and has hardly stopped. he's  the top image:

 

And that coral did appear to inflate a little bit before the lights went off.  I'm still figuring our the orbit marine and have it on its preset coral acclimate.  So I didn't get a lot of time to look once the water cleared before lights out.  

 

Super excited for the next stuff.  I'm really hoping the clingfish gets comfortable a little more so I can feed him.  I've read that they'll eat mysis and stuff.   So fingers crossed!

Oh that's Pete the Pistol. He loves curlique anemones. Symbiotic.

[lkoechle]

2 minutes ago, spectra said:

Oh and that light is crooked  sorry but @stellablue  knows that wouldn't fly in my house............

Still admiring my tanks?  Your envy is showing...

[jedimasterben]

8 minutes ago, lkoechle said:

How long will it work? Like is it on going (ie there's no ammonia NOW but in 3 hours...) I mainly use it as a dechlorinator for the FW tank.

I don't know how long it stays stable in the water, but I wouldn't stress about it too much, just dump some in a few times a day and ammonia should stay pretty low.