Madcat's Fluval Evo 13.5 - new shrimpy

[fishfreak0114]

Jeff looks normal to me  Mine gets pretty bloated looking after a good meal.

[Madcat]

Yeah, Jeff's fine today.  Looking for more food! Puzzle ate all the pellets as usual though.

 

Tiny baby feeder tentacles! Almost like a real coral!

 

 

And this is the injured crow I rescued outside McDonald's today:

 

 

(Low light for reduced stress while I was moving him from a cardboard box into my bird carrier.) He was limping and falling over a lot. I gallantly let my fries get cold so I could zip out and throw a towel over the little dude and hustle him into my car. He's gonna go to work with me tomorrow (in the carrier) and then we'll take a field trip to the wildlife rehab center. I just got my bird carrier on Saturday, how lucky is that?

[JoeMan02]

10 hours ago, Madcat said:

Yeah, Jeff's fine today.  Looking for more food! Puzzle ate all the pellets as usual though.

 

Tiny baby feeder tentacles! Almost like a real coral!

 

 

And this is the injured crow I rescued outside McDonald's today:

 

 

(Low light for reduced stress while I was moving him from a cardboard box into my bird carrier.) He was limping and falling over a lot. I gallantly let my fries get cold so I could zip out and throw a towel over the little dude and hustle him into my car. He's gonna go to work with me tomorrow (in the carrier) and then we'll take a field trip to the wildlife rehab center. I just got my bird carrier on Saturday, how lucky is that?

cool! Rip the fries 

[Madcat]

14 hours ago, JoeMan02 said:

cool! Rip the fries 

Seriously. It took morals of steel to leave those fries and chase the crow. He's at the rehab center safe and sound today! I really wish I could have gotten a better pic of him, because he was so beautiful, but I'm sure he appreciated the privacy. Rehab said I can call them next week for an update. Crows are amazing, incredibly smart birds. I'm really glad I was able to help one!

 

My refractometer is becoming aggravating. Thus far, I find it takes 2 days for my water to evaporate enough that the salinity goes from 1.025 to 1.026, at which point I top off. Last week it told me my salinity was 1.029 the day after my water change. There was some panicking, and a lot of fiddling with FW and SW until I had 1.025 again, and then I had to keep topping off daily. Yesterday same thing happened, I did my water change on Sunday and the water tested at 1.025, tested last night and it said 1.034!!! That time, I was like, there's no freaking way. Everyone in the tank looked happy (except the macro which seems slightly pissed about something. Some of its fronds have gone ghostly). I stuck in my hydrometer, which I've otherwise abandoned for being a piece of crap, and it told me the water was 1.022. Welp. Again, more fiddling. Actually I just topped off a small amount of FW and the salinity miraculously plummeted to 1.025 according to the refractometer. Everything in the tank was shocked and died. (Not really; nobody reacted.)

 

I know I need calibration fluid; it's on my list of things to buy. I think the problem lies in my pipettes. They must be getting salt residue dried in there or something. That's my theory, anyway, because today, before I topped off, I tested by dipping the bottom of a toothbrush in the water and letting it drip onto the refractometer. 1.025. Same result I used to get the day after a top-off. I can't believe I haven't encountered anyone else with this problem. Is it some widely known universal knowledge that pipettes should be replaced regularly? What a bummer. I feel dumb.

[Felicia]

What brand of refractometer are you using?  I just have a cheap one that I've been using for years and I've never really had an issue.  I agree that a calibration standard will be helpful.  Is the water always the same temperature when you're measuring?  Temperature of the water can affect the readings.  Also, are you making sure you get the glass plate and plastic cover cleaned up really well before and after measurements?  You could have dust or a bit of residual salt dried on the glass which would mess with the measurements.  If none of those things work, I'd recommend maybe buying a new one.  There are a ton of inexpensive ones on Amazon and generally they're really reliably.  I believe mine was like $25 and I've never had an issue with it.

[Lula_Mae]

40 minutes ago, Madcat said:

Seriously. It took morals of steel to leave those fries and chase the crow. He's at the rehab center safe and sound today! I really wish I could have gotten a better pic of him, because he was so beautiful, but I'm sure he appreciated the privacy. Rehab said I can call them next week for an update. Crows are amazing, incredibly smart birds. I'm really glad I was able to help one!

 

My refractometer is becoming aggravating. Thus far, I find it takes 2 days for my water to evaporate enough that the salinity goes from 1.025 to 1.026, at which point I top off. Last week it told me my salinity was 1.029 the day after my water change. There was some panicking, and a lot of fiddling with FW and SW until I had 1.025 again, and then I had to keep topping off daily. Yesterday same thing happened, I did my water change on Sunday and the water tested at 1.025, tested last night and it said 1.034!!! That time, I was like, there's no freaking way. Everyone in the tank looked happy (except the macro which seems slightly pissed about something. Some of its fronds have gone ghostly). I stuck in my hydrometer, which I've otherwise abandoned for being a piece of crap, and it told me the water was 1.022. Welp. Again, more fiddling. Actually I just topped off a small amount of FW and the salinity miraculously plummeted to 1.025 according to the refractometer. Everything in the tank was shocked and died. (Not really; nobody reacted.)

 

I know I need calibration fluid; it's on my list of things to buy. I think the problem lies in my pipettes. They must be getting salt residue dried in there or something. That's my theory, anyway, because today, before I topped off, I tested by dipping the bottom of a toothbrush in the water and letting it drip onto the refractometer. 1.025. Same result I used to get the day after a top-off. I can't believe I haven't encountered anyone else with this problem. Is it some widely known universal knowledge that pipettes should be replaced regularly? What a bummer. I feel dumb.

That does sound aggravating.  I found once that I couldn't calibrate to 0 with distilled water so I took it apart , moved the lens a smudge and put it back together and it calibrated beautifully lol.  Don't necessarily recommend that as I wasn't sure I could get it back together!  Regarding the macro--the clear fronds may be that it's going sexual, which caulerpa is known to do.

[Melfy77]

On 20/07/2017 at 9:09 AM, Lula_Mae said:

Actually, a little bit of nitrates is not a bad thing.  Having the tank too clean can actually be worse than having a small amount of nitrates in there.  And no one with a reef tank should be using tap water, period, unless theirs is exceptionally clean.  Some people use Prime to neutralize ammonia in salt water, especially in emergency situations.  Testing LFS water is always a good idea because sometimes they are lax on changing the filters in their RO/DI, or they mix up the salt water to the wrong salinity (i.e. too much or too little salt).

 

Some people do run their tanks at 80-81 but that gives less room for things like heater malfunctions.  Some places up north don't even have a/c. But in this case I think the hood is trapping a lot of heat.

 

You should be fine to add a couple small things.  Heck, I don't even test anymore lol. 

I'm from the North, by the Wall, now keeping an eye out for white walkers.

Hahaha sorry I just had to! Summers can get pretty hot here too, we don't have an AC, but usually we can get a breeze, although there are times we wish we had one!

 

Your tank looks good! I also started an evo 13.5 It will host a pair of clownfish and a BTA (keeping the stock light btw)

[Madcat]

20 hours ago, Lula_Mae said:

That does sound aggravating.  I found once that I couldn't calibrate to 0 with distilled water so I took it apart , moved the lens a smudge and put it back together and it calibrated beautifully lol.  Don't necessarily recommend that as I wasn't sure I could get it back together!  Regarding the macro--the clear fronds may be that it's going sexual, which caulerpa is known to do.

Usually the macro has one or two clear fronds and I just pull them off occasionally. Now it seems to have a lot of them, and one of the fronds looks a little brown around the edges... I did a pretty big pruning on Sunday before the water change and I wonder if I pissed it off. Should I remove it? Don't want it going sexual and potentially nuking my tank. :\

Here's a pic:

 

 

Brownish fronds are on the right side.

[Madcat]

I see creepy crawlies in my tank... I don't like 'em. >_o They're about 1mm and greenish or brownish, or else they're clear and I'm just seeing what they're eating. They're crawling around on my sandbed and my rocks and corals and one of them touched Claudette. Are they copepods? Don't Jeffs eat these things? They're creeping me out.

 

I pruned the macro some more. It seems okay. I should really replace it with something less temperamental and grow-y though.

[Lugmos12]

2 minutes ago, Madcat said:

I see creepy crawlies in my tank... I don't like 'em. >_o They're about 1mm and greenish or brownish, or else they're clear and I'm just seeing what they're eating. They're crawling around on my sandbed and my rocks and corals and one of them touched Claudette. Are they copepods? Don't Jeffs eat these things? They're creeping me out.

 

I pruned the macro some more. It seems okay. I should really replace it with something less temperamental and grow-y though.

I have similar things in my tank. do they move fast?

[Lula_Mae]

1 hour ago, Madcat said:

I see creepy crawlies in my tank... I don't like 'em. >_o They're about 1mm and greenish or brownish, or else they're clear and I'm just seeing what they're eating. They're crawling around on my sandbed and my rocks and corals and one of them touched Claudette. Are they copepods? Don't Jeffs eat these things? They're creeping me out.

 

I pruned the macro some more. It seems okay. I should really replace it with something less temperamental and grow-y though.

Amphipods maybe?

[Madcat]

4 hours ago, Lugmos12 said:

I have similar things in my tank. do they move fast?

Mine never seem to be in a hurry, but I get the feeling they could move fast if they wanted.

 

2 hours ago, Lula_Mae said:

Amphipods maybe?

That's the word! I kept thinking isopods. What if they start munching on my zoas or something? (Is that when I'm allowed to bring home a red scooter?!)

[fishfreak0114]

I wouldn't worry about them eating anything they shouldn't, I know it happens to some people but it seems to be a relatively uncommon experience.  Mine have behaved.

[Lula_Mae]

22 hours ago, Madcat said:

Usually the macro has one or two clear fronds and I just pull them off occasionally. Now it seems to have a lot of them, and one of the fronds looks a little brown around the edges... I did a pretty big pruning on Sunday before the water change and I wonder if I pissed it off. Should I remove it? Don't want it going sexual and potentially nuking my tank. :\

Here's a pic:

 

 

Brownish fronds are on the right side.

I'd probably keep pruning the clear bits so they don't cause trouble. Not sure on the brown.  Definitely not a macro expert lol.

[Lula_Mae]

52 minutes ago, Madcat said:

Mine never seem to be in a hurry, but I get the feeling they could move fast if they wanted.

 

That's the word! I kept thinking isopods. What if they start munching on my zoas or something? (Is that when I'm allowed to bring home a red scooter?!)

Sorry, just saw this!  Most of the time the amphipods behave and it's not an issue. I've only heard a handful of stories of them going after healthy coral.

[Madcat]

Okay... I guess they can stay. No red scooter for me. Sigh.

[Lula_Mae]

18 hours ago, Madcat said:

Okay... I guess they can stay. No red scooter for me. Sigh.

I'd save the scooter for a future/bigger/more pod-filled tank when you have time to try training to frozen.

[Madcat]

On 8/26/2017 at 2:28 AM, Lula_Mae said:

I'd save the scooter for a future/bigger/more pod-filled tank when you have time to try training to frozen.

You're no fun!

 

I think this is the best shot I can get of this:

 

 

Just right of the biggest paly head, there's a little baby one growing. And right next to the baby one is a tiny clear tentacle thing. Just one. It's growing, slowly. I first noticed it at least two weeks ago and it's getting longer.

 

Things It's Not (I'm pretty sure):

-Vermetid snail webbing

-Aiptasia

 

It doesn't move. It's just slowly growing. It doesn't seem to be hurting anything, but... 

 

Today I noticed some clear sort of mass on the side of my frost berry blasto skeleton, too. I'm sure I won't be able to get a pic of it, but I'll try.

[Madcat]

Aiptasia(?):

 

 

I'm fairly convinced there's one on my torch skeleton, too. Damnit.  I can cut the blasto off the frag plug without hurting it, I think, so that gets rid of one, but the other is so small I'm not sure what to do. Will Aiptasia X kill something so small?

 

Here's a better pic of the weird tendril on my paly frag:

 

 

And I was blaming Jeff for my clove polyps being all pissed off the past couple weeks. I moved the frag so he doesn't sit right next to it anymore, but they still won't fully open. Turns out I do have a vermetid snail:

 

 

It's the little purple lump, you can see its mucus strand above the polyps.

 

How annoying! Fortunately, this one is also attached to the frag plug and I can remove the polyps. The aiptasia is really bothering me though.

[fishfreak0114]

Perhaps you could smother it in glue?  I'm not really sure of the best approach, I haven't dealt with aiptasia before.

[Madcat]

10 minutes ago, fishfreak0114 said:

Perhaps you could smother it in glue?  I'm not really sure of the best approach, I haven't dealt with aiptasia before.

I was about to say, you're awfully lucky then, but I bit my tongue just in time. Still following your tank's progress and hoping for the best!

 

I forgot to mention! Jeff ate flakes last night! He finally got hungry enough, I suppose! He hasn't been eating his seaweed, or Puzzle's pellets - only mysis, which I don't feed more than twice a week due to the huge mess I make of it. As I said before, I think he eats algae off the rocks. Today he was pecking at the rocks more aggressively than usual, so I put some seaweed in. He charged it and tore off a few pieces! Then he knocked it over and scared himself. What a doofus.

 

My snail, Kinky Snoot, doesn't look so hot.

 

 

I really feel like the other snail is bullying him, but how is that possible? At this point, Kinky Snoot's snoot looks like someone took a scalpel to the underside and sliced it up the middle. Is it even POSSIBLE for the other snail to be wrecking his snoot like this? I feel so bad for him. I'm even thinking of taking Pale Snail back to the LFS (though he's the better cleaner. I think maybe Kinky is just hiding from him a lot. I've seen Pale Snail attack him twice.) Maybe I'll post in the Inverts forum. I'm at a loss.

[fishfreak0114]

Thanks  I'm glad to hear Jeff is eating flake!  I've never heard of snails attacking each other.  Maybe kinky snoot hurt himself and now it's infected or something so it's getting worse?  I hope his snoot goes back to normal.

[Madcat]

2 hours ago, fishfreak0114 said:

Thanks  I'm glad to hear Jeff is eating flake!  I've never heard of snails attacking each other.  Maybe kinky snoot hurt himself and now it's infected or something so it's getting worse?  I hope his snoot goes back to normal.

Thanks. Poor guy.  The snoot is pretty badly mauled. And I've seen the other snail knock him over twice while I've been watching, so I'm just assuming. I did some research and some people seem to have reported their Nassarius killing other snails in the tank, and it seems like that's usually due to an incorrect ID and the murder snail is actually a mud whelk or something. But I dunno. I'm no expert, but these guys don't look like any of the alternative species I've seen mentioned. They look like Nassarius snails to me!

 

I found a new friend!

 

 

It's a pineapple sponge! How random is that? There's a big one on the right and a couple baby ones. This is the plug that has also a vermetid snail and aiptasia. Maybe I can move the sponges somewhere else and then hack the plug off.

 

My blasto also has ANOTHER new baby head. That's two new heads since I got it.

 

I promised myself I'd go into maintenance mode now and just let my corals grow for awhile without buying new ones. The exceptions are if I see nice zoas (since I only have the one colony), a ricordea or cynarina for a good price, and unique blastos. I just bought this little guy:

 

 

It's SO pretty! It's a mini blasto colony (encrusting, I'm guessing). I hope it looks as nice in my tank! I bought this, too:

 

 

I still plan on upgrading my lights, just not yet. So part of my coral selection process is whether I think it will look poop brown under my light or not. We'll have to see about that purpley zoa. Fingers crossed! I'll be picking them up Saturday.

[fishfreak0114]

Blasto envy!  That one is SOOOO gorgeous!

[Lula_Mae]

7 hours ago, Madcat said:

Aiptasia(?):

 

 

I'm fairly convinced there's one on my torch skeleton, too. Damnit.  I can cut the blasto off the frag plug without hurting it, I think, so that gets rid of one, but the other is so small I'm not sure what to do. Will Aiptasia X kill something so small?

 

Here's a better pic of the weird tendril on my paly frag:

 

 

And I was blaming Jeff for my clove polyps being all pissed off the past couple weeks. I moved the frag so he doesn't sit right next to it anymore, but they still won't fully open. Turns out I do have a vermetid snail:

 

 

It's the little purple lump, you can see its mucus strand above the polyps.

 

How annoying! Fortunately, this one is also attached to the frag plug and I can remove the polyps. The aiptasia is really bothering me though.

You can use superglue on the vermetid.  And the aiptasia being tiny, you can probably do the same for them though you could also try peroxide.  For ones not on corals you can use a torch lighter to burn them off.

 

6 hours ago, Madcat said:

I was about to say, you're awfully lucky then, but I bit my tongue just in time. Still following your tank's progress and hoping for the best!

 

I forgot to mention! Jeff ate flakes last night! He finally got hungry enough, I suppose! He hasn't been eating his seaweed, or Puzzle's pellets - only mysis, which I don't feed more than twice a week due to the huge mess I make of it. As I said before, I think he eats algae off the rocks. Today he was pecking at the rocks more aggressively than usual, so I put some seaweed in. He charged it and tore off a few pieces! Then he knocked it over and scared himself. What a doofus.

 

My snail, Kinky Snoot, doesn't look so hot.

 

 

I really feel like the other snail is bullying him, but how is that possible? At this point, Kinky Snoot's snoot looks like someone took a scalpel to the underside and sliced it up the middle. Is it even POSSIBLE for the other snail to be wrecking his snoot like this? I feel so bad for him. I'm even thinking of taking Pale Snail back to the LFS (though he's the better cleaner. I think maybe Kinky is just hiding from him a lot. I've seen Pale Snail attack him twice.) Maybe I'll post in the Inverts forum. I'm at a loss.

Jeff is...special. Maybe trade Pale Snail for a different one that doesn't abuse Kinky Snoot?  Maybe KS is suffering from battered snail syndrome and doesn't want to be seen in public with all those bruises.

 

2 hours ago, Madcat said:

Thanks. Poor guy.  The snoot is pretty badly mauled. And I've seen the other snail knock him over twice while I've been watching, so I'm just assuming. I did some research and some people seem to have reported their Nassarius killing other snails in the tank, and it seems like that's usually due to an incorrect ID and the murder snail is actually a mud whelk or something. But I dunno. I'm no expert, but these guys don't look like any of the alternative species I've seen mentioned. They look like Nassarius snails to me!

 

I found a new friend!

 

 

It's a pineapple sponge! How random is that? There's a big one on the right and a couple baby ones. This is the plug that has also a vermetid snail and aiptasia. Maybe I can move the sponges somewhere else and then hack the plug off.

 

My blasto also has ANOTHER new baby head. That's two new heads since I got it.

 

I promised myself I'd go into maintenance mode now and just let my corals grow for awhile without buying new ones. The exceptions are if I see nice zoas (since I only have the one colony), a ricordea or cynarina for a good price, and unique blastos. I just bought this little guy:

 

 

It's SO pretty! It's a mini blasto colony (encrusting, I'm guessing). I hope it looks as nice in my tank! I bought this, too:

 

 

I still plan on upgrading my lights, just not yet. So part of my coral selection process is whether I think it will look poop brown under my light or not. We'll have to see about that purpley zoa. Fingers crossed! I'll be picking them up Saturday.

Blasto! That purple zoa reminds me of my purpleberry fantasies.  Gorgeous!