My 15g Reef Sanctuary

[Clown79]

All was smooth going in this tank. I get the random algae issues, corals that decide to close up, the normal stuff. Except for a jumper and equipment issues.

 

Unfortunately overnight my goby jumped. Somehow through a small area where my mesh goes around my filter it jumped through and landed at the front of the tank.

I was so upset. Had it been day time I could have saved it but by the time my hubby found it, it was dead. 

 

My jebao sw 2 wavemakers were acting weird. This started after 3 months of owning them.  By 6mnths it was really bad.

 I cleaned them monthly, sometimes more and yet the performance was off.

 

It's the weirdest thing I have ever seen with a powerhead.

It was like the settings changed on their own although it was set on wavemaker.

 

The powerheads would lose power. As I would watch my tank, the flow would drop to the point my corals weren't moving.

 

The powerhead was still on and working but yet the flow dropped as though I had lowered the setting.

 

I had the night mode off, I locked the controller so nothing could be changed and yet before my own eyes the wave motion would stop and literally my corals were not moving. I  had my filter in there so thankfully there would always be some water movement.

 

I would have to turn the jebao off and on to get it to return to normal function. This was annoying and not beneficial to the tank. As the months went on, the problem worsened.

 

I contacted the company I purchased them from and for a month  I tried various things, like resetting them.

 

This did not work.

 

 

[Clown79]

While I was trying to figure out what I was going to do about the wavemakers, I decided to change my aquascape.

 

I didn't like the look anymore. As corals grew the bridge no longer looked like a bridge. There was no definition to the shape. It lost all look. It looked like a wall.

 

I wanted something more open, something that provided better flow circulation and depth.

 

 

We carefully removed the rock in the middle. Surprisingly the epoxy had held up really well.

 

I then shifted one rock carefully to angle it, which meant I had to move a few others around.

I didn't want to disturb too much sand...I still ended up with some disturbance but it wasn't too bad.

 

I then moved some of my corals around for better placement.

 

I now have 2 islands. I prefer the look and the flow is much better dispersed through the tank.

 

The company which I got the Jebao's from was nice enough to replace them with 2 new ones. I actually only have one now in my 15g and it's working very well so far. It's actually quite powerful. I hope it stays that way. If not, I think I will try the Aqamai because that looks really cool and controlled by your phone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Clown79]

Unfortunately because of the flow I had had in my tank, some of my sand was getting algae on it. 

 

I vacuum it weekly really well. I even removed some and washed/returned it but the problem was still there.

 

once I opened up the aquascape and replaced the old powerhead with the replacement, the algae has gone away. 

 

I also got a new friend. I got a Starry Blenny- his name is Potter. He is so cool. He has a really neat personality and everyone gets along really well.

 

So within 2 yrs I have changed things a few times, I have experienced a few trials with this tank, but mostly I have enjoyed the experience of growing with the tank. It's my sanctuary, it brings me joy and serenity.

 

I will enjoy watching things grow because it's pretty full now. I have alot of euphyllia...inspiration for upgrading

 

Maintenance routine Now

 

- 15-20% weekly waterchange with Aquaforest Reef salt

- scrape glass, turkey bast rocks well, stir sand in tight areas, vacuum sand bed 

- wipe down my powerhead with a tiny brush

- siphon out my filter to remove all poop and food not collected in floss

- change floss every water change and one time in between (more if need be)

- rinse all media bags every waterchange

-change my carbon now every 2 weeks

- use smaller amounts of phosguard but change more frequently

- use purigen(replace with new when it's brown)

 

Equipment

15g 24x13x13

Seachem Tidal 55 Filter

Eheim Jagger 50watt

Ai Prime with custom light fixture

Jebao sw 2 wavemaker

 

Feeding Schedule

 

- New Life Spec. Thera A pellets fed daily

- small sheet of nori on a clip for the blenny every few days

- reef roids 1 time mid week

- broadcast feed before water change with mysis and roids

- brine given as a treat 1 time a week

 

Inhabitants 

 

 

2 ocellaris clowns

starry blenny

cleaner shrimp

pom pom crab

hermits

snails

 

2 birdsnests

1 styllophora

1 purple frogspawn

1 green tip purple frogspawn(saved this one)

1 green hammer

1 purple tip frogspawn

1 gold frogspawn

1 rainbow hammer

1 lime frogspawn(saved it)

 short circuit Blastomusso

rainbow acan

pink acan

frosty rim acan(saved this one)

blue short tent. plate(saved it)

orange short tent plate (saved it)

superman Monti. dig. 

rics

zoas

[Lula_Mae]

Tank looks beautiful!  Is that a feather duster at bottom right?

[Clown79]

16 hours ago, Lula_Mae said:

Tank looks beautiful!  Is that a feather duster at bottom right?

Thank you.

 

The white object next to the red blasto is a feather duster.

[Weetabix7]

17 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Unfortunately because of the flow I had had in my tank, some of my sand was getting algae on it. 

 

I vacuum it weekly really well. I even removed some and washed/returned it but the problem was still there.

 

once I opened up the aquascape and replaced the old powerhead with the replacement, the algae has gone away. 

 

I also got a new friend. I got a Starry Blenny- his name is Potter. He is so cool. He has a really neat personality and everyone gets along really well.

 

So within 2 yrs I have changed things a few times, I have experienced a few trials with this tank, but mostly I have enjoyed the experience of growing with the tank. It's my sanctuary, it brings me joy and serenity.

 

I will enjoy watching things grow because it's pretty full now. I have alot of euphyllia...inspiration for upgrading

 

Maintenance routine Now

 

- 15-20% weekly waterchange with Aquaforest Reef salt

- scrape glass, turkey bast rocks well, stir sand in tight areas, vacuum sand bed 

- wipe down my powerhead with a tiny brush

- siphon out my filter to remove all poop and food not collected in floss

- change floss every water change and one time in between (more if need be)

- rinse all media bags every waterchange

-change my carbon now every 2 weeks

- use smaller amounts of phosguard but change more frequently

- use purigen(replace with new when it's brown)

 

Equipment

15g 24x13x13

Seachem Tidal 55 Filter

Eheim Jagger 50watt

Ai Prime with custom light fixture

Jebao sw 2 wavemaker

 

Feeding Schedule

 

- New Life Spec. Thera A pellets fed daily

- small sheet of nori on a clip for the blenny every few days

- reef roids 1 time mid week

- broadcast feed before water change with mysis and roids

- brine given as a treat 1 time a week

 

Inhabitants 

 

 

2 ocellaris clowns

starry blenny

cleaner shrimp

pom pom crab

hermits

snails

 

2 birdsnests

1 styllophora

1 purple frogspawn

1 green tip purple frogspawn(saved this one)

1 green hammer

1 purple tip frogspawn

1 gold frogspawn

1 rainbow hammer

1 lime frogspawn(saved it)

 short circuit Blastomusso

rainbow acan

pink acan

frosty rim acan(saved this one)

blue short tent. plate(saved it)

orange short tent plate (saved it)

superman Monti. dig. 

rics

zoas

 

I really like this tank, and find it very helpful reading through the process of how you dealt with roadblocks. 

[SeaFurn]

I have a Jebao sw 2 wavemaker too. I'm not using it in my tank right now because the stock IM pump has more than enough flow for my RFA's.  

But I was wondering if the flow from yours comes more out of the sides or directly from the front? When I put my hand directly in front of my pump there's not as much flow as compared to the flow coming from the sides of it.

At one time I thought mine came more directly from the front so it seems like something has changed with it. Just curious. 

[Minidoll]

Your reef is absolutely gorgeous! I love the two separate islands. Your coral placement within the tank is very artistic, love it!

[hinnenkm]

Your tank looks beautiful!

[Sharbuckle]

Thanks for the great read. Made my bus ride more interesting. I really like your tank and choices of equipment. I'm just about to make the switch to AF salt. I've heard great things. 

 

My my first reef tank was a 15 gallon and this makes me miss it  

[Clown79]

2 hours ago, Weetabix7 said:

 

I really like this tank, and find it very helpful reading through the process of how you dealt with roadblocks. 

Thank you. 

When I started yrs ago with my 55g, I used to panic when there was an issue. I learned to step back, evaluate, make a plan, and take it slow. 

Panicking can lead to making mistakes and in this hobby nothing good comes fast. 

2 hours ago, SeaFurn said:

I have a Jebao sw 2 wavemaker too. I'm not using it in my tank right now because the stock IM pump has more than enough flow for my RFA's.  

But I was wondering if the flow from yours comes more out of the sides or directly from the front? When I put my hand directly in front of my pump there's not as much flow as compared to the flow coming from the sides of it.

At one time I thought mine came more directly from the front so it seems like something has changed with it. Just curious. 

I just checked. The new sw2 the flow comes from the front. I feel very little from the sides.

What setting do you have it on?

I had to take one out of my 10g Im, there was just too much flow with the upgraded pump. Everything was closing up.

Flow is the most frustrating aspect out side of alk and algae.

2 hours ago, Minidoll said:

Your reef is absolutely gorgeous! I love the two separate islands. Your coral placement within the tank is very artistic, love it!

Thank you so much. 

 

2 hours ago, hinnenkm said:

Your tank looks beautiful!

Thank you

 

1 hour ago, Sharbuckle said:

Thanks for the great read. Made my bus ride more interesting. I really like your tank and choices of equipment. I'm just about to make the switch to AF salt. I've heard great things. 

 

My my first reef tank was a 15 gallon and this makes me miss it  

Thanks.

I really like the salt. It mixes so easily and quickly. 30mins! 

It's been very consistent for me. The most out of all the salts I've used. 

What size do you have right now?

[Sharbuckle]

3 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Thank you. 

When I started yrs ago with my 55g, I used to panic when there was an issue. I learned to step back, evaluate, make a plan, and take it slow. 

Panicking can lead to making mistakes and in this hobby nothing good comes fast. 

I just checked. The new sw2 the flow comes from the front. I feel very little from the sides.

What setting do you have it on?

I had to take one out of my 10g Im, there was just too much flow with the upgraded pump. Everything was closing up.

Flow is the most frustrating aspect out side of alk and algae.

Thank you so much. 

 

Thank you

 

Thanks.

I really like the salt. It mixes so easily and quickly. 30mins! 

It's been very consistent for me. The most out of all the salts I've used. 

What size do you have right now?

40 Breeder at the moment. Adding on a 29g display refugium this weekend.

 

[MockandRoll]

Sweet tank. You still dosing manually? As for matching water, what I do is make 40g at a time in my garage. In a day or two the alk and calcium precipitate out. Then I take a 5g bucket and just dose the water change water up to match the tank water. Plus I always have extra water in a pinch.  

[Clown79]

5 hours ago, MockandRoll said:

Sweet tank. You still dosing manually? As for matching water, what I do is make 40g at a time in my garage. In a day or two the alk and calcium precipitate out. Then I take a 5g bucket and just dose the water change water up to match the tank water. Plus I always have extra water in a pinch.  

Yes I do dose manually. Maybe I'll get dosers for xmas?

 

I prefer to mix fresh water just before my change. Some salts aren't meant to be kept after a week. 

[SeaFurn]

9 hours ago, Clown79 said:

What setting do you have it on?

Thanks for checking. I had mine set on Master, H (constant flow) on the lowest speed setting. 

I guess I'll have to check mine again. 

[Clown79]

On 7/27/2017 at 10:42 PM, SeaFurn said:

Thanks for checking. I had mine set on Master, H (constant flow) on the lowest speed setting. 

I guess I'll have to check mine again. 

@SeaFurn

 

I use w1, the lowest speed setting, and my dial is on low.

 

I can't use else mode or w2. I get sand storms and my corals get pulled out of the sand bed. 

[Clown79]

Been having some issues with my short tentacle plate corals. 

 

When I purchased them they weren't in the greatest condition but I like saving corals so I decided to get them.

 

The blue plate is large, still has colour, flesh, and eats but there are never any tentacles and it's not very fleshy.

 

The orange plate is small. Still has colour, very short tentacles, and eats. It's also not very fleshy.

 

Everything else in my tank is doing very well and all parameters are great and stable.

 

I am lost, so I decided maybe it's placement that's causing them to not get back to where they should be. I was hoping that maybe they were placed in too direct of light and flow.

 

these are night time views 

[Lugmos12]

*breaks in to steal the pink coral in the back* 

[Clown79]

7 minutes ago, Lugmos12 said:

*breaks in to steal the pink coral in the back* 

That's a rock full of coralline?

[Christopher Marks]

How's the 15 gallon nano reef doing these days @Clown79? ☺️

[Clown79]

3 hours ago, Christopher Marks said:

How's the 15 gallon nano reef doing these days @Clown79? ☺️

It was upgraded to a 25g. Lol. 

 

It's been going very well, love the IM lagoon

[Christopher Marks]

1 minute ago, Clown79 said:

It was upgraded to a 25g. Lol. 

 

It's been going very well, love the IM lagoon

Dang, how did I miss that? Haha! 😆

[Clown79]

6 minutes ago, Christopher Marks said:

Dang, how did I miss that? Haha! 😆

Lol.

 

Theres a lot of us on here😁