Blenwood's Reef - 1st attempts at focus stacking

[MrObscura]

Yea, I don't know wtf is going on in my tank. Just got home to see my pc Rainbow is losing flesh, or is really dull, tanks dark so it's hard to tell. It was fine earlier so I wouldnt be surprised if it's rtn. The milli has lost some flesh as well, and the rainbow monti looks like shit. Cali tort might be receding at the base also. 

 

Nothing has changed other than the lights slightly increasing like 4% a week (still only maxing out at like 60% of the bsr ab+) and water parameters are fine and stable, so idk. Hoping it's just a young tank and just being pita. Maybe something in the lfs water? (just ordered an rodi) It sucks because I was looking foward to getting it stocked soon and just letting it grow, but at this rate I'll have to replace corals I lose. In the past this shit would really bum me out but I've tried to simply start looking at it as a challenge and a journey on the way to a thriving mature tank. 

 

Anyway, I have a few ideas for the kps placement(lack of flow could be an issue as well). Either somewhere up high pointed at the surface and crashing into the return flow(speaking of which, the RFG alone already creates a lot of surface agitation so even with a completely open top I have no dust or film settling on the surface) or pointed down directly at the rock work where sps will be prominent, set to a random mode so they aren't constantly blasted. 

[Cannedfish]

A couple Humpday pics:

 

Top-down on part of the acan garden:

 

Button scoly spreading out:

[WV Reefer]

13 minutes ago, Cannedfish said:

A couple Humpday pics:

 

Top-down on part of the acan garden:

 

Button scoly spreading out:

Scoly looking pretty!

[MrObscura]

Nice. 

 

On a bright note, my pc Rainbow is actually fine. That and my tenuis seem all good, so it's just a few corals looking so so. 

 

Oh, and sorry about high jacking your thread with that novella above. Lol

[mitten_reef]

On 11/27/2018 at 10:24 AM, Cannedfish said:

When I was running my lights at 60% of full power my Cali tort was a blue tinted brown turd (look at last November), at about 80% it was a green turd with blue tips (last January), at 100% it was a Cali tort (Beginning in April). Having added the second light (August), I have now been able to cook all the green out of it, and it looks amazing

I think you’re very much correct on the light intensity relation to the blue-ness. Since I fragged the Cali tort and move them down to my rack, green is starting to show up on half of the pieces on the rack. 

 

Tank looks great as always. 

[MrObscura]

Cannedfish, do you know if there's a way to simply shift the timeline of a set in the kps app? I'm running the sps 200l preset as well but would like to run it so it actually corresponds with my to photo period. 

[Cannedfish]

On 11/28/2018 at 7:03 PM, micoastreefing said:

I think you’re very much correct on the light intensity relation to the blue-ness. Since I fragged the Cali tort and move them down to my rack, green is starting to show up on half of the pieces on the rack. 

 

Tank looks great as always. 

Thanks! I agree! But I will also add that while normally, the Cali Tort May be the most underrated classic acro, when you it under high light and really bake it, it

goes to the next level. After you cook the greens out of it, the blue goes from just a deep blue to almost a glow under white lights. One day I’m going to get off my butt and make a three about the three most essential acros for every beginner (and tank in general

) and the Cali tort will definitely be

in my top three. 

 

On 12/1/2018 at 10:49 PM, MrObscura said:

Cannedfish, do you know if there's a way to simply shift the timeline of a set in the kps app? I'm running the sps 200l preset as well but would like to run it so it actually corresponds with my to photo period. 

Sorry man, I haven’t played with the setting enough to know if you can do that... To quote the great Ron Popeil,I just kinda “set it and forget it!” Plus to be honest, my tank has enough

other issue (mainly me) that having to flow correspond to my lights is frankly really low on my list. But if you figure it out let me know!

 

 

....

 

Because I like to round out each post with some crappy pictures!!

 

Acans under rock:

 

Unknown acro:

 

Gel filters are stupid:

[Zuma]

On 12/3/2018 at 4:56 PM, Cannedfish said:

Gel filters are stupid:

Ha!

On 12/3/2018 at 4:56 PM, Cannedfish said:

 

 

[Cannedfish]

Update time!

 

It's been a mixed bag of nuts the last couple weeks or so. And to clarify further, on the mixed bag of nuts scale (between the mostly peanut and germ filled bowls that give you at fancy hotel bars and the three-year bowl of unshelled nuts your grandparents put out every Christmas that only your uncle Gerald has been seen eating) the tank has been somewhere in the middle. On one hand, the tank has been mostly stable, acros have been growing and have pretty good PE, and Blenwood has been using the Holidays as excuse for why he has gone up a pant size. On the other hand (or hook if you a old timey pirate), there have been some minor issues. Mainly, the sand has been increasing "dusted" with a fine layer of brown algae, which I assume to be dinos, the sexy shrimp disappeared (all evidence points the the emerald crab, but unfortunately he has taken the fifth, and in reality the tank is severely lacking in both a judiciary system and enforcement agency), and more alarmingly the echinata destroyed half of the lepto. To be honest, I have growth tired of the echinata shenanigans, but at this point, I'm about 6 months to late, and I have no idea how I can possible get it out without destroying half the tank. That being said, I guess I will step up my sand stirring, and just sit back and watch the echinata murder spree... up next orange digitata. 

 

Bad Photo time!!  

 

CB Maleficent encrusting nicely: 

 

Red Acans:

 

Rough day at the office:

 

Next victim:

;

 

Red Dragon PE:

[MrObscura]

Yea, enchinatas are super aggressive. They actually spill their guts to consume other corals. I like them but they're a no go in my small tank. 

[Reefkid88]

That is one of the many issues that suck with nano tank scene. Especially once things get jammed in there,and things grow out its a pain. I've been there ao many times. 

 

 That Red Drag looks so damn happy,I want a frag !!! 

[Cannedfish]

On 12/7/2018 at 9:21 AM, MrObscura said:

Yea, enchinatas are super aggressive. They actually spill their guts to consume other corals. I like them but they're a no go in my small tank. 

Agreed. It was one of my earliest corals and being a tank moron at the time (still am), it was hard to believe they were so aggressive. Unfortunately, it has now fully encrusted and short of scraping it off, I don't see any way of removing it. At this point I'm hoping the digi sprouts branches and just shades it to death.

 

On another note, while I haven't kept galaxia, I would place Acan Echinata as the second least friendly nano tank coral, right behind Pectinia. It's amazing how long and potent Pectinia's sweepers can be! Which is too bad because they are both beautiful corals!

 

On 12/7/2018 at 11:12 AM, Reefkid88 said:

That is one of the many issues that suck with nano tank scene. Especially once things get jammed in there,and things grow out its a pain. I've been there ao many times. 

 

 That Red Drag looks so damn happy,I want a frag !!! 

I agree. While I don't really mind when SPS fight (it's usually slow and localized) when LPS get in the mix, things can get real...quick! As mentioned numerous times, adding cyphastrea to the main rock is my biggest tank regret. I am constantly beating it back. In fact it stung the WD for the second time this weekend. At this rate, my favorite acro will stay a nubbin' forever!!

 

At the rate it's growing it shouldn't be long before I can trim the red dragon. By that time your new tank should be ready for some SPS!

 

 

................................................

 

Amateur hour picture time (with bad captions)!

 

 

Left side view under blues (it's time to take the hedge clippers to the BN; I keep knocking off the lower branches and it looks ridiculous)

 

Mystery Acro under a gel filter, I am beginning to believe it is actually the RMF Gila Monster. 

 

Sun Coral looking juicy!

[HookedOnAquariums]

That’s not an rmf Gila monster. That’s blenwoods blen cash

[MrObscura]

I contacted aqamai about adjusting the timeline, who then told me to contact hydor, who said there should be sun and moon icons at the bottom of the app, which there is not. At least not in mine. So, I just created a random set of wave and random modes, but then I decided I just want random 24/7. I now have it running random 5%-100% all the time. 

[Cannedfish]

On 12/11/2018 at 11:19 AM, HookedOnAquariums said:

That’s not an rmf Gila monster. That’s blenwoods blen cash

Haha, love it! Unfortunately, while talking this through with Blenwood, he got all Diva-y and veto'd the name. Not Kanye's, "I'm going to interrupt an award's acceptance speech," Diva-y, more like Mariah Carey's, "I need you to release 100 white kittens and 100 white doves or I'm not going to light this mall Christmas tree" Diva-y. Being a big fan of the early 2000's Hot Boyz he required that the name be "Blen-Dolla's Cash Money Bling Bling." Whatever that means. Then he started nonsensically driveling on about P-Diddy and demanded that the price be exactly "two Kookooroo's" and a "big-ass pile of chedda." Though that last bit seemed to imply, in the immortal words of Randy Moss,  "straight cash, homie," I honestly think he meant good old fashion cheese. But bless his heart, he's dumber than a bag of hammers. On the contrary, I'll sell it for $10.  

 

 

.....................

 

Anyways... humpday. 

 

 

Red digi:

 

Green Birdsnest:

[mitten_reef]

18 minutes ago, Cannedfish said:

On the contrary, I'll sell it for $10.  

is your inbox blowing up yet? 

[Reefkid88]

For real though,when it comes time what would you want for some Red Dragon,Birdsnest,"Gila Monster" and whatever Acro's you have you could cut ? 

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

On 12/7/2018 at 10:21 AM, MrObscura said:

Yea, enchinatas are super aggressive. They actually spill their guts to consume other corals. I like them but they're a no go in my small tank.

lol hold on..I have one of those and at night it looks like a white sponge is sitting on it. I've see it do it a few times, should I be worried about?

[MrObscura]

If you have any other corals nearby, I'd watch out. 

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

1 hour ago, MrObscura said:

If you have any other corals nearby, I'd watch out. 

Umm not really close. Do they throw out sweepers? I've never seen any.

[MrObscura]

Not sweepers but they can do this... 

And anything within 6 inches or so is at risk. 

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

Wow that's some crazy shit. Thanks for that. I had no idea they are that evil.

[Cannedfish]

40 minutes ago, DSFIRSTSLTWATER said:

Umm not really close. Do they throw out sweepers? I've never seen any.

@MrObscura is dead on (pun I intended). What echinata do is much worse than sweepers. To use a totally made up and admittedly terrible analogy: sweepers are like a prison bully, he may beat you up, steal your cigarettes, break your nose but rarely will he shank you the first time he meets you (this excludes hypothetical prison riot scenarios). On the other hand the echinata operates like a well oil KGB hit man. First time he sees you, he extends mesenterial filaments and before you know it, your fancy date is ruined because your cerebral fluid is all over the table behind you. Life is short avoid the KGB and mesenterial filaments... and green bananas. 

 

These corals are within the zone of terror:

 

Oops:

 

Ouch

 

Not shown: the walking dendro and RFA it also devoured. 

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

Ok well I'll be making sure that one is far away from everything. Thanks guys had no idea about them. I thought they were just like acans and i actually had it close to some of mine. Lucky me, I ended up moving it by itself awhile ago.

[MrObscura]

And that putting it nicely, I think of it kind of like this...