Snow's 60G Secret Predatory Sanctum 🐲🐉 - Shutting Down

[Snow_Phoenix]

Spyder relaxing on the macrobed:

 

 

Spyder on the run: 😂🕷

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Thanos looking grumpy today:

 

 

Hungry fishies: 🥰

 

 

Miko getting annoyed by the excessive food left outside his burrow: 😅

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Just to quickly share how I prepared a frozen meal for the dragons today:

 

Took out the frozen baby artemia (on the right) and frozen spirulina-enriched pods (on the left) first:

 

 

Mixed up a small amount from each packet into a cup of SW taken from the tank. Also added 1 drop of Selcon, 1 drop of Vit. C, 3x drops of Phyto & 3x drops of zooplankton into the cup, before mixing it with the baster:

 

 

Broadcast-fed the tank first, then target-fed the corals, and lastly, target-fed/chased 3 little dragonets all around the tank with the baster. 🙄

 

Illaron enjoyed the offering immensely:

 

Bella was also very happy with the food, and how small it was:

 

Poseidon took his time however, and fed at a much more sedate pace:

 

Well, mission accomplished. For now, at least. 👍

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Poseidon exploring the rockwork at the back corner of the tank: 🤗

 

 

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Someone had a nice molt overnight: 🤗

 

 

My pink yuma looks yellowish-orange under the early morning blues. Not sure why: 🤷‍♀️

 

 

My rainbow yuma: 🥰

 

 

Poseidon is already awake:

 

 

 

Illaron is up and actively scouring for pods too: 😊

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Giant bubble coral enjoying some frozen artemia by NOA today: 😊👍

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Goblin was sneaking around the reef today: 😅

 

 

 

A lil' belly full of food: 

 

 

The Big Dude of the reef:

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Spyder now has red cotton candy algae *growing on him. 🙄 :

 

 

 

 

 

He abandoned the dragon's breath because this looks way more prettier. Not sure if he still has the green thread on him tho. 🧐

[Snow_Phoenix]

Poseidon today morning: 😊

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poseidon matched up against the giant bubble coral (can you spot Casper too?) : 😄

 

 

 

Odin & Freida: 😊

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #1:

 

I dropped by my secondary LFS and picked up a small beautiful Coral Beauty angelfish today morning. 🥰

 

 

 

 

 

 

I believe it has internal parasites though, because its poop in the bag was white. So I'm currently treating it with Prazi in a QT tank in the library: 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #2:

 

I decided to pick up my cynarina today at a go as well. It was a little bit pissed off when I first added it to the tank - here's Bella for scale:

 

 

After an hour or so, it looked much happier, and puffier, although it has not flared out fully:

 

 

At the store, it was roughly ~8" across, and wide enough that it completely obscured the frag plug below (I didn't even know it had a frag plug. 😅 ). 

 

Hopefully it'll become nice and puffy in the days to come. 🤗

[Snow_Phoenix]

Well, at least it's a *bit more puffier than it was yesterday: 🤷‍♀️

 

 

 

Bubbly:

 

 

 

Peek-a-boo, I see you: 😂

 

Shy gal: 😂

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Slightly puffier today morning than the day before: 🤗

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

The Big Guy lurking in the shadows:

 

 

Pearl bubbles up close: 🤗

 

 

 

Poseidon lounging on the cup coral: 🥰

 

 

Giant bubble coral is exceptionally large today - roughly 12"++ across, and has even extended its bubbles under the rock ledge on the right: 🤗

 

 

Am keeping an eye open for other types of LPS and softy colonies to pick up in the future. Will probably do another elegance, frogspawn and giant toadstool leather, if I can come across all 3 at reasonable prices. 👍

[Snow_Phoenix]

Did a large 30G WC today:

 

 

 

Also cleaned the sump, replaced the sock and floss, washed the coral stone bags in fresh water, scraped the algae off the glass, basted the rocks, stirred the sandbed etc etc.

 

All in all, it took around ~2.5+ hours to get everything done, including cleaning up the bathroom and equipment afterwards. Am drop-dead exhausted, but I think it was necessary. It has been ~1 month since the last WC. 

[Snow_Phoenix]

My view this morning: 🙂

 

 

Was content to remain in bed and stare at the tank the whole day, but I had to get up eventually.

 

Pink yuma:

 

Bubbly:

 

Cubert the conch:

 

Poseidon:

 

Poseidon & Bella:

 

Bella:

 

Did a quick parameter check today, as I was testing the pico - magnesium and kH are a little bit low (as usual):

 

Nitrates = 50ppm

Phosphates = 0.25ppm

Calcium = 500ppm

Magnesium = 1230ppm

 

*Last WC performed yesterday, on 23/6/2020.

 

Overall, not too bad - but it looks like I'll have to keep dosing. The larger LPS pieces look content though, and the smaller frags are slowly recovering from the previous crashes (some remain unaffected either way, like the candy cane and cup corals). Fish are all doing okay - I haven't seen my decorator crab in the fuge for the past 2 days, so I think he's well-hidden deep below the macro bed and only comes out at night. 

 

The new fish in the QT is also doing okay, but hasn't eaten yet - will try tempting her with some frozen mysis/brine mix and seaweed on a clip later. Also, no white poop in the QT bin so far. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #1:

 

Poseidon today evening:

 

 

 

Hard pass on the pellets at the front of the tank (he picked the ones off the rocks instead):

 

Nero & Sushi: 🤗

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #2:

 

Thanos: 😄

 

 

 

 

My largest turban snail:

 

 

Pearl bubble coral:

 

 

Leopard discosoma (colors have run off a little) : ☹

 

 

Green ric yuma regaining green colors:

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #3: 

 

Fishies: 🥰

 

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #4: 

 

Am planning on picking up this secondhand light on Friday:

 

 

Controllable via wifi/phone app:

 

 

 

It's less than a year old, and has been hardly used in that time. Price is reasonable too. 👍

[Ratvan]

Is that a Zetlight/Maxspect?

Nice amount of controllability on that app

[Snow_Phoenix]

24 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Is that a Zetlight/Maxspect?

Nice amount of controllability on that app

I'm honestly not sure. They claim it's unbranded, but I think it does have a *brand, just unsure of which one. 🤷‍♀️

 

The app looks user-friendly so far though. And we tested the light before - it's very, very bright. And that wasn't even at full power. The store only turns it on to take pics of corals they intend to post online for sale. It's not used otherwise (underused). 

[Snow_Phoenix]

@Ratvan - I did some quick digging and I think I've found it:

 

 

Brand is InLed. I *think this is it:

 

https://myaquariumshops.com/product/inled-680-led-with-wifi-app-control/

 

I'll have to double-check at the store. The model I'm picking up is the R60. Total max. output is 85W. 

 

I'll be using this simultaneously with my AI Prime to cover the 24" x 24" x 24" spread of my cube. 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Add-On: Brand new unit is RM 890 *excluding the holder/stand. The holder/stand is sold separately at RM 150.

 

I'm picking my light + holder up for RM 400 only. I think it's worth it, especially since it's underused. Hoping to finally see some coral growth with the extra light over the cube.

[Snow_Phoenix]

Update #1: 

 

Corals on the path to recovery:

 

 

 

 

Full original colors still hasn't returned, but we're getting there. 👍

 

Bubble coral looks better under the correct lighting period (~50/50 on the blues & whites):