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

[debbeach13]

They are all so beautiful.

[Snow_Phoenix]

28 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

They are all so beautiful.

Thanks, Deb! I need to work on fattening them both up - especially Lady. She's too underweight and doesn't look healthy to me.

[Snow_Phoenix]

13 hours ago, growsomething said:

That toadstool looks alien, almost like a baby's toy in that lighting.

It certainly is something! I find it quite unique. So glad I picked it up all those weeks ago. 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Lady is missing a chunk of her pectoral fin. I'm not sure how long it'll take to regrow, but I hope it does. It looks awful. 😕

 

 

Luna:

 

 

Side-by-side comparison:

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Luna today. 🥰

 

 

 

Her split tail has recovered super-quick! Lady's pectoral fin is regrowing as well. 🥰👍

 

More and more aiptasia has been popping up lately. 

 

 

The giant one remains untouched, but I need to eradicate the new tiny ones before figuring out a safe way to remove this one. 🤔

 

This tank will have to take a backseat though. Ran into some issues with my discus tank and I need to sort that one out first. Will take a while. 

[debbeach13]

3 hours ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

This tank will have to take a backseat though. Ran into some issues with my discus tank and I need to sort that one out first. Will take a while

Sorry to hear this. I hope it doesn't wear you out. 

[Snow_Phoenix]

3 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

Sorry to hear this. I hope it doesn't wear you out. 

It is beginning to, and I'm quite stressed out actually. I had to drain a 70G tank all the way because the water had turned foul (very smelly - I gagged several times) and it was green/cloudy (massive phyto bloom). I'm unsure why/how the imbalance occurred, but I had to clean out all the filter media, submersible equipment, substrate, ornaments, filter box etc etc. and soak everything in soap + concentrated vinegar, before giving it a thorough scrub & rinse. 

 

I did it over 2 days, and I'm still not done - I still have 2" of green water in the tank which I couldn't successfully drain out, and a pail full of soaking river rocks which I need to scrub & rinse *individually tomorrow. To top all of that off, I lost >50% of my fish stock - most of my dithers, including tetras and barbs which I have kept over 2+ years, are all gone. 😢

 

I managed to squeeze my discus (all of which made it through for some divine reason that I'm secretly thankful for) into my predator tank (which is due for a scrape and WC) and in short, no one's happy:

 

 

Discus tank's all wrapped up for the black out though:

 

 

 

 

Now I just need to do a few weekly WCs to keep the other tank's biofilter from collapsing. 😕

 

In all of my years, I've never had a phyto-bloom this terrible before. I have to re-cycle the tank. I have already ordered bacteria cultures to seed the filter media when I re-set it. With any luck, the survivors can slowly be introduced back to their tank by the end of March, then I'll work on re-stocking the tank with more dithers once again. 

[debbeach13]

That is just awful. So much work and heartbreaking.

[Snow_Phoenix]

Luna the little lion today. 💦

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

A new place to perch. 💦

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

They've grown quite large! I've spotted new, smaller babies too. 🥰

 

 

 

 

 

[seabass]

I'm assuming they have some open water to swim in, besides just the chaeto packed photos that we see.

[Snow_Phoenix]

2 minutes ago, seabass said:

I'm assuming they have some open water to swim in, besides just the chaeto packed photos that we see.

Oh, yes! The entire back of the sump is an open water column - it's where I plant my mangroves in water bottles. That's where they usually hang out. They only come to the chaeto section (main refugium) when I drop some food in (NLS pellets or prime reef flakes), but once they've finished eating, they swim back to the mangrove section. 🙂 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Poseidon's old pics, taken exactly a year ago:

 

 

 

 

 

I still miss him terribly. 😢

 

Whenever I look into this tank and see it devoid of my dragonets, it's like a punch in the gut all over again. Some might call me ridiculous for being so attached to fish, but a lot of time/effort/patience when into training and fattening these guys, and I absolutely loved each and every one of them for being as they are. Perhaps, one day, I'll get the opportunity to try keeping dragonets again. The tank feels so empty without them, despite having other fish around. 😞 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Luna:

 

 

 

 

PJ:

 

 

Galaxea:

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Foxy:

 

 

 

 

Leathers:

 

 

 

FTS:

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Hunting live food together today. 💦

 

 

 

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

My little mollies are growing quick! I have 6 large juvis so far. 🥰

 

 

 

 

The fuge is densely packed with chaeto and other macro too:

 

 

 

Mangroves are growing very well too: 🌱

 

 

It's a hot mess down there, but there are so many cool tiny critters in it. Never thought I'd be keeping tiny fish in the fuge too! 😅

[growsomething]

Think I tried to buy a twin to your toadstool today, but they were so busy they couldn't get the manager to come see if it was for sale.  It was in the $15-25 tank but not on the rack, and I'll bet it was an escapee from another one of the tanks which overflow into each other.

 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

28 minutes ago, growsomething said:

Think I tried to buy a twin to your toadstool today, but they were so busy they couldn't get the manager to come see if it was for sale.  It was in the $15-25 tank but not on the rack, and I'll bet it was an escapee from another one of the tanks which overflow into each other.

 

 

Nice haul! Mine has doubled in size since I got it. 😊👍

[Snow_Phoenix]

More baby molly fry pics inbound! There are a few new little guys in the mix too. 🥰

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, I lost one of the bigger fry few days ago. 😔

 

Still have 5 large fry and 3 small fry (which I've spotted). All speckled like their mum. 🥰👍

[Snow_Phoenix]

Took a few overall shots of the fuge as well. Sump is filled to full capacity once the pumps are off, and the fish can move freely between each compartment. 💦

 

 

 

 

Some limpets and coralline adhering to the glass:

 

 

Fashionista limpet rocking a red algae mohawk: 😅

 

 

Mass of chaeto:

 

 

Tangle of GHA and grape caulerpa:

 

 

The DT is dirty and in need of a good scrape. I can't recall when was the last time I WCed this tank, but it has been a few months. Coral growth is slow. Fish are okay. 👍

 

[Lebowski_]

Great journal and beautiful tank + fuge.

 

That Foxface doesn't belong, though. A 6" fish that likes to swim in a 2ftx2ft cube just aint right.

[Snow_Phoenix]

8 hours ago, Lebowski_ said:

Great journal and beautiful tank + fuge.

 

That Foxface doesn't belong, though. A 6" fish that likes to swim in a 2ftx2ft cube just aint right.

I appreciate your concern. But I strive to give Foxy (and all my other animals) the best care possible within my means (which isn't much to begin with). She's very healthy, well-fed and a good fish. She's also a survivor. If only I could cram everything that has happened in this tank within a single post to explain it better, I would, but then we'll both be stuck writing/reading a never-ending essay. 

Also, a *lot is going on my end atm (which I'm not inclined to share with the forum, and I'd respectfully ask you not to ask, if possible), and Foxy is one of the few animals I currently have that makes me smile - which I haven't been doing a lot these days. I love watching her, and she has an amazing personality for a fish. 

Don't worry about her welfare - she's well-taken care of. And I love *all of my animals, including the derpy hermit in my nano that gives me more trouble than it's worth on most days. Peace. 🌺

[banasophia]

4 minutes ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

Also, a *lot is going on my end atm (which I'm not inclined to share with the forum, and I'd respectfully ask you not to ask, if possible), and Foxy is one of the few animals I currently have that makes me smile - which I haven't been doing a lot these days. I love watching her, and she has an amazing personality for a fish. 

Sorry you are going through tough times, Snow… hugs 💛