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RedTheReefer's Rock Flower Garden - 365 AIO Challenge


RedTheReefer

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RedTheReefer

05-28-2020 Update

 

I decided to place an order with KPAquatics and got it shipped last Saturday. Now that everything is settled here is some pictures of my anemones. I also placed an order with Salt Critters which arrived last Wednesday. I wanted to try all of the most common anemone vendors. I will probably place a review (pricing, size, color variation, health etc.) and my overall experience from each vendor at a later post once everything is settled in - maybe a month from now. So far, I placed an order with GotCorals, KPAquatics, and SaltCritters.

 

 There are a total of 25 anemones in this tank as of right now. 😁  Things are going well  for the most part. I have noticed an aiptasia infestation from the live rock I received from GulfLiveRock. In my opinion, this is the worst pest I can encounter in this tank as using a peppermint shrimp will not work due its eventual feast on my anemones. I might just leave them alone and see what happens. In my case, there are not a lot of remedies other than AiptasiaX. I am also encountering a low nutrient problem. I can't seem to get my nitrates at anything above 0 ppm and have it  hold above 0 ppm after a day. I don't want this to cause a dino outbreak but I believe I already spotted some form of dino's in the tank, unfortunately. Any advice from my fellow reefers with fishless picos on how to keep my nitrates up? Just stick with rigorous routine feedings?

 

As for future livestock plans, maybe some sexy shrimp?

 

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RedTheReefer
18 hours ago, Wingy said:

I had success in aiptasia removal by injecting them using a tiny syringe with hydrogen peroxide and scraping out the carcass.  

I did read about that online. I also read somewhere that someone had success with using a soldering iron to kill them. You would essentially cook them by taking the rock out of the water and placing\ the soldering iron at the locations with aiptasia for around 5 seconds. I think I will try this route instead since I already have a soldering iron on hand and would prefer not to add any chemicals to the water.

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Elizabeth94

Love this little tank. Who doesn’t like RFAs? I just picked up six more from Reeftopia. They had a sale 6 ultras for $138. Not sure what you are getting them for, but I made the mistake of paying half that for a beautiful one on ebay. Never again haha. 

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RedTheReefer
16 minutes ago, Elizabeth94 said:

Love this little tank. Who doesn’t like RFAs? I just picked up six more from Reeftopia. They had a sale 6 ultras for $138. Not sure what you are getting them for, but I made the mistake of paying half that for a beautiful one on ebay. Never again haha. 

Thank you!  You know how some hobbyist obsesses over the infinite color variations of zoas. It is the same for me but with RFAs. 😀

 

I never heard of this vendor. I got a 10-pack from KPAquatics for roughly $300 so that comes out to roughly $30 per anemone. $138 for 6 sounds pretty good which is only $23 per anemone. I'll be sure to take a look! How big were the ones you received?

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Elizabeth94
6 minutes ago, RedTheReefer said:

Thank you!  You know how some hobbyist obsesses over the infinite color variations of zoas. It is the same for me but with RFAs. 😀

 

I never heard of this vendor. I got a 10-pack from KPAquatics for roughly $300 so that comes out to roughly $30 per anemone. $138 for 6 sounds pretty good which is only $23 per anemone. I'll be sure to take a look! How big were the ones you received?


They were each about 1in, maybe a tad larger. I got two or three that are definitely the same color and a few that are similar. I thought it was a good deal, cheaper than my lfs.

 

 

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RedTheReefer
27 minutes ago, Elizabeth94 said:


They were each about 1in, maybe a tad larger. I got two or three that are definitely the same color and a few that are similar. I thought it was a good deal, cheaper than my lfs.

 

 

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I really like that super bright green one in the middle! You should maybe try out SaltCritters. All their RFAs are WYSIWYG. Although their 3-packs are from $50 to $70 and their singles range from $25 to $60, their anemones are the smallest I've gotten out of the vendors. They photograph them in a cup that is roughly 2" in diameter. They only let them sit in the cup for around 30 minutes so they might not be expanded all the way. Colors do seem accurate and they photograph them under blues AND blues/whites. From what I've gotten, the sizes are accurate if I reference them to the pictures. But since you get to pick what colors/design variations you want, I am okay with purchasing a little smaller. Having that option to pick what you want will definitely bring me back there. Playing the lottery on colors and designs is not my cup of tea. I bought a total of 8 from them for $200 which comes to roughly $25 per anemone and the shipping was waived if I spent over $200. They were shipped nicely and each anemone was bagged separately unlike KPAquatics and their 14-day guarantee is hard to beat.

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Elizabeth94

I agree. Not being able to choose the colors stinks, especially since your tank revolves around them. If they are all the same, whats the point? Ill have to check them out. Id like to get a few more. Their colors pop under kessils. 

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You can also try Got Corals...............I used them for RFAs once and liked what I received..........

 

KP is a great vendor also and they have a much better selection for other stuff..........

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RedTheReefer
1 hour ago, spectra said:

You can also try Got Corals...............I used them for RFAs once and liked what I received..........

 

KP is a great vendor also and they have a much better selection for other stuff..........

I got a 4-Pack from GotCorals. I highly recommend them. If you read one of my other posts in this thread, I talk about them. I am super pleased with what I received and I definitely will be buying from them again. One of the anemones was pregnant and released babies in my tank! That really shows what you are receiving is really healthy! It was the green tentacle/red disk RFA on rock in the top down view picture in case you were curious. 

 

I think KPAquatics is a great vendor too. I heard wonderful stuff about their rock. I am still pleased with the anemones and gorgonians I received as well.

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RedTheReefer

So after feeding the tank last night, I decided to give my nitrates another test tonight. Nitrates are at 0 ppm. What gives? 😒 I thought I fed the tank pretty heavily too.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...
RedTheReefer
On 7/5/2020 at 3:27 PM, kimberbee said:

How are all the anemones doing? Hope all is well. 

Anemones are doing well - for the most part. I did lose some unfortunately. I found that if my new additions did survive the first week, they do fine. I bought a couple packs from SaltCritters and I would lose at least 2 out of 6 or so anemones. Maybe they are too young or our parameters are too different? They do offer a 2-week livestock guarantee so no complaints there! But, every time I lose one, it breaks my heart. 😥

 

I suspected that maybe there was an Alk swing causing some of my anemones to die. I've been using Red Sea Coral Pro salt religiously and found that it mixes at 10-11 dkH which is actually way too high as my tank sits considerably lower. And besides, I'm not growing sticks!

 

So, this warranted a change in salt brands.  I decided to give Tropic Marin Pro Reef salt a try since I heard good stuff about it and the Alk mixes way lower at around 7-8 dkh. I also slowed down water changes to 10%  bi-weekly from 50% weekly changes to keep my nitrates up as well. I came to the conclusion that my previous 50% water changes with the Red Sea salt must have been spiking my Alk. Hopefully this will stabilize my tank more and result in no more losses! 🤞

 

@kimberbee

If you are looking to frag any of your gorgs, let me know. I'd love to buy some off you if you willing to ship.

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RedTheReefer

AND MY AIPTASIA PROBLEM!

 

I almost forgot. It was eradicated for the most part using a soldering iron. I took the rock out and cooked them! It did not smell good. 😷

 

The only hard part was remembering where they were all located once you take the rock out of the water. But they are resilient! I ended up missing one and will have to do the process all over again. Eventually, I'll get them all.

 

I gave the rock a good rinse in old saltwater to remove any leftover flesh before putting it back in the tank. This is one of the advantages with such a small tank. I find you can remove pests very easily and its no big deal taking out the rock.

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  • 2 weeks later...
RedTheReefer

07-29-2020 FTS and Photos

 

I got a new thing so here are some beauty shots. 😍

 

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I am thinking about getting a Royal Gramma for this tank to keep the Caribbean Biotope theme going. I didn't put any hiding spots or caves in my aquascape though. What do you guys think? Would a little baby Royal Gramma do well?

 

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NoOneLikesADryTang

Those are some nice rock flowers! Such a cool little tank! 

 

I've ordered rock flowers from just about everyone, and my two favorite vendors are Got Corals, and Foxy SaltWater Tropicals. Highly recommend both of them. 

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RedTheReefer
9 minutes ago, RedTheReefer said:

20200729_181757.jpg

 

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These two rock flowers are from Got Corals. They are definitely my favorite! I'll try and check out Foxy SaltWater to place an order with them. Thanks for the recommendation!

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RedTheReefer
Just now, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

You're welcome. I always buy in packs of 10 or more, unless I'm buying locally, and they are two that I've gone back to multiple times. 

Any deaths among the ones you ordered? I've had a few deaths from SaltCritters/KPAquatics and probably won't be ordering from them unless I see a design/color variation I really want at SaltCritters.

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NoOneLikesADryTang

Deaths are pretty common, I think due to shipping stress. The only vendor I didn't have any deaths from was Foxy, the second time I placed an order for them from him. 

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RedTheReefer
4 minutes ago, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

Deaths are pretty common, I think due to shipping stress. The only vendor I didn't have any deaths from was Foxy, the second time I placed an order for them from him. 

How was the variation in colors/designs in your 10 pack? I just looked at their website and I am so tempted to place an order. 😍 They also have a Royal Gramma!!!

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RedTheReefer
8 minutes ago, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

It was solid. Good mixture of colors. None were huge, but healthy and pretty. 

Ok. Sweet. I'll make an order with them next when I am ready to get more anemones. :happydance:

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