Ratvans 'Rona Boredom Breaker [thread closed]

[debbeach13]

I can’t tell. How are the corals?

[Ratvan]

7 hours ago, Matteo said:

disgusting 🤢😜😘

Then you definitely will not want a look at the water change water since removing the HOB filter. 🤢

7 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

I can’t tell. How are the corals?

In order of dead skeleton to looking relatively alive,

Acro Efflo - Dead, left on bottom

Porites - Dead, left on bottom

Hammer - one remaining head, closed tight but I think I can see the tentacles regrowing 

Acro Granulosa - Looking good, daily PE, no colour yet

Psamacora - Love it, want more. Might have beaten Monti's for my favourite SPS coral. I want more of this

Monti - Trucking along, big square of Polyp extention at the moment, always seems to look good

[Ratvan]

Hammer healing

 

[SeaFurn]

20 hours ago, Ratvan said:

So today is Thursday? Makes it 5 days between glass scrapings

Need some more CuC, definately want some Cerith snails

I’m telling ya - those dwarf ones are machines - Problem is it takes an army of them! 😂😂

[Ratvan]

7 minutes ago, SeaFurn said:

I’m telling ya - those dwarf ones are machines - Problem is it takes an army of them! 😂😂

LOL my current problem is finding someone who has them in stock and is willing to ship, I also still have the issue of a lot of detritus on the sandbed. It's also ugly at the moment with the amount of GHA growing in places. Definitely need to improve the CuC still 

 

Not happy with this tank just yet, I'm currently debating on whether to move the sandbed and the Hydor Powerhead to either the Jar or the 5G cube, that will allow me to install a Jebao SW2 Powerhead, have a barebottom tank (where i want to place the Pavona's but at the moment i don't have the flow in that area) and can then crank up the lighting. That means that I will likely have to relocate the Catalaphyllia and remaining recovering Hammer Frag. Dump some softies in there with it and call it a day

 

The good news is that weekly testing and water changes have been kept up, I havent noticed much consumption (surprise surprise) but did not expect any just yet. 

 

[debbeach13]

You always have so much going on with your tanks. Glad things are improving even if it is slow and your positive attitude sure helps. 

[Ratvan]

3 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

You always have so much going on with your tanks. Glad things are improving even if it is slow and your positive attitude sure helps. 

I know, always fiddling. Oh look my Astrea has moved from his sleeping spot. Might see him working this weekend at last. Slacker

 

It was hard enough to find stock before Covid19, now it seems so much more difficult. Especially Clean up Crew. I need a UK reefer nearby with a big tank that has a population explosion, i might actually put out some wanted ads in the local forums.

 

I'm trying to work out the issues I am having by changing one variable at a time, the HOB helped slightly but i don't seem to have the current over the sandbed to move detritus into the HOB's intake and it just gathers in ugly grey patches. Which is what is making me think more flow, at least that way it'll be in the water column and hopefully get smashed small enough that I cant see it, if i don't run the HOB continually. Whats interesting is that the detritus doesn't seem to affect my parameters so I know that itn't **THAT** much of an issue, aesthetic rather than anything else

[A.m.P]

I love psammocora too, there are a ton of cool color morphs and even a few branching varieties out there.

[Ratvan]

Well the ad on the UK forums worked. Sort of. Arriving Tuesday hopefully. 

 

To be split between Picos. 

Alien Eye Paly (4 Heads) 

 

Easy sticks, forget the names

 

Another Pavona (to prove my thoughts on growth patterns) 

 

Macro bag to sort out and shake stomatella, micro brittle and bristleworm out of

With assorted rubble

 

I asked for clean up crew🤷‍♂️

[A.m.P]

19 hours ago, Ratvan said:

Well the ad on the UK forums worked. Sort of. Arriving Tuesday hopefully. 

 

To be split between Picos. 

Alien Eye Paly (4 Heads) 

 

Easy sticks, forget the names

Stylophora - although growth pattern looks a bit like poci, but I would expect less-uniform polyps from poci. Hmmm, my vote's on pocillopora - too shaggy to be stylo methinks. Careful with those, they'll spread via polyp-bailout and can take-over a tank.
 

Quote

 

 

Seriatopora, if purple probably hyacinth/ bird of paradise - if pink/orange polyps give it lower light, green and purple polyps can tolerate medium and high-ish respectively. Oh, and they're surprisingly not quite as "Easy" as they get made-out to be, they're famous for inevitably just rtn or stn-ing overnight after growing fine for months and seem to be even more susceptible to alk-swings than some acro's.
It's all relative, they're beautiful animals all - nice finds.

[Ratvan]

@Amphrites

 

Spoke to the fella today

 

Green Seriatopora Caliendrum

 

Appleberry Hysterix Frag and donor colony 

 

[A.m.P]

5 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

@Amphrites

 

Spoke to the fella today

 

Green Seriatopora Caliendrum

 

Appleberry Hysterix Frag and donor colony 

 

Yeah, that's a bird of paradise, will do just fine in medium to high light - just don't give it too much.

 

And the thick-branched seriatopora, don't see that often at all, no wonder the polyps and growth just didn't look right for poci or stylo lol...
I enjoy trying to ID things by picture lol, when my wife goes to pick up water she describes coral and fish and I try to ID them by description, its become a fun little game, sorry to hijack XD

[Ratvan]

On 6/20/2020 at 6:15 PM, Amphrites said:

Yeah, that's a bird of paradise, will do just fine in medium to high light - just don't give it too much.

 

And the thick-branched seriatopora, don't see that often at all, no wonder the polyps and growth just didn't look right for poci or stylo lol...
I enjoy trying to ID things by picture lol, when my wife goes to pick up water she describes coral and fish and I try to ID them by description, its become a fun little game, sorry to hijack XD

Strange since I agreed on the frag have seen a lot of it about, could probably dedicate the RSM to the colonies I could pick up 

I know exactly what you mean with the ID game, I do/did the same with my Ex. Still do 😄

 

Hey, i'm all for a Hijack as long as its educational

[A.m.P]

7 hours ago, Ratvan said:

Strange since I agreed on the frag have seen a lot of it about, could probably dedicate the RSM to the colonies I could pick up 

I know exactly what you mean with the ID game, I do/did the same with my Ex. Still do 😄

 

Hey, i'm all for a Hijack as long as its educational

It's harder to find stateside, same with the old ponape morphs, at least it's not overly-common near me, haven't looked too extensively online for either.

[Ratvan]

F.uck, sh.it and Bollocks

Moving around the tank today as gave it the slightest tap, guess what shattered? The front corner of two panes

 

Need to set up the Cube sharpish

[Ratvan]

I love the cube, but this is not how I wanted to set it up

[Snow_Phoenix]

35 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

I love the cube, but this is not how I wanted to set it up

It looks really clean and sleek though. Is that a hermit at the top? 

[Ratvan]

1 minute ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

It looks really clean and sleek though. Is that a hermit at the top? 

Thanks, yes that's my original Hermit. Had it over over 18 months now and lived through every single Tank Crash and Shutdown!  All my CuC are actually in shot at the minute. (Bumblee Bee, Nassarius, Astrea and Hermit) 

 

The only coral that looks to have made it is the Elegance, the SPS are completely grey (chilling in HOB filter)

[debbeach13]

Hang in there. Sorry about the cracked tank

[Ratvan]

2 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

Hang in there. Sorry about the cracked tank

I will never re use a tank again! Well apart from the 15G

New tanks only, with long guarantee's only from here out!

[Ratvan]

The plus side is that I have seen all the CuC alive and active, even cleaning each other

 

 

[Ratvan]

Little Pavona Nubs doing well, encrusting over the side of the tile here 

 

The Red was in a similar position when i got it, now freely overhanging the tile

 

Going to nudge it back on the rock in the hopes that it'll encrust onto the rock. I an then potentially swap this frag for something else after snapping it off

 

The Clean up Crew have cleaned up each other

[Proxo]

I actually love that cube scape, only thing i would change if you're wanting a bit of height/room for coral is  that orange' rock for a slightly bigger one!
The detail with smaller rocks etc is spot on too... 

[Ratvan]

2 hours ago, Proxo said:

I actually love that cube scape, only thing i would change if you're wanting a bit of height/room for coral is  that orange' rock for a slightly bigger one!
The detail with smaller rocks etc is spot on too... 

I love the cube too, its a shame every time I have set it up is due to another tank going badly. 

 

I'm hoping that the corals will fill in that height, it should become clear once the frags that should have been here yesterday eventually arrive

[Ratvan]

 

My Corals and Macro that have been delayed by 4 days arrived today, the red macro turned to a mush/soup. Everything else looks remarkably okay if a lot stressed.