Glauber Carvalho Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 On 7/14/2020 at 12:42 AM, mipster said: I found a bunch of people saying that gold ring cowrie snails are prolific algae eaters and are known to munch on ulva and luckily my LSF had them in stock so I went up and just grabbed one. There isn't a ton of Ulva so I didn't want to get more then the one and not have enough to munch on. Also, these snails are SO WEIRD! I can't get a good shot on my phone but here's one from google. That skin or what ever it is called comes out from the bottom of the shell and comes up the side and then fully retracts when threatened and hiding. I've never seen a snail like this and when I saw it pop up as an ulva eater in my searches and I looked it up I was so confused by what I was looking at lol I also picked up a blue porcelain crab. She's so pretty and I love watching her little fan filter feeders working. Lights are off but I'll get a video later. Also, my scarlet snails are really lazy B@$t@rds lol They are 100% alive but they are just lazy sitting around, not pulling their weight at all lol Noooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🤣🤣🤣 It's not weird!!!! It is lovely!!!!🐌💘😂 Good choices. I think the porcelain crab will have great dinners! 1 Quote Link to comment
Glauber Carvalho Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 2 hours ago, mipster said: What all do you think I picked up?? I'll give you some hints... Clue one: 🎃 Clue two: ☀️ Clue three: 🌅 Clue four: Oooooh my!!!! lets try! Orange Zoanthus?!?!?😂 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 16, 2020 Author Share Posted July 16, 2020 8 minutes ago, Glauber Carvalho said: Orange Zoanthus?!?!?😂 Nope! Each clue is a different coral. I brought home 4 new babies total lol 1 Quote Link to comment
DISQUALIFIED-QQ Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 1: jack o lantern leptoseris 2: Sun coral (tubastrea) 3: sunset montipora cap? sunset zoa? 4: (yo what is that? is that from a kids show?) 1 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 16, 2020 Author Share Posted July 16, 2020 1 minute ago, Diamonds x Pearls said: 1: jack o lantern leptoseris 2: Sun coral (tubastrea) 3: sunset montipora cap? sunset zoa? 4: (yo what is that? is that from a kids show?) 1. Correct 2. Correct 3. mostly correct - Tyree Sunset monti, encrusting, not a cap 4. That's Polkaroo! For a Polkaroo Leptoseris I'm really excited about these corals! I know the sun corals will be a challenge but I'm excited to try 1 Quote Link to comment
DISQUALIFIED-QQ Posted July 16, 2020 Share Posted July 16, 2020 1 minute ago, mipster said: 1. Correct 2. Correct 3. mostly correct - Tyree Sunset monti, encrusting, not a cap 4. That's Polkaroo! For a Polkaroo Leptoseris I'm really excited about these corals! I know the sun corals will be a challenge but I'm excited to try Ah! I didn't grow up watching BBC as I'm not part of the Commonwealth. (Average American upbringing here) NPS is pretty fun when you get the discipline for it. I remember when I volunteered for aquariums they were fed very very often even the ones 4 meters deep or more. (You have to dive to them with a squirt bottle full of cyclopeeze, baby brine, and among other things). Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 16, 2020 Author Share Posted July 16, 2020 1 hour ago, Diamonds x Pearls said: Ah! I didn't grow up watching BBC as I'm not part of the Commonwealth. Americans didn't get Polkaroo? Polkadot Door? Polkadot Short? NONE OF THEM?! So sad for your childhood.. 🥺 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 18, 2020 Author Share Posted July 18, 2020 It's amazing how small changes can have big effects on your corals. I had pointed one of the two return outlets a little further down when I went to bed because it was randomly making a sputtering sound so i thought the outlet was too close to the surface. I wake up this morning and my duncans and sun corals are all closed and majorly pissed off. It was enough of a change in flow to make them mad at me. I've put the outlet back how it was, I'm not hearing any noise like last night and everything is starting open up again. Aren't our coral babies still temper-mental things? I'm also now in the look for some nice healthy fish. After last time, I set up a QT system and it's ready for some inhabitants while the tank continues to lay fallow until early September. I'm going to be UBER critical on where I get my fish from and do everything in my power to really get it right and protect them as best I can. The lack of access to medications is one of the more frustrating challenges here but there isn't a ton I can do about it at the moment but take what precautions are available to me. I did a 20% ish water change day before yesterday. My Alk before the water change was 6.4 dKh, the new water was 11.4 dKh and my new water came out to 7.6 dKh. Calcium going into the water change was 300 ppm and new water was coming out at 400 ppm. So still on the low side, especially for the Alk. I picked up some Tropic Marine All-for-Reef to start some manual dosing while I figure out dosages. I've noticed rapid coraline algae growth the past week which is really exciting but also contributing to the reduction in my parameters. I just dosed 4 ml of the all for reef and I'm going to let everything mix together and I'll measure calcium and Alk in an hour to see where we are to get my parameters up where I'd like to keep them and then figure out the dosage necessary to maintain the levels. Anyone every feel like a mad scientist when playing with their additives and test kits? I feel like I need a lab coat or something while doing this. 1 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 19, 2020 Author Share Posted July 19, 2020 Update: Alk is at 9.4 dKh and Calcium is at 430 ppm so I'm happy with those levels! I'm going to daily testing before bed and we'll see where that takes me 1 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 19, 2020 Author Share Posted July 19, 2020 I'm now mildly concerned I raised it too fast... Buuuut too late now, no one looks pissed. We'll see how she goes. I think it'll be ok. Power of positive thinking applies to reefing too right? Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted July 19, 2020 Author Share Posted July 19, 2020 Hey, is this white thing growing over my Sun Coral a sponge? Can I just pull it off? Quote Link to comment
Tired Posted July 19, 2020 Share Posted July 19, 2020 Looks like a sponge, yes. I would probably pull it off so it doesn't grow entirely over the polyps. It should be pretty soft, most sponges with that general shape/form are. 1 Quote Link to comment
Ash1176 Posted July 21, 2020 Share Posted July 21, 2020 Thats the thing with small tanks, things change quick, too quick! glad your getting you kh and alc back where you want them! no lab coat yet but I felt pretty “sciency” the other day handling my Zoa with gloves and safety glasses. for the fish, I would recommend using one source, and aquacultured if you can, that way you’re minimizing risk, do you have any ideas for kinds of fish you want back in? 1 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 On 7/21/2020 at 12:35 AM, Ash1176 said: for the fish, I would recommend using one source, and aquacultured if you can, that way you’re minimizing risk, do you have any ideas for kinds of fish you want back in? I would like..... EVERYTHING! It's so problematic.... I need a 10,000 gallon tank to handle everything I want lol For this, I know a need a pair of clowns, they are my fave nano fish. And then I'll need one other fish, just not sure what. I would love love LOVE a pink streaked wrasse but from all my looking, they apparently don't come around much. I also really like green banded gobies, but once again, they don't seem to come around often, even pre-covid days. I have always liked Orchid Dotty Backs but was worried about aggression in such a small tank so I will be watching updates on your guy with eager attention. I also really like Springeri Damsels which also have their potential aggression issues but that might be a non-issue with no other damsels in the tank. And they're such a pretty blue! Quote Link to comment
Ash1176 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 8 minutes ago, mipster said: I would like..... EVERYTHING! It's so problematic.... I need a 10,000 gallon tank to handle everything I want lol Hahahaha I feel you, I’m already dreaming about a big Red Sea or waterbox thank and what to put in it! but this is fine for learning... For now haha will be doing a clown for sure, maybe 2 who knows but that I would like to add variety, so that why I was thinking just one clown and 2 other, will probably try royal gramma this time and maybe a goby... classic Evo stocking haha the orchid dottyback was great, didn’t seem agressive at all, but I guess I only had her for 18 days before the brook killed all the fish... Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 3 minutes ago, Ash1176 said: the orchid dottyback was great, didn’t seem agressive at all, but I guess I only had her for 18 days before the brook killed all the fish... Right, my brain was only half processing what happened with your fish apparently! lol Quote Link to comment
Ash1176 Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 When you add new fish hahaha Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 I also need to figure out what to do about the Ulva that is spreading through my tank much quicker then anticipated. If I had a bigger system, then piece of cake, a herbivore fish would easily be able to take care of it as I know tangs and the like love the stuff but there is no fish that I have found that will take care of it that is nano-approved and either the cowrie snail isn't touching it or it's spreading too fast. I think it's a combo of the two to be honest. Manual removal just seems to cause it to spread to new parts of the tank faster. I'm thinking of trying Vibrant. After watching the BRS video and reading of others using it for Ulva specifically, this might be my best chance to take care of it before it takes over. I also need to sort out some additional filtration. Feeding my sun corals has bumped up my nutrients higher than I would like which is also not helping the ulva situation of course. But I won't give up my sunnies! I won't put any hang out equipment on the tank, one of my goals was to keep it looking as sleek as possible so I need to look into my options. I thought of externally rigging an algae reactor but my concern there is it would do TOO good a job. There are not really any skimmers I can use that wouldn't take away from the look that I have seen - if someone knows of something, let me know. The arm for the AI Prime takes up alot of room in chamber 2 unfortunately. I could try dosing something like Red Sea NO3:PO4-X - Nitrate/Phosphate Reducer but I don't know much about it. I have some that was part of the Red Sea Reef Mature Kit. Any bright ideas out there world? I currently have filter floss, Chemipure Blue and marine pure gems for bio filtration going on in the sump area just so you know where the starting point is. Quote Link to comment
Tired Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 You could try buying a small urchin, then returning it after it's mowed down all the ulva. You'd have to look up which kinds won't scratch acrylic, though. Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 6 minutes ago, Tired said: You could try buying a small urchin, then returning it after it's mowed down all the ulva. You'd have to look up which kinds won't scratch acrylic, though. I feel like all the urchin's I've seen would just bulldoze everything in my tank currently. The Evos are glass though, so at least that isn't an issue either way Quote Link to comment
Tired Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Right, that's why you get a small one. Tuxedo urchins are fairly bulldoze-free as urchins go, though they will carry small things, but they'll absolutely murder that ulva. People try to keep ulva in tanks with urchins sometimes, and it does not work. Pencil urchins are also pretty safe when they're just tiny babies, if you can find a little one. Quote Link to comment
Ash1176 Posted August 4, 2020 Share Posted August 4, 2020 From what I read from people that have dosed vibrants, is that it strips the nutrients, so it would help you while dosing. im having low nitrates other here, and I’m pretty sure my matrix media is doing a really good job at that! I’m pulling them out to see what happens. It would probably take a few weeks or more for your bacteria to grow on matrix, but it seems to be doing to good of a job for me! Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 5, 2020 Author Share Posted August 5, 2020 11 hours ago, Ash1176 said: From what I read from people that have dosed vibrants, is that it strips the nutrients, so it would help you while dosing. Hmm that's interesting... That means hypothetically it can help with my high nutrients from Sun coral feeding as it helps with the ulva... That will be something to closely watch... damn, am I setting myself up for daily testing to do an experiment? Reading, I should only be treating 1 ml once every 2 weeks. It sounds so crazy that so little could do so much lol but I will try to get some photos of my current ulva situation and take progress pics. And I'm currently kicking myself cause I just did a bunch of manual removal today I should have left it to use for the experiment. But I hadn't fully decided on trying vibrant until maybe an hour ago lol OH WELL! 1 Quote Link to comment
TerraIncognita Posted August 5, 2020 Share Posted August 5, 2020 On 8/3/2020 at 12:41 PM, mipster said: I also need to figure out what to do about the Ulva that is spreading through my tank much quicker then anticipated. If I had a bigger system, then piece of cake, a herbivore fish would easily be able to take care of it as I know tangs and the like love the stuff but there is no fish that I have found that will take care of it that is nano-approved and either the cowrie snail isn't touching it or it's spreading too fast. I think it's a combo of the two to be honest. Manual removal just seems to cause it to spread to new parts of the tank faster. I'm thinking of trying Vibrant. After watching the BRS video and reading of others using it for Ulva specifically, this might be my best chance to take care of it before it takes over. I also need to sort out some additional filtration. Feeding my sun corals has bumped up my nutrients higher than I would like which is also not helping the ulva situation of course. But I won't give up my sunnies! I won't put any hang out equipment on the tank, one of my goals was to keep it looking as sleek as possible so I need to look into my options. I thought of externally rigging an algae reactor but my concern there is it would do TOO good a job. There are not really any skimmers I can use that wouldn't take away from the look that I have seen - if someone knows of something, let me know. The arm for the AI Prime takes up alot of room in chamber 2 unfortunately. I could try dosing something like Red Sea NO3:PO4-X - Nitrate/Phosphate Reducer but I don't know much about it. I have some that was part of the Red Sea Reef Mature Kit. Any bright ideas out there world? I currently have filter floss, Chemipure Blue and marine pure gems for bio filtration going on in the sump area just so you know where the starting point is. wanna be the guinea pig? 1 Quote Link to comment
mipster Posted August 5, 2020 Author Share Posted August 5, 2020 5 minutes ago, TerraIncognita said: wanna be the guinea pig? I saw that video, it's what got me curious about trying it! Then I went waaaay deep into this 350 page long thread on R2R that was started back in 2016 :https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/vibrant-liquid-aquarium-cleaner-discussion-thread.271428/ I'm always interested in trying things out for the sake of me and my fellow reefer, especially if it can help with both of the problems I'm having right now - high nutrients from heavy feeding to keep my sun coral happy and Ulva. Quote Link to comment
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