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Oh yeah, that looks like algae. Are you able to change the filter outflow to stir the surface of the water a bit more? It might keep the film down, and is generally a good thing to have anyway, to help keep things oxygenated. Especially with that algae on top of the water potentially limiting oxygen exchange.

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Snow_Phoenix
1 minute ago, Tired said:

Oh yeah, that looks like algae. Are you able to change the filter outflow to stir the surface of the water a bit more? It might keep the film down, and is generally a good thing to have anyway, to help keep things oxygenated. Especially with that algae on top of the water potentially limiting oxygen exchange.

My HOB can't be modified directly - unless I cut open the plastic inlet, which might be tough because the plastic is quite thick. 

 

I suppose I can manually stir up the surface with a chopstick every now and then. 🤔

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Oh, yeah, manually stirring should help. 

 

Do you have a soldering iron? They can be used to melt/cut through plastic. Think hot knife through very dense butter. Do it outside, and experiment with a few unimportant plastic pieces so you can get a feel for it. I use one to put holes in storage bins that I want to keep bugs in.

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Snow_Phoenix

Draining the pico can be a challenge, especially when there's so many coral pieces that could easily be knocked over.

 

IMG_20200821_113908_005.thumb.jpg.afe55ab096e37573111ffb8d86af0a87.jpg

 

Refilling it is a whole lot easier. WC completed for the week! 😊👍

IMG_20200821_113908_006.jpg

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Snow_Phoenix
12 minutes ago, Tired said:

Oh, yeah, manually stirring should help. 

 

Do you have a soldering iron? They can be used to melt/cut through plastic. Think hot knife through very dense butter. Do it outside, and experiment with a few unimportant plastic pieces so you can get a feel for it. I use one to put holes in storage bins that I want to keep bugs in.

Ah, I don't trust myself with a soldering iron. The one time I used it during an electronics lesson for Home Economics in high school, I burnt my finger quite badly. 😕

 

It's ok. I can manually stir the surface twice/thrice a day. I'm practically at home most of the time anyway. 

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Snow_Phoenix

I also fed the tank a few NLS & Formula One pellets, and that did bring everyone out as usual: 😄

 

Harvey: 

 

IMG_20200821_144949_911.thumb.jpg.30852c7a8a494d5a519a9bbe9a67a49c.jpg

 

IMG_20200821_165622_932.thumb.jpg.d9e5e858815115abaa0ee62c280fc689.jpg

 

Benny:

 

IMG_20200821_165458_619.thumb.jpg.299e13141c06363a9745e2a82b3f953c.jpg

 

Piccolo: 

 

IMG_20200821_165537_652.thumb.jpg.f37b1084560dd2cd85e23bb71b642a93.jpg

 

Love these guys and their little antics. I spotted Prowler the goby lurking under Coralline Ledge, so it was nice to see him alive and well. 👍

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Snow_Phoenix

I also took two quick FTSes - the variance in brightness is due to me choosing to focus/not focus my camera:

 

20200821_165814.thumb.jpg.c45bfa869ecddb261a579fd25477d779.jpg

 

IMG_20200821_165741_219.thumb.jpg.4d33a159e5cfb40e1fbccdb3472f8013.jpg

 

My phone auto-adjusts the brightness when I focus, but it doesn't exactly dial down the blues - I still need my clip on yellow filter lens for this (I was using it). 

 

Also, I started thinking a lot about the continuous algae film/bloom I've been experiencing. I know algae is part of the tank maturing process, and even though I used established, cured LR to skip the cycle somewhat, the 'pico' by itself is still in its infancy. 

 

Algae issues will be the norm. But I did wonder - could my chihiros light strip be aggravating the bloom? It is weird that the algae always gathers at the surface of the water. And I didn't have this issue while I was only using one light - my Aquazonic one, over the pico. 🤔

 

I need the chihiros strip for now though. An old, failing Aquazonic light does not provide enough illumination to sustain *all the corals in this tank, what more grow them. 

 

I think I'll revisit my previous choices for finding a suitable light for the pico. It's difficult though. Very few lights caters to picoreefs out here, and not all can sustain a mixed reef with SPS in it. 🤔

 

Time to do some research. 🖋📚

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Snow_Phoenix

Morning! 😊

 

Took some quick shots without the clip-on lens filter - so sorry if the colors are dark. 😅

 

Shroom lineup: 

 

IMG_20200823_091442_587.thumb.jpg.7528151d6a466c648ee49a5bdaed552c.jpg

 

20200823_091514.thumb.jpg.882dfb9bc77bcf4f138e476e35e62fe0.jpg

 

IMG_20200823_091442_588.thumb.jpg.be79e7cd637387a30f187e7aad93bb7f.jpg

 

Piccolo still hasn't molted yet, but still remains content to be hosting the brain coral:

 

IMG_20200823_091641_885.thumb.jpg.a2334babb120119620438c33667ba561.jpg

 

I think she will molt very soon though. Her exoskeleton is already covered in algae (?) and usually the crab eventually molts after this happens, BME. 🤔

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Snow_Phoenix

Update #1: 

 

Piccolo enjoying the comfort of the metallic GSP:

 

IMG_20200823_123320_190.thumb.jpg.d3af8f82ff5e41283bd5e4ff258aaed8.jpg

 

IMG_20200823_123320_188.thumb.jpg.c20fd3a3a335dd74dafa708451795a3d.jpg

 

My cyphastrea is turning blue again! 😊

 

IMG_20200823_123406_172.thumb.jpg.2be674b172324b44b8d682c0b6f57c17.jpg

 

Quick coral shots: 

 

IMG_20200823_123514_426.thumb.jpg.cdd55927b9aa1c394e35410e75f4d35c.jpg

 

IMG_20200823_123514_430.thumb.jpg.cce312edf34d4c1353493012edbe1d9b.jpg

 

The red pavona has grown even more: 😊

 

IMG_20200823_123514_423.thumb.jpg.07c5e04aa84108d1d7467e6f2c70bb84.jpg

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Snow_Phoenix

Update #2:

 

Zoa Tower: 

 

IMG_20200823_123514_422.thumb.jpg.870558e27721d8f8d46b0f987d112d7f.jpg

 

Random mess: 😅

 

IMG_20200823_123514_421.thumb.jpg.8b428207060b39d537b9cecf230eaf3f.jpg

 

^That John Deere leptastrea is coloring back up again. 😄

 

Purple death palys & orange leptastrea:

 

IMG_20200823_123608_631.thumb.jpg.0d430650e0c2098c68ef186deb388d07.jpg

 

My tenuis has changed colors. It's now bluish-green? 🤔

 

IMG_20200823_123652_274.thumb.jpg.9f160c1c7735789ac56fd0ace33d32e2.jpg

 

Very intriguing. I have no idea what colors it plans on taking though. 🤷‍♀️

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Snow_Phoenix

The montihat had full PE this morning: 

 

IMG_20200824_112920_073.thumb.jpg.a21b5e160b7417c82e651573789364f9.jpg

 

20200824_112946.thumb.jpg.9e16e0a99109f0393e9e5b4459217b20.jpg

 

And Coralline Ledge is full: 🤗

 

IMG_20200824_112806_835.thumb.jpg.e9fb10c24b7a1ea21430848c08dac693.jpg

 

^That John Deere leptastrea seems to have colored up even more overnight. Not sure what triggered it, because I didn't even dose the tank yesterday. 🤷‍♀️

 

Glad that it is becoming brighter again though! 🤗

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Snow_Phoenix

Zoa tower (different angle) :

 

IMG_20200824_182553_900.thumb.jpg.3e01cf33f2e1d8cf4ffc118ae954119e.jpg

 

Palys! 🥰

 

IMG_20200824_182553_913.thumb.jpg.97addf5448842c9f12bb46796bc24473.jpg

 

Cyphastrea - back to bright blue now: 

 

IMG_20200824_182553_903.thumb.jpg.ebc48335b8188172dbf4b1bf68a47da1.jpg

 

The montihat (purple rim undata) from above:

 

IMG_20200824_183217_976.thumb.jpg.39489b7fd44c08a07bddfc350ee21c22.jpg

 

Chili pepper monti from above: 

 

20200824_183245.thumb.jpg.b82dc097b337e825fa8d14e417a7e6a9.jpg

 

Overview of Coralline Ledge - my John Deeres were moody before this take because I stirred the water to disperse the algae film: 😅

 

IMG_20200824_182930_458.thumb.jpg.12b3ff91664a3d54c30fbf3621677f4b.jpg

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Snow_Phoenix

Harvey picking his way through the reef: 😅

 

IMG_20200824_183106_708.thumb.jpg.8753ba8758645c15e03700018d5adfa3.jpg

 

IMG_20200824_183106_707.thumb.jpg.2aa7a198cbcb49dec49f8458395a6548.jpg

 

Piccolo resting on her squishy rainbow bed: 😊

 

IMG_20200824_183349_530.thumb.jpg.3edb439fd10deb6cc4ce22d3f659a714.jpg

 

Topview FTS on 24/8/20:

 

IMG_20200824_183510_378.thumb.jpg.08486b67b9d3529193f2f3084034bbbb.jpg

 

20200824_183555.thumb.jpg.789ba341a1a310a3c6f14093c269fae1.jpg

 

If you want to see how much this little reef has changed over the last few months, head over to the first post in the beginning of this journal thread and scroll down to the monthly FTS lineups. 😊👍

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Snow_Phoenix

Piccolo filter feeding: 😊

 

IMG_20200825_175435_741.thumb.jpg.00d6d8abfefa1fdc919c6cf6f622f75a.jpg

 

Orange bam bam zoas:

 

IMG_20200825_175705_684.thumb.jpg.4fae9a7f6286366ca86423bf0360b813.jpg

 

New red PE polyp:

 

IMG_20200825_175753_101.thumb.jpg.c094ab7abc23885edf6e352b56e47f12.jpg

 

Sunflower zoas: 🥰

 

IMG_20200825_175850_577.thumb.jpg.93e66b5fe2f4734d8273d45f39ce2bc3.jpg

 

Love this random mess of my zoa garden on the sandbed: 🥰

 

IMG_20200825_175536_131.thumb.jpg.e2f8fd194ec3bfadd011896c1f413055.jpg

 

Didn't expect both my brain corals to puff up this much today: 😅

 

IMG_20200825_175624_949.thumb.jpg.4c225d31c0566937326e61d800ac9741.jpg

 

IMG_20200825_175945_876.thumb.jpg.02d8c8464abc8afd27c3859bbdabc316.jpg

 

Tank's okay. The algae film still remains a persistent issue - I can't wait for it to pass. Otherwise, all other animals in the tank are doing fine for now. 👍

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Snow_Phoenix

I just came up to my bedroom to turn the lights off for the pico and spotted this: 

 

IMG_20200825_191351_178.thumb.jpg.35957f627f2119126cb940186ced2d68.jpg

 

IMG_20200825_191351_179.thumb.jpg.c49f7d5cc866ed5558f82fa38d15f43c.jpg

 

I've never actually seen her sit directly *on the coral before. Clinging on to the sides of it with her tiny legs, sure - but not this. It's actually kinda cute/cool. 😄

 

The brain doesn't seem to mind Piccolo's presence either. 😊

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Snow_Phoenix
Just now, debbeach13 said:

Every time you post those sun flowers I just love them.

I love how vivid they are - especially the bright green of the skirt. Quite happy I managed to secure a frag of these, all those weeks ago. 😄

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