Mantis Murder Manor

[Murphs_Reef]

I didn't mate, tried to but the whole shop is in blues so it's hard to get a picture without a lens on it. But yeah it was there last night at 7 when I was in..

It never fully came out of the pvc pipe it was in but it must have been 5 inch, it's head was massive..

[Ratvan]

9 minutes ago, Murphych said:

I didn't mate, tried to but the whole shop is in blues so it's hard to get a picture without a lens on it. But yeah it was there last night at 7 when I was in..

It never fully came out of the pvc pipe it was in but it must have been 5 inch, it's head was massive..

Yeah near fully grown, I would give my left nut to have one of these if i had the set up......

I might be eyeing up the RSM and the Cichlids 

[Murphs_Reef]

Yeah they are very impressive AND powerful looking animals... I was half cocked on buying a tank, water, rubble just to get the thing out the shop there and then myself 😂

[Ratvan]

@ａｗａｋｅｄॢ i thought id move the conversation here to not derail your thread. 

 

Regarding the breaking glass, i've not actually seen anything first hand that suggests that this is a common thing. Its always been a "friend of a friend" when these stories come out. The only time where i have actually seen that this was the case seems to be when someone has kept a large species (Peacock) within a smaller less than ideal tank with thin glass. I have taken steps to stop this happening as much as possible, mainly i have included some plastic cuttingboard along the base of the tank under the sand, the only worry would be if it take offense to its own reflection or my magcleaner which i dont actually keep within the tank.

 

With the shrimp being nocturnal I dont mind this as mostly you can acclimate things to the lights, plus its in my house and i'm rarely there except in the evenings so gives me a chance to see it more. Its also why i chose teh mantis species as i know that they are adverse in most cases to strong lighting, which the Fluval doesnt really have 

 

 

[Chris's Fishes]

Following! My Peacock Mantis is very fun, and I've always wanted to try a smaller species (Wennerae have always interested me, and so have Smithii) but have never dedicated a tank to one.

[Ratvan]

So its been cycling for about a week now, the shrimp is nice and mouldy and disintegrating around the tank. Noticed a little bit of fuzz on the rocks I've still not tested ammonia readings so may have to do that this weekend and see whats happening in the tank. I've not had the light on either so no noticeable growth of algae around the tank. 

 

I've noticed very little evaporation and have not had to top off the water level at all. In the rear pump section I think that over the course of a week I've dropped perhaps 2cm (3/4") 

[Ratvan]

So I tested the tank last night and as well as smelling like Grimsby (rotting fish/swamp) i am getting ammonia readings of roughly 2ppm, no nitrates as yet.

I added carbon to the tank this morning to try and stop the smell, I forgot about this part of the process with this cycling method 

[kimberbee]

On 6/16/2021 at 5:01 AM, Ratvan said:

Hello again all, 

 

So, my luck with tanks has not been the best to say the least...

You change tanks as often as some people change their underwear! 

 

On 6/30/2021 at 3:11 AM, Ratvan said:

Should have probably put this in a net or container but nevermind

He's just napping, right? 🥺

[Ratvan]

3 minutes ago, kimberbee said:

You change tanks as often as some people change their underwear! 

 

He's just napping, right? 🥺

I wish i hadnt shut down the 2.5G Pico, that seems to be the only one i had luck with 😂

 

He is now rotting in a media bag cycling the tank, and stinking the house out

[Ratvan]

Carbon added certainly helped with the smell, also just showing off the sticker

[Ratvan]

So today is Day 11 of the Cycle and the shrimp is little more than a glob of goo in a bag at this point. Ammonia has not climbed over 4PPM so far and today looks as though it might be starting to drop slightly, it now reads somewhere between 2-4ppm. I also noticed a rise in Nitrites and possibly the smallest trace of Nitrates as well so far so the cycle is going well. 

 

 

[Ratvan]

Ok so tonights ammonia test is definitely 2ppm so cycle is coming along nicely. Rinsed the carbon bag and changed the floss. 

Salinity holding at 1.023, added a small amount of RODI for the first time today maybe 500ml, knocked the salt creep off the cables

Looked at the glass, doesnt require cleaning. I see a lot of areas of the rock where its beginning to turn fuzzy, so i assume that the rock is likely to be leaching phosphate. I'll deal with that issue as and when the cycle is complete and maybe start testing after the first water change 

[Ratvan]

Working from home today, mainly because masks are no longer mandatory on public transport and to be honest i cannot be bothered with the drama and the heat. So decided to do a parameter test. 

 

Temp: 78F

Salinity 1.023

Ammonia Between 1-2PPM

Nitrites 1PPM

Nitrates 5PPM

 

Glass is starting to get a little dusty so gave it a quick scrub, so i'm assuming that this is the silicates being consumed 

 

Starting to think about adding a sacrificial clean up crew to the tank shortly, primarily Dwarf Cerith Snails, Stomatella and Micro Brittle Stars. Also found an old 12w Freshwater light that I am considering using as a DIY Algae Reactor in Chamber 2, meaning that i need to shift the heater (not been on for a while) into chamber 3. 

 

Still not noticed a great deal of evaporation from the tank yet as I have only needed to top off once so far.

[Bigals-nano-1]

23 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Working from home today, mainly because masks are no longer mandatory on public transport and to be honest i cannot be bothered with the drama and the heat. So decided to do a parameter test. 

 

Temp: 78F

Salinity 1.023

Ammonia Between 1-2PPM

Nitrites 1PPM

Nitrates 5PPM

 

Glass is starting to get a little dusty so gave it a quick scrub, so i'm assuming that this is the silicates being consumed 

 

Starting to think about adding a sacrificial clean up crew to the tank shortly, primarily Dwarf Cerith Snails, Stomatella and Micro Brittle Stars. Also found an old 12w Freshwater light that I am considering using as a DIY Algae Reactor in Chamber 2, meaning that i need to shift the heater (not been on for a while) into chamber 3. 

 

Still not noticed a great deal of evaporation from the tank yet as I have only needed to top off once so far.

Sounds like it is all coming together in good time. My cycle seemed to go quite quickly which pleased her indoors as she wasn’t really enjoying looking at a tank full of just rock.

[Ratvan]

5 minutes ago, Bigals-nano-1 said:

Sounds like it is all coming together in good time. My cycle seemed to go quite quickly which pleased her indoors as she wasn’t really enjoying looking at a tank full of just rock.

Yeah slow and steady with this one, not rushing things and not spending and wasting money. I think that I prefer the shrimp cycling method, slightly hard to test ammonia to begin with but its not exceeded 4ppm or stalled the cycle (that i can tell) and only a slight smell at the start before I added the carbon. 

 

Also had an update from my LFS they have had more Mantis Shrimp in a delivery today (plus possibly one as a Hitch hiker) so with any luck the tank should be occupied in a month or so. I'm trying to get a hold of some small rubble pieces of live rock as well to further seed the tank and maximise biodiversity as much as possible, also seen the prices of corals lately and heard my wallet scream in pain

[Bigals-nano-1]

56 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Yeah slow and steady with this one, not rushing things and not spending and wasting money. I think that I prefer the shrimp cycling method, slightly hard to test ammonia to begin with but its not exceeded 4ppm or stalled the cycle (that i can tell) and only a slight smell at the start before I added the carbon. 

 

Also had an update from my LFS they have had more Mantis Shrimp in a delivery today (plus possibly one as a Hitch hiker) so with any luck the tank should be occupied in a month or so. I'm trying to get a hold of some small rubble pieces of live rock as well to further seed the tank and maximise biodiversity as much as possible, also seen the prices of corals lately and heard my wallet scream in pain

Sounds like a great plan and I could only get a piece of live rock that had a few mushroom coral on it so put that in and it definitely speeded things up and the mushrooms survived which was is a bonus. I know what you mean about the price of coral but I’ve managed to grab a few bargains from a few of the LFS lately but the best has to be a small green hammer coral that I picked up yesterday for £2 although I ended buying about another £60 worth of coral whilst in the shop. 

[Ratvan]

10 minutes ago, Bigals-nano-1 said:

Sounds like a great plan and I could only get a piece of live rock that had a few mushroom coral on it so put that in and it definitely speeded things up and the mushrooms survived which was is a bonus. I know what you mean about the price of coral but I’ve managed to grab a few bargains from a few of the LFS lately but the best has to be a small green hammer coral that I picked up yesterday for £2 although I ended buying about another £60 worth of coral whilst in the shop. 

Where is this LFS? Might be worth the cost of petrol 😂

[Bigals-nano-1]

8 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Where is this LFS? Might be worth the cost of petrol 😂

 

[Ratvan]

yeah no, no its not

[Ratvan]

I really need to not open stocking emails from my LFS

 

[Ratvan]

Ok so last night i did a water test and forgot to put up the results. 

 

Ammonia - 0.5ppm

Nitrites - 2ppm

Nitrates - 10ppm

 

and some photos of algae beginning in the tank

[Ratvan]

So latest water parameters are in, also starting to see the beginnings of cyano algae in the tank too along with the green stuff. So Am actually thinking of making my first sacrifice to the Reefing Gods and seeing if i can pick up a small clean up crew 

 

Ammonia - 0PPM

Nitrites - 1PPM

Nitrates - 20PPM

 

Waiting for those Nitrites to come all the way down before first water change (might use this water to start a Phyto Culture) so i can order a load of pods and start up my cultures again

[Ratvan]

Afternoon all, head is ringing from a gig last night. First water change for the "reef"

 

 

Ammonia 0

Nitrites 0

Nitrates 10 (after wc)

 

I used some of the old water to start a phyto/green water and more importantly pod culture for the tank. Anyone remember the little 2.5g Pico? Had to dislodge my Betta into another tank (called it an upgrade)

 

Deliberately kept some of thr detritus in here to kick start  the cycle with some banana skin later today. 

 

Heard that the Mantis is now sold so kind of at a crossroads now, wait until one comes in from a supplier (no garuntee when that woukd likely be) or get a traditional cleaning crew and start stocking the tank with Xenia and other "weeds" before adding the mantis to the tank if it comes in, or get a fish 😁

 

[Ratvan]

So since i kicked Opal out her home i did a bit of a shuffle and put her in the 5G with some plants

 

Needs a bit of sand for the bottom and also maybe some red cherry shrimp to help with the film algae if she doesnt kill them

[ａｗａｋｅｄॢ]

On 7/31/2021 at 2:43 PM, Ratvan said:

 

 

 

I saw this tank last week,,,,after that, I felt my fresh tank (acrylic, 60L btw) is lil dirty,,,,so I tried to clean,,,

n something happened everyone can expect!!! hint is my butter hands,,,😭😢😂🤣🤪

I shouldn't have checked this?!?! kidding~😉

 

p.s