stevie1493's 55g Reef Tank

[ECLS Reefer]

27 minutes ago, stevie1493 said:

I've seen these before but wouldn't know which one to buy. Do you have a specific recommendation or should I just buy one within my budget on Amazon?

 

I'm going to dust of our Nikon sometime this week and try taking a few pictures with that.

I’ve gotten all of mine off Amazon. Even the more specific coral ones can be found there, I believe. I personally don’t like the way they filter and prefer to change the lights over the tank, but some people I’ve seen on IG get some of the most amazing shots using them. 

[gena]

On 9/13/2021 at 5:44 AM, stevie1493 said:

I've seen these before but wouldn't know which one to buy. Do you have a specific recommendation or should I just buy one within my budget on Amazon?

 

I'm going to dust of our Nikon sometime this week and try taking a few pictures with that.

I ordered this one from Amazon.  It was a worthwhile purchase.  Does what I wanted it to do.

 

https://www.amazon.com/ORPHEK-LENS-Smartphones-Polarized-smartphone/dp/B07ZJX6JT9/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=orphek+lens&qid=1631632082&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzTUwwUlU1VlM1U0FJJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNDcyNjU5MkxFRjJYUDJSU1JaRyZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUExMDIwOTc2WTRTTFVSWFQyV0tMJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

[stevie1493]

So I have a few midweek updates today.

 

On Monday (9/13) I finished adjusting my light schedule and intend to leave it as is for at least nine months unless I experience unknown issues and suspect lighting is the culprit.

 

I have two 48" Current USA light bars. First is their Orbit Marine LED fixture, which is set to factory spectrum which I believe is 10k. Second is their Orbit Marine IC LED fixture which I have tweaked a little bit from factory settings.

 

13:00 - Orbit Marine blues and Orbit Marine IC turn ON and begin 15m ramp up

 

13:15 - Orbit Marine blues 100% + Whites begin 15min ramp up, Orbit Marine IC reaches "sunrise" = blues 90%, whites 0%, reds 75%, greens 30%

 

13:30 - Orbit Marine reaches full 10k intensity =  blues 100%, whites 100%

 

14:15 - Orbit Marine IC begins ramp up to daylight

 

14:30 - Orbit Marine IC reaches "daylight" = blues 100%, whites 10%, reds 100%, greens 100%

 

20:45 Orbit Marine Whites begin 15m ramp down

 

 21:00 - Orbit Marine Whites 0%, blues begin 15m ramp down, Orbit Marine IC begins ramp down

 

 21:15 - Orbit Marine OFF, Orbit Marine IC reaches "sunset" = blues 90%, whites 0%, reds 75%, greens 30%

 

22:15 - Orbit Marine IC begins 15m ramp down

 

22:30 - Orbit Marine IC begins 2hr "moonlight" = blues 10%, whites 0%, reds 5%, greens 0%

 

00:30 - Orbit Marine IC OFF

 

The Gorgonians all look great with full polyp extension. The leathers also are expanding and appear fully extended. The Xenia began pulsing for the first time Monday which was mesmerizing. GSP looks happy. Anthelia appear to be growing and has noticeably larger polyps. Mushrooms all look great. Nirvana and Rasta Zoas have browned quite a bit but all the other Zoas have retained their color nicely. Clove Polyps look anemic but are extending more and more each day. Cespitularia has not colored up yet through shipping but looks supple. Appears to have some violet around it's base which is promising. 

 

I bought some aiptasia-x today and will attempt to kill the two little aiptasia tonight. I also noticed some of what appears to be snail eggs (Nerites I presume?) On two spots on the glass. I may get pictures tonight.

 

Diatoms are exploding in fuge and are on powerhead in DT. I notice hermits appear to have cleared of what little has grown on DT rocks.

 

I've noticed new growth on all three macros in fuge (caulerpa, gracilaria, Ulva). The Ulva in particular has more than doubled in size in a week now. I am very confident in the placement of my fuge Kessil up out of the danger zone now.

 

All inhabitants appear happy with most growing or fully extended. I have been target feeding 1/2 dose of BRS reef chili every other day in addition to 1-2 daily feedings with frozen or flake+frozen targeted to fish and shrimp.

 

EDIT: I used the aiptasia-x as the directions stated. Aiptasia were so tiny that they couldn't latch onto needle so I just doused them. One frag had Zoas which retracted and other was blue Clove Polyps which was 1/4 covered in the material. I waited the fifteen min on the instructions before blowing the excess off with a baster. Hoping the corals were not harmed by the treatment... 

Edited September 16, 2021 by stevie1493

[stevie1493]

09/16/21 - Update

 

The two tiny aiptasia appear to have been successfully executed. All the Zoanthids appear unaffected. Blue Clove Polyps are mostly closed where the treatment was (25% of the frag) but the rest of the coral is fully extended. I'm happy!

 

There are three patches of what I have ID'd as Cerith eggs on the glass in the lower flow side of the tank. Hoping some can make it through larval stage!

 

I have finally dialed in my skimmer. I have cleaned it every 3-4 days for the last few weeks and am finally getting a darker skimmate that smells ABHORRENT, which to me means it's working lol.

 

Fish in QT are both eating well. Have watched YWG eat multiple days in a row. She appears much more bold and sticks her head out when I am around. Looking forward to moving them to DT this weekend.

 

Also, I noticed about 10 new baby polyps on the anthelia today. Caulerpa in the fuge is growing quick!

[stevie1493]

Week Ten - 9/19/21

 

sg 1.024; NO3 14.3ppm (notably down 3ppm since last week - first ever weekly decrease); temp 77°F; didn't test PO4 because I'm still out of reagent; going to order a dkH kit tonight

 

Today I glued the frags up on the rockwork. The pistol shrimp has kept burying and moving frags around. Prior to mounting the frags I dipped them in Revive. While I rinsed in a separate tank water bucket I mixed up the scrambled eggs zoa with the Liam's polyps. They both will be remounted but will need to wait because I ran out of glue.

 

All of the Zoas minus the scrambled eggs are on the central rock. Ricordeas are together low on base rock. Blue Clove Polyps are on an island with the anthelia. I left the Cespitularia on the central rock but didn't glue it to give myself the option to move it later. The Mandarin polyps are in a high flow area and may need be moved also. Will watch them closely for a few days.

 

I found two more teeny tiny aiptasia on two zoa frags. I will wait till they get larger before zapping them with Aiptasia X...they really are almost microscopic ATM.

 

I scraped as much blue Clove Polyps hitchhikers off of the sour Lemons frag as I could but didn't get them all. I will try to pick the rest off with tweezers once the Zoas recover.

 

I then pulled the rocks out of the fuge and removed as much Diatoms/Cyano from the sump acrylic as I could with a sponge. The rocks were not touched. I manually scooped out as much water as I could and netted out a ton of floaties. I removed about 8 gallons in total and replaced it with fresh SW at 1.025 sg. Replaced the fuge rock and macro. Return area was not touched.

 

I cleaned the skimmer cup and neck and removed as much salt creep as I could, especially off of the all the light fixtures.

 

About 3 hours after the previous tasks I captured the YWG and Dottyback in QT and transferred them to DT without acclimation. QT sg was 1.023 compared to 1.024 in DT...temps were within 0.5°F.

 

Next, I deep cleaned the QT with its dedicated sponge. Only cleaned half the bio balls. Refilled with SW..ran out though and last 2 gallons were FW. I will gradually bring the sg back up this week while the tank is fallow. I turned the lights off. I'm looking forward to purchasing a Six-line Wrasse next weekend.

 

Finally I took my SW mixing gear (Brute, pumps, heater, buckets/lids) outside and scrubbed them with sponges and a toothbrush. I rinsed them all out and set them up. Immediately began refilling Brute with RO/DI.

 

Will try to get a FTS tonight. Below is cleaned fuge.

[stevie1493]

Below are some shots. Last night before lights out I observed the YWG down in the pistol shrimp's burrow. I also noticed the Dottyback weaving in and out of rockwork - got my first ever picture of him under blues (last photo).

[stevie1493]

Yesterday evening on 09/20 I purchased more glue and remounted a few frags. The Mandarin Polyps that weren't opening due to high flow were moved to a low flow area. The scrambled eggs Zoanthids were moved to the zoa garden and replaced with firework (Liam's) polyps. I also noticed the shrimp pulled the Toadstool over his burrow to seal it so I glued the toadstool up on the rockwork.

 

I've seen the YWG much more the last 2 days than almost her entire time in QT. She stays most of the way out of her burrow with me only a few inches away. She still darts in a flash if spooked but generally appears heathy. Still reclusive during feeding time. I target feed their burrow.

 

The Orchid Dottyback is more active as well. They say the more places fish have to hide the less they will which so far rings true. This Orchid as been a peaceful member with no aggression towards anyone. Beautiful coloration! Eats readily at feeding time.

 

Today I noticed some Zoas expelling zooxanthellae? Other than that all corals are open. Only really a little worried about Cespitularia.

 

Anthelia started with 10 polyps and will soon have 22. I noticed 12 new polyps today and I think could double in size quickly depending on how long it takes for these new polyps to grow out.

 

This tank has basically gotten to the point where I need to just leave it alone and stop tinkering with it. The only real changes or tasks I'm considering now are QTing another fish or two (Six-line, Cherub angel) and picking up a local frag or two to round out the colors in the tank.

[stevie1493]

[Ratvan]

Been great watching this being set up, love that Cabbage Leather too 

[stevie1493]

9/27/21 - Week Eleven

 

I tested Nitrates and salinity on 9/25/21...NO3 12.3ppm and sg 1.024. NO3 is coming down now as the fuge is starting to take off. I took out a handful of Ulva already after less than a month in the fuge. 

 

I noticed some GHA and Diatoms in the fuge and a little green film algae on rocks in DT. Will continue to monitor. Standard outbreaks in new tanks that doesn't really concern me. I'm actually glad because it gives CUC plenty to eat.

 

I have been feeding a little less recently. About once a day on average and maybe twice a day every other day. I have been targeting corals with reef chili about every third day.

 

I noticed a tiny aiptasia on the golden Plume plug. I really need to pick off the blue cloves off of the zoa frags this week before they start to establish themselves...I will take care of the aiptasia with super glue probably.

 

YWG and Dottyback are very bold and constantly out in the open. No concerns except that I notice the Dottyback nip at the cleaner shrimp if he comes close to his little coves.

 

All other livestock appears to be thriving or at least doing okay. Fish are all eating like piggies. Corals are fully extended. Hoping to get more color back in the Zoas and Cespitularia.

 

I haven't started a new fish in QT yet but did put a huge Lighting Whelk shell I found in the surf on Shelly island at the OBX in the tank as a decoration/cover for fish. Strongly considering a white tail pygmy angel and six-line Wrasse.

 

My LFS has some shaving brush and a few pieces of LR with pink sponges which I am considering picking up to seed the cryptic area. The pencil cap algae from RC hasn't done well but shaving brush has so I think adding a few would be a good idea.

 

I haven't done a WC this week. Some friends did a surprise visit on the day I had it planned over the weekend. I have freshly mixed SW heating up tonight and will do a 10-20% WC tomorrow.

 

Power went out over the weekend for an hour or less in the middle of the night with no siphon issues. Only problems were the skimmer cup overflowing and spectral controller needing reset.

 

I had a series of frustrations with my RO/DI unit last week on Friday. I first realized it was running for 5 days with both product and waste water lines down the drain....wasting my filters.... Then when I went to refill my two top of reservoirs I Overflowed both. One due to my alarm not going off for some reason and the second due to my son tripping over the line without my realizing it pulled the line out of the reservoir onto the floor... THEN when I got it restarted and refilled, my wife volunteered to turn off the spigot but only turned it off 75% so the reservoir overflowed all night long. Probably 10 gallons in total were spilled onto the vinyl floors.....good thing I don't need to make more RO/DI for probably three weeks...LOL

[debbeach13]

8 hours ago, stevie1493 said:

I had a series of frustrations with my RO/DI unit last week on Friday. I first realized it was running for 5 days with both product and waste water lines down the drain....wasting my filters.... Then when I went to refill my two top of reservoirs I Overflowed both. One due to my alarm not going off for some reason and the second due to my son tripping over the line without my realizing it pulled the line out of the reservoir onto the floor... THEN when I got it restarted and refilled, my wife volunteered to turn off the spigot but only turned it off 75% so the reservoir overflowed all night long. Probably 10 gallons in total were spilled onto the vinyl floors.....good thing I don't need to make more RO/DI for probably three weeks...LOL

Dam! 

[stevie1493]

Week Eleven update.

 

Today I busted out the Aiptasia-X and took care of two anemones. One was on the golden Plume frag plug and the other was on the oxide Zoas plug.

 

After that I took out the sour lemon zoa frag that was cover in blue Clove Polyps and picked/scraped off as much as I could with a pair of tweezers. Then, I used the tweezers to break off as much of the rock as I could. I scraped a few more sections of rock off and placed the frag back into the tank. I anticipate that a few blue Clove Polyps remain, but I can always do this a second or third time to prevent the blue Clove Polyps taking up Zoanthid real estate.

 

I removed a bag of chemi pure that was starting to block water flow through the sump because it was clogged up with detritus. It was so clogged up that the tank was around 2 gallons overfilled due to ATO activating more often from decreased flow into the return chamber.

 

I physically removed as much GHA with my fingers as I could and a sponged out Diatoms in the sump area. I also cleaned and replaced the skimmer cup which had the darkest skimmate I've seen yet. Finally, I mounted the Cespitularia with glue to the rock scape and moved the dragon's breath from the spot the Cespitularia was placed to a spot on the sandbed.

 

While doing all this water level equalized so I then siphoned out water until the ATO went off then stopped and unplugged the ATO. I dumped this water and completed a 10% WC. New SW had a salinity of 1.025 sg. salinity pre-WC was 1.024 sg; I removed 7 gallons and added in 5...I'd like the sg to be stable at 1.025 so a few more small WC should do it.

 

The Mandarin and Liam's cloves are really acclimated and some new polyps have dramatically increased in size. Everything else appears pretty well. Everyone is accounted for. CUC appears to be managing the green film algae on the rocks in DT.

 

One last thing... I picked out about 6-7 Ceriths from my overflow box and plopped them back in the tank, aiming for the rockwork. One snail fell directly in front of a pistol burrow on the substrate.The pistol quickly popped out and pulled the snail into his burrow. I heard clicking noises for about 10 minutes after that. It was very interesting behavior, but I will be more careful with placing snails in the future.

[stevie1493]

10/07/21 - Week Twelve

 

10/03 - I completed a 10% WC; sg 1.024; cleaned powerheads with toothbrush in tank water; tested Nitrate but I let the Hanna checker sit too long while I was scrubbing the powerheads and it shut off before I could see the reading. I didn't feel like retesting since I noticed the color that developed was markedly lighter which leads me to believe nitrates are continuing to come down. I predict that next week nitrate will be under 10ppm based on the current trend. Today I also completed a 100% WC on the QT system. One of these days soon there will be new fish in there!

 

10/06 - Killed an aiptasia on sour lemons frag with aiptasia x; sg 1.025 (my target); cleaned skimmer cup

 

10/07 - Today I killed another aiptasia with aiptasia x that I found on the golden plume gorg

 

Not a whole lot to report this week. I have been feeding BRS reef chili every other day targeted to all corals, especially the gorgs. I'm pleased to report that the calcified macro is propagating; I have 6 new shoots coming up out of the sandbed. The fish are getting acclimated to my routine. All four of them migrate to the side of the tank I stand on when I take one of the lids off at feeding time. The Dottyback now joins the clowns right in the fray during feeding. YWG will stick her head out from under just about any rock in the tank; the pistol's burrows number close to a dozen at this point. I'm noticing some color coming back on the rasta and nirvana zoas. More green film algae on rocks. I scrape the glass almost every day now to keep green film in check.

[stevie1493]

Week Thirteen - 10/10/21

 

Yesterday was water test Saturday. NO3 was 7.1ppm which was my lowest test yet. Salinity was right at the target 1.025 sg. Temperature has been hovering between 77°F and 78.8°F depending on if the AC is running or not. Gotta love autumn in Ohio!

 

No WC this week. If nitrates are under 10ppm and everything looks fine I'm going to just let the tank do it's thing without a WC. Nitrate, salinity, and temperature are all I have been testing. Today I finally ordered reagent refills for phosphate and alkalinity.

 

Everything is looking great. 2-3 times a week I clean the skimmer cup and clean the glass. The skimmer is consistently getting a dark, thick skimmate. All three macros are growing in the fuge. I am considering moving some or all of the gracilaria into the DT. I'm starting to see a lot of pods in the fuge.

 

I killed another aiptasia today. There is one visible that's left. I'm hoping my proactivity here will prevent an outbreak from ever occurring.

 

The only really notable incident is that the Liam's cloves frag must have fell off the rockwork and the pistol shrimp covered his hole with it. This morning I had to pull the frag out of his burrow and place it higher up on the rock. They opened up after an hour and appeared unharmed.

 

Projects on the horizon:

 

1. Figure out a way to ground the tank or otherwise solve my stray voltage problem. I am considering purchasing all new powerheads as part of the solution.

 

2. Clean Diatoms and GHA out of the sump. Then put in a black acrylic sheet that I ordered today to block light from spilling into the return chamber. I will need to cut the 18"x24" sheet to size first.

 

3. Still patiently waiting for the right time to start QTing another fish.

 

4. Mount the RO/DI unit under the utility sink. I'm currently connecting it to the garden hose...winter is coming. Today I ordered the fittings to install the unit under my sink along with a dual TDS monitor.

 

5. I am considering adding a small CUC to the fuge. It is rimless so intertidal snails are a no go. I'm thinking a few astraea. I want the snails to be considerably larger than the slots on the return pump and skimmer intakes.

[stevie1493]

Week Thirteen update - 10/15/21

 

Yesterday my softie only tank turned into a mixed reef. I bought one frag of "Blue Zing" a seriatopora that is the result of a cross pollinated green birdsnest and ORA Bird of Paradise. The only place to get it is Lazy's Coral House in Dayton. The frag was huge for what I paid for it, especially considering there is only one place to buy Blue Zing. I picked it up locally and the polyps we're still out when I opened the box up at home. I know I planned to be a softie only tank....but the opportunity for my first ever SPS to be a locally exclusive piece was too hard to pass up.

 

While acclimating and dipping the frag I completed about a 10% (5g) WC. SG in the frags container was 1.026, DT was 1.024. After the WC with 1.027 sg SW the DT was at 1.025 and I mounted the frag with a combination of putty and super glue gel.

 

I also moved a Gorgonian that got knocked over by the pistol shrimp and cleaned the skimmer cup.

 

Pics to come soon

[stevie1493]

The "Blue Zing" Seriatopora appears to be doing well. It's getting directly blasted by a 425gph powerhead and polyps appear fully open. It's being basked in what I estimate to be 140-190 PAR based on manufacture specs. Lazy's website indicates that his SPS tank averages 200-250 PAR under LEDs.

 

Only issue is the finger leather has been closed up ever since the edition of the Seriatopora. Maybe I moved the dragon's breath macro too close?

[stevie1493]

Week Fourteen - 10/19/21

 

On Saturday 10/16 I tested alk for the first time in this tank. I also got my Hanna PO4 reagents from BRS and tested PO4 for the first time in awhile. Results: sg 1.025; temp 77.0°F; NO3 8.3 ppm; PO4 0.12 ppm; alk 9.1 dKH

 

Not bad results IMO, especially considering last week was the first week without a WC. Based on all my reading I've decided over 7ppm NO3 and 0.10 ppm PO4 are going to be my indicators that I need a WC...I will skip a weekly WC if those params are under those levels and if everything else is good including livestock and sg. Since I have decided to modify my stocking plan from a softie only to a softie dominant mixed reef, I moved the mushrooms into the lowest flow area of the tank to make some real estate in a moderate flow moderate light area for some stony corals. I also moved the dragon's breath macro again to what will hopefully be it's final resting place. Also, last week I was concerned the finger leather didn't open for a bit but it has been fully extended for days now.

 

On 10/16 I also noticed the ATO safety off activated which lead me to believe there was an issue like salt creep on the float switch. I cleaned the ATO float switch and reset the ATO.

 

On 10/17 I noticed the Rhodactis expelled some zooxanthellae...it's mouth was wide open 😞 I felt really bad that I moved him. Today he appears to have recovered and appears close to his pre-move self. I also killed 2 tiny aiptasia on the golden plume frag plug with aiptasia X. Killing them as they pop up isn't too bad really.

 

Yesterday when feeding I knocked the Seriatopora off the rock with my coral feeder 😠 it took all the putty I had left, 20 minutes, and a lot of swearing to get it re-mounted. In the process I snapped a tip off one of the branches...the size of the tip of a #2 Ticonderoga.

 

Also yesterday I ordered more corals from Lazy here in Dayton. In celebration of Halloween I ordered a fully covered plug of Jack-o-lantern Leptoseris 🎃, and one of Lazy's October specials, a burgundy striped candy cane trumpet with a toxic green center (3 polyps). I will pick up these corals on Thursday from his house. He has an amazing selection. I also considered a SpongeBob SquarePants Ricordea, a Blue Raven Blasto, a Freak Hair Pavona, Duncans, a few different hammers, and a bounce mushroom he had on sale for $70...it was a tough choice.

 

I chose the Lepto because one of the spots on the rockwork that closely matches its care requirements is next to the Violet Cespitularia...Orange and Purple accent each other nicely. I chose the trumpet because I wanted an LPS that has low flow requirements to mount on a specific piece of my scape...I think a trumpet colony would look fantastic in this spot.

 

Today I impulse bought 2 frags for $20 each at my LFS. I couldn't resist...corals really are an addiction amirite? One was a red and green blasto with 4 polyps..the other frag is a shell with 20+ lime green zoa polyps. I also bought 7 astraea snails, which I placed on rockwork after acclimation. I floated the bags while I ate dinner and dipped the corals in Revive after. The polyps are already opening up. I also completed a 2.5g (5%) WC while the corals dipped.

 

Today while at my LFS I observed three different species of centropyge angelfish I am considering. A Whitetail Pygmy Angel for $40 (I have laid eyes on him half a dozen times over the last few months so I presume he is healthy), 10 different coral beauties on sale for $40 each (regular $70..they have only been in stock 1-2 weeks..most of them are fully grown specimens), and 5 flame angels for $100/ea (regular $130..they are very small specimens).

 

My heart tells me to get a flame while my brain tells me to get the pygmy. I'm concerned some of the coral beauties had white spots near their gills, but I couldn't tell for sure if it was ich or a bacterial infection. The coral beauties are in tiny maybe 1/2 gal sectioned off parts of a holding tank and look pretty stressed. I know the pygmy is healthy and eating. The flame angels are in the LFS' reef system which is completely separate from the pygmy and coral beauties in the fish only system, which I know they run copper in. The flames all look healthy and do not appear stressed. They have been in house 2 weeks.

 

In other news... I've noticed some of the Zoas have new polyps. The Nirvanas and Rastas are continuing to color up with the Nirvanas spreading onto the rockwork already! All three clove polyp Frags are spreading onto the rockwork as well. The Anthelia is really taking off with well over a dozen new polyps.... I'm glad it's isolated on a rock island. GSP has new polyps. Everyone else appears happy, including the fish that all attack my feeding baster the second it hits the water.

 

This was a pretty long update so I'll wrap it up and post a follow up on Thursday after I pick up the new frags. I'll take some pictures of all the new corals then.

[stevie1493]

An update at the end of week Fourteen.

 

Yesterday I picked up my coral order from Lazy's Coral House. When I opened the package I noticed he threw in a free frag! I ordered a Jack-o-lantern Lepto and a Candy Cane Trumpet..the free frag was a JF Dayglo Favia.

 

I dipped the corals in Revive as usual and placed them in the tank. Today I will pick up some glue so I can mount them in permanent locations over the next few days or so.

 

After adding the new corals I turned my attention to my sump. I wiped Diatoms and algae off the front acrylic, removed the skimmer and cleaned it, shot scalding hot water through the skimmer venturi, removed some macro from the fuge, and did a 2.5g (5%) WC. I also removed an old bag of chemi pure and added a fresh bag of chemi pure blue I bought the other day. Finally, I partially refilled my ATO reservoir with about 7g of RO/DI.

 

When removing the macro I took a small rock from the sump and rubber banded some gracilaria to it and placed it in the DT. I discovered a few good hitchhikers in the sump on the corraline algae booster cards from IPSF...a small feather duster and some grape caulerpa. I took one of the cards from the fuge and placed it in the DT and scraped off a bunch of corraline to expedite corraline growth in DT, placing the card back in the fuge after. I also noticed a Spirorbis spawning event (tiny little spiral worms), which I consider a sign the system is healthy and maturing. I noticed the diatoms in the sump have started to spread into the DT on the substrate...hoping that getting a CUC in early and cycling cautiously prevents an outbreak.

 

Still contemplating on QTing my next fish...

 

Below are some before and after shots of the skimmer cleaning and the fuge in it's current state this morning. FTS and coral pics coming soon!

[stevie1493]

So I pulled the trigger today on a fish purchase. It was probably the most difficult livestock purchase I ever made to be honest. I ended up buying a coral beauty angelfish! She's gorgeous.

 

The runner up was a flame angelfish. 

 

Others in the running were:

- Whitetail Pygmy Angel

- Six-line Wrasse

- Damsel from Crysiptera genus (Blue, Yellowtail, Azure, Talbot's)

- Green Filefish

 

I ultimately went with the coral beauty because I felt it was the the best value choice in this situation. So much beauty for so little in exchange.. In addition, I've wanted an angel since I've been in the hobby and see a lot of recommendations for the coral beauty as a first angel. I have some concerns about her health.. I seen a few spots on some of the LFS' coral beauties a dew days ago, but they were all gone. I don't recall seeing any spots on this specimen. All the specimens looked healthier and less stressed today than a few days ago.

 

I got her home and floated the bag. Salinity in QT was 1.025 and in bag was 1.019. I removed some water from QT and replaced with RO/DI FW to get salinity down to 1.022. I drip acclimated to 1.022 sg and netted her. After awhile she appears to have found the huge whelk shell as her hiding spot, which is why I put it in.

 

Tomorrow I'm going to slowly build up Cupramine to a dose of 0.3-.0.5 over a period of 3-4 days...let her sir in a Cup bath for at least 2 weeks.

 

Pistol shrimp drug all the gracilaria down into burrow so it's long gone Dx All corals look great so far.

[stevie1493]

Week Fifteen

 

Starting off this week with the following params: 1.024 sg, 7.0-7.3 dKH, 0.12 PO4. I didn't test NO3 because I didn't have fresh SW to dilute the solution for an accurate test. PO4 was the same exact result as last week so I figure NO3 is 7-9ppm.

 

I decided against the Cupramine bath for the angelfish. I want to get her eating in QT before a Cu treatment. She doesn't take food out of the water column but she does constantly pick at the glass. I'm pretty sure that she's picking/eating flakes that fall to the bare bottom. 

 

Today I cleaned the pumps, heaters, overflow box, glass, and skimmer cup. I also mounted the candy canes, favia, and the golden plume gorg. I remounted the Rasta zoos a few inches back and put the new green zoos in their place. I moved part of the Halimeda to the fuge...it has gotten pretty white and I'm hoping it will bounce back in the fuge. I also killed a teeny tiny aiptasia today. The hairy mushroom had a tough week after being moved and falling on sandbed but seems just fine.

 

Finally got around to getting an updated FTS and some pictures of the new corals.

[stevie1493]

Here she is! She greets me every time I come up to the tank. Still thinking about a name.

 

I bought some of Brightwell's AngeLixer tonight and will use that to coax her to eat. Also started a Prazipro treatment. As soon as she starts eating and after Prazi treatment I will start slowly with Cupramine and do a 14-30 day treatment.

[stevie1493]

Midweek update

 

I have exciting news! I'm quite confident Uno and Dos are preparing for their first spawn! The female (Dos) clearly has an egg mass and both her and Uno have their reproductive organs (tiny little spike) visible. Like many others I consider spawning as the gold standard of fish health, so I'm pleased that we might be almost there!

 

Today I bought Hikari Mega-Marine Angel frozen food, some frozen Bloodworms, and live brine. I still haven't observed the CB take food from the water column, but I notice the food that settles on the bottom of the tank disappears. She grazes all day. I made her a little salad with gracilaria, ulva, and caulerpa and rubber banded it to a PVC elbow. It looks like it may have been picked at a little bit. Everyone in the DT loved the brine. I didn't see anyone try the Bloodworms.

 

Today I performed a 50% WC on QT. I recalibrated my refractometer using new Fritz calibration solution. I think my old solution was off (of maybe the new stuff?) Because after calibration I measured DT and it was 1.027 sg.. I have been solid at 1.024 for quite awhile. QT was 1.024. The fresh SW is at 1.025. I was concerned that WC water was at 5.3 dKH...I will need to look into this.

 

In other news, @TheCurriculum is graciously willing to mail me one of his bubble tips and a mushroom for a fantastic price! I look forward to receiving them within the next week or so. Below are some pics of Dos and her egg mass.

[stevie1493]

It's water test Saturday!

 

Parameters: 1.027 sg; 6.7ppm NO3; 0.17ppm PO4; 6.3 dKH; 8.0 pH; temp 78.8°F

 

Nutrients are normal (phosphate a little high), but sg is high and KH is low. I'm going to do a 25% WC and use soda ash to get over 8.0 dKH and get sg down.

 

While soda ash is baking in oven I'm going to plump my RO/DI under the sink as to stop needing to use the hose to make water.

 

I've decided after reading and contemplating that I'm not going to do a copper treatment like I initially planned on the CB for two reasons: A. It seems generally, fish that go through a prophylactic copper treatment have about the same survival rate as fish that don't. B. She has made a home of this whelk shell and It'd feel wrong to pull it out for a copper treatment or taint it by leaving it in during a Cu Bath. I'm trying to size up how I can fit her shell into the aquascape in the DT to maybe help her transition be smoother. Below is a picture of her and her shell.

 

I've decided that my favorite macro is Halimeda. It has also done well in my tank so far. In the future I imagine having the entire substrate covered in carpeting Halimeda. I really need to test calcium. I may already need to start supplementing to support my current macro and the few stony corals in the tank. Below is a picture of Halimeda. I love the idea of it blanketing the whole substrate.

 

On Thursday this week I replaced my 2 Hydor Koralia Nano powerheads (425gph) with 3 Sicce Voyager Nano pumps (530gph). Only 2/3 will be running at a given time. The new 3rd pump is on the far end of the tank to mimic a tidal flow when on. My idea is is to create a variety of flow patterns for coral, and especially Gorgonian, health.

 

The old Koralia Nano pumps were new four years ago in 2017. I've been zapped by aging Koralias before and want to avoid that happening again. Also want to keep stray voltage out of the tank. These new pumps should do nicely..they create 19-27x tank turnover per hour depending on if you count the return pump flow or not.

 

Edit: Added picture of installed RO/DI unit. It passed the leak test. If anyone is intimidated by installing one of these don't be. 30 minutes, an electric drill, a few common hand tools, and some common sense is all it takes. During initial test I measured 195ppm TDS input and 0ppm TDS output.🕺

 

Edited October 31, 2021 by stevie1493

[LazyFish]

Your gorg is a muricea elongate native to the Caribbean and other areas. Rusty gorg or orange spiny gorg. Not as hearty as the "delicate spiny gorg" in my experience. They like alot of flow.

[stevie1493]

3 minutes ago, LazyFish said:

They like alot of flow.

Its not getting direct flow now, but it is in the most turbulent area of the tank. I tried it with direct flow when I first added it and it looked like it was being blown over and the polyps didn't come out.

 

My thinking is that now with three pumps I can give it some alternating flow and mimic natural tidal currents and changes in flow. That gorg is one of my favorite corals in the tank.