Re-Re Starting the RSM130D & Things that Sting Reef

[Ratvan]

Hello all, 

 

I know, I know a new tank thread. Good news is that this is still the RSM130D that I have had for a number of years now that is currently in my office. While everyone in the office likes the planted tank I just cant get myself excited about it at all, I have moved on the fish (Mbuna Cichlids as a grow out tank - great fun but not again) except for the Common Pleco, Plants and Bogwood. I have listed this for sale/swap on a number of local classifieds and forums. 

 

So the idea of this tank is to use all the experience that I have gain in the last 3 years in the hobby in an attempt to have an established Reef tank within the office. I have everything that I need to start the tank build off except obviously the Rocks which despite being ordered over a month ago, have yet to turn up and the tracking information is of no use what so ever. I currently do have a claim in with both the shop i purchased the rock from as well as the delivery company who have lost the parcel. Once this arrives I can create an Aquascape but currently i am looking at starting the cycle as fast as possible, I do have some base rock that I think would start the cycle off nicely as well as a large bag of Bio Media that has been sat in the Filtration section of my Evo for the last 7 months that it has been running, plus the rock in the 9to5 contest tank that has essentially just been cooking for this tank until now.  

 

So onto the Hardware. This is a current list of what I have currently set up on the tank.

Tank:                                   Red Sea Max 130D

Heater:                               150W Adjustable on Nicrew Controller

Return:                               Maxijet 1000 (300GPH)

Flow:                                   Tunze 6025 Powerhead

Light:                                   18W PAR38 Bulb **** to be replaced ****

Stand:                                 Red Sea Max 130D Stand

ATO:                                    *** to be purchased ***

 

Rock:                                   10KG Dried Reef Rock

Sand:                                  10KG Mixed Grain Sand

 

Today I have ordered a 6 Way Extension Cord, with surge protection as well as individual switches and some heavy duty velcro strips so that I can start work on cable and power management inside the stand. I plan further down the line to replace the lighting (most likely with something used) and eventually get an ATO for the tank. It has been running fine with manual top offs to keep the water level above the minimum for the pump, but obviously i would like a bit more peace of mind as i actually hope to be able to have a holiday some point this year. 

 

So anyway, while I am waiting on the rock to arrive and someone to pick up the single fish, plants and wood I have a couple of tasks that I can be on with in preparation for the build. 

·        Cable Management

·        Power Management inside Stand

·        Display Controls inside Stand

·        Aquascape Design

·        DIY Anemone Guard

 

Obviously that last one gives some indication of the stocking for the tank, which currently stands at something similar to

Livestock:

Dwarf Fuzzy Lionfish (the Real Swim Shady)

Bubble Tipped Anemone’s

 

Livestock: Clean up Crew

Astrea Snails

Cerith Snails

Nassarius Snails

Turban Snails

Conch

Black/Algae Hermit Crabs

 

So basically this is a home for any splits that I get off of my BTA in the Mantis Manor so that I can keep control of the Fluval Evo a little easier. Plus the office location is more useful incase i want to sell/trade an anemone for something else at the LFs or another Reefer's house. And also I dont pay the electric or water bills at the office. 

[debbeach13]

Yeah - yeah - sure - we heard it all before! JK looking forward to seeing this tank as a reef.

[Christopher Marks]

An anemone tank at the office will really win your coworkers over! If they were impressed with freshwater, wait until they see just how alien the ocean is! 😄 

 

I think it's a great plan!

[Ratvan]

So the rock delivery has been delayed somewhat by the last three storms, with another on the way I took the "f@ck it, lets start anyway as i dont have the patience for this" methodology and dumped in live sand, water mixed to 1.023 and have it heating up to my preferred 79f. In the rear chambers I have a couple of bags of bio media tubes and balls to at least give the bacteria somewhere to colonise until the rock finally arrives.

 

 

Still have some freshwater stuff to sell which will most likely go to my LFS for pennies unless someone local comes and gets it.

 

No idea what that snail is or where it came from, sand maybe

[Ratvan]

So today I got a refund from the Dry rock that I have ordered and has not turned up, so what did i do with the refund? Did i order more rock for this tank? Nope I splashed out on something new for the Mantis Murder Manor and a few potential snacks

 

@Murphych if you going in for "water" today? Can you let me know if they are actually Green BTAs? 

[Murphs_Reef]

Will do.. going in tonight for water as it happens.. now on rip clean mode!! 

I'll send pics but last week I did take a look, there is a frag tank 6 foot by 6 foot of just feathers and BTAs full of greens, reds and pinks

[Ratvan]

2 minutes ago, Murphych said:

Will do.. going in tonight for water as it happens.. now on rip clean mode!! 

I'll send pics but last week I did take a look, there is a frag tank 6 foot by 6 foot of just feathers and BTAs full of greens, reds and pinks

Ohhhh if they have a true Rose BTA that would be nice too, then i would have Tri Colour, Red and Green 😍. I have tracked down a couple of 48hour heat packs and found a few of the polyboxes that get shipped out so can work on a coral care package for you whenever you are ready for it. (Xenia, Green Kenya, Tri Colour BTA so far) and also for @InAtTheDeepEnd  The Green Kenya has dropped a few branches and they have been stuffed in empty shells. This is the benefit of a mantis tank, lots of shells for coral frags. 

[Ratvan]

So first rock added, this has been in the 9to5 tank cooking without anything but sunlight for a little while now. Will be looking at picking up another rock hopefully slightly larger this lunch time, but it is starting to come together...

 

Ignore my ramblings on the glass 

[Ratvan]

No rock, but 

[M. Tournesol]

17 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

No rock, but 

Will it be a species-only tank or will it have some tank mates?

I would love to have a dwarf fuzzy lionfish 🥰. In france, you need a "certificat de capacité" (certificate of qualification)to have one since lionfishes are poisonous and invasive. How is the law in England?

[Ratvan]

Just now, M. Tournesol said:

Will it be a species-only tank or will it have some tank mates?

I would love to have a dwarf fuzzy lionfish 🥰. In france, you need a "certificat de capacité" (certificate of qualification)to have one since lionfishes are poisonous and invasive. How is the law in England?

Tank isn't cycled and I need a tank for all the BTA clones. Would love one, it's my favourite fish and I've not seen one that cheap in years. I had to double take and check they hadn't missed a 1 at the start of the price. Don't believe any law in UK prohibits ownership though.

 

Still after Allardi, Sebae or Clarkii clownfish pair, all they had were snowflakes, gladiators and Mocha Storms. 

 

Although could do lionfish and anemones and call this things that stings reef 🤔

[Ratvan]

Picked up CuC today as well as fed this one frozen

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

4 minutes ago, Ratvan said:

Picked up CuC today as well as fed this one frozen

 

Aiyeee - if it was me, I'd grab it and move it to my 60G (and move my cardinal to my nano). They're very, very beautiful & amazing fish. I miss mine. 

[Ratvan]

9 minutes ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

Aiyeee - if it was me, I'd grab it and move it to my 60G (and move my cardinal to my nano). They're very, very beautiful & amazing fish. I miss mine. 

How do they do with BTA's in the tank. I am so so so tempted to have this Lion and just BTA clones in the tank. I know work want Clownfish but really for me, meh!

[debbeach13]

Yes, the tank is for you! Besides once they see that fish. They will love it. I have no idea how it will do in a tank full of anemones. That needs some serious research.

[Ratvan]

5 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

Yes, the tank is for you! Besides once they see that fish. They will love it. I have no idea how it will do in a tank full of anemones. That needs some serious research.

Its just the fact that Lions naturally are a perching fish, so really the only concern I have would be if it accidentally bumps an anemone (BTAs) as i'm fairly sure they can differentiate between a rock and an anemone. That and obviously getting spiked while cleaning the tank....

 

Balls to it, if it is still unsold and unreserved on Friday i'll reserve it 

 

[Snow_Phoenix]

1 hour ago, Ratvan said:

How do they do with BTA's in the tank. I am so so so tempted to have this Lion and just BTA clones in the tank. I know work want Clownfish but really for me, meh!

Tbh, I'm not sure. But I used to keep my lion in a simple mixed reef nano without issues (no nem though). 

[debbeach13]

I have looked everywhere and I cant find if anemones and lions get along ok or not... my lion is aggressive some times, he killed an eel and a star but sleeps with our maxim clam!!! Funny stuff!! Hes a real doll though, although the loss of the eel and star were sad. I would like to put a florida condi in the 44 gallon tank. Any help would be great! 😂
Well, the lion won't eat it-here's the problem-most likely, the anemone will eat the lion. They're stupid, and swim slow and will most likely get burned. My LFS had a volitan, a radiata, a dwarf, and an antennata at one point in a large tank with a medium sized carpet, it burned and ate each and every one of them.

 

 

 

I did a quick search. I copied this one and found several concerns that the anemone will kill the fish. I am not trying to discourage you, but it sounds very risky!

[Ratvan]

4 minutes ago, debbeach13 said:

I have looked everywhere and I cant find if anemones and lions get along ok or not... my lion is aggressive some times, he killed an eel and a star but sleeps with our maxim clam!!! Funny stuff!! Hes a real doll though, although the loss of the eel and star were sad. I would like to put a florida condi in the 44 gallon tank. Any help would be great! 😂
Well, the lion won't eat it-here's the problem-most likely, the anemone will eat the lion. They're stupid, and swim slow and will most likely get burned. My LFS had a volitan, a radiata, a dwarf, and an antennata at one point in a large tank with a medium sized carpet, it burned and ate each and every one of them.

 

 

 

I did a quick search. I copied this one and found several concerns that the anemone will kill the fish. I am not trying to discourage you, but it sounds very risky!

Yeah I have been running a similar search since seeing the lionfish for sale 😂.

 

From what I have seen so far is that they tend to avoid the anemone's but then they have bumped one that has potent sting and is exceptionally sticky. So its mostly been the large carpet anemones that have eaten the Lionfish, or the lionfish has been taken by a Moray Eel. 

 

I did however pick up a couple of cheap plastic Isolation boxes that were reduced for quick sale due to some mild discolouration, so I do have a couple of Anemone boxes that I could use in the RSM for the Clones that I want to move on, also spotted a Valentini Puffer that had been returned due to being a Nipper (shock, horror, 😂) that was a decent price too and looks almost fully grown at 3.5"

 

I will keep reading and searching and leave the LFS alone till Friday. If the fish is still there friday it is fate and it is meant to be, will have to have a plan b for the anemones  

[M. Tournesol]

I was just thinking about it... Banggai (and pajama?) cardinalfish can associate with an anemone (including BTA). This could give you some variety in your fish selection.

[debbeach13]

Some other damsels besides clowns also host anemones. I personally had a black domino and a blue devil host my carpet. Not at the same time and not when clowns were in the tank. 

[Ratvan]

So thinking about Lionfish and high waste I have been looking into Protein Skimmers (not as something to add immediately but something that I would like to add to the tank down the line, essentially I am trying to future proof the tank for when the Lion is more fully grown and reaching maximum size). And I am confused to say the least. 

 

So how do I go about sizing a protein skimmer? The manufacturer designs and builds a skimmer and rates it for the amount of work that it can do based on tank size. I am aware that the standard advise is to get something that will cover double the system size, while i can see this being of benefit to a full SPS system I cannot see it being a great benefit to a smaller system. A smaller skimmer would better fit in the rear sections of the Red Sea Max 130D, also would cost less in terms of energy (and therefor running costs)

 

Not only this but if a skimmer is running 24/7 then it is most likely too small for the system and bioload, but if the skimmer barely skims then it is overpowered and under utilised. It is worth noting at this point that i do not plan on upgrading the system outside of this tank (i.e. might do lights, will get ATO, etc)

 

12 hours ago, M. Tournesol said:

I was just thinking about it... Banggai (and pajama?) cardinalfish can associate with an anemone (including BTA). This could give you some variety in your fish selection.

 

10 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

Some other damsels besides clowns also host anemones. I personally had a black domino and a blue devil host my carpet. Not at the same time and not when clowns were in the tank. 

The BTA's are more of an added bonus to this tank, mainly because my first split has happened and I dont want to be over run by Bubble Tips, not yet anyway 🤑. I think that I would be happy with just the Dwarf Fuzzy Lionfish as the sole occupant of the tank, maybe with a Valentini Puffer or something that is high bodied as opposed to long (avoid the Lionfish swallow) such as a Filefish or soemthing fast like a Coris Wrasse.

[debbeach13]

Only 3 more wake ups and it will be Friday.

[rimga123]

I Always fantasized about 300-400ltr cube with some Lionfishes, anemone hosting clowns and macro algae. you could replicate my dream here.

Macro algae can be pretty and would absorb a lot of nutrients, so you would not need an oversized skimmer. and the contrast between red bubble tip anemone and green macro algae would look well. then add some dragon breath and other cool looking algae and i would look amazing.

I am really looking forward seeing how this tank develops.

[Ratvan]

Just now, rimga123 said:

I Always fantasized about 300-400ltr cube with some Lionfishes, anemone hosting clowns and macro algae. you could replicate my dream here.

Macro algae can be pretty and would absorb a lot of nutrients, so you would not need an oversized skimmer. and the contrast between red bubble tip anemone and green macro algae would look well. then add some dragon breath and other cool looking algae and i would look amazing.

I am really looking forward seeing how this tank develops.

Ahhhhh so its basically the skimming versus display refugium route. I will most likely throw in some decorative algae's once I mange to locate some that I find desirable. However I decided to try skimmer route over the macro algae as the Skimmer would remove the organics before they break down as opposed to the macro which would do so after the organics have broken down. Next issue that i have with Macro Algae is that my preferred site has been out of operation for quite a while now (definitely all of 2021, maybe earlier) and not looking as though they will be selling any algae anytime soon. 

 

Another reason is this is my works office tank, so over the weekends will be left unattended. I have had a series of bad experiences with macro algae going sexual over the weekend and me returning to find a milky tank which i would like to, additionally if the skimmer is pulling out too much nitrates then i can turn it off, or reintroduce the skimmate to ge the levels back up. With macroalgae i would need to dose the nutrients back up to avoid issues with bottoming out. 

 

However I am looking into mangroves at the moment too, not for nutrient export but because i would like to try them and would replicate what i see in my head when someone mentions lionfish, lurking in mangrove roots waiting to ambush something unsuspecting.  Also because this is one of my favourite inspiration shots