ML's 14 IM Peninsula

[ml86743]

On 1/3/2023 at 4:45 PM, ArabTanker said:

Really enjoying this build thread. Looks great so far. It's also pushing me closer and closer to buying another macro lens. 😭

Man I want to scoop a macro so bad..  I'm actually just cropping in all the pics shot from the 24-70.  (Still not in love with the quality but I think it has to do with shooting through the glass..)

 

Y'all got me inspired, gonna take a few when I get home today.  

[ml86743]

Amazing how much this cyph has started to grow since adding.  Already encrusting over the glue I got on the skeleton and starting to cruise over the plug!

 

 

In other news, Winston defiantly has some sort of parasite 😞  Working on building a treatment plan/ID on another forum.  I will continue to update as I find out more. 

 

Not a great photo but you can see the white flecks in his dorsal and tailfin.  If anybody has any ideas feel free to chime in.  Peaks and valleys...the good news is he's behaving normally and eating like a dump truck still so I'm hoping I'll be able to figure this out and get him/the tank squared away. 

 

Update: So far I'm receiving input that it could be a viral infection or something along those lines.  

 

 

[debbeach13]

A coral growing already! that's sweet. I hope Winston is OK. 

[ml86743]

On 1/4/2023 at 7:06 AM, debbeach13 said:

A coral growing already! that's sweet. I hope Winston is OK. 

Winston seems to be fine.  Hoping he's going to be able to coexist with whatever is going on and supplement his immune system with diet.   He eats well and sleeps in his mucus cocoon nightly.  All things pointing to being comfortable for the most part.  I couldn't really get a definitive diagnosis from anybody...more just monitor and see what happens.

 

The selcon/vitmarin has defiantly helped him tack on weight and his colors have intensified tremendously (regardless of any health issue).  I highly recommend the supplemental nutrition. 

 

I'd like to add 1 or two more fish but I'm concerned if there is something in the water to put a life at risk.

 

I began dosing neonitro/neophos.  Nitrates were elevated to approximately 2.5ppm within 24 hours.  PO4 remains 0 with the addition of .75mL.  (now going on day 3) I plan to continue adding every 24hours until I start to see some detectable numbers.  Haven't messed with the dosage but I may have to double if I continue to see no improvement.  

 

Corals look fantastic and I found that the chalice is called "Nacho Cheese".  Still no good pics but it seems to be adjusting.   All 3 zoa frags have added polyps.  I've also got three new frags coming in the mail next week from POTO, just a few oddball color morphs of zoas.  

 

Has anybody has issues with water levels intank/back chambers in the new IM Fusion tanks?  I mean its all over the place (I think its because of the overflow plate they provide to adjust water level height shifting)

 

 

[ml86743]

Solid progress with the nutrient levels - after adding the neophos/neonitro I'm currently sitting at 2.5 NO3 (which actually has been relatively consistent) and .009 PO4.  After dosing the neoophos @ .75ml for a few days I bumped up to 1mL and just added it to the change water for this week's cleaning.  Ideally, this would be my preferred way to export/import nutrients but we will see.  I'll have to watch what plays out over the next few days with feeding and PO4 levels.  

 

Everybody else is still doing their thing.  Dealing with some algae on the base of the WWC AOI's that has been such a PITA..I try and baste away what I can but this stuff is stubborn.  

 

I guess you could say I'm in the process of the "uglies" but I really don't mind.  It's fascinating watching a microenvironment go through the establishment process.  All sorts of algae's here and there..but the corals are growing, and I have defiantly witnessed progress! The new chalice is defiantly happy too.  

 

I've got those 3 frags coming from POTO this week so after they're in hopefully I can take some time to capture some photos.  

 

Here's some throw away's...Really just for accountability purposes.:)

Don't mind the have closed zoas..Knocked the glass pretty hard before this.

 

Old Kitchen Lit FTS 

 Most Recent FTS from opposite side.  You can kinda see the nacho cheese chalice!

 

[ml86743]

I wanted to share my lighting schedule for the maxspect.  I was able to find some decent information on their FB page so I took one of my favorite profiles and modified it for my needs.   

 

[ml86743]

Update time!

 

Still battling the phosphate levels.  I'm trying my best to maintain consistency at .1-.2ppm by dumping unimaginable amounts of neophos in <14 gallons of water.  5mL in the evening, 7 mL in the AM.  It's hard to stay on top of things work and life but my outright goal is to never let them go back to 0.  I cannot believe how much PO4 this little tank can sequester. 

 

Nitrates hang at 5-7.5.  Maybe somebody can chime in here about raising them to about 10 for a better ratio?   

 

I have a pretty good dino infestation on my sand bed and manual removal/nutrient addition has been the name of the game.  Looking into the IM UV sterilizer, but I'm not even certain what species I have so it could be useless.   As a wildlife biologist by trade, you'd think somebody in my damn office would have a decent microscope to borrow..no such luck yet..I'll have to head down to the "Narnia" section of the office and visit the chemists. 

 

Added 2 tbsp of matrix carbon to offset and toxicity of hopefully dying dinos. 

 

My POTO zoa frags came in though and they look great!  Shipped perfectly and opened right up.   I would definatly recommend them any day of the week. 

 

Winston is chillin' and his little spots are all gone.  Not sure what was happening there..

 

Added a VMC RFG, that thing is amazing.  Almost makes me want to rid the tank of the MP10.

 

Cyphastrea continues to grow like a weed, and almost everyone else is generally in good shape.  The dinos are bothering some of the zoas though.  I just continue to baste away any strands wrapped around their base. 

 

Blue ric hasnt been happy but I also moved it a little bit (only to move it back)

 

Again, these are more "accountability" posts and landmarks so I can go back for reference. 

[ml86743]

Confirmed ostreopsis through the scope tn.  I will continue to monitor nutrient levels.  I'm gonna give the IM UV Sterilizer a shot here.   Should be in by next week.  FIngers crossed all the inhabitants can hold out. 

[ml86743]

We're in full dino disaster mode.  I'm gonna beat these f*****s!!  Following the "Macks Reef" protocol on FB.  If you have dino's check them out!  They're great!  

 

Things I've noticed since the addition of nutrients to the tank.  

1) The life rock is for sure becoming saturated with all sorts of new microfauna.  I'm seeing a pretty drastic change in color which is good, signifying the colonization of "the good stuff".

2) Although many of the corals are currently bothered by the dinos, they seem to enjoy a dirtier tank.

 

In past settings I could have easily seen myself becoming discouraged by this setback.  However, I am finding that rectifying the ecological balance within the tank is a welcome challenge and I am excited to see the end result, which hopefully is a well-balanced micro-environment. 

[ml86743]

Ya'll ready to see some ugly!!!  Took a few shots, lots of dinos and stuff...Still seeing some growth though which is encouraging.   I just want to wake up in the AM and be excited to see the tank. Chalice is growing well, most of the zoas are happy and some growing.  The cyphastrea is STILL growing like a weed.   Blasto's are currently unhappy, i had moved them around a few weeks ago and I think the combination of dinos/movement was not good. (You'll see)  A little piece of the skeleton was hanging off of them when I bought it and it finally came off so I glued it underneath a ledge (I like that position better so hopefully the little baby does well.  Winston is good and also a food monster haha.  Thought I had some CUC loss from toxins in the dinos but everyone is still accounted for.  Runnning 2 tbsp of carbon to combat any toxins in the water column.  

 

I got the IM UV desktop and it's installed and dropped in.  I hope this will help clear up these dinos...the schedule is hectic between keeping up nutrients, H2o2, and manual removal.  So sick of the s**t.

 

Parameters i have been consistently tracking are relatively stable.  Tank is still eating PO4 like nobodies business.   

dkH:7.5-7.9

NO3: 5-10 (with dosing)

PO4: (.05-.12) (with dosing) 

pH 8.2

 

Here are the pics!

 

[ml86743]

Things have progressed nicely.  Haven't checked in lately but it seems the tank is moving past the dino's!  Also, today was the first day I didn't need to dose any phosphate!!!

 

Added some new corals, including a few cheap sticks to see if I can make something happen on the SPS front.  One anacro and a montipora stellata!

 

Cooking dinner right now, will discuss more later...so here's some updated photos!

 

 

[Koleswrath]

Lookin great! So the IM desktop UV worked well? It seems like one of the only decent options for small tanks. I've got some new Ostreopsis friends to have an intervention with. 

  

[ml86743]

1 hour ago, Koleswrath said:

Lookin great! So the IM desktop UV worked well? It seems like one of the only decent options for small tanks. I've got some new Ostreopsis friends to have an intervention with. 

  

Thanks!

 

Along with obtaining the appropriate nutrient levels and dosing MB7 I think the IM UV helped tremendously.  The one issue I noticed (which I have read about) was the water coming through the overflow would sometimes bypass the UV tube.  I replaced the foam they sent with filter floss and when the floss would clog up the water would meander overtop the unit.  I hope that makes sense, point being, whatever you choose to use above the UV tube, (floss, or stock foam) just make sure its clear and water is not spilling out of the top and sides.  After noticing this, I feel like I saw a significant reduction in dino populations.  Within days of running the thing right lol..the population on the sandbed disappeared.  It is now only small patches on the LR.  

[Koleswrath]

6 minutes ago, ml86743 said:

 

Within days of running the thing right lol..the population on the sandbed disappeared.  It is now only small patches on the LR.  

Awesome, that’s excellent.

Thanks for the info on the tube overflow. I’ll order one of these babies and start kicking some Dino tail!

[ml86743]

10 minutes ago, Koleswrath said:

Awesome, that’s excellent.

Thanks for the info on the tube overflow. I’ll order one of these babies and start kicking some Dino tail!

That's what I like to hear!  If your tank can accommodate the larger model. might be worth a look too, more watts is always better.  Can't beat the price on these things when compared to the rest of the market...

[ml86743]

Pretty typical evening - Still having to dose nutrients occasionally.  Fish are fat and happy.  I already want a larger tank..typical stuff. 

 

Ordered some of the BW Reef Blizzard products today.  Went with the LPS pellets and the XC.  Excited to get these into the mix for coral feedings.  

 

I've had some issues with the cyphastrea as of late, not "dying" but much of the new growth has gone almost translucent, with the exception of one portion that looks like it has regrown over some of the old-new growth (yeah that's confusing...)  PE is still really good oddly enough. I'm thinking it's one of two things: 

 

1) Due to the lack of WC during the dino battles I noticed my calcium was low (dont have a mag test, just ordered that).  I suspect these elements as well as the other trace minerals may have been used up or severely low.

2) The overhang that it was sitting under was moved accidentally after cleaning the sand bed, exposing it to more light.   Still, I don't think it's getting blasted with tons of par..

 

My money is on 1.  I've changed almost 5 gallons over the last week and bumped the CA back to where it should be from 350.  I'm assuming the mag should be close to normal now.  Will report back as things progress.  I'm really hoping I can get this bad-boy to take that whole isolated rock over. 

[ml86743]

Picture time!

 

Having a hard time capturing the colors of the favia.  Defiantly a daylight kinda guy. 

 

Wrath of the chalice!

 

AOI's showing out

 

Anacropora starting to show some promising signs - i got this for 10 bucks (hence the algae growth and dead skin patches, BUT I think it's starting to come around)

 

Golden God's, still working out photographing these too.  I need a macro..

 

[PJPS]

4 minutes ago, ml86743 said:

Picture time!

 

Having a hard time capturing the colors of the favia.  Defiantly a daylight kinda guy. 

 

Wrath of the chalice!

 

AOI's showing out

 

Anacropora starting to show some promising signs - i got this for 10 bucks (hence the algae growth and dead skin patches, BUT I think it's starting to come around)

 

Golden God's, still working out photographing these too.  I need a macro..

 

🔥 well done! Anacropora looks excellent.  Everything looks great really…

[PJPS]

Could you put together a photography tutorial thread, if you haven’t already?  The photography 🤤

[ml86743]

1 hour ago, PJPS said:

Could you put together a photography tutorial thread, if you haven’t already?  The photography 🤤

Things are getting there.  Still some tweaking that needs to be done...I'm really bummed my cyphastrea isnt happy rn but I'm still seeing some really good PE..

 

I could try and work something out for sure!  I'm still dialing some settings in and my lens selection isn't the greatest to capture what I want but it's getting there.  I appreciate the kind words.  This tank has been a real PITA but I've had some good coral growth along with some mishaps.  

[PJPS]

1 minute ago, ml86743 said:

Things are getting there.  Still some tweaking that needs to be done...I'm really bummed my cyphastrea isnt happy rn but I'm still seeing some really good PE..

 

I could try and work something out for sure!  I'm still dialing some settings in and my lens selection isn't the greatest to capture what I want but it's getting there.  I appreciate the kind words.  This tank has been a real PITA but I've had some good coral growth along with some mishaps.  

Something is always pouting, don’t fret.  My cyphastrea took 2 months to get it’s colour back, PE could be better 3 🤬 months in 😇

 

Whenever you can find time is A+.  Your photography slaps.  Looks HDR but not “too extra” as the kids were saying 3 years ago 😂

[gena]

You’ve lived in Florida for ten, or was it 7 years, and only now set up a tank?????  lol no way I could’ve gone that long 😁.  
 

it looks fantastic and Winston is adorbs!!!!!  I need a Winston lol.  I miss those little guys ❤️.

[ml86743]

19 hours ago, PJPS said:

Something is always pouting, don’t fret.  My cyphastrea took 2 months to get it’s colour back, PE could be better 3 🤬 months in 😇

 

Whenever you can find time is A+.  Your photography slaps.  Looks HDR but not “too extra” as the kids were saying 3 years ago 😂

Well I appreciate it !!

 

4 hours ago, gena said:

You’ve lived in Florida for ten, or was it 7 years, and only now set up a tank?????  lol no way I could’ve gone that long 😁.  
 

it looks fantastic and Winston is adorbs!!!!!  I need a Winston lol.  I miss those little guys ❤️.

Gena he is THE best.  Him and bob the cardinal make an odd pair..

 

Yeah you know how life goes...as much as we all would like to prioritize our tanks everything else doesn't slow down..plus I was broke 😂

 

 

Speaking of fishes!  I think I could get away with one or two more.  Any recommendations guys!! I want somebody whos real swimmy, trying to stay away from clowns this go around. 

 

Lots of flow in this little tank...would love a firefish but I'm afraid he would be mad at the typhoon. 

 

Maybe a blenny boy?

[gena]

3 hours ago, ml86743 said:

Well I appreciate it !!

 

Gena he is THE best.  Him and bob the cardinal make an odd pair..

 

Yeah you know how life goes...as much as we all would like to prioritize our tanks everything else doesn't slow down..plus I was broke 😂

 

 

Speaking of fishes!  I think I could get away with one or two more.  Any recommendations guys!! I want somebody whos real swimmy, trying to stay away from clowns this go around. 

 

Lots of flow in this little tank...would love a firefish but I'm afraid he would be mad at the typhoon. 

 

Maybe a blenny boy?

Well, that’s a good reason 😊.  
 

Every blenny I’ve had didn’t do much swimming.  Mostly perching with occasional bursts of chasing something (food) lol.  I can’t think of any small fish that swim other than what you already have.

[ml86743]

26 minutes ago, gena said:

Well, that’s a good reason 😊.  
 

Every blenny I’ve had didn’t do much swimming.  Mostly perching with occasional bursts of chasing something (food) lol.  I can’t think of any small fish that swim other than what you already have.

Yeah..after typing that out I realized they're perchy guys haha.

 

 

Hit the LFS today for an emerald crab.  After seeing @banasophia's emerald eat hydroids, I decided to give it a shot.  Hopefully she behaves...small gal, less than an inch.  I've heard so many mixed reviews about these guys they always keep me on edge.  (had them in the past, 0 problems)

 

Did some regluing of the stellatta monti and an unhappy alveopora that a hermit knocked over. 

 

Some pics below of a ric and the angry cyph.  You can sorta see what kinda hydroids they are on the cyph plug.  As you can see PE is great, the tissue loss is to the left, it used to be covered. ( I dont think the tissue recession is related to the hydroids but idk)

 

 

FOR COMPARISON, back when we had lots o dinos.