Thanks for the ID--I'll try to get a picture of the other ones soon, but the tentacles are very slim, so hard to capture on my not-so-great camera.

The brown diatoms have died down somewhat, starting to be replaced by green algae. I didn't see a lot of pods on the glass and wanted to "feed" my new skimmer, so I scraped it off today.

I haven't been able to get the foam to climb more than halfway up the tube in the Rio, but I suppose I just need to be patient and keep fiddling with it. My water level is stable, so I hope it will stay adjusted once I get it right.

Regards,
Nevin

update
 

0 mg/L nitrite
0.6 mg/L ammonia
8.5 ph
9 dkh

First time to test kh. It's much higher than my freshwater tanks have ever been--guess the sand and rock buffer it? I don't know what a desirable ph is for saltwater either.

Everything is looking good--no algae at the moment and I've finally got some foam coming out the neck of the skimmer, though nothing falling in the cup yet.

so thats just acrylic siliconed in?

Yes, I just cut up some acrylic and stuck it in. Works well, looks alright, and far cheaper than an "all-in-one".

Regards,
Nevin

Algae ID
 

Hi all,

I've been keeping an eye on several varieties of algae that came with one of my rocks. I'd be much obliged if anyone can help me ID them, or at least tell me whether they're likely to become "pests" and overgrow everything. Number 1 are red stalks about 1/4" long.

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...ing/algae1.jpg

Numbers 2-5 are easier to see. 2 and 4 might be the same.

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...ing/algae2.jpg

I could probably start adding a cleanup crew at this point, if anyone has snails/hermits available for cheap?

Thanks,
Nevin

Fish
 

Up to now I haven't thought much about what kind of livestock. In addition to corals, I'd like to have a shrimp or two and a small clownfish. Would a bangaii cardinal fit in with these in a 10G? I've seen minimum tank sizes of anywhere from 7-20G. I know clownfish are territorial, so thinking they might not get along in a small tank?

Regards,
Nevin

Update
 

Haven't updated in a while as I'm just letting the tank mature and building a stand.

Added two little zoa colonies and a tiny mushroom. Took out my bumble bee snail as it was eying the zoas.

Still looking for opinions on whether a bangaii cardinal is ok in a 10g tank and compatible with a clown.

I'll probably start adding my cleanup crew soon. I'm thinking of starting with J&L's standard 5-10g package: http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s...ategory_ID=250 -- wonder if I should substitute a couple of nassarius snails to clean the sandbed? Are the blue legged and red scarlet hermits safe with corals and zoas?

Any advice most welcome.

Regards,
Nevin

i have some blue legged nd scarlett,hermits they seem to leave all my coral alone. so does my sally lightfoot. and my porcelins.

Pictures finally!
 

I haven't posted pictures mostly because there hasn't been much to see. Now that there's some life in the tank that's big enough to photograph, here they are! The lighting is still 6700k, so it's very yellow. I went with J & L's package no. 1 for the cleanup crew, plus I have a few small zoas and mushrooms. My wife bought a moon coral, which seems happy after a few days (at least it looks the same as it did in the store) and seems to be finding some food. I'll probably get a little mysis to make sure it's well-fed.

I felt a little bad about turning on the lights at night to take pictures--pods were running for cover and a hermit was so surprised it fell off a rock!

Full tank:
http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...g/DSC06972.jpg

Top view:
http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...g/DSC06973.jpg

Moon coral:
http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...g/DSC06970.jpg

Zoas:
http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...g/DSC06971.jpg

I bought a mini coralife fixture to put on the AC70 refugium so I can put the chaeto inside--just need to find the best way to secure it.

The Rio is generating some "green tea" skimmate--adequate for my purposes and good for the price. It loses its syphon once in a while--I think it's because the tank is on a shaky table and the water sloshes around when people walk by.

I'm very happy with my progress on the stands for this and my freshwater planted tank. I'm ready to stain and varnish the pedestals and hope to post finished pictures soon.

Regards,
Nevin

Looks good Nevin. That 6700k bulb would drive me nuts though, it may also contribute to an algae problem.