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Got the light! Overall I'm very impressed with this unit. A bulb was broken in transit...no biggie. I wanted to change them out pretty much right away anyways. Right now there are 2 "blue" bulbs and a 14,000K White bulb...pretty nice look to it. So I ordered a Powerchrome Pure Actinic to replace, which should bring out the purples and reds really nicely.
Ernie couldn't wait and went out and bought a mushroom polyp and a bicolor psuedochromis...not too impressed with him but whatever....let it aclimate and put them in the tank. The fish went straight to the back up near the over flow and I don't expect to see much of him. Silly Ernie. Camera was left at home, but I'll be sure to bring it in tomorrow so I can take pictures of what's coming tomorrow too! EDIT: Finally ordered filter socks too...silly me. Also, had 2 no shows for tattoos, so no coral ordered today either. phooey |
yyyyyooooink!
Just made a deal with a NJ Reefer for: 1" Tubbs Alien Eye Chalice (green) 1" blue/purple Alien Eye Chalice 4 head frag of Frogspawn 4 head frag of Hammer coral 10 Polyps Joker Zoos 10 Polyps RPE's. |
LA order came today!
Currently floating in the tank are: 5 blue/green chromis...all about 3/4 of an inch...tiny little fellas 1 Bad ass wrasse (that's what it's called...well that's what I'm calling it anyways) 10 Nassarius Snails 20 Scarlet Leg Hermit Crabs 20 Dwarf Blue Leg Hermit Crabs 1 Arrow Crab (this thing is so funky looking...almost screamed a little) 3 Pepperming Shrimp 15 Turbo Snails 1 Sally Lightfoot Crab 2 Emerald Crabs 1 Coral banded Shrimp (beautiful bugger it is) |
IMO your going WAY to fast. Slow down.
your tank has only had water in it for 10 days and your already putting fish in it? |
alot of stuff (besides the small order of macro rocks) came from an established tank. Got seed rock from an established tank and another 5lbs or so live sand from an established tank. Tested water parameters, saw a spike (after I threw in a scallop) and watched the levels return to normal.
Also using Seachem Stability...which I know some people say is snake oil, but it's worked for me in the past.... So far everything is looking good...fish are actively swimming, CUC is actively cruising the tank... |
Got the Geissman Powerchrome Actinic bulb....um, awesome. It doesn't make too much of a difference in overal color of the tank itself, but when you look at the inhabitants....waaaapow! The reds on the peppermint shrimp and the coral banded are epic!
Dark Photo...obligatory FTS: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2520.jpg One of the 3 Peppermint Shrimp: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2517.jpg |
Snail trails on the overflow! Woot woot! Er ... maybe I mean *swoon* ? Swoon? Woot? Bazinga? I dunno, take your pick.
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hahaha yep...but they didn't make it through the egg crate tops...suckaaaaaas!....woot woot would be appropriate.
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So noted. Er, I mean .. Duly notizzle - thizzle vizzle much!
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I switched the Vortech settings...again. ha ha...Nutrient Transport mode set at about 80% is making a nice little wave along with a "calm" time etc....from where I sit in my station when I look over at the tank when it's surging I can see the water line drop about 1/2" below the trim....
Added a pair of False Percs....who, even though I said there would be no naming of fish...have been dubbed "Nemo and Nemette":crazy: By Roxy, who is Butch's 2 year old daughter. Slight diatom outbreak on the sandbed, but the clean up crew seem to be taking care of it pretty damn well. The LFS I've been wanting to go to for a while is having a sale this weekend...uh oh. |
Wow, when you setup a tank, you sure set it up. Speedy Gonzales!!!!
Looking good though, even though it may be a little too fast. But again, aren't we all a little that way. It's hard to be patient in this hobby. |
tell me about it. If this tank were at home, I'd definitely be taking more time with it...but because it's in a shop it's gotta be setup quick. I've been dosing daily with Seachem Stability...like I said, some people say its snake oil, but I've been using it for a couple years, either in tanks of my own or when I would setup/maintain tanks for others. One particular client (extremely wealthy...it was rediculous, had to sign a waiver etc saying I wouldn't ever tell names, or location of the house) had a 600 gallon in the bathroom (yep...bathroom) that they switched from a freshwater Amazon themed tank to a reef....took about a week to tear down and then about a week with just rock etc and Stability while I installed lights and ther gizmos....I think it was around the second week I added a school of Chromis and some other fish...tank was completely stocked fish-wise within about 2 months....do I reccomend it? no...but I guess when money wasn't an issue for them they didn't care...never lost a fish...but went through damn near 1 jug of Stability a day...Jug, not the little bottles hahahaha
ah well. |
http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2555.jpg
FTS http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2553.jpg Ernie feeding the tank Rotifers: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2551.jpg And the damn near impossible to capture on Camera Wrasse....this guy is out and swimming around all the time...but is too damn fast for my camera taking skills::: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2542.jpg |
Corals added today:
5 heads frogspawn 5 heads hammer Mummy Eye Chalice Frag Tubbs Alien Eye Chalice Joker Zoas (about 8 polyps already open) 2 Polyps Red People Eaters (these things friggen GLOW under actinic) Tyree True Undata Frag (guy threw it in for free) When I come back to Jersey in March of next year the same guy is giving me a FREE 2-3 inch frag of Red Planet and a frag of ORA Chips acro.... Sweeeet |
Well that is great and all but where are the pic how about a pic of the crew standing besides the tank....
EX Canada GIRL.....:biggrin: |
haha fine...I'll work on getting a FTS and group shot Monday when I get over this flu
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everything looks great, can't wait to see it with corals in it. What is your full bulb line up?
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Aquablue+ 14K Aquablue+ Powerchrome Actinic will probably switch out one of the blues for another daylight bulb in the near future though |
havn't updated because frankly, I havn't seen the tank in about a week. What I thought was the flu and an ear infection has turned out to be a severe case of strep throat. So I have been out of commision for the last 4 days. But from what Ernie has told me, everything is doing good...I hope to be well enough to be at work tomorrow, so I'll be able to grab an updated FTS shot then
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I hate strep throat! Get well soon.
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Warning...horrible photos to follow.
Joker Zoas: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m.../JOKERZOAS.jpg Frogspawn: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...ROGSPAWN-1.jpg I think this one's the Alien Eye: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/ALIENEYE.jpg Which would make this one the Mummy Eye?: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/MUMMYEYE.jpg Red People Eater Zoas: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...OPLEEATERS.jpg Undata: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...023/UNDATA.jpg FTS http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...23/FTSNOV4.jpg |
Hope you feel better. You've added some really nice stuff. So how will these chalices grow? Are they encrusted wherever they grow to or are they sorta ledging out over things?
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Looking good, just need a little growth on those bad boys and then you should have some real nice colonies.
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that's what I meant to ask you...what's the usual growth rate for these fellas?
I've noticed that the RPE's already have 2 small polyps developing at the base and I'm pretty sure I see a couple more on the Jokers than when I left the shop for about a week..... I hope they fill in quick....personally I don't have a problem with a tank of well placed frags waiting to grow in etc, but they boys at the shop are hella impatient |
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I'm pretty sure Chalices are quite slow growing. At least they are for me. :sad: I've got four pieces and they've grown very little in a couple of months. |
I know chalices tend to be slow growing but the guy said they are growing quickly in his tank....
I meant more about the zoanthids though...I want more of the red people eaters' for crying out loud ha ha |
well.....Ernie "accidentally" bought a Yellow Eyed Kole Tang.
Oh well, good looking fish, nice and fat, beautiful colors nice and active and already picking at the glass.... So much for having a tang-less tank ha ha |
I sure wish *I* had someone else to pin my purchases on. I've been eying a sohal, naso and vlamingi for the 97g lately but nobody to blame when the @#$% hits the fan. Hmmm...
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you can blame me. I'll allow it.
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Not too much to update really....I go home on Wednesday so I don't think anything will be added to the tank until I get back in March....also means this thread probably wont be updated much either...ah well. I've got the apprentice schooled in how to change water, what to feed and when etc...
But...the Joker zoanthids are taking off...seriously. There's 6 new polyps that I can see since I've put them in the tank....2 new polyps on the Red People Eaters too...so must be doing something right. The undata has grown some it's starting to spread onto the frag disc....who knew....I literally have done next to nothing in terms of dosing (just regular weekly water changes) FTS NOV 13 http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2594.jpg horrible photo of the new addition http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/IMG_2596.jpg |
edit....also picked up 2 plugs of GSP and a Polyp of Candycane Coral
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Ernie just took these on his phone and sent them to me to show me that he's not effing up the tank...his words, not mine:
RPEs...there's two more polyps growing, but you can't really see in the photo http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...er_023/RPE.jpg Joker Zoas, you can already see the new polyps starting to cover the frag disk: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...okerzoas-1.jpg Little tiny disc of GSP...this thing didn't open for 2 days and I was getting mad...then I leave and boom, open and doing well: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m..._023/GSP-1.jpg ^^^^That blur in the bottom corner would be the kole tang...doesn't zoom around the tank often, just at a nice, chill pace until you try and get a picture of him...then he's gone. |
Water Params:
SG 1.024 Temp 79-80*F Ammonia:0 Nitrite: 0 Nitrate: less than 10 ppm Problem: all but one fish (chromis) dead. All inverts thriving and coral growing like a weed. 10% water change done once a week |
Sorry to hear. Ouch.
All at once or gradual? Symptoms? Basically I think this comes down to either disease in which case you'd think there be some lead-up to the event; or there was somehow a lack of O2 and they asphyxiated. |
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Then, dipstick 17 year old turned the vortech up to 100% to show her stoner friends and never turned it back down, causing a sandstorm. So they shut it off for a couple days. But I don't think the lack of vortech would cause the oxygen to decrease to such an excent it would off everyone. With the return pump and the closed loop there's still lots of water movement. In terms of symptoms, Ernie said there was no white spots or rabid breathing...no sparadic swimming etc. It was literally they were fine and swimming around/eating etc...and then started dying off. He's getting a guy from the local LFS to come take a look at the tank tomorrow, but I"m at a loss |
That sucks.. The guys who are doing the water top offs do understand that they use fresh water?
Stirring the sand up can cause problems.. Maybe a combo of that and the sg being out of whack tresses the fish? Also make sure they aren't using windex to clean the glass.. Also I bet there are few alcohol spray bottles around the shop too... Make sure they aren't using that as glass cleaner. Only vinegar :wink: |
yeah, I mentioned all that to Ernie...same with the "make sure any incense garbage you guys are burning aren't close to the tank"....I'm thinking it's a combo of the high salinity and the sandstorm, but who knows. and it's kinda hard to tell a guy that the reason he's lost all his fish is more than likely because of his stoner, waste of skin daughter ha ha ha ah well.
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OMG NEW PHOTOS!!!!!!
Everything has returned back to normal (still no idea what caused the mass death, but I have my suspicions). Anyways. Tank is doing great, maintaining at a steady 77 degrees, crystal clear and readings are where they should be! Surviving fish are one Chromis (whom I've decided to name Bill) and the Wrasse was found in the back of the overflow, still alive and doing well, just hanging out back there. The LFS will be going over there one day this week with a fishtrap to try and get it out...just glad that little fella is still around, thats one pretty fish. Anyway...photos! (keep in mind these are all on a camera phone...a Droid2 to be exact) The FTS. I am STOKED with how good the rocks look right now. They're starting to get some coraline on them and are nice and ...rock looking??? Anyways..they are good....also note the Coral Banded is still doing fantastic..easily the crowd pleaser of the tank as it is right now: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m..._023/FTS-1.jpg The Hammer Coral (Photo was taken when the vortech was on the high cycle in the random mode) I assure you it is alot more full looking: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...023/Hammer.jpg Frogspawn: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...rogspawn-2.jpg Torch (purchased only one head begining of November. Started with it mid way up in the tank and it has since been moved to the bottom, already splitting): http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...umpetcoral.jpg Joker Zoas (starting to grow on rockwork): http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...okerZoas-2.jpg Alien Eye Chalice (Started with 1.5 mouths..now has at least 6 and is starting to overtake the frag disc)....the other chalice is doing just as well (Ernie counted 8 mouths on it), but it is in a hard spot to take a picture of: http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m.../chalice-1.jpg Undata (growing slowly but surely...almost off the one side of the disc): http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m...3/Undata-1.jpg 2 small plugs of GSP were put on the left hand side of the tank, on their own little rock so as to not overtake anything and still hit a good chunk of current for motion...they're just about to start growin on the rocks (purchased my last day in Jersey, with only a couple small polyps in the center of each disc): http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m..._023/gsp-2.jpg wham! |
Glad to hear it's doing well even without your direct guidance!
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