Possibly starting first ever small FOWLR SW tank and looking for info

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

Thanks for the input Reefwars. Guess I will leave the lights on in case there is some nice stuff capable of growing in the LR. I only have 2 MR16 LED lights and a strip of Automotive LED lights sitting on the top of my tank. Not sure if I have any corals on the live rock but there are a couple forms of circular life form with little arms which I would say "might" be alive. It is moving in the current and doesnt appear to be translucent like other things that seem to be dying off on the rock. It doesnt really have any sort of color though so I am not sure its alive or not and at the moment I cant identify it since I havent done enough research yet. I do seem to have some bristle like appendages that seem to be attached to the rock that have started to get some green color to them which I didnt notice when I first bought the rock. I have no clue what they are but they are short and maybe 1mm across in diameter and maybe 2 - 3mm in length sticking out off the live rock. The green versions of these do seem to have just started coming out and most are dark brown, purple or light tan colored. I would guess its not algae.

Is coraline algae a good thing on live rock? These big patches of purple are pretty pervasive on the one chunk of live rock I have while the other 2 have really small splotches across the surface.

I was going to put some pot scrubbies into my sump but realized that this might not be a good thing in a marine tank vs a FW tank. Should I even bother with the scrubbies in this FOWLR tank?

Still havent tested the water for ammonia and nitrite yet but its only been a couple days since putting the LR in so I figure its a waste doing a test so early. Currently using plain Calgary Tap water dechlorinated with Prime as I dont have a RODI system.
The hydrometer I bought seems to show the salinity is high which is annoying since I followed the instructions on the bag. I seeded the hydrometer but not sure how accurate it is. I decided to splurge for a refractometer while its on sale. Will be changing out a bit of water in a couple days I think.

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by CGY_Betta_Guy

Thanks for the input Reefwars. Guess I will leave the lights on in case there is some nice stuff capable of growing in the LR. I only have 2 MR16 LED lights and a strip of Automotive LED lights sitting on the top of my tank. Not sure if I have any corals on the live rock but there are a couple forms of circular life form with little arms which I would say "might" be alive. It is moving in the current and doesnt appear to be translucent like other things that seem to be dying off on the rock. It doesnt really have any sort of color though so I am not sure its alive or not and at the moment I cant identify it since I havent done enough research yet. I do seem to have some bristle like appendages that seem to be attached to the rock that have started to get some green color to them which I didnt notice when I first bought the rock. I have no clue what they are but they are short and maybe 1mm across in diameter and maybe 2 - 3mm in length sticking out off the live rock. The green versions of these do seem to have just started coming out and most are dark brown, purple or light tan colored. I would guess its not algae.

Is coraline algae a good thing on live rock? These big patches of purple are pretty pervasive on the one chunk of live rock I have while the other 2 have really small splotches across the surface.

I was going to put some pot scrubbies into my sump but realized that this might not be a good thing in a marine tank vs a FW tank. Should I even bother with the scrubbies in this FOWLR tank?

Still havent tested the water for ammonia and nitrite yet but its only been a couple days since putting the LR in so I figure its a waste doing a test so early. Currently using plain Calgary Tap water dechlorinated with Prime as I dont have a RODI system.
The hydrometer I bought seems to show the salinity is high which is annoying since I followed the instructions on the bag. I seeded the hydrometer but not sure how accurate it is. I decided to splurge for a refractometer while its on sale. Will be changing out a bit of water in a couple days I think.

sounds like your off to a great start so in short yes coraline is good over time it does need to be scraped off glass and there are forms that tend to grow like weeds and such but its wanted for color like greens and purples and reds and is beneficial.

untill you actually have livestock of somesort use a reduced photoperiod like 8hrs then as time goes by you can climb up to 10-12hrs a day,

the life your finding on your rock does it look like this??








if so its called aiptasia and its a pest anemone their sting is very strong and they reproduce at an alarming rate and take over tanks very fast be forever on your lookout for it as its everywhere and i mean everywhere lol

how about spome pics???

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

its similar to the one pictured but doesnt have the white striations and its not quite as thick lookin. I looked a bit closer and it appears I only have 1 of these on the LR. I will get some pics up soon... not sure how well they will turn out though.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

here is a pic.. its just up and to the right of the center of the picture


Here is my setup... anyone have some suggestions on how to arrange the LR better or does it look ok the way it is?

[intarsiabox]

It looks like aitasia, best to get rid of it now before you end up with tons of them. Squirt a kalk paste solution on it with a syringe and it will suck it in and disappear. You have nice looking set up! The foam filters you have in your bubble plates may not be a great idea unless you plan on cleaning them out every few days after you start stocking your tank. Organic material will build up in them and start to rot causing nitrate problems. The plates themselves should be enough to get rid of the bubbles without the foam.

[CGY_Betta_Guy]

Thanks for the ID... someone else also confirms that these are indeed the pest anemone. I will need to figure out a way to get rid of this guy... its suggested that peppermint shrimp can help with eating them?

Good to know about the filter foam. I was just under the assumption that its a good idea to have the foam there to help in mechanical filtration like it is in a fresh water tank. Guessing removal of the dish scrubbies is also a good idea for the same reason. Is a skimmer the primary way of eliminating organics from the water?

[Lampshade]

I just inject mine with lime juice out of the firidge. They never come back, they'll spread plague like if you have high nutriants in your tank. I use a needle i had for acrylic glueing, but any syringe would work, i inject lime juice into the mouth, untill they balloon up. I've noticed that if i stab them multiple times and inject it does not work, since the lime juice just spreads out.

[intarsiabox]

Originally Posted by CGY_Betta_Guy

Thanks for the ID... someone else also confirms that these are indeed the pest anemone. I will need to figure out a way to get rid of this guy... its suggested that peppermint shrimp can help with eating them?

Good to know about the filter foam. I was just under the assumption that its a good idea to have the foam there to help in mechanical filtration like it is in a fresh water tank. Guessing removal of the dish scrubbies is also a good idea for the same reason. Is a skimmer the primary way of eliminating organics from the water?

A skimmer is the most common way but with regular water changes it's possible to not even require a skimmer. The bacteria on the live rock will also help to break down organics in the water. There is nothing wrong with filter foam just be aware that it needs to be cleaned very often.

Peppermint shrimp worked for me along with manual kalk paste treatments to get rid of aiptasia. I had some in a tank years ago and haven't seen any since. The shrimp will eat the small ones and you will need to deal with the larger ones manually. After they are gone the shrimp will eat anything you put in the tank, they are very greedy and will even try to clean your hands if you put them in the tank.