rescuing a tank. please help!

[kien]

The sand burrower (orange with spots) looks like its probably a Twin Spot wrasse (Coris aygula).

[asylumdown]

yah that wrasse is sweet! I didn't see that third pic before I posted. It's beautiful.

[asylumdown]

Originally Posted by kien

The sand burrower (orange with spots) looks like its probably a Twin Spot wrasse (Coris aygula).

+1, looks like it's exactly half way between juvenile and adult coloration. They get huge, and as adults they will demolish most motile invertebrates. From the pics it doesn't look like this tank is nearly big enough for that fish long term, in the wild they grow up to 2 feet.

[copenhagen_cowboy@live.co]

I have a 36 gallon tank that i have a few corals and fish with my live rock. I plan to figure out if the new fish will be compatible with my 36 fish and tank. move the corals over to the 36 tank if the plugs they are on are small enough and i can take care of the algae so it dosnt spead in my 36 tank. i would like to conquer the algae and save the liverock in the new tank. what ever fish need to stay in the new tank will but i want to get it healthy and looking good again.

the new tank comes with everything: skimmer, power heads, filter, heater, light ect.

[asylumdown]

Well if that is a twin spot coris wrasse (and I'm pretty sure Kien was right), a 36 isn't going to be the place for it. You'll want to sell it to someone who has a very large, likely FOWLR tank. Some people might say that a leopard wrasse (if that is what that is) is too big for a 36 as well, but you might be able to get away with it. The clowns will probably do fine in a 36 gallon tank, but if they're a mated pair, prepare for them to be extremely mean. I had a pair of cinnamon clowns in a 90 gallon tank once and as soon as they started spawning they 'claimed' 2 out of the 4 feet of length of the tank. They were ruthless and vicious, nothing, including my hand or my glass scraper was allowed within 24 inches of them. The female drew blood at least once every couple of weeks, and led to the carpet surfing of hundred and hundreds of dollars in wrasses. Tomatoes, cinnamons, and maroon clowns are notorious for that kind of behaviour.


And I personally wouldn't bother with that rock if I didn't have to. I'd let it dry out completely (like COMPLETELY), then I'd cook it in a dark tub for a few months, or I'd either bleach it or do the muriatic acid treatment to speed it up and get it back in to shape for eventually re-cycling it as problem free rock again.

[copenhagen_cowboy@live.co]

if I put a small piece of live rock in a hang on the back refugium will that algae spread into my main tank? and what can i do about pulling the corals out of the new tank and putting them in my 36 because i am not sure yet if they are on plugs or on big pieces of live rock. either way what do i need to do to getrid of the algae before adding them to my36

[asylumdown]

It depends on what kind of algae it is, and what sort of conditions are in your tank. Algae won't grow without available nutrients, but it's really hard to tell what your available nutrients are some times. Does other kinds of algae grow in your tank? As a general rule if other species of algae are actively growing (even if your phos and nitrate tests show low or undetectable levels), then there's enough available for all algae to grow. If your rocks stay generally bare even without snails/herbivores, then you likely will have a hard time getting any kind of algae to grow.

However, regardless of your nutrient dynamic, you can't have a problem algae unless you introduce a problem algae. Just like you can't have a problem with aiptasia unless you introduce aiptasia, and you can't have a problem with majanos unless you introduce majanos. If the species that are on that rock are alien to your established tank, who knows what they'll do. And if your refugium's water is connected to your main system's water, they certainly won't be polite and stay put. Most aquatic algae releases gametes and spores directly in to the water column.

Obviously it's up to you, but what benefit do you hope to get from that rock that you couldn't get with a little patience without all the potential problems?