400 gallon project

[christyf5]

That diaper thing cracked me up. I'll have to get some of those and scare the crap out of my boyfriend one day :rofl:

[Delphinus]

:lol:

I keep forgetting this is an acylic tank. Good diligent rules for the cleaning; Probably wouldn't hurt to be that particular about a glass tank as well. Scratches can sure be disappointing.

[untamed]

Having two tanks continues to wear me down. It's too much for me to maintain both tanks. Yesterday, I moved the clam, green carpet anemone and the Maroon clownfish into the new tank. All seem to have settled in well.

I was lucky that the clownfish is so territorial about his anemone because it made it possible to catch him in the old tank. He refused to leave that anemone, so I simply placed the net over top...It only took him about 2 minutes in the new tank to locate his old anemone and move in.

Moving the anemone was a sticky experience. I wish I had taken a photo of my hand because it was covered with bright green bits. You just can't handle those carpet anemones without them latching on to you.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/100_0285.jpg

The only thing remaining in the old tank now are some SPS that need to be cleaned of red bugs, and the live rock which needs to be cleaned of red flatworms. It is still sad to be shutting the old tank down after 15 years, even though I've now got my dream tank running.

[untamed]

Bad news when I got home today.

This picture says all that need be said...Ciranolid..
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0287.jpg

Oh man..if this thing reproduces I could lose every fish. This is most seriously bad news.

This looks like a job for CIRANOLID HUNTER...oh where are you caped crustacean crusader???!!!.... Expert says the following, let's hope it works.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/bp/index.php

[tang daddy]

Man I really feel for you after reading that post those things are scary most likely lot of peops have them but just dont know as they're nocturnal hope you can catch all of them btw that picture was taken when you got home so the lights were on I thought they came out only at night?

[untamed]

Man I really feel for you after reading that post those things are scary most likely lot of peops have them but just dont know as they're nocturnal hope you can catch all of them btw that picture was taken when you got home so the lights were on I thought they came out only at night?

Yes, I think they are generally noctural. I suppose I was lucky to have seen it during the daylight hours. It remained attached for at least 8 or 9 hours and has detached sometime in the middle of last night.

A close look at the yellow tang suggests that it may not have been the first time he's been attacked. He has a small scar near the area where this ciranolid was attached. It will be interesting to see if he now has two small scars...

Trap goes in tonight.

[Delphinus]

Yowzers. :( Good luck!!!

[christyf5]

What a nightmare! :neutral: I hope you get them all!

[danny zubot]

What kind of trap catches those guys?

[tang daddy]

What kind of trap catches those guys?

Danny a few traps are used to catch these buggers the most effective that was mentioned that is for the smaller ones was a turkey baster with thawed food water for the larger ones a net and the same technique water from thawed food the scent supposedly attracts them 30 seconds after the lights are out there is also one more technique called fish trap inverted bottle with hole drilled in cap all of this can be found on the link posted under the yellow tang pic.

[Joe Reefer]

ekk :eek: , good luck trying to catch those little blood suckers!

[04scoobysti]

I had one of these little buggers show up about a month ago, a week or so after i added some live rock. It attached itself to the side of my clown in the exact same spot as on your tang. Luckly my clown is very easy to catch, practily swims right in the net, and i was able to pull that little bugger off. I haven't seen anymore since the inital incident, nor have i tried to trap them. My fish (clown and green chromis) seem no worse for the wear, so im going continue to cross my fingers that it was only one that hitched a ride in on that live rock. I hope the traping/turkey baster method cofirms for you that it was the only one so you can concentrate on other, more fun matters with your tank. Best of luck!

[Snappy]

Your tank is really coming along. Lookin' awesome Dude!!!

[untamed]

I fired the opening salvo in my attack on ciranolids tonight.

I made a small trap from a 300ml water bottle. I'll post a photo some other time because I've been staring into a dark tank for hours and I'm tired.

I dropped the trap in just as the lights went off for the evening. The trap was baited with some pieces of krill. I sat in the dark trying to see into the tank and waited....Right on schedule, (about 1/2 hr later) I could see a ciranolid doing circles around my trap. I watched the circling for about 5 minutes and decided to lay the trap on it's side, rather than standing straight up. The ciranolid didn't like to swim too far away from the sand bed.

30 seconds after doing that, I had him! My first capture!

I watched him to ensure he wasn't trying to escape the trap. No..he just settled in for a meal. So I waited another 45 minutes to see if I could get another one. Nothing...

So, I decided I would ensure 1 kill for the evening and pulled up the trap to extract my prize. Upon inspection, it turns out that I had trapped approximately 25 ciranolids, mostly less than 1/2mm in size...plus one 5mm monster.

Have you ever crunched one of those large, black carpenter ants with your fingernail...? Same kind of noise. Very satisfying.

A quick reset and the trap went back in for the night. We'll see how we've done by morning.

Tomorrow, there will be 3 or more traps. I'm now confident that this war can be won!

[tang daddy]

Untamed that's excellent news maybe you can start a collection in a container of fw in the fridge so that they freeze to death:lol: then maybe later as a sovieneer!

[untamed]

By morning, not a single one in the trap.

That could mean that if they are given enough time they can escape the trap...but I think it more likely means that they are active only for a few hours after nightfall.

[tang daddy]

By morning, not a single one in the trap.

That could mean that if they are given enough time they can escape the trap...but I think it more likely means that they are active only for a few hours after nightfall.

Did you use the drilled cap technique? maybe the opening was too large so they made an easy getaway...

[untamed]

Here's what my ciranolid trap looks like. (Excuse the focus, this photo was taken in complete darkness) Using three of these, I caught exactly NONE last evening. Yes, the entrance is a 1/8" hole in the cap. I'll try again tonight. The trap is unchanged from the one that caught 25 the night before. Hmm...as always, patience is the key. The yellow tang has been "latched onto" twice more since the original photo. In both cases, the ciranolid was much smaller than the first one. I guess they must like the colour yellow. So far, the tang is showing no ill effects from his nightly blood donations.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/100_0290.jpg

(in case you are wondering, the film canister is in there for weight to keep the trap from floating around. It is filled with stainless steel nuts)

And just to show that the tank hasn't been devestated by ciranolids, here's a side view update. I think this is the first posted photo since I got the orange tree sponges mounted.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/100_0293.jpg

[fishmaster]

Is all the bait gone by morning? If so, maybe they are finding their way out once the food is gone. Maybe try cheching the traps right away like the first time. Just a thought.

[tang daddy]

Yes patience is definately on your side btw the sponges look great really liven up the tank also ads depth to the whole look!

[untamed]

Is all the bait gone by morning? If so, maybe they are finding their way out once the food is gone. Maybe try cheching the traps right away like the first time. Just a thought.

The bait is much too large to be eaten completely...or the ciranolids are much too small to eat a noticeable amount.

I caught two more this evening within 1 hour of lights out.

I'll test leaving the trap in overnight again but this time I'll first verify that I've caught at least one, then leave the trap in place with the captured ciranolid still inside. If there is at least one still in the trap by morning, then I would conclude that they aren't getting out.

[Paverdude]

Did you purchase "THE PACKAGE" from Tampa Bay live rock, and were the sponges part of this package? thanks

Amazing tank man, need a new full tank shot to use as a desktop pic :)

[untamed]

Did you purchase "THE PACKAGE" from Tampa Bay live rock, and were the sponges part of this package? thanks

Amazing tank man, need a new full tank shot to use as a desktop pic :)

Yes...first I loaded with a bunch of base rock. I let that cycle, then ordered the package. While not listed specifically, Richard often throws in the sponges as part of the package.

My sponges are suffering, and I've yet to find anyone anywhere who has been able to keep them alive over a long term.

[untamed]

The ciranolid traps continue to work quite well. The traps perfectly capture ONLY ciranolids and nothing else. Just about every manner of other critter tries to get in there and take the bait, but only ciranolids get in through the small hole in the lid.

I've learned that the traps are equally or more effective if I simply leave them in place all night. On a good night, I trap 8 or so. Last night, I didn't catch any.

Haven't seen one actually on a fish in over a week now.

[justinl]

sounds like the hunt is near its end! that certainly is good news. good luck on taking out (literally) the last of the pesky parasites.

[untamed]

Ciranolid hunting is sort of "hit and miss". One night I'll get a few, the next I'll get none. I'm no longer concerned about the population getting out of control anyway.

Here's last night's capture. This is the largest one I've seen so far. This was the only one caught last night, but I'm glad to have him out of there!

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0297.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0297b.jpg

[Jason McK]

Looks like he is sitting up begging for it life

[untamed]

Went to the store to purchase some tubing...came back with another fish. (you know how it goes...)

Yet another tang. This one is an Achilles Tang. As soon as he arrived, the Yellow Tang attacked. It is funny because I would have said that the yellow tang was the bottom of the tank pecking order until now. Also, while the yellow tang and Naso Tang are best buddies, the Yellow Tang clearly dislikes the Achillies Tang.

Within a few moments, the Achilles had its tail fin sliced completely in half. The tank is now having an extended "nightime". The Achilles does not seem to have his tail blades, so he can't really even mount a defence. You may be able to see the sliced tail in this photo.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0299.jpg

[christyf5]

Looks like he is sitting up begging for it life

:rofl: thats what i was thinking :wink:


Gorgeous achilles :cool: How big is it?

Its funny how the heirachy works in tanks. I've just recently discovered that my scopas tang can be a mean bugger when he wants to. Which is weird as he's never shown any aggression before to any newcomers.

Fish are strange critters :biggrin:

[untamed]

Looks like he is sitting up begging for it life

He may have been..but it didn't work.

The Achilles is large. Maybe 6"? He's bigger than the Naso and the Yellow, but about the same size as the Trigger.

[Snappy]

Glad to see your catching those pesky little things.

[untamed]

Oh yes...it was also interesting to watch the Yellow Tang use his tail blades. I always wondered how the fish would actually use them to attack/defend.

[michika]

Beautiful addition!

[Paverdude]

Time for a new full tank shot!!!!

[untamed]

I don't think the tank has changed too much...but here's a unique view. This is what you get with a panarama close up with a wide angle lens.

You can see, I'm in the cyano stage....

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/101_0140.jpg

[Delphinus]

Yay cyano! Fun fun. But, if it's any consolation, the tank is looking good anyhow. I love the "gorg tank" look (I realize some of them are actually sponges). Actually about the sponges - are they feeding on phyto or zooplankton or anything like that?

[untamed]

Yay cyano! Fun fun. But, if it's any consolation, the tank is looking good anyhow. I love the "gorg tank" look (I realize some of them are actually sponges). Actually about the sponges - are they feeding on phyto or zooplankton or anything like that?

I had not intended to create a gorg-tank, but that is the way it ended up with the LR that I got. It's a really nice benefit to have some very large coral in there while the SPS grow up.

I feed phytoplankton every day. I'm not currently feeding zooplankton, but I do intend to. I'm pretty sure that the sponges would be feeding on nothing larger than phyto, but I've not been able to find any research that confirms that this is what the sponges actually consume. It could be bacteria.

The branching orange sponges seem to be doing OK. However, the tall red sponges are dying fast. The yellow ball sponges can't seem to fend off algae...and I have two types of other red and orange sponges sheltered in the rocks that seem to be doing fine. So if one type of sponge might be getting what it needs, some other types are clearly not.

[untamed]

Yes, it has been pretty warm the last few days. The graph below shows how the high temperatures have affected the tank temperature over the past few days. No..we don't have air conditioning in the house.

You can see that it is hitting a bit above 81.5 F. That's only 2 degrees warmer than the operating goal of 79 F. The daily cycle is about 1 degree increase every 3 hours as soon as the halides come on.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0650.jpg

[Skimmerking]

Time for a Air cond

[Red_Six]

Nice tank.

I have the package as well. I had one red sponge that dissolved away in about 4 months. After doing some research I came across this article by Randy Holmes.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2003/feature.htm

In it he says, "Sponges are the second largest consumer of dissolved silica in the ocean." I would be interested in seeing if the addition of silica to your tank lets them survive.

[untamed]

Thanks, Red Six....I watched your tank build for a long time during my planning stages.

It is interesting that Holmes-Farley wasn't able to keep his particular sponge alive for long regardless of his attempts with Silica. Nevertheless, if HF recommends Silica additions, that's enough recommendation for me!

[untamed]

Even I have a limit as to how large I let a crab get before he makes me uncomfortable. I never saw this crab kill anything that caused me concern. (just some hermit crabs, which was quite entertaining...), but he reached a size that began to worry me. I'm sure that at some point he was going to graduate to larger prey.

So...he's moved into the sump. I hope he will be OK there. Certainly food travels into the sump all the time.

Capture was pretty easy. I small piece of shrimp in a tall glass just as the lights went out. (He was obviously hungry, because he slid in in less than a few minutes)

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0090.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0091.jpg

[Corbin]

creepy, great pictures!

[justinl]

tee hee, what a lil cutie pie:wink:

in case you're interested, from the secnd pic i can tell you it's a boy.

[skylord]

Wow......having followed this thread from the beginning I was privileged to see this system up close. Nothing is left to chance with this system. The tank room is very organized and the rock work and bar look a lot better in person than the pictures here. My wife found it facinating (well...not the tank room. She could care less about the hardware). She was amazed at the diversity of this display. She could have sat there for hours.....on wait...she did. lol

Thanks Brad...and thank your wife for allowing us to visit.

Scott

[untamed]

I've proven that if you dose silica, you can grow diatoms. This did make the tangs happy as they are back to grazing the rocks again. Unfortunately, growth of diatoms hasn't caused the cyano to slow any....I just got both.

So I'm temporarily suspending the silica experiment until I can get the cyano under control.

[Red_Six]

Do you use any phosphate control like phosban?

[untamed]

Do you use any phosphate control like phosban?

Yes, I'm running two Phosban reactors in line...one has AC, the other has phosguard media.

In observing my previous tank, I saw no reaction either way to using the AC/phosguard or not. Right now, because I have cyano, I'm running it...but I'm not really sure that it is making any difference to anything.

[untamed]

Some weeks ago, I introduced a smaller maroon clown fish in the hopes that it would pair up with the older maroon that I've had for years. When I first introduced the new one, the original clownfish attacked it mercilessly. I'm quite sure it would have killed it if I had not rescued it.

I placed the new clown in a small cage on the bottom of the tank for another day or so. That seems to have given the other clown time to get used to the idea of having a friend.

Over the course of the next few weeks, the original clown became increasingly friendly, leading to this....they've moved in together and now seem quite happy.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0111.jpg

[untamed]

Zues here got his first taste of human blood when he bit my friend Tim who was watching over the tank for me while I was away. He's nipped me a few times...I guess I don't bleed as easily as Tim!

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0113.jpg

Don't ask me what that white line is...it's not a scratch. This fish really moves so you have to pan in order to get a shot of him. The panning has caused some small white object to look that way.

[untamed]

Here's a nice hitch-hiker. When I first saw this guy, he was about the size of a dime. He's already 2". I think I would like to get a few more of these guys somehow.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0108.jpg

[justinl]

sweet, a gorgeous bluethroat that is bloodthirsty to boot! what more could one want from a fish?

man i wish i got cool hitchhikers like that... and i was happy with pods...

[untamed]

I guess that one of the benefits of hosting a fish party is that sometimes people bring things that they really don't want to take home again. Such was the case for this frisky bicolour angel. He seems quite happy in his new home, but man...is he ever difficult to photograph. He doesn't slow down..ever.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0123.jpg

Then, Daniel (yvr75) was selling his Leopard Wrasse, so I drove into Vancouver and picked up this guy. He has also settled in nicely and the other fish pay no attention to him at all. My sand is quite heavy so when he buries at night he hardly kicks up anything at all.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0128.jpg

Finally, just to show that I am capable of taking a decent photo when the fish gives me a chance....here's one of Zues showing the technique he employs to get the entire tip of your finger in his mouth!
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0131.jpg

[michika]

Everything looks like its coming along really well!

Nice photos too!

[Skimmerking]

Tank is looking great man how about a full shot of the tank and oh ya get your misses to get in the tank now with the trigger:lol: :lol: :lol:

[untamed]

Tank is looking great man how about a full shot of the tank and oh ya get your misses to get in the tank now with the trigger:lol: :lol: :lol:

Not a chance...He's a killer. He got me the other day at the party.

The tank does seem to be heading in a good direction. I was seriously concerned there for quite a while. Cyano was bad and it wasn't getting better. I spent a long time trying to figure out what new skimmer I was going to get...then...it just went away.

I'll probably get a new skimmer anyway, because it is fun to do. I've also decided that I need one that self cleans. I have to clean that skimmer 2 or 3 times per week at a minimum. It's not hard, but anything you have to do that often gets tedious.

[untamed]

The fish list:

Male Blue Throat Trigger
Yellow Tang
Blonde Naso Tang
Achilles Tang
Gold stripe Maroon Clown pair (they're working it out...)
Mystery fat hitchiker goby with the B&W striped tail
Potters Leopard wrasse
Bicolor Angel

9 fish. Well....more than I've ever had before. Let's see...estimated $ spent on habitat to support...divided by 9 fish...that's...man, these must be valuable fish!

[Mik_101]

I see your tank is coming along nicley. Seeing your start to stock on sps. BTW thats is a beautiful trigger. GRATE JOB ON THE TANK UNTAMED.:mrgreen:

[Mik_101]

Can we get a full tank shot pleas.:biggrin:

[untamed]

OK..OK...by popular demand...here is a full tank shot. I thought I would do one better and attempt a video instead of a still photo. Here goes...

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/th_4f91a072.jpg (http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/?action=view&current=4f91a072.flv)

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Wicked!

[Mik_101]

Grate video loved it.

[untamed]

I've been meaning to document this for a while now. It is my observation that hermit crabs have their favourite resting places in the tank. Each night, they roam around, then return the favoured spot for the day.

Unfortunately for this particular coral, about 30+ hermits spend their days in it. This coral used to have a resident acro-crab, but he didn't survive the transfer to the new tank (or something got him). The acro-crab was quite good at fending off any hermit that attempted to get near his coral. The hermits are having a long term effect on the coral growth pattern of the coral as the areas they sit on don't get any light.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0133.jpg

[danny zubot]

I think you might be able to solve that problem by either fraging that acro and placing the frags in different areas. Or adding several more acros to try and spread out the hermit territory. I like option 2 personally. :biggrin:

Is that a prostrata?

[untamed]

Is that a prostrata?

I don't know what it is. I'm not so much into coral IDs. I continue to add more coral frags all the time, but few of them are large enough to tempt the hermits to move out. It is also my observation that the hermits like to huddle in collections. (Maybe they like to swap accommodations!)

I'm not worried about it. The coral will just have to deal with it's residents.

[mseepman]

Untamed,

I only recently found Canreef so I've just joined the "watch" on your project but I have to say, what an amazing job! I've read the whole thread and you've given me tons of ideas on how I want to do a new 280 gallon tank that I'm looking to put together.
Thanks for going into all the detail that you did as I know I'm going to use a few of your tricks.
Excellent Tank!!!

[untamed]

Untamed,

I only recently found Canreef so I've just joined the "watch" on your project but I have to say, what an amazing job! I've read the whole thread and you've given me tons of ideas on how I want to do a new 280 gallon tank that I'm looking to put together.
Thanks for going into all the detail that you did as I know I'm going to use a few of your tricks.
Excellent Tank!!!

That's the entire idea. I owe a lot of my plan to others who posted their builds on reefcentral etc.

[untamed]

This is old-hat stuff for you fish people...but to a lot of people who follow this story, they won't have seen this before!

Here's a quick video showing the leopard wrasse going to bed for the night. Every evening, about 10 minutes after the halide lights go off, he finds a place to sleep and dives in. You don't see him again until about noon the next day.

Sorry for the blue colour of the video...the flourescent lights are on in the evening and I can't do white-balance when I'm shooting video.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/th_100_0306.jpg (http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/?action=view&current=100_0306.flv)

[Jason McK]

Great Vid Brad. I never see mine go to bed so it was cool you were able to catch it.

J

[untamed]

I just recently added an additional pH probe to begin monitoring my tank pH. Here's a shot of the daily cycle that the tank is currently experiencing.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0141.jpg

My immediate thought is that this is a pretty high pH to be reaching (8.8)!! I have only just recalibrated the sensor, so I'm pretty sure this is accurate. I'm going to ask for pH advice on the other forum...

Now that I'm monitoring the pH, the plan is to add a Kalk reactor and run the Ca reator and Kalk reactor on opposite cycles to try to minimize the pH swing.

[Delphinus]

Wow, that does seem high. IMO though, in and of itself, the number shouldn't cause you concern if the livestock appears otherwise healthy and happy and whatnot. Ie. I think people tend to focus too much on things like "Oh no! My tank's pH is 8.1 and everyone else is at 8.4, I should add some pH up or something" - which is folly because the pH itself is only a summation of other variables at play. And of course, if the tank is doing fine at 8.1 then one shouldn't worry about it not being 8.4.

But, I have to say I'm a bit surprised to see those numbers if you're running a calcium reactor. I thought running a reactor tended to pull the #'s downwards. For example, on any tank I run, typically I see pH swings around something like 8.1 to 8.5 without a reactor on a tank, and about 7.8 to 8.2 when there is a reactor on the tank.

Sooo anyhow I have no idea what to make of your #'s, that is interesting indeed, although like I said if your livestock is otherwise doing fine I wouldn't sweat it too much.

Maybe because your tank volume is so large it has an easier time shedding any excess CO2 from the reactor?

[untamed]

No fancy photos in this update...

I was able to download a free version of "LogMeIn" and install it on the aquarium computer. Combined with my new home wifi network, this has now enabled me to access the Aquatronica remotely over the internet. I have full control over all aspects of the controller just as if I was standing there.

While I probably won't do much controlling remotely, it can certainly give me piece of mind to see the tank temp and pH are OK.

Now I'm really keen to get a webcam installed.

[Zylumn]

"Now I'm really keen to get a webcam installed."

Not as keen as I am

[justinl]

coooool, man i would love to have the peace of mind to be able to control my tank remotely. and best of all it was free! now that's not something you see often in this hobby.


Not as keen as I am

lol, agreed! if you get a webcam on this tank, would you post the live feed to the public (ie. us schmucks)? it would save you from being pesterd all teh time for a new fts... speaking of which, fts!

[spoot]

Oh, that would be a great idea, then we can bask in the glow of your tank :D

[untamed]

Oh, that would be a great idea, then we can bask in the glow of your tank :D

I've got my head around adding a webcam...but it would be only visible to me. Right now, making the camera visible to everyone is beyond my understanding. I'll try.

[mseepman]

Bump
Haven't seen much on the new tank lately. How are things progressing?

[untamed]

Woke up this morning to find the Leopard wrasse in serious trouble. On his side, breathing heavily. He only lasted about 2 hours before he died.

One of those things, I suppose. All the other fish seem quite healthy and happy. He was completely fine when the lights went off the night before.

He is the first fish to die in the new tank...and it wasn't the one that I expected. I have a Pacific Blue Tang that came in a couple of days ago as a gift. He looks terrible and hasn't eaten since his arrival. I've done everything I can, but I'm positive that he isn't going to make it.

The Pacific Blue is the 2nd fish to arrive in the tank looking like skin covering bones. Both came from the best shop in town, but there really should be a "If you think you can save it...discount". The other skinny fish is going to survive and once she fills out a bit, I'll announce her on this site with her own photo.

[Tom R]

Hi Brad

It is amazing just how fragile the life forms from the worlds oceans are. They do not give you much of a chance to save their lives. They are here today gone tomorrow. A coral can RTN from top to bottom in 12 hours while the coral next to it is as happy as the days it stood in waters of Fiji.

Tom R

[untamed]

Today, I lost my 2nd fish. It was the small goby that hitchiked in with the live rock. He was always an extremely fat, healthy fish. Today, he just didn't report for dinner.

No body has been found yet, and likely never will.

I never did get a good picture of him. It seemed like there was always tomorrow...sigh.

[Mik_101]

Today, I lost my 2nd fish. It was the small goby that hitchiked in with the live rock. He was always an extremely fat, healthy fish. Today, he just didn't report for dinner.

No body has been found yet, and likely never will.

I never did get a good picture of him. It seemed like there was always tomorrow...sigh.

Same thing with my fire goby(except he wasn't a hitchhiker) no body, didn't come to eat, not out side the tank nor in the sump. Mind you gobies can go missing for months on end and then eventually come out.

[untamed]

Time to introduce the world to another fish. I've actually had her for about a month, but she was in such poor shape when I purchased her that I wasn't sure she would make it. Fortunately, she was interested in food. I had to hand feed her for the first week that she spent mostly laying on the bottom of the tank.

This is the wife of Zues...so naturally her name is Hera.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/100_0346.jpg

She is a bit smaller than Zues. So far, he has paid little attention to her.

You know...the fish shop should sell fish at a deep discount once they hit a certain stage. A sort of "if you can save it" special price. I'm quite pleased that I saved this one.

You can still see that she is a bit thin looking (you can see how sculpted out she looks on her back and cheeks). But she is getting at least 1/2 of all the food that goes in the tank now, so I'm sure she'll fill in. Between the two triggers, feeding time is becoming a bit like a shark feeding frenzy....you don't go putting your fingers in there .

[untamed]

This isn't the first reef I've ever run, but it is proving to be different than my previous effort.

When I planned this, I attempted to just do everything as I had always done...just bigger. This has now proven not to work. The reason - bigger fish. In particular...Tangs.

My previous tank was much too small to house any Tangs. I grew lovely macro algae and harvested it as necessary to maintain balance. I like the look of macro algae in the display and figured I would do the same thing in the larger tank.

Moe (the Naso Tang) ate all the macro algae.

One of the golden rules of aquarium keeping is "Algae will grow". It's either nice algae that you like or nasty algae that you don't like. Since all the nice algae was being eaten, the hair algae took over.

Attempting to keep control of hair algae by weeding it from a 400 gallon tank is well...impossible.

[untamed]

How to rid the tank of hair algae?

The first thing is to eliminate Phosphates from the system. Twin phosban reactors have been running for a month now. I can't yet measure phosphate accurately enough to know if they are working or not, but the theory is solid.

Grow algae somewhere else. I have now added a refugium to the system. The idea here is to run the light over the refugium nearly 24 hours/day so that this algae uses up the available nutrients first. Because this algae is in one spot, it is easy to harvest as it grows. (all this explanation is because I have non-aquarists who enjoy following my tank saga)
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/100_0343.jpg

Finally, you have to go on the attack to eliminate the hair algae from the main tank. To that end, I have added two sea hares and some more urchins. The sea hares are very effective at mowing hair algae. (photo to follow) Should the sea hares ever successfully eat all the algae, I'll return them to the fish shop so that they can help someone else out.

[untamed]

This is what a sea hare looks like. It took a while before he got himself into a photographable position. There are two of them in the tank. The really surprising thing is how difficult they are to find when they aren't actively eating. They seem to have a real talent for hiding. This is the larger of the two.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0354.jpg

[untamed]

I took a few shots today because I realized that my coral was growing, yet I had no photos to refer to. For no reason, here you go.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0362.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/100_0364.jpg

[michika]

Nice shots!

I hope the seahare works out for you. Are you seeing a lot of cleaning action from your urchins?

[untamed]

Nice shots!

I hope the seahare works out for you. Are you seeing a lot of cleaning action from your urchins?

Two seahares...and so far I'm impressed by the job they are doing. While I like the urchins, I would not say that they are very effective at eating hair algae. I think the urchins prefer coraline algae.

[michika]

Wow, that is exactly the opposite of my tank. I have a seahare and it barely makes a dent in my GHA, while my urchin on the other hand goes to town.

I always look forwards to your tank updates!

[justinl]

hey brad, i was thinking today about sea spiders and i remembered that you had one (the only one i know of in a tank). just curious as to whether it's still around or not. is the gorg it was feeding on still okay?

[untamed]

The sea spider began to fly around the tank. It seemed to be doing this on purpose as it would deliberately let go of a particular perch....fly around...then fold it's legs and drop to another perch.

It did this continuously for about a week before disappearing. I haven't seen it in months and I assume it is gone.

The Live Rock supplier supports the observation that he sees the spiders on his dives in the spring, then they are gone. I may have witnessed the method by which they leave the area.

The coral it lived on has had some die back as it fought hair algae. It's still alive and I hope it will return to it's former glory someday.

[untamed]

Here's how things are looking today. It is difficult to get a good overall tank view.

Front view
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0150.jpg

Side View
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0152.jpg

[untamed]

Here are some shots of three interesting anemones that were hitchikers on the LR. Each is about 6" in diametre.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0157.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0155.jpg

In this last shot you can see just a bit of my green carpet anemone, which is now about 18" diametre. It has grown remarkably since moving into the new tank. I think it gets a LOT more food than it used to.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0153.jpg

[Joe Reefer]

Crazy!!! I love how its coming along. Can we see a couple shots of the fish room too Please?

[vancityfella]

nice job i pipefit golf courses for a living and i think you beat me. looking forward to seeing the finished product. Kris

[untamed]

nice job i pipefit golf courses for a living and i think you beat me. looking forward to seeing the finished product. Kris

You could be looking for a long time....

[untamed]

OK world...here is the tank. If the hosting service for this webcam has a limit as to how many people can be simultaneously viewing...I suppose they will tell me about it!

Current operating hours 12:30PM - 10:30PM PST.

When you first connect, you'll need to load a Panasonic plugin for Internet Explorer. Go to the tab called "single". No need to login.

http://brads-aquarium.viewnetcam.com:50000

[michika]

The world says hi back! :D

[Delphinus]

Man, watching that tank, I wish I could have done the same kind of tank depth. I went 30" depth on a 6' tank, now I wish I could have done 6'x6'. Thanks a lot for making a 280g look like a chump tank! :p

[Joe Reefer]

I think your trigger has lost his mind!!

[CLINT]

Well Id like to say that the webcam has nothing on looking at it in person.That tank is huge and with any luck and a lot of begging Im gonna have 1.LOL.Thanks for showing it off and I will get some pics up of your hex when my brother gets some more life in there.Clint

[untamed]

I think your trigger has lost his mind!!

Yes...possibly. He seems a bit obsessed by the front of the tank. For a while, he was obsessed with the back...He also seems not to appreciate his female partner too much. He's taken a few bites out of her fins.

I certainly wouldn't call them a happy couple yet.

Possibly when his interest turns to love, he might be less interested in trying to wear away the front of the tank!

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Hmm. I can never seem to see the video!

[mseepman]

Brad, very cool camera. And you looked like you were doing a good job cleaning the tank too.

Kinda creepy that I could watch you doing that...lol.

[Zylumn]

That is so cool.

[untamed]

Brad, very cool camera. And you looked like you were doing a good job cleaning the tank too.

Kinda creepy that I could watch you doing that...lol.

Hmmm...no creepy is you describing it! (ha..ha..) I feel like I'm starring in the Truman Show.

[mseepman]

Haha....very funny. lol

Nice tank and a very cool setup on the camera. Does the software come with the camera for web-broadcasting?

[untamed]

Yes, it is an all-inclusive product from Panasonic. I got it at London Drugs. All you need is a home wireless network. They provide all the website hosting and functions that you see on the webpage.

If one had the skills and time, you could also build your own web page with the camera image as part of it. Maybe someday...

[untamed]

Tune in often for updated camera angles!

[Delphinus]

LOL, this is fun. Can you see the camera move if someone clicks on the directional buttons? I like how you can get into arguments with some unseen person over what to look at. "I'm moving the camera here!" "No! I'm watching something over .. HERE!" "No you're not! We're looking THIS WAY now!" :lol:

[untamed]

LOL, this is fun. Can you see the camera move if someone clicks on the directional buttons? I like how you can get into arguments with some unseen person over what to look at. "I'm moving the camera here!" "No! I'm watching something over .. HERE!" "No you're not! We're looking THIS WAY now!" :lol:

Yes, I can see the camera looking around. Sometimes when I've got my arm in there doing something, I can tell that someone has aimed the camera my way.

[saltynuts]

i think that would be creepy. some one else watching the house.
happy halloween.



i am watching you!
he he he he he he he he he he he !

[Joe Reefer]

I kinda felt creepy watching you clean your tank.

[untamed]

It's funny..it creeps out the people watching more than me.

[untamed]

I've been running this Kalk reactor for a few weeks now. I modified it by adding two ball valves, which enables me to service that pump without draining the whole thing first.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/000_0186.jpg

The pump that is attached to the Kalk reactor is programmed to mix the Kalk for 7 seconds every 2nd day.

Like my Ca Reactor, the Kalk reactor is controlled by the Aquatronica and an Omega peristaltic pump. This pump is smaller than the Ca Reactor pump, because I knew that I can never drive this pump MORE than my evaporation rate. Evaporation will continue to be replaced by the sump float switch and is completely independent of the Kalk reactor.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/000_0187.jpg

I'm bringing the Kalk reactor on-line very slowly. Right now, it runs from 11PM to Noon, but it is only pumping a very small amount of Kalk. As my Ca/Alk demand starts to increase (coral growth), I will increase the amount of Kalk rather than increase the Ca Reactor output. The reason is that I'm trying to use the Kalk to minimize the daily pH swing that the tank goes through.

Each evening, as soon as the lights go out, the tank pH begins to fall. As Kalk has a very high pH, I hope that it will stabilize this fall as I add increase the Kalk output. Here's what the daily pH cycle looks like right now.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/Aquarium%20Construction/000_0188.jpg

[Delphinus]

7 seconds every 2 days? Just curious but did you read anything to suggest that it should be so infrequent or short? I mix mine for 1/2 hour a couple times a day. :eek: What a profound difference. I use a diaphram metering pump set a rate which is slightly less than evaporation (and just use a float valve for the remaining topup). I found my evaporation rate using trial and error. Kept slowly increasing it every couple of days until I noticed the sump volume increase slightly over a 24 hour period and then backed it off to the last setting before that.

[michika]

I run my stirrer runs every 2 hours for 10 minutes! 7 seconds sounds too little. How do you plan to increase it?

[untamed]

I run my stirrer runs every 2 hours for 10 minutes! 7 seconds sounds too little. How do you plan to increase it?

It would be easy to increase the mix time or frequency if I wanted to (via the Aquatronica). 10 minutes every 2 hours seems like way too often to me. As I watched the stir action, 7 seconds was about as long as it took to make milk up to about 2/3 height in the cylinder.

I figure that by keeping it at 7 seconds, a few good things happen:
1) I avoid running Kalk powder through the pump
2) The pump doesn't have time to heat up.
3) The remaining undissolved solids settle to the bottom more quickly, ensuring that I only deliver clear Kalk to the tank.

I figure these will help avoid calcification inside the pump, and possible precipitation at the delivery point in the sump.

The un-answered question is whether the quality of my saturated liquid Kalk diminishes between mixing. I'll watch that. It could be possible that I may need to mix more often as I pump more water through the reactor. Even then, I'll be mixing more often, but not longer each time.

[Myka]

There's 37 pages...where's the link to spy on your tank? :D

[Tom R]

There's 37 pages...where's the link to spy on your tank? :D

Try
http://brads-aquarium.viewnetcam.com:50000/

Tom R

[michika]

I figure that by keeping it at 7 seconds, a few good things happen:
1) I avoid running Kalk powder through the pump
2) The pump doesn't have time to heat up.
3) The remaining undissolved solids settle to the bottom more quickly, ensuring that I only deliver clear Kalk to the tank.

I figure these will help avoid calcification inside the pump, and possible precipitation at the delivery point in the sump.

Sounds like a good basis. Would you post your results? I would love to see if it works out for you, and if if it does I will probably change my settings on my reactor.

[Delphinus]

No kidding! Should be a matter of just testing the pH probably .. if the pH never dips below 11 it's probably just hunky-dory to do it that way.

I've never really noticed calcification inside the pump though on my reactor. But what I do notice is a buildup at the effluent line where it reacts a little with air. Having said that though, I've always felt that the kalk powder is hard on the pump. In my case I just use a MJ600 so I'm not out a lot of capital to replace it every couple of years but still, your reasoning makes me want to rethink my setup a little nonetheless.

7 seconds is awesome. It's hard to find a timer that lets you do less than 1 minute intervals. Chaulk up another advantage to using an aquarium controller...

[michika]

I have a MJ1200, and while I have yet to see any wear on the tank, its an easy, albeit wasteful replacement.

My control will do seconds, but only in 10 second intervals. Still might be worth the change if I can save a pump, and still get the same results.

I also get build up in my top-off line, and sometimes if I stop the top off it takes a bit longer to get the flow going again.

[Myka]

Try
http://brads-aquarium.viewnetcam.com:50000/

Tom R

Thanks! :D Now, time to spy!

Wait a sec...it's not working. Is it turned off sometimes? Do I have to "Login"? All I see is a blue page that says "Panasonic Network Camera", but no screen.

[untamed]

Here are the results of my Kalk reactor testing:

I tested the pH of the fluid in the top of the reactor. For this first reading, it has been almost 48 hours since the last 7 second mix cycle. The entire column is clear liquid except for 1cm of undissolved Kalk on the bottom. pH = 11.59

I then allowed the reactor to mix for 7 seconds. This caused the column to "milk" to a level of about 1/2 way up the reactor. I measured the clear liquid at the top of the column again. pH = 11.63

I then allowed the reactor to mix for about 2 minutes. Interestingly, the column of "milk" only reached a height slightly above the pump intake...maybe 2/3 of the total height of the reactor. It seems that no matter how long you run the pump, the topmost part of the reactor will never get cloudy. Again, I measured the liquid at the top of the column. pH = 11.64

My conclusion is that the pH of the liquid being delivered to the tank has not significantly changed even 48 hours after even a 7 second mix. Nor does it significantly change immediately after mixing for several minutes. This actually has made me consider that even 7 seconds every 2 days is more than adequate.

However, the amount of FW that I am pushing through the reactor per day is still very small. It may be possible that pushing MORE FW through the reactor could dilute the clear Kalk between mixing cycles. As I increase the flow through the reactor, I will repeat the experiment.

[Delphinus]

Thanks! :D Now, time to spy!

Wait a sec...it's not working. Is it turned off sometimes? Do I have to "Login"? All I see is a blue page that says "Panasonic Network Camera", but no screen.

I forget what page it was exactly, but I think untamed did mention somewhere that there were only so many hours where the camera is online. For starters it's probably not online during nighttime. :)


Here are the results of my Kalk reactor testing:


Interesting results. Thanks for checking into it and posting. I think I will be making some adjustments to my kalk reactor setup as a result. I agree that it's possible you may need to adjust the frequency of mixes as the flowrate increases but it certainly seems as if there's no reason to expect to need to increase the mix duration.

The only thing I'm a little uncertain about is when you occasionally need to clean the vessel and put in new kalk for mixing. It seems to me as if at least that first mix may need to be a little longer, but in those cases, you'd be manually turning the pump on and off anyhow so it doesn't actually change anything "procedurally".

Anyhow, very nifty. Cheers!

[mark]

Realize that you are running the Kalk reactor for it's effects on pH in addition to Ca, but since there is a Ca component, have you measured the Ca with the different stirring strategies (or is there a direct collation between ph and Ca).

[untamed]

Realize that you are running the Kalk reactor for it's effects on pH in addition to Ca, but since there is a Ca component, have you measured the Ca with the different stirring strategies (or is there a direct collation between ph and Ca).

The clear liquid at the top of the reactor is Calcium Hydroxide. An over-simplified way of thinking about this is that the Calcium represents the Calcium part, and the Hydroxide represents the Alkalinity part. So...yes, a measurement of the liquid's pH is representative of Ca and Alkalinity potential of the liquid, in this case.

[untamed]

My skimmer filled up again last night. For some reason, every now and then the skimmer goes nuts and fills the collection cup. Once the cup is full, the skimmer burps and spits, spattering everywhere...including on my touch screen. (one time, it actually told the controller to lock the CO2 supply on. It drove my Ca reactor down to pH of 5.8 before I noticed!)

So, I've had enough. I rigged up a float switch, and connected one of the three skimmer pumps to the Aquatronica contoller. The float switch sits in the skimmer colletion cup, if the fluid in the collection cup rises, it shuts down the skimmer. Should have done that months ago!
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0198.jpg

Here's a screen shot of the controller screen. On the right hand side you can see the various inputs including "skimmer level - OK". The skimmer is now assigned to plug "H". The "L" on that plug indicates that this plug is contolled by a level sensor. The blue outline means that the plug is currently "on".
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0199.jpg
That's your Aquatronica lesson for today...

[skylord]

Two questions...is your float valve just floating in the cup and where did you get the float valve?

[justinl]

wow a skimmer that can use a touch screen. that thing is evil :twised:

[Skimmerking]

I know why your skimmer is over flow like that ...........................

ITS A ASM skimmer

BUY A ATI BM 250 GUY:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

[untamed]

Two questions...is your float valve just floating in the cup and where did you get the float valve?

It is pretty much just hanging in there. I haven't tested it by filling the skimmer cup yet, but I'm pretty sure it will work. The float is standard Aquatronica equipment. The AQT comes with a float switch in the standard package. I had not been using it until now.

[untamed]

I know why your skimmer is over flow like that ...........................

ITS A ASM skimmer

BUY A ATI BM 250 GUY:mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

It is easy to poke fun at ASM, because they really are built poorly....but this G6 works very well and I would continue to recommend it as high value for the buck. I don't think the boil-overs are related to skimmer design or construction quality, in this case.

Ha..ha..new skimmer...Yes, but I don't think an ATI MB 250 is large enough...plus it won't keep itself clean. I have my eyes on a larger prize...(now, lets hope the CDN $ stays high a bit longer...)

[Sebae again]

I wonder why Asmodeus would buy a prehistoric BM 250 from the 20th century when he could have bought a BM Supermarine. Maybe he saw one on the Antiques Roadshow and is a collector of antiquities. JK.

[untamed]

As soon as there is any info on the Supermarine version, I'll have a look...but I'm pretty sure that neither of those skimmers is for me.

[Joe Reefer]

It is easy to poke fun at ASM, because they really are built poorly....but this G6 works very well and I would continue to recommend it as high value for the buck. I don't think the boil-overs are related to skimmer design or construction quality, in this case.

Ha..ha..new skimmer...Yes, but I don't think an ATI MB 250 is large enough...plus it won't keep itself clean. I have my eyes on a larger prize...(now, lets hope the CDN $ stays high a bit longer...)

Do I smell Deltec?

[Skimmerking]

Prehistoric OMG shame on you.. for saying that. now if you look at my madness on skimmers. I have owned
Turo flotor T 1000
Euro Reef
Beckett
Down Draft
AIR stone
Beckett again
Euro reef again

ATI BM 250 and now IF I have my ways I will have a BUBBLE KING EXTERNAL. once I can duct tape up the wife...

Untamed I'm just bugging ya about your skimmer obvious your skimmer is working for you. imagine having Super fuge's skimmer on your tank.........................

IMO its not the tube its the pump that works in the skimmer and that is why the ASM G5 and 6 are good since they have the Sedras pumps attached to them.........

[untamed]

Do I smell Deltec?
Nope. That's all I'm going to say until I actually have it. It's going to be quite a project to find a way to install this thing.



Untamed I'm just bugging ya about your skimmer obvious your skimmer is working for you. imagine having Super fuge's skimmer on your tank.........................

IMO its not the tube its the pump that works in the skimmer and that is why the ASM G5 and 6 are good since they have the Sedras pumps attached to them.........

I took your comments as you intended. The G6 is doing all I could expect of it, but it is overwhelmed. I have had a few conversations with "Fudge" about his skimmer. I like his philosophy...big pump, big chamber, tall...self cleaning...pretty much describes what I'm thinking about.

[Myka]

I like his philosophy...big pump, big chamber, tall...self cleaning...pretty much describes what I'm thinking about.

Self-cleaning? Say what? This I'd like to hear more about! :)

[Delphinus]

Here Myka, check out these pages: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-11/totm/index.php
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=30974
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=686757

*Somewhere* in there is some details about his self-squeegee'ing skimmer head, and some videos too IIRC. :)

Also, there are some skimmers which employ a spray head which spray down the skimmer neck in an effort to keep it clean. And, I think there are a couple commercial versions of self-cleaning skimmers (Deltec, I think), although they tend to be pretty high-end things.

[untamed]

I lost my Powder Blue Tang the other night. I only had him for 1 month. No explanation, but he was reduced to a clean skull less than 24 hours since last seeing him alive. I suppose this means that my clean up crew is very good at what they do!

I liked this fish a lot and expect that I'll try again.

[michika]

I'm really sorry to hear that.

[justinl]

sorry to hear that. it really was a great fish.

[untamed]

While my battle with hair algae is under control, it is very much still there. My one remaining sea hare continues to do a decent job. It could be that this is just where my tank ends up.

In an effort to figure out what is going on, I've purchased a Pinpoint nitrate monitor. $250 later, the official low-range reading on my tank is.... zero ppm

Yes, absolute zero. I then verified the test by diluting the 10ppm calibration fluid 50/50 with aquarium water and got a reading of 5 ppm.

So...what does this mean? I suppose it means that any available nitrate is being used by algae faster than I can detect it. I'm going to theorize that algae needs light to make use of the nitrate. That would suggest that I might be able to detect nitrates in the morning, before the lights come on.

More on this as experimenting continues.

[justinl]

the one remaining sea hare? what happened to the others?

Does photosynthesis actually require the intake of nitrogen? I ask because i dont really know, but i dont think it does... i think. I had always been under the impression that the raw materials for photosynthesis was CO2 and good old H2O. But for all i know nitrogen could be used up in an intermediate step somewhere... regardless, i would definitely be interested in whatever findings you come up with.

[untamed]

the one remaining sea hare? what happened to the others?

Does photosynthesis actually require the intake of nitrogen? I ask because i dont really know, but i dont think it does... i think. I had always been under the impression that the raw materials for photosynthesis was CO2 and good old H2O. But for all i know nitrogen could be used up in an intermediate step somewhere... regardless, i would definitely be interested in whatever findings you come up with.

The hair algae made such a dramatic reduction that I returned one of my two sea hares to the LFS because I was worried it would starve.

As I understand it, photosynthesis reaction does not use Nitrogen directly, but Nitrogen might be involved. The product of the photosynthesis is glucose + Oxygen. My guess is that it is the conversion of that glucose into algae body where the algae absorbs Nitrate and Phosphate.

Nitrogen is a key component of chlorophyll...so the algae has to absorb N in order to make more chlorphyll.

...but what do I know...I just keep fish in a tank!

[untamed]

After a 12 hour darkness period, (Just a normal night, except that I also turned off the refugium lighting) I still test absolute Zero ppm nitrate.

It is interesting...I refuse to believe that my heavily-fed tank, with it's large fish and hair algae...has no measurable nitrate.

[Jason McK]

So are you having increasing hair algea problem? or is it a constant onging issue that stays at about the same level?

What do you currently have in your Fuge for nutrient export?

J

[untamed]

So are you having increasing hair algea problem? or is it a constant onging issue that stays at about the same level?

What do you currently have in your Fuge for nutrient export?

J

It is difficult to say for sure if my hair algae is getting better or if it is just stable. It does seem to be manageable now, which it was NOT before the refugium and the sea hares got involved.

The refugium is filled with Chaeto, and has a 3" fine sand bed. It also had some sort of red algae, but that has begun to die back and the chaeto is taking over. The chaeto is growing such that I have to harvest once in about a month. For the size of my system, the refugium is not very large.

[Jason McK]

Just your actinics are on right now LOL I can't see any hair algae.

I've always found the only way to get a handle on hair algae is to pull it out by hand. Once you get it shorter, the clean up crew makes light work of it.

Could it be possible that you are getting Nitrates when lights are off.

J

[untamed]

Just your actinics are on right now LOL I can't see any hair algae.

I've always found the only way to get a handle on hair algae is to pull it out by hand. Once you get it shorter, the clean up crew makes light work of it.

Could it be possible that you are getting Nitrates when lights are off.

J

Whomever was watching for the last few hours got a good view of me weeding hair algae. That is tiring work!

I'll keep measuring nitrates. Maybe after reducing the amount of hair algae as I've just done today might cause there to be a measurable amount. At least, until the algae catches up.

The nitrate is being consumed by something...

[TRIX]

Just Checked out the camera... Very Cool... Add to favorites.

[untamed]

When I started this, I had no idea that it would get viewed 50,000 times. That's pretty cool. This thread needs more pictures so...

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0213.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0214.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0215.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0216.jpg

[mark]

50,000 views, wow

[Delphinus]

Dude, you have no idea how jealous I am of those gorgonians.

I hope one day I have something of value I could offer you in trade for some frags of those :)

[untamed]

For no reason...here's some photos.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0220.jpg

This is Bubbles...the smaller of the two Maroon Clownfish. He rarely ventures out of the anemone, so it is hard to get a photo like this one. The larger Maroon is Chuck (he used to be a boy!), she's much bolder and gets 8x as much food as little Bubbles gets.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0227.jpg

And finally, un updated shot of Moe..who has grown quite a bit. His peduncal spines are starting to show now.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0221.jpg

[Canuckgod420]

I read back a few pages and was wondering how the hair algae problem was coming along?
You have zero nitrates and still have algae?
Maybe some one can help me understand why I have nitrates..10-15ppm...and I cant grow algae if my life depended on it.
I see sweet reef tanks all over the internet and they almost all have some algae growing somewhere....not me....not 1 speck. I dont get it.

[justinl]

tank's looking good Brad!

Rob, algae growth depends on a lot of things. nitrate is only one part of a very complex equation (light, DOC, tank age, etc etc etc).

[untamed]

I read back a few pages and was wondering how the hair algae problem was coming along?
You have zero nitrates and still have algae?
Maybe some one can help me understand why I have nitrates..10-15ppm...and I cant grow algae if my life depended on it.
I see sweet reef tanks all over the internet and they almost all have some algae growing somewhere....not me....not 1 speck. I dont get it.

Yes, I still have hair algae. You can see some of it in the clownfish photo.....but it's controllable. I still have one sea hare who manages to find enough to eat. My refugium grows chaeto, but not as quickly as it first did....and yes, I never have any measureable level of nitrate. I've confirmed that many times now, with Salifert tests and the Nitrate monitor.

My guess is that the nitrate is getting used/converted up by algae or bacteria before I can measure it.

I also continue to measure Phosphate using the colorimeter and have a reading of .02 +/- .02....basically nearly zero as well.

Every tank is different, I suppose. I don't aggressively pursue a "low nutrient" environment. I feed heavily because I'm attempting to feed not only the fish, but the billions of other critters that are trying to survive in there.

[untamed]

Today, I noticed that the male Maroon Clownfish (aka "Bubbles"), was preoccupied with a certain spot behind the anemone.

Yes, they've finally laid eggs. Of course, they were very careful to do it in the most difficult spot to photograph. Here are the proud parents with their brood.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0232.jpg

[Skimmerking]

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh look at all the babies:wink:

[untamed]

The clownfish are working on their 2nd batch of eggs. Maybe it is time to do a bit of reading to see if I can raise some baby clowns. Might be fun...

My pink pocillipora decided to RTN this morning. It went from having a small white area to almost completely gone within 12 hours. I've now intervened by fragging off the dead areas and iodine dipping the remaining live portion. I suppose we'll know how I've done by morning.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0247.jpg

My theory is that I somehow transfer some sort of bacteria or virus onto the coral when I have my hands in there. I'm fairly confident that nothing has significantly changed with my water parameters and nothing new was added to the tank.

I've been having some fun with a Xmas present. It's a macroscope. Like a telescope with a focal distance of 18". Very cool. By putting it in front of the camera, I get images like these.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0243.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0236.jpg

[danny zubot]

Hey thats nifty, it gives the appearance that you are pearing out of a submarine window. What's the zoom on the macroscope?

[Jason McK]

Also looks like Red Bugs or are the polyps orange?

J

[untamed]

Also looks like Red Bugs or are the polyps orange?

J

No...those are orange polyps. (that would be quite the infestation of red bugs, eh?) But if they were there, this device would certainly make them easy to spot.

[Jason McK]

HAHA

Is it a Ogles Mesoscope (http://www.ogles.info/)?

J

[untamed]

HAHA

Is it a Ogles Mesoscope (http://www.ogles.info/)?

J

No..it's a Bruntan macroscope. We tried to get the webcam to view through it, but the webcam seems to be unable to handle it for some reason.
http://www.brunton.com/product.php?id=282

[SeaSerpant]

Ok i just spent the few last nights sifting through this thread. it looks awesome. Right now what kind of livestock do you have. In that one picture with the clowns i can't see the eggs (i don't know what they look like really). It looks like it took a lot of time and effort to finish this project off. What are the conditions of your tank right now? I was wondering if i could get the site for your web cam? since i only read portions of your thread i probably missed it. Thanks

The New One
SeaSerpant

[untamed]

Ok i just spent the few last nights sifting through this thread. it looks awesome. Right now what kind of livestock do you have. In that one picture with the clowns i can't see the eggs (i don't know what they look like really). It looks like it took a lot of time and effort to finish this project off. What are the conditions of your tank right now? I was wondering if i could get the site for your web cam? since i only read portions of your thread i probably missed it. Thanks

The New One
SeaSerpant

Maroon clowns seem to lay maroon coloured eggs. There are so many that you probably don't realize what you are seeing. It is that reddish purple mass directly above the lighter clown's nose.

They are working on their 2nd brood now. We were expecting to see a hatching this evening, but we've given up waiting around in the dark! I can tell the eggs are fertilized and very close to hatch because they are no longer maroon in colour...now they are darker, silvery and have shiny eyes...

As for the tank in general....I don't think it has changed too much since the tank photo on pg. 41. Everything seems stable enough. Corals are growing...fish are healthy...

I took some coral growth photos today. My corals have a LOT of room to grow. It will take several years for this tank to achieve what I have envisioned.

Webcam is: http://brads-aquarium.viewnetcam.com:50000 (lights are on from about 1PM to 10PM PST)

[SeaSerpant]

Well now i know why the one guy said he couldn't see it. you had to click on the single at the top to look at it. Ok i have a small question, what kind of water did you use to fill it. did you use just distilled water and salt and the dechlorinator because i don't know what kind of water i can use because it is not like a freshwater system where i can take tap water and dechlorinate it and it's fine.
thanks!
SeaSerpant

[untamed]

A bit of excitement this evening...

The clownfish fan their eggs constantly. I was watching this behaviour tonight and saw one of the eggs become dislodged and start floating around the tank.

Quick action with the turkey baster and I had the egg on the dissecting microscope to take a better look. While trying to manuever the egg around on the slide, the egg broke open and the tiny fry came out wigglin'. There's no doubt now that I have successful partnership going on there.

The fry had what appeared to be pigment patches starting to form on it's skin. We could see his beating heart, fins, tail, and yolk sack. Of course, the eyes occupy 2/3 of the head.

Based on that, I assume that tonight is hatching time. Cool stuff, but kind of sad also because I can't provide them with any hope of survival at this point.

[robzilla]

A bit of excitement this evening...


Based on that, I assume that tonight is hatching time. Cool stuff, but kind of sad also because I can't provide them with any hope of survival at this point.

there was an article in one of last year's Coral mags about rearing clown fish. not sure if these mags are on line but it looked do-able if you had the tanks and the time.

let me know if you want me to dig up the month.

[groan]

um, Wow, i just finished, after 3 days of reading and skimming, completed all 43 pages of this.

What a fantastic tale of tragedy :cry: and happiness. :biggrin:

With the size of the rocks this is probably not possible, but what about a large fry box, the kind of thing you would hang on the side fo a 'normal' tank and put babies, or a new fish into. could you not fasion something at least to keep the larger critters away from the babies and keep mommy and daddy in?

[untamed]

there was an article in one of last year's Coral mags about rearing clown fish. not sure if these mags are on line but it looked do-able if you had the tanks and the time.

let me know if you want me to dig up the month.

...

With the size of the rocks this is probably not possible, but what about a large fry box, the kind of thing you would hang on the side fo a 'normal' tank and put babies, or a new fish into. could you not fasion something at least to keep the larger critters away from the babies and keep mommy and daddy in?

No need to supply info on breeding of clowns, thanks. I've read enough to know that I'm not prepared to do it right now. While the fry could possibly be protected from predation in the main tank, they would certainly starve. I've not found anyone successful at raising clownfish in a mixed reef tank. They have to be separated and I'm not ready for additional tanks at this time.

BTW...I was correct. All the eggs hatched sometime after lights-out last night. No trace of fry that I can see. It is possible they are all hiding somewhere under the anemone...or they have all been swept away in the current.

[Delphinus]

I'd say swept away. I've never seen a fry the next morning. :( If you think about it, if you think about how many potential offspring a pair can produce over a lifetime; and yet, for the population to remain stable, theoretically/on-average only 2 need to survive into adulthood and reproduce (to replace their parents) - that's a lot of mortality. :eek:

In the many years I've had a breeding pair or another of clowns - I haven't actually witnessed a hatching yet. However, I have witnessed on a couple of occasions a shrimp hatching (peppermints and cleaners) - and - I can tell you the tank inhabitants go into a berserk feeding frenzy once they realize what's going on. I imagine it's a similar thing here. I know it's sad but I suspect the fry really don't last much longer than a few minutes or a few hours tops.

[SeaSerpant]

Thats really sad. i hope the next time they have babies you can save a few so you can have more fish.:biggrin:

[untamed]

Today, I built a surface viewing box. This is my first attempt at building something that has to be water tight. I suppose it went OK...but I won't be building an aquarium or sump any time soon.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0262.jpg

This box floats perfectly in any of the three openings on top of the tank and enables me to see better when I'm working up there. It also enables some top-down photography. Here are some samples.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0265-1.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0264.jpg

[Jason McK]

WOW looks great!!!!. How did you elliminate all the MH reflections?

J

[untamed]

Here's what you get when you adjust white balance under actinic only lighting....

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0261.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0260.jpg

[untamed]

WOW looks great!!!!. How did you eliminate all the MH reflections?

J

I never thought about it. I think my body (working the camera) is probably blocking the halides. That was the first challenge that I noticed with the top down photography..I'm blocking all the light.

[untamed]

This is exactly 7 hours worth of skimmate from the G6. 1 cup worth of really foul smelling stuff. While this is the part that I can easily drain out, there is considerably more gooey stuff in the neck and collection cup.

Skimmer needs to be completely cleaned 2x per week.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0266.jpg

[Jason McK]

So did you use Weldon 16 to bond the Acrylic?

I made one a few years ago but never put a bottom pain. So it kind of made it useless

J

[untamed]

So did you use Weldon 16 to bond the Acrylic?

I made one a few years ago but never put a bottom pain. So it kind of made it useless

J

ha..ha..Yeah, the bottom is a pretty important piece of a viewing box....

I've never used Weldon 16, but I considered it for this project. I used Methylene Chloride. It wicks into the joints really well, but I find it hard to control how much I'm adding and sometimes it goes right through the joint and comes out on the other side, damaging that surface. I bet that Weldon 16 is easier to use.

[mark]

Wife know what you do with her measusing cup?

[kookie_guy]

wow, that's all I can say, just wow.

I hope in the future I can have the guts and know how to build a system like this. Great job.

[untamed]

A Few days ago, I added a couple of new fish. A cleaner wrasse, and a White Face Tang (sold to me as a Powder Brown, but it is a White Face or Japanese Tang)

If you are a fan of the aquarium camera, you know that the new Tang has had a pretty rough time. The Achillies Tang really dislikes the new guy and is more than twice his size. He's spent the past few days hiding in the Xenia.

Here is the White Face Tang.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0281.jpg

The cleaner wrasse is...well...I'm not sure I like having him in the tank. He is a very active cleaner. It is interesting to watch the cleaning behaviour, but he is so relentless that it is driving the fish to distraction! Moe (Blonde Naso) seems to get the most attention mostly because he doesn't move around very fast. There's clearly a point where the fish says.."ENOUGH!!!", but can't easily get away from the cleaner.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0284.jpg

The wrasse is leaving small "bite marks" that are visible on the Naso Tang. These heal within a day, but new bites are added all the time. Here I was all worried that the wrasse would starve...now I find out that it eats pellets, shrimp and harrasses my fish leaving bite marks all over them! He may become the first fish that I evict...we'll see. He does clean my arm whenever I reach into the tank, which is kind of funny.

If you look at the photo below, you can see the dark bite marks on Moe's grey areas on his nose, behind his gills and on his back.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0278.jpg

[untamed]

You can see that the tank is taking on my characteristic "untamed" look...I think I need about a dozen more large sea cucumbers to mulch through that sand bed...

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0280-1.jpg

[Jason McK]

White Cheek (Acanthurus japonicus) is my all time favorate fish.

Looks Great.

J

[argan]

Untamed, you may have a trickster in your tank. What that wrasse is doing sounded familiar to me, so Check out this link.

http://notexactlyrocketscience.wordpress.com/2007/11/07/fake-cleaner-fish-dons-multiple-disguises/

[Delphinus]

I was just going to say ... I'm pretty sure that's a false cleaner wrasse (not a real cleaner). The cincher is that you said he's eating prepared foods ...

A real cleaner wrasse won't leave bite marks.

Some more reading.. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/labroiidfaqs.htm
http://www.uog.edu/marinelab/fish/species_html/aspidontus.taeniatus.html

Not sure what to suggest. The last page there says most fish will learn to stay away from them but I imagine that's in the context of the wild, not a captive aquarium. I think you may want to get him out of there, for the sake of your other fish. :(

Sorry and good luck!!! (Or should I say "Happy hunting"?)

[untamed]

It's not a Fang Blennie. It's taken me quite a while to find a decent photo of a Fang Blennie in order to see the underslung mouth. (assuming that is the ONLY distinguishing feature...and that's debatable)

My "Wrasse" does not have the distinct underslung mouth of a Fang Blennie. I'll see if I can get a better photo. Meanwhile, I'll continue to watch him closely.

[Delphinus]

I guess I mistook his nostril for a bite mark. :redface: I didn't know if cleaner wrasses would leave marks at all on other fish.

Well, hopefully you have one of the good guys after all. I'm still sort of shocked to hear of one that eats prepared foods, but maybe you have the 1 in 100, sort of thing.

[untamed]

I guess I mistook his nostril for a bite mark. :redface: I didn't know if cleaner wrasses would leave marks at all on other fish.

Well, hopefully you have one of the good guys after all. I'm still sort of shocked to hear of one that eats prepared foods, but maybe you have the 1 in 100, sort of thing.

Ha..ha..yes, I would be much more concerned if those were bite marks! That made me laugh...thanks. The Naso is the only fish with visible marks. The others get cleaned, but the nibbles just don't show like they do on Moe's perfect grey complexion.

The wrasse attemps to eat anything that seems small enough to get into his mouth. A small pellet is too large for him...but he'll work at them for quite a while. Mostly, I feed a chopped up mess of squid, clam, octopus, and shrimp. There's always lots of really small bits for him to eat.

[Delphinus]

Just a thought .. NLS makes a pellet called "Grow" (or something like that). It's a really small pellet intended for fish fry. I feed it to my FW tank because I have a number of really small fish in there. I wonder if it would be an appropriate sized pellet?

[justinl]

my first thought was a false cleaner wrasse as well, but they actually take big noticeable hunks of meat out of a fish, not the little nips you see on Moe. That's the big distinguishing feature of the lovely false cleaners. If it were me, I would give your wrasse a few weeks just to settle out, and see what happens. While keeping a close eye on him and how the other fish do with his "cleaning" of course. The ones that accept frozen are rarities and not a fish i would relinquish easily myself.

hope the white face gets a break and asserts itself. definitely a good lookin fish.

man. every time i see those gorgs...

[untamed]

My cleaner wrasse "problem" has taken care of itself. The cleaner wrassed died this morning. I'm not having much luck with wrasses. I beginning to think that my sand is not to their liking. It would not surprise me a bit if there is something about my sand that kills wrasses in the night.

I sort of feel bad, because he was eating and I was starting to NOT dislike him so much....but, that's how it goes.

[justinl]

harsh. sorry to hear that. Why were you not minding quite as much? did it's picking at the other fish slow down?

unless Im remembering incorrectly, I believe your sand bed was crushed coral or at least mostly right? and not very deep either? A sand sleeping wrasse really needs a finer substrate like oolitic aragonite and some depth to the bed never hurts either. CC is just too coarse. I think that might be the problem. Is the cleaner wrasse one that dives in the sand when it sleeps or hides?

for example when I had my red coris wrasse, it dive bombed into the sand with some real force. If my sand wasnt oolitic aragonite, Im certain injury would have been inevitable.

It might also just be the kinds of wrasses you get. I know some cleaner wrasses that accept frozen foods (which are rare to begin with) die anyways since they lack the right nutrition that can only be had from parasites. The other wrasse that died was a leopard wrasse right? those guys dont have a very good track record either, so I wouldnt rule these fish out of your system due to luck quite yet.

[untamed]

I don't know if the cleaner wrasse was trying to sleep in the sand bed or not. I assumed that he was because other wrasses do. Yes, my sand bed is fairly coarse. It is possible that they injure themselves trying to bury. Hard to say.

The presence of the cleaner changed the fish behaviour a lot...and not only to my liking. The cleaning was interesting, but in order the get away from the cleaner the fish would dart suddenly away sometimes running into the tank walls.

That, combined with the little peck marks on the Naso....I don't think I'll miss him much.

[Puff]

wow untamed...this stuff is all sooo impressive!!

i just spent my whole afternoon (minus 1 hour) reading from the beginning. i have no clue how i never saw this thread, but i feel like i gained experience just from reading it!!

even my gf sat with me for a solid hour looking at stuff. i told her that you built my dream room, but that she should worry as im not good enough at building things to build it.lol

great stuff!! cant wait to continue reading/spying on the tank's progress.

thanks for the experience!

[Delphinus]

These are certainly not 'pods' as most of us know them. Actually, they look pretty much like the mantis fry in that link. Here's my best shot of one.

They hang onto the branch with their back end. It's pretty much impossible to get a really good picture of one as the coral moves about in the current. In this shot, it is dead centre of the frame, leaning toward 10 O'clock. You can see both of the large raptorial appendages that lead me to believe that is what these are. This critter is probably 7-8mm long.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0068a.jpg

[...]


Did you ever confirm if these were mantis fry?

I was at an LFS today and saw something similar on some gorgonians. A bit smaller than yours though, these were barely a couple mm in size. In fact they were easy to mistake as just "general fuzz" caught on the gorgonian polyps but they were definitely alive.

[justinl]

i had forgotten about that post. well i know what it is now; that's a caprellid (skeleton shrimp). cool and harmless critters. they use their hind legs to clamp on to any sort of substrate like algae or gorgonian in which they can camouflage (obviously) and let the rest of their body drift in the current and wait for unsuspecting plankton to pass by. Do you know if you still have any Brad?

here's a close up of one...
http://forum.mikroscopia.com/uploads/post-3-1156918102.jpg

[Delphinus]

That's definitely what I saw today. Very cool! Hummm, I might go back and buy a gorgonian now :lol:

[untamed]

These shrimp did not survive. As far as I know, I no longer have them in the tank. Thanks for the id!

[Chowder]

I had those shrimp in my old seahorse tank as well. They also did disappear after a while. Not sure if they were eaten by the tank inhabitants or died off.

[untamed]

First...someone please confirm for me that this little guy is a Vlamingi Tang. He has settled in nicely among all the larger fish and is eating well. Little do the other fish know who will be king in a few years!
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0287.jpg

Next...This Foxface Rabbitfish is also doing well. Like the Yellow Tang, I suppose every tank needs to have one of these...so I finally relented.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0289.jpg

Finally...another shot of Moe. Just because "she" likes to pose for me.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0292.jpg

An update on the White Cheek Tang. Inexplicably, he is now good buddies with the Achillies Tang. It seems that the rule in fishdom is "If I don't kill you, you get to be my friend". This means he is now free to roam the tank and eat with the others, so he is also going to be fine.

[Joe Reefer]

That looks like a Vlamingi to me. They seem to be very common in stores these days.

[untamed]

That looks like a Vlamingi to me. They seem to be very common in stores these days.

I can only hope that people realize what they are buying. I did, but I believe that I have a tank suitable for a fish of that size.

[Joe Reefer]

They sure are in for a suprise when it becomes a 2ft poo machine.

[untamed]

I've always wanted one of these. So far, he's taken a bit of abuse from the Achillies Tang and the Bicolour Angel. I've seen worse though, so I hope he'll make it.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0293.jpg

[Delphinus]

Pretty!! :cool:

[untamed]

Playing around with my "top down" photography. Here's a nice sample or two.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0309.jpg
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0307.jpg

(OK...it's just a cheap bump to see if I can hit 70,000 views...)

[Delphinus]

That can't really be that far away.. Wow.

Great looking carpet BTW. Makes me miss my old haddoni (looked just like it - sweet green - had to sell it because it was just got too big. I don't imagine you'll be running into that problem though. :) )

[Chowder]

The colours are looking great. Tank is looking really healthy.

[argan]

at least 100 views are me :) I love your rock so much!

love the TBS site too :P

[chevyjaxon]

I love it!! great idea for when i buy a house!! your tank rocks:biggrin:

[Tom R]

Hi Brad

That is one fine Majestic Angel. As you are well aware it is my favorite angel.
Good luck I hope he works out well for you.

Tom R

[untamed]

One of my two urchins bulldozed a recent frag off it's mount today, so I was arm-in-tank trying to remount the frag.

The urchin was kind of in the way so I was gently nudging him to "move along...move along". They are quite reactive to touch, btw...if you touch any spine, it will quickly orient additional spines your way.

Anyway...so I'm pushing him along and thinking to myself.."these spines aren't really that sharp..." Oh Yeah?...ZAP!!!

I don't know if they actually contain some sort of venom or something gets injected or not...but let me tell you that you do NOT want to step on a black spiny sea urchin. I was losing a lot of blood and it hurt quite a bit. I would compare it to a wasp sting....except for the bleeding part.

5 minutes later...pain free and you can hardly even see where he got me.

Here is the offender...
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0306.jpg

[Chaloupa]

your coral colors are amazing ! (hope this help get you to 70,000 too!) but your tank is stunning...very nice! I see why so many people have looked at it!

[SeaSerpant]

i do to:)

[untamed]

I think my sea urchin is lonely...from time to time he climbs up to the highest spot he can get to and thinks about lady urchins...

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/th_000_0313.jpg (http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/?action=view&current=000_0313.flv)

[blacjack]

That's a beautiful tank you have there mate. I've been following your progress for a while and I'm enjoying your thread alot.

So you played with and lost with the urchin :lol: I've been there and done that too!

[dsaundry]

I have gone through your journal twice now, the wife thinks I am a hermit in my den as I have been looking at your tanks progress..Amazing, I am planning a large tank in a few years when I retire, for now I will plug along with my current set-ups.. I gotta ask and believe me I am not trying to be rude, Have you kept a journal of your costs from start to now? I would love to get an idea of what this set-up is worth. I can only imagine. Where did you compile all your designs from for your equipment. All your design or did you get some inspiration from other sources. How is your sea-hare working out? I have a small one in my tank and he is fantastic. Whatever hair algae I had is gone or so small I can't see it. Have you run into anymore issue with your set-up? So many questions I would love to ask you..Maybe there will be a tour and I will get the priviledge of seeing your tank close-up. Once again, "Stunning Tank" :smilecol:

[untamed]

I have gone through your journal twice now, the wife thinks I am a hermit in my den as I have been looking at your tanks progress..Amazing, I am planning a large tank in a few years when I retire, for now I will plug along with my current set-ups.. I gotta ask and believe me I am not trying to be rude, Have you kept a journal of your costs from start to now? I would love to get an idea of what this set-up is worth. I can only imagine. Where did you compile all your designs from for your equipment. All your design or did you get some inspiration from other sources. How is your sea-hare working out? I have a small one in my tank and he is fantastic. Whatever hair algae I had is gone or so small I can't see it. Have you run into anymore issue with your set-up? So many questions I would love to ask you..Maybe there will be a tour and I will get the priviledge of seeing your tank close-up. Once again, "Stunning Tank" :smilecol:

Thanks. As you are close by, I'm sure you'll be seeing the tank soon enough. We're working on a club activity that I'll probably host so you'll have a couple of reasons to drop in.

For the most part, I kept most of my bills. Partly for warranty purposes, and partly because I might someday want to add it all up. I honestly do not know what the actual total is. I'm quite pleased that people tend to think I spent more than I actually did. There's plenty of opportunity to spend a LOT more on the lights, skimmers, sumps etc (can you say Deltec?). If you are really curious, just estimate based on what you see...

I still have one, very large, sea hare. I'm a bit worried about him as there is little/no hair algae left. It is interesting that the sea hare spends most of his nocturnal activities on the sand bed. There is hair algae to be found in some other areas, but that isn't where he spends his time.

Design? That came from hours and hours of browsing other build threads, mostly on Reef Central. I also had nearly a year of time to think about the plan before I actually began to build it. You should have seen some of the earlier plans! Most were larger.

[argan]

Cool Worms (http://www.canreef.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=1866&cat=500&ppuser=1470)

Still have these guys from your old tank?

[untamed]

Cool Worms (http://www.canreef.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=1866&cat=500&ppuser=1470)

Still have these guys from your old tank?

That's Max...I miss him. As he could not possibly be removed from the rock, he went along with his rock when I sold that tank. I hope he is doing well.

I have spotted many, many Eunicid worms in the new rock/tank, but none as spectacular or large as Max was.

[untamed]

If you have ever looked at the webcam, then you know that my Blue Throat Trigger (Zues) paces endlessly across the front of the tank.

His pacing has completely scratched the lower 6" of the front acrylic panel. It has only been maybe 9 months...what will it look like in 10 years???!! I had the opportunity to give him a little back scratch recently, and I call tell you that these fish feel like they are made of steel plates.

I can't really recommend Blue Throat Triggers to anyone. They may be reef safe, but I think they need an EXTREMELY large tank. He is among the largest Blue Throat that I've seen and it seems that when they get to his size, they just don't like captivity. He clearly likes to swim..fast..constantly.

I still don't regret using acrylic for the tank. At the time I made the decision, I had no idea that the fish themselves are the cause of most all of the scratches in acrylic tanks.

[untamed]

I've been running carbon in a phosban reactor for some time, but I started to realize that the water had taken on a very yellowish hue. (it sneaks up on you!) I decided to double the amount of carbon I've been using. After shopping for a larger fluidized reactor, I finally decided that multiple phosbans were just easier to deal with than one huge reactor.

So...here's my collection of phosban reactors. The two on the right are running carbon and the one on the left is running Rowaphos. The addition of the 2nd carbon has made a big difference in the water colour. That's about 500ml of carbon running in two reactors. The reactors are supplied with a MJ1200 in the sump. They are NOT plumbed in sequence.
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0316.jpg

[untamed]

I managed to get a better shot of the Vlamingi Tang today. This one is with flash and it lights up his spots nicely. Chris calls him "Freckles", but I'm not so sure that he is going to retain these spots as he grows...and he is growing very quickly!
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0317.jpg

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Love the Vlamingi....beautiful fish. And the gorgonians.

[untamed]

In the Vlamingi photo you can see how that gorgonian is beginning to direct it's growth upward. A few arms are budding new arms vertically, while others have just decided to make the turn.

When I secured that gorgonian in the tank, it had a couple of arms that were nearly 2.5 feet long. I was unable to make it stand vertically because those arms broke the surface. So it ended up sort of angled, which has caused the growth direction change I just mentioned.

[untamed]

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0333.jpg

[Phanman]

Im always so amazed at your tank man... cudos!

[untamed]

Yup, sometimes it seems everyday there is something unique going on somewhere in the aquarium. It would seem that last night the sea hare laid eggs.

This egg mass is about 3" in diametre and maybe 3/4" thick. As usual, a picture does this more description than I ever could...
http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/aquarium%20views/000_0337.jpg

That grey and black speckled blob visible below the eggs is Mom (and Dad!?)

Apparently, sea hares are hermaphrodites...but I'm unsure if this means that they can actually fertilize their own eggs. Under a microscope, I can't yet determine if the eggs are dividing yet. We'll look again tomorrow.

It also seems that they do this at the end of their lives, so I'll have to keep a close eye on the health of the sea hare over the next while.

[mojo]

Looking amazing, and I'm proud for this to be my first post on Canreef. Early on you mentioned you were going to program your light rack to raise and lower over a several hour period - is this in place or did you abandon that idea? Also, do you keep your Aquatronica connected to your PC 24/7? Are you using the Ethernet module?

Thanks,
Mike

[Der_Iron_Chef]

Looking amazing, and I'm proud for this to be my first post on Canreef. Early on you mentioned you were going to program your light rack to raise and lower over a several hour period - is this in place or did you abandon that idea? Also, do you keep your Aquatronica connected to your PC 24/7? Are you using the Ethernet module?

Thanks,
Mike

Welcome to Canreef :)

[untamed]

Looking amazing, and I'm proud for this to be my first post on Canreef. Early on you mentioned you were going to program your light rack to raise and lower over a several hour period - is this in place or did you abandon that idea?

Thanks,
Mike

The aquatronica has the capability to control the light lifting by second and do a daily cycle... but I have yet to pursue that idea. There are a few hurdles to that plan:

1) As the lights lift, they hit the front door hinges about 1/2 way in their travel. (a design error on my part) That's no problem when I'm doing the lifting, but it would limit the automatic lifting to only 1 foot. I've since decided that 1 foot might still be enough to simulate a daily intensity cycle, so that's OK

2) The actuator has "up" and "down" buttons. The AQT can only power things "on" and "off". Making that translation would involve rewiring the actuator controller. I'm not sure I would want to relinquish total control of the lights to the AQT because I raise and lower these things all the time and it is easier to push the buttons that it is to touch the touchscreen (AQT software would require this to be a "right click", which involves more than just a quick touch.

3) Finally, there is the difficulty of the controller getting "lost" and not knowing what level the lights are actually at. If I were to manually move them during the daily cycle, the controller could drive the lights too high or too low and cause unpredictable damage or problems. This is really the most significant hurdle to the idea. There's no feedback in the system to tell the AQT where the lights actually are. A number of optical or pressure switches could be built in, but at that point it is just asking for trouble!

[untamed]

Also, do you keep your Aquatronica connected to your PC 24/7? Are you using the Ethernet module?

Thanks,
Mike

Yes, I do keep the AQT connected via computer 24/7. There is a good thread about this on Reefcentral...

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1292495

It seems that the AQT was not properly designed for this, while they never state that you should NOT do this. Suffice to say there are a few things that don't work properly when the AQT is connected to a computer.

No, I do not use the Ethernet module. I use "LogMeIn" to remotely access my system when necessary. Works perfectly and it was free.

[mojo]

Der Iron Chef - Thanks for the welcome!

Untamed - I see what you mean regarding your reluctance to have the controller raise and lower the light rack for you. I considered something similar for my tank, but instead I think I'll have the lights turn on and off at different times so that it gives the illusion of the sun passing over the tank. You could do that with your separate pendants, too, if you're not already.

I read the RC thread that you linked and it does seem that the controller's functions are a bit blunted with the 24/7 connection, although it is clearly serving your purpose quite well.

Regarding our pm discussion, if you really wanted to keep wrasses, you could also consider placing some finer grade sand beneath the aquascape somewhere that the closed loop doesn't blast and which wouldn't be viewable? Just a thought. Anyway, I just checked out your webcam - very cool indeed!

[untamed]

While defending the Majestic Angel from the Blue Throat Trigger, I discovered that the Triggerfish has an unusual reaction to being touched on his sides.

When you make gentle contact with his sides, he immediately erects his dorsal fin and freezes. Once he does this, it is actually possible to push him around sideways in the water.

Anyway, in this video I catch him up against the wall of the tank and you see the reaction. He's free to swim away whenever he likes, but he stays frozen for quite a while! I've tried to do this by hand, but he doesn't like my hand to get that close and he keeps thinking my fingers are edible.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/th_100E0502.jpg (http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/?action=view&current=100E0502.flv)

[Jason McK]

That's trigger torcher. LOL

Very interesting.

[ref leppard]

While defending the Majestic Angel from the Blue Throat Trigger, I discovered that the Triggerfish has an unusual reaction to being touched on his sides.

When you make gentle contact with his sides, he immediately erects his dorsal fin and freezes. Once he does this, it is actually possible to push him around sideways in the water.

Anyway, in this video I catch him up against the wall of the tank and you see the reaction. He's free to swim away whenever he likes, but he stays frozen for quite a while! I've tried to do this by hand, but he doesn't like my hand to get that close and he keeps thinking my fingers are edible.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/th_100E0502.jpg (http://s142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/?action=view&current=100E0502.flv)

That's neat! Lookin' at the pics there , those fish are HUGE!

[untamed]

It is with a great deal of sadness that I must get rid of both of my Blue Throat Trigger Fish. Their skin is just too abrasive for the acrylic tank. The male, in particular, swims constantly long the aquarium walls and has destroyed the viewing panels. It remains to be seen if I will ever be able to polish them out. (polishing pads are on the way...more on that later)

I love these fish, but I love the entire tank just that bit more.

So...it's figure out a way to remove them. So far, so good. With TomR's sage advice, I built a trap from an old reactor media bottle. Set it in place and caught the male on my very first try! Thanks Tom!!!

He is now a very, very unhappy triggerfish living in my WC sump. He will be transferred to a new home within the week.

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r118/untamed_photos/000_0362.jpg

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

Man thats really too bad you have to give them up :neutral:

Is it actually there skin scratching the acrylic or teeth? I know my puffers teeth would scratch the heck out of an acrylic tank. He seems to constantly swim across the tank with his mouth pressed up against the glass.

Did you find them a good home yet?

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

Hey I was wondering if you could tell me where you got the beautiful big gorgonians? I have looked all over and have had such a hard time finding any in town like that.

Do you feed them?

[untamed]

Man thats really too bad you have to give them up :neutral:

Is it actually there skin scratching the acrylic or teeth? I know my puffers teeth would scratch the heck out of an acrylic tank. He seems to constantly swim across the tank with his mouth pressed up against the glass.

Did you find them a good home yet?

I'm sure it is his skin. When you touch him, he feels like chain mail armor. No home yet, but a few options I'm working on. Certainly, it is more about finding a good home than it is about getting good money for them.

Hey I was wondering if you could tell me where you got the beautiful big gorgonians? I have looked all over and have had such a hard time finding any in town like that.

Do you feed them?

I've got three types of gorgonians. The largest ones are called candelabra and I have one single blade gorgonian among the forest of a third type that I'm not sure of the name. All have Zoanthallae, so I don't target feed them . I've noticed that the candelabra does eat cyclopeze whenever I put some of that in there. All came on the Live Rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater.

[Tom R]

Great job Brad the trap looks good maybe we should start a home business with these traps.

Tom R

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

I've got three types of gorgonians. The largest ones are called candelabra and I have one single blade gorgonian among the forest of a third type that I'm not sure of the name. All have Zoanthallae, so I don't target feed them . I've noticed that the candelabra does eat cyclopeze whenever I put some of that in there. All came on the Live Rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater.

Thanks for the info...I have heard of people having a hard time keeping gorgonians but yours look amazing and seem to have great growth. I think a lot of people end up buying species that require a lot of feeding and they apparently can be tough to feed without really messing up your tank.

I will look into the same kinds you have. Do you know if Tampa Bay Saltwater sells them? Did you have it all shipped to the US side of the boarder?

Thanks again. I really love how natural your tank looks!

[untamed]

TBS does post prices for the gorgonians on their site. It is likely that they grow naturally at the aquaculture dive site. I don't think that they ship to Canada, however. All my stuff was shipped to Seattle and I brought it into Canada myself. (That's an entire discussion covered many pages ago...)

[ElGuappo]

i ahve seen purple gargonians in calgary!!!!!! they had them at riverfront aquariums about 2 weeks ago didnt last long thou

were about 45 a piece for a 8 inch tall and 4 inch wide (at its widest point).