50 Gallon Peninsula Build (formerly known as 40 Gallon Peninsula Build)

[Protandrous niña]

Thanks!

Soda Ash or dripping Kalk could help increase Alk.

I'll order one of these and get my alk up.
I'm planning on adding corals a while after fish, so hopefully there will be enough nutrients by then.

 

[griss]

Soda Ash is the easiest, IMO. BRS has a calculator to show you how much to add…

Aquarium and Reef Calculators - Bulk Reef Supply

Bulk Reef Supply - Saltwater Aquarium Supplies for Reef Tanks

www.bulkreefsupply.com

 

[Protandrous niña]

First CUC additions from PetCo (4 blue leg hermits and an astraea snail).

 

[Protandrous niña]

Chalk bass!
Unfortunately my RO system wasn't able to make enough water in time before I left for my appointment, so I couldn't fill up my QT. Fish went straight in DT after acclimation this time (but hoping to have more RO prepared for next additions!).
Also got 3 nassarius snails for the sand bed

 

[griss]

Love it, Chalk Bass are great fish.

 

[Protandrous niña]

Some pics from this moring

 

[Reefing102]

Looks good. Going through the algae stages

 

[Protandrous niña]

Yup. Slowly ramping up herbivore populations and removing algal growth by hand, but yeah for now I'm just letting things run their course.

 

[Protandrous niña]

Finally hung up the lights! Also planning on making a trip down to the lfs Friday to pick up the next fish on my list (clown pair, and maybe a watchman goby and shrimp) along with some chaetomorpha for the sump.

 

[Protandrous niña]

 

[Protandrous niña]

a certain blue-legged someone has decided to start stealing nassarius snail shells

 

[griss]

Looking good. I know I’ve said it before but, I love Chalk Bass.

 

[Protandrous niña]

Seconded. Obviously I'm biased because they're my only sw fish so far, but yeah they have so much personality and I love how you can keep more than one and they don't kill each other.

I named mine Eleno, Thomasine, and Mulan (after three historical non-binary and gender fluid people, I couldn't resist!)

 

[Protandrous niña]

Drove down to the nearest LFS this weekend and picked up the next additions on my list. Clowns, watchman goby, and pistol shrimp have settled in! Their water got down to 66 F in the car and I didn't realize it until we got home, but after acclimation they seemed to have recovered no worse for wear. I haven't settled on names yet (I'll have to see which one of the clowns does the mtf transition!).

 

[Reefing102]

They say colder water is better than hotter water for fish survivability

 

[griss]

They say colder water is better than hotter water for fish survivability

Yep.

 

[Protandrous niña]

They say colder water is better than hotter water for fish survivability

That makes sense. Makes me think of those frogs that completely freeze to survive the winter.

 

[Dustin07]

Love the goby!

 

[Protandrous niña]

Tank Update!
No major changes, things are pretty stable 1/2 year in. Feather dusters and sponges have decided to colonize the tank, and the dry rock is beginning to look more live with all those little guys growing on it. All the fish are doing well and growing, and ironically one of my clownfish began transitioning to female at around the same time a certain someone issued an executive order saying that there are only two unchanging sexes. I had to isolate her for a few days because she was bullying the male so badly, but now they're getting along better.

I'm hoping to pick up some hardy corals when I go to the city a few months from now. Later on, I might also get a cleaner shrimp and coral beauty angelfish but for now I'm pretty content with my stocking levels.

 

[Reefing102]

Looks really good!