A Reef in the Sky

[Denadai]

Thank you Walter, really appreciate it. Will be slowing down for a while. Will keep an eye out for some clams though. Someone told me to get a leather coral as they are a great indicator of water parameters. Any ideas what would be best to get? I know that there are some really expensive ones.

I wouldn´t do that. Leathers can do a chemical war with SPS

Best Regards

 

[gofor100]

Yeah, your sandbed might pose problems if you go with the goby/pistol shrimp pair. They typically need at least 3 inches, and mine seem to like sugar size (or a little larger) sand (but they may do fine in coarser sand/aragonite, I've never tried using that as substrate). Although, the mandarin would be an awesome addition, and a good replacement for the goby/pistol shrimp pair I recommended. All of the other fish you mentioned seem like great additions (except the 6-line I've heard can get quite aggressive/territorial, but I can't say from experience; plus your tank should be big enough to reduce any aggression on one fish).

As for corals/clams... I would definitely try to add most (if not just about everything) that you want before the Flame angel, since they seem to be attracted to the mucous that most corals (and some clams) will excessively exude when first introduced (from stress), which will further stress the animal. If you add these items first, then there is no excessive mucous that the Angel will go after, and even if the Angel does nip at them from time to time, the animal should be healthy enough to not be overly stressed by this irritant (that is IF the Angel even nips- which again hadn't happened with me possibly because of feeding the fish well in my tanks).

What other type of fish are you looking for (i.e., more bottom-dwelling fish, active swimmers, rock-dwelling, etc.)? Fish are what got me into saltwater, and a diverse group of fish remain a necessity for any tank I set up, so I have some pretty good info on different type of fish if you ever have questions...

 

[duastina]

This is a beautiful, stunning, elegant tank!

 

[v1...rotate]

Your tank is looking great!

By the way, have you heard from Ed (Ed Reef)? Just wondering.

Thanks... no I haven't for ages. Had his cell number but lost it. Hope all is okay?

Hello,

as mentioned it´s a beautiful tank.
Why don´t you keep a pair of any fish.

Thank you. Not really sure. Nearly all fish are from the wild here in HKG.

I wouldn´t do that. Leathers can do a chemical war with SPS

Best Regards

Okay, had heard that before but started to question when some else mentioned it.

Yeah, your sandbed might pose problems if you go with the goby/pistol shrimp pair. They typically need at least 3 inches, and mine seem to like sugar size (or a little larger) sand (but they may do fine in coarser sand/aragonite, I've never tried using that as substrate). Although, the mandarin would be an awesome addition, and a good replacement for the goby/pistol shrimp pair I recommended. All of the other fish you mentioned seem like great additions (except the 6-line I've heard can get quite aggressive/territorial, but I can't say from experience; plus your tank should be big enough to reduce any aggression on one fish).

As for corals/clams... I would definitely try to add most (if not just about everything) that you want before the Flame angel, since they seem to be attracted to the mucous that most corals (and some clams) will excessively exude when first introduced (from stress), which will further stress the animal. If you add these items first, then there is no excessive mucous that the Angel will go after, and even if the Angel does nip at them from time to time, the animal should be healthy enough to not be overly stressed by this irritant (that is IF the Angel even nips- which again hadn't happened with me possibly because of feeding the fish well in my tanks).

What other type of fish are you looking for (i.e., more bottom-dwelling fish, active swimmers, rock-dwelling, etc.)? Fish are what got me into saltwater, and a diverse group of fish remain a necessity for any tank I set up, so I have some pretty good info on different type of fish if you ever have questions...

Thanks once again... for the detailed response.

I'm hoping the tank will be large enough for x1 six line wrasse. No one has taken occupancy of the island yet so I'm hoping.

I will definitely ensure most corals are in the tank before introducing the flame. I was not aware of that... thank you for the insight.

Still after around 2-4 more fish. Any bottom-dwelling fish, active swimmers, rock-dwelling would be great. Any further ideas/suggestions. The tank will not have net on it so that will rule out most wrasses.

This is a beautiful, stunning, elegant tank!

Thank you very much. Glad you like it! :thumbsup:

 

[Toadally]

Awesome tank!

 

[v1...rotate]

Update time & Video Introduction


Well today is Day 63 for 'A Reef in the Sky' and while everything is settling down I'll be venturing into creating videos to share my progress as well as posting more pictures.

Weekly maintenance saw me clean the skimmer section of the sump as it was so dirty. I've decided to use filter socks for the days I'm home to help catch waste plus use filter pads in the bubble trap area. I think I have finally set the tunzes up the way I want but will need to get another one (Tunze 6055) for the back. Just working on how to configure it with the GHL computer.

Dosing is still manual (soon to be automatic) with the following amounts:

Alk: 40ml daily
Ca: 20ml daily
Mg: 10ml every 3 days


Zeovit Additives
0.5 ml ZeoStart x2 daily (am/pm)
5 drops ZeoBac x2 weekly (Monday/Thursday)
2 drops Sponge Power - every day except Mon/Thurs (pm)
3 drops Food7 x2 weekly (Monday/Thursday)


Water parameters:
No3 0 (Salifert)
No3 0 (LaMotte)
Alk 120ppm (LaMotte) ~6.8KH
Alk 7.3 (Salifert)
Ca 390 (Salifert) [will increase to 410 again]
Mg 1260 (Salifert)
Po4 0.01 (Hanna Photometer)
pH 7.9 -8.2 (GHL probe)
K+ 370 (KZ test kit)
SG 1.025 (Hanna)
Temp 27°C (GHL probe)


Here is a quick video I made testing the new camera out. Let me know what you think.

<object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/fjamZBLh0vQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/fjamZBLh0vQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object>

Thanks for looking

 

[Denadai]

Amazing video, great job !!

 

[kyle1284]

awesome video!! your tank looks amazing! so much space and so open... i love the background of the tank... it looks like your peeking over the edge of the reef into the great depths of the ocean... very well planned out! cant wait until those colonies get bigger!!

 

[gofor100]

Nice video!

I like the cameo by the anthias... hahaha!

I'll continue to think of fish you could add (other than the one's I've already mentioned). Since I don't have my large tank set up yet, I'll have to live vicariously through you for now...

 

[nsr500rossi]

Great great video, nice choice of music.

Can i ask what camera you used?

Mike

 

[gofor100]

ALL of these wouldn't work in your tank... but here's a modified list of my favorite fish in addition to the ones I already mentioned (also I've removed some so this doesn't take up a whole page):

> Either a Niger Trigger or a Blue Chin Trigger: It looks like you may be done with the "larger fish" selection, but I thought I would at least mention these. The blue chin is the smaller of the two, but both are considered "reef-safe" if you don't have any small shrimp or you can take your chances and introduce the shrimp first then the trigger. Plus, not many reef-tanks have triggers... so it would add something different.
> Regal Angel: Another larger fish, but had to mention it. Plus, being in HK, I would think that you would probably have good access to dealers of some healthy/juvenile Regals. But as with any Angel, they may nip at some stuff.
> Starry Blenny or Lawnmower Blenny: I have the Starry Blenny right now, and he is pretty awesome. Just have to make sure he gets plenty of vegetable matter to eat (whether it is growing on your rocks or provided in the form of nori or formula 2 flakes).
> Yellow-tail Damsels: you'd be surprised how nice a small group of these will make your tank look. Plus, and I'm talking about Chrysiptera parasema, these are one of the least aggressive (some consider a little shy) of the damsel family.
> Scribbled Rabbitfish (Siganus doliatus): nice-looking algae eater that can get quite big though. So maybe in your next UPGRADE!!! HAHAHAHAHA!

I might be going through an upgrade in a couple of months (still planting the seeds with my wife to get her to warm up to the idea)... so this is getting me all gitty.

 

[gofor100]

Oh... and I might be wrong (so someone please correct me if I am), but I noticed that you are dosing 40ml of Alk, and 20ml of Calcium... maybe its the additives that you're using, but I thought reef-building animals used these at the same rate.

I use supplements in powder form, and add them at roughly the same proportion (i.e., 3 tablespoons of each daily)... again, I could be completely wrong here, but just wanted to bring it up before you automate it.

 

[borcu]

inspiring

 

[Giga]

again one of the cleanest tank I have ever seen! I acaully building a tnak like yours 40x20x12. My tank is a little smaller but I hope you don't mind, I'm going to try and copy you

 

[Rodrigo_BG]

great video, did you use a high definition camera?

 

[ziyaadb]

awesome

 

[Chrisrush]

V1 - The next time you take the sump out to clean it, can you take a photo of how you disconnect the lines, etc? I'm looking to update and I would like to have a removable sump as I notice that certain spots in my current sump are detritus traps.

 

[Ancelot]

nice video bro!
may i know what is the title of the song you used?

 

[shaggss]

A Reef in the Sky

it's in the credits at the end of the video

 

[Mossrope]

firstly thanks for rekindling the flame in me.. lost a lot of inspiration while not keeping up with this thread!

next, the hues of a royal gramma can be a great addition if you can get your hands to one, plus a pretty good chance of it taking over the island which you suggested.( easier if theres nice arc caves on it)

and yeah the hot camera which everyone is waiting for too