Austin goes Rimless - Dudester's 203g mixed reef
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melev
Well-known member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12876440#post12876440 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chrismunn
:lol: is there some joke going around the club about me being shy?? dont worry, ill talk to everybody one day
"around the club"??? :lol: We're still cracking up about it here at DFWMAS!
Dudester
Premium Member
That's a fair statement GSMguy, let's go ahead and eliminate this thread from the RC archives.
There's actually not much good happening with this tank, so I haven't felt that updates would be all that valuable. The only good news is that the corals are coloring up and growing nicely, and I added a female Hawaiian flame wrasse who sticks pretty close to the male's side. Oh, and the achilles tang, a reputably difficult fish to keep, is somehow thriving under my care. For those who don't remember, I have a pretty bad reputation when it comes to keeping fish alive.
The bad news is that I noticed a small patch of GHA about a month ago, but I didn't think much of it. I certainly didn't take any measures to get rid of it, figuring that between my tang and clean up crew, it would run its course and be gone. Well as I'm sure you all know, that one patch grew and turned into several patches, just about the time I was preparing to leave for a 2 week vacation in Italy. When I returned from Italy the tank was a forest of green. I spent several hours pruning large clumps of algae and did a water change. I turned off the lights for 3 days and added some large Mexican turbo snails. I've stepped up my filter sock changes and I'm skimming as aggressively as possible. I'm due for a zeolith change but I'll need to order more. For some reason I allowed my nitrate and phosphate test kits to expire so I'll need to test those parameters and figure out why the algae began growing in the first place. Currently the algae is growing and trying to take over the tank, so today I'll probably have to prune back more and I'm adding more large Mexican turbos as soon as I can get some.
It's hard for me to spend a lot of time and energy on the tank these days, since I'm trying to sell my house and oversee the construction on my new house, all while maintaining my "day job" and a stable family life. My motivation to improve the situation in this tank includes the desire to eventually move all of the LR and corals into the new tank. I think it will be worth it but it's going to be a grind in the mean time.
So sorry, GSMguy, I have no photos to share at the moment, but I think you already know what GHA looks like
.
There's actually not much good happening with this tank, so I haven't felt that updates would be all that valuable. The only good news is that the corals are coloring up and growing nicely, and I added a female Hawaiian flame wrasse who sticks pretty close to the male's side. Oh, and the achilles tang, a reputably difficult fish to keep, is somehow thriving under my care. For those who don't remember, I have a pretty bad reputation when it comes to keeping fish alive.
The bad news is that I noticed a small patch of GHA about a month ago, but I didn't think much of it. I certainly didn't take any measures to get rid of it, figuring that between my tang and clean up crew, it would run its course and be gone. Well as I'm sure you all know, that one patch grew and turned into several patches, just about the time I was preparing to leave for a 2 week vacation in Italy. When I returned from Italy the tank was a forest of green. I spent several hours pruning large clumps of algae and did a water change. I turned off the lights for 3 days and added some large Mexican turbo snails. I've stepped up my filter sock changes and I'm skimming as aggressively as possible. I'm due for a zeolith change but I'll need to order more. For some reason I allowed my nitrate and phosphate test kits to expire so I'll need to test those parameters and figure out why the algae began growing in the first place. Currently the algae is growing and trying to take over the tank, so today I'll probably have to prune back more and I'm adding more large Mexican turbos as soon as I can get some.
It's hard for me to spend a lot of time and energy on the tank these days, since I'm trying to sell my house and oversee the construction on my new house, all while maintaining my "day job" and a stable family life. My motivation to improve the situation in this tank includes the desire to eventually move all of the LR and corals into the new tank. I think it will be worth it but it's going to be a grind in the mean time.
So sorry, GSMguy, I have no photos to share at the moment, but I think you already know what GHA looks like
.
GSMguy
New member
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12883862#post12883862 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Dudester
That's a fair statement GSMguy, let's go ahead and eliminate this thread from the RC archives.
So sorry, GSMguy, I have no photos to share at the moment, but I think you already know what GHA looks like
Take your time Mike i was kidding. You can play with the next tank when you get the rest of the other more pressing issues with your home figured out.
how about an update on the office tank?
i have seen GHA but never dealt with it, what do you think it is it from? is it a problem with the rocks or the parameters? have you been able to keep dosing the Zeostart daily? it might need some adjustment. what salt mix are you using again? sorry your having trouble, there was a period that i did nothing and let my mojanos grow to a unmanageable number it was allot of work getting it back to normal and killing them.
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melev
Well-known member
Actually pictures would be great, Mike. I know it is depressing, but then you can look back on what it was and how you fixed it, and be able to show others the difference.
Since you plan to set up the new tank in 7 months or so, you have enough time to get this figured out. How long is your lighting period? Is it time to replace the T5's yet?
Since you plan to set up the new tank in 7 months or so, you have enough time to get this figured out. How long is your lighting period? Is it time to replace the T5's yet?
martinphillip03
New member
Mike, When you start your new house tank thread, could you post the thread location here. I have been following you since your 35 gallon thread and I would like to continue.
Thanks,
Marty
Thanks,
Marty
Dudester
Premium Member
GSMguy - The office tank is doing great, thanks for asking! I can't believe how big some of the corals have gotten, and we've had some nice fish and coral additions since the last update on that thread. I simply don't have time to keep that thread up to date, and hopefully the thread starter/owner (ahem, John) will make some additions.
I'm not sure about the origin of the GHA. I hadn't added any corals to the tank in months, and since the tank was set up nearly 10 months ago I had never seen even a whisp of the algae. Nothing in the tank died to cause a nutrient spike, but something must have. I feel irresponsible for not getting a nitrate or phosphate test when it came about, but I just assumed it would take care of itself. Some possible contributors include the fact that my Zeoliths are a little old and maybe they're not pulling nutrients like they're supposed to. I'm ordering more 'liths today. I also changed to Reefer's Best salt and this algae bloom occurred just about the time I changed from TM Pro. Maybe that's the cause? I'm going to test nitrates and phosphates in both my tank and my mixed saltwater to see what's up there. I've been keeping up with the ZeoStart as per the protocol. I was dosing it twice daily with my Aquatronica controller but the day I returned the controller panel went blank so I've been dosing it manually since then. I'm currently working to get the controller repaired/replaced, but that's a whole other story in itself. I guess I should report my algae bloom on the Zeovit forum and see what folks say.
jnarowe - I thought about cooking the rock, but really hope that won't be necessary. I guess I'll see what the situation is when moving day approaches and make a decision.
melev - Yes, you are right, I should take some pics. All right smooth talker, maybe tonight I'll get'em snapped.
As far as the lights, GSMguy is right in that the T5 lamps usually don't need to be replaced more often than annually. But to answer your question, here's my photoperiod:
actinics on 1330, off 2230
full lights on 1530, off 2030
marty and Chrisrush - Yeah guys, I have a planning thread for the new 450g, and when the time draws nearer I'll either update that thread or I'll start a new one. Either way I'll post another link here. Misery loves company, right? :rollface:
I'm not sure about the origin of the GHA. I hadn't added any corals to the tank in months, and since the tank was set up nearly 10 months ago I had never seen even a whisp of the algae. Nothing in the tank died to cause a nutrient spike, but something must have. I feel irresponsible for not getting a nitrate or phosphate test when it came about, but I just assumed it would take care of itself. Some possible contributors include the fact that my Zeoliths are a little old and maybe they're not pulling nutrients like they're supposed to. I'm ordering more 'liths today. I also changed to Reefer's Best salt and this algae bloom occurred just about the time I changed from TM Pro. Maybe that's the cause? I'm going to test nitrates and phosphates in both my tank and my mixed saltwater to see what's up there. I've been keeping up with the ZeoStart as per the protocol. I was dosing it twice daily with my Aquatronica controller but the day I returned the controller panel went blank so I've been dosing it manually since then. I'm currently working to get the controller repaired/replaced, but that's a whole other story in itself. I guess I should report my algae bloom on the Zeovit forum and see what folks say.
jnarowe - I thought about cooking the rock, but really hope that won't be necessary. I guess I'll see what the situation is when moving day approaches and make a decision.
melev - Yes, you are right, I should take some pics. All right smooth talker, maybe tonight I'll get'em snapped.
As far as the lights, GSMguy is right in that the T5 lamps usually don't need to be replaced more often than annually. But to answer your question, here's my photoperiod:
actinics on 1330, off 2230
full lights on 1530, off 2030
marty and Chrisrush - Yeah guys, I have a planning thread for the new 450g, and when the time draws nearer I'll either update that thread or I'll start a new one. Either way I'll post another link here. Misery loves company, right? :rollface:
Dudester
Premium Member
Yesterday I went ahead and used my 6-month expired Salifert nitrate test kit and obtained a reading of 3 on my tank. So if I can rely on that test kit, that should be fine.
I then took a water sample to Kingfish and John did some tests for me with his D-D phosphate kit. My tank was at 0.015, and the mixed Reefer's Best salt was 0.008. So this tells me that my salt is not phosphate-free, but I'm not very concerned with such a low number. This wouldn't have even showed up on a Salifert kit. The level in my tank of 0.015 is perfect, although John interprets this as being markedly elevated considering the fact that the GHA is clearly consuming phosphates, and therefore without the algae the level would be much higher.
After having the lights off another 3 days and changing the filter socks daily, the algae is receding. While at Kingfish I got another 2 Mexican turbos (that's all that were available) and I picked up a yellow tang. It's small and won't add much bioload, and hopefully it will eat some of the algae. Most of the original Mexican turbos that I got have died for some reason, but they weren't really eating much of the algae if any, so I'm not too disappointed that I've only added 2 more.
As for the welcoming of the yellow tang to the tank, well, it wasn't what I would call uneventful. As soon as it hit the water it was attacked by the achilles tang. The achilles shredded some of the yellow's dorsal fin and didn't let up until I turned off the actinics and provided total darkness to the tank. Fortunately the tail spines aren't yet developed or the yellow would have had some serious flesh wounds. This morning the aggression has mellowed to where the achilles is basically confining the yellow to one side of the tank, not allowing it to venture out. The yellow tang is left to pace only one 30" side of the tank, but at least it's not getting physically attacked any longer. I see this as a positive that the achilles has backed off somewhat, and as long as the stress doesn't overwhelm the yellow I think things will be okay.
To continue the battle against the GHA I'm going to look into running Phosban. I don't think the zeoheads will like this suggestion but it may be necessary as a temporizing measure, and I'll ask about it on the Zeovit forum. BTW, Hop wrote a nice article about GHA in the current edition of Reefkeeping Magazine if anyone is interested.
I then took a water sample to Kingfish and John did some tests for me with his D-D phosphate kit. My tank was at 0.015, and the mixed Reefer's Best salt was 0.008. So this tells me that my salt is not phosphate-free, but I'm not very concerned with such a low number. This wouldn't have even showed up on a Salifert kit. The level in my tank of 0.015 is perfect, although John interprets this as being markedly elevated considering the fact that the GHA is clearly consuming phosphates, and therefore without the algae the level would be much higher.
After having the lights off another 3 days and changing the filter socks daily, the algae is receding. While at Kingfish I got another 2 Mexican turbos (that's all that were available) and I picked up a yellow tang. It's small and won't add much bioload, and hopefully it will eat some of the algae. Most of the original Mexican turbos that I got have died for some reason, but they weren't really eating much of the algae if any, so I'm not too disappointed that I've only added 2 more.
As for the welcoming of the yellow tang to the tank, well, it wasn't what I would call uneventful. As soon as it hit the water it was attacked by the achilles tang. The achilles shredded some of the yellow's dorsal fin and didn't let up until I turned off the actinics and provided total darkness to the tank. Fortunately the tail spines aren't yet developed or the yellow would have had some serious flesh wounds. This morning the aggression has mellowed to where the achilles is basically confining the yellow to one side of the tank, not allowing it to venture out. The yellow tang is left to pace only one 30" side of the tank, but at least it's not getting physically attacked any longer. I see this as a positive that the achilles has backed off somewhat, and as long as the stress doesn't overwhelm the yellow I think things will be okay.
To continue the battle against the GHA I'm going to look into running Phosban. I don't think the zeoheads will like this suggestion but it may be necessary as a temporizing measure, and I'll ask about it on the Zeovit forum. BTW, Hop wrote a nice article about GHA in the current edition of Reefkeeping Magazine if anyone is interested.
jnarowe
New member
totally agree with John. IMO, any reading of PO4 in the water column means that the system is not utilizing it fast enough. The Mexican turbos dying off will foul the water something fierce. I would remove any you can get to immediately as they fester inside their shells for days. And being that you live in the great state of Texas, I wouldn't add any more. They don't do well in the higher temp. ranges of our tropical systems.
BTW, I find that introducing new fish after lights out works much better. I never do it when the lights are on.
BTW, I find that introducing new fish after lights out works much better. I never do it when the lights are on.
Dudester
Premium Member
The chiller keeps the tank between 78-80 degrees. And I agree, I should have turned off the light immediately, but I wanted to see how the fish would take to its new environment. I think it would have 'taken' better if it didn't get the crap beat out of it and I had turned off the stinking light! Lesson learned.
As for the little bulldozers, I don't mind them so much. Besides, all of my corals are going to move in several months anyway, so a little shifting before the move date wouldn't be so bad.
The Zeo folks didn't think I should use GFO at the moment. Instead I was offered a revised dosing regimen of my products. I will make the change and let y'all know how it goes.
As for the little bulldozers, I don't mind them so much. Besides, all of my corals are going to move in several months anyway, so a little shifting before the move date wouldn't be so bad.
The Zeo folks didn't think I should use GFO at the moment. Instead I was offered a revised dosing regimen of my products. I will make the change and let y'all know how it goes.
jnarowe
New member
Well, all turbos do is eat and poo, so unless you are sucking up all the poo, all they do is improve the "look" of the tank but do nothing for the husbandry. And when they die, it's an added negative because not only does the system have to deal with the poo, now it has a variety of chemicals/nutrients resulting from the decaying snail.
Above 78F is too warm for them long-term, and a spike above 80F can spark a massive die-off.
About the fish: I added a yellow scopas to my tank a while back. I had purchased it as a gift for a friend, but in the mean-time he had bought a yellow tang and his tank is too small for any more. Reluctantly I introduced it to my system and it got the crap beat out of it by the usual ruffians, the yellow and the purple tangs. They seem to gang up on any newcomer.
Well this little scopas looked like it was going to die. It was tattered something aweful and I really had little hope for it. But its will to survive won out and over time it joined the reef community. It did take more than a week for it to get a decent meal, but it ducked and weaved its way into the fold, and now is doing fine.
Above 78F is too warm for them long-term, and a spike above 80F can spark a massive die-off.
About the fish: I added a yellow scopas to my tank a while back. I had purchased it as a gift for a friend, but in the mean-time he had bought a yellow tang and his tank is too small for any more. Reluctantly I introduced it to my system and it got the crap beat out of it by the usual ruffians, the yellow and the purple tangs. They seem to gang up on any newcomer.
Well this little scopas looked like it was going to die. It was tattered something aweful and I really had little hope for it. But its will to survive won out and over time it joined the reef community. It did take more than a week for it to get a decent meal, but it ducked and weaved its way into the fold, and now is doing fine.
jnarowe
New member
It's usually just establishing a pecking order, but sometimes the noob doesn't survive. I had a yellow eye kole nearly die (back when I did intros during lights on) and just by luck got him scooped out with a net. He healed with in a couple of days and I gave him to another reefer, who promptly killed it!
But, yellows are a tenacious bunch so I have high hopes for yours.
But, yellows are a tenacious bunch so I have high hopes for yours.
