I’d say they have a medium personality. KP Aqutics will sex them for you. Mine ate right away. You’re welcome to post here anytime. I will say it’s nice to have a thread to call home.
Caribbean Biotope Seagrass Tank
- Thread starter Michael Hoaster
- Start date
Chasmodes
Well-known member
vlangel, as an FYI, all of the species that I mentioned are on their web page.
vlangel
Premium Member
Thanks, I will definitely check all the blennies out. I might order some gorgs and ricordia from them also.
I hope KP is back to full strength by the spring.
The hurricane definitely affected that area - shut them down entirely for a while, and their availability seems low right now.
Edit: oh and my favorite thing about my last order is the 3 kinds of photo gorgs have all grown well in my tank. My gorg success had been really mixed before.
The hurricane definitely affected that area - shut them down entirely for a while, and their availability seems low right now.
Edit: oh and my favorite thing about my last order is the 3 kinds of photo gorgs have all grown well in my tank. My gorg success had been really mixed before.
Agreed. They have been out of almost everything for awhile now. Hope they bounce back!
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OK, I'm back home. It was nice to get away for a week or so, especially with all the work I've got ahead of me.
With the UV and other measures going, it looks like dinos are all but gone. I now have chaeto taking over! The caulerpa on the back wall has been knocked back again. I quick look revealed 3-4 adult slugs, doing their business. I guess I'll just have to let them chow down until I drain the tank.
Looking over my list of to dos, the first thing I can do is rehang the metal halide light. This I want to do BEFORE I drain the tank, so I can see the light spread through the water. I want to raise it up to see if I can reduce the heat radiating into the water. I also want to make sure I can limit the spread to where I want it, so I'll be bending the reflector in to constrict it. These two desires oppose each other but hopefully I can make it work.
Everything else will be done after I drain it. So, I'll need to figure out holding tanks for the stuff I want to keep alive. The fish I should be able to fit into the two QTs. I'd really like to keep as much of my sand and its residents as I can. What I don't want to do is bring any aiptasias or dinos or caulerpa slugs. That would be bad. I will also try to frag some of my sponges to carry over. As for macros, I probably won't try to keep many, especially because they have been invaded with aiptasias. And this time around, I'd like to focus on the seagrasses. I noticed an unwanted trend of ever-growing reds. I would prefer the overall look to be more green-dominated, with a small splash of red, that never attempts to take over.
So that's the vision! With luck, I hope to improve on the original concept, and fix a few mistakes.
With the UV and other measures going, it looks like dinos are all but gone. I now have chaeto taking over! The caulerpa on the back wall has been knocked back again. I quick look revealed 3-4 adult slugs, doing their business. I guess I'll just have to let them chow down until I drain the tank.
Looking over my list of to dos, the first thing I can do is rehang the metal halide light. This I want to do BEFORE I drain the tank, so I can see the light spread through the water. I want to raise it up to see if I can reduce the heat radiating into the water. I also want to make sure I can limit the spread to where I want it, so I'll be bending the reflector in to constrict it. These two desires oppose each other but hopefully I can make it work.
Everything else will be done after I drain it. So, I'll need to figure out holding tanks for the stuff I want to keep alive. The fish I should be able to fit into the two QTs. I'd really like to keep as much of my sand and its residents as I can. What I don't want to do is bring any aiptasias or dinos or caulerpa slugs. That would be bad. I will also try to frag some of my sponges to carry over. As for macros, I probably won't try to keep many, especially because they have been invaded with aiptasias. And this time around, I'd like to focus on the seagrasses. I noticed an unwanted trend of ever-growing reds. I would prefer the overall look to be more green-dominated, with a small splash of red, that never attempts to take over.
So that's the vision! With luck, I hope to improve on the original concept, and fix a few mistakes.
vlangel
Premium Member
It will be exciting watching part 2. I know what you mean about the red taking over the green. Even I have that with just macro algae if I am not careful.
I love the look of metal halides. It will be great if you can control the heat and bend the reflector to get the effect you want. This should be fun!
Thanks vlangel!
With this new, brighter bulb, the reds were bleaching out anyway, so what reds I have, will have to be confined to the dimmer end of the tank. I'm going to have to figure out which green macros can handle the brighter light as well, if I want to grow it on the back wall. The peltata I have doesn't like it that bright, so I'm looking for something that loves the brightness. Maybe I'll try several caulerpas and see what likes it.
Yes, I like the halides as well. I wonder now if what I'm running isn't too bright! At this point, I'm pretty sure the grasses will like it, as well as ulva, but I'm not sure what else. We'll see!
With this new, brighter bulb, the reds were bleaching out anyway, so what reds I have, will have to be confined to the dimmer end of the tank. I'm going to have to figure out which green macros can handle the brighter light as well, if I want to grow it on the back wall. The peltata I have doesn't like it that bright, so I'm looking for something that loves the brightness. Maybe I'll try several caulerpas and see what likes it.
Yes, I like the halides as well. I wonder now if what I'm running isn't too bright! At this point, I'm pretty sure the grasses will like it, as well as ulva, but I'm not sure what else. We'll see!
vlangel
Premium Member
Do you think you could get halimeda to attach to your back wall along with something like caulerpa? Does your wall have crevices that a sprig could be wedged into? If one or two can be wedged in then eventually others will probably grow naturally there.
I think it probably likes the bright light plus you would have some variation since the halimeda is calcarous and grows in a segmented branching fashion. I just think it would look cool.
I think it probably likes the bright light plus you would have some variation since the halimeda is calcarous and grows in a segmented branching fashion. I just think it would look cool.
SaltySully
New member
Matting halimeda and a few kinds of caulerpa would look sweet. Halimeda is a calcium hog.
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I have tried halimeda on the back wall recently, without success. I think the canister filter I'm using isn't functioning as well as a calcium reactor, compared to the previous one. I hope to upgrade at some point, so I may try halimeda again. Any more suggestions for very high light-loving macros would be appreciated.
I got the project underway yesterday, with repositioning the light up higher in the cabinet. I also bent in the reflector to limit its spread. Now I'm just waiting for it to come on, so I can make any needed adjustments.
I got the project underway yesterday, with repositioning the light up higher in the cabinet. I also bent in the reflector to limit its spread. Now I'm just waiting for it to come on, so I can make any needed adjustments.
Chasmodes
Well-known member
The new concept sounds very cool.
Regarding the sea hares, if they ate all of the caulerpa, then wouldn't they die out since they only eat caulerpa? I guess it doesn't matter at this point though because you're taking the tank down altogether, but if it happens again...
Regarding the sea hares, if they ate all of the caulerpa, then wouldn't they die out since they only eat caulerpa? I guess it doesn't matter at this point though because you're taking the tank down altogether, but if it happens again...
Thanks Kevin.
Yes, the caulerpa slugs should die out when the caulerpa is gone. Otherwise, they should die out when I drain it. My only worry is them going dormant, and surviving the dry out. Or laying eggs that somehow survive. I would guess the back wall, with all its pores, etcetera, would take a long time to fully dry out, making that a real possibility. I suppose I could put a fan in there to expedite.
Yes, the caulerpa slugs should die out when the caulerpa is gone. Otherwise, they should die out when I drain it. My only worry is them going dormant, and surviving the dry out. Or laying eggs that somehow survive. I would guess the back wall, with all its pores, etcetera, would take a long time to fully dry out, making that a real possibility. I suppose I could put a fan in there to expedite.
SaltySully
New member
I would do a mix of sea grass, pencil caps, mermaids fans, and some slow growing caulerpa like prolifria or cactus.
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Sent from my LGMS428 using Tapatalk
Thanks SaltySully.
I do like some of those, and others like them, like the pinecones and tufted joint. My main concern with caulerpa on the back wall is bright light tolerance.
I do like some of those, and others like them, like the pinecones and tufted joint. My main concern with caulerpa on the back wall is bright light tolerance.
Yep. My new 400 watt, 6500K metal halide bulb is very bright. At 36,000 lumens, it's considerably brighter than any bulb I've used before. I know lumens aren't ideal units of measurement for this application, but it's what I have. Also, what I have is a lot of bleached out macros, including the caulerpa. I'm confident the seagrasses will enjoy it. The shoal grass already is. This is my priority, providing lots of light for them.
I'm working to limit the spread, so I can grow a LIMITED amount of macros this time around. The real challenge will be finding plants that can flourish in very bright light, on the back wall, closer to the light, hence the bright light tolerance requirement.
In your experience, Subsea, which plants do you think would do well in this situation?
I'm working to limit the spread, so I can grow a LIMITED amount of macros this time around. The real challenge will be finding plants that can flourish in very bright light, on the back wall, closer to the light, hence the bright light tolerance requirement.
In your experience, Subsea, which plants do you think would do well in this situation?
Last Pics Before the Project
Last Pics Before the Project
FTS. I've ripped most of the macros out. They were all riddled with aiptasias and dinoflagellates. You can see the heinous UV setup. Also note the ultra-ghetto clothes-pinned bag of phosphate media, for extra style points.
The shoal grass is in great shape. If only it was taller… The yellowish 'ground cover' is the black grasilaria, that doesn't do so well in bright light.
A near bucketful of assorted macros. About half of it is chaeto. I've been trying to eradicate it for three years. After letting it go for a couple months, it became the dominate plant in the tank! The hardest plant to let go is the nemastoma. It did well for me and I had a lot of it. Clean slate!
It's a little sad to have to rip out the macros. I've got to be sure that nothing unwanted survives the changeover. I saved a few tufted joint algae for now. We'll see if I chance keeping it. Probably not.
It's also kind of exciting to get things moving!
Before I drain it, I still need to putz with the light. Even with bending the reflector in to limit the light spread, I still have a little too much. I'm thinking I may fashion some extensions out of sheet metal to further customize it. It's know it sounds odd to limit the spread of a singe bulb over a 180, but with the new, higher position, it's necessary.
See you on the other side…
Last Pics Before the Project
FTS. I've ripped most of the macros out. They were all riddled with aiptasias and dinoflagellates. You can see the heinous UV setup. Also note the ultra-ghetto clothes-pinned bag of phosphate media, for extra style points.
The shoal grass is in great shape. If only it was taller… The yellowish 'ground cover' is the black grasilaria, that doesn't do so well in bright light.
A near bucketful of assorted macros. About half of it is chaeto. I've been trying to eradicate it for three years. After letting it go for a couple months, it became the dominate plant in the tank! The hardest plant to let go is the nemastoma. It did well for me and I had a lot of it. Clean slate!
It's a little sad to have to rip out the macros. I've got to be sure that nothing unwanted survives the changeover. I saved a few tufted joint algae for now. We'll see if I chance keeping it. Probably not.
It's also kind of exciting to get things moving!
Before I drain it, I still need to putz with the light. Even with bending the reflector in to limit the light spread, I still have a little too much. I'm thinking I may fashion some extensions out of sheet metal to further customize it. It's know it sounds odd to limit the spread of a singe bulb over a 180, but with the new, higher position, it's necessary.
See you on the other side…
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I would LOVE to give it away, but I can't in good conscience do that. There are hundreds of aiptasias and tons more dinoflagellates embedded in all of it. The thought of starting an outbreak in someone else's tank is not something I can get comfortable with. Sorry JZ!
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