saltyskier
New member
Great clean look! Definitely inspiring!
Denise's Nuvo Fusion 20 Build
- Thread starter dmw913
- Start date
dmw913
New member
Thanks, everyone!
@ReefWreak, I have one single-eyed chalice frag that is clearly an LPS (squishy meaty flesh). I have another item which was described to me as a chalice which is much more similar to the following:
[/URL][/IMG]
The above pic was described as a chalice on animal-world. Closest thing I could find while not at home.
This one is not doing well and is not at all fleshy. I noticed online there are several different items sometimes referred to as chalice. Perhaps I got bad info and god only know what my piece actually is?!?!
@ReefWreak, I have one single-eyed chalice frag that is clearly an LPS (squishy meaty flesh). I have another item which was described to me as a chalice which is much more similar to the following:
The above pic was described as a chalice on animal-world. Closest thing I could find while not at home.
This one is not doing well and is not at all fleshy. I noticed online there are several different items sometimes referred to as chalice. Perhaps I got bad info and god only know what my piece actually is?!?!
it still looks like a chalice to me. There probably are different specific species, or the morphology may change slightly depending on where it came from, i.e. if it was always in higher flow, maybe it isn't quite as fleshy. Specific individual corals frequently adapt in weird ways to their surroundings, so it's not too surprising.
I'm interested in seeing a pic next time you're around to take one.
I'm interested in seeing a pic next time you're around to take one.
weiser5150
New member
So for the ATO do you have a container of RO water sitting to the side of the stand or maybe in the stand?
weiser5150
New member
and how often do you have to refill the 2.5 gal?
once a week but I probably still have .50-.75 gal left.
weiser5150
New member
thanks for the info.
dmw913
New member
Well, for good or for bad, I've started a process of stirring sections of sand daily kicking up detritus to have it get caught by the filter floss. For a very young tank, I'm really rather stunned how much junk has already found its way into the sand. What sealed the deal for me is that I have a plastic cup in the tank where my fragged mushrooms heal - Cup was obviously empty when I placed it in there and added rubble/frags. The amount of detritus that collected in a couple of weeks made me start doing some reading about sand cleaning. Strong opinions on both sides but I've obviously leaned toward the stirring/cleaning side of the debate as I don't have a DSB and am not relying on anything anaerobic.
On the side of "Things that Make You Go Hmmmmm" side (name that band) . . . when I stir the sand, most of the stuff I kick up tends to be white in color. I've found some obvious fish waste but very limited amount. Any idea why the detritus is white and what it is exactly? My current theory is that the white gunk is the residue left by the CUC.
On the side of "Things that Make You Go Hmmmmm" side (name that band) . . . when I stir the sand, most of the stuff I kick up tends to be white in color. I've found some obvious fish waste but very limited amount. Any idea why the detritus is white and what it is exactly? My current theory is that the white gunk is the residue left by the CUC.
Yea, who knows where detritus comes from. I think of it like a combination of people world things like dust and... uhm... excriments... where does dust come from? Do you want to think about what is in that dust bunny you're scooping up? Probably not. So I think detritus is probably similar (fish scales, poop, precipitates, etc).
From Dr. Shimek:
So, "detritus" means small particulate material of uncertain and variable origin.
Excellent article on detritus, what it is and how to get rid of it
From Dr. Shimek:
So, "detritus" means small particulate material of uncertain and variable origin.
Excellent article on detritus, what it is and how to get rid of it
dmw913
New member
Water change over the weekend and I stirred up a chuck of the sand getting a lot of gunk siphoned out which is good. Fish seem to be happy and always trolling for food. In the course of the change, I moved my candy cane too close to some ricordea and they got damaged pretty badly. The mushroom puffed up much more than normal to come after the candy cane. Fascinating and frustrating at the same time. Thank goodness I didn't pay a mint for the candy cane piece and it may recover. "Chalice" or whatever the small frag I referenced above continues to die and hydnophora has a bleach spot which appears to be from a shadow.
Take away from the above: Tank is either too new or I'm too much of an idiot right now for the SPS stuff. I also just may have too much going on in the tank by way of trying to do too many types of coral. Going to give it a rest and let everything grow out and get fat and sassy. The acans, lps and shrooms are all doing quite well. Zoas that didn't like the lighting change are starting to come back to life as well.
Take away from the above: Tank is either too new or I'm too much of an idiot right now for the SPS stuff. I also just may have too much going on in the tank by way of trying to do too many types of coral. Going to give it a rest and let everything grow out and get fat and sassy. The acans, lps and shrooms are all doing quite well. Zoas that didn't like the lighting change are starting to come back to life as well.
smtank
New member
Really enjoyed reading your tank's thread. Looks awesome.
Would one of the new Tunze Doc 9001 or the 9004 skimmers fit in the back? I have had two and like mine very much. Tired the IM Ghost for about 2 months, ugggggg, went back to Tunze.
My tank is 5 months, in the last 2 months I started to vacuum the sand, shocked I tell ya, at the amount of junk I pull out.
The Radion is so cool. I laughed at your comment regarding the storm setting. My Hydra has it as well, I never use it but cool none the less to me.
It took 3 months for my tank to handle sps, finally starting to see some real improvement.
Sigh, I wish the apex was in my budget. After reading your experience with it I am gonna make it happen, though.
Would one of the new Tunze Doc 9001 or the 9004 skimmers fit in the back? I have had two and like mine very much. Tired the IM Ghost for about 2 months, ugggggg, went back to Tunze.
My tank is 5 months, in the last 2 months I started to vacuum the sand, shocked I tell ya, at the amount of junk I pull out.
The Radion is so cool. I laughed at your comment regarding the storm setting. My Hydra has it as well, I never use it but cool none the less to me.
It took 3 months for my tank to handle sps, finally starting to see some real improvement.
Sigh, I wish the apex was in my budget. After reading your experience with it I am gonna make it happen, though.
dmw913
New member
@smtank, Thanks so much! I was really hoping to get the Tunze 9001 and it is 1/4" too big for the skimmer section of my tank. I could theoretically get it to fit in the return pump area but the tank has dual returns and getting the piping to work while making room for skimmer would be a significant challenge to say the least - not to mention the micro bubble problem which could result from putting a skimmer in the return section. I'm keeping my eye out for a 50 Elite so I can try the mod and get it to fit. @OsiViper is making me a stand for it to replace the bracket I have to cut off. So awesome of him!!!
Random verbal vomit: As I was writing and reviewing this thread, and glancing over at my tank, I think I just figured out why my SPS are tanking . . . I've started stirring the sand and I bet working through cleaning that crap out has angered them. I wonder if I stay up to date on that process and don't have the buildup anymore if it will improve? I did notice that the section of sand I stirred tonight was quite clean so I know I'm making headway. I've now moved to blowing off the rocks which is another stunning process. No idea that much crap was hiding in there. Need a bigger turkey baster though. I tried to plug in a powerhead and just managed to anger coral. Manual spray is better IMHO. Another reason to keep a data log of your tank - whether it be here or elsewhere!
I'll try to get current test results in the next couple of days. I like to do them weekly and add them to the Apex log (it gives a graphical representation of your test results over time) and I'm a few days late on current numbers. Darn kids and their unreasonable requests like food and companionship . . . taking away time from my tank husbandry.
Chalice has probably 1 more day before it finally meets it's maker entirely. Once the demise started, it was quick. Mushrooms are exploding and doing well. Zoas that had not appreciated the lighting change are recovering nicely - open and with better color. Finally, I had a zoa frag I almost threw away. Two polyps and they closed up/shrunk to almost nothing - nibs. I moved the frag plug to the back of the tank to get it off the rocks. Noticed polyps weren't melting anymore. Little baby polyps are open again as of tonight. Who knew?! Take away: I totally almost threw that frag out this morning. If there's a sign of life, don't give up.
Random verbal vomit: As I was writing and reviewing this thread, and glancing over at my tank, I think I just figured out why my SPS are tanking . . . I've started stirring the sand and I bet working through cleaning that crap out has angered them. I wonder if I stay up to date on that process and don't have the buildup anymore if it will improve? I did notice that the section of sand I stirred tonight was quite clean so I know I'm making headway. I've now moved to blowing off the rocks which is another stunning process. No idea that much crap was hiding in there. Need a bigger turkey baster though. I tried to plug in a powerhead and just managed to anger coral. Manual spray is better IMHO. Another reason to keep a data log of your tank - whether it be here or elsewhere!
I'll try to get current test results in the next couple of days. I like to do them weekly and add them to the Apex log (it gives a graphical representation of your test results over time) and I'm a few days late on current numbers. Darn kids and their unreasonable requests like food and companionship . . . taking away time from my tank husbandry.
Chalice has probably 1 more day before it finally meets it's maker entirely. Once the demise started, it was quick. Mushrooms are exploding and doing well. Zoas that had not appreciated the lighting change are recovering nicely - open and with better color. Finally, I had a zoa frag I almost threw away. Two polyps and they closed up/shrunk to almost nothing - nibs. I moved the frag plug to the back of the tank to get it off the rocks. Noticed polyps weren't melting anymore. Little baby polyps are open again as of tonight. Who knew?! Take away: I totally almost threw that frag out this morning. If there's a sign of life, don't give up.
dmw913
New member
July 10 Update: I'm getting really frustrated, nano friends! Things have taken a turn south and I cannot seem to get nitrates under control. Current water changes are 3.5 gallons about every 8-9 days and nitrates are going up, not down as the tank ages. I don't believe I've increased feeding and I've actually had a fish die so I'm down to three. Mushrooms are fine but the LPS are showing signs of not being happy and forget about SPS at this time. Ghost skimmer continues to be the bane of my existence and now that I've gotten my sweeeeeet stand for the Cad Lights elite skimmer, I think I'm just going to take the plunge and mod it to fit and see if I get any higher skimmer production to see if things improve.
Any other thoughts from the collective of things I can do better/differently? Water changes could be right at 6-7 days, but I think the skimmer is a bigger issue overall. Thing has never really performed well.
Feedback always appreciated.
Happy weekend!
Any other thoughts from the collective of things I can do better/differently? Water changes could be right at 6-7 days, but I think the skimmer is a bigger issue overall. Thing has never really performed well.
Feedback always appreciated.
Happy weekend!
I would just cut down on feeding temporarily for sure, then more water changes, and fixing the skimmer situation. If you get those under control, you could carefully start VERY slowly dosing vodka, but it will suppress your pH and you must be careful with it so you don't get a bacteria bloom.
dmw913
New member
@reefwreak, great suggestions, all! I did a water change last night and was able to get my hands on a Cad Lights skimmer locally so it's running now in the main tank just to get it in asap. Will do the mods after it's broken in and the tank water is back to proper quality. The side benefit of the 50 Elite is that it is near dead silent as opposed to the Ghost which was quite noisy. Let's hope it starts pulling junk soon. Going to do another water change tomorrow as well. I hope to avoid carbon dosing as I worry if there's a power outage, the extra bacteria can snarf up the available oxygen so quickly it can cause a tank crash.
dmw913
New member
Ok, PLS-50 Elite mod has been completed and skimmer is in it's proper chamber and is starting to get a bit of a head of foam on it. It appears to be ultra-sensitive by way of water level adjustment at this point. I hope it settles down as it continues to break in. The modification went ok although I'm not a Dremel expert by any means. I cut the bracket off and then sanded the other side until it fit since I did a crap job with the initial cut. The water change referenced above took my nitrates down and LPS look a little happier today. Hopefully, the swing is now upward. #thestruggleisreal
rjkrejci
Premium Member
The Cadlights is pretty sensitive. I did what a guy in the mod thread suggested. Put an air valve for fine adjustments. Also, make sure you leave the plastic fastener opposite the control knob on the base a bit loose. Otherwise, when you tighten down the knob it affects the adjustment, which is really frustrating. It does take a bit to settle down though. Mines doing great right now, and it's soooo quiet.
Similar threads
