CPT. MURPHY
Premium Member
looks nice ! 
Diary of my LiL 40 Gallon Breeder(Intense)
- Thread starter InsaneClownFish
- Start date
InsaneClownFish
New member
Thanks Murphy!More Updates: Well the long "thingy" on the glass Dr. Ron says is probably some type of snail. The other I identified as a baby clam- I believe I now have a couple of these..very neat!
floppyfish
New member
Nice tank!
Also, not to be nit picky, but that snail is an astrea, not a turbo.
Also, not to be nit picky, but that snail is an astrea, not a turbo.
InsaneClownFish
New member
floppyfish, yes I was wondering that myself. I think Astrea and turbos are the same thing. At the very least they are the same family. From pictures I've seen, it seems what people are calling turbos have a slight bend, or lean to the shell.
You're probably right, I half suspected they are Astreas..
Turbo or Astrea, I had to help one of those lil goobers off i's back last week..
floppyfish, you definately reminded me of the funniest thing I have seen so far in my tank- both the "astreas" decided to climb onto my floating thermometer; which I usually leave next to the powerhead(their favorite spot). Well the thermometer came loose from its spot and started floating around the tank with the two snails on it..lol
It was pretty funny...they looked lost at sea as they bobbed around the tank. Just as I was about to intervene their ride came to an abrupt end and the thermostat lodged under a rock. Perfect I said, now they can just crawl off. LOL
One would start to get onto the rock, just as the other decided to try from underneath...then swoosh the first one would be knocked back to the bottom...now the one on top would try...same result...
This went on for about 5 trys till they finally figured it out..
You're probably right, I half suspected they are Astreas..
Turbo or Astrea, I had to help one of those lil goobers off i's back last week..
floppyfish, you definately reminded me of the funniest thing I have seen so far in my tank- both the "astreas" decided to climb onto my floating thermometer; which I usually leave next to the powerhead(their favorite spot). Well the thermometer came loose from its spot and started floating around the tank with the two snails on it..lol
It was pretty funny...they looked lost at sea as they bobbed around the tank. Just as I was about to intervene their ride came to an abrupt end and the thermostat lodged under a rock. Perfect I said, now they can just crawl off. LOL
One would start to get onto the rock, just as the other decided to try from underneath...then swoosh the first one would be knocked back to the bottom...now the one on top would try...same result...
This went on for about 5 trys till they finally figured it out..
floppyfish
New member
LOL, funny thing to see I'm sure!
Yeah, I see all sorts of pet stores calling astrea turbo's and the real turbo's mexican turbo's.
Its just if you do a google search on astrea snail, you will see the real 'astrea'. If you do a search on 'turbo' snail you will see an astrea also. But, if you do a search on 'mexican turbo' you will see a to me what is a real turbo. The shell shape difference is very noticable.
I dunno, ignore me I'm just being anal!
Yeah, I see all sorts of pet stores calling astrea turbo's and the real turbo's mexican turbo's.
Its just if you do a google search on astrea snail, you will see the real 'astrea'. If you do a search on 'turbo' snail you will see an astrea also. But, if you do a search on 'mexican turbo' you will see a to me what is a real turbo. The shell shape difference is very noticable.
I dunno, ignore me I'm just being anal!
InsaneClownFish
New member
floppyfish...
I noticed you keep SPS with shroomys...any probs with chemi-warfare?
More Updates:
I attended my second CTARS meeting on Sunday. A few fellow reefers brought me some of their sand. OMG what a difference! I now have 900,000 pods! LOL..alright alright...maybe not that many, but after I added Dan's sand alone there were no less than 40 pods on my glass..wow! Dan brought me a whole minibucket- which was great because I needed to fill in some low spots in the sand bed. The life in his tank must be incredible! I also got bristle worms and some nice spagetti worms from his sand.
One of the spagetti worms parked itself right in front of the glass, so I really got to check that critter out...really neat. The tank was quite cloudy for a couple of hours- but WELL worth it..
ReefWraith and Minh also brought me some sand. Minh made sure to add a nice batch of macro, a micro brittle star, and a few unique sponges. Awesome! I now have two more lil Astrea stars cruisin the glass.
I am so grateful for the generosity of fellow reefers in my area. I would highly recommend that those who start a dsb system get sand from as many local sources as possible. Fellow reefers often have more active and diverse sand than the LFS reefs...
It's amazing to see the wormtrails I now have forming. I can even distinguish certain layers of live sand. I'm amazed at how deep the bristles have migrated into my non-active aragonite...
So far I've added 90lbs. of oolitic Aragomax sand, and I've added aproximately 14 lbs of live sand from 6 different established tanks.
Two more fellow reefers have offered me some sand the next time we can meet up... I'm eternally grateful to all who are helping me start my tank. Frags shall flow freely.
I noticed you keep SPS with shroomys...any probs with chemi-warfare?
More Updates:
I attended my second CTARS meeting on Sunday. A few fellow reefers brought me some of their sand. OMG what a difference! I now have 900,000 pods! LOL..alright alright...maybe not that many, but after I added Dan's sand alone there were no less than 40 pods on my glass..wow! Dan brought me a whole minibucket- which was great because I needed to fill in some low spots in the sand bed. The life in his tank must be incredible! I also got bristle worms and some nice spagetti worms from his sand.
One of the spagetti worms parked itself right in front of the glass, so I really got to check that critter out...really neat. The tank was quite cloudy for a couple of hours- but WELL worth it..
ReefWraith and Minh also brought me some sand. Minh made sure to add a nice batch of macro, a micro brittle star, and a few unique sponges. Awesome! I now have two more lil Astrea stars cruisin the glass.
I am so grateful for the generosity of fellow reefers in my area. I would highly recommend that those who start a dsb system get sand from as many local sources as possible. Fellow reefers often have more active and diverse sand than the LFS reefs...
It's amazing to see the wormtrails I now have forming. I can even distinguish certain layers of live sand. I'm amazed at how deep the bristles have migrated into my non-active aragonite...
So far I've added 90lbs. of oolitic Aragomax sand, and I've added aproximately 14 lbs of live sand from 6 different established tanks.
Two more fellow reefers have offered me some sand the next time we can meet up...
I'm eternally grateful to all who are helping me start my tank. Frags shall flow freely. InsaneClownFish
New member
More updates: I had also purchased a couple of nice sized Trochus snails from JP. The snails are doing great. Amazingly, they're almost 3 times the size of the Astrea/Turbos.
There was definately some snail love goin on when I first put them in the tank.. Recently, I've noticed that they seem to prefer this one rock that is closest to the waterline. They also like to "sit" more than the Astreas. I had my girlfriend pick up some Nori at the LFS tonight- so I'll supplement with that(I'm a bit worried I don't have enough algae yet to fully support their diet).
Interestingly enough, they tend to like to sit on one another's shell. I've postulated that they may be scrounging for the extra algae. They are truly nice specimens. I'm amazed at the overall coloring and deep green circles on their soft tissue.
It's also cool to see pods hitchhike on their shells...
Earlier today one of my Astreas was sitting on the Trochus, while the Trochus sat on the other Trochus...kinda funny...
Hopefully, I'll be getting my hands on a digi-cam either this weekend or Monday...more updates to come...
There was definately some snail love goin on when I first put them in the tank..
Recently, I've noticed that they seem to prefer this one rock that is closest to the waterline. They also like to "sit" more than the Astreas. I had my girlfriend pick up some Nori at the LFS tonight- so I'll supplement with that(I'm a bit worried I don't have enough algae yet to fully support their diet).Interestingly enough, they tend to like to sit on one another's shell. I've postulated that they may be scrounging for the extra algae. They are truly nice specimens. I'm amazed at the overall coloring and deep green circles on their soft tissue.
It's also cool to see pods hitchhike on their shells...
Earlier today one of my Astreas was sitting on the Trochus, while the Trochus sat on the other Trochus...kinda funny...
Hopefully, I'll be getting my hands on a digi-cam either this weekend or Monday...more updates to come...
floppyfish
New member
InsaneClownFish said:floppyfish...
I noticed you keep SPS with shroomys...any probs with chemi-warfare?
No, I haven't had a problem with chem warfair. Altho, I was lazy at gluing my Monti frag and he fell into my Yuma and got stung. But, he is doing fine.
Most of the stonies in my sig are dead do to a Kalk od. I need to update that!
mightymouse
New member
theres only one problem i see here you said you want a goni or a flower pot coral i would strongly advise against this read up on them before ytou decide they are one of the most difficult to keep corals you will find and very few have success with these
floppyfish
New member
If you want a goni, or something like it. Get an Alveopora, looks very similar and is easier to keep, or so I'm told.
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=390
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=390
InsaneClownFish
New member
I'll definately keep the calcium question in the back of my mind. Right now I'm using Oceanic Salt at a pretty high specific gravity, so I might have an issue with too much Calcium.
I still haven't decided whether I will keep a few SPS or not. I'm going to be contacting a few people I've come across that keep some sps in my size softie tank.
I want lots of shroomies and ricordia- so we'll see..
I do have one green/brown Monti frag care of Dan's sand..
More updates: Last week I nuked what I'm guessing to have been another Aiptasia. I wasn't as positive as the first incident that this critter was actually Aiptasia. At the very least I think it was some type of pest anenome- when I shot regular water at it it jumped back into its tiny crevice. I haven't seen any signs since.
The Nori my LFS ended up having was the seaweed variety. I put some in the tank, but I don't think the snails dig it. I'll have to get my hands on some of the red algae version. I'll just put the seaweed aside for when I have a dwarf angel- should make a nice treat.
I topped off the water last night, and this morning, I swear I had evaporated a whole gallon- probably because I missed a top off. I'm going to check the tank in the morning. Evaporation hasn't been a big issue, and surprisingly, the salt creep isn't nearly as bad as I had expected. I really like the idea of getting some fresh water in there every time a little evaporates out.
Monday the tank gets covered for the lights..
I purchased my first corals from a fellow reefer(Minh) at this past meeting. It was a purple bullseye disc shroomy with two smaller, and slightly brownish versions on the same shelf. I also got a very tiny super red shroom.
The purple bullseye is doing very well. It definately acclimated well, as it turned into a nice little cornocopia funnel the next day(feeding from the water column). They did move to the bottom of the tank, but I think it's because the VERY light, and feather thin piece of rock they are on got caught in the current. One of the shroomies is underneath, so it's not very visible. When I moved it back to its original location, the other brown shroom is either still sheltering under the parent, or it's attached to some of the rock on the netherregions of the tank. Both did come out for a bit.
Unfortunately, the little red one took a ride on the flow and is currently MIA. Hopefully it will surface on a rock once I have better lighting on the tank.
I ordered my black T5 Tek fixture(6 x 39w), and acrylic shield, from ReefGeek last week.
They were backordered, and they were currently waiting for Sunlight Supply to drop ship. Thankfully, they did drop ship with my other order and are in transit- so I should have lights on the tank by Monday!
The bulb configuration will be as follows from back to front:
Blue + (D+D formerly ATI)
Blue + (D+D)
Sun (GE)
Aquablue (D+D)
Sun (GE)
Blue +
{I called Deltec for the lowdown on D+D bulbs. D and D is a British company, and it looks like they bought out ATI(it's been surmised ATI was not doing too well). The bulbs are manufactured in the same plant in Germany, yet they are now stamped with the D+D logo.}
I'm going to try that configuration for awhile. Eventually, I may swap out the front sun for an aquablue. Thanks for everyones' advice on T5 bulbs- it was very helpful. I also spent alot of time looking at bulb configurations in some T5 threads, and the above configuration seems to be a winner.
If I'm not happy with the lights directly on the tank, I'm going to cut a couple of 1 3/4 inch Teak blocks and set the light up on those.
I also ordered a couple of more Maxijet 900s- I should have some serious flow...
Thanks to everyone for your continuing encouragement.
mightymouse, yes, I kinda put my foot in my mouth on those. I never realized that the infamous flowerpot corals are Goniopora. I'll definately pass on those.
Floppy- I'll look into those. I'm looking for advice on some low key sps.
I still haven't decided whether I will keep a few SPS or not. I'm going to be contacting a few people I've come across that keep some sps in my size softie tank.
I want lots of shroomies and ricordia- so we'll see..
I do have one green/brown Monti frag care of Dan's sand..
More updates: Last week I nuked what I'm guessing to have been another Aiptasia. I wasn't as positive as the first incident that this critter was actually Aiptasia. At the very least I think it was some type of pest anenome- when I shot regular water at it it jumped back into its tiny crevice. I haven't seen any signs since.
The Nori my LFS ended up having was the seaweed variety. I put some in the tank, but I don't think the snails dig it. I'll have to get my hands on some of the red algae version. I'll just put the seaweed aside for when I have a dwarf angel- should make a nice treat.
I topped off the water last night, and this morning, I swear I had evaporated a whole gallon- probably because I missed a top off. I'm going to check the tank in the morning. Evaporation hasn't been a big issue, and surprisingly, the salt creep isn't nearly as bad as I had expected. I really like the idea of getting some fresh water in there every time a little evaporates out.
Monday the tank gets covered for the lights..
I purchased my first corals from a fellow reefer(Minh) at this past meeting. It was a purple bullseye disc shroomy with two smaller, and slightly brownish versions on the same shelf. I also got a very tiny super red shroom.
The purple bullseye is doing very well. It definately acclimated well, as it turned into a nice little cornocopia funnel the next day(feeding from the water column). They did move to the bottom of the tank, but I think it's because the VERY light, and feather thin piece of rock they are on got caught in the current. One of the shroomies is underneath, so it's not very visible. When I moved it back to its original location, the other brown shroom is either still sheltering under the parent, or it's attached to some of the rock on the netherregions of the tank. Both did come out for a bit.
Unfortunately, the little red one took a ride on the flow and is currently MIA. Hopefully it will surface on a rock once I have better lighting on the tank.
I ordered my black T5 Tek fixture(6 x 39w), and acrylic shield, from ReefGeek last week.
They were backordered, and they were currently waiting for Sunlight Supply to drop ship. Thankfully, they did drop ship with my other order and are in transit- so I should have lights on the tank by Monday!
The bulb configuration will be as follows from back to front:
Blue + (D+D formerly ATI)
Blue + (D+D)
Sun (GE)
Aquablue (D+D)
Sun (GE)
Blue +
{I called Deltec for the lowdown on D+D bulbs. D and D is a British company, and it looks like they bought out ATI(it's been surmised ATI was not doing too well). The bulbs are manufactured in the same plant in Germany, yet they are now stamped with the D+D logo.}
I'm going to try that configuration for awhile. Eventually, I may swap out the front sun for an aquablue. Thanks for everyones' advice on T5 bulbs- it was very helpful. I also spent alot of time looking at bulb configurations in some T5 threads, and the above configuration seems to be a winner.
If I'm not happy with the lights directly on the tank, I'm going to cut a couple of 1 3/4 inch Teak blocks and set the light up on those.
I also ordered a couple of more Maxijet 900s- I should have some serious flow...
Thanks to everyone for your continuing encouragement.
mightymouse, yes, I kinda put my foot in my mouth on those. I never realized that the infamous flowerpot corals are Goniopora. I'll definately pass on those.
Floppy- I'll look into those. I'm looking for advice on some low key sps.
Last edited:
InsaneClownFish
New member
The tank has passed the three week mark. Things are going very smoothly.
Since the lights won't be here until Monday, I decided to leave my dining room curtains open to see how the tank would react.
When I came home in the morning the Mushroom was three times the size and extending towards the light, and the renegade sps frag I got from Dan's sand was now a dusky purple with full polyp extension..
I purchased some Locktite, Quicktite super glue gel- great for frags- dead awful for trying to stabilize rocks- can we say detritus storm.
I performed a 7 gallon water change tonight. The water was very cloudy for awhile from the sand, calcium, and detritus, but after a couple of hours, all is well. Next time, I'm going to drain the water out and add only one or two gallons, kick the heater and pumps back on, then later slowly add water- I'm not comfortable with the tank dropping to 75 degrees in such a short period of time- my snails looked a bit annoyed.
I'll have access to a digi cam tomorrow and Monday, so I'll post a SLEW of new pics....including my T5s. :smokin:
Since the lights won't be here until Monday, I decided to leave my dining room curtains open to see how the tank would react.
When I came home in the morning the Mushroom was three times the size and extending towards the light, and the renegade sps frag I got from Dan's sand was now a dusky purple with full polyp extension..
I purchased some Locktite, Quicktite super glue gel- great for frags- dead awful for trying to stabilize rocks- can we say detritus storm.
I performed a 7 gallon water change tonight. The water was very cloudy for awhile from the sand, calcium, and detritus, but after a couple of hours, all is well. Next time, I'm going to drain the water out and add only one or two gallons, kick the heater and pumps back on, then later slowly add water- I'm not comfortable with the tank dropping to 75 degrees in such a short period of time- my snails looked a bit annoyed.
I'll have access to a digi cam tomorrow and Monday, so I'll post a SLEW of new pics....including my T5s. :smokin:
InsaneClownFish
New member
AJP, good advice. I've been adding the water at room temperature. Unfortunately, the ambient temperature upstairs in my condo is pretty low.
I've considered either heating the water up, or storing it in a warmer location.
I've considered either heating the water up, or storing it in a warmer location.
/nod microwave trick I put my full bucket of fresh salt water in the middle of the living room with an old Maxi 600 in the bottom stirring & heating. During the day, the bucket gets a good 4 hours of direct sunlight & by the time I get home it's mixed, well aerated & at least 5F over room temp. 2 1 quart pyrex trips to the microwave later I have a bucket of 81F water
I have a 40 gallon breeder too & think it's an awesome configuation. Mine is drilled, with a sump, skimmer & homemade 1 gallon 'fuge all in an 18 gallon rubbermaid under the stand. I run a single 250W MH & keep 3 montipora species, 1 acro (green slimer), a 20 head candy-cane, a couple zoo rocks & some yellow polyps. Bioload is low with 3 fish in the tank & 1 in the sump. Inverts consist of 5 astreas, 2 large blue-legs & 2 emeralds, & a ton of noctournal chitons (some of them > 2" long).
My little corner of the ocean is quite sparse compared to yours :/ I have about 60% of your rock. Ah to re-aquascape with about $300
Love the 40 gallon breeder config. I am sure you'll enjoy it too!!
BTW I evaporate 1 gallon a day!!! All this between my 80 degree tank temp, 5' overflow drop (whooooosh!!), skimmer, pc's & airstone in my refugium. When I'm out of town & don't have anyone to watch the tank for me I reduce the light cycle to 6 hrs & turn the heat down to 62 in the apartment. this reduces evap by about 50%. You'll find, I imagine that evaporation is much worse in the winter with central heating sucking the moisture out of the atmospere in your condo.
ENJOY your new toy!
ps.. excellent idea on the paint!
I put my full bucket of fresh salt water in the middle of the living room with an old Maxi 600 in the bottom stirring & heating. During the day, the bucket gets a good 4 hours of direct sunlight & by the time I get home it's mixed, well aerated & at least 5F over room temp. 2 1 quart pyrex trips to the microwave later I have a bucket of 81F water I have a 40 gallon breeder too & think it's an awesome configuation. Mine is drilled, with a sump, skimmer & homemade 1 gallon 'fuge all in an 18 gallon rubbermaid under the stand. I run a single 250W MH & keep 3 montipora species, 1 acro (green slimer), a 20 head candy-cane, a couple zoo rocks & some yellow polyps. Bioload is low with 3 fish in the tank & 1 in the sump. Inverts consist of 5 astreas, 2 large blue-legs & 2 emeralds, & a ton of noctournal chitons (some of them > 2" long).
My little corner of the ocean is quite sparse compared to yours :/ I have about 60% of your rock. Ah to re-aquascape with about $300
Love the 40 gallon breeder config. I am sure you'll enjoy it too!!
BTW I evaporate 1 gallon a day!!! All this between my 80 degree tank temp, 5' overflow drop (whooooosh!!), skimmer, pc's & airstone in my refugium. When I'm out of town & don't have anyone to watch the tank for me I reduce the light cycle to 6 hrs & turn the heat down to 62 in the apartment. this reduces evap by about 50%. You'll find, I imagine that evaporation is much worse in the winter with central heating sucking the moisture out of the atmospere in your condo.
ENJOY your new toy!
ps.. excellent idea on the paint!
InsaneClownFish
New member
Pike...thanks for the kind words!
I too have fallen in love with the 40 Breeder... So much so that I may eventually setup the exact same tank in my bedroom..
I've been inspired by a couple of previous TOTM- Therman and nvert - both 40 Breeders.
nvert's tank is breathtaking.
Like I said before, I originally wanted 100+...when reality set in, I went with the Breeder. Ironically, you probably couldn't give me the 100+ gallon right now. My little 40 is the perfect window to the sea. It fills up nicer, and the maintanance is much more manageable for the type of setup I wanted to employ.
For my purposes, alot of live rock was a necessity. Looking at other 40 Breeder setups was extremely helpful in selecting the proper amount for MY tank. With a purely biological system in mind, rock became a main focus. Luckily, I was able to find LR that is extremely porous and light. The filter feeders are astonishing.
I love ricordia. In fact, I'm probably going to become one of those sic lil ricordia junkies. My goal is to have the whole half circle, right island of rock covered in various ricordia, rhodantis, discs, and fungia.
I also would like some true blue xenia to fill in the background...ahh my tastes are simple.
I've been doing alot of research regarding keeping softies with sps...especially keeping shroomies with sps. I'm going to try a few sps, eventually, on the left side of the tank- closer to the lights. I'm not seeking to keep large numbers of sps, nor am I interested in keeping the more demanding specimens.
Compatibility and chemical issues are of great concern for me. Ahhh the education has begun.
Leathers are definately out.
Zoos and Palythoas are also out. At first I was nervous about the Palyotoxins, but honestly, I'm much more fond of shroomies- so why take up valuable space?
Softie only tanks are nice, but they seem to be missing something.
I'm not interested in most of the LPS out there. The mantra for reefing seems to be to keep LPS with softies, but in reality there are plenty of LPS that can be noxious and nasty as well.
Ricordia, from what I've been reading, are often mistaken for a low light species. While it's true they will do well in moderate light, they can enjoy similar light as sps.
I'd also like to keep one Squamosa, Derasa, or Hippo clam.
All crabs and shrimp are out.
Water changes are going to remain key. In my estimation, sps do require high water quality, yet they don't benefit from having the water "stripped" of beneficial nutriants.
I don't know if I mentioned this earlier, but I plan on recharging the sand bed every 6-8 months...
I know I've rambled a bit here, but I thought I should let people in on what my goals for this system are...
As far as my condo goes..
...I actually don't have central heat. I have two separate zones. The heat upstairs was probably reading 64-65 when I evaporated almost 1 gallon in much less than a 24 hour period. Now the lights will make this evaporation go up slightly, but the cover will make it go WAY down...
One of the keys to my success will also be proper aeration in such a closed system. The top will be covered, yet where the cut outs for powerheads and cords will be there are going to be small gaps- ie it is not sealed. I have one maxi using the venturi attachment, and while this may not do much, I think 3-4 powerheads all agitating the surface, coupled with the small gaps, might just do the trick. I'm going to be testing for disolved oxygen quite regularly.
The other thing that will probably help my aeration is that my light schedule will be somewhat erradic. No one yell at me, but I think it might actually be beneficial to have a more random light output. The main reason is my work schedule. I work afternoons and nights, so I'll probably be running the lights those afternoons and nights I'm home- I want to enjoy the tank. During the day, while I sleep, I'll probably just run the supplements- outside Blue +. This should be pretty interesting....
I do have jumpers, so the sealed top is a must. The great thing is, because it's a versa top, I can open the front "flaps" at night while the lights run- I'll be able to see if anything lands on the floor...
Hopefully, I'll actually be able to reverse the problems some people have with their tanks at night. This should work great in the summer as the lights will be running when it is naturally cooler...late afternoon...evening...and even early morning.
I'm concerned about heat issues during the summer. My condo can get HOT. The built in chiller(air conditioner in wall right above the tank), and deck slider right at the tank's face should help.
I think I'll shut up for now...
I too have fallen in love with the 40 Breeder... So much so that I may eventually setup the exact same tank in my bedroom..
I've been inspired by a couple of previous TOTM- Therman and nvert - both 40 Breeders.
nvert's tank is breathtaking.
Like I said before, I originally wanted 100+...when reality set in, I went with the Breeder. Ironically, you probably couldn't give me the 100+ gallon right now. My little 40 is the perfect window to the sea. It fills up nicer, and the maintanance is much more manageable for the type of setup I wanted to employ.
For my purposes, alot of live rock was a necessity. Looking at other 40 Breeder setups was extremely helpful in selecting the proper amount for MY tank. With a purely biological system in mind, rock became a main focus. Luckily, I was able to find LR that is extremely porous and light. The filter feeders are astonishing.
I love ricordia. In fact, I'm probably going to become one of those sic lil ricordia junkies. My goal is to have the whole half circle, right island of rock covered in various ricordia, rhodantis, discs, and fungia.
I also would like some true blue xenia to fill in the background...ahh my tastes are simple.
I've been doing alot of research regarding keeping softies with sps...especially keeping shroomies with sps. I'm going to try a few sps, eventually, on the left side of the tank- closer to the lights. I'm not seeking to keep large numbers of sps, nor am I interested in keeping the more demanding specimens.
Compatibility and chemical issues are of great concern for me. Ahhh the education has begun.
Leathers are definately out.
Zoos and Palythoas are also out. At first I was nervous about the Palyotoxins, but honestly, I'm much more fond of shroomies- so why take up valuable space?
Softie only tanks are nice, but they seem to be missing something.
I'm not interested in most of the LPS out there. The mantra for reefing seems to be to keep LPS with softies, but in reality there are plenty of LPS that can be noxious and nasty as well.
Ricordia, from what I've been reading, are often mistaken for a low light species. While it's true they will do well in moderate light, they can enjoy similar light as sps.
I'd also like to keep one Squamosa, Derasa, or Hippo clam.
All crabs and shrimp are out.
Water changes are going to remain key. In my estimation, sps do require high water quality, yet they don't benefit from having the water "stripped" of beneficial nutriants.
I don't know if I mentioned this earlier, but I plan on recharging the sand bed every 6-8 months...
I know I've rambled a bit here, but I thought I should let people in on what my goals for this system are...
As far as my condo goes..
...I actually don't have central heat. I have two separate zones. The heat upstairs was probably reading 64-65 when I evaporated almost 1 gallon in much less than a 24 hour period. Now the lights will make this evaporation go up slightly, but the cover will make it go WAY down...One of the keys to my success will also be proper aeration in such a closed system. The top will be covered, yet where the cut outs for powerheads and cords will be there are going to be small gaps- ie it is not sealed. I have one maxi using the venturi attachment, and while this may not do much, I think 3-4 powerheads all agitating the surface, coupled with the small gaps, might just do the trick. I'm going to be testing for disolved oxygen quite regularly.
The other thing that will probably help my aeration is that my light schedule will be somewhat erradic. No one yell at me, but I think it might actually be beneficial to have a more random light output. The main reason is my work schedule. I work afternoons and nights, so I'll probably be running the lights those afternoons and nights I'm home- I want to enjoy the tank. During the day, while I sleep, I'll probably just run the supplements- outside Blue +. This should be pretty interesting....
I do have jumpers, so the sealed top is a must. The great thing is, because it's a versa top, I can open the front "flaps" at night while the lights run- I'll be able to see if anything lands on the floor...
Hopefully, I'll actually be able to reverse the problems some people have with their tanks at night. This should work great in the summer as the lights will be running when it is naturally cooler...late afternoon...evening...and even early morning.
I'm concerned about heat issues during the summer. My condo can get HOT. The built in chiller(air conditioner in wall right above the tank), and deck slider right at the tank's face should help.
I think I'll shut up for now...
Last edited:
InsaneClownFish
New member
T5 Heaven
Back to Front:
Blue +
Blue +
Sun
Aquablue
Sun
Blue+
Blue+
Sun
Aquablue
Sun
Blue+
Blue+
Entire Tank with Flash
Tank without Flash
Bling Bling :smokin:
Back to Front:
Blue +
Blue +
Sun
Aquablue
Sun
Blue+
Blue+
Sun
Aquablue
Sun
Blue+
Blue+
Entire Tank with Flash
Tank without Flash
Bling Bling :smokin:
looks good, i think the 40 is a perfect size as well, well not as perfects as my 50. i just added my t5's, i have same hood but w/4 bulbs, wish i would have gottent the black it looks so much nicer. i raised my lights 2 inches above the top with some easy to make wooden legs, i to have the glass tops w/o problem...hope to post some new pics shortly.
