cromedogg33
Member
What cucumber do you have? I've been looking at getting one.
When you removed your sand, did you have any clumping?
When you removed your sand, did you have any clumping?
drummereef's 180g in-wall build
- Thread starter drummereef
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drummereef
Team RC
I have a Yellow, Tiger Tail Cucumber. Does a really good job getting under the rocks where the Diamond Goby can't. Leaves behind sparkling nuggets of sand. :lol: Yes, there was some clumping from under the rocks where I'm guessing there wasn't much stirring going on. I removed/replaced the sand before I added the Cucumber and Diamond Goby so I'm sure this was a significant factor why there was clumping under there.
silentscream
New member
I would say the snail population in your tank is undersized. I have slightly more snails than you, and my display is only a 48x24x20 100 gallon. I've been contemplating getting more too.
With regards to feeding the tank more, if your fish are maxed out and fat, then maybe it's time to add some new swimmers? :fish1:
It's really hard to justify adding more food to the tank if your fish are fat and happy, and your corals have good color and growth.
110galreef
New member
emerald crab, mine seems to be munching BN polyps.....
i just pulled him last night
drummereef
Team RC
Well the fish are fat and happy but I'm always wishing for better coral color. I admit my snail population got really thin for a while. I've always been a little apprehensive adding too many since I don't use a lot of rock in the display but I guess that moot since I have ongoing algae issues. LOL
Dangit! Just what I didn't want to hear. Looks like he will be calling the fuge home... as soon as I can catch him. :uhoh2: Not going to lie, picking up crabs freaks me out. :lol: I usually have to "scoop" them into a cup when I move them. Haha
drummereef
Team RC
:thumbsup: Never can be too safe. haha
Haha. I love the little guys but their little furry legs just freak me out!
drummereef
Team RC
So because this thread is in full disclosure of the good, bad AND ugly... :wave: :lol: :facepalm: Here's a couple pics of the 2 issues I'm currently battling.
This is typical of this kind of algae. You can see here how it attacks the tissue of the SPS and attaches to it's skeleton. Almost like it eats right through it.
And the other issue, which may be related to the algae problem just manifesting differently... not completely sure. Could also be a rogue Emerald Crab. Notice how bare the body of the coral looks compared to the polyp extension/density/color of it's "arms".
This is typical of this kind of algae. You can see here how it attacks the tissue of the SPS and attaches to it's skeleton. Almost like it eats right through it.
And the other issue, which may be related to the algae problem just manifesting differently... not completely sure. Could also be a rogue Emerald Crab. Notice how bare the body of the coral looks compared to the polyp extension/density/color of it's "arms".
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cromedogg33
Member
Brett,
Is the bleaching from the algae, or is it attacking it because it's easy prey at that point?
Is the bleaching from the algae, or is it attacking it because it's easy prey at that point?
psteeleb
Team RC
^ agree 100%
you can help the coral recover the area by occasionally blowing the algae off with a turkey baister, otherwise the coral will try to grow up and over the area to kill off the space intruder.
I have the same type of algae issue in my tank.
I like the idea of the tank being nutrient deficient to the point of not enough to sustain a large bacteria population. I definitely underfeed my tank, so this might be worth a shot to up my feedings. I have no CUC and the algae also will attach to birdsnest, echinatas, etc...its not overwhelming, but definitely a pain to attend to every day. I run pura complete as well which is a carbon/gfo combo. Might start feeding more mysis that usual and see if that helps.
I like the idea of the tank being nutrient deficient to the point of not enough to sustain a large bacteria population. I definitely underfeed my tank, so this might be worth a shot to up my feedings. I have no CUC and the algae also will attach to birdsnest, echinatas, etc...its not overwhelming, but definitely a pain to attend to every day. I run pura complete as well which is a carbon/gfo combo. Might start feeding more mysis that usual and see if that helps.
drummereef
Team RC
Thanks for stopping by java. Appreciate the kind words.
Your guess is as good as mine (possibly better).
I really don't know. I figured it was from the algae/dino/cyano or whatever it is that's aggravating the coral. But then again I'm not really sure. Perhaps there's an underlying nutrient issue that is not showing up in my testing? I guess that's what's so frustrating about this, is not knowing even where to begin to pinpoint the source of the issue. :hmm2:Interesting thought slapshot. This only happens when I have a small outbreak in the tank though. But maybe I'm thinking about it backwards... Perhaps I should be looking at it as the STN is a manifestation of an underlying nutrient issue??
Gotcha. I do baste the corals and have noticed improvement with them growing over the affected area. Some corals have healed 100%, some are taking their sweet time though. :worried2: What's frustrating is not knowing what the underlying nutrient issue is exactly. I obviously test frequently for PO4 and NO3, which are the obvious ones... But how do I get to the bottom of what is aggravating the system - like possibly excess Silicate, Iron, etc? There are some indicators that might help, like an underlying bubble algae issue and some Aip's (shh don't tell anyone :lol
. Would this point the finger in any specific direction? I added some Poly-Filter Pads to the sump to see if there was any heavy metals or anything else suspicious but based upon the color (tan) it's, thankfully, coming up negative. :debi:
Thanks for posting readc.
Let me know how you progress with increased feedings. Any reason why you don't have a CUC to help with algae consumption?Thanks for posting readc. Let me know how you progress with increased feedings. Any reason why you don't have a CUC to help with algae consumption?[/QUOTE]
Mainly because the snails i did have created so much extra waste that i figured they were hurting the system vs helping it...my tank is only 29 gallons...im trying to decide what i should get for a minimal cuc...any thoughts? my tank is barebottom.
Let me know how you progress with increased feedings. Any reason why you don't have a CUC to help with algae consumption?[/QUOTE]Mainly because the snails i did have created so much extra waste that i figured they were hurting the system vs helping it...my tank is only 29 gallons...im trying to decide what i should get for a minimal cuc...any thoughts? my tank is barebottom.
110galreef
New member
Idea for you guys.....It seems the WC really lead or increase the issue....
Cut your WC's back. You will have birtually no ill effects especially since your tanks are clean in general. see if that helps or solves.
I am doing minimal like 6-7% net volume WC's every 3-4 mos on SPS dominate and no issues. No gfo, pellets, ATS, fuge etc.... No issues. PO ~ 0-3ppb and nitrates 0.
WC's over rated! Slowly cut back and skimm a tad wetter.
Cut your WC's back. You will have birtually no ill effects especially since your tanks are clean in general. see if that helps or solves.
I am doing minimal like 6-7% net volume WC's every 3-4 mos on SPS dominate and no issues. No gfo, pellets, ATS, fuge etc.... No issues. PO ~ 0-3ppb and nitrates 0.
WC's over rated! Slowly cut back and skimm a tad wetter.
drummereef
Team RC
I see. I don't have much experience with Nanos unfortunately but maybe someone else can help you out. I wouldn't think a couple of small cerith and maybe a Nassarius would do much damage but there's a lot more considerations in smaller tanks for sure. Good luck!
That's pretty much where I'm at too 110g. I was doing 10% every 3 months or so because of the recurring algae issue. I'm just a little concerned with as much SPS as I have, there's a lack of available trace elements over the length of time between changes. Almost like the tank is super clean but also mineral deficient as well - just based upon how the corals look. I do notice a positive difference running GFO however. I notice a decline when I run Carbon, so I rarely do. I wish I could just pinpoint it to something specific. I think there's still an underlying nutrient issue, just perhaps not an obvious one like PO4. Like there's something hanging around, but I don't have the right and/or enough consumers to uptake it. Wish I could find some Grape Caulerpa locally to add to the sump. Can't seem to find any though.
cromedogg33
Member
Interesting thought.... In general I can see a night and day difference in my overall tanks health if I don't do weekly water changes. I use to do monthly wc's and by the end of the month my tank would look drab.
I wish I could find some snails that did enough work on the rock work other than the big tank turbo snails that knock everything over.
Krazie4Acans
New member
I see. I don't have much experience with Nanos unfortunately but maybe someone else can help you out. I wouldn't think a couple of small cerith and maybe a Nassarius would do much damage but there's a lot more considerations in smaller tanks for sure. Good luck!
Nassarius would not do well in a barebottom. You could easily do cerith and Astria and few hermits but they are going to leave waste on the bottom glass that you will have to vacuum.
Brett what about adding a dosing pump continuous WC system that changes a very small amount every day instead of larger %'s less often? That would give you a continuous supply of trace elements but very little impact on the system as a whole?
Krazie:jester:
