GOFOR'S 52" X 36" X 26" CDA Peninsula & SoCal Tank Room Build
- Thread starter gofor100
- Start date
dodgerblew
Team RC
Love the fish selection. For the firefish I offer up Forest, Camp or Brush.
I noticed in the pic of the BSJ there appears to be something above it that can possibly be a vermetid snail tube.
I noticed in the pic of the BSJ there appears to be something above it that can possibly be a vermetid snail tube.
gofor100
New member
Hahaha! Those are some good options! I definitely like Forest and Camp. I'll put it to a vote tonight at dinner.
Yeah, the rock that you see in the jawfish picture was an old piece of rock I got off another reefer before I even had this tank. Luckily, I put it in bleach for several days before letting it dry out and then sat soaking in saltwater for 3 or so months. So, it's as good as dead and disintegrated... :blown:
dodgerblew
Team RC
Good to hear. They're most definitely a pest to a reef aquarium.
Another name, Arson.
Another name, Arson.
gofor100
New member
So true... one of the reasons why I'm quarantining every living thing (from fish to all inverts) before they even touch the DT.
gofor100
New member
Thanks! I just bought what should be one of my last big equipment purchases for a while last night on a Black Friday deal (the Neptune Trident), so I'm pretty excited to ease into the coral phase of this project.
gofor100
New member
GETTING READY FOR CORALS PART I- PREPARING FOR EXCESS NUTRIENT REMOVAL
I've been adding all of these fish without turning the lights on in hopes that I will get through the uglier phases of many new tanks without the tank getting too ugly. The rationale, of course, being that if I don't have lights on while the phosphate/nitrate levels are not optimal, the nuisance algae won't have much of a chance to take hold of the tank. So far, this has worked perfectly, since I didn't really have any algae to speak of before turning the lights on (there was a very minor diatom bloom on the side of the tank where the sun hits in the afternoon after my first group of fish went in, but that went away within a matter of days).
So, I have been checking the nitrate and phosphate levels about every week to see any trends and address any upward/downward trends by increase/decreasing my auto water changes.
And now that I have detectable levels of both (been averaging about .16 ppm phosphates and about 7-10ppm nitrates), I decided to add on my refugium after acquiring some Chaeto from PodYourReef (and quarantining it in my invert/coral quarantine tank for over 16 days to ensure no fish borne diseases make it to the DT and observe for any other pests) and my refugium light.
Now that this component of the filtration is online, I've continued to monitor the phosphates/nitrates weekly to make sure I adjust the auto water changes and/or refugium light schedule/intensity so that I still have detectable/stable levels of each in the range of .03-.1ppm phosphates and 1-10ppm nitrates. Ultimately, when my tank is fully stocked with fish and corals, my plan is to see how effectively I can export excess nutrients by running the refugium at 100% - the sump chamber full of chaeto and running the A360X at 100% intensity for 12 hours "“ balanced with a specific percentage of auto water changes. If all I have to do is test my tank's nitrates/phosphates weekly/bi-weekly and tweak the auto water changes to increase or decrease excess nutrient export in order to stay within my desired range, then that would be pretty awesome (since it is extremely easy to do with the APEX DOS). And if I need to make more dramatic changes that may not be addressed by increasing or decreasing my water changes, then I can turn to my refugium (intensity/duration) and/or my skimmer (wetter or drier skim).
Finally, I also introduced coralline algae using the ARC Reef "œCoralline Algae in a bottle" to get the coralline algae seeded while turning on just the T-5 lights for now. Once I get some herbivores in the tank, I'll turn on the Radions too, but no need at this point since I don't have any corals in the DT yet.
Next up is adding more fish (two of which are the top-2 fish on my wish list!) in the coming days and weeks. I plan to have most of my planned fish list (minus some smaller fish) in the tank by a week into 2021, but we'll see.
I've been adding all of these fish without turning the lights on in hopes that I will get through the uglier phases of many new tanks without the tank getting too ugly. The rationale, of course, being that if I don't have lights on while the phosphate/nitrate levels are not optimal, the nuisance algae won't have much of a chance to take hold of the tank. So far, this has worked perfectly, since I didn't really have any algae to speak of before turning the lights on (there was a very minor diatom bloom on the side of the tank where the sun hits in the afternoon after my first group of fish went in, but that went away within a matter of days).
So, I have been checking the nitrate and phosphate levels about every week to see any trends and address any upward/downward trends by increase/decreasing my auto water changes.
And now that I have detectable levels of both (been averaging about .16 ppm phosphates and about 7-10ppm nitrates), I decided to add on my refugium after acquiring some Chaeto from PodYourReef (and quarantining it in my invert/coral quarantine tank for over 16 days to ensure no fish borne diseases make it to the DT and observe for any other pests) and my refugium light.
Now that this component of the filtration is online, I've continued to monitor the phosphates/nitrates weekly to make sure I adjust the auto water changes and/or refugium light schedule/intensity so that I still have detectable/stable levels of each in the range of .03-.1ppm phosphates and 1-10ppm nitrates. Ultimately, when my tank is fully stocked with fish and corals, my plan is to see how effectively I can export excess nutrients by running the refugium at 100% - the sump chamber full of chaeto and running the A360X at 100% intensity for 12 hours "“ balanced with a specific percentage of auto water changes. If all I have to do is test my tank's nitrates/phosphates weekly/bi-weekly and tweak the auto water changes to increase or decrease excess nutrient export in order to stay within my desired range, then that would be pretty awesome (since it is extremely easy to do with the APEX DOS). And if I need to make more dramatic changes that may not be addressed by increasing or decreasing my water changes, then I can turn to my refugium (intensity/duration) and/or my skimmer (wetter or drier skim).
Finally, I also introduced coralline algae using the ARC Reef "œCoralline Algae in a bottle" to get the coralline algae seeded while turning on just the T-5 lights for now. Once I get some herbivores in the tank, I'll turn on the Radions too, but no need at this point since I don't have any corals in the DT yet.
Next up is adding more fish (two of which are the top-2 fish on my wish list!) in the coming days and weeks. I plan to have most of my planned fish list (minus some smaller fish) in the tank by a week into 2021, but we'll see.
gofor100
New member
Seriously! Patience has been key for me on this build, but to be honest, quarantining all of my fish has been keeping me more than busy enough just in itself. Once the next several fish go in, I won't even know what to do with myself!
As for the coralline starter, I put about 5 bottles in about a week ago now, turned on the T-5's and will see how it goes. I'm not in any hurry there since I know I won't be adding corals until probably around February 2021. Although, this won't stop me from adding corals into my invert/coral QT if anyone wants to donate some starter frags!!!
gofor100
New member
FISH UPDATES
I figured I would get one last update before the end of 2020"¦
This is where my fish list gets pretty interesting, and to a certain extent, a bit riskier. "œRisky" in the sense that the fish are historically a bit more difficult to acclimate to the home aquarium, and also because they pose more of a threat to corals. My plan here is to first, just accept that I may not have the best polyp extension on certain corals while still maybe even having to remove some corals altogether. But, to avoid this as much as possible, before adding a single coral in the tank, I will be making sure that the "œrisky fish" are eating a variety of foods (pellets, frozen, nori, etc.) 3 times per day. My thought here is that if they are already well-nourished and being fed a constant, varied diet, then they will be less inclined to be "œhungry" and, therefore, less likely to pick at corals (which, to my understanding, is not part of their natural diet). If I were to introduce these fish after corals had been added, while they were still figuring out what is and is not food, acclimating to the feeding schedule, etc., my thought is a hungry fish will be more likely to go "œtaste" a little bit of everything and might actually like the taste of something they try.
As for the fish, I obtained them both pre-quarantined from Deven/Docs Aquatics, and I have to say, they were both in excellent health, even eating the first day they were in the tank.
Moorish Idol: this has always been one of my favorite fish. I had successfully quarantined one in my previous tank and it was a model citizen with corals up through the time I had to break my tank down. This one (yet to be named) EATS EVERYTHING I put into the tank. I feed a mixture of frozen foods and New Life Spectrum Pellets, and he goes after it pretty hard. His streamer also seems to grow overnight, so he seems to be settling in quite well.
Regal Angelfish: my other favorite fish is the Red Sea Regal Angelfish. The colors on this fish are second to none in my opinion. This is also a fish I have never kept before, so this will be my first go-around. This one (also not named yet), LOVES NLS Pellets and will eat larger pieces of frozen with gusto, but not as aggressively as the Moorish Idol. I think this is more of the Regal's nature (a bit more cautious) and less about his actual food preferences, but either way, they are both doing extremely well.
I have also added (through my own quarantine) a few more fish"¦
Pintail Fairy Wrasse: I wanted to add some more active swimmers with some different colors than what was already in the tank"¦ and the pink/purple/yellow patterns of this wrasse are pretty awesome. I'm planning to add a few more fairy wrasses down the road, but was able to find this one relatively cheap and in good health.
McCosker's or Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse (not sure which to be honest): another active swimmer and added some orange/yellow color schemes to the tank. He's so active, in fact, I, for the life of me, could not get a decent picture. So here you go"¦ just use your imagination a little.
Sunburst Anthias: a bit less of an active swimmer (likes to swim in the current for a while then go back into the rockwork), but a beautiful fish with shades of pink/yellow.
Next up, is my tang gang"¦ all are in quarantine and will be ready to go in very soon.
And if anyone has any ideas on fish names, please share. My kids' ideas include things like "œBlue" for blue fish, or "œStripes" for fish with stripes"¦ so this is what I'm working with and I don't feel too creative these days.
Happy New Year Everyone!
I figured I would get one last update before the end of 2020"¦
This is where my fish list gets pretty interesting, and to a certain extent, a bit riskier. "œRisky" in the sense that the fish are historically a bit more difficult to acclimate to the home aquarium, and also because they pose more of a threat to corals. My plan here is to first, just accept that I may not have the best polyp extension on certain corals while still maybe even having to remove some corals altogether. But, to avoid this as much as possible, before adding a single coral in the tank, I will be making sure that the "œrisky fish" are eating a variety of foods (pellets, frozen, nori, etc.) 3 times per day. My thought here is that if they are already well-nourished and being fed a constant, varied diet, then they will be less inclined to be "œhungry" and, therefore, less likely to pick at corals (which, to my understanding, is not part of their natural diet). If I were to introduce these fish after corals had been added, while they were still figuring out what is and is not food, acclimating to the feeding schedule, etc., my thought is a hungry fish will be more likely to go "œtaste" a little bit of everything and might actually like the taste of something they try.
As for the fish, I obtained them both pre-quarantined from Deven/Docs Aquatics, and I have to say, they were both in excellent health, even eating the first day they were in the tank.
Moorish Idol: this has always been one of my favorite fish. I had successfully quarantined one in my previous tank and it was a model citizen with corals up through the time I had to break my tank down. This one (yet to be named) EATS EVERYTHING I put into the tank. I feed a mixture of frozen foods and New Life Spectrum Pellets, and he goes after it pretty hard. His streamer also seems to grow overnight, so he seems to be settling in quite well.
Regal Angelfish: my other favorite fish is the Red Sea Regal Angelfish. The colors on this fish are second to none in my opinion. This is also a fish I have never kept before, so this will be my first go-around. This one (also not named yet), LOVES NLS Pellets and will eat larger pieces of frozen with gusto, but not as aggressively as the Moorish Idol. I think this is more of the Regal's nature (a bit more cautious) and less about his actual food preferences, but either way, they are both doing extremely well.
I have also added (through my own quarantine) a few more fish"¦
Pintail Fairy Wrasse: I wanted to add some more active swimmers with some different colors than what was already in the tank"¦ and the pink/purple/yellow patterns of this wrasse are pretty awesome. I'm planning to add a few more fairy wrasses down the road, but was able to find this one relatively cheap and in good health.
McCosker's or Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse (not sure which to be honest): another active swimmer and added some orange/yellow color schemes to the tank. He's so active, in fact, I, for the life of me, could not get a decent picture. So here you go"¦ just use your imagination a little.
Sunburst Anthias: a bit less of an active swimmer (likes to swim in the current for a while then go back into the rockwork), but a beautiful fish with shades of pink/yellow.
Next up, is my tang gang"¦ all are in quarantine and will be ready to go in very soon.
And if anyone has any ideas on fish names, please share. My kids' ideas include things like "œBlue" for blue fish, or "œStripes" for fish with stripes"¦ so this is what I'm working with and I don't feel too creative these days.
Happy New Year Everyone!
solitude127
Proud user of IO Salt!
Nice selection of fish. I love the MIs streamer. hopefully it doesn't get cut off by a powerhead.
gofor100
New member
Thanks Mike! Yeah, the streamer grows really long, then will fall off (or get taken out by a powerhead I'm sure), but it grows a over an inch each day, so comes back in no time.
moondoggy4
Team RC
Wow, the regal 250 skimmer is a beast, I got the 200 Regal Int for my new but not installed yet tank.
gofor100
New member
Yeah. I was afraid the 250INT might be too big for my system, since for the first few months, it was only skimming semi-transparent skimmate, but once I added some "dirty fish", that thing started pulling out some really dark stuff. I love it so far... super quiet and easy to adjust.
vsiege
Member
+1 om the Regal skimmers
Picked up Regal 150SSS in December for 37 + 20 gallon sump. It has the hose to hook up the external tank with a float valve as well. Seems to be working great. Only have 1 fish in there now, so its managed to pull waste out. Getting an order of 7 fish this week, so I'm guessing it should start filling faster.
Picked up Regal 150SSS in December for 37 + 20 gallon sump. It has the hose to hook up the external tank with a float valve as well. Seems to be working great. Only have 1 fish in there now, so its managed to pull waste out. Getting an order of 7 fish this week, so I'm guessing it should start filling faster.
gofor100
New member
Yup... mine was producing from the start with only a few fish in there, but it has really picked up efficiency the more fish I have added.
gofor100
New member
That Moorish idol is beautiful! I didn't know that their streamers could grow that fast. Just noticed you have a long nose butterfly. Always wanted one but man, that IS risky for a reef! Heard they're great with aiptaisa though
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Thanks! I've actually never had an issue with Yellow Longnose Butterfly fish... I've had them with SPS, LPS, and clams. They are usually looking for worms and little crustaceans on the rockwork. I guess it's always a risk when it is a butterfly fish though.
