House Reefer 525 - ZEOvit reboot

Ooooh! Nice tech!
Can't wait to see shots from that camera.
1.8. Nice fast lens.
And I bet that 105 is smashing as well.
Sony has zeiss lenses now don't they?
 
I ordered an ATI 8x80w Powermodule five weeks ago today, am getting a bit anxious waiting now but hoping to have some news tomorrow from the Uk distributor - but the last two days the tank has looked crystal clear so I won't complain too much.

My SPS have had a mixed few weeks, three corals have what I believe is burnt tips, and then last night I found three big AEFWs and some eggs on my Mille. I've purposely been vigilant with introducing SPS by removing all bases, dipping, and going a thorough inspection to each piece - but I guess sometimes it's just not enough.

So the fight starts now!

I added a superb trio of Halichoeres leucoxanthus this past weekend, and they have settled really well. I always planned on adding groups of fish rather than lots of different fish in the beginning so I'm finally moving towards that idea.

Here's a nice big photo dump, because we all love photos.

Red Planet Macro 11-1-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Blue Tipped Tenius Macro 11-1-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Pink Hyacinthus Macro 11-1-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Yellow Formosa Macro 11-1-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Smooth Acro Macro 17-1-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Tenius 17-2-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Millepora Pink 17-2-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Millepora Blue-Green 17-2-17 by Andy, on Flickr

TD Acropora Unknown 22-2-17 by Andy, on Flickr

TD Acropora Millepora Blue 22-2-17 by Andy, on Flickr
 
 
UPDATE!​

Firstly, let me start with a recent FTS

FTS 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

As you can see, not a huge amount has happened visually since I last posted an FTS, but theres been a fair amount going on in the background.

Lighting

I've had issues with my ATi Powermodule since it was purchased a few months ago, but I'm now hopeful that those issues are behind me.

The original light was replaced for a brand new unit after it came back damaged from the distributor, however, the new light came and there was a significant crease right on the curve on the front panel. To cut a long story short, the UK distributor said either live with it, or send it back for a refund - which is a decent option, but if I wanted to stick with an ATi fixture, I would have to risk ordering through them again or go directly to ATi. So I went straight to ATi with my request and concerns, and spoke to a guy called Tristan who has been really helpful on the few occasions that I've emailed him. My request was simply for a new front panel rather than a brand new light, which ATi willingly helped with and I have it sat here with me now - ready for the swap. So a big thanks to ATi on this occasion I think.

That leads me on to a change in my tube combination going forward. I was hugely influenced by Andrews 'a Reef in the Sky' build, which happens to be my all time favourite build, so I went with a similar combo to what he used to run, which is

Blue +
AquaBlue Special
Blue +
AquaBlue Special
Actinic
Blue +
AquaBlue Special
Blue +

Its a really white look, but thats the aim of the game for me, and already my SPS are responding well for the most part after only a few weeks.

Controller

I have finally taken the plunge and ordered my self a controller!

I seem to have reached a stage in the tanks life where things are falling into place, and stability is becoming a high priority now that the lights are stable, temperature is stable, nutrient levels are stable, along with the elemental levels that I can test for. So it just makes sense to back that stability up with a controller that can monitor and control the vital things that my livestock depend on, so I have ordered a GHL Mega set in white - which should hopefully be here in a few weeks (as my luck would have it, the store had the black in stock, but not the white!). This also gives me the chance to design and rebuild my electrics cabinet into something that is more like what I'm used to, and not a spaghetti mess, with cheap plug timers, and dodgy power bars.

Livestock

Not a lot has changed on the livestock front, seeing as I'm trying to concentrate on the basic maintenance and running of the tank, but hopefully that will all change soon once I get that out of the way and concentrate on stocking more.

As it stands the fish are all doing really well. Eating anything and everything I give them, all looking super healthy and getting along nicely. I have some concerns with my Valenciennea longipinnis as his stomach seems to be a bit recesses, so I'm hoping to get him back to being plump, as I know all too well how they can decline once their food source thins out. He will be the last Valenciennea i'll risk if the worst happens, I've lost a few now due to them starving.

My Pygoplites diacanthus decided that he loves LPS so both my Lobo and Acans have been banished to the sump and my LFS, so I am definitely SPS only from now on!

On the coral front, I can't complain, somethings are doing really well, others are getting there, but for the most part, health, colour, and growth are decent, and I expect that only to get better as they settle under the new tube combination.

ZEOvit

I love this system more and more as the tank progresses. I am really starting to see differences in my corals now, especially colour, and especially under the whiter spectrum.

I continue to dose the basic setup, so ZEO stones, Carbon, ZEOstart3, and ZEObak + Coral Snow which are all doing me well so far but I am noticing a few corals are getting a little too pale, so have recently introduced Amino Acids Concentrate in the hope to feed them more and bring some richness back into their tone. The automatic reactor is amazing and a real godsend, I just need to get the ZEOstart3 onto my doser and have that automated too. So far, very impressed, and long may that continue!

Photos!

Enough talking for now, here are some recent pictures of the stock:

Stylophora Pistillata Pink Green 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Red Planet 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Millepora Green 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Millepora Blue 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora New Green 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Tenius Blue 1 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Tenius 2 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Tenius Frag 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora Hyacinthus 27-6-17 by Andy, on Flickr
 
Livestock

Today I picked up a group of 6 tiny Chromis viridis to add a bit of movement and colour to the tank. They've only been in a few hours but one is feeling rather brave, the rest are in hiding, mostly from my Timor who is trying to show his dominance.

Will update with some pictures once they are settled and out in their group.
 
Livestock

Had the chance to take some photos of the tank today, and took a nice image of one of the new Chromis viridis - fast little things that turn on a sixpence!

They are all really quite small, which I'm guessing is why there aren't quite as rounded as you see them when more mature - but they eat well and are gaining confidence, so we will see how things go.

Chromis viridis 4-7-17 by Andy, on Flickr
 
.Pandy. said:
Livestock

Had the chance to take some photos of the tank today, and took a nice image of one of the new Chromis viridis - fast little things that turn on a sixpence!

They are all really quite small, which I'm guessing is why there aren't quite as rounded as you see them when more mature - but they eat well and are gaining confidence, so we will see how things go.

Chromis viridis 4-7-17 by Andy, on Flickr
Click to expand...

Beautiful composition. Love this shot.
 
Livestock

This week was a good week!

One of the stores I use took a trip to De Jong Marinelife in the Netherlands, and they came back with one of my all time favourite corals - one that this tank was very much designed around from the start. I had forgotten i'd even asked them to look for one in any of their shipments, as it was going on maybe 5-6 months since I did ask, so it was a great surprise to see it on the list they uploaded! I nearly had to fight him for it!

I give you a very pink Stylophora pistillata...

Stylophora pistillata pink 16-7-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Stylophora pistillata pink macro 16-7-17 by Andy, on Flickr
 
It has been some time since I've updated my tank thread, and that is mostly due to suffering a few issues with the tank in that time. Mostly, I had an outbreak of dinoflagellates which took me the best part of 3-4 months to be rid of (I hope!), which was followed by a big cyanobacteria outbreak, and now to top it off I have AEFW in the tank.

That being said, things are looking up and the tank is looking the best it has in a good while. I have some STN issues and some corals I suspect are having trouble with AEFW, but on the whole I'm having ok growth and colour on most pieces.

Fish wise I have suffered a few issues where the scopes, regal angel, and clownfish were thought to have either ich or velvet, but i have persevered with feeding well and keeping stress levels down, and it turns out that whatever they had has been overcome. Whether that bites me in the *** later down the line I don't know, but I didn't want to overreact and cause more harm than good.

I have added a few SPS pieces lately which are mostly doing well, and existing corals are slowly getting there. Patience...

Pink Acropora Millepora 2 6-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Unknown Acropora 2 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Unknown Acropora 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora millepora pink purple 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Stag blue tip 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Stag blue tip 2 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora millepora pink frag 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora tenius yellow 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Acropora tenius yellow 2 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr

Stylophora pistillata green 30-12-17 by Andy, on Flickr
 
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