Mark's 150 gallon

[markalot]

:inlove::inlove:

Got some really nice PE and those colours are awesome Mark! Awe-inspiring for me at least! I wish either of my tricolours looking even half as good as yours They're just mostly brown haha

Thanks Dom, I've got plenty of brown to go around.

Mark, what is your current T5 combo?

4 blues, purple+ and coral+. I tried 4 blues and 2 purples, too much red for me, 4 blues and 2 coral, not enough red, and 5 blues with 1 purple, too blue.

I believe my lack of water changes may be one issue, so weekly 10% for a while to see if reds improve. It's the only thing I haven't tried, I even ran one of those sickly yellow bulbs for 2 weeks before I couldn't take it anymore. :spin2:

I simply love your corals buddy:inlove: :inlove:

Thanks Mike!

 

[mhucasey]

That teal stag makes me all tingly

 

[jroovers]

That valida is stunning, great contrast between the green polyps and purple base

 

[markalot]

That teal stag makes me all tingly

Thanks Matt, I was hoping you'd stop by. That stag is growing about as fast as the slimer, I really lucked out. Bought from some little shop in St Louis that had a poor selection of SPS and this one. Came with red bugs, dipped in Bayer twice, went full turd and took 6 months to recover. When it arrived it was full light blue so I still have a ways to go but branch by branch it's improving.

 

[markalot]

That valida is stunning, great contrast between the green polyps and purple base

Thanks, it's one of the acros that kind of snuck up on me and is really becoming quite showy as it gets larger. One advantage of how it's grown is that I can look up and see the entire bottom of the coral, looking for pests that love validas. :uzi:

 

[markalot]

Adding some FTS's.

I have a board hung up that I use for a light block instead of a full hood. After over a year I figured out it looks much better if I lower it down to block all light rather than just blocking the lighting but allowing easy access to the tank. :artist:

 

[mhucasey]

Thanks Matt, I was hoping you'd stop by. That stag is growing about as fast as the slimer, I really lucked out. Bought from some little shop in St Louis that had a poor selection of SPS and this one. Came with red bugs, dipped in Bayer twice, went full turd and took 6 months to recover. When it arrived it was full light blue so I still have a ways to go but branch by branch it's improving.

I certainly want to follow your thread, but I confess I use the email notifications to do that. I rarely look for new threads lately so thanks for the heads up on the other thread. Its a bummer what you've had to deal with as far as AEFW. I had them on a colony once, but between having several types of wrasses and using KZ flatworm stop they never appeared anywhere else and I haven't had any sign of them in almost two years. The KZ product can help make the slime coat thicker which helps keep them off but it won't kill the worms or anything.

 

[markalot]

I certainly want to follow your thread, but I confess I use the email notifications to do that. I rarely look for new threads lately so thanks for the heads up on the other thread. Its a bummer what you've had to deal with as far as AEFW. I had them on a colony once, but between having several types of wrasses and using KZ flatworm stop they never appeared anywhere else and I haven't had any sign of them in almost two years. The KZ product can help make the slime coat thicker which helps keep them off but it won't kill the worms or anything.

I gave up the email notifications long ago. I subscribe, no notification, and have my RC favorite land me at the usercp page where I can see a list of all the new activity. I'm subscribed to a LOT of threads, but probably only a small percentage compared to Sahin.

I was going to get some flatworm stop just as an aid in slowing the little devils down. If I look very close, eith a flashlight and reading glasses, I still see a few flecks that may or may not be bites. I'm fairly paranoid. :uhoh3:

 

[NaturalReef]

Very nice tank Mark! I have also been bitten by sps. I won't be of much help on identifying except the brown with sky blue tips looks like it is a Stuber frag. It is the first acro successfully kept in a tank. The latest issue of coral magazine has a stunning picture of a ORA Stuber colony. I purchased a large frag of this recently and am in love with it because of the contrast. The blue tips are beautiful!

 

[markalot]

Very nice tank Mark! I have also been bitten by sps. I won't be of much help on identifying except the brown with sky blue tips looks like it is a Stuber frag. It is the first acro successfully kept in a tank. The latest issue of coral magazine has a stunning picture of a ORA Stuber colony. I purchased a large frag of this recently and am in love with it because of the contrast. The blue tips are beautiful!

Thanks for stopping by. It's a constant challenge, fortunately there's a bunch of old timers (hobby time) here that can help us figure things out.

I had a green with blue tip but I could not keep it healthy and the last frag I made of it started to STN so I finally tossed it, so I don't think it was a Stuber which should be as easy as the slimer. The big coral on the right is a Miami Orchid, another old staghorn type and while it doesn't photograph well it looks fantastic.

A couple of closer tank shots. You can see I have a flow issue on the left side, that green cyano slime like to stick to the sandbed. I re-aimed one pump down there but I think I need another smaller pump mounted on the lower left to finally take care of it. This will probably mean I have to remove the frogspawn, yet another LPS to get evicted.

 

[cugly]

Looking better and better every time Mark.

 

[glaukos]

+1:thumbsup:
I love how mixed your reef is,mark!

 

[Wrangy]

Looking great Mark

 

[markalot]

So I herniated a disc in my back ... that was not fun, but recovery is going smoothly and I'm not in pain, but my reefing activities are a tad limited for the time being. This has apparently been good for the tank, which means I tinker too much! :lolspin:

This is all I have, can't really bend to take any clear shots.

Look at the algae growing on the frag rack? I wasn't able to feed the fish for 3 days and they didn't touch it. Bastards.

Colors have improved slightly, but more importantly nothing has declined.

KH has been steady around 7.8 with 2 tsp Kalk per gallon of topoff. Trained my son how to refill the topoff while I sit and watch. I could get used to this.

I like this last pic only because the female lyretail was constantly getting in front of me demanding more food.

 

[mhucasey]

Trained my son how to refill the topoff while I sit and watch. I could get used to this.

You sir, have taken it to a new level...well done
Get better soon and take it slow with the back. Those disc injuries are horrible

 

[nemodan]

Hi Mark.... the tank looks fantastic. Take care of that back. Good that you are getting help there. !!! Those SPS look very pretty and healthy !!

Cheers
Daniel

 

[watchguy123]

Feel for you. We both have disc issues and share our first name. Tank looks beautiful

 

[Wrangy]

Looking excellent as usual Mark! Get that back in fighting form soon though mate!! Crook backs are the worst

 

[cFloor]

Back troubles are the worst, I know them all to well. Your tank is looking epic! I love the teal stag in front of the green one. Nice contrast there. I wonder why your tang and fox face aren't touching that algae??

 

[reefmutt]

Mark!! there are so many threads that slip through the cracks for me.. yours was one.
I just read this whole thread.
It crazy how similar our experiences have been over the past couple of years.. messing with led lighting and finally abandoning it (but keeping it as supplemental), fighting with high po4 (from crappy old rocks) and using pellets and n to combat it, giving up gfo.. finally having things stabilize.. then getting funky algae here and there..
but you are still using pellets with nopox, right? or only nopox now?
Anyways, your tank is looking really good and your photography is excellent.
That coral that Joshky quoted and then Andrew commented on- the one that you love and it loves you??
Well, I want a threesome! I love it too!! Pretty sure I can get it to love me back.. I'd like to try anyways..
And the shot of the blue jacquelinea with the red blasto behind it is a stunning shot and another of your corals i want to 'get to know' better..
super nice tank you have going, there!
I hope you beat the aefws and the back issues.. you need to take more pics.... maybe you can teach your son to shoot top downs as well.