Mr and Mrs Reef - 290g in wall build

[MrsReefK]

My Mr and Mrs Reef. I would like to compliment you on such a clean and amazing build. I just read through your entire thread. I have 4 MP40s on my .75 inch thick acrylic and have had no issues. They can fall off the first time you set them but once they are perfectly lined up which they will do on their own after running once they have never fallen off since. Keep up the great work! I love the attention to detail you guys have planned out. Thank you for sharing.

Welcome to the build! Thank you for the kind words. It took us awhile to get up and running, a lot longer than anticipated, but we are so happy we went at our pace and did it right! I do need to get some more recent pics of the sump room on here, a lot has changed in the last month with additions.

We've heard it from several folks that the MP40's work on their 3/4 in and bums me out that some reason it didn't for us. In the long run, we couldn't be happier with the MP60's.

DT is still seeing some slight diatoms during the day, hair algae (slight) and now going into showing signs of cyano on the sand. We're making our way through the process of ugliness. I'm enjoying it and quite frankly so are the fishes. Uno (our first tang, powder brown) loves grazing on the hair algae, so works great for all right now.

Jeremy (MrReefK) isn't going to know what to do with all of his time soon being the (major) building is nearing the end.

I'll get pics updated this weekend.


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[MrsReefK]

Our purpose of having this thread is not only to document our progress but to help others learn. Here's lesson #5273 in reefing that we discovered the hard way.

Got home after a week away traveling for work (while Jeremy handled the tank). Noticed a full blood shrimp floating around in the tank, not just his molt. Immediately checked all other inverts and all look ok besides one hermit that abandoned his shell.

Clicked feed mode while I was prepping everything, Apex sound alarm started going off. I have the sound setup for wetness on the floor and temp. Checked for wetness, nothing. Checked temp, it was high, but I also just turned all pumps off, so I thought it was a false reading because of no water movement in the sump past the probe.

I ignored the warning and kept working. Then, it dawned on me, I have a digital thermometer in the overflow box and a regular thermometer in the frag tank, sure enough...... Both are reading a whopping 89*!!! I panic to find the problem, I immediately blame the apex for leaving the heaters on when they should've went to off all day.

What was the root? ATO container was completely dry somehow, so the sump level lowered, temp probe was out of the water and reading 75 (house temp) that told the apex to crank up the heaters.... It cranked them up, but the water level never reached high enough for the probe to sense it.

We're happy we figured out what the problem is, you bet it won't happen again!


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[ramasule]

Close one!

 

[MrsReefK]

Mr and Mrs Reef - 290g in wall build

Temp is back to normal again, here's some FTS pics. Next additions of fishes will be going in the DT about 10 days from now should everyone continue doing well.

Room lights off, center 2 radions still not syncing. I have to admit, I like the middle being darker, it's growing on me. Need to take the time to get these puppies fixed before corals start hitting DT.

Stand, still not finished. Room isn't finished either. Making strides this month though.

When you come down the stairs and turn to the left, guests see this. "Oh, they have a fish tank"

Go in further, oh, they have a really big fish tank!

Powder brown photo bomb of the serpent star

Plate is growing, about 6" across now in the frag tank.

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[MrsReefK]

Anyone have any advice on a filter app for iPhone? Between blue pics of frag tank and purple pics from QT, I can't take progress pics without be blinded by these darn colorings.

Picked up some corals tonight, an awesome brain that I'm stoked for it to open up! Acans and a few favias as well.

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[McPuff]

Just get a few really cheap (cellophane) gel filters. You just hold them in front of your lens and take pics. Works amazingly well.

 

[MrsReefK]

Just get a few really cheap (cellophane) gel filters. You just hold them in front of your lens and take pics. Works amazingly well.

Nice! Thanks!


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[MrsReefK]

Mr and Mrs Reef - 290g in wall build

Great. When we put water in the tank I said to myself "we can make it through and deal with anything on this tank, I just hope we stay clear of bryopsis and dinos". By no means did I mean I'd throw the towel in if we got either of them, it's just sort of my nightmare.

Guess what?

It appears we have BOTH!!!! Bryopsis rearing its head on some old frags and dinos are showing up in the frag tank, fuge and one strand in DT.

Jeremy said "great, you're going to flip out about everything that's not ideal" definitely not the case! I don't mind algae stages. I expected ugliness. I don't want these two things!

Any input how to tackle either before they get out of hand?


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[dave.m]

Manage your nitrates and phosphates.
Don't over feed.
Give it time.

Dave.M

 

[MrsReefK]

Had our first fish death in the DT. breaks my heart cause I could've prevented it, but I know when I put any fish in, I can't get them back out if I wanted to.

Yellow head jaw fish (our bigger of the two) finished QT and went into DT tonight. He went from a 20g long with 1 MP10QD to the 290 with 2 MP60QDs. I didn't put it on feed mode to let him settle in and didn't put the guards on the darn power heads. he got sucked into the power head 3 times, then found a burrow to hide in. He had blood showing on one side of him. The burrow he decided to go in was our serpent starfish. She scooted him out several times, not trying to grab it (surprisingly). Then I think he was gone, the star pulled it in and is now eating it. I'm so mad at myself for not putting the guards on and lowering the PHs. That darn fish had some personality the 5 weeks it was in QT.

What are your introduction methods that can help me improve? The powder brown tang was checking it out, tried swiping it one time, but I expect that from him. I know he should've been the last fish in the tank.

I have 4 more fish, all small that need to get transferred to DT. Any advice welcome.

Kills me on the starfish too, I knew when I did it that I'd be risking it eating fish.... Now I know. I thought they left fish alone?


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[MrsReefK]

Still bothered over the little guy passing. Looks like the starfish is still working on him, shrimp are standing by very closely waiting patiently for him to release.


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[MrsReefK]

Mr and Mrs Reef - 290g in wall build

Oh boy. Here's a twist to the death of the yellow head jaw!

In the fuge yesterday I couldn't figure out why there was a den made, with sand all pushed around. There shouldn't be any hitchhikers, and for something to get to our fuge from DT, it's a journey.

Well, I come down this morning to a yellow head in the fuge!! Mind you, it went thru the teeth of the overflow, they plumbing, somehow made it through the filter sock on the left, then thru the rock fuge and to the sand fuge? Not sure how in the HECK it would do that. I can understand it getting to the rock fuge, but make it thru the rock fuge? Odd. A mystery I will never know the answer to.

We may have two yellow heads, we may have one. Will wait until the DT wakes up to see if the 2nd still exists.

I'm starting to think this guy didn't end up getting eaten by the starfish, but went for an adventure, even though he was on his last leg when we last viewed him.

I may keep him in the fuge with sand. Negative would be stirring up DSB, I'll do some research to see if this is advised or not.

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[dave.m]

There is no problem keeping fish in the DSB filter. He won't go deep, certainly not deeper than the upper zone of a couple of inches, anyway. Besides, any digging he does is just going to increase the anoxic zone, which will help provide more bacterial gas exchange in the upper layers.

Dave.M

 

[MrsReefK]

There is no problem keeping fish in the DSB filter. He won't go deep, certainly not deeper than the upper zone of a couple of inches, anyway. Besides, any digging he does is just going to increase the anoxic zone, which will help provide more bacterial gas exchange in the upper layers.

Dave.M

Love it, Dave! Thanks so much for chiming in and reading. Provides some relief. Looks like he's going to occupy the fuge!


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[MrsReefK]

These yellow head jaw fish should have a tv series.

So it continues. One lived in the data and one somehow in the fuge. But, there's no longer on in DT..... He's in the bottom of the overflow. No way even possible for me to get in there to actually retrieve him out, to the drawing board we go to figure this guy out. He's been through some adventure, I'm going to say he's too small to be in DT, sucked into PHs, starfish "attack" and now down the overflow box.... It's been a week for him. He might be relieved being in there.... Until he finds the bean animals pipes....


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[Ojos22]

I had a neon cleaner goby once who made it from the DT down to the sump and back up somehow. I don't know how he made it through the return pump alive. This happened over a 24 hour period.

Do you have anything in place that would prevent the Jawfish from exiting the Fuge area?

 

[MrsReefK]

I had a neon cleaner goby once who made it from the DT down to the sump and back up somehow. I don't know how he made it through the return pump alive. This happened over a 24 hour period.

Do you have anything in place that would prevent the Jawfish from exiting the Fuge area?

Crazy what the can accomplish in such little time. I put a filter sock on front he overflow of the fuge area so it can't escape again.

Now what to do with the one in the overflow. Darn fishes.


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[Desmondkg]

Beautiful tank and setup. Very cool thread

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[MrsReefK]

Thanks! Recorded this for a fellow Reefer looking at using a lifereef with a Vectra. Might as well put it on here too, should it help anyone!

The black piece of Laminated paper on the right of the column, we made that because the frag tank light was spilling (hence the very blue video) over and skimmer was getting algae.

https://vimeo.com/177114321


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[MrsReefK]

Bryopsis update: we are fortunate (does anyone use fortunate and bryopsis in the same sentence? Haha) enough that bryopsis is contained to the frag tank, and only on a few frags and the frag racks. Took out all frags and with a magnifying glass and tweezers, took a stab at every piece I could find.

Today, took out all frags, then took the racks out and scrubbed them to the bone clean. Will be watching for more to pop up, I'm determined to get this crap out.

Dinos update: dinos or something very similar was contained to one rock in the DT and a few in the frag. Thankfully all were scrub-able.

I know, I'm overreacting a bit. And find the source! Bryopsis was a non QTd frag before I started QTing.

New fish arrive tomorrow and SPS frag pack next week.

Will run through pics of the fish room this weekend to give everyone an update. Frags will start hitting the DT once we know bryopsis is tackled. I'll give it a few more weeks of seeing zero bryopsis before moving frags in.

One thing we are being taken over by is the mini feather dusters. 6 line is in the frag tank now that it finished QT, not sure if it will help all of the feather dusters. I know they're harmless, hit they're multiplying.

Feed less, right? Lol


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