Seriously debating getting out of SPS!

[otolith]

Lunch, I hear ya.

I've actually had similar thoughts lately. I want to downsize my tank, and the wife wouldn't let me! She told me to stick with what I have and be happy. Guess I can see her point, but when I look at my tank lately (which isn't very often), somethings missing, so I know how you feel.

See if you can temporarily house your corals somewhere else (Travis :lol: ), buy some new rock, reaquascape, and then put your corals back in the tank. No more hydroids or bryopsis.

Whatever you do, GOOD LUCK! Hope you stay in the game.

 

[Wiskey]

from what i have hear the TMPCC doesn't kill them 100% guaranteed

It kills the worms, but not the eggs. You use the Q tank in conjunction with the dip, to dip multiple times and make sure you got them.

A Q tank can be setup with a powerhead, few PC's and tank, it doesn't have to be complex, even a 10G with a 96W Powerquad should keep them alive during the Q period. When the tank is not in use you just take it off your dresser (or wherever you stuck it) and put it on a shelf in your closet.

HTH,
Whiskey

 

[DarkXerox]

Well you could always just stick to non acros for awhile. Just take a look at the montipora thread or some of those really exotic chalices coming in now, you could make quite a tank with just those.

But later,you could do a pure acro growout tank as a QT if you want. To be really careful, do what Wiskey says--then add acros to the main tank as you think is safe.

 

[Cody Ray]

Do an upgrade, that seems to get people excited again I would love to see a huge build from an experienced reefer!

 

[clkwrk]

I would stick with it Lunch ......... I know things are tough lately with all the predators but thats just a small step to overcome. Which is much smaller than being able to keep sps.

It was just a few days ago that I lost 14 or so sps due to my chiller getting unplugged the same time my AC cable got unplugged came home to an 89 degree sps tank. I was really bummed but I won't let it get me down and I am still losing pieces because of the spike .

I have also delt with the AEFW's and think I have them licked all while living with redbugs since it seems most get reinfected so way anyways.

But in the end you need to do what makes you happy and if tinkering and worring about sps takes most of your tank time then yes I would say step back and thin out those sps only keeping those that you really really want and then gear towards LPS or something.

Good luck in your decisions.

 

[SPStoner]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7756622#post7756622 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Wiskey
It kills the worms, but not the eggs. You use the Q tank in conjunction with the dip, to dip multiple times and make sure you got them.

A Q tank can be setup with a powerhead, few PC's and tank, it doesn't have to be complex, even a 10G with a 96W Powerquad should keep them alive during the Q period. When the tank is not in use you just take it off your dresser (or wherever you stuck it) and put it on a shelf in your closet.

HTH,
Whiskey

Agree with Whiskey on this one. Ditto for Levamisole, btw. No effect on eggs, only worms. I will actually take it one step further for ya, LB. You can use a rubbermaid container. I have used, in the past, a 24x13x6 plastic storage tote as a coral QT. All I used was a small powerhead, a 25w submersible heater, and a 20w strip light. Any new frags were treated as needed (Levamisole and Interceptor) plus any surfaces that are not living tissue were hit with a toothbrush to try to get any eggs or other nasties. Corals were kept in here for min of 4 weeks, usually 6, with NO exceptions. It was really easy to do complete water changes on this small container, too. (I have since acquired a 40gal QT)


Hey bro, I've been in this since the late 80's. I was in it before people thought you could keep SPS alive, then through the "they all turn brown" phase, and the RTN issues in the mid to late 90's. I took a break from 2001 - 2003 when I got married and had my first son. While the break was extremely welcome at the time, it was extremely hard to get it out of my system, and I eventually succumbed and got sucked back in (partially because I discovered this Freak^%#g website! It can happen to anybody, but does tend to happen more in the summer.

FWIW, I think LPS are harder to keep. I can't keep a Blastomussa alive for the life of me!!
Whatever you do, best of luck.

 

[poknsnok]

is there a thread out there for the dosage of the levisamole?

 

[ReeferMac]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7754497#post7754497 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lunchbucket
ReeferMac - sorry to hear you have the dreaded AEFW's

Had.


This too, shall pass.

- Mac

 

[Lunchbucket]

you kept SPS under a 20w strip light for the qt period?? IF i do stay in and levamisole my sps i would do it in a tub i think. then i would just need to find a fish sitter for a while so i can clean out the tank and dry it out to get rid of the hydroids and bryopsis. then get new rock set up the tank and run it for a while. add the fish back in a few every week (only have 6 mostly small) and then the SPS after the 4-6wk treatment. a possibility...a lot of work but might be worth it in the end! i'll talk w/ my LFS guy and see what i can get some rock for if i trade mine in as dried base rock (have to dry it to kill the hydroids and bryopsis).

Lunchbucket

 

[SPStoner]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7757184#post7757184 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lunchbucket
you kept SPS under a 20w strip light for the qt period??
Lunchbucket

Yep! Keep in mind that this was in a 6 inch deep container ( actually only about 5in of water) so the light intensity was sufficient, although not ideal. I found that anything larger / higher watt would heat up the water too much. Granted, the frags dd lose some color, but colored up quickly (most of them) once placed in the main display.



poknsnok- the dosage is in this thread somwhere...

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/s...&perpage=25&highlight=levamisole&pagenumber=1

 

[poknsnok]

got it... thanks!! and the concentration of the drug is the same as used for the livestock I assume

 

[scarletknight06]

Lunchbucket,
I know what you mean. Sounds like the same situation I was in this past March. I realized that with law school coming up in the fall, I didn't want to have to worry about or deal with sps husbandry (constantly checking calcium reactor, testing water params, etc etc) and when i learned I was going to have to move out of state, i knew it was time to give the livestock I wanted to keep to friends to hold, and downgrade my equipment. I just set the tank back up this month, but without all the MH's (I went for a 4x39w tek light), and CL plumbing (I just use a couple mj's for flow), no calcium reactor, no rowa reactor. The main focus of the tank will be an RBTA and a GSM, I'll keep some lps or zoos depending upon the movement of the RBTA.

I can tell you I that I am much more worry free when it comes to the tank now. I don't have to worry about the latest sps parasite and how to treat it, way less equipment to get set correctly, less electrical cost, etc etc. I figure at this point in my life I have other stuff to worry about, but I couldnt deprive myself of reefing.

I definitely miss sps, and I will setup an sps tank in the future. Just not right now, I will wait until the hobby advances a little further. Plus I have definitely learned that their are much less worrisome ways to setup an sps tank.

good luck with your decision

 

[Shawnts106]

WOW! are you crazy there!

yes, you just had a bad episode with your tank.. yes that is very discourageing...

I know, Been there done that.. and the thing that always sparks my interests again is to get hands on... frag a few things, get online and look at OoOdles of websites offering SPS corals.
Check out the pictures on here and look at all the awsome color varity.


Trust me, if you get rid of those MH's your going to HATE the tank, you WILL NOT get the same colors from corals as you would with them...

Flame angels.. I have seen these in tons of reefs, I'd chance it, get a smaller male and see how it goes.. I DOUGHT you will have much or any problems...

The ones I have seen seem more apt to go and nip at Xenia's than SPS


good luck, cheer up and look up some acros!

 

[melev]

The bottom line is converting from one tank to the next is there really isn't a lot of change. You can still run a LPS tank with MH and a Calcium Reactor.

So if Eric doesn't want to worry about SPS any longer, simply pull them out and replace them with new corals. The cure for the hydroids may be fish related, as I've yet to hear of a nudibranch that will help. New liverock might be easier in the long run.

I doubt it would save me any time or money, other than not buying more corals. The system is set up properly, so coverting to softies and LPS wouldn't require much of a change at all.

 

[dgasmd]

I don't know what to tell you that you haven't heard already. I don't know of anyone that has been in the hobby, short or long term, that has not had several moments in qhich they almost threw in the towel. I'll be the first one to admit it. In the last year alone, I have come close to closing shop completely and taking a hammer to the tank so many times it is not even funny. When I first got the AEFW and lost 70+ SPS in a period of 4-6 weeks, the only thing that kept me going is the fact that I don't own a gun!

The trick I have found that works for me every time is to remind myself why I got into this in the first place. That would also motivate me to get in gear and turn things around despite of how much effort it took. One thing I can't stand is to be defeated by anything or anyone, so that is another encouragement or motivation to myself.

So what can you do to spice it up short of walking around in lingerie calling yourself girly names? Sit in front of your tank for a while and force yourself to observe the problems. You read enough in here that I am sure you can match up solutions to it. There will always be some problems along the way. No way to make it pain free, but that detective work and the solving of issues is what makes it interesting. See it as a challenge to overcome rather than a hurdle.

However, if all this babble stuff doesn't help at all, please send me some pictures of your corals before you throw in the towel so I can cherry pick some stuff LOL................

 

[JAANDGC]

If you want to clean your rock with out taking a lot of time, here is what I would do. Go buy a HOB biowheel filter and let it run on the tank for about 2 weeks. At the end of the 2 weeks, drain the tank into a couple of walmart totes (real cheap) place the corals and fish in the totes (they will be good in there all day), and move the biowheel over to the tote with the fish. Take out all the rock and pressure wash it, this will kill everything on the surface of the rock but will leave some good bacteria inside the rock. This will also take less than a hour for a system your size. It only took about 3 hrs for my tank. Next dump out all of your sand, clean the tank, and put in new sand. Now place the rock back in followed by the water, coral, fish from the totes and then the biowheel. Keep the biowheel on for a couple of weeks to make sure there are no ammonia or nitrite spikes. The next day do a good water change, then maybe one a week later. Depending on your readings.
I don't get why you guys say there is so much work on a sps tank. Almost everything can be automated, and I have found that keeping your hands out of the tank usually works best. There is no reason any one should have to test any more than once a week, well maybe while you dial in a calcium reactor. Tweaking things everyday just does not work.
I'm sure some will disagree, but not if they think about it, once dialed in, a calcium reactor will keep most things in check all on its own.
Just my .01
Jerry

 

[melev]

Jerry, how did you pressure wash the rock specifically? Did you rent a machine and load it up with saltwater or freshwater?

 

[ReeferMac]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7760411#post7760411 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JAANDGC
...I have found that keeping your hands out of the tank usually works best.

Amen brother. Didn't scrape the glass for damned near a month, she hasn't looked that good in months!


- Mac

 

[JAANDGC]

I borrowed one from a freind, Hooked it right up to a hose. It only takes a few min. per rock then you can throw it back in some saltwater. The reason for the biowheel is to keep the good bacteria going, and to pick up the slack from the live rock washing, which will kill off some of the good bacteria. Kind of like getting new rock without having to get new rock.

 

[JAANDGC]

It's also a good way to get rid of some of those pesty softies that love to grow everywere you don't want them.