We're doing pretty well. My cleaning crew, for a 105 gallon:
ust got my invert shipment, and I'm telling you what, they sent me the silliest little snails, dwarf ceriths, ranging down to a 1/16th inch. I had some yellow growth developing on the new sand, and that crew landed---wow! Gone overnight. Those tiny snails--- really truck! And the conch just sits in a spot and uses his 'trunk' to vacuum whatever's on the sand.
What I got:
15 Assorted Hermits*, 10 Blue Leg Hermit Crab*,1 Brttle Star*, 20 Dwarf Cerith,, 20 Empty Hermit Shells, 10 Florida Cerith, 2 Florida Fighting Conch*, 1 Fuzzy Chiton*, 3 Limpets*, 5 Nassarius Vibex, 5 Nerite Snails, 5 Peppermint Shrimp*, 1 Reef Pods, 6 Scarlet Hermit Crab, 4 Virgin Nerites, 10 Zig Zag Periwinkles...
and they are doing a job in that new tank. I've got some aiptasia for those shrimp. Wish me luck. But that is a busy little cleaning crew. Also discovered I have an abalone. I have no idea how, but a fuzzy little creature clings to a rock, and ain't budging. THese larger limpets, too, are great snails, not at all shy about coming out, about half an inch in size, and quite mobile. The nerites are stupid if they get flipped: I had to intervene with chopsticks to get one righted, but they seem to be pretty self protective once they get on rock.
Only thing I'm short on is bristleworms, but I have at least a few and I imagine they're working on the problem.
I had one catastrope, in the moving about: a coral-fall landed an acan on a caulestra, and the caulestra took damage, which turned into a progressing 'brown jelly' condition. I installed carbon to remove the coral spit (coral distress can tee off every other coral in the tank, unless you use it) got some ReVive and dipped the caulestra and the hammer its distress had annoyed (it was sliming)...had to dip a couple of the caulestra pieces (I fragged it into 3 pieces to get rid of the dead spot) twice, but so far so good.
No move ever goes 100% as planned, or no plan survives contact with the enemy...but definitely so far so good. I'm liking this new tank a lot: they've overcome the canopy heat problem even with metal halide and a really potent circulation means my necessary evaporation and oxygenation is going to go on in the sump. The water movement there is quite violent. I hear all sorts of things about having a slow flow in the fuge: mine isn't by any means slow, but I have enough cheato down there to make a very, very thick mass, and that is like a living filter sponge. The skimmer pours its effluent into it, too, and it's doing a lot to vivify this new tank.
I can say, officially, if you're doing a tank change and can link on a really, really mature (5 years) old sand-based fuge of 20 gallons or more and use your own old live rock mixed with the new, your cycle is going to be short. It's more like a massive water change than a new tank.
ust got my invert shipment, and I'm telling you what, they sent me the silliest little snails, dwarf ceriths, ranging down to a 1/16th inch. I had some yellow growth developing on the new sand, and that crew landed---wow! Gone overnight. Those tiny snails--- really truck! And the conch just sits in a spot and uses his 'trunk' to vacuum whatever's on the sand.
What I got:
15 Assorted Hermits*, 10 Blue Leg Hermit Crab*,1 Brttle Star*, 20 Dwarf Cerith,, 20 Empty Hermit Shells, 10 Florida Cerith, 2 Florida Fighting Conch*, 1 Fuzzy Chiton*, 3 Limpets*, 5 Nassarius Vibex, 5 Nerite Snails, 5 Peppermint Shrimp*, 1 Reef Pods, 6 Scarlet Hermit Crab, 4 Virgin Nerites, 10 Zig Zag Periwinkles...
and they are doing a job in that new tank. I've got some aiptasia for those shrimp. Wish me luck. But that is a busy little cleaning crew. Also discovered I have an abalone. I have no idea how, but a fuzzy little creature clings to a rock, and ain't budging. THese larger limpets, too, are great snails, not at all shy about coming out, about half an inch in size, and quite mobile. The nerites are stupid if they get flipped: I had to intervene with chopsticks to get one righted, but they seem to be pretty self protective once they get on rock.
Only thing I'm short on is bristleworms, but I have at least a few and I imagine they're working on the problem.
I had one catastrope, in the moving about: a coral-fall landed an acan on a caulestra, and the caulestra took damage, which turned into a progressing 'brown jelly' condition. I installed carbon to remove the coral spit (coral distress can tee off every other coral in the tank, unless you use it) got some ReVive and dipped the caulestra and the hammer its distress had annoyed (it was sliming)...had to dip a couple of the caulestra pieces (I fragged it into 3 pieces to get rid of the dead spot) twice, but so far so good.
No move ever goes 100% as planned, or no plan survives contact with the enemy...but definitely so far so good. I'm liking this new tank a lot: they've overcome the canopy heat problem even with metal halide and a really potent circulation means my necessary evaporation and oxygenation is going to go on in the sump. The water movement there is quite violent. I hear all sorts of things about having a slow flow in the fuge: mine isn't by any means slow, but I have enough cheato down there to make a very, very thick mass, and that is like a living filter sponge. The skimmer pours its effluent into it, too, and it's doing a lot to vivify this new tank.
I can say, officially, if you're doing a tank change and can link on a really, really mature (5 years) old sand-based fuge of 20 gallons or more and use your own old live rock mixed with the new, your cycle is going to be short. It's more like a massive water change than a new tank.
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