OP
OP
I currently use Red Sea blue bucket. I haven’t tested alk or anything like that yet.
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CoastalTownLayabout
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Caribsea live sand and life rock provides a bacterial start at best.
Micro fauna are the micro crustaceans, polychaetes and echinoderms that scavenge algae, waste and nutrients from the rock, sand and water column. They are the often invisible workforce of reef tanks and will be well established in stable systems.
The best way to inoculate your system with micro fauna is via live rock from the ocean or other established systems. So yes, adding a mushroom attached to some live rock rubble can achieve this, albeit incrementally. The process takes time but it is the proven road to a mature and stable system.
OP
OP
Any specific mushroom type? Or ones to avoid? And how soon should I add it? Like now or in a few weeks?
I know I'm asking for specifics on something that isn't an exact science but opinions are valued.
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CoastalTownLayabout
Active Member
Less about the mushroom, more about the rock it’s attached to is the point here
.
Basic colourations of discosoma are hardy and cheap. The blues and metallic greens have been borderline invasive for me in the past so choose carefully. It’s usually best to keep them off your main scape. The more exotic colour morphs are generally more expensive but seem to self propagate less frequently.
A dedicated mushroom nano with a variety of contrasting colours can be a very effective display. Not everyone’s cup of tea but I’ve seen some very nice ones over the years.
You could add hardier varieties tomorrow, they’re hard to kill. Medium to low light and flow is best.
.Basic colourations of discosoma are hardy and cheap. The blues and metallic greens have been borderline invasive for me in the past so choose carefully. It’s usually best to keep them off your main scape. The more exotic colour morphs are generally more expensive but seem to self propagate less frequently.
A dedicated mushroom nano with a variety of contrasting colours can be a very effective display. Not everyone’s cup of tea but I’ve seen some very nice ones over the years.
You could add hardier varieties tomorrow, they’re hard to kill. Medium to low light and flow is best.
OP
OP
Now I assume a frag plug doesn't count? Or would that contain the same useful micro fauna assuming its a established plug?Less about the mushroom, more about the rock it’s attached to is the point here
Basic colourations of discosoma are hardy and cheap. The blues and metallic greens have been borderline invasive for me in the past so choose carefully. It’s usually best to keep them off your main scape. The more exotic colour morphs are generally more expensive but seem to self propagate less frequently.
A dedicated mushroom nano with a variety of contrasting colours can be a very effective display. Not everyone’s cup of tea but I’ve seen some very nice ones over the years.
You could add hardier varieties tomorrow, they’re hard to kill. Medium to low light and flow is best.
I'm a huge fan of ricordia mushrooms as well as rhodactus but idk if those have near the same hardiness as discosoma.
OP
OP
I can't take a pic right now but in the chamber that your return pump goes I have my ATO sensor about half way up the chamber. That is where I keep my water level currently
tinyfellows
Active Member
No need for a picture that’s good enough for me thanks tank looks good
OP
OP
Hello all. So it's been quite a while since I've last updated the thread on the tank and quite a lot has happened, mostly good! First off as you'll notice I have quite a few coral additions to the tank. I'll go over everything that has gone on so far over the past 3 months.
First off, the cyano in the tank popped off for the first month after adding my first corals. It took a while for it to disappear but after adding my cerith and cowry snail as well as giving the tank time, everything subsided. At some point through the frags I got I ended up with a hitch-hiker stomatella snail which is a welcome addition to the tank.
Speaking of hitch-hikers I have noticed two pop up that scared me at first but I haven't really had any issues from them so far. One being bristle worms, and the other being flatworms. The flatworms just started popping up but there really aren't many of them so I am gonna keep an eye on that. As far ats the bristle worms, the research I've done suggests they are harmless and I haven't noticed them agitating any corals so I haven't done anything to remove them.
As far as lighting I have made some adjustments to the schedule as well as intensity. I ended up going with a 12 hour lights on period including the hour ramp up and ramp down. After the lights got to full intensity when the acclimation period was finished, a lot of the corals seemed a little unhappy when it got to mid -day which is the highest intensity.
I am still trying to figure out a few issues, where towards the end of the day, some of the lps seem to retract. Not exactly sure why yet.
As far as water parameters and what I am feeding the tank, I've gone very simple. I do a weekly 1-2 gallon water change and test only phosphates once a month. To be honest everythign has been stable with the consistent water changes and everything has seemed happy so I haven't felt the need to test more. With feeding I do a spot feeding of reef roids once a week and I does .8ml of AB+ every other day. Since I started dosing the AB+ I have noticed a little color gain but not really sure if I will continue use after the bottle is gone.
As far as corals, you can see it is a full mixed reef, although predominently LPS. Most of the corals in the tank took about a week to fully adjust to the tank. As of right now only one coral has given me consistent issues for the past two months and that is the zoas in the middle and to the right. Ever now and then half the cluster wont open up and when they do they don't look happy. All of the other zoas fully open and are very happy so not really sure why it's happening. The skittles bomb cyphastrea has taken off as far as growth. It went dormant for a long time and I almost thought it would die but one day I woke up and it was fully open. About two weeks later I saw substantial growth which I am happy to see. The sps sticks took about a week each to aclimate but have been doing amazing, if not the best in the tank. The ricordia are getting ready to split. Have been thinking of getting rid of them possibly for some nicer mushrooms down the road. If anyone has any idea what is wrong with the zoas in the middle right lmk. They used to look so nice and fluffy.
The current list of corals is as follows:
1x Bali green slimer
1x POTA Sunfyre
1x Tiger torch thanks to @reefco
1x blue lagoon zoa
2x unknown zoas
1x grafted frogspawn green/purple
2x hammers
1x ferarri red acan ( more orange than red )
Sorry for the mouthful but hope those who read through enjoyed. Any questions or advice are wlecome!
First off, the cyano in the tank popped off for the first month after adding my first corals. It took a while for it to disappear but after adding my cerith and cowry snail as well as giving the tank time, everything subsided. At some point through the frags I got I ended up with a hitch-hiker stomatella snail which is a welcome addition to the tank.
Speaking of hitch-hikers I have noticed two pop up that scared me at first but I haven't really had any issues from them so far. One being bristle worms, and the other being flatworms. The flatworms just started popping up but there really aren't many of them so I am gonna keep an eye on that. As far ats the bristle worms, the research I've done suggests they are harmless and I haven't noticed them agitating any corals so I haven't done anything to remove them.
As far as lighting I have made some adjustments to the schedule as well as intensity. I ended up going with a 12 hour lights on period including the hour ramp up and ramp down. After the lights got to full intensity when the acclimation period was finished, a lot of the corals seemed a little unhappy when it got to mid -day which is the highest intensity.
I am still trying to figure out a few issues, where towards the end of the day, some of the lps seem to retract. Not exactly sure why yet.
As far as water parameters and what I am feeding the tank, I've gone very simple. I do a weekly 1-2 gallon water change and test only phosphates once a month. To be honest everythign has been stable with the consistent water changes and everything has seemed happy so I haven't felt the need to test more. With feeding I do a spot feeding of reef roids once a week and I does .8ml of AB+ every other day. Since I started dosing the AB+ I have noticed a little color gain but not really sure if I will continue use after the bottle is gone.
As far as corals, you can see it is a full mixed reef, although predominently LPS. Most of the corals in the tank took about a week to fully adjust to the tank. As of right now only one coral has given me consistent issues for the past two months and that is the zoas in the middle and to the right. Ever now and then half the cluster wont open up and when they do they don't look happy. All of the other zoas fully open and are very happy so not really sure why it's happening. The skittles bomb cyphastrea has taken off as far as growth. It went dormant for a long time and I almost thought it would die but one day I woke up and it was fully open. About two weeks later I saw substantial growth which I am happy to see. The sps sticks took about a week each to aclimate but have been doing amazing, if not the best in the tank. The ricordia are getting ready to split. Have been thinking of getting rid of them possibly for some nicer mushrooms down the road. If anyone has any idea what is wrong with the zoas in the middle right lmk. They used to look so nice and fluffy.
The current list of corals is as follows:
1x Bali green slimer
1x POTA Sunfyre
1x Tiger torch thanks to @reefco
1x blue lagoon zoa
2x unknown zoas
1x grafted frogspawn green/purple
2x hammers
1x ferarri red acan ( more orange than red
)Sorry for the mouthful but hope those who read through enjoyed. Any questions or advice are wlecome!
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