[Diary] Tim's Pico Reef Aquamedic armatus XS [finished]

[mangolove]

Hello Reef2Reef community,

I'm thrilled to kick off a diary for my Aquamedic Armatus XS aquarium and share my journey with you all.

I'm Tim, and my tank was established on July 19, 2023. The aquarium boasts a 7-liter capacity.

Inhabitants of my aquarium:

I currently have 6 sexy shrimps, consisting of 5 females and 1 male.

The coral residents in my tank include a stunning blue Ricordea Florida with a vibrant green border, as well as a Ricordea Yuma with a unique coloration that's challenging to describe.

Maintenance and Feeding:

Since October 11, I've been supplementing the Ricordea corals due to their slow growth.

I bring over a decade of experience with saltwater aquariums, which has been instrumental in caring for my vibrant ecosystem.

For maintaining my tank's water quality and parameters, I rely on a selection of products:

To regulate the temperature, I employ a fan.

I utilize Chemipure Elite, Aquaforest Life Bio Fill & Zeo Mix.
After water changes, I introduce Aquaforest Bio S. Additionally, I use filter floss.

I perform extensive maintenance monthly, which includes disassembling the tank for thorough cleaning. Water changes occur as needed, with my pH level at 8.35, temperature at 24.5 degrees Celsius, and a specific gravity of 1.025, measured using a Milwaukee digital refractometer.

Water Source:
I primarily use osmosis water, which I acquire from a gas station once a month. Occasionally, in emergencies, I may use store-bought bottled water that I happen to have on hand. I use Aquaforest Reef Salt to maintain the water parameters.

Feeding:
To nourish my tank's inhabitants, I employ a variety of products:
Tropic Marine Power Coral Food LPS Mini Granules
Seachem Phyto
Aquaforest Ricco Food
Nyos True Algae

I'm excited to embark on this journey with the Reef2Reef community, drawing from my decade-long experience in the world of saltwater aquariums. Feel free to reach out with questions or insights. Let's make this aquarium adventure a shared experience!

Thanks guys for reading this thing all the way through! I just want to point out that the introduction was written by chatgpt with my input. English is not my native language and I dont speak this enthousiastically normally From now on its me typing

 

[LouisianaReef]

I love all the smaller pieces of rock vs large ones.

 

[mangolove]

I love all the smaller pieces of rock vs large ones.

Thanks, the idea is to create a ricordea garden so the smaller pieces should come in handy

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Great looking tank!

 

[mangolove]

Did Another feeding today, they did eat some pellets but took very long. I wonder if they eat faster when they get used to the feeding or if the intervals between feeding should be larger because they are not so "hungry".

After the feeding i blew over the sand with a pipette, still allot of debree came off to my suprise. After adding the chemipure elite ive found both ricordea's to decrease in size. Thats also the reason why i wanted to feed today. Sg was 1.026 so added around 170ml of ro water. Now the sg is 1.024.

Below I have added some pictures under 100% blue lighting and a slighly little bit of red (4 leds) out of 36

 

[mangolove]

Great looking tank!

Thanks allot! Doing my best

 

[mangolove]

Oh guys.. I was wondering about this.

Is my isopod still alive?

 

[mangolove]

Oke... so... i've already encountered my first problem with the 10w heater. It doesnt work anymore? Or at least far from my expectations. This could be due to my usb hub. So ive placed it in higher amp port and upped the temp to 27 degree celcius. Hopefully this works. its also located behind the upflow pump in a corner so this also doesnt help. but right now the water is 24.0 degrees celcius. Ricordea florida doesnt seem bottered but the yuma shriffled up wich caused me to check temp because I ALSO added ro water so sg went from 1.026 to 1.024. I check again tomorrow

 

[mangolove]

Got a new heater, didnt install it yet. Its also getting cold outside so probably should do it asap.

Getting some new mushrooms soon, i will make an update when i get them.

Btw guys, what do you feed your yuma and what so you feed your florida? Can you also feed a rhodactis?

Wondering of they would like brine shrimp eggs?

 

[mangolove]

So.. do you guys like it?

 

[mangolove]

Top view

 

[mangolove]

What are your experiences with a fungia?

Its time i am going to start measuring for nitrates. Have been doing some heavy feeding. Still would like to make my coral feeding game better since i can so easily feed them and test what works best. Maybe develop my own ricordea food that also works for yuma's?

If you guys have any food you want me to try out please let me know.

 

[mangolove]

Everything Is doing good!

Just did a big waterchange, it's crystal clear again. Even though feeding heavily the past few weeks I dont have the feeling the tank couldnt handle powdered foods, phyto and pellets.

Already thinking about getting a bigger (longer) tank. Without sump but with a cannister filter that I also use for flow.

 

[mangolove]

So im going to experiment some more with tons of food.

 

[mangolove]

Oke so ive been feeding HEAVILY and havent changed my water since 1st of november 23.

Nitrate is below 2. No skimmer.

Really thought my nitrates would be around 100, but didnt notice anything so I just got a nitrate testkit today.

Ive also setup a new tank with just water, pump and a heater and sand.

Really suprised about the low nitrates...

 

[TheTruTaric]

I love this journey. Im in the USA and im trying to get my hands on this aquarium. Do you find the flow to be adequate? im also surprised you did not have higher nitrate.

 

[mangolove]

I love this journey. Im in the USA and im trying to get my hands on this aquarium. Do you find the flow to be adequate? im also surprised you did not have higher nitrate.

Yeah, im thinking about showing you guys just how many I have fed.

Because I still dont believe it myself. Btw... just an hour ago I discovered sexy shrimp baby's!

Since three days ago I have added 5ml of live phytoplankton daily and a small bag of copepods.

They are all in the corner because lights are out and my lamp is still on. So amazing!

I have dosed some phyto, tropic marine o- megavital some other coral food and zooton from tropic marin.

Today i also measured nitrate and now im sitting at a nitrate of 2. So

Also yes, i even think its to much for my ricordea's. Its 200l/H but wish they would he 150.

The pump is also struggling but im wondering if i need to clean it aswell.

Biggest downside though... measuring salinity all the time. No way to see the water level in the sump.

Ive got a digital refractometer because of this.

And thanks for following glad someone enjoys this sub ahahha.

Edit: water changes are also a real pain when u want to remove the top. But it is doable

 

[mangolove]

Oke so i havent measured the nitrate in a while, also havent done any water changes. Everything seems fine. Ive also been dosing live phyto daily. Copepods are exploding in the tank. Water is crystal clear from above. Havent cleaned the windows but they are full with featherdusters.

 

[mangolove]

Hey everyone! This is the final update about the nano tank. I took it apart because i was to busy with measuring and cleaning my salinity meter and water changes just where to hard. I transferred everything to a new tank A 25 liter If you have any questions just message me!