HELLO ALL!

[C0kadoodledood]

Hey, all!

I am new to R2R and generally new to the SW community! I am looking for anyone willing to give me advice (local and abroad) and help me along my way. I live in San Digeo, CA and LOVE it! So much access to options for my SW tanks!

I have a BioCube 29; a semi-bare system cycling now with only a small CUC and a small amount of LR and a SeaClear II 75 gal that is in week 6 or 8... I can't even remember it seems like so long! I have a Domino, CUC, feather worms, spaghetti worms, white and yellow encrusting sponges, ti and various other little critters - like the NASTY BRISTLE WORMS! (Those will be out soon...)

I love just sitting and staring at my tank. It's so full of life! I will be adding more encrusted LR (from my LFS) to both systems soon!

I welcome any and all advice. I am shooting for a chemical-free system. So, far, I haven't had to do much dosing other than a little light buffering. I still can't seem to get that steady 8.2 pH! And I am testing at different times of day and light cycles- any thoughts???

Anyhow, feel free to say, "Hi!" anytime and REEF ON!!!

 

[Jisko]

Welcome! youll learn a lot here and meet wonderful people

I battled with bristle worms for about a year. Found one when I took down the tank that was about 6 inches long :[ It wasnt much of a problem except lifting a small piece of rubble rock and about 10 baby bristle worms would fall out so It became to much for me. Since then I've started over with new everything and going strong the first could tank are just learners haha

 

[C0kadoodledood]

ONE more thing...

I have these brownish/purple polyp-like things I have yet to identify. They may also be worms... IDK... still searching. As well- some pics of my critters and coralline.

My little starfishes... even though I think most of you guys don't like these ones- right?

One of my cute Yellow Encrusting Sponges:

Don't know what these are yet....

Avert your eyes... SHE'S TOPLESS!!! AND- I know I need more lighting. Fluval Marine & Reef 2.0 LED is this Friday's purchase of the week! (Unless someone can suggest something more cost effective and equally efficient...) I was thinking about going with the Fluval AquaSky and supplementing with more 'coral-friendly' light later down the road when I am ready to purchase. Can anyone tell me WHY I can't just use the AquaSky on it's own? It says range is 3000k-25000k on it. It really confuses me that there is NOTHING online that shows the LED specs for the fixture... that I can find...

 

[cromag27]

Welcome!

 

[C0kadoodledood]

Thank you.

 

[Maritimer]

Welcome aboard!

Those little brown polyps look like Aiptasia anemones. Not terribly pretty, but they do thrive in our systems. They can also go walkabout, stinging your corals as they go . . .

~Bruce

 

[C0kadoodledood]

Thank you, sir! That was my third thought as to what they were. But, I didn't think my system would support something like that just yet. So, I wasn't sure. My biofiltration is still building up as I'm fighting NO3 with weekly with WCs. Once I go buy my Fluval M&R 2.0 LED, I think I will get some good growth happening. I'm thinking my No3's will go down.

 

[KJ]

Welcome to R2R!!!

 

[skybears]

I wanted to take a moment to welcome you to reef2reef hear you me a bunch of kind people that have a love and dedication to saltwater aquariums they're full of knowledge kindness and are willing to help anybody and would love to learn more. The articles are fun the stretch you could spend hours reading I hope you enjoy your new home welcome to Reef to Reef.

 

[Jeremiah G]

Welcome welcome!!!
You are gonna love it here

 

[4FordFamily]

Welcome home, you will love it here!

Beautiful tank thanks for sharing!

Also that is in fact an aiptasia in the 3rd pic and asterina stars are considered a pest but a pest I've had for 12-13 years. They reproduce quickly in dirty water with high phosphates but with parameters in check they're rarely an issue in my experience. Many dissent with me on that, however.

 

[dbl]

Welcome to R2R and thanks for joining.

 

[C0kadoodledood]

Thank you, 4FordFamily et al!

Yes, I looked them up and agree they match the description. So far, I only have about 6 of them. I'm going to order Aiptasia-X and take care of them before they blow up OR move them to my BioCube which is mostly bare for the hermits to munch on a bit.

I have about 15-20 hermies right now, some being the red legged, and none seem to be going after them. Once I get a handle on NO3 with established bio-filtration, I will try peppermint scrimpies... We shall see how tasty a treat they are to them.

I like the little starfishies. They may not be the prettiest ones I can get, but, they'll do for now. I like seeing all the different life rooting around in the tank. I will keep them for now...

I don't think the PO4 is crazy in my tank. Using the built in protein skimmer and a bag Phosguard occasionally. No crazy algae going on... I'm about to do some testing.

However, this is the avg lately:

Ca = 480-500ppm
*dKH = ~11
GH/KH = ~161.1
NH3/NH4 = 0
NO2 = 0ppm
NO3 = ~40ppm
pH = 8.1

Anything I can do besides reg WCs for the nitrates? I have decided to get the Fluval Reef & Marine 2.0 LED- tomorrow.

I need to add to my testing kit (Mg and PO4). I need to make a better case for all these bottles! UGH! There's only so much I can stuff into this SW master kit box. LOL

Welcome home, you will love it here!

Beautiful tank thanks for sharing!

Also that is in fact an aiptasia in the 3rd pic and asterina stars are considered a pest but a pest I've had for 12-13 years. They reproduce quickly in dirty water with high phosphates but with parameters in check they're rarely an issue in my experience. Many dissent with me on that, however.

 

[4FordFamily]

Thank you, 4FordFamily et al!

Yes, I looked them up and agree they match the description. So far, I only have about 6 of them. I'm going to order Aiptasia-X and take care of them before they blow up OR move them to my BioCube which is mostly bare for the hermits to munch on a bit.

I have about 15-20 hermies right now, some being the red legged, and none seem to be going after them. Once I get a handle on NO3 with established bio-filtration, I will try peppermint scrimpies... We shall see how tasty a treat they are to them.

I like the little starfishies. They may not be the prettiest ones I can get, but, they'll do for now. I like seeing all the different life rooting around in the tank. I will keep them for now...

I don't think the PO4 is crazy in my tank. Using the built in protein skimmer and a bag Phosguard occasionally. No crazy algae going on... I'm about to do some testing.

However, this is the avg lately:

Ca = 480-500ppm
*dKH = ~11
GH/KH = ~161.1
NH3/NH4 = 0
NO2 = 0ppm
NO3 = ~40ppm
pH = 8.1

Anything I can do besides reg WCs for the nitrates? I have decided to get the Fluval Reef & Marine 2.0 LED- tomorrow.

I need to add to my testing kit (Mg and PO4). I need to make a better case for all these bottles! UGH! There's only so much I can stuff into this SW master kit box. LOL

Protein skimmers and magroalgaes (like chaeto) are my go-to!

 

[Tautog]

Welcome to Reef2Reef
Pic 1 looks like a feather worm
Pic 2 is the pest sea star , a Harlequin shrimp, is your best option, invasive
Pic 3 is a sponge, great for your tank, keep them
Pic 4 is Apitasia, very invasive, large ones, like yours , will reproduce rapidly, go to your local drug store, ask for a 3 mm Syringe, get Lemon juice, no pulp, inject 1 ml juice into Apitasia stem if you can, they retract very quickly, but die quick if you get them. I'm doing it now also. The Peppermint Shrimp work well with small baby Apitasia. Good Luck!

 

[C0kadoodledood]

Thank you, Tautog! Maritimer and 4FordFamily got me too... such support! I know the stars aren't the favs of the hobby... But, I like them... for now. I ordered the Aiptasia-X to take care of the glass anemones. It was cheap and I have only six or seven of them right now. Wouldn't want them spitting out planula and causing an outbreak. I'll update y'all on how that works out. I have my Fluval Reef&Marine LED 2.0 on its way... I will post a review and follow ups on that. I decided to shell out the cash instead of the crap-shoot of buying something with mixed reviews like Finnex Stingray...

Welcome to Reef2Reef
Pic 1 looks like a feather worm
Pic 2 is the pest sea star , a Harlequin shrimp, is your best option, invasive
Pic 3 is a sponge, great for your tank, keep them
Pic 4 is Apitasia, very invasive, large ones, like yours , will reproduce rapidly, go to your local drug store, ask for a 3 mm Syringe, get Lemon juice, no pulp, inject 1 ml juice into Apitasia stem if you can, they retract very quickly, but die quick if you get them. I'm doing it now also. The Peppermint Shrimp work well with small baby Apitasia. Good Luck!

 

[C0kadoodledood]

And I bought the LR with sponges on it... picked them for that very reason!

 

[SantaMonicaHelp]

Hey, all!

I am new to R2R and generally new to the SW community! I am looking for anyone willing to give me advice (local and abroad) and help me along my way. I live in San Digeo, CA and LOVE it! So much access to options for my SW tanks!

I have a BioCube 29; a semi-bare system cycling now with only a small CUC and a small amount of LR and a SeaClear II 75 gal that is in week 6 or 8... I can't even remember it seems like so long! I have a Domino, CUC, feather worms, spaghetti worms, white and yellow encrusting sponges, ti and various other little critters - like the NASTY BRISTLE WORMS! (Those will be out soon...)

I love just sitting and staring at my tank. It's so full of life! I will be adding more encrusted LR (from my LFS) to both systems soon!

I welcome any and all advice. I am shooting for a chemical-free system. So, far, I haven't had to do much dosing other than a little light buffering. I still can't seem to get that steady 8.2 pH! And I am testing at different times of day and light cycles- any thoughts???

Anyhow, feel free to say, "Hi!" anytime and REEF ON!!!

Hi C0kadoodledood,

Welcome to the forum
This is a very stress relief hobby
What plans do you have for future?

Zhenya

 

[C0kadoodledood]

So, the Aiptasia-X worked GREAT. They disintegrate within a few seconds of application. All but one or two are gone. They're tiny and I'm saving them for some peppermint shrimp I will be getting soon. If he gets too big, I can always get rid of him with this stuff.

 

[C0kadoodledood]

Hi C0kadoodledood,

Welcome to the forum
This is a very stress relief hobby
What plans do you have for future?

Zhenya

Thank you! Glad to be here. It has already been a big help and I've avoided some pitfalls.

The future... hmmm... hover boards, hologram movies and flying cars! LoL

I have both my 75g and 29g biocube setup now. I wanna have them both be reef tanks. My lights are on their way for both tanks. I made a floating fixture for the biocube. (See pic)

I'm gonna start easy and work my way up to intermediate level corals. I probably won't push further than that until I retire and have time to REALLY focus on the hobby. It is indeed so relaxing!

Another thought I've had- I live in SD and there is a huge need for a full-service SW company that takes care of you from start to finish. Being the guy I am, once I'm settled in and know my *******, I may start a weekend business. I already see some opportunities.

This has become a very relaxing pass time for me and I just love watching the life in my tanks. Once my lights are here, you'll probably never peel me away from my tanks!

Thanks again and REEF ON!