Luigi's 10 Gallon of Fun

[Luigi Reefs]

Hello everyone.

I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce everyone to, what we affectionately call in my house, the fish tank. It is a 10-gallon Aqueon my family purchased for me as a gift. Water went into the tank on January 13, 2024, so it is now 5 months old.


Specs:
10 Gallon Aqueon tank
50-watt heater
Seachem Tidal 35 Hang on Back Filter
Micmol Aqua CC II LED
Hygger Mini Wave Maker
Inkbird Temperature Controller/Monitor

Stocking :
2x Mocha Ocellaris Clownfish –Betty and Wassabi.
1x Black Clown Goby - Midnight
1x Peppermint Shrimp – Pedro, and sometimes, the jerk.
1x Emerald Crab – The Crab.
Assorted Blue Leg Hermits and snails

Coral
1x Kenya tree
1x Duncan


A bit of background. Back in the mid-2000’s I cultivated a 75-gallon aquarium out of my one-bedroom apartment. It housed mostly LPS (I had a hammer coral about 14 inches wide), softies, and mushrooms. It had a 20-gallon sump with a Caulerpa refugium, twin 150 metal halides, and a semi-cheap skimmer I got from a friend of a friend. Although I made a lot of mistakes, I considered the tank successful. I used simple, natural methods, to keep it going. Eventually, I got married, had a family, and had to move. 75 was taken down and the inhabitants were given to a family friend who took good care of everything.

Fast forward 13 years and the thought of having another aquarium dissipated. My wife has this un-godly fear of water mixing with electricity, so the thoughts of her being comfortable with an aquarium were low.

You can imagine my surprise when my family surprised me with an Aqueon start up kit for the holidays. The kit included the tank, 50-watt heater, lid, and small hang on back filter. I was elated as I knew it was time to re-enter the hobby.

I’ll end this log here for now. I’ll continue with the journey in my next post.

 

[TX_REEF]

Welcome back to the hobby and welcome to reef2reef!

 

[Luigi Reefs]

Now before I begin on how we got to where we are now, I want to say, yes, I know, a 10 gallon isn’t the best size tank for an aquarium. I fully recognize that and will say that this is a semi-temporary situation until an upgrade is warranted.

When I decided to invest in his hobby again, I knew I needed to lay down some rules or things could spiral out of control.

Rule 1 – Keep it simple.
I see that this hobby has maintained its insistence of making things overtly complicated. I get it. Especially when one is trying to keep highly sensitive marine organisms, and for those who push the boundaries of what is possible. Fortunately, I am not one of those people. And since I am not, and since I am basically an ignoramus, I am going to keep up the time-honored tradition of pre cultured rock, live sand, testing my parameters by hand, and weekly water changes

Rule 2 – Keep it relatively easy.
I’ll be straight with you all, I just don’t have a lot of time that I can give to this hobby. I have kids, a wife, and other hobbies. I already have a job that takes most of my time; I don’t need another one taking care of a mini-fish tank. Therefore, all my decisions need to be made with ease in mind. So, no SPS corals. Another no is hard to keep fish. And no overly complicated technological gizmo that I must learn to use and that can break at a moment’s notice.


Rule 3 – Keep it effectively inexpensive
Ok, I know for dang sure this hobby isn’t cheap, but one doesn’t need to sell the farm for a 10-gallon nano. All the fancy gear is cool and all, but is it really needed? No need for a $500 light, when the $110 one (which I got for 50% off) is adequate. The wavemaker was under $50. Also, this goes for coral as well. Not a chance on this green earth am I paying $100+ for a frag. You all are welcome to do with you want with your money, but I will be frugal with mine.

Rule 4 – Keep the things that can be plugged in to a minimum.
This one was for my wife. As I mentioned in my previous post, she has a fear of water mixing with electricity and the damage that can do. To help with my wife’s comfort I decided to keep those items that require electrical use to a minimum.

Rule 5 – Buy locally where possible.
This is the last one I promise. I have the amazing fortune to have two aquarium shops within a 5-minute drive from my house. I fully realize that is not the norm. So, I decided to purchase as much as I can from those vendors. One has great corals, but their fish leave much to be desired, and great dry goods. The other has amazing fish options, their corals are ok, and their dry goods are very expensive. I utilize both for whatever need arises.

Those are my five guiding principles that I will follow and hopefully will lead to success.

That is all for now. I will follow this chapter with how we started at another time.

 

[kevgib67]

Welcome back, glad you are here!

 

[AlyciaMarie]

Welcome! The setup is looking great so far.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Welcome back!

 

[TX_REEF]

Now before I begin on how we got to where we are now, I want to say, yes, I know, a 10 gallon isn’t the best size tank for an aquarium. I fully recognize that and will say that this is a semi-temporary situation until an upgrade is warranted.

When I decided to invest in his hobby again, I knew I needed to lay down some rules or things could spiral out of control.

Rule 1 – Keep it simple.
I see that this hobby has maintained its insistence of making things overtly complicated. I get it. Especially when one is trying to keep highly sensitive marine organisms, and for those who push the boundaries of what is possible. Fortunately, I am not one of those people. And since I am not, and since I am basically an ignoramus, I am going to keep up the time-honored tradition of pre cultured rock, live sand, testing my parameters by hand, and weekly water changes

Rule 2 – Keep it relatively easy.
I’ll be straight with you all, I just don’t have a lot of time that I can give to this hobby. I have kids, a wife, and other hobbies. I already have a job that takes most of my time; I don’t need another one taking care of a mini-fish tank. Therefore, all my decisions need to be made with ease in mind. So, no SPS corals. Another no is hard to keep fish. And no overly complicated technological gizmo that I must learn to use and that can break at a moment’s notice.


Rule 3 – Keep it effectively inexpensive
Ok, I know for dang sure this hobby isn’t cheap, but one doesn’t need to sell the farm for a 10-gallon nano. All the fancy gear is cool and all, but is it really needed? No need for a $500 light, when the $110 one (which I got for 50% off) is adequate. The wavemaker was under $50. Also, this goes for coral as well. Not a chance on this green earth am I paying $100+ for a frag. You all are welcome to do with you want with your money, but I will be frugal with mine.

Rule 4 – Keep the things that can be plugged in to a minimum.
This one was for my wife. As I mentioned in my previous post, she has a fear of water mixing with electricity and the damage that can do. To help with my wife’s comfort I decided to keep those items that require electrical use to a minimum.

Rule 5 – Buy locally where possible.
This is the last one I promise. I have the amazing fortune to have two aquarium shops within a 5-minute drive from my house. I fully realize that is not the norm. So, I decided to purchase as much as I can from those vendors. One has great corals, but their fish leave much to be desired, and great dry goods. The other has amazing fish options, their corals are ok, and their dry goods are very expensive. I utilize both for whatever need arises.

Those are my five guiding principles that I will follow and hopefully will lead to success.

That is all for now. I will follow this chapter with how we started at another time.

nice, love the buy local mantra!

 

[Luigi Reefs]

The day when it all began was January 13, 2024. Up until that point in time I have kept everything in a cardboard box in my home office. I had spent the previous 3 weeks studying the hobby, and obtaining all the additional gear I would need. BRSTV was my main source of knowledge. Their 5-minute guides helped tremendously.

The first thing I did was upgrade the hang on back filter with an Aqua Clear HOB. It was bigger and held more filter floss to keep the water clear. Eventually I replaced this with the Seachem Tidal as the ST has a bigger media basket and surface skims the water.

The next thing I purchased was the Hygger Mini Wave Maker. I love this thing. It was inexpensive and moves the water perfectly. Next up was the Inkbird, which to be honest, I didn’t even know was a thing. Back in my day we didn’t have monitors like this, and I can say it is a god send. The aquarium fluctuates between 77-79 and rarely goes beyond these parameters.

On 1/13 I decided we had all we needed to start up and I went to the LFS to pick up the rest of what I needed.

I do not have an RO-DI unit, nor will I ever, so I decided to get my water from the LFS. I bought two containers of Natures Ocean Nutri-SeaWater to start with. Yes, I could have purchased 10 gallons of RO-DI, salt mix, and mixed it at home, but this was simpler and easier. Please refer to my rules 1 and 2.

For biological filtration I believe in the use of pre-cultured rock. But I don’t believe ALL rock needs to be pre-cultured. So, I picked up the red rock on the left side of the aquarium, as the pre cultured rock from a soaking bin from at the LFS. And I picked up the purple rock on the right side as the dry rock. I knew that the dry rock would eventually be populated with the bacteria necessary. I did this on my old 75 and worked to perfection. I also knew the benefits of live sand, so I added that as well. And, just as a precaution, I purchased Dr. Tims One and Only just in case.

At that point I went home and got to work. In went the sand and the rock. Then the water. After that I connected the heater to the Inkbird and added the wavemaker. And finally, I set up the HOB but with no filtration. I used it, initially, for water movement.

I’d like to point out that I did not turn on the light. I didn’t even HAVE a light at this point. My plan was to go dark for 3-4 months to give the organisms in the tank a chance to populate. The tank gets ambient light from a window that gives it some, although not direct, sunlight.

Then the testing began. Daily testing using the API master test kit that came with the package. Yes, I know all about API kits, however it came with the package, and I didn’t need the tests to be accurate to the nth degree. I needed ballpark figures. After 2 weeks everything was at zero. Then I waited another week of testing zero to be 100% sure before I went and got my first livestock.

Since the tank was cycled, I purchased a bottle of AlgaeBarn Pods to populate the aquarium. Can’t remember which one I purchased.

That’s all for now. I hear the wife and kids calling. I’ll go into the first livestock purchases

 

[TX_REEF]

nice i love story time!

Wouldn't have your own RODI make things easier? Less trips to the LFS and certainly save $ in the long term if you intend to stay in the hobby

 

[Luigi Reefs]

Wouldn't have your own RODI make things easier? Less trips to the LFS and certainly save $ in the long term if you intend to stay in the hobby

Thank you. I am trying to keep this more of a story of a journey, than a typical log. I hope its entertaining.

Honestly, I don’t really have the space to put an RODI unit now. Also, my LFS sells RODI water for 50 cents a gallon. Right now, I spend 1 dollar a week for RODI water for water changes and top off. So, economically, it wouldn’t be impactful to get the unit installed.

 

[Luigi Reefs]

The purchase of the first fish was a family affair, as I took both my daughters to the LFS. They both wanted clownfish, and I wanted clownfish as I knew they were the perfect first fish for the aquarium. Easy to keep, hardy and will help the second stage cycle of the tank. They check all the requirements.

Apparently, aquaculture has blossomed over the past decade and a half. I never knew they had so many types of Clownfish. In my day we had what I refer to as the Nemo’s, and the Angry Ones. The Nemo’s were orange Percula Clowns and Ocellaris Clowns. The Angry Ones were Maroon Clowns, Cinnamon Clowns, etc. I knew I didn’t want the latter. My brother had a Maroon that would rip your finger off. I just wanted an old-fashioned Orange Nemo clown.

Well, they didn’t have those. They had black ones. Orange ones but the bar didn’t connect. They even had ones that I thought looked like Cows!!! ($200 for a clownfish. No sir!) But they did have a pair of juvenile mocha clowns that my daughters just loved, and really, that is what mattered. Both girls loved that they were paired and would always be together. They were so happy they swam, freely, into the container that the worker at the LFS laid out to catch them in. He mentioned that he had never seen that before and insisted it was fate they were to go home with us.

I purchased the clowns, some hermits, and two snails and took them home.

We got home and I taught the girls how to acclimate them to their new home. I don’t believe in the drip method. What I do is float them in the tank water for about 15-20 minutes. Then I open the bag, dump out some of the bag water, and replace that with the aquarium water, and have it float another 15-20. Then I dump it all into a bucket, and hand grab the fish and add them to the tank. This method has never failed me.

As is understandable both fish hid for the rest of the day. My 8-year-old didn’t understand why. I tried to explain to her that if someone came into this house, grabbed her, put her in a bag, and took her to another, strange house, that she would be scared too. That made sense to her. And I told her to just let them be until the morning.

Between us, I was petrified. It had been a LONG time since I’ve done this. I hoped that I would get everything right and that I wouldn’t find two dead floating fish. But, lo and behold, both were at the glass waiting for us. I taught my girls how to feed them, how to watch them from a respectable distance, and how to not knock on the glass.

They named them Betty (the 12-year-old named this one) and Wasabi (8-year-old here). Yes, that name is terrible, but it was hers to name, and Betty and Wasabi became a part of the family.

Photos:

1st photo are the Clowns when we got them. You can see how orange they are.

The 2nd photo are the Clowns today. They have matured and are much blacker/brown. One is also starting to get a bit bigger than the other, which I reason to mean this one is now the female.

 

[TX_REEF]

The purchase of the first fish was a family affair, as I took both my daughters to the LFS. They both wanted clownfish, and I wanted clownfish as I knew they were the perfect first fish for the aquarium. Easy to keep, hardy and will help the second stage cycle of the tank. They check all the requirements.

Apparently, aquaculture has blossomed over the past decade and a half. I never knew they had so many types of Clownfish. In my day we had what I refer to as the Nemo’s, and the Angry Ones. The Nemo’s were orange Percula Clowns and Ocellaris Clowns. The Angry Ones were Maroon Clowns, Cinnamon Clowns, etc. I knew I didn’t want the latter. My brother had a Maroon that would rip your finger off. I just wanted an old-fashioned Orange Nemo clown.

Well, they didn’t have those. They had black ones. Orange ones but the bar didn’t connect. They even had ones that I thought looked like Cows!!! ($200 for a clownfish. No sir!) But they did have a pair of juvenile mocha clowns that my daughters just loved, and really, that is what mattered. Both girls loved that they were paired and would always be together. They were so happy they swam, freely, into the container that the worker at the LFS laid out to catch them in. He mentioned that he had never seen that before and insisted it was fate they were to go home with us.

I purchased the clowns, some hermits, and two snails and took them home.

We got home and I taught the girls how to acclimate them to their new home. I don’t believe in the drip method. What I do is float them in the tank water for about 15-20 minutes. Then I open the bag, dump out some of the bag water, and replace that with the aquarium water, and have it float another 15-20. Then I dump it all into a bucket, and hand grab the fish and add them to the tank. This method has never failed me.

As is understandable both fish hid for the rest of the day. My 8-year-old didn’t understand why. I tried to explain to her that if someone came into this house, grabbed her, put her in a bag, and took her to another, strange house, that she would be scared too. That made sense to her. And I told her to just let them be until the morning.

Between us, I was petrified. It had been a LONG time since I’ve done this. I hoped that I would get everything right and that I wouldn’t find two dead floating fish. But, lo and behold, both were at the glass waiting for us. I taught my girls how to feed them, how to watch them from a respectable distance, and how to not knock on the glass.

They named them Betty (the 12-year-old named this one) and Wasabi (8-year-old here). Yes, that name is terrible, but it was hers to name, and Betty and Wasabi became a part of the family.

Photos:

1st photo are the Clowns when we got them. You can see how orange they are.

The 2nd photo are the Clowns today. They have matured and are much blacker/brown. One is also starting to get a bit bigger than the other, which I reason to mean this one is now the female.

Well I think Wasabi is an excellent clownfish name

 

[Luigi Reefs]

Three weeks after the Clowns were added all was going well. The Clowns were fitting in nicely and were eager to see us, mainly because they are gluttonous and just want to eat all the time. But I told the girls they loved us, and that was that.

The water parameters were becoming stable. Ammonia was non-existent, which was expected. Some weeks Nitrate went up ever so slightly, but then would go back down. I bought a phosphate test kit, and the same thing happened. Go up ever so slightly, then go back down.

I’d like to also remind everyone that the light is not on at that time. I still hadn’t purchased one as I wanted to do my research before getting anything. I knew I wasn’t adding Coral for a while, so the light wasn’t necessary. With that, there were no algae issues. No brown stage yet. Just a tank with Clowns, snails, and hermits.

It was certainly time to add another member to the tank. And I had one invert specifically in mind. A Peppermint Shrimp. And I had this in mind for a very good reason.

Back when I had my 75 I used a combination of live rock and dry rock to build the aquascape. This had its benefits in terms of micro fauna, and for cycling. However, it had its issues as well. I had lots and lots and LOTS of critters. One of those critters, however, was Aiptasia. They probably came on the rock, and/or the coral mounts. I didn’t know about dipping corals back then, so we played with fire.

And fire it did so rain! There were a lot of those little b-words. I wouldn’t say it was a plague, but it was annoying. And I wanted to ensure that this didn’t happen again.

While doing my research I learned of the term Utilitarian Fish/Inverts. Cool animals that did a job in the tank. Tangs and such for Algae. Certain fish for pests. And Peppermint Shrimp for Aiptasia.

So, I went and found Pedro, and brought him home.

I can say, since bringing Pedro home, I have not seen one single Aiptasia in the tank. Now this could be because there weren’t any to begin with. But it can be argued that Pedro gets to them before they become a problem. Either way is fine with me.

Pedro certainly has been helpful in other ways. He constantly scours the tank looking for uneaten food. BUT he has been a little nuisance as well. Just the other day I added my Duncan Coral to the tank, and I saw him go after the coral. I blasted him with water from a turkey baster and haven’t seen him mess with it again (and I am looking believe me). I have no idea if he was attacking the coral itself, or if there was something on the coral it wanted to eat. I wasn’t taking any chances. Also, no Astrea snail is safe with Pedro around. He has single handedly murdered about 5 of them. It has gotten so bad that I won’t buy anymore. I have so many snail shells that I call the back half of the tank the Snail Graveyard.

So that is Pedro. Our neighborhood Peppermint Shrimp. Some good. Some are not so good. But, for the time being, a part of the crew.

 

[Luigi Reefs]

Weeks had gone by, and everything was settling in. The light was still not on as I was being patient. Just letting everything do what it needed to do at its own pace.

Betty, Wasabi, and Pedro all worked well together and lived in a bit of harmony. The Clowns were starting to blacken up. About half of the orange coloring was giving way to black/dark brown which I understand is the calling card of the Mocha Clown. I had done some reading on Clown pairs and learned that one would eventually become the female and become a gigantic PITA. However, that wasn’t the case yet and all was looking good.

Water Parameters were in line. No algae issues. No Brown stuff yet. Nothing. We were going according to plan. It was time to add a new friend.

I always liked crabs. Not the hermits, I like those guys too, but crab looking crabs. In my 75 had a couple of Emerald Crabs and wanted one for the nano. Emerald Crabs are not just cool to look at, but they play a great role in preventing bubble algae, and eating small bits of stuff that falls into the rock work.

I had to have one.

So, I went to the LFS and found me an Emerald, which we all named The Crab. Apparently, it is very difficult to name a crab. They just don’t warrant a name like Karen or William. They are very workmanlike and official, so The Crab felt like a very professional name.

I do like this little bugger, although he hides on the other side of the rock work which is very annoying. I have attempted, on multiple occasions, to get a picture of him, but he does not have anything to do with it. He gives me a very unpleasant stare and scurries away.

When I do see him, he is very much chomping on things he found in the rocks. OR flaring his claws in a very cute, but menacing, way towards any fish that happens to swim by him. He’s like a teacup chihuahua. Ready to bite, but really, what damage is he going to do.

So, that is The Crab. Constantly vigilant. Never stopping for a minute. The new part of the crew.

Since I can’t get a pic of the crab, here are some shots of the tank as of today. BTW – I have no idea what those white worm-like things are on the back glass. But I am not going to worry about them

 

[Luigi Reefs]

We were now at the 3 month point and everything was still going strong. Fish? All good. Shrimp? Good to go? Crab? Reporting for duty sir!!!

To be honest, by this point I had thought we were done with the stocking. I just didn’t really see the need to add anything else, but that didn’t mean I didn’t go look.

One nice Saturday my 8-year-old and I went over the LFS to look at what they have. She wants me to get her a Betta tank, but I need my wife to get used to this tank first, before I brave the waters of multiple tanks. She wasn’t happy with that idea and did what most 8-year-old do when someone tells them no. She pouted.

I didn’t cave and dragged her to the salty side of the store. Then she saw it. A black clown goby just hanging out.

“Dad! Look at this one! It’s cool!”

But it was black. The clowns are turning black. The back of the tank is black. The HOB filter is black. The stupid heater is black. Couldn’t we just get the yellow one? Look how cool it is?

“No, I want this one!!! Pleasssssssssssssseeeee!”

And since I kinda, sorta, wanted another fish. I caved.

And that is how we purchased Midnight. Which I always thought was a name you gave a horse, or a big black dog. Not a tiny black fish, that you can barely see because almost everything in there is BLACK.

But I digress. I purchased Midnight and brought her home. She acclimated well. And in she went.

I must admit she is kind of cool. Just sits there on a rock until some morsel of food comes her way and then she pounces. I always feel like she is judging us. Just like how a cat will sit on a high step just staring, and cat-judging us. Midnight is superior to us all. We just don’t know it.

The one incredible thing about Midnight is she is just useless. Doesn’t really do a job in the tank and just kind of freeloads. Like an unemployed sibling who never moved out of mom’s basement. Midnight adds nothing to the upkeep of her surroundings. Like those guys who just live at the beach. Nobody knows how they have money to eat or clothe themselves. But, somehow, are there every day. Surfing. Living life. And I am kind of envious. I am jealous of my black Clown Goby.

 

[Luigi Reefs]

I guess I am different than most people. I enjoy solving all the inevitable problems that come about when owning, and operating, a mini replication of the ocean. There can be enjoyment taken when one is confronted by a problem, and one works tirelessly to solve it.

However, there is a caveat to all of this. One must take logical and intelligent steps to solve that problem. And, most importantly, one needs to have patience. Things don’t solve themselves out in a day. Hell, it may take a month. Or several months. Sometimes I see posts on here where none of those steps (logic, intelligence, nor patience) are utilized. And that is concerning.

Currently I am solving a particular problem. There are two issues, and both, I believe, are related. Firstly, my Duncan coral suddenly retracted its polyps unexpectedly, where the day before was fully extended. Secondly, I have noticed a slight increase in brown (dusty) algae growing on the glass, sand bed, and rock work.

When determining the fixing of a problem, one must determine what the root cause(s) are. After some research I determined there could be three main points that, if not correct, could cause both these issues. Water Parameter Imbalance, Flow, and Lighting.

So, I tackled the first item, Water parameters. I check my parameters 2x a week. All my tests came back within acceptable range. So, we can check this off the list.

The next item on the list was flow. Although I do not believe I have a lot of flow in the tank (as evidenced by the Kenya Tree flowing all so gently), it is possible that the flow, or my Clowns, are kicking sand in the face of the Duncan where it was. So, I decided to move it to the other side of the tank and wait until the next day to see if this resolved the issue. The next day the coral extended its polyp, but not at the rate I had seen a couple days prior. A little better, but not 100% the resolution.

The last option was lighting. Could it be possible that this light, in its current setting, is a little too strong? Possibly. Let’s find out.

The next morning, I decided to set the lighting to acclimation mode and observe its effect. Lo and behold the coral extended its polyp further, and almost fully. Now we are getting somewhere. We now know that a lower light intensity was beneficial. It was time to deep dive into finding a solution to the lighting issue.

Coincidently, World Wide Coral released a video on their YouTube page entitled Key Points to Coral Lighting: Fine Tuning your Reef Tank Lights. This was an excellent video and taught me that I did not have the lighting schedule set up correctly. In fact, it may have been too strong. Yes, it is not a strong light, however on a tank with these dimensions, it may be slightly overpowering.

The first thing I did was lower the intensity of the full spectrum, white light, from 100% to 50%. Secondly, I lowered the duration of that full spectrum lighting from 6 hours to 4. My new lighting schedule looks like this.

On the first day of the new lighting schedule, the coral extended its polyps fully, however, would pull back a bit once the whites went from 50% to 0%. The coral could be thinking the sun is setting and is getting ready for night-night. I will also be honest here. . . I did not like the look of the tank in full blue. I added back the white light at 25% for the 4:00 pm period. It looked much better, although still very blue.

As for the brown algae, well, this will take a bit more time to determine if the changes are positive. I will give this a full month with this schedule to determine if this is successful in limiting the brown algae. I will, also, keep up with my review of the water parameters to ensure that those stay constant to ensure there isn’t a growing issue there.

If there are any take a way's from this experience it is this.

Change one thing at a time to see if that has any effect on the issue. If you change 20 things, or add 10 new chemicals, how are you going to know what is working?

Patience: Things don’t fix themselves overnight. Change something and give it time to see if it works.

Below are some pics of Duncan across the stages of this experience.

 

[Luigi Reefs]

It has been some time since I’ve provided an update on the 10 gallons of fun, and things have changed a bit since the last we spoke.

Firstly, the losses. Over the past month I have lost both the Peppermint Shrimp, the Emerald Crab, and my Duncan coral. All of this was concerning as all three were living quite well. The Emerald was first to go. One day it was there, and the next it was not. Then it was the Duncan. One day it receded its polyps and never decided to come back. And lastly was the Peppermint Shrimp. I am not sure what happened there, as it was out and about on a Saturday and then disappeared on a Sunday. I thought that it was hiding due to molting (as it had numerous times) but he never resurfaced.

As you can imagine this concerned me. More on this later.

Next is the bleh. We have algae folks. We have tufts of it on the rocks, and long bunches/strings of it along the back wall. Now I am not 100% sure if this due to overabundance of nutrients in the water column, or if this is simply a part of the uglies as this tank is still less than a year old. More on this later.

Lastly is the good. We have very good growth on the Kenya Tree, and it has dropped its little Kenyan babies all over the tank. Now I know there are those who do not like this at all, but I love it. It feels natural to me. I also added another softy frag that I cannot remember the name of, and some zoas.

In addition, I added a clump of Chaeto to the tank. I wanted some macro algae in there for funsies, and perhaps nutrient. However, it is not growing very quickly as it only obtains light when the lights are on.

So here are my parameters as of today

Salinity: 33 ppm
Nitrate: 2.5 ppm (API test kit)
Phosphate: 0.25 (Api test kit)
Alk: 9.9 (Salifert)
Calcium: 450 (Salifert)
PH: 7.8 (API)

Parameters do not look too bad. I am not 100% sure about Nitrate and Phosphate. They are both the next level up from 0 on the test kit. So, I am not sure if this is good or bad. I believe Alk/Calc are good. PH is a little low, but there isn’t much I can do about it as the tank is in a small room with minimal air flow.

Lighting: I am currently following the below lighting schedule on a Micmol Aqua CC II LED.

Here are my questions for everyone.
Should I be concerned about Nitrate/Phosphate levels?
Algae: Is this something I should be concerned about? Or is this a natural part of the early evolution of the tank?
Lighting: Is the schedule adequate? Please consider that I would like to add easier LPS corals in the future. Could this be contributing to the Algae issues?

 

[00W]

Both the API nitrate and phosphate tests are ridiculously hard to read so I would test again using something else.
Salinity is low.
I don't see any algae in the above pictures.
Lighting seems fine but if it were me I'd experiment with running only blue and white, same schedule but just those 2..