Nuvo 14 build.

[Reef.]

Couple more pics, feeling guilty just adding one...

 

[Reef.]

I thought I would be nice and feed my cleaner shrimp a prawn for a treat, he must have enjoyed it so much so he stuffed it in the rock for his supper!

I normally can get it back out when he drops it after he’s had his fill, this time I had to pull the rock out of the tank to get it, he really stuffed it in there.

Just today One of the clowns has started going for my hand, but even he backed off when he saw the rock moving, the poor bugger!

I hope I’ve not caused an ammonia spike, moving the sand around, I couldn’t leave the prawn in there, so hope it’s ok.

Next time he can have a lobster tail, he’ll find it hard to stuff that in his larder.

 

[Reef.]

Probably time for an update...

Sadly not much has changed, I’ll try and get a picture up tomorrow.

Slightly changed the scape, the large rock at the back I have now turned so it runs along the back wall, the powerhead was blasting it too much so coral placement would have become an issue, it has now caused a difference issue, it was turned up to 30%, having nothing in its way, I can now only have it a10% and It’s still too much flow for the sand, I have it in the back corner, any suggestions on placement? Back wall would probably be ideal but the mp10 can’t go there. No point having it if I can’t run it more than 10%.

Yes I know still no corals but I tried with some Zoas, they lasted all of two days! They just melted away, no idea what the issue is, my parameters are in line or so i thought, PO4 a little high at around .1, scared to try again!

I’ve added a Pom Pom crab, very cool, I spot feed him as he is still shy, he loves his food, funny when he has had enough he pushes it away, guess he doesn’t want others coming near for the food.

CUC wise I only have the crab, shrimp and one snail, I don’t really have an algae issue, there is a little on the glass just below the sand level, I had the brown stage for a few days but not much else, so can’t see the need for more cuc, not sure if that is related to the coral death, maybe a good algae stage is what I need to mature the tank?

I have a Radion diffuser coming tomorrow, trying to reduce the shimmer as the gramma doesn’t like it, if that doesn’t work, I’ll change the light to a Radion.

Thinking I might try a torch next? good idea? Any pointers when to try again? No sign of coralline algae but I probably haven’t introduced it to the tank yet with the limited additions.

A quick word on the filtration, again not much changed, 1st chamber is siporax and floss, 2nd are the heaters and I have a bag of Purigen, carbon and phosguard and the 3rd is the return pump, I’m still doing a lot of water changes, 2 litres a day and 6-7 every week as I like to feed a lot.

Any comments are good, especially on flow and adding corals.

 

[Reef.]

Couple of pictures, sorry not much has changed, apart from the scape slightly, trying another Zoa or Torch soon, I’ve ordered a new mp10 cover that has a flow direction thingy on it, any suggestions on the best direction/placement for the mp10? I’m thinking leave it in the same place (back corner under return) but have the flow directed down towards the front of the tank instead of straight across as this kicks up sand.

 

[iamacat]

Can you list your actual parameters for us? That way we can start to rule out what might have lead to your issue keeping corals.

tank looks good! I took the time to read through your thread, fun journey right? What I noticed as a theme was the frequent changing of equipment and flow. Reef tanks hate change especially if it is rapid and large. I wonder if the equipment changes lead to a bio diversity issue on a nano tank. I’m personally haven’t run a nano but the theories and science translate.

 

[Reef.]

Thanks for reading.

Maybe it was me but for my defence the Zoas I bought were I’m guessing freshly cut as the frag plugs were white, they were also shipped (its cold here) 3 frags in the same bag, so I think I was up against it from the start. My next purchase will be from my LFS p, see what I’m getting.

My parameters are not too bad, they could be better tho.

nitrate is 15,
PO4 is on the high side at .1,
alk is 7,
ph 8.15
mag 1350
cal 400
Temp 26c (79f)
Sal 1.025

 

[iamacat]

What salt do you use? I would like to see the alk higher for coral introduction. Also I would cap my temp at 25c, what do you use to monitor the temp?

as I stated I don’t have experience with nanos but I can say I don’t think that many water changes is recommended. Either their is over feeding, a lack of filtration, or a lack of microbiology seeded into your system. Maybe you introduced bacteria at the start to cycle, but there are other forms of bacteria that help with the later stages of a reef existence.

do you dose or rely on your alk/ca/mg being managed with water changes?

 

[Reef.]

I use Tropic Marin pro, it has alk around 7

I,did,have the temp at 25 a few months ago but moved it to 26 as I felt the variation saw it drop to 24.5 sometimes which I felt was too low?

And I nearly forgot, 26c helps in the summer, as the room temp goes to around 27.5 at times so 26c was easier to keep the temp stable, than 25c.
I use an Inkbird, it keeps the tank +/- .04c

I do feed a lot, hence the water changes but feel even if I didn’t I have no other nutrient export apart from water changes and floss, so the feeding would have to be very low to keep up with that.

I don’t dose yet, changes should keep up with corals I. Thinking for a while yet.

I did start the cycle with Fritz.

When you get zoa frags are they totally closed? As mine were, they melted within 24 hours, I’m thinking there would have to be something seriously wrong with the tank for me to kill them that fast?

 

[iamacat]

There are lots of variables with corals. Regarding your previous experience, you are right you may not have had a chance. Corals like consistency, softies are more forgiving than sps but temp, salinity, and pH need to be locked down consistent.

The tropic Marin pro reef salt is great but it is intended to be used with 2 part dosing or a reactor, thief instructions also state to do 10% water changes weekly. As you get familiar with coral you will learn about their demands and requirements.

are you changing your carbon and gfo out as scheduled? Unless you have specific carbon or gfo it can leach contaminates back into the system once it has become exhausted.

something I would recommend adding at this stage is microbacter7. It’s a simple addition to dose and I think it will add more stability to your system. Possibly even decrease your water change demands.

 

[iamacat]

There are lots of variables with corals. Regarding your previous experience, you are right you may not have had a chance. Corals like consistency, softies are more forgiving than sps but temp, salinity, and pH need to be locked down consistent.

The tropic Marin pro reef salt is great but it is intended to be used with 2 part dosing or a reactor, thief instructions also state to do 10% water changes weekly. As you get familiar with coral you will learn about their demands and requirements.

are you changing your carbon and gfo out as scheduled? Unless you have specific carbon or gfo it can leach contaminates back into the system once it has become exhausted.

something I would recommend adding at this stage is microbacter7. It’s a simple addition to dose and I think it will add more stability to your system. Possibly even decrease your water change demands.

Oh I also found in my years that a higher temp lead to more algae and bacterial infections in both coral and fish. A higher temp just seems to cause for flare ups and fires to manage. I like to run 24-25c. You will find corals are sensitive to temperature changes. It is best to slowly acclimate to the new temp. That goes for your future frags

 

[Reef.]

Thanks for the detailed reply.

yeah I change my media regularly, I use Seachem carbon and it’s getting expensive hehe actually Seachem seems to be my preferred brand as I also use phosguard changed every few days (slow in working)

I’ll look into microbacter7!

Algae upto now has been very limited, a little at sand level on the glass and a couple of small patches on the rock, those pictures I just posted are the worst the tank as been with algae! I think I need an algae outbreak to be a real reefer! I think the tank is lacking something because of it lol

 

[iamacat]

You have had some inhabitants for a while now correct? Any fish or invert death?

just trying to work through the scenario here. I’m wondering why your tank is throwing high nutrient numbers and you don’t have algae and you also don’t have coral uptake. I don’t want to direct you because I don’t know what to do in a nano environment correctly. I would like to hear from a seasoned nano reefer. Something tells me you are lacking something and your tank isn’t quite mature yet even tho it has been going for a while. I just feel like there is something missing, like you didn’t get that second wave of your cycle. I think it might have to do with the water changes. Your inhabitants will be okay with elevated nitrates for a bit. I would go get some microbacter7 and start adding that daily to their instructions. You should keep doing water changes but not the amount you have been. Keep it to no more than 10% at a time especially with a nano. Large swings will stress the tank

 

[Reef.]

Yeah I agree, I have had one shrimp die, I think it was caused by a sudden drop in temp, when winter hit the heaters couldn’t keep the temp at 26, the first day it dropped the shrimp was dead, I since added another heater.

I do feed a lot, my PO4 got out of control over a couple of weeks as the LFS was out of my salt, so missed a few w/c, it was below .1 then went up to around .2 now I’ve brought it back down to around .1.

My light is only a Kessil A80 so not that powerful, i also kept it off for a good few months whilst the tank cycled, so I think that helped.

yeah I agree I feel I’m missing something too, I was slightly serious when I said I feel I need a good algae outbreak!

 

[iamacat]

Okay you said it cycled for months. Does that mean like it took that long to cycle or you cycled and then it sat in the tank with everything running? Cycles can stall. The ammonia cycle is quick and should only take a few days to make it fish ready. It’s the bacteria that is called to action next that really sets the biological filter on your substrate. I feel pretty good about going with the microbacter7 to get a pulse on if that is the issue. Bottom line, things don’t match up and something isn’t pulling its weight in your system to manage the nutrients. I also recommend cutting back on your feedings, at least feed smart and only feed what is eaten.

 

[Reef.]

Okay you said it cycled for months. Does that mean like it took that long to cycle or you cycled and then it sat in the tank with everything running? Cycles can stall. The ammonia cycle is quick and should only take a few days to make it fish ready. It’s the bacteria that is called to action next that really sets the biological filter on your substrate. I feel pretty good about going with the microbacter7 to get a pulse on if that is the issue. Bottom line, things don’t match up and something isn’t pulling its weight in your system to manage the nutrients. I also recommend cutting back on your feedings, at least feed smart and only feed what is eaten.

I meant I cycled the tank, added the fish after a couple of months but kept the lights off for another couple of months after adding the fish.

I only feed frozen food, no food is left on the sand bed, the powerhead takes it down the overflow, it’s to light to settle on the sand anyway.

When I say I feed a lot, I feed a good few times a day but only a little, I cut up a cube into 4, defrost a quarter and the fish get maybe a quarter of that, yeah it’s still a lot for 3 fish and a shrimp but as said I never see any left over food in the tank.
I’ll try another coral and hopefully it lives and also look into bac7.

 

[Reef.]

Added a 3D printed flow deflector to my mp10 today, It makes a huge difference, I can now turn the powerhead up to 35%+ and not have sand blowing around the tank! Previously 10% was too much, was pointless having the mp10.

 

[gaki]

I’ve got a nuvo 20, and it’s pretty mature, but I just can’t keep zoanthids either. All other corals (euphyllia, ricordea, and some others) do just fine, but the zoas, for whatever reason, were very unhappy. If I were you, I would get a cheap softy or lps and see how it does. Might be a good idea just to narrow down the issue a bit more.

 

[Reef.]

I’ve got a nuvo 20, and it’s pretty mature, but I just can’t keep zoanthids either. All other corals (euphyllia, ricordea, and some others) do just fine, but the zoas, for whatever reason, were very unhappy. If I were you, I would get a cheap softy or lps and see how it does. Might be a good idea just to narrow down the issue a bit more.

yeah seems Zoas can be temperamental at the bests of times.
Love Torches, I just need to pin down which to go for.

 

[gaki]

Yeah torch sounds like a fine idea, though I would stay away from gold torch... or one of those (I’m pretty sure it’s gold torch) because lots of people keep them for about a year, but then they suddenly have issues at the 1 year mark. You could also try frogspawn/ grape corals which have similar appearances.

 

[Reef.]

I take it all back, just got a Hanna checker for PO4 and love it, result was a surprising 0.05 thought it was going to be higher, so pleased with that, corals soon I promise.