Welcome to Dante's Cove!
Phew, 1.5 years already?! This is a catch up thread, love any tips. Attached are some progression shots to date. I've killed my share of corals, but things have been pretty stable the last 6 months. I beat the red and brown algae mostly!
Status: Overall stable, good nitri/nitra cycle, healthy fish, hyper-growth now - terrible bubble and aptasia, not giving up!
Beginning...
Build overview...
Tank murder...
1 yr...
Recent...
- I run no filters but have a marine block and algae refugium that I keep clean every quarter of detritus.
- I throw a carbon bag in refugium every couple days for a few hours.
- Once a week I do aminos and reef roids.
- Daily do Red sea trace add.
- Feed chunky fish/shrimp every other day.
- Flakes 2-3 times a day
- Pellets every other day 1-2 times a day
- Two drops of iodine a week
- Water changes 15 gallon every 2 weeks
- ICP test every 6 months from CO, normal ranges
- RODI water from city double de-ioninze
- Don't use Kalk anymore
- Use Red Sea Alk and Ca and Trace - use dosers hourly
- Great Coraline growth
- I don't run carbon reactor or phosphate reactor any more
- Only test PO4, Nitrate, CA, Alk, Salinity
- Skimmer runs every 6 hours for 2 hours
- 2 fans, strong flow
Fish:
- Clean up snails
- Arrow crab
- Emerald rabs
- Red Hermit crabs
- Clowns - non-stop baby factory
- Yellow Tang
- Wrasse
- Mandarin
- Lawnmower Blenny
- Goby
- Lots of pods
- Shrimp - fake peppermint, dang it
- Fire shrimp
Coral:
- Mostly SPS and lots of zoa and xenia.
- Acros - ok growth
- Digitatas - Insane growth
- Bird nests - insane growth
- Pavonas - slow
- Palys - fast
- Chalices - many problems for a year, good last 6 months
- GSPs - weed, aggressive, pretty though
- Laker's Turbinaria - Agressive
- Blueberry - aggressive
- Encrustiing montipora - aggressive
- Leptastrea
- Big Leather Toadstool - a fav - crazy growth
- Cat's paw
- Blasto - dying
- Elegance - a fav - beautiful and growing
- Bubble tips - 1 has become 3 in last 6 months
- Jason Fox Leptos - love that bright orange
I need to start fraggin and trading or need a frag tank. I'm running out of space in the 65 gallon, wish I had gone with 120!!!!!!!!! Ugggggggggg!!!!!!!!!!!
Current Params:
- Red sea coral pro salt since the beginning
- Alk: 10.5
- Cal: 450
- Salinity: 34
- Mag: 1400
- Trace - always good
- PH 8.1-8.4
- Nitrate 0-2 - I need supplement, feeding more fish, adding some fish
- Phosphate - .0-.01 - I need to supplement, feeding more and dosing plankton
- Temp - 79 F
Equipment:
- Red Sea Reefer 250 v2 tank with refugium - 65g with ref
- Red Sea Stand
- Aqualife T5 Hybrid light, 4 T5s
- Kessill AP700 LED
- AI Red Ref Light
- Reef Octo skimmer 300 - Use outdoor CO2 scrubber for Skimmer air
- Apex Fan
- Vortech MP40 fac
- APEX system with salinity, orp, ph probe
- Thermometer
- Heater
- UV 18w
- COR15 Return Pump
- 2 dosers for CA and ALK
- Run Blue light bar after T5s go off in evening, great color
ISSUES:
- I am wrestling with Bubble algae and Aptasia, come to live with them, on back of rocks or wherever corals aren't. Did just get a aptasia raised file fish, some berghia and emerald crabs. Used F-Aptasia quite a bit, but I lost the battle.
- I can't keep some softies well cept for Zoas and Xenia thrive. Mushrooms die if not on rocks.
- Considering going no water changes, thoughts?
- Do I need a cal reactor now?
I have some beautiful Rasta Zoas, Digis, Birds Nests, Montipora and Bubble Tips to trade, might frag my bloomin Elegance
Tips, thoughts?
I learned a lot on this forum and am happy to help others.
Thanks.
Phew, 1.5 years already?! This is a catch up thread, love any tips. Attached are some progression shots to date. I've killed my share of corals, but things have been pretty stable the last 6 months. I beat the red and brown algae mostly!
Status: Overall stable, good nitri/nitra cycle, healthy fish, hyper-growth now - terrible bubble and aptasia, not giving up!
Beginning...
Build overview...
Tank murder...
1 yr...
Recent...
- I run no filters but have a marine block and algae refugium that I keep clean every quarter of detritus.
- I throw a carbon bag in refugium every couple days for a few hours.
- Once a week I do aminos and reef roids.
- Daily do Red sea trace add.
- Feed chunky fish/shrimp every other day.
- Flakes 2-3 times a day
- Pellets every other day 1-2 times a day
- Two drops of iodine a week
- Water changes 15 gallon every 2 weeks
- ICP test every 6 months from CO, normal ranges
- RODI water from city double de-ioninze
- Don't use Kalk anymore
- Use Red Sea Alk and Ca and Trace - use dosers hourly
- Great Coraline growth
- I don't run carbon reactor or phosphate reactor any more
- Only test PO4, Nitrate, CA, Alk, Salinity
- Skimmer runs every 6 hours for 2 hours
- 2 fans, strong flow
Fish:
- Clean up snails
- Arrow crab
- Emerald rabs
- Red Hermit crabs
- Clowns - non-stop baby factory
- Yellow Tang
- Wrasse
- Mandarin
- Lawnmower Blenny
- Goby
- Lots of pods
- Shrimp - fake peppermint, dang it
- Fire shrimp
Coral:
- Mostly SPS and lots of zoa and xenia.
- Acros - ok growth
- Digitatas - Insane growth
- Bird nests - insane growth
- Pavonas - slow
- Palys - fast
- Chalices - many problems for a year, good last 6 months
- GSPs - weed, aggressive, pretty though
- Laker's Turbinaria - Agressive
- Blueberry - aggressive
- Encrustiing montipora - aggressive
- Leptastrea
- Big Leather Toadstool - a fav - crazy growth
- Cat's paw
- Blasto - dying
- Elegance - a fav - beautiful and growing
- Bubble tips - 1 has become 3 in last 6 months
- Jason Fox Leptos - love that bright orange
I need to start fraggin and trading or need a frag tank. I'm running out of space in the 65 gallon, wish I had gone with 120!!!!!!!!! Ugggggggggg!!!!!!!!!!!
Current Params:
- Red sea coral pro salt since the beginning
- Alk: 10.5
- Cal: 450
- Salinity: 34
- Mag: 1400
- Trace - always good
- PH 8.1-8.4
- Nitrate 0-2 - I need supplement, feeding more fish, adding some fish
- Phosphate - .0-.01 - I need to supplement, feeding more and dosing plankton
- Temp - 79 F
Equipment:
- Red Sea Reefer 250 v2 tank with refugium - 65g with ref
- Red Sea Stand
- Aqualife T5 Hybrid light, 4 T5s
- Kessill AP700 LED
- AI Red Ref Light
- Reef Octo skimmer 300 - Use outdoor CO2 scrubber for Skimmer air
- Apex Fan
- Vortech MP40 fac
- APEX system with salinity, orp, ph probe
- Thermometer
- Heater
- UV 18w
- COR15 Return Pump
- 2 dosers for CA and ALK
- Run Blue light bar after T5s go off in evening, great color
ISSUES:
- I am wrestling with Bubble algae and Aptasia, come to live with them, on back of rocks or wherever corals aren't. Did just get a aptasia raised file fish, some berghia and emerald crabs. Used F-Aptasia quite a bit, but I lost the battle.
- I can't keep some softies well cept for Zoas and Xenia thrive. Mushrooms die if not on rocks.
- Considering going no water changes, thoughts?
- Do I need a cal reactor now?
I have some beautiful Rasta Zoas, Digis, Birds Nests, Montipora and Bubble Tips to trade, might frag my bloomin Elegance
Tips, thoughts?
I learned a lot on this forum and am happy to help others.
Thanks.
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