Ryujin (210gal) and Wee Wetboy (15gal) builds

[ScottF]

The replacement motor for my Reefmat came today. I swapped that out and bumped up the max advance length to 6 inches. It seems to be working again.

My FMM module that I had ordered for the "Recirculation Disaster Avoidance Doohickey" came a couple of days ago. I finally got around to installing that. The R.D.A.D. is now fully operational.

I scraped and siphoned the carpet of dinos off of the back of the tank. It had gotten pretty thick and I figured it was better to get as much as possible out of the tank with a Python instead of letting it die and pollute my tank. The resulting maybe 10% to 15% water change dropped my ORP from 295 to 250. Hopefully that doesn't set back the dino destruction at all.

I also had to replace the reagents in my TridentNP. Always fun.

I still need to do my water change in Wee Wetboy today. That's quick and easy. I've had a salt bucket full of clean saltwater sitting next to the tank coming down to temp for the past few hours.

The big tank is looking better and better. There is still a good bit of brown growing on the top of the big rock structures. Two of the solo rocks that are down in the sand are actually completely clean now.

 

[danreef55]

The replacement motor for my Reefmat came today. I swapped that out and bumped up the max advance length to 6 inches. It seems to be working again.

My FMM module that I had ordered for the "Recirculation Disaster Avoidance Doohickey" came a couple of days ago. I finally got around to installing that. The R.D.A.D. is now fully operational.

I scraped and siphoned the carpet of dinos off of the back of the tank. It had gotten pretty thick and I figured it was better to get as much as possible out of the tank with a Python instead of letting it die and pollute my tank. The resulting maybe 10% to 15% water change dropped my ORP from 295 to 250. Hopefully that doesn't set back the dino destruction at all.

I also had to replace the reagents in my TridentNP. Always fun.

I still need to do my water change in Wee Wetboy today. That's quick and easy. I've had a salt bucket full of clean saltwater sitting next to the tank coming down to temp for the past few hours.

The big tank is looking better and better. There is still a good bit of brown growing on the top of the big rock structures. Two of the solo rocks that are down in the sand are actually completely clean now.

Great news I suggest you continue until all traces are gone

 

[ScottF]

I have become a snail herder. All day long flippin snails. Tank is looking a little better each day. Large areas are completely clean. Seems like it's the highest flow areas where it is most dug in. Still running ozone hard.

 

[danreef55]

I have become a snail herder. All day long flippin snails. Tank is looking a little better each day. Large areas are completely clean. Seems like it's the highest flow areas where it is most dug in. Still running ozone hard.

stay strong and reef on! (I could have sent you a picture but I didnt want to bore you)

 

[ScottF]

I received an email that my orders from MarineCollectors are shipping next week. On Tuesday I should be receiving my Melanurus Wrasse and Flame Hawkfish.

My other order that I had ordered two weeks before that order should be shipping later in the week. That order has a Tomini Tang, Foxface, Frostbite Clownfish, Midas Blenny, and Aiptasia-Eating Filefish.

This put me in such a good mood that I ordered a tang gang. A Powder Blue, Powder Brown and Blue Hippo Tang. Along with a Lemonpeel Angel. I'm hoping that introducing these all together will spread any aggression from my Gold-rimmed Tang. I guess I'll find out in six weeks when they ship them to me.

Most of the dinos are gone now. Hopefully my skimmer cup doesn't fill up as quickly now. I've had to "Tap the devils anus" every other day and it makes my whole house smell sooo bad. I remember the skimmate on my old tank from ten years ago smelling bad, but not this bad. This is the worst thing I've ever smelled.

I also got an email from Top Lids saying they are going to ship my custom net covers next week. Tyler at Top Lids is the best. I am trying out a new product and they are still refining the process. The lids that they made me need a slight adjustment to their process. So they are going to send me the lids that they made and then make a new set and send them to me for free. The current lids they are sending just have a very minor cosmetic issue. Great people at Top Lids.

 

[ScottF]

My old 90G reef in 2011

 

[ScottF]

Added the Melanurus Wrasse (Mel) and the Flame Hawkfish (Norm) to the tank. Both seem to be in good shape. My Gold-rimmed Tang (Bruno) has been harassing the wrasse. but it seems like the wrasse is holding it's own and the Tang isn't super emphatic in its aggression. Mostly just following it around and some half harted tail whips that don't connect.

The Hawkfish is pretty shy so far. Mostly hiding in the rocks. I mostly just see a giant eyeball looking out from a small cave in the rocks judging me.

I left the lights off all day yesterday while they settled in. My algae/dino bloom seemed to be making a minor comeback. Having the lights off for 24 hours pretty much cleared out the sand, but there is still some growth on the rocks.

I noticed that my micro goni was completely withdrawn before I turned out the lights yesterday. It is still completely withdrawn. I'm not sure what's going on there. It seemed to be doing really well.

I also noticed the other night that there was some kind of centipede looking worm coming out from one of the holes in the rocks messing with one of my Acros. It was hard to see with the lights out, but it seem pretty long. Two or three inches of it were exposed and more was going back into the hole. Maybe a huge bristleworm or a bobbit? Not sure how it got in there. Maybe hitched under a Monti or in the Caribsea ocean direct sand. My rock was dry Marco rock.

 

[ScottF]

What a stressful day. I got a confirmation email saying my order from MarineCollectors had been delivered, but it had not been delivered to my house. $1,000 in fish that I had been waiting impatiently for six weeks to receive.

Eventually a few hours later a guy pulls into my driveway and gives me the box of fish. FedEx delivered it like eight blocks away. Not even remotely the correct address. I got lucky and the guy went home for lunch and found a box of fish at his house. I was also lucky that it is an overcast day and the Miami sun wasn't cooking them.

So I start acclimating and adding them to the tank. First I added the ORA Frostbite Clown. No problems there. My existing fish pretty much ignored it. It's been happily swimming against the current of the MP40 in the front of the tank.

Then I added the Foxface. My Gold-rimmed Tang "Bruno" straight up went nuts. Chasing it and tail whipping. Not good. Eventually the Foxface went up into the top corner and Bruno went to check out the next addition.

The next fish into the tank was the Midas Blenny. Bruno chased it around a little, but no tail whips this time. More of a "I'm just letting you know I'm in charge" sort of vibe. The Blenny found a hole in the rocks and Bruno hasn't messed with him since.

Next in was the Filefish. Bruno pretty much ignored the Filefish. Everything seems fine there.

Last was the Tomini Tang. The Tomini is much smaller than Bruno. Bruno went nuts again. Kept chasing it around and tail whipping. I sheltered the Tomini with a net for a bit trying to catch Bruno when he came close. I was going to move Bruno to the refugium for a week or two if I had caught him.

Everyone seems to have calmed down for now. The Foxface is still up by the Gyre at the top of the tank. Originally it just tried to run away. Now it used it's spines the few times I've seen Bruno go up there.

The Tomini is on the opposite side at the top. Picking algea off of the Magfloat. For now Bruno seems to just be grazing and ignoring the new additions. Hopefully it stays that way. He harrassed the Melanurus Wrasse when I first added it, but only for a little while and now they seem like BFFs.

I'm leaving the lights off all day today to let everyone settle in.

 

[danreef55]

Bruno has an attitude problem

 

[ScottF]

Bruno has an attitude problem

Sure does. I should have know better than to add a Tang as my first fish that wasn't a bottom dwelling Goby, but he was fully QT'd and I needed something that ate algae. And he was beautiful. I was also under the impression that Gold-rimmed Tangs aren't as big of A holes as Powder Blues or Powder Browns.

Giving him the run of the tank by himself for weeks was probably the worst thing I could have done. I'll move him to the fuge for a bit if he doesn't chill out and I can catch him. Let the other fish get established before moving him back to the main tank.

 

[danreef55]

Golde Rim Tangs are generally more docile. The Tomini is an awesome algae eater! I always have one in a tank. Teach Bruno a lesson and add a Naso of decent size. I have a different experience from many other reefers. Naso Tangs have always been the peacekeeper for me

 

[ScottF]

I had a Vlamingi Tang in my old tank that nobody messed with. He got way too big for the tank and eventually went to live in the store length coral tank at one of my LFS stores.

 

[danreef55]

I had a Vlamingi Tang in my old tank that nobody messed with. He got way too big for the tank and eventually went to live in the store length coral tank at one of my LFS stores.

I love that fish, but you have to have a plan on where it will be re-homed before you get one.

 

[ScottF]

Lessons learned in my battle against a horrid dino outbreak.

I think the most important thing is to get nutrients up. 5 NO3 and .03 PO4 seems to be working for me. I've been dosing NeoNitro and NeoPhos.

The second thing that really helped I believe was cranking up my ozone generator. Previously I had only been running it at its lowest setting for an hour per night. Cranking it up to around 5 and running it all day I think helped to turn the tide.

Manual removal. I would alternate between blowing it off the rocks and sand with a turkey baster and scrubbing with a tooth brush. I also vacuumed my sand periodically with a Python. I think this helped to keep it in check. My roller mat pulled a lot of it out after a good scrubbing.

Turning off the lights for a day or two dramatically improved the sand bed and reduced the infestation over all. I didn't completely black out the tank, but I turned my LEDs off for two days and tried to keep the lights in that room off. This really cleared up the sand. More than siphoning. I also turned off the lights for 24 hour periods twice this week when I added new fish.

I had been making steady progress and the tank was starting to look really good when suddenly it started to get worse again. I still had the ozone cranked. So that wasn't the problem. I think what happened was my nutrients got too low again.

My nitrates and phostphates had jumped up after my first big die off of dinos when I started using ozone aggressively. So I stopped dosing nutirents. I was having trouble keeping my pH up because my CO2 scrubber isn't used when the ozone generator is turned on and the lack of photosynthesis when I turned off my lights.

To combat this I have been running my refugium light at 100% even during the day. My chaeto sucked up most of the nutrients and boom... Dinos started coming back.

I started dosing nutrients again a few days ago and now my tank is almost clear again.

 

[ScottF]

Oh no!!! I've spotted my first aiptasia. At least I just added a Filefish. Franks F Aiptasia ordered and should be here Monday.

 

[ScottF]

The Tomini Tang didn't make it. Too much abuse from Bruno. I have ordered a PNWCustom 12x6x6 acclimation box for next time. Hopefully that will help. He seems to attack new additions for a couple of days and then leave them pretty much alone after that.

I got my Franks F Aiptasia and nuked the two aiptasia that I could find. Hopefully that takes care of the problem and the Filefish and Peppermint Shrimp take care of any baby nems, but I don't have a lot of optimism in that regard.

 

[ScottF]

Got my lids from TopLids today. Took a quick video of the tank. Put no time or effort into recording it, Just wanted something that I could look back at and see the state of things 10/24/2024.

 

[ScottF]

I think I just learned an important lesson. When I first setup my tank I installed a Trident. I ended up RMAing the original Trident because of a tubing leak inside of it. I verified the Alk readings from the replacement Trident with a Hanna checker and it was pretty close to matching the Trident Alk reading. I didn't have a calcium test kit, but figured if the Alk was correct, the calcium would probably be good too.

Fast forward a month or two... I finally get around to calibrating my Trident and after the calibration, the calcium that was reading 420 was now reading 300. I immediately ordered Salifert test kits for alk, calcium and mag. The Salifert kit is also reading 300.

So now begins the process of very slowly raising my calcium up to around 400.

 

[ScottF]

Got some new additions. Seems a little cramped in there. I threw a wad of chaeto in the acclimation box from my fuge to try to get some pods in the acclimation box.