SnookNRedZ Mr. Aqua 17 (Shut Down)

[SnookNRedZ]

After a week of testing my Alk/Ca/Mg, I have found that my Alk is slightly low at 8, and my calcium and magnesium levels are both ideal. 450/1350ppm respectively.

I began to dose last night with 10mL of Red Sea Foundation Alk additive, and 8mL of Ca and will test tonight to see what my change,if any, is visible.

Last week I got some more stuff from WWC. A purple hammer, red monti, purple polyp bird nest, some acans, and a pair of peppermint shrimp. One in my sump is active as heck, my one in the display turned into a $5.99 meal for my clowns. My female has begun to establish very aggressive behavior, toward me, and new introductions to the tank... but will leave my cleaner shrimp well alone. It’s strange to me. I may go back after work and get like 4 of the biggest ones they have, and see if by sheer numbers I can manage to have them deplete my aptasia problem. Cuz I’ve had 0 luck with aptasia-x and water changes alone. I find more and more after each treatment, and it’s literally at the point now where I need to do something before it’s too late!

I’ve been toying with the notion of using an old BRS reactor I have in my closet, and converting it into a co2 scrubber for my skimmer. If dosing doesn’t seem to up my pH then I will implement something to this affect here shortly.

That’s all the updates I’ve got, not that anyone really gives a dang. Lol

 

[SnookNRedZ]

FTS from the other day.

 

[NY_Caveman]

Saw your tank in the 365 thread. It is looking real nice. Your aquascape and the room placement make it look much larger than a 17 gallon really is

 

[SnookNRedZ]

Saw your tank in the 365 thread. It is looking real nice. Your aquascape and the room placement make it look much larger than a 17 gallon really is

Thanks Caveman, I appreciate your kind words. I get that often from when ppl see it from a photo, then they see the tank in person. I always get that it looks way bigger. And that they can’t believe how small it really is. It’s right around 30 gallons or so with my sump.

 

[SnookNRedZ]

So I got (another) package from BRS yesterday with some soda lime and parts to reuse a media reactor as a co2 scrubber. I got that all rigged up and will put some in this weekend. I also bought another eb8 for my apex which was seamless to integrate it to my classic style. I lost my emerald crab I noticed too, and only one peppermint remains in my display. My clowns are seriously wolves of the reef. It’s incredible. Here’s some photos :

 

[SnookNRedZ]

Came home and noticed my clowns “dancing” around the bed they usually sleep in, and on the wall they nibble on for months... she laid a clutch of eggs. I’m super excited to witness this in my own aquarium. It’s been something on my feeding to-do list. I really wish I had the spare time to raise them!

 

[NY_Caveman]

Came home and noticed my clowns “dancing” around the bed they usually sleep in, and on the wall they nibble on for months... she laid a clutch of eggs. I’m super excited to witness this in my own aquarium. It’s been something on my feeding to-do list. I really wish I had the spare time to raise them!
View attachment 737070 View attachment 737068
View attachment 737071

Congratulations. Need some cigars for when they hatch!

 

[SnookNRedZ]

Congratulations. Need some cigars for when they hatch!

Thanks!!

 

[SnookNRedZ]

5 months since my last update, & i haven't done anything major with the tank... yet. In all honesty 2018 has been a trying year for me, I put my 10 year old German Shepherd down due to cancer a month ago, had family issues, job problems... etc. and the tank has definitely been put on the back burner because of all the turmoil. I will be moving at the end of this month as well, and with that will come the end of this tank as she sits. Its going to be about a 70 mile move, and as of yesterday, I bought a used 75 Reef Ready tank that will unofficially take over where this one left off. Its been almost 2 years since Ive set this tank up, and Ive had my shares of ups and downs. Most of all, i learned from this, and will take that knowledge onward to my next tank(s). I'm super proud that Ive created this system from scratch (drilled it myself, made the stand, sump, light mount etc.) and it has held up problem free! I plan on setting up the new 75 gallon RR tank in my new place and run my 75 gallon sump along side it. Not under a stand, but next to it on the floor. Taking me to around 120 gallons of water with displacement taken into consideration( 4x's the current 30 gallon volume). From there I can transfer all the inhabitants over to the new system, and take my time tearing down this current 17 gallon. I have had literal nightmares and sleepless nights due to trying to figure out how I could tear this tank down, move it an hour, and set it back up... Major problem being I currently live on the 3rd floor of an outdated apartment building, where the staircases are only about 30" wide... so the feat of moving a tank, stand, and sump all together was terrifying. If it was on ground level... it wouldn't be an issue, but stairs and heavy objects never mix well. Either i was gonna break my neck or the tank...

So i found a Craigslist ad for a 75 reef ready that will not only be my new tank, but will help me taking my time and not rushing this move. I may end up combining my Fluval V inhabitants (rocks and 2 gobies) into this system as well. Luckily, the equipment I might need for this tank, I can re use from this set up. The skimmer, ato, lights, and powerheads ( i have 2 mp10's one is a spare and i won a Hydor wave maker package at RAP '17 that will finally be put to use) I might have to upgrade the return pump however. Also i will have to find out what I'm going to do about the other half of the tank as far as lighting goes, as i only have (1) Gen 2 Radion atm... But ill tackle that further down the line.

I still have an aptasia issue that I WILL defeat before fully committing to this new 120 gallon system. Ive found numerous polyps in my overflow box.. where I feel they were propagating and spawning new ones in my tank. My clown fish absolutely will NOT let peppermint shrimp in the tank with them... Ive gone through about a dozen of them, and each time I find them attacking them, however they don't even bat an eyelash at my skunk shrimp... .I captured my clowns and rehoused them into my fuge for a month to let an army of shrimp do their thing in the display, and it worked!! They cleared all the ones from the display, but unfortunately, not the ones dormant in the overflow and who knows about the inside of the PVC. I also think my clowns fouled my tank, simply by "digging" into the sandbed of the fuge while they were in there for timeout ... My female tends to do an erratic tail shake to disperse sand at her leisure... and this was also the case in the fuge.. and Ive noticed some Zoas being not as happy as they were before that. I lost my acans and hammer during this time as well, and attribute it to that. I plan on using my 75G sump only for a while until i see no signs of aptasia. I might invest in one of those lasers for extra precaution as well. The fuge section alone is 30 gallons, so I will use this as a temporary display, until the pests are gone. Once I see no signs of them any longer... I'll gradually move everything to the 75RR and plumb the sump into it. I feel now is the best time to eradicate any pests, as the only ones still alive, should be on my rocks and not in the overflow, PVC, or equipment. This new tank will be run with no sand, but i will have a DSB in my fuge section, once I'm finished using it as a temporary DT/QT.

 

[SnookNRedZ]

Well as of Saturday, this system is no longer up and running. I tore it down and I moved about an hour away. heres the last photos of what used to be... My clowns laid a clutch of eggs the day before the move too. Go figure lol. I have everything in my 75 gallon DIY sump temporarily. went to WWC yesterday and got some peppermint shrimp to get ALL of my aptasia this time, and not just the ones in the display. Since i have no overflow or pvc to hide any, now is the time to get this under control before I plumb in the 75 RR into my 75 sump.