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View Full Version : First RC post, couple questions...


clayw
04/29/2009, 12:44 PM
First of all, the forum is rad. Ive never posted before but ive read through hundred of threads to gain some knowledge about things that apply now, and things that will apply to me later. I found out about this site from a tile layer who worked on my dads house, his name is doug, not sure what his user name is...anyways...Here is some basic info on what i have:

40g glass
55lbs LR
HOB tetra filtered rated for 55-75g
36" Coralife 50/50 96watt PC (on for 6-10 hrs a day depending)

ph: little about 8
Ammonia : 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 5
salinity: 1.023

the tank has been running for 14 weeks, and recently ive got an algae, LFS says its just another cycle, not so sure. its just mainly on the glass (green) not hairy. im adding two power heads next friday will this help to cut it down possibly? I clean it every friday with a 5g water change (10%) and then by saturday or sunday i can see it starting to come back on the substrate a little but mainly the glass. its pretty unsightly. any suggestions?

CUC:
2 Margaritas (that do work)
1 biiiig nassarius snail *spelling*
2 green mithrax crabs
10-15 hermits
1 Peppermint shrimp for the little amount of aptasia i had

one of the emerald crabs keep bothering my yellow polyps anything to do about that, is it bad?

I only have one small rock with about 15 yellow polps and one green stripe muchroom, both are doing pretty well.

clayw
04/29/2009, 12:46 PM
oh and i have 2 turbo snails, forgot to mention those

Fizz71
04/29/2009, 01:16 PM
Definetely get more flow in there. Algea comes from high light, high nutrients and low flow. The light we can't help. :) The nutrient level we contol by limiting our feeding and the flow you will be up-ing so good.

I'd also up your CUC a little with more nassarius snails. They can out run the crabs and I've never seen a hermit crab in a nas' shell. :)

At 14 weeks I doubt it's another cycle, your water is pretty aged by now unless you've added more rock or sand recently which ups that nutrient load I mentioned before temporarily from minor die-off.

Any chance of getting a sump? You could use a good place to house macro to get that nitrate lower for the corals. Reducing how much you feed helps the nitrate level too.

Good luck.

Sugar Magnolia
04/29/2009, 01:24 PM
What kind of water are you using? Also, bump up your salinity a bit to around 1.025/1.026. You can do this over the course of a couple of days, just top off with a little bit of saltwater each day.

clayw
04/29/2009, 01:31 PM
well heres the thing, i was accepted into cal state fullerton, so may 15th im moving, unfortunatly ill have to tear it all down and start again. not sure about the sump, how much do you think i could get that for? the nitrate fluxuates between 0 and 5. i will definitly add the snails. im cutting down the lighting, im hoping the powerheads will also give me more coraline algae, its slow going so far...

im using saltwater purchased from the LFS i mixed my own, and had a diatom problem because i didnt used RO/DI water or whatever that is. so now i just by 5g of Catalina ocean water and that is my water change every friday at 10am

Fizz71
04/29/2009, 01:35 PM
Sumps vary. Just stay away from "wet/dry" setups because they are overkill for us. I've actually used rubbermaid tubs for sumps starting with small ones, now I'm up to a 100g tub. :) The key is finding something to fit in your stand.

Good luck with the move..it's not easy moving a tank....I've done it more than I'd like. Hopefuly the house I'm in now is long term...I'm worn out. :)

clayw
04/29/2009, 01:38 PM
there is no room in my stand, because we built it ourselves with out that in mind ha. hmmm, well can i get away with this for my first tank and have some fun with some soft corals just the way it is. my set up is pretty bare, as far as equipment wise, as you can tell. maybe on my next tank in a year or so ill go bigger with all the fancy gear...also im not running a skimmer, to expensive as of right now i suppose...what are the downfalls to that, everything seems to be fine and growing with out it. params are good to...

sbreefer
04/29/2009, 02:00 PM
If you plan to any SPS corals or more sensitive LPS corals, you will need a skimmer. It removes a ton DOC's from the water- should help the algae problem too. Have you tested for phosphate? this is an algae nutrient as well. I use GFO from bulk reef supply to keep phos at 0. It is very possible your new water has nutrient in it as well. an R/OD/I filter is great to produce fresh water with 0 TDS. I run a bare bottom tank high flow no refugium but have a monster skimmer in my sump rated for a tank 3 times the size of mine. I use a denitrator made by aquaripure to keep nitrate below 5ppm

clayw
04/29/2009, 02:04 PM
hmm well id like to upgrade tanks in the next 6 months to a year, and then add a sump and get a good skim. but in the mean time if im just playing with mushrooms and leathers and polyps will i be ok? oh and i was going to put in a couple flower pots, and a couple anenomes maybe...will all that be ok with out a skimmer? ive been told yes, and ive been told no...id rather hold off on that and a sump and stuff till i have a larger tank and a better stand.

KarlBob
04/29/2009, 03:22 PM
There are some hang-on-tank skimmers that will not break the bank. The very cheapest are as bad as you would expect the very cheapest of any product to be, but you can find a decent skimmer at a decent price. Watch your local reef club forum for someone selling their skimmer, or any other equipment you need. You can find some great bargains this way.

Flower pot corals have a bad reputation for not living very long, even for experienced reef-keepers. I agree with you: avoid them in the short-term, experimental tank and wait for the upgrade.

Anenomes require strong light and excellent water conditions. I'd wait until the next tank for these, too. If your reason for buying anenomes is to keep clownfish, keep in mind that clowns do not require anenomes to survive. They will "host" in a variety of other things if they can't find an anenome, from anthelia to toadstools.

Soft corals are known for producing "chemical warfare agents" in their bodies and releasing them into the water. Some of these chemicals retard the growth of neighboring corals, while others are meant to poison the neighbors. A reasonably-priced skimmer is a good idea for a tank full of softies, especially if you add any hard corals to the mix.

clayw
04/29/2009, 04:30 PM
i dont know of any local clubs in my area, or really where to find them. i figured a cheap skimmer would be bad at its job thats why i havent bought one. any recommendations as to what to get? hmmm thats a bummer about the flower pot, i like the way they look and it was only $30 at the LFS and it was a pretty big one to...are toadstools or anthelia hard to maintain? ok so the skimmer will hopefully pull out those chemicals your talking about the softies throwing out?