110G - I'm new and I'm addicted

[Slocke]

The main goal of this tank is to gain experience and learn how to do saltwater. My plan is to make this tank as natural as possible and that means I will not be chasing numbers but rather trying to keep a healthy food chain of animals and to feed everything healthily and variably. I want to use as few chemicals as possible but adding as many plankton as possible and creating a breeding population up the food chain.

Equipment
28th January - for 1000$ bought a lightly used:
-110 (60"x18"x24") tank with glass lid and stand
-fluvial FX6 canister filter
-fluval marine 46 W light
-~75lbs live rock + GSP rock
-10 snails and hermit crabs
-buckets, 5G totes, aquarium cleaners, heaters, test kits, 8.4, food, and other basic equipment

Bought at LFS:
-200G box RPM salt
-~75lb live rock
-3 bags (120) lbs Aragonite special grade dry sand
-2 Aquamai KPS wavemaker
- 100gal/hr RODI filter
-Dr Tims bacterial starter

Bought later:
-Tunze 9012 skimmer
-fluval marine 59W light
-Changed to IO reef crystals

Livestock
Frostbite Clown mid Feb
Domino Clown

Assorted CUC late Feb
Emerald Crab
4 (now 3) Benggai Cardinalfish

Rock Flower Anemone early Mar
Pandora Zoa
Bob Marley Zoa
Yellow Parazoas
Red Xenia
Green Base Toadstool
2 Firefish
Foxface Lo

Melanurus Wrasse mid Mar
Skunk shrimp
Grape Caulerpa (refugium)
Fighting conch
Diamond Goby

Fire Shrimp late Mar
Zoa Colony
Naoko Wrasse (UNWD)

Frogspawn early Apr
Pipe Organ
Fruit Loops Zoa

2 (bred pair) Biota Blue Mandarins. mid Apr
2 Biota Court Jester Goby
Midas Blenny
Blastos
Duncans

Royal Gramma Basslet. Late Apr
Longnose Hawkfish
2 Peppermint Shrimp
Elegance

2 Stylophora. Early May
2 Seriatopora (birds nest)
Red plating montipora
Freak Hair pavona
Pink Koji Wada Nepthea
Rock Flower Anemone
Red Tuxedo Urchin

Orange Ricordea
Checkerboard Wrasse
Pink Goniopora
Emerald Crab

Feeding
8am:
1 cube frozen brine shrimp
2 small Algea wafers
refill Algae clip (dried seaweed or grape caulerpa)
3 scoops live baby brine shrimp
20ml live phytoplankton
10ml AB+

1pm:
Flake food
2 Algae wafers
Refill clip
Spot feeding anemone and corals (2x week)
Live pods (every other week)

6pm:
1 cube frozen mysis shrimp
Micro-pellets

8pm:
Pinch of omnivore flakes
1 cube Frozen cyclops or baby brine shrimp
3 scoops live baby brine shrimp

 

[Slocke]

Thought I'd write this as a record for me as well as anyone who's interested. Please tell me if you have any thoughts.

To be added next: more livestock and equipment reviews

 

[blaxsun]

Looks nice. Down the road you may find the canister filter is more maintenance than you'd like (a HOB like a Seachem Tidal is a great upgrade).

 

[Slocke]

Looks nice. Down the road you may find the canister filter is more maintenance than you'd like (a HOB like a Seachem Tidal is a great upgrade).

Thanks
I don't clean it very often but it is a massive pain when I do. I do like that it seems to be a great breeding ground for amphipods. I have considered removing the mechanical filtration and replacing it with biological. Maybe I could use a HOB then for mechanical and chemical.

 

[blaxsun]

Thanks
I don't clean it very often but it is a massive pain when I do. I do like that it seems to be a great breeding ground for amphipods. I have considered removing the mechanical filtration andreplacing it with biological. Maybe I could use a HOB then for mechanical and chemical.

I can well imagine. A HOB for mechanical and chemical would probably work out really well.

 

[Charlie the Reefer]

Awesome.. Love the fish reviews! Would be interested in something similar for the corals if you find the time

 

[Slocke]

Awesome.. Love the fish reviews! Would be interested in something similar for the corals if you find the time

Thanks!
I'm slowly adding to the reviews and will hope to have everything

 

[Slocke]

Planned additions:
A mated pair of biota blue mandarins (on the way!)
2x biota court jester goby (on the way!)

1-2 biota forktail blenny or midas blenny
Some species of basslet
flame hawkfish? (worried about the shrimp)
More RFA's maybe

Dream Additions:
Biota Hawaiian Cleaner wrasse (will those ever restock?)
LFS's self-cultured bright red goniopora ($$$ and difficult?)



Any thoughts on any of the above?

 

[Dom]

"Diving into the hobby"... Nice pun!

 

[Slocke]

Heartbreak today as my favorite fish, my Naoko succumbed to a neurological disease. It was a fish I really enjoyed as it seemed intelligent and inquisitive while it was healthy. Would swim up to me whenever I opened the tank and would happily eat from my hands. Really a brutal loss especially to such an awful disease. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/unknown-neurological-wrasse-disease-unwd.901856/

On the other hand I got 4 fish from biota. A bonded pair of blue mandarins and 2 court jester gobies. I was expecting small fish but these are even smaller than I expected. I was hoping the bonded pair would be larger than had I bought the individuals but there about a cm in length and tiny. I do somewhat regret getting 2 more gobies when I already have a diamond and I have seen some light aggression from the diamond. I have several special foods that biota recommended for the mandarins but since the Naoko died my confidence has crashed.

 

[Slocke]

4/23/22 Update:
Positive:
Added a midas blenny
Blastos and a Duncan coral
All new additions doing well
Blue mandarin pair and larger court jester goby all loo fat and happy

Negative:
Smaller court jester bullied by larger and diamond goby, given away to LFS's display tank

Overall I'm quite happy with the tank since my last update. All corals look bigger and with the one exception all fish do seem happy and healthy. The Midas blenny has been a great addition though it was out of color and underweight when I bought it. It's probably my most active fish especially at meal time.
I'm about to go away for work for a week but am thinking of getting a small Flame Hawkfish and either an elegance or goniopora when I return. Still debating on which basslet I should get.

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 1:

Ocellaris Clown(Snowflake and Domino)

Appearance:
Frostbite 9/10
Domino 5/10
The frostbite is still the most beautiful clownfish I've seen. The brilliant white with silver highlighting each black marking make it a stunning fish (photo doesn't do it justice).
The domino unfortunately loses points for the orange mouth which gives it an underbite bulldog appearance.

Personality and Aggression:
8/10
Active, inquisitive, brave also so far no aggression. They eat from the hand only lose points for setting up shop behind the pump return.

Care:
10/10
Easy. Incredibly easy. They eat anything except things you don't want them to eat. Hardy and tough with no extra needs.

Overall:
+1 for captive bred
9.3/10

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 2:

Benggai Cardinalfish

Appearance:
8/10
Really a strange but also very pretty fish that tests your ability to name fins.

Personality and Aggression:
5/10
What personality? I think there's a reason why people recommend this fish to beginners and then never mention it again. Its pretty but it mostly just floats there. Gets most of its points for a lack of aggression though I could argue its the most aggressive thanks to the slow-mo chasing one male occasionally does to the other. It's the jellyfish of the tank, pulsing around but never doing much.

Care:
7/10
For a captive bred fish this is so far my only death. They were so shy when added to my tank and ran from the food as often as eating it and I gave them every type of food I could. Eventually one wasted away. It could be they were already sick/dying at the LFS though. After that difficult settling in period though they've been easy.

Overall:
+1 for captive bred
7.7/10

 

[Slocke]

Invert Review 1:

Rock Flower Anemone

Appearance:
10/10
Since I'm doing these generally and RFA's come in all colors its a fairly easy rating. They're called flowers for a reason. It can even fluoresces. Mine doesn't have much color but does have a great pattern and texture.

Personality and Aggression:
7/10
Hard to judge because it's really closer to a coral or plant than a creature with personality. But gets points for its fairly regular movements and more points for sticking to its corner and not killing anything.

Care:
10/10
Easy as can be. I don't know if it needs to be fed but it is fun so why not?

Overall:
9/10

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 3:

Firefish

Appearance:
10/10
If it weren't so common cheap and easy I think this fish would be so much higher valued. It is absolutely stunning. How such a small fish can have so many patterns and colors while also not being too busy is phenomenol.

Personality and Aggression:
8/10
It's got some personality flitting lightly around the tank or hovering in the middle above its favorite hidey holes (really should be called a fairy fish for its beauty and personality). I hear they can beat up each other but mine are always together and placid as can be.

Care:
10/10
Easy as can be. Eat immediately and eat everything. Took to the tank immediately. I think it may be the best first fish for a beginner now.

Overall:
9.3/10

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 4:

Foxface

Appearance:
6/10
Not the prettiest but still a pretty fish. though I like its chameleon ability to change colors it would be nice if it was a full yellow on the back rather than the too ripe banana it often is.

Personality and Aggression:
10/10
Really the perfect fish. Its got personality, is peaceful, and add to all of that it has the ability to change its color at a whim. Though I don't try to spook it, it is quite interesting to see it go all army camo patterned and try to blend into the rocks. Most of the time its scouring my tank in search of food often following my wrasse.

Care:
10/10
It loses points for needing extra herbivore food but gets all those points back by eating nuisance algae. Apart from needing some source of algae its a very easy fish. Eats well and unlike tangs not a common disease spreader (or so I've heard).

Overall:
8.7

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 5:

Melanurus Wrasse

Appearance:
7/10
Difficult one because it has a very bright and complex pattern but maybe too bright and complex. Certainly a pretty fish but not one I've ever been wowed by.

Personality and Aggression:
7/10
Again its hard to put my finger on as it is a very active fish and so far is not very aggressive but again its one I often forget about and I often worry it will be aggressive. It eats constantly and its no surprise its developed a bit of a potbelly.

Care:
7/10
Very easy for me as I overfeed and have breeding pods but for someone who is more busy this thing could be a handful. It needs to eat a little a lot so should be fed many times a day. Rumors that it will kill your inverts if not fed enough times a day abound. Also may outcompete other pod eating fish.

Overall:
7.0

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 6:

Diamond Goby

Appearance:
6/10
Not my type of pretty but certainly still a pretty fish.

Personality and Aggression:
7/10
Gets full point for entertainment value as it is a hilarious and constantly active fish. However loses points for covering corals in sand and knocking over rocks. Also has been a bit of a bully towards my court jester goby and strangely my Midas blenny.

Care:
10/10
Difficult one because so far has been very easy as it eats everything but have heard they can die due to improper nutrition and that they should get most of their food from sand sifting? However gets points for keeping my sanded white and clean.

Overall:
7.7

 

[Slocke]

Invert Review 2:

Cleaner Shrimp (Skunk, Fire, Peppermint)

Appearance:
7/10 Skunk - Very smart though it won't completely blow you away.
10/10 Fire - Absolutely stunning with a deep dark red and crisp white
3/10 Peppermint - Nothing to write home about

Personality and Aggression:
10/10 Skunk - My favorite thing in the tank. Loves to hop on my hand and spends its days cleaning my pump inlet and trying to jump on fish to give them a clean.
6/10 Fire - Sits upside down below a rock, luckily at the front of my tank. Personality low but aggression none.
5/10 Peppermint - Gets 5 for being peaceful. Hardly see them though.


Care:
10/10
All get 10 for being easy and doing a job in the tank. The peppermint have not gone after aiptasia yet though.

Overall:
9.0 Skunk
8.7 Fire
6.0 Peppermint

 

[Slocke]

Fish Review 7:

Naoko Fairy Wrasse (written post mortem)

Appearance:
8/10
When its fins are down it looks like a badly painted boat with peeling paint. But when its fins extend it is really quite pretty.

Personality and Aggression:
10/10
I loved this fish, it would come to the front of the tank whenever I came over and eat from the hand. Otherwise it would zoom through my rockscape and flash its fins before going on another zoom. No aggression while I had him.

Care:
3/10
What's the best I can give a fish that died of a neurological disease shortly after I got him. When healthy he was super easy to feed and would have gotten a 10 easy. But then to watch it slowly die as it lost its ability to swim was very difficult.

Overall:
7.0