I started this hobby about 12 months ago. The following shows the likely battles a person could face. Starting with the first simple battle. Progressing to my biggest challenge so far. If your new expect that these problems you hear about will happen. Prepare for it. Most importantly don't give up.
1. The battle of the diatoms. Every reefers first fight
The pic shows the beginning of what would be a several weeks of severe diatoms. Entire glass and bottom covered. I beat it back simply by letting it run it's course, no water changes, defeated by tank cycling.
![IMG_0201[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/data/attachments/326/326047-94ea12d35937601211dda5b3a3e6305c.jpg "IMG_0201[1].JPG")
2. The battle of Calpura.
The pic shows the result of 4 hours of trimming, removing a 1 gallon size ziplock bag completely full of calpura. There is still alot, but I got it under control. It ended up dying off entirely in the next 2 weeks, after heavy use of Phosguard, purigen, and carbon. I heard stories about this stuff, but I didn't remove it fast enough I thought it was no big deal. Then it went sexual and took over. It binds to the rock and takes FOREVER to remove. If you spot Grape Calpura in your new tank as a new reefer REMOVE IT AT ONCE.
![IMG_0368[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/data/attachments/326/326051-9826a78a9cdc0228698750fdb4463b0c.jpg "IMG_0368[1].JPG")
3. The battle of the Red Slime
The pic shows the outbreak at it's height. Followed by a pic 3 days latter after using red Slime stain remover. This one lasted a while. From about the tail end of the calpura outbreak and going on for about 2 months, till it went crazy and started growing on rocks and everything. I finally found RedSlime stain remover and problem solved. Before and after. Oh and yes that is Bubble Algae you see in the backround... I should have done something then, ill get to that later.
![IMG_0455[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/data/attachments/326/326065-65ba0291856b8dce6b60d1a7daaf4e30.jpg "IMG_0455[1].JPG")
![IMG_0474[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/data/attachments/326/326069-ebd26982016d3378caad90793151ef7b.jpg "IMG_0474[1].JPG")
4. The battle of the ich. Not so much a victory as a stalemate. Lost purple tang, lawn mower blenny, one of my green chromis, and a mandarin. Saved my lyertail, 2 green chromis, Royal Gamma, and watchman gobby. --- To reduce chance of starting again, I haven't added any fish for 5 months, removed 10% of my sand, basically the entire top layer, and 12.5% water changes twice a week during and 2 weeks after last fish died. My fault, bought a fish with ich, thought best chance to save it was display tank. Worked for a while, then suddenly went crazy.
5. The battle of the Green Hair Algae -- You saw that bubble algae right? Well it started to spread like crazy. But then I bought a new coral... it came with a bit of green hair algae. The aquarium maintenance person I had working on the tank brought it over. Along with a CUC that was way to big... 55%-60% of it died off. To much added at once. Die off caused ammonia, ammonia luckily wasn't a problem, it was the nitrate and nitrite it turned into along with the phosphorus. Green hair algae spread like cancer. The good news? 95% of the bubble algae is gone, it was out competed for resources. The bad news, I am still fighting this stuff.
![IMG_0559[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/data/attachments/326/326074-2f77479db9138b662cc852cd2cb2c89a.jpg "IMG_0559[1].JPG")
First step to fighting it, I admitted I had a problem. My aquarium service. Long story super short to avoid a rant He did this.....
1. Removed 75% of my sand... He though deep sand bed would cause problems, I agreed to it my fault for not sticking with what I had.
2. Removed 50% of my bio-balls. To make room for an oversized skimmer, then when that didn't work out to put the bio-pellet reactor there. (also way to big for my tank, 200g rated for a 46g max fill of pellets)
3. Removed a few of my live rocks to probably because they where covered in algae, or he kept knocking them over.
4. Moved around the rock scape I had because he kept knocking it over during cleaning.
5. Introduced hair algae to my tank.
6. added 50 snails worth of ammonia, nitrate and nitrites to my tank that all died. (added way too much at once)
7. Removed my evaporation covers to make room for the equipment he tried. Resulting in 4x weekly evaporation rate went from less than 1 gallon a week. To 4+ gallons a week. VERY noticeable.
8. Never removed the hair algae he just kept trying to add more snails to eat it... they kept dying.
9. Lost one of my fish, I found the ammonia factory in back of my filter 2 weeks later. He had over filled tank and that caused fish to swim back there, and subsequently die. This was his second time overfilling, I had already told him the exact line to fill to.
I stopped using him, and am starting to win back my tank. Currently doing 15% water change every 2 days for last 2 weeks. Removed the oversized equipment and re-set up my tank properly.
Hair algae is easier to remove now. But still a pain. Hoping the starve it out, but feel I may need to buy 10-20lbs of dry rock and gradually swap, dry, clean, cure, swap, dry, clean cure. To really get ahead of it. But going to wait, 2-3 months for my new ceramic media I bought to replace the bio-balls to have time to develop first.
------------------------------------------------------
ANYWAY
Those are the battles I have fought in my first 12 months. The positive is I haven't given up, and the corals I have are thriving. No fish have died since the Ick outbreak, and negligence of aquarium service.
I didn't think I would face all of this in one year, and still be going. But I am. I plan to keep this tank another year or two before starting a new one. I may have had several setbacks that delayed my stocking plans but I am sure I will have this hair algae beat in another month and be able to get back to adding stuff to the tank.
Here is a 2 full pic of my tank today.
![IMG_0562[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/img_0562-1-jpg.375852/ "IMG_0562[1].JPG")
![IMG_0583[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/img_0583-1-jpg.375854/ "IMG_0583[1].JPG")
oh and before and after of two of my corals.
![IMG_0437[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/img_0437-1-jpg.375890/ "IMG_0437[1].JPG")
![IMG_0572[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/img_0572-1-jpg.375891/ "IMG_0572[1].JPG")
![IMG_0579[1].JPG](https://www.reef2reef.com/attachments/img_0579-1-jpg.375892/ "IMG_0579[1].JPG")
1. The battle of the diatoms. Every reefers first fight
The pic shows the beginning of what would be a several weeks of severe diatoms. Entire glass and bottom covered. I beat it back simply by letting it run it's course, no water changes, defeated by tank cycling.
2. The battle of Calpura.
The pic shows the result of 4 hours of trimming, removing a 1 gallon size ziplock bag completely full of calpura. There is still alot, but I got it under control. It ended up dying off entirely in the next 2 weeks, after heavy use of Phosguard, purigen, and carbon. I heard stories about this stuff, but I didn't remove it fast enough I thought it was no big deal. Then it went sexual and took over. It binds to the rock and takes FOREVER to remove. If you spot Grape Calpura in your new tank as a new reefer REMOVE IT AT ONCE.
3. The battle of the Red Slime
The pic shows the outbreak at it's height. Followed by a pic 3 days latter after using red Slime stain remover. This one lasted a while. From about the tail end of the calpura outbreak and going on for about 2 months, till it went crazy and started growing on rocks and everything. I finally found RedSlime stain remover and problem solved. Before and after. Oh and yes that is Bubble Algae you see in the backround... I should have done something then, ill get to that later.
4. The battle of the ich. Not so much a victory as a stalemate. Lost purple tang, lawn mower blenny, one of my green chromis, and a mandarin. Saved my lyertail, 2 green chromis, Royal Gamma, and watchman gobby. --- To reduce chance of starting again, I haven't added any fish for 5 months, removed 10% of my sand, basically the entire top layer, and 12.5% water changes twice a week during and 2 weeks after last fish died. My fault, bought a fish with ich, thought best chance to save it was display tank. Worked for a while, then suddenly went crazy.
5. The battle of the Green Hair Algae -- You saw that bubble algae right? Well it started to spread like crazy. But then I bought a new coral... it came with a bit of green hair algae. The aquarium maintenance person I had working on the tank brought it over. Along with a CUC that was way to big... 55%-60% of it died off. To much added at once. Die off caused ammonia, ammonia luckily wasn't a problem, it was the nitrate and nitrite it turned into along with the phosphorus. Green hair algae spread like cancer. The good news? 95% of the bubble algae is gone, it was out competed for resources. The bad news, I am still fighting this stuff.
First step to fighting it, I admitted I had a problem. My aquarium service. Long story super short to avoid a rant He did this.....
1. Removed 75% of my sand... He though deep sand bed would cause problems, I agreed to it my fault for not sticking with what I had.
2. Removed 50% of my bio-balls. To make room for an oversized skimmer, then when that didn't work out to put the bio-pellet reactor there. (also way to big for my tank, 200g rated for a 46g max fill of pellets)
3. Removed a few of my live rocks to probably because they where covered in algae, or he kept knocking them over.
4. Moved around the rock scape I had because he kept knocking it over during cleaning.
5. Introduced hair algae to my tank.
6. added 50 snails worth of ammonia, nitrate and nitrites to my tank that all died. (added way too much at once)
7. Removed my evaporation covers to make room for the equipment he tried. Resulting in 4x weekly evaporation rate went from less than 1 gallon a week. To 4+ gallons a week. VERY noticeable.
8. Never removed the hair algae he just kept trying to add more snails to eat it... they kept dying.
9. Lost one of my fish, I found the ammonia factory in back of my filter 2 weeks later. He had over filled tank and that caused fish to swim back there, and subsequently die. This was his second time overfilling, I had already told him the exact line to fill to.
I stopped using him, and am starting to win back my tank. Currently doing 15% water change every 2 days for last 2 weeks. Removed the oversized equipment and re-set up my tank properly.
Hair algae is easier to remove now. But still a pain. Hoping the starve it out, but feel I may need to buy 10-20lbs of dry rock and gradually swap, dry, clean, cure, swap, dry, clean cure. To really get ahead of it. But going to wait, 2-3 months for my new ceramic media I bought to replace the bio-balls to have time to develop first.
------------------------------------------------------
ANYWAY
Those are the battles I have fought in my first 12 months. The positive is I haven't given up, and the corals I have are thriving. No fish have died since the Ick outbreak, and negligence of aquarium service.
I didn't think I would face all of this in one year, and still be going. But I am. I plan to keep this tank another year or two before starting a new one. I may have had several setbacks that delayed my stocking plans but I am sure I will have this hair algae beat in another month and be able to get back to adding stuff to the tank.
Here is a 2 full pic of my tank today.
oh and before and after of two of my corals.
