340 Gallon Mixed Reef Build

[hunterallen40]

I used to make my own food but got lazy. Will do it again soon. Only issue I had was breaking off a small piece because I would freeze it in a gallon size freezer bag and sometimes it would get too thick

Yeah, I have had this happen with the beef heart I maje for the discus. The BRS reef chilli recipe uses a cheese grater attachment for the food processor, which seems to help one tear off chunks. Also keeping it really thin in the bag helps haha.

I am debating about gem or Achilles. Price is about the same. Achilles has more color but seems more sensitive. Never had issues with any Z tang but acan tangs like ich even when no one else in tank has it that’s my experience. I’m sure others may have the opposite experience.

I've read the reason for thag is the acanthurus tangs have very thin slime coats, so they have a harder time dealing with the infection. If you do go acanthurus, I would definitely make sure to put a UV sterilizer on.

Gems are very unique looking. I'm super excited to see mine get big. So far he's really chill and doesn't seem interested in fighting with the others, which is definitely a plus.

Let me know what you choose! I don't think there is a bad option between them.

 

[RJT]

Yes, making it thin in the bag is a huge help. From your earlier post I can tell your food is a lot better then prepared food.

I am leaning towards a gem tang from Dr Reef.

Great tip about the uv light. I do have a lifeguard uv light which I think helps with diseases.

 

[hunterallen40]

Yes, making it thin in the bag is a huge help. From your earlier post I can tell your food is a lot better then prepared food.

Thank you very much! I'm actually going to make food tomorrow. I'll post some pictures!

I am leaning towards a gem tang from Dr Reef.

I can tell you mine is in great shape, and his prices are super fair for the gem tang.

Great tip about the uv light. I do have a lifeguard uv light which I think helps with diseases.

Yeah, they're great. I still have to do my permanent installation, but I have my old one soft-plumbed in at the moment. It's set for lower flow rates to help with protozoans (more contact time). It's a pentair 25 watt, but I'll be installing the 40 watt at some point.

 

[RJT]

How is the idol doing?

 

[hunterallen40]

How is the idol doing?

He's doing pretty well, thanks for asking! The yellow tang has left him alone for the most part, so he's swimming around looking for food. He doesn't eat super heavily (yet), but he's definitely eating some food (which is a great place to start).

Speaking of food, here's the food I made the other night!

frozen ingredients:

dry ingredients:

wet ingredients:

And the final product:

All the fish love it! Lots of goodies in there for them.

 

[haitian_reefer]

how much does it impact your nutrients?

 

[RJT]

Nice!!! How long does it last you? How do you store it?

 

[RJT]

I’m really glad the idol is doing well. He will fatten up soon

 

[hunterallen40]

how much does it impact your nutrients?

It is definitely pretty nutrient dense, so i always measure the amount i'm feeding in grams. 8 grams twice per day seems to be keeping the nutrients in check, but I expect that to change (especially with all the new tangs!).

Nice!!! How long does it last you? How do you store it?

It lasts me quite a while. The last batch i made was in early June, and I just ran out (so about 8 months).

I just put the food in bags in a thin layer, then store it in my freezer. It's very good that my wife is also in the hobby, or that freezer space might be a bit more difficult to procure .

I’m really glad the idol is doing well. He will fatten up soon

Thank you very much! He's definitely the one I am most worried about. It's great to hear someone say it's possible to keep one haha.

It really is quite fun having all these guys. So much more movement in the aquarium. I'll post some more pictures tomorrow!

 

[RJT]

Time for more pics!!! Also, were all of your Dr Reef fish quarantined or conditioned?

 

[hunterallen40]

Time for more pics!!!

Unfortunately, my wife reminded me it's valentines day this morning, so I have to cook dinner . I took a full tank shot earlier, I'll do some more individual pics tomorrow!

Also, were all of your Dr Reef fish quarantined or conditioned?

All quarantined. Since I was adding an achilles and a powder brown, I thought it wise to go the full QT route (especially with the idol... I wanted to make sure that guy was eating).

I am actually going the full ich eradication method, so I QT my inverts + corals (fallow at 81 F for 45 days). I've got four acros in my frag system I'm super excited to bring in (I have two giant hermit crabs in there, and as long as they don't destroy them, they should be good to add on March 15).

 

[hunterallen40]

Ok @RJT, new pictures!

 

[hunterallen40]

Ah, I forgot to mention. I sent off an ICP-MS test today. First test with the calcium reactor + UV on the tank (and first test since I started dosing copper daily -- hopefully that level has gone up).

 

[RJT]

Great pics!! Thank you for posting. Everyone eating well?

 

[RJT]

Why are you dosing copper?

 

[hunterallen40]

Great pics!! Thank you for posting. Everyone eating well?

Thanks! Yeah, they love the new food. The idol is eating more each day!

Why are you dosing copper?

Ah, that's a VERY fair question, haha. In my last ICP test it came back super low. This is apparently a consequence of running ozone, but I don't know specifically why that is. Amazingly, my alkalinity consumption went up substantially when I started dosing copper (so much so that it convinced me it was time to swap to the calcium reactor).

 

[hunterallen40]

I'm afraid I have some very sad news... The moorish idol passed away yesterday. He very quickly took a turn for the worse Monday, and he just wasn't able to recover. You can read about that here.

I definitely want to try this species again, but I'm going to wait for a better specimen, and make sure that I up my feeding game to 5-6 times daily.

We also got our icp results back the other day. Not much of note, but I had to bust out the Molybdenum supplement (first time in almost a year!). We're also adding back Manganese and Chromium to the daily dosing regimen, and increasing copper and iron to 2x daily, cobalt and selenium to 4x daily, and iodide to 20 drops daily.

The only thing that really shocked me on this ICP test was the magnesium. My trident has been monitoring the magnesium, and I didn't see any spikes or anything... So I was really shocked to see it an entire 100 ppm higher than I thought it was . I'm not going to worry about this, though.

 

[RJT]

Really sorry to hear about the idol. Will you try it again with a auto feeder?

 

[hunterallen40]

Really sorry to hear about the idol. Will you try it again with a auto feeder?

Thank you very much. I appreciate it.

I really do love that species, so I will more than likely give it another shot... I *do* have an auto feeder module, and I might try that out when I find a nice thicc specimen.

I do worry about the bioload getting too high, though. I think I'll start using the refugium chamber soon.

Anybody have a good recommendation for a refugium light? I've used the neptune gro light in the past, but they don't do well with water damage and always seem to break on me (in one way or another).