CCOMBS FIRST REEF!

[ccombs]

So it has been quite awhile since my last post. Algae is slowly but surely getting better. Tank inhabitants are thriving, and all of my automation is working well for the most part.

I have really enjoyed having the tank and am so glad that I re-started.

 

[dantimdad]

How are you doing?

Been wondering about you.

 

[ccombs]

Ok! Sorry I have been gone but I am back now! Sometimes life gets hard but things have been looking alot better lately.

In regards to the tank, here is where I am at.

Algae issues = solved! I added a lawn mower blenny and he went to town. He does all of my algae maintenance for me while I am on the road 5 days a week.

Sad news = One of my clowns died. :( At first I thought it might have to do with the blenny, since he died about a week after adding him, but I really don't think that is plausible since the LMB is very peaceful and typically resistant to disease. Also, no other signs of disease on any other fish. My current theory is that the clown that had turned female killed him. I thought they had successfully paired up, but maybe I was wrong. He started swimming weird as if he was injured and in his last day spent most of the day sitting on the sand bed and rock work. Unfortunately I was out of town and this was all from pictures my wife sent.

I am pretty sad about it, but optimistic that there is not a larger issue with the tank.

The rock work has matured well and the corals are looking great! I run a longer lighting schedule than I probably should and my corals love it. It leads to some algae issues and my LMB keeps that in check. It is crazy that I have learned how to balance an ecosystem.

Does anyone have any tips on supplementing some extra Nori in the tank for the LMB? He has destroyed the algae and I currently feed LRS Reef Frenzy. Do I just buy Nori at the store, or do I need some special fish type?

 

[dantimdad]

I just buy the grocery store kind. Read the ingredients and make sure it's not dyed or flavored.

 

[rkpetersen]

Does anyone have any tips on supplementing some extra Nori in the tank for the LMB? He has destroyed the algae and I currently feed LRS Reef Frenzy. Do I just buy Nori at the store, or do I need some special fish type?

Another option is to switch to the Herbivore Reef Frenzy. It's mostly meat but also contains sizable pieces of macroalgae.
Sometimes it's hit or miss whether blennies will actually consume sheets of algae. Their mouths are 'designed' to scrape algae off surfaces.
If you're lucky your blenny will also eat meaty food. I have a new tailspot in a new nano and was happy to see him eat what the other fish eat, since there's not much algae in there yet.

Also I wouldn't count the blenny out as an aggressor. They can seem peaceful but may sometimes sucker punch another fish if they feel threatened or view it as competition.
One of mine has attacked a Foxface, Coral Beauty, and even a Purple Tang on several occasions. Leaves a nice big mouth-shaped scrape on the other fish's flank.
Like this:

 

[hdsoftail1065]

I just buy the grocery store kind. Read the ingredients and make sure it's not dyed or flavored.

Another option is to switch to the Herbivore Reef Frenzy. It's mostly meat but also contains sizable pieces of macroalgae.
Sometimes it's hit or miss whether blennies will actually consume sheets of algae. Their mouths are 'designed' to scrape algae off surfaces.
If you're lucky your blenny will also eat meaty food. I have a new tailspot in a new nano and was happy to see him eat what the other fish eat, since there's not much algae in there yet.

Also I wouldn't count the blenny out as an aggressor. They can seem peaceful but may sometimes sucker punch another fish if they feel threatened or view it as competition.
One of mine has attacked a Foxface, Coral Beauty, and even a Purple Tang on several occasions. Leaves a nice big mouth-shaped scrape on the other fish's flank.
Like this:

I agree with both of these, if you have an Asian market nearby they will have a huge selection, just watch for the seasoned/flavored packages. My fish all love the LRS line up. I keep the reef frenzy, fish frenzy, herbivore frenzy in stock at all times as the main course, they devour the stuff!

 

[samnaz]

Welcome back!

 

[ccombs]

Another option is to switch to the Herbivore Reef Frenzy. It's mostly meat but also contains sizable pieces of macroalgae.
Sometimes it's hit or miss whether blennies will actually consume sheets of algae. Their mouths are 'designed' to scrape algae off surfaces.
If you're lucky your blenny will also eat meaty food. I have a new tailspot in a new nano and was happy to see him eat what the other fish eat, since there's not much algae in there yet.

Also I wouldn't count the blenny out as an aggressor. They can seem peaceful but may sometimes sucker punch another fish if they feel threatened or view it as competition.
One of mine has attacked a Foxface, Coral Beauty, and even a Purple Tang on several occasions. Leaves a nice big mouth-shaped scrape on the other fish's flank.
Like this:

Very interesting as the blenny being the aggressor.... I’ll have to keep a close watch.

 

[ccombs]

So I know this should be in the hitch hiker/ID forum, but thought I might get some hits here. I pulled out some pieces to do my less frequent equipment cleanings and found these 2 things. One is like a hard white build up, the other is the snot looking rice. Any ideas?

Also, I am choosing to now run without a skimmer... stay tuned for a detailed explanation why!

Spirobid worm is the white stuff maybe?

 

[Hemmdog]

So I know this should be in the hitch hiker/ID forum, but thought I might get some hits here. I pulled out some pieces to do my less frequent equipment cleanings and found these 2 things. One is like a hard white build up, the other is the snot looking rice. Any ideas?

Also, I am choosing to now run without a skimmer... stay tuned for a detailed explanation why!

Pineapple sponges and spirorbis worms. Glad your back!

 

[Rick.45cal]

So I know this should be in the hitch hiker/ID forum, but thought I might get some hits here. I pulled out some pieces to do my less frequent equipment cleanings and found these 2 things. One is like a hard white build up, the other is the snot looking rice. Any ideas?

Also, I am choosing to now run without a skimmer... stay tuned for a detailed explanation why!

Spirobid worm is the white stuff maybe?

Welcome back! Glad to hear things are doing well! Those white pineapple shaped things are sponges the others are a filter feeding worms. Both are harmless. The worms you will get varying answers of whether you should worry or not. I personally don’t worry about them. :)

 

[ccombs]

Pineapple sponges and spirorbis worms. Glad your back!

THATS a pineapple sponge?!?!?! They look so much different in person. Autocorrect really did a number on Spirorbis on my last post lol.

 

[Hemmdog]

THATS a pineapple sponge?!?!?! They look so much different in person. Autocorrect really did a number on Spirorbis on my last post lol.

Haha yea, they look extra weird out of the water too.

 

[ccombs]

Welcome back! Glad to hear things are doing well! Those white pineapple shaped things are sponges the others are a filter feeding worms. Both are harmless. The worms you will get varying answers of whether you should worry or not. I personally don’t worry about them. :)

Glad to be back! I have been patiently sitting back and watching the tank do its thing and I make minimal adjustments as needed.

I will take some pics when the lights are almost off and a deep blue tomorrow. I need my corals to look like they do at the online stores :D:D:D

I hope you are doing well yourself and I look forward to being active on the forum again!

 

[Rick.45cal]

Glad to be back! I have been patiently sitting back and watching the tank do its thing and I make minimal adjustments as needed.

I will take some pics when the lights are almost off and a deep blue tomorrow. I need my corals to look like they do at the online stores :D:D:D

I hope you are doing well yourself and I look forward to being active on the forum again!

It’s amazing how much progresses once you kick back and let it do it’s thing. Things are good for me, I can’t complain. My tank has taken off and has entered a new dimension, it blows me away every day.

 

[ccombs]

It’s amazing how much progresses once you kick back and let it do it’s thing. Things are good for me, I can’t complain. My tank has taken off and has entered a new dimension, it blows me away every day.

I guess it is time to catch up on someones build thread!

 

[ccombs]

Dang I missed this forum! @Hemmdog @Rick.45cal @Lasse @samnaz @dantimdad

 

[Lasse]

Does anyone have any tips on supplementing some extra Nori in the tank for the LMB?

Welcome back

When I had this type of fish (LMB) I use to feed it with the type of green tablets you use for fresh water algae eaters (catfish tablets). All of the one I have had just love them and treat them the way a cat treat a catched mice - everyone tried to juggle the tablets in the water - just through it up and catch it again :)

This is an example

​

Sincerely Lasse

 

[dantimdad]

We missed you too!

 

[ccombs]

So my tank still is not anything to write home about, nor are my photography skills. However, I am proud of where I have come in the past few months and how the tank has bounced back from complete disaster. Without the support and advice of this community, all of the gear would have been on craigslist.

You can see the goby has made quite a sand pile in the middle recently. I am going to gradually remove some of that/spread it back out. In theory it is so new that it should not be a nutrient sink, but I am not going to risk it.


Also (bracing for scrutiny here) I have not been testing my water since re-starting the tank. I keep an eye on salinity every week or so since my water changes and ATO is automatic. I want to be sure that the balance isn't disrupted or the ATO adds too much fresh as the DOS takes out old salt water. When the clown died I tested for ammonia just to see if there was any weird spike from crabs dying or something. Outside of that I have not done any tests.

Maybe next week I will do a full set of tests just to see where everything is for fun. I have gone without tests intentionally here. I am doing it to keep myself from over-correcting or messing with the tank. The reality here is that everything appears healthy and I might do more harm than good chasing parameters.