Custom rip clean thread for nanos, top cure for dinos and cyano above any method.

[brandon429]

The way this thread is going to run is by evaluation of outcomes from live time jobs, it's as simple as that.

Post #54 is the only current live time job underway, criticism that is relevant here will come directly from those outcomes at hand from live time jobs.


and remember: at any time, a critic can create their own competing work thread, you work some jobs and we compare. that would drive reefing science bigtime, to have multiple outbound challenge tanks worked in one thread.


Not a thread of us stating ideas and best practices

a thread of us competing, by working outbound jobs from the nuisance algae forum. I call tanks 40 gallons and below.

 

[brandon429]

post #2 is a very very detailed long term update. you guys came here to spar, you weren't here to help or you would read some examples.

 

[brandon429]

From this point on we can await new work threads, and track the ongoing work thread in progress. send more jobs

the way to test is to send more jobs to work live time, that's the purpose of this thread.

This thread is about finding live time work jobs, I posted some from a few months ago, let's get the momentum going again for new ones.

 

[crabgrass]

I am staying out of the rip clean good/bad debate. However, My personal experience doing two of them on a 20g were unsuccessful 2 months down the road. However I blame that on not finding the source of the problem that lead me to the need to rip clean it and then opening up the door to some other invasion after the rocks were spotless.

To Brandon’s point, it is the simplest, easiest approach for mass nutrient export. And in something under 30g can be done in an afternoon. I appreciate the guidance he has provided to me in the past.

My both times my tank looked amazing as the other after posts. The first time I got dinos a couple weeks after the rip clean (nutrients bottomed out and lots of new real estate). The second time GHA manage to make a three-peat comeback.

I blame the lack of a good bio-ome/live rock (I had some cheap Marco rock I got off of Amazon) over anything the rip clean did.

However, a rip clean isn’t the end-all savior. If your tank is over run with GHA, It’s a step to mass export algae and nutrients from the tank. Then the actual remediation needs to happen.

 

[brandon429]

we will spend the rest of this thread evaluating live time jobs


and awaiting any jobs at all Chris wants to run

Chris: go get a dinos help tank and fix it your way, and link that for us to watch. Thats not a loser tank like you said, that's someone undertaking a top challenge in reefing


if you're not willing to do that on call then you're in the wrong thread. I'm asking for new jobs.

trolls don't have any methods to review, good or bad, they're just neutral always except in tone.

 

[brandon429]

‘These past couple of days I have been seeing my blue legged hermit crab acting weird. Ive had both the hermit crab and coral for years. I’ve never seen him exhibit this behavior. I keep finding him walking on my neon green toadstool coral. It will walk all around on top as well as flip upside down and hold on. I’ve gone ahead and added a few pictures.’

Imagine being tasked to fix someone’s ten thousand dollar reef tank from three simultaneous problem invasions after reading that question above


When I read that question from you, then read what you’ve typed here in my threads as you tried to take over, it becomes brightly apparent what’s really going on.


Asking for you to take on a few work threads before spouting angry opinions isn’t going to be practical until 2028. Hopefully you’ll be able to determine soon why your hermit crab walked across the coral.

 

[brandon429]

Excellent

Phillip Aasen has offered his nano challenge turnaround for us / me / to work to completion. This new work example helps guide our thread away from trolling and into works outcome evaluation.


Not that anyone is stepping up to help him, but curious how readers here would fix this tank without a rip clean (and can you show the fix actually being done before as a link)

 

[brandon429]

I’m already two new work threads running just as of today though, you’re at zero. We are evaluating how new jobs turn out, it takes some time.


Instead of posting on my threads where you’re not welcome, start your own threads on any subject matter other than your own tank.

When you have applied sincere experience and willingness to help someone’s tank, post those results you created here, then you’ll be welcome. So far I think you’re a new poster troll with no work history quick to get into others work history, to try and derail it, for the fun of derailing it. I haven’t googled the definition of a web troll recently but I bet those traits are the key highlights.

3/13/24
Posted by Chaselti

I used this method this week to consolidate and reset my two nano tanks. I had fallen behind on maintenance of both tanks, 16g & 10g; the former had a bad case of hair algae while the latter was covered in bryopsis and bubble algae. Because life has become busier I decided it would be good to consolidate the two tanks and deep clean in the process. It took me most of Monday and some of Tuesday and now that Wednesday is here I think things are going well…

No before pics but some to give you an idea of the state of things.

After transferring fish and corals to a temporary tank I made sure the 16g was sparking clean, basically like new. I used new sand that I thoroughly washed - not till crystal clear, I used some clarity in the tank to take care of the last dust cloud. I also used all new water.

I transferred the inhabitants of the 10g to their own holding tank and removed the rock work which was covered in thick matt of bryopsis and bubble algae - I removed as much as possible by hand, gave it a brush down and spray with H2O2. The idea was to get it as clean as possible so I can treat with fluconazole in a week or two and not have too much die off in the tank. I would’ve liked to do more targeted scraping but with so much to do I was feeling pressed for time.

I acclimated the 10g fish and introduced them on Monday night; the 16g fish went in Tuesday night - I’m hoping the two clownfish will pair/get along; they are different sizes. There has been a bit of chasing but I’m keeping a close eye on them. There is also a hasselts’s goby and a few small cave gobies which I’m hoping won’t contribute much to the bioload. It was quite nerve wracking but this thread gave me the confidence in the resilience of the microbiology to go ahead. Now to stay on top of maintenance. Anyone with fluconazole advice? How long do you think I should wait?

 

[ChrisPPolys]

Imagine someone who has been practicing a rip clean method for years, confidently asserting that it actually works. It would only be logical for this dedicated individual to have a collection of photos showcasing the progress achieved through this method. After all, documenting the success would serve as undeniable evidence of its effectiveness.

But here's the catch: the absence of such photos is a massive red flag. Why, if this method truly works, is there no visual proof? It's perplexing how someone can passionately ramble on and on about a method they wholeheartedly believe in, yet fail to provide any concrete evidence to support their claims.

The lack of documentation raises doubts about the credibility of the method. Is it possible that this person is not capturing their progress because deep down, they know their idea doesn't actually work? It's a troubling thought, as it suggests a lack of confidence in their own beliefs.

Furthermore, this you audaciously requests successful business owners, who possess a net worth 10,000 times greater than your own, to prove them wrong. It's important to note that this is not an attempt to flatter oneself, but rather a recognition that nobody knows about this person and their method, and most likely never will.

In the end, it becomes evident that without tangible evidence, the claims made by this individual hold little weight. It's easy to passionately defend an idea, but without proof, it remains nothing more than empty words. So, until substantial evidence is presented, skepticism will continue to surround this supposed rip clean method.

 

[ChrisPPolys]

You’ve been dealing with nano tanks for years. (Don’t flatter yourself not even the most expensive nano is 10 thousand dollars) your working on new reefers tanks who can’t even grow and sustain coral. You’re then leading them down a road that will cause them more harm than good. You have the 2024 mentality about things, what is that? Instant gratification.

Without any proof your rip clean methods work long term you’re enticing these poor rookies into a one size fits all solution. Which as we know in the hobby doesn’t work. You’ve been at this for how long and haven’t been able to document any proof it works? Is it because the “customers” can’t stand you by the end of the day? Or is it because within months their ecosystem is completely destroyed.
Once again I’m laughing at you with your “all mighty rip clean method” where you have zero pictures of it working long term. Weren’t you asking the business owners who you’re envious of to document their products in real time? You’re a nobody asking the best of the best to prove you wrong. Not only are you a nobody but you’re asking them to provide evidence when you haven’t provided any actual evidence yourself. Why is that?

 

[brandon429]

Philip did not complete his job, anytime a thread is derailed like what happened during his consultation that's bad for the site, bad for the tank owner, it's just bad all around.

Hopefully after some talk with the mods that won't be repeating here


But we got a completed job here today by @newbie1995

Advice for changing sand on established tank with sand sifter

So my uncle passed away back August and left behind several of his tanks, only one saltwater tank with life in it. It’s a biocube, but he was pretty weak towards the end and admittedly it got a little out of hand. I somehow managed to drive the tank and fish from Colorado to Washington and keep...

www.reef2reef.com

and with that solid work example: our thread is back on track. we now have a live time job to consult, for the long term outcome.

I can't thank you enough for following through N1995

 

[brandon429]

@newbie1995

well done

I have these questions for you so we can predict your upcoming tank stasis over the new few months:

how long ago did you complete that job

how dirty was that sand you removed

how long did the rinsing of the substrate take to complete?

 

[newbie1995]

I hate to say that it took me a while to get all the supplies and get a helping hand, so we did the cleaning 2 days ago on Tuesday, started at noon, and we were able to add fish back in by 8pm.

The sand was pretty intense. There clearly had been MANY years of waste in the sand. The buckets were brown and cloudy.

I did the substrate in 4 sections as recommended by you. I’d say like 5 minutes on each? Maybe a little more? I feel like by this point my concept of time was fading, but this was one of the easier steps of the process despite it being intimidating for my first time.

 

[brandon429]

I'm glad its recent, now we get to track it legit for the upcoming months. we get to see what a freshly-regenerated tank does both in prediction and outcome. Your system prior didn't have any selected really bad invasions, so I'm not expecting new ones until the stocking of new corals begins/things ride in/ we can prepare to make the tank grow less algae now that it's waste free.

there's nothing we will be testing in this process other than temp and salinity of your tank. Physicality is what fixed the tank, physical actions are what will sustain it best.

Lighting intensity is our first alteration from the prior setup. There's not a ton of corals on that rock needed bright lights. bright lights aren't harmful but they will begin to slowly regrow algae that was anchored in place a long time on those fine rocks. Does your lighting have a way to be reduced in intensity a little bit?

before and after pics scraped from the thread:

before

after:

 

[newbie1995]

I will be sure I’m staying active with checking in during that timeframe as I am I very eager to make it something wonderful for the critters!

I definitely knew light played a huge part, but I haven’t had any guidance here yet. This tank is an LED Biocube from Coralife. I see there are the setting for daytime, nighttime, sunrise/sunset/, and options to have it turned off during certain times. The sunrise and sunset are just 30 minute intervals.
Because I was admittedly very clueless, I just went with how a normal day would go, like sunrise at 7:30am, light from 8am-7:30pm, sunset 7:30pm, and then night time until like 7 with like 30 minutes of dark. I know this sounds like a mess, but I wanted to be honest about how it is currently is set up no matter how wrong I may be!

 

[brandon429]

it is ok to simply hold course.

if the growback is pronounced we can begin there, using simple strips of electrical tape as simple light blocks to tamp it down if needed, other hacks are avail if % intensity lowering isn't directly avail. the system is adapted to those lights, the invasion was not bad at all considering how long the system had went without export, we can hold course and just evaluate based on growback

so the key to your system is this: physical controls until you reach the tune that

nothing so far harmed your biosystem, your biome etc/all the hot terms you'll read from the day about bacteria in reefing. you did to that reef tank what a renowned dentist would have done to a mouth in dire need of repair

it has been de-aged, and it looks that way. the waste accumulation was well-handled by that system anyway, your before pic was not bad looking I thought. the key is when you stocked it back with life, expensive corals one day we want the absolute cleanest condition for those animals to have the best chance. you earned that status with the tank now given that degree of prep shown in the after pics.

update the thread as needed and we can make changes too as needed this is great for cycle control science thank you for posting

 

[newbie1995]

Not that this is in my books currently, but purely out of curiosity, would I now want to wait a couple months and see how this all takes and make sure I’m not having extensive grow back and then I’d be in a good place to look into adding things? Or would this be considered good to go?

Like I said I’m definitely not planning on anything right now and I want to be sure I get the proper on guidance on what would be good additions later, I’m just curious about what the process after this rip clean looks like. It sounds like everything with these reef tanks happens in stages.

 

[brandon429]

For sure you can reef in it right now agreed. Corals etc yes, that live rock will be strong still, better than before

 

[newbie1995]

Ok so it has been 4 days since the rip clean. I’ve been careful not to over feed because I know my fish were still adapting and not super hungry. Considering this is my first time with new sand and not seeing all the waste and crazy colors in it, I wanted to ask a question about something I’m seeing.

Im noticing a yellowing on top of the sand. Is this normal? Is this waste that I just siphon out during a water change or is this the beginning of growth of something?

I am concerned maybe I didn’t get in the nooks and crannies of the rock as well as I thought I did. Currently in this tank is just a blenny, a clownfish, a shrimp, a couple hermits and the snails.

 

[brandon429]

The rocks have been recently unplugged. They’re expressing waste that was pent up, and daily they express waste castings on top of that old material slough and when that sinks downs and combines with bright lighting, growback begins using that waste as growth substrate. Additional loosened castings from the initial rock cleaning will come off, be siphoning that layer of sand out with routine weekly water changes. Allow no regrowth, no waste layer to build up this is just the first guiding gardening of many as the system is guided back into compliance.

When you rinse off that taken section of sand just put it back in the tank, free of those diatoms/algae complexes forming on the sand, also be lifting out your live rocks in rotation, look for forming algae tufts if any, swish twist them in saltwater before setting back in the tank. That stuff you’re seeing is new plaque stains forming in the reef mouth, they should be cleaned out.

Those are just the regrowths we were aiming to lessen with lower light levels overall and almost no white spectrum running, just blues ideally.

As you hand guide and remove these catch up growths a new routine for keeping the tank spotless develops, and it can’t ever get invaded again. We make changes to the reef setup that reduce your follow up work, but follow up work is the final say in keeping the reef looking new.