SaltyMix
Community Member
We all have so many questions and problems and I thought maybe it would be fun to post a bit of celebration with a bit of a story.
I started my reef journey in early March and cycled the tank, and it's been running with zero fluctuation in parameters since it cycled (a little flux in salinity due to natural evaporation, but I got a top off, and it's no longer an issue). It went through a quick diatom phase (like maybe a week, even though my tank has indirect sunlight all day, because it's the only place in the house that I could put a tank). I added my clean-up crew (5 astrea snails, a single clawed emerald crab, and three tiny blue-legged hermit crabs). I tested the tank with a damsel fish, and she's been so happy, and then last week, I added 2 clown fish.
I want to add a Flame Hawkfish and MAYBE a dragonet, but I don't have a pod population yet. Next benchmark after corals.
But today, as a reward for winning a court case earlier this week (I have horses and my neighbor's 100+head of cattle keep jumping his fences and eating all my hay), I stopped by LFS for a bucket of RO water and decided to get a coral.
I got a small Zoanthid frag with 10ish heads after work, buuuut I have horses. I just decided to get the coral anyway and took it to the barn with me. I've done this with the snails and the hermit crabs and I just leave their transport container in the shade on a bench while I ride/get chores finished. I would never do this with a fish, but the LFS closes before I can usually get barn chores done.
2 hours later we made it home. I dipped the zoas in sea chem reef dip (the LFS has an aptasia problem and I don't want other parasites they might have. . . ), popped the frag plug off with some scissors, and superglued them to their new rock. Then I made dinner and went back to check on my little colony about 15 ish minutes later.
GUYS! They're already popping out. They seem so happy and healthy despite being bounced around in my farm truck, spending some time at the barn, getting dipped, and then superglued. I was sure it would probably be dead.
I'm so happy that my fish are so active and eating so well and getting along in the most adorable way, and that my snails and hermits seem so healthy. The hermits are silly and a delight to watch (I was originally so against them and then my LFS got an order of about 1,000 instead of the 100 they originally ordered and they only had one small tank and were selling them for fifty cents since they were killing each other due to the sheer number of them. I also caved and got the Emerald Crab, but I like him less because he looks like a spider and it freaks me out to see him. Thank god he hides in the rockwork more often than not. He's also growing his right claw back. It was gone when I got him and I didn't notice until I got home, but he seems okay. I might take him back to the store but it freaks me out more to think of trying to catch him. But now that I have my first coral and the polyps are already coming out, it just makes me happy.
We won the court case (it was a slam dunk, I mean there is no defense for not keeping your cattle fenced, fed, or water, and also this man has a history of owning cattle and not caring for them), I have a horse who is progressing so well and so easily in her training, a new baby horse on the ground, and now a relaxing piece of the ocean that's also doing so great. I'm really enjoying this hobby. People have commented how much more relaxed I've been lately, and I really think a large part is the tank. It's just calming to sit with in the evenings. I also have a fresh water shrimp tank and those guys are hilarious to watch.
I think most of my success has literally been just not complicating anything. Keeping to basics and giving the tank the time it needs to do its thing. I have the horses, so I can't spend more than one day a week with a few hours to do any maintenance at all, so I have to keep things very simple. So far, it's worked great!
Good luck to every other reefer out there!
Here's the Zoanthid/button coral I got on a whim. It's been about 1 hour now in this photo. They have a bright yellow eye in the center with dark blue blunted tentacles around their edge. I think they're either an AOI zoa, a Lost World, or an Obsidian. The store didn't know and the zoas were heavily discounted since they had so many frags.
Not a bad day reefing.
I started my reef journey in early March and cycled the tank, and it's been running with zero fluctuation in parameters since it cycled (a little flux in salinity due to natural evaporation, but I got a top off, and it's no longer an issue). It went through a quick diatom phase (like maybe a week, even though my tank has indirect sunlight all day, because it's the only place in the house that I could put a tank). I added my clean-up crew (5 astrea snails, a single clawed emerald crab, and three tiny blue-legged hermit crabs). I tested the tank with a damsel fish, and she's been so happy, and then last week, I added 2 clown fish.
I want to add a Flame Hawkfish and MAYBE a dragonet, but I don't have a pod population yet. Next benchmark after corals.
But today, as a reward for winning a court case earlier this week (I have horses and my neighbor's 100+head of cattle keep jumping his fences and eating all my hay), I stopped by LFS for a bucket of RO water and decided to get a coral.
I got a small Zoanthid frag with 10ish heads after work, buuuut I have horses. I just decided to get the coral anyway and took it to the barn with me. I've done this with the snails and the hermit crabs and I just leave their transport container in the shade on a bench while I ride/get chores finished. I would never do this with a fish, but the LFS closes before I can usually get barn chores done.
2 hours later we made it home. I dipped the zoas in sea chem reef dip (the LFS has an aptasia problem and I don't want other parasites they might have. . . ), popped the frag plug off with some scissors, and superglued them to their new rock. Then I made dinner and went back to check on my little colony about 15 ish minutes later.
GUYS! They're already popping out. They seem so happy and healthy despite being bounced around in my farm truck, spending some time at the barn, getting dipped, and then superglued. I was sure it would probably be dead.
I'm so happy that my fish are so active and eating so well and getting along in the most adorable way, and that my snails and hermits seem so healthy. The hermits are silly and a delight to watch (I was originally so against them and then my LFS got an order of about 1,000 instead of the 100 they originally ordered and they only had one small tank and were selling them for fifty cents since they were killing each other due to the sheer number of them. I also caved and got the Emerald Crab, but I like him less because he looks like a spider and it freaks me out to see him. Thank god he hides in the rockwork more often than not. He's also growing his right claw back. It was gone when I got him and I didn't notice until I got home, but he seems okay. I might take him back to the store but it freaks me out more to think of trying to catch him. But now that I have my first coral and the polyps are already coming out, it just makes me happy.
We won the court case (it was a slam dunk, I mean there is no defense for not keeping your cattle fenced, fed, or water, and also this man has a history of owning cattle and not caring for them), I have a horse who is progressing so well and so easily in her training, a new baby horse on the ground, and now a relaxing piece of the ocean that's also doing so great. I'm really enjoying this hobby. People have commented how much more relaxed I've been lately, and I really think a large part is the tank. It's just calming to sit with in the evenings. I also have a fresh water shrimp tank and those guys are hilarious to watch.
I think most of my success has literally been just not complicating anything. Keeping to basics and giving the tank the time it needs to do its thing. I have the horses, so I can't spend more than one day a week with a few hours to do any maintenance at all, so I have to keep things very simple. So far, it's worked great!
Good luck to every other reefer out there!
Here's the Zoanthid/button coral I got on a whim. It's been about 1 hour now in this photo. They have a bright yellow eye in the center with dark blue blunted tentacles around their edge. I think they're either an AOI zoa, a Lost World, or an Obsidian. The store didn't know and the zoas were heavily discounted since they had so many frags.
Not a bad day reefing.
have you considered getting a donkey as a guard? I've heard they can be vicious (and amusing) protectors lol
