good morning

sprinklerdudes · Sep 24, 2010

good morning to all the early birds out there, its 2:57 in the am getting ready for another long day out there in got bills to pay land, Havn't been on here in a little while, due to the fact I got to many bills to pay, kinda noticed it in my fish tank as well as I walked by and decided to clean the front glass and had to go get a razor blade and start scrapping after about twenty minutes of scraping and another ten cleaning out the skimmer, it has the aptasia rocking and rolling in the new wave system created by the rather large red bubble algea growing 8" in front of the discharge outlet man all these pest are kinda cool, the red bubble algea has a nice luminese orange and green that really glows under the half burned out atinitc lights,that I can't afford to replace, and I think the aptasia is quite happy in its new found solitude right in the middle of this nice coral rock that used to be quite an exspensive chalice that i grew out from a frag and was very beautiful, but no, the aptaisia is quite hungry and has much more motion that that dumb ol chalice, kinda woundering, how many others out there are in the same boat as me, or does every one out there in the Birmingham Reef area have pristine , beautiful tanks and thats why there hasn't been much activity on this forum since I have been on here last? I hope every one has a wounderful blessed day today, I am happy and glad to be alive, I am smiling from ear to ear, can't wait to get a decent pay check, do some much needed aqua scaping, and try to barter for some better lights, hope every one is doing great, AJ

H@rry · Sep 24, 2010

A.J. - You aren't the only one up at this hour. I'm sitting here in front of the computer snorkeling coffee while I wait to start packing frags for the Memphis swap.

I think everybody has been in the same shape you are in with the bubble algae, although some of them won't admit it. About the best thing you can do it pull the ones out that you can get to.

Have a good day smiling ear to ear! :haha:

revsgirl · Sep 24, 2010

Hey there! Sorry about your recent struggles! Hope everything starts looking up for you soon!

sprinklerdudes · Sep 25, 2010

I don't consider it a struggle anymore, it has made tank mantince easier, I do it becuse I enjoy sitting there when every one else has gone to bed and the phone qutes ringing, and watch the damsel fish chase each other arond the rocks, and the brittle star comes out and creeps across the tank and the hectic day is forgotton I have come to accept the aptasia, the algeas, the pulsing zenia bristle worms and tons of pods even though my tank has a lot of pest, once I qut trying to analate them and clean everything it seems to have gotton easier, and a sense of balance has started to take place that has made it even more enjoyable. I have come to accept that I can not afford or keep small polyp stony coral that require way more than my budjet allows, I have tried and failed multiple times the zoas, large palys , and a few large polys remain, they are pretty and do well, the softies have there chemical warfare going on and keep it in check so that no one is king of the mountian, and I have found that the best why to keep the aptasia where I dont want it is to move one of the big hairy green mushrooms and in a few days the aptais has relocated itself els where, as much as I would like to get something to eat the aptasia I have noticed where I have allowed it to grow, ther is aboundant new life of feather dusters worms, soft coral etc growing that was not there before, if I had bought a butterfly to eat the aptasia, the feather dusters and other small critters would be gone as well, I still want to set up my 300+ tank, and will plan it out more carefully, but I shure do enjoy my shallow 55 reef it is where I can sit and whatch it from the font, it is shallow enough I can veiw it from the top, and get my hands wet with ease. the two damsels and the now lone clown fish eat from your hand, and if they see you and you don't feed them the damsel will spit water at you and splash until you do.

brandon2432 · Sep 26, 2010

It does seem to get easier with time. The maintence is something we either need to enjoy or be a yupee and pay someone to do it for you, but if that is the case get a screensaver for your computer. I look at it like a reward for work well done. If it wasn't for the suppliers we might be paying 100 dollors for a frag of some aptasia instead of lps. As long as you enjoy your tank thats all that matters. I know we all have our tank pest but what doesnt kill us makes us stronger.