How not to start a reef tank, my first reef tank build

Which light should I upgrade to after coral qt is done?

  • 2x ai prime

    Votes: 5 50.0%
  • Reefbreeders 24 in. Photon v2

    Votes: 2 20.0%
  • Stick with current orbit USA marine

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Viparspectra 165w

    Votes: 1 10.0%
  • 2x hipargero 30w

    Votes: 1 10.0%
  • Other

    Votes: 1 10.0%

  • Total voters
    10
  • Poll closed .

aqua_code

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Rip was neglecting my tank because of work and changed around the flow last night. HW had RTN overnight woke up to it in bad shape. Totally jinxed myself. Getting a mindstream soon and will grab another one. Moved my mp10 to a spot where I guess it was getting a little blasted.
 
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living_tribunal

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The corals seem to be recovering moderately well although the chalices are still in very rough shape. I do think they’ll make it however but it might take a few months before they get their color back.

On another note, I’m seeing Bryopsis hairs coming out of the disco plug already. Given that these corals are already under a lot of stress, I’m not going to be removing them again.

My plan is to monitor them for a few days. If it is indeed Bryopsis, I will be dosing the tank with flucanozole. The results seemed overwhelmingly effective with absolutely no impact on corals or fish.

This coral qt tank was honestly the best decision I’ve made in reefing. My display tank would have already been infected by the three worst things you can get had I not quarantined my frags.

It’s been a heck of a first week owning corals, I’ve battled aptasia, bubble algae, and Bryopsis. I’m beginning to feel like planet hulk before he shattered an entire world. To all of the coral and algae pests out there, BRING IT.
 

Medical_Reef

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This is like Pokémon, but death.

I want to kill them all.
Haven't read through the thread yet but I'm interested! I named my thread the same way, so I'm curious to see what your struggles were. I bet no one hit your tank with a hammer!! lol
 
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living_tribunal

living_tribunal

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Haven't read through the thread yet but I'm interested! I named my thread the same way, so I'm curious to see what your struggles were. I bet no one hit your tank with a hammer!! lol

There is merely a thin string of optimism preventing me from bashing it myself with a hammer.
 

RichtheReefer21

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There is merely a thin string of optimism preventing me from bashing it myself with a hammer.

Let it go. No one gets it perfectly right the first time unless they are paying someone else to do it.
 
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living_tribunal

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Let it go. No one gets it perfectly right the first time unless they are paying someone else to do it.

Come on now, you know I’m joking. I couldn’t ever do something to Cat and Dog.

6F97DB39-EFC8-48A7-A0C6-1705CE192ECE.jpeg
 
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living_tribunal

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Going to have a lot of major setup change pictures coming in soon, stay tuned.

Also, what’d the best way to remove diatoms growing on top of a lepto frag?

I tried blasting with turkey basted and lightly scraping it off but neither did the trick. I have wholeheartedly embraced the diatom madness but don’t want it negatively impacting my babies. I’m nervous to even think about having to lightly scrub with coralline brush again.
 
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living_tribunal

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Interestingly enough, I removed the frag and lightly brushed it with a brush. It's not diatoms I don't believe. It's more so a green film that kind of can't be removed. I'm a tad worried as the pink lepto doesn't fluoresce any longer and is beginning to get a little lighter. I didn't brush this frag nearly as hard as the green lepto which still fluoresces. I'm hoping for the best :/

The good news is I believe at least one of the chalices is still alive. I have been feeding them rather aggressively given I did such a number to the zooxanthelle on their tissue. I'm hoping that will keep them alive long enough for the zooxanthelle to grow back and resume feeding the coral.
 
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living_tribunal

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So I was about to buy a pretty excellent 60 gallon dsa full setup (beautiful built in sump, massive skimmer, full plumbing, etc)

There was a somewhat deep scratch that made me walk away. I want to get a few of yalls opinions to see if this is something I should be concerned with or if there is a way to apply bondo or sealant to really make a safeguard for a scratch?

Here is a picture, as you can see it has splintered a little bit which is why I walked away. I’m not concerned with the aesthetics, I’m mainly concerned with the integrity of the glass. You can only feel it inside the tank.

1C7BFA19-14C0-41CB-A8E7-2FEDDB9538A8.jpeg

CE158D08-FE55-40DD-A853-F2BDE70CA1F6.jpeg
 
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living_tribunal

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Doesn't look too bad, that being said I would've walked away too.

If it didn’t have a splinter then I would have purchased it. Dsa tanks are as thick as they come and it’s just a scratch but how deep it is and the splinter made me a bit timid.

The setup is really outstanding though. There aren’t many deals like this available in my area. The seller was a bonafide reefer as well. He had about 4 100+ gallon tanks in his garage and a 1000 gallon RODI jug.
 
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living_tribunal

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Now if there is a bondo or sealant that reliably prevents scratches from turning into cracks, I’ll probably buy the tank. It’s a 60g DSA Starfite rimless. Two clean light hanging mounts, 30 gallon 3 1/2 section sump, euro reef 160g skimmer, true dual return, all plumbing/overflow, and 4 bulb 3ft t5 hybrid kit.

E9ECEE1E-9505-4E73-AC4F-9B19124D59F4.png

006B9701-3E52-4FD9-870B-F51FDBFEF1AF.png
 
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