I received a box of rocks today.
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neoGeorge
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With the addition of the refugium I updated the back compartments as follows
The back of the tank filled up pretty fast, but this was all in the original plan. I would prefer the heaters on opposite ends, but it was more important to have the refugium and skimmer on opposite sides. I wanted the media and live rock before the refugium as well.
- Phosphate remover, activated carbon, ~3 lbs. live rock
- Refugium with Chaeto lit outside by 36 Watt Grow LED (~33% currently)
- Cobalt 150 Watt Heater, Returns, Tunze Osmolator ATO, temperature probe, grounding pole, ATO pump return
- Tunze 9004 Protein Skimmer
- Cobalt 150 Watt Heater
This coming weekend I am considering adding 2-3 corals. Easy LPS such as Caulastrea that I planned on adding early. My rock is mature and it is time to move forward. Phosphate is dropping the past few tests and everything else is in line and stable. Livestock are all doing well and the coral that came in on the live rock are just singing.
Great graphic - looking forward to seeing how the refugium works out!
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NY_Caveman
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NY_Caveman
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I did not use it long. My system was just too young to grow Chaetomorpha I believe. Still pretty low nutrients now almost 8 months in.
Here is the current layout
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NY_Caveman
likes words, fish and arbitrary statistics
Love the clown/Blenny pics!
I hope to get many more, brother. I am really curious to see if they really bond.
Victoria M
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Absolutely enjoyed reading your updates. Very interesting behaviors.
neoGeorge
Well-Known Member
Current FTS at peak lighting
So what is peak lighting? I mentioned yesterday that I altered the light schedule. This was not just because of my new hours, but also because, weekly, I have been increasing the photoperiod and intensity.
When I first added corals, the lights were on for 9 hours. The surface PAR was only 120, then around 80 at the level of the Green Toadstool Leather and about 55 at the bottom. Now the lights are up to a 12 hour photoperiod with the PAR levels at 180 / 120 / 80 respectively at the peak. To achieve this, the SB Reef LED (about 9” above the surface) is set to Blue 12%, White 6% and Moon (420nm) 16%. There is a lot of room to raise from here if needed. All of the corals seem to be doing well, though I may boost it slightly to reach 100 PAR at the bottom. Then I will leave it until I add needier corals or an anemone.
Last thing, I was going to try moving the Duncan coral today to a different spot. Although the skin has remained healthy and the feeders are out often, it has yet to fully open. Then today, it actually opened up just a little bit. I decided to give it a little more time in this spot and will revisit next weekend.
The tank is looking really great, and your patience is amazing...
neoGeorge
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Excited to see pictures of him tomorrow after hes had time to calm down.
Wow, that's a beautiful anemone!
neoGeorge
Well-Known Member
PAR Update
Over the past month I have slowly increased both the light intensity and the photoperiod. I use the Seneye device to measure PAR. Reminder, lights are SB Reef Lights 16” Extreme WiFi. Current peak channel mix is
- Blue - 20%
- White - 12%
- Moon - 25%
Diodes are 9” above the water level. Here is a current PAR map
- White - current peak levels
- Red - middle of August
- Green - beginning of August
Generally I have found that the middle level is 2/3 the level at the surface. The bottom is 1/2 the surface level (~17” below). Photoperiod is now 13 hours total with whites on, ramping up then down, for 9 hours.
All corals are looking very good, but I did finally move the Duncan coral. It was in only about 40 PAR and now sits around 100 PAR. After 4 weeks of not fully opening I felt it was time to try a change. You can see them now in the center, towards the back
The Bubble Tip Anemone on the right, in the crevice, is looking quite inflated and happy.
@NY_Caveman - did you use a wand to hold the Seneye meter during measurements? If so, what kind?
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NY_Caveman
likes words, fish and arbitrary statistics
Victoria M
5000 Club Member
I used a piece of PVC.
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NY_Caveman
likes words, fish and arbitrary statistics
I actually have a long skinny PVC tube I could cut and make a very sturdy holder for it at the perfect angle. Great idea. Thanks. For some reason, I often do not think of PVC when I need to build something. It is like some weird mental block. I seem to think of it as what is flowing in the tube and not as a useful material itself for other purposes.
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neoGeorge
Well-Known Member
Man I didn't get any updates there's been like 5 pages!
Your acans look happy. Mysis and other meaty food is the fastest way to grow them. If their color starts fading they may need a little more nutrients in the water -- it's what was happening to my friend with the same setup as you.
I just fed my acans actually, funny the first thing I see is you feeding yours
Your acans look happy. Mysis and other meaty food is the fastest way to grow them. If their color starts fading they may need a little more nutrients in the water -- it's what was happening to my friend with the same setup as you.
I just fed my acans actually, funny the first thing I see is you feeding yours
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