Lasses Dream Build

[Lasse]

Thank you both

Its a lot of digging but a pistol shrimp and a watchman goby has been in my plans since the start. The goby was one of the first fishes but a pistol shrimp has been more difficult to get.

The pipe fish has also been on the wish list – but its difficult to have it to survive in a normal tank. These are breed in captivity and used of dead food – so I hope it will work out well.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

Hunting



Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

More inhabitants

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Sincerely Lasse

 

[Fudsey]

That pipe fish looks really sweet ! ! !

What is that behind him? Part of your GSP?

 

[Lasse]

What is that behind him? Part of your GSP?

If you mean Green Star Polype - yes

Sincerely Lasse

 

[gregkn73]

Beauties

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Sincerely Lasse

Beautifully tank with extremely useful info. In the first photo is a halichoeres wrasse? Which one?
I had introduced a dragon face pipefish a year ago, and for 6 months, it seems to was thriving, eating pods and Artemis hatchlings I introduce daily. But suddenly one day stop eating and behave normally and in a week it perish :-( never understood what happened....

 

[Lasse]

I think it is a Halichoeres chrysus but not sure. In my aquaria it has got this deep yellow colour - rather near orange. I have five small individuals and its works rather well

Sincerely Lasse

 

[gregkn73]

I think it is a Halichoeres chrysus

How many of them do you have? Did you introduce them simultaneously? Any aggression between them or with other fish you have?

 

[Lasse]

I have five and the introduction did not follow the rules. I had one - the largest ( 6 cm) and introduce 4 more ( 3-4 cm). It works out very well from the beginning and they are always in the move.

In the beginning I noted a very funny thing. The largest come from a LFS that normally had its light on between 16:00 - 22:00. My fish disappear at 21:30 every evening. The four small ones come from a LFS that shout down its lighting at 18:00 every evening - and these fishes disappear already at 17:30. After a month or so – they had adapted to my light regime – light out at 23:00 and they all five go to sleep around 22:30 – but the smallest still disappear earlier sometimes

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

Promised in another thread

Triton test of my aquarium for the last 12 months.

remarks -

I use an aluminium based GFO. After the first test (high in Al) I mix it with normal iron GFO

I dose iodine – adjust the amount after the tests – goal 60 ppb Have dosing since 2 months after start of the aquarium (16-06)

I dose Strontium – start after 17-05 test

I dose Potassium – start after 17-07 test

Haven´t done anything according to Cu and Si

Prior to the huge rise in Si – I was adjust the reversed flow through my DSB (bottom layer anaerobe and consists of Sera Siporax)



Sincerely Lasse

 

[Sallstrom]

I think the Al-PO4 remover might take up some Si :)

http://uniquecorals.com/dry-goods/triton/al99-phosphate-remover-5000ml.html

Looking good otherwise! Soon it will be filled with colorful sticks! ;)

/ David

 

[Lasse]

Thank you

Yes both Al based and iron based GFO will probably take up silicia. However - my problem for the moment is that I´m so low in phosphate that I only run my Al-GFO reactor 1 minute each 10 minutes

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

16 months old reef aquarium 10 minutes after feeding



Sincerely Lasse

 

[Giraffe0621]

16 months old reef aquarium 10 minutes after feeding



Sincerely Lasse

Lasse, Your tank is absolutely beautiful! How are your pipefish doing? Do they seem to handle the amount of flow you have in the tank all right? I've heard they're not the best swimmers. I love the look of pipefish, but know they're quite sensitive, need tons of pods, etc. so they're certainly not a possibility for my new tank at the moment, but maybe at some point.

 

[Lasse]

Thank you

This pipefish has been in the display for 2 weeks now. I got 2 of them 3 weeks ago - they are bred in Sri Lanka and are used to dead food. But they was small when I got them so I put them in my fuge there I could feed them well. There is also a production of pods in the fuge. The one you see in the video just escape to the display and it’s impossible to catch him/her. I was sorry because I thought that it maybe did not manage to survive – but I was wrong. Now it’s moving around everywhere in the aquarium and the flow seems not to concern him/she. The second is still in the fuge and I see it during nights when the light is on at the fuge. Because these should be used of dead food – I dare to take a chance with them and as I see it now – it´s work very well

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Lasse]

Has been doing some tests with another lighting. The reasons is two. My PS Hyperion metis SMT gives a light pattern that I love and my corals seems to thrive but the PAR readings at the bottom rather low (80 -100). This fixture has no phosphorous coated LEDs (no “white” LEDs). To give the aquarium a white looking – the fixture user the RGB technique to trick our eyes (or brain). To use RGB technique (as many “white” t5 tubes do) to mimic a white light has some advantages according to the colour of the corals. Many corals has fluorescence – it means they act as weak light sources sending out photons of another wavelengths (read colour) compared with the incoming photons. Because of the construction of our eyes (brain) - too much of the wavelengths between 500 – 600 nm will block our ability to see these weak colour sources. Many people run heavy bluish tanks in order to get this “poops” of the corals. The disadvantages of using very much of blue light is that you get dull fishes. Their reflecting pigments need “red” photons to show red, “green” photons to show green and so on. To use more RGB oriented light sources will partly resolve this problem. Not as good “poop” as with “all” blue – but much better comparing with using light industry adapted phosphorus coated LED of low Kelvin. However – this approach will lead to run much more intense red and green wavelengths than normally is accepted in the hobby. There is 1 (ONE) article according damage with red LED to corals – this article has been the leading argument for not using too much red (and green) wavelengths to corals. Yes I know that most red has disappear from 5 m and down but that will not exclude that red can be used by corals. My experiences with my aquaria contradict the conclusion that too much red wavelengths will harm corals (and green).

The second reason for testing a little different light is the growth pattern of my corals. Especially my bird nests. Because I use LEDs without any phosphorus coating – my fixture gives zero or near zero of wavelengths over 680 nm. Far red (around 720 nm) has in plants shown a very important ability to change the growth patter to a more slender form. I have taken birds nest from a tank with lot of far red (MH lighting) – the coral is rather slender with rather few branches with a normal space between them – one to two weeks in my aquaria - they begin to branches in dense patterns – se the pictures.

The base has been grown in the other tank – tops during 3 weeks in my tank. My pH is in average a little bit higher but my PAR is lower.

The same coral - 1.5 years in my aquarium

In order to test if 720 nm has any importance for the growth pattern of my corals – I borrowed a test fixture constructed by Heliospectra in Gothenburg. However I need to have a little higher up (the spread is to narrow for the moment – and I was not pleased with how my corals and fishes looks like. I have to do a little more work before starting this fixture.
Instead I got me a T5 fixture and mount in front. I use Red sea´s 22 000 K and 15 000 K tubes.

The results is lighter, now 140 PAR at the bottom near the front window. After studding the spectra’s I have decided to test a pink T5 tube – it has a little peak around 720. For the moment – one actinic and one blue white tube. 2* 54 HO T 5 tubes

Interesting spectra for those that still believe that T5 tubes is a full spectra source

Actinic 22 000 K

Blue White - 15 000 K

Pink

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Tristren]

The impact of spectrum on growth patterns is very interesting. I know that @Ryanbrs has been talking about spectrum as the next everyone will be focusing on in lighting, but I don't know if that is specific to growth patterns or just health and growth in general.
Maybe @Dana Riddle has looked at this side of things?

You mention that you think that 80-100 PAR is lower than you want. I've been going off (what I've seen) of Dana's work pointing to lower ranges than most seem to think is necessary. I don't have any SPS yet, and don't plan to have much, so I've been quite pleased with my lower par light.

What level of par are you looking to get?

You also talk about colouration of the fish and corals. But is there anything else you are looking for your light to provide? I watched the MACNA presentation from Tullio Dell Aquila on lighting. One comment that struck me was a reference to "all the other things" in our tanks that use light. That's something I haven't really thought about before... It makes me inclined to move towards a more "natural" spectrum.

Though I suppose I have to take into account the spectrum at the depths we are simulating as well?

So much to think about in this hobby :)

Thanks again for sharing all of this and continuing to inspire us with your amazing system.

Tony

 

[Dana Riddle]

Spectrum does matter, at least for the Porites corals I used in experiments. Red light (generated by LEDs) is best at promoting photosynthesis but it is a double-edged sword. The protective xanthophyll cycle is induced at much later than seen with blue light even the PAR values are more or less equal. This may be the reason red light is known to control zooxanthellate density/chlorophyll content. Still a lot of work to be done in this area, so a word of caution - use red light sparingly.

 

[Lasse]

@Dana Riddle The red light you see in my picture of my aquarium is not ment for my corals - its over my fuge and does not reach the display part (its a wall between - se the picture below). I run the fuge illumination from 22:00 in the evening to 10:00 in the morning. And its dynamite for my Chaeto. I take away around 5 l of Chaeto every 15 days or so. No tumbling and growth even in the bottom.

A question - have you in the wild seen any differences of growth pattern for birds nest according to depth? (or any other coral). Let us say between 0.5 m to 6 m?

@Tristren Thank you. The light is also important according production of microalgae - the base for my grazers and other kritters. The animals also use the light in different aspects - maybe not so important in a tropic reef - but for sure there is seasonal fluctuations regarding light even there - with less light during the rainy season.

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Sincerely Lasse

 

[Dana Riddle]

@Lasse - Seriatopora was not present in Hawaii so I can't answer your question. My comment about red light was in response to @Tristrens question - red light should work very well in a refugium containing green algae - as you have proven!