My First Softy Tank... which has turned into a mixed reef

fishguy242

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CONGRAT'S on new tank..!!! light combo ,do not use t-5 's to advise :)
 
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Another hammer going down. I came home to one of the heads of my green hammer retracting, and I see polyp bailout. I see no signs of brown jelly on this one.
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fishguy242

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sorry i missed this ..hope you fragged/took out already!
keep us posted.. :)
 
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I woke up this morning to the continued demise of my tank. One of my torch heads bailed last night. It wasn't looking good when I went to bed, and this morning when I woke up, one head had jumped. Again I don't see any brown jelly on it, but it does seem odd that all the euphyllias are being affected.
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Also, my stylo has pretty much melted away. I put in a new bag of carbon, just in case there was something else going on, and I sent out my ICP test. I think it takes several weeks to get them back though.
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The saga continues. I feel like the scene in Monty Python when they ask to bring out your dead, which I've added in GIF form here for your enjoyment.
bring out your dead.gif


All euphyllias are gone, except one lone hammer who is doing surprisingly great. I recently was sent an article about Brown Jelly and the bacteria that can cause it and some treatment ideas. One of the unfortunate things in the article is that it sounds like once the bacteria is in your aquarium, it won't disappear without intervention. I plan to hold off on purchasing any new hammers for the time being. I'm not sure if it correlates, but I notice that I seem to lose one whenever they get stressed.

I've lost several LPS and my one lone SPS due to the T5 debacle. Lesson learned on changing lights, one at a time, or decrease the amount of time they are on. This brings me back to Monty Python where I am constantly wondering if I should pull something before it's officially dead and gone. I go back and forth on whether it can recover or if it's just a loss.
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fishguy242

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sorry to see..onward and upward from here ;) are you planning on treating system or riding it out?
 
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While I may have lost some corals in happier news, the quest for a bigger tank continues. I had my contractor come over on Monday. Typically he comes, gives me a quote, says he will try to squeeze me in between other jobs, and then I don't see him again for six months. However, this time he told me he would be over on Friday to do the work. I was skeptically, but he showed up and got it all done... amazing.

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I plan to put a 6-foot peninsula tank in my office against the dining room's shared wall. Cut a window in the wall so the tank can be viewed from the dining room as well. I was told I didn't need to do any extra support to the floor... but that gave me anxiety, so I had him add a couple of support posts below the tank. I'll sleep better at night with those there. Initially, I was going to have the sump in the stand. However, right below the dining room is a small closet. Well, in true Bigger is Better style, I thought, why not just put the sump in the basement. I had him add a couple outlets and thought I could even move my mixing station in there, which will make water changes much easier.
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sorry to see..onward and upward from here ;) are you planning on treating system or riding it out?

In the article, which is linked below for others who may want to take a look, it talks about dosing small amounts of Cipro which makes me a little nervous. I think I'm going to avoid adding any new euphyllias until after moving to the new tank. At that point if the BJD continues then I will have to do something. I love hammers and torches and want a nice garden again.

 

fishguy242

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hi ,going to be awesome!!!;Happy
i'm sorry, am a lifelong contractor,don't want to be a downer,
1st the support beam up to drop ceiling?? support to floor joists i am not seeing??
2nd outlets ,gcfi breaker in panel on circuit?if not outlets should be, safety first ;)
 
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hi ,going to be awesome!!!;Happy
i'm sorry, am a lifelong contractor,don't want to be a downer,
1st the support beam up to drop ceiling?? support to floor joists i am not seeing??
2nd outlets ,gcfi breaker in panel on circuit?if not outlets should be, safety first ;)
Yes, the post go through the ceiling and attach to the floor joists where the tank will sit.

That’s a good point about gfi outlets, I wasn’t even thinking about that. None of my tanks are currently on gfi outlets. Instead I have equipment plugged into gfi power stripes or plugs. Guess the tradition continues.



 

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Placing the sump in the basement is absolutely the way to go. Do you intend to set up your RODI and mixing station down there as well? I love having all of that stuff "down there" as does my wife. I also have a slop sink there as well.

My WCs are just a breeze.
 
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Placing the sump in the basement is absolutely the way to go. Do you intend to set up your RODI and mixing station down there as well? I love having all of that stuff "down there" as does my wife. I also have a slop sink there as well.

My WCs are just a breeze.

Yes, currently, my mixing station is on the other side of the basement. I want to move it into this room if it fits. I was thinking of using the freshwater container as my ATO container.
 

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Yes, currently, my mixing station is on the other side of the basement. I want to move it into this room if it fits. I was thinking of using the freshwater container as my ATO container.
My RODI system serves as both my ATO and my freshwater barrel feed. I have a quality float valve in my sump return section. This is backed up by an optical sensor in my sump should the float valve stick in the open position. I also have an optical in my barrel in case it sticks open. So far, so good.

I have had the float valves stick open before. Thus the backup which I recommend.

 
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My RODI system serves as both my ATO and my freshwater barrel feed. I have a quality float valve in my sump return section. This is backed up by an optical sensor in my sump should the float valve stick in the open position. I also have an optical in my barrel in case it sticks open. So far, so good.

I have had the float valves stick open before. Thus the backup which I recommend.


Redundancy is key in this hobby. I have had the float valve on my RODI station stick before too, and it overflowed for at least a day before I realized it. Thankfully it is in the basement on a concrete floor, next to the basement drain and sump pump, so it wasn't a big issue. I was mostly upset that I lost all that water. Currently, for my tank, the RSR350 has a gravity feed ATO, which has its own set of problems. I bought the Tunze 3155 ATO for the exact reason that it has both an optical sensor and a float sensor. However, it would be a good idea to add a backup to the mixing station, especially as it's moving over the basement's finished half.
 
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In true me fashion, I've gone overboard with corals. I have two favias that melted, and I wanted to replace them. I was looking at my usual coral places, and they were so expensive, as most corals are. Sometimes I get lucky on eBay, though. Typically, I put a low bid on all the corals I want, $15-$20, and then see if I get lucky. Usually, I don't get any, and sometimes I may get one or two. So I did the same thing this time. I put a bid of $20 on all the favias, thinking I may get one... I won 11.
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Redundancy is key in this hobby. I have had the float valve on my RODI station stick before too, and it overflowed for at least a day before I realized it. Thankfully it is in the basement on a concrete floor, next to the basement drain and sump pump, so it wasn't a big issue. I was mostly upset that I lost all that water. Currently, for my tank, the RSR350 has a gravity feed ATO, which has its own set of problems. I bought the Tunze 3155 ATO for the exact reason that it has both an optical sensor and a float sensor. However, it would be a good idea to add a backup to the mixing station, especially as it's moving over the basement's finished half.
I've been using the gravity fed ATO on my RSR 425 for almost 4 years. It will clog about every 4-5 mos, so I remove it every 3 and clean it. I usually use an air compressor to blow it out and it's fine. I don't like to add another electrical device if I don't have to..
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 27 50.9%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 28 52.8%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 10 18.9%
  • None.

    Votes: 12 22.6%
  • Other.

    Votes: 3 5.7%
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