Salty Fingers
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courtneykeeps
Community Member
The tank is finally starting to look more alive with the addition of some macroalgae and inverts!
There's a weird stress with this setup (maybe because I'm new to it) surrounding the salinity and the nutrients and I feel like the tank is moments away from imploding at any time! I don't get this feeling with freshwater at all but I guess I've been doing it much much longer. I have an auto top off I need to setup to mitigate the salinity worry at least, but I haven't yet...A classic case of procrastination I'm hoping the nutrients won't be an ongoing anxiety...
I'm also waiting for Aquario lily pipes to become available so I can replace the OASE ones and will eventually switch out the powerhead for an AI Nero 3.
In the meantime, here's some photos of some lovely macroalgae!
There's a weird stress with this setup (maybe because I'm new to it) surrounding the salinity and the nutrients and I feel like the tank is moments away from imploding at any time! I don't get this feeling with freshwater at all but I guess I've been doing it much much longer. I have an auto top off I need to setup to mitigate the salinity worry at least, but I haven't yet...A classic case of procrastination I'm hoping the nutrients won't be an ongoing anxiety...
I'm also waiting for Aquario lily pipes to become available so I can replace the OASE ones and will eventually switch out the powerhead for an AI Nero 3.
In the meantime, here's some photos of some lovely macroalgae!
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
Thank you! It's definitely giving me moon raker vibes. I was going to get a blue legged hermit originally but this guy was just staring at me.
Thanks
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
It seems diatoms are wrecking me at moment. I'm not worried but man, it's next level. Some of it actually looks like cyanobacteria...
Also turns out my tank is very much still cycling, although nearing the latter end. Ammonia is a hard 0, nitrite looks like 0.5 and nitrates are through the roof but apparently the presence of nitrite can throw off your nitrate test results.
I removed the Ulva since it was melting, probably adding to the nutrient levels but also super hard to keep in one place. I removed most of the Ochtodes too as it was covered in what looked like cyanobacteria but there's remnants stuck to the rock that I'm sure will grow back once things settle. The Cryptonemia is also covered in something but it hasn't deteriorated at all so I rubbed off what I could and left it be.
The Caulerpa and Red Ogo is starting to grow well now and actually pearls during the photoperiod.
I also thought I killed my scarlet hermit. I found what I now realise was a molt next to its shell. I thought amano shrimp molts looked convincing but this take the cake! The snails have also started being more active in the last week which is reassuring. Auto top up is now set up so I don't have to worry about that which was getting tedious. Overall things are doing good.
Also turns out my tank is very much still cycling, although nearing the latter end. Ammonia is a hard 0, nitrite looks like 0.5 and nitrates are through the roof but apparently the presence of nitrite can throw off your nitrate test results.
I removed the Ulva since it was melting, probably adding to the nutrient levels but also super hard to keep in one place. I removed most of the Ochtodes too as it was covered in what looked like cyanobacteria but there's remnants stuck to the rock that I'm sure will grow back once things settle. The Cryptonemia is also covered in something but it hasn't deteriorated at all so I rubbed off what I could and left it be.
The Caulerpa and Red Ogo is starting to grow well now and actually pearls during the photoperiod.
I also thought I killed my scarlet hermit. I found what I now realise was a molt next to its shell. I thought amano shrimp molts looked convincing but this take the cake! The snails have also started being more active in the last week which is reassuring. Auto top up is now set up so I don't have to worry about that which was getting tedious. Overall things are doing good.
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
Ok so 2 weeks have past and some interesting things have happened...
The diatoms went into overdrive and then have now died down. They're present on some of the surfaces but it's now predominantly cyanobacteria and a persistent green dust algae on the glass! I'm wondering if my lighting is too strong? It's hard to guage because although there are a few macroalgae display keepers I can talk to, I've not seen a single person using the light unit that I am for reference, and I don't own a par meter, nor do Chihiros provide par data for this model. I will turn it down slightly and see if it makes any difference.
Admittedly, I haven't been doing the maintenance on the filter that I should have been doing which I plan to do as soon as I'm out of covid isolation. I had a copepod population explosion last week and now I can't see any? I'm wondering if they got sucked into the filter or just find the conditions unfavourable? Who knows... Not I. Lol.
I added a Nassarius snail which already showed off it's zombie-like skills and is quite interesting to watch. I've also noticed the trochus snails have started eating some of the algae all of a sudden after weeks of ignoring it. I went to over 5 shops looking for cerith or astrea snails to fight the good fight, with no luck. So I ended up having to order online - they'll be arriving next week.
My Red Ogo has exploded in size (maybe 4-5x the amount I originally received) so I had planned to split it up and place it in other areas of the tank with some new delivery of Caulerpa Prolifera. Jussssst before I got round to that, one of the trochus snails completely bulldozed the ogo, sending it flying everywhere. I've just left everything floating until I'm out of isolation because honestly I can't.
Also side note; a few better known reefers and I are doing an experiment. We're trying to acclimate a specific species of hairgrass to saltwater since they can be found in coastal waters and there are journals stating so. If it works then amazing! If not, it was for science!
Happy Reefing!
The diatoms went into overdrive and then have now died down. They're present on some of the surfaces but it's now predominantly cyanobacteria and a persistent green dust algae on the glass! I'm wondering if my lighting is too strong? It's hard to guage because although there are a few macroalgae display keepers I can talk to, I've not seen a single person using the light unit that I am for reference, and I don't own a par meter, nor do Chihiros provide par data for this model. I will turn it down slightly and see if it makes any difference.
Admittedly, I haven't been doing the maintenance on the filter that I should have been doing which I plan to do as soon as I'm out of covid isolation. I had a copepod population explosion last week and now I can't see any? I'm wondering if they got sucked into the filter or just find the conditions unfavourable? Who knows... Not I. Lol.
I added a Nassarius snail which already showed off it's zombie-like skills and is quite interesting to watch. I've also noticed the trochus snails have started eating some of the algae all of a sudden after weeks of ignoring it. I went to over 5 shops looking for cerith or astrea snails to fight the good fight, with no luck. So I ended up having to order online - they'll be arriving next week.
My Red Ogo has exploded in size (maybe 4-5x the amount I originally received) so I had planned to split it up and place it in other areas of the tank with some new delivery of Caulerpa Prolifera. Jussssst before I got round to that, one of the trochus snails completely bulldozed the ogo, sending it flying everywhere. I've just left everything floating until I'm out of isolation because honestly I can't.
Also side note; a few better known reefers and I are doing an experiment. We're trying to acclimate a specific species of hairgrass to saltwater since they can be found in coastal waters and there are journals stating so. If it works then amazing! If not, it was for science!
Happy Reefing!
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
The last 2 weeks for this tank has been quite significant and I believe it's moving in the right direction!
Get a bucket and a mop
Once my isolation was over I was determined to get a hold on this tank and bring it back. I went nuclear and dosed some Ultralife Red Slime Remover for the cyanobacteria, cleaned down the glass and hoovered away some diatoms and detritus and boosted the copepod population.
I also made some adjustments to the tank to help change the environment slightly, making it a little bit more inhospitable to nuisance algae. Firstly, I switched the Oase plastic inlets over to a mini glass lily pipe set with skimmer. It looks really nice in the tank, so minimal and not distracting at all! I had originally planned to use Aquario acrylic pipes but after speaking with Dennis Wong he mentioned that he prefers to use skimmers on the inlet because they draw organic waste into the filter rather than circulating it around the tank. I believe some of this organic waste could have been contributing to my problems, so on it went. Doing this also hugely increased the flow and oxygenation in the water which cyanobacteria hates. This made me realise I didn't need to buy/use an additional powerhead either so more money saved and less visual distractions. I also lowered the temperature slightly and cut back on my phytoplankton dosing.
My next war strategy was the addition of 3 Astrea snails which has made a significant difference. They chow through algae like nobody's business! I've witnessed them sucking on individual grains of aragonite sand and making it sparkly - pretty impressive!
Before the clean:
Immediately after:
New Additions
After the big clean, things were settling down and a quick water test informed me that the cycle was complete. So I thought now would be a good time to add some fish!
The priority was getting hold of a Naked Clownfish, which I did find pretty quickly. Unfortunately on the day of delivery it arrived dead. I have obviously seen many fish die over the years in my tank, but something about receiving a corpse was quite upsetting. I remember feeling a bit down for the rest of the day and slightly disgruntled/guilty at the whole situation. That was the first time I've ordered fish online but I couldn't let it dishearten me, it's not in my nature.
I found another one for sale from Abyss Aquatics who shipped it to me. I have to say the fish was in perfect condition and the service was top notch. Would highly recommend them to anyone in the UK. They even put some sweets in the box, which seems trivial but when you're doing fishy business all day that quick sugar hit is very well received.
The fish is absolutely stunning and so healthy. My friend Paul suggested I call it Marmalade because of its vivid orange colour. I've decided to take this on, but since I'm fairly sure this will be the female I'm calling her Lady Marmalade.
I wanted to wait and see what the naked clown looked like first (size wise) before purchasing the second fish.
I believe the general consensus is that if they can fight a lot if you get two unpaired clowns that are too similar in size or already both females as they fight for dominance, sometimes to the death. Therefore, my plan of action was to find a significantly smaller Clownfish in person that was likely to be male still and would minimise any aggression.
Well...it seems to have worked perfectly! Yesterday I went down to Wildwoods Enfield and to my delight they had lots of small Clownfish. I got a regular patterned Ocellaris (I thought the contrast would be nice) and they have started swimming together as if they already knew each other. The naked Clownfish is much bigger and more hyperactive so I'm fairly sure she will be the female and the new one will remain a male. They look so good together and it's pretty surreal that my hobby-long dream of keeping clowns is finally right before my eyes. I will post a video once I work out how!
I also added more macroalgae which was partially for help against the nuisance algae but also the fill out the gaps and stop the tank looking so measly. In went some extra Caulerpa prolifera, Gracilaria parvispora (which I didn't need because now I have way too much), Codium fragile and Botryocladia.
The first corals also made an appearance! I added frags of Pulsing Xenia, Green Star Polyps and 'Bush Coral' which I believe is Kenya Tree. Now, I realise I probably put myself in the deep end choosing 3 'invasive' corals but I'll just stay vigilant. One thing I've come to learn is that high-energy planted tanks really puts you in good stead for this kind of setup. We're much more accustomed to blazing fast growth so this in comparison seems like a doddle. But let's see if I eat my words...
Latest FTS
Get a bucket and a mop
Once my isolation was over I was determined to get a hold on this tank and bring it back. I went nuclear and dosed some Ultralife Red Slime Remover for the cyanobacteria, cleaned down the glass and hoovered away some diatoms and detritus and boosted the copepod population.
I also made some adjustments to the tank to help change the environment slightly, making it a little bit more inhospitable to nuisance algae. Firstly, I switched the Oase plastic inlets over to a mini glass lily pipe set with skimmer. It looks really nice in the tank, so minimal and not distracting at all! I had originally planned to use Aquario acrylic pipes but after speaking with Dennis Wong he mentioned that he prefers to use skimmers on the inlet because they draw organic waste into the filter rather than circulating it around the tank. I believe some of this organic waste could have been contributing to my problems, so on it went. Doing this also hugely increased the flow and oxygenation in the water which cyanobacteria hates. This made me realise I didn't need to buy/use an additional powerhead either so more money saved and less visual distractions. I also lowered the temperature slightly and cut back on my phytoplankton dosing.
My next war strategy was the addition of 3 Astrea snails which has made a significant difference. They chow through algae like nobody's business! I've witnessed them sucking on individual grains of aragonite sand and making it sparkly - pretty impressive!
Before the clean:
Immediately after:
New Additions
After the big clean, things were settling down and a quick water test informed me that the cycle was complete. So I thought now would be a good time to add some fish!
The priority was getting hold of a Naked Clownfish, which I did find pretty quickly. Unfortunately on the day of delivery it arrived dead. I have obviously seen many fish die over the years in my tank, but something about receiving a corpse was quite upsetting. I remember feeling a bit down for the rest of the day and slightly disgruntled/guilty at the whole situation. That was the first time I've ordered fish online but I couldn't let it dishearten me, it's not in my nature.
I found another one for sale from Abyss Aquatics who shipped it to me. I have to say the fish was in perfect condition and the service was top notch. Would highly recommend them to anyone in the UK. They even put some sweets in the box, which seems trivial but when you're doing fishy business all day that quick sugar hit is very well received.
The fish is absolutely stunning and so healthy. My friend Paul suggested I call it Marmalade because of its vivid orange colour. I've decided to take this on, but since I'm fairly sure this will be the female I'm calling her Lady Marmalade.
I wanted to wait and see what the naked clown looked like first (size wise) before purchasing the second fish.
I believe the general consensus is that if they can fight a lot if you get two unpaired clowns that are too similar in size or already both females as they fight for dominance, sometimes to the death. Therefore, my plan of action was to find a significantly smaller Clownfish in person that was likely to be male still and would minimise any aggression.
Well...it seems to have worked perfectly! Yesterday I went down to Wildwoods Enfield and to my delight they had lots of small Clownfish. I got a regular patterned Ocellaris (I thought the contrast would be nice) and they have started swimming together as if they already knew each other. The naked Clownfish is much bigger and more hyperactive so I'm fairly sure she will be the female and the new one will remain a male. They look so good together and it's pretty surreal that my hobby-long dream of keeping clowns is finally right before my eyes. I will post a video once I work out how!
I also added more macroalgae which was partially for help against the nuisance algae but also the fill out the gaps and stop the tank looking so measly. In went some extra Caulerpa prolifera, Gracilaria parvispora (which I didn't need because now I have way too much), Codium fragile and Botryocladia.
The first corals also made an appearance! I added frags of Pulsing Xenia, Green Star Polyps and 'Bush Coral' which I believe is Kenya Tree. Now, I realise I probably put myself in the deep end choosing 3 'invasive' corals but I'll just stay vigilant. One thing I've come to learn is that high-energy planted tanks really puts you in good stead for this kind of setup. We're much more accustomed to blazing fast growth so this in comparison seems like a doddle. But let's see if I eat my words...
Latest FTS
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
Thanks!
minorhero
Active Member
Awesome tank! Your pictures are great, plus your skill with freshwater tanks is shining through. I'm jealous of having so many nice aquarium shops within driving distance, over here in the states, aquascaping stores are few and far between.
I also come from a planted freshwater background and am just now starting my first saltwater tank (seagrass instead of macro algae).
Will you be running co2 in this tank? And are you currently dosing fertilizer?
To figure out par on the cheap you have 2 options. 1) you can download a lux meter for your smart phone, take a reading from your light the same distance from substrate, and divide by 80. This will give you a very rough estimate. 2) You can in addition of the lux meter app also download the photone app. It will need to be calibrated using the lux meter app (or an actual lux meter), but otherwise its actually pretty accurate. I mean, not accurate like to the final single digit. But it will get you within 20 or so par.
Excited to see how this tank grows!
I also come from a planted freshwater background and am just now starting my first saltwater tank (seagrass instead of macro algae).
Will you be running co2 in this tank? And are you currently dosing fertilizer?
To figure out par on the cheap you have 2 options. 1) you can download a lux meter for your smart phone, take a reading from your light the same distance from substrate, and divide by 80. This will give you a very rough estimate. 2) You can in addition of the lux meter app also download the photone app. It will need to be calibrated using the lux meter app (or an actual lux meter), but otherwise its actually pretty accurate. I mean, not accurate like to the final single digit. But it will get you within 20 or so par.
Excited to see how this tank grows!
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
Thank you! The freshwater scaping side of things has definitely helped.
I know right. For a relatively small island we do have a good selection, although most of them are clustered in the South East. I'm not sure why.
I'm interested to follow your journal on it if you have one?
I won't be using CO2! CO2 would acidify the water and kill everything. Injecting it doesn't serve any purpose for this kind of setup. In terms of fertiliser, I have Brightwell Chaetogro, Tropica Specialised and some dry salts for the individual nutrients. I don't have a set schedule, I just kind of dose as and when. Especially now that I have fish and will be feeding, I'll be continuing the casual dosing approach unless it otherwise prompts me to.
I have tried the apps you mentioned and got some kind of indication. To be honest everything is growing so I guess that's all I really need to worry about! Thanks for the info though, much appreciated.
minorhero
Active Member
I do have a build journal going, here is a link:
Build Thread - Planted Tank with Seahorses
Hello folks! This is going to be a bit different from most of the saltwater tanks on here and elsewhere because when I say it's a planted tank, I do not mean macro algae. This will be a true planted tank with Manatee Grass (Syringodium filiforme), Shoal Grass (Halodule wrightii), and Red...
www.reef2reef.com
I am using co2 in my tank but dosing a pretty low amount. If you have coral its something you need to worry about more, but I don't have any and I'm not planning to get any so its not as big a deal. There is at least one guy floating around on the forum with a few REALLY nice macro tanks and he is also injecting co2. For macro and seagrass it does in saltwater the same things as in freshwater.
Elsewhere I found a writeup on seagrass that noted if you do not inject co2 they will take carbonate out of the water affecting alkalinity but this goes away with injected co2 soooo /shrug. I am SUPER new to saltwater so I don't really know how things will go long term so its a bit of an adventure. No idea how macro might or might not affect alkalinity.
Sounds like your tank is rolling along well! Saltwater is so different from freshwater, its fun to explore!
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
Thanks Sean! I seem to have converted a few people for sure haha. I think it's because she's got a simple, plain beauty as opposed to crazy in-your-face patterns and you could imagine such a fish existing in the wild. She almost reminds me of an orange version of a Yellow Clown Goby.
Will definitely follow your thread.I do have a build journal going, here is a link:
Build Thread - Planted Tank with Seahorses
Hello folks! This is going to be a bit different from most of the saltwater tanks on here and elsewhere because when I say it's a planted tank, I do not mean macro algae. This will be a true planted tank with Manatee Grass (Syringodium filiforme), Shoal Grass (Halodule wrightii), and Red...
I am using co2 in my tank but dosing a pretty low amount. If you have coral its something you need to worry about more, but I don't have any and I'm not planning to get any so its not as big a deal. There is at least one guy floating around on the forum with a few REALLY nice macro tanks and he is also injecting co2. For macro and seagrass it does in saltwater the same things as in freshwater.
Elsewhere I found a writeup on seagrass that noted if you do not inject co2 they will take carbonate out of the water affecting alkalinity but this goes away with injected co2 soooo /shrug. I am SUPER new to saltwater so I don't really know how things will go long term so its a bit of an adventure. No idea how macro might or might not affect alkalinity.
Sounds like your tank is rolling along well! Saltwater is so different from freshwater, its fun to explore!
That's super interesting about the CO2! I've not heard anyone doing it before but I'm BIG on pushing boundaries and going abstract as you might be able to tell. I'm intrigued!
OP
OP
courtneykeeps
Community Member
When it burns, it burns.
So I realised a lot has happened since my last update! I'll try and summarise quickly before giving you the latest.
- I had a huge, ugly hair algae outbreak that I couldn't wrangle.
- Both my lovely Clownfish died (I think they caught internal parasites and I was caught with my trousers down).
- My tank had been running fallow for the months since.
- The macroalgae has grown significantly, and I've also acquired more species as well as some more soft corals!
I guess they were right.
I was told many times that nothing good in marine happens quickly, and it's true!
I had a long, ugly battle with hair algae in this tank that I managed to resolve by lowering my lights from 100% (yes I know, I should know better ) to just 30%. I also started more regularly and accurately dosing phytoplankton and Tropica Specialised. Subsequently, the hair algae began weakening and what was once quite hard to get off, eventually started falling off quite easily. Now I'm happy to report there is ZERO visible nuisance algae. Even some of the more intricate species like blue ochtodes and red ogo that were smothered, (and I thought were toast) have recovered. It seems it's not exactly like plants in the sense that macroalgae can completely recover from an algae outbreak and the part that has been affected isn't down and out. Now every single blade, node and frilly bit is completely clean.
One thing lowering the light has down is heavily slowed the growth of the macroalgae. I'm not mad at that, in fact it was quite useful because I could focus on getting the tank stable as opposed to trimming, and it also gave me time to focus on other projects. Now we're in a good place, I'm very very slowly increasing the light (currently on 40%) to see how high I can go without inducing a microalgae outbreak. After all, I do want it to grow somewhat!
Urban Expansion
After fixing my phytoplankton dosing (10ml every other day) the pod population has exploded! There's also now a much greater variety of creatures going in and out of the holes in the rock, burying in the substrate and riding on the macroalgae. I've seen some creatures that I've never seen before, and I can feel the tank is maturing and becoming a rich ecosystem. There's even macroalgae growing, pods running around and mini fan worms popping in and out of the shells on the Trochus snails! They're like mini moving cities.
I've switched from the mini glass lily pipes to some Aquario acrylic pipes because the hose was leaking at the point where the adapter was. Although I liked the idea of organic waste being sucked into the filter, the acrylic looks much more clean, the flow is stronger because it's just one piece of hose and I no longer have to worry about small creatures being sucked into it. I've also FINALLY installed double taps. I always don't install them initially thinking it will be fine and then instantly regret it. They're just so... bulky.
Uncouth
A few days ago I managed to capture video footage of a brittle star spawning event. Normally you hardly see them, just their tentacles poking out of macroalgae. But this day, one of them decided to venture out and do a full on tank tour, whilst releasing this milky white fluid everywhere. I've linked the video so you can see!
www.instagram.com
A perfect impulse
Lastly, after the mini horror show that was my Clownfish pair, I decided it was ok to add some new inhabitants. Well, I only added one - A little clown goby who now goes by the name of Yellowman (zunguzunguguguzunguzeng).
So I realised a lot has happened since my last update! I'll try and summarise quickly before giving you the latest.
- I had a huge, ugly hair algae outbreak that I couldn't wrangle.
- Both my lovely Clownfish died (I think they caught internal parasites and I was caught with my trousers down).
- My tank had been running fallow for the months since.
- The macroalgae has grown significantly, and I've also acquired more species as well as some more soft corals!
I guess they were right.
I was told many times that nothing good in marine happens quickly, and it's true!
I had a long, ugly battle with hair algae in this tank that I managed to resolve by lowering my lights from 100% (yes I know, I should know better ) to just 30%. I also started more regularly and accurately dosing phytoplankton and Tropica Specialised. Subsequently, the hair algae began weakening and what was once quite hard to get off, eventually started falling off quite easily. Now I'm happy to report there is ZERO visible nuisance algae. Even some of the more intricate species like blue ochtodes and red ogo that were smothered, (and I thought were toast) have recovered. It seems it's not exactly like plants in the sense that macroalgae can completely recover from an algae outbreak and the part that has been affected isn't down and out. Now every single blade, node and frilly bit is completely clean.
One thing lowering the light has down is heavily slowed the growth of the macroalgae. I'm not mad at that, in fact it was quite useful because I could focus on getting the tank stable as opposed to trimming, and it also gave me time to focus on other projects. Now we're in a good place, I'm very very slowly increasing the light (currently on 40%) to see how high I can go without inducing a microalgae outbreak. After all, I do want it to grow somewhat!
Urban Expansion
After fixing my phytoplankton dosing (10ml every other day) the pod population has exploded! There's also now a much greater variety of creatures going in and out of the holes in the rock, burying in the substrate and riding on the macroalgae. I've seen some creatures that I've never seen before, and I can feel the tank is maturing and becoming a rich ecosystem. There's even macroalgae growing, pods running around and mini fan worms popping in and out of the shells on the Trochus snails! They're like mini moving cities.
I've switched from the mini glass lily pipes to some Aquario acrylic pipes because the hose was leaking at the point where the adapter was. Although I liked the idea of organic waste being sucked into the filter, the acrylic looks much more clean, the flow is stronger because it's just one piece of hose and I no longer have to worry about small creatures being sucked into it. I've also FINALLY installed double taps. I always don't install them initially thinking it will be fine and then instantly regret it. They're just so... bulky.
Uncouth
A few days ago I managed to capture video footage of a brittle star spawning event. Normally you hardly see them, just their tentacles poking out of macroalgae. But this day, one of them decided to venture out and do a full on tank tour, whilst releasing this milky white fluid everywhere. I've linked the video so you can see!
Courtney ♂️ on Instagram: "If you look closely at the end of this video, you can see this brittle star releasing fluid as part of a spawning event! Normally they perpetually hide, whilst keeping the more intricate macroalgae spic and span! #reefaq
171 likes, 23 comments - courtneykeeps on July 10, 2022: "If you look closely at the end of this video, you can see this brittle star releasing fluid as part of a spawning event! Normally they pe...".
www.instagram.com
A perfect impulse
Lastly, after the mini horror show that was my Clownfish pair, I decided it was ok to add some new inhabitants. Well, I only added one - A little clown goby who now goes by the name of Yellowman (zunguzunguguguzunguzeng).
RosehipScapes
New Member
Beautiful!!When it burns, it burns.
So I realised a lot has happened since my last update! I'll try and summarise quickly before giving you the latest.
- I had a huge, ugly hair algae outbreak that I couldn't wrangle.
- Both my lovely Clownfish died (I think they caught internal parasites and I was caught with my trousers down).
- My tank had been running fallow for the months since.
- The macroalgae has grown significantly, and I've also acquired more species as well as some more soft corals!
I guess they were right.
I was told many times that nothing good in marine happens quickly, and it's true!
I had a long, ugly battle with hair algae in this tank that I managed to resolve by lowering my lights from 100% (yes I know, I should know better ) to just 30%. I also started more regularly and accurately dosing phytoplankton and Tropica Specialised. Subsequently, the hair algae began weakening and what was once quite hard to get off, eventually started falling off quite easily. Now I'm happy to report there is ZERO visible nuisance algae. Even some of the more intricate species like blue ochtodes and red ogo that were smothered, (and I thought were toast) have recovered. It seems it's not exactly like plants in the sense that macroalgae can completely recover from an algae outbreak and the part that has been affected isn't down and out. Now every single blade, node and frilly bit is completely clean.
One thing lowering the light has down is heavily slowed the growth of the macroalgae. I'm not mad at that, in fact it was quite useful because I could focus on getting the tank stable as opposed to trimming, and it also gave me time to focus on other projects. Now we're in a good place, I'm very very slowly increasing the light (currently on 40%) to see how high I can go without inducing a microalgae outbreak. After all, I do want it to grow somewhat!
Urban Expansion
After fixing my phytoplankton dosing (10ml every other day) the pod population has exploded! There's also now a much greater variety of creatures going in and out of the holes in the rock, burying in the substrate and riding on the macroalgae. I've seen some creatures that I've never seen before, and I can feel the tank is maturing and becoming a rich ecosystem. There's even macroalgae growing, pods running around and mini fan worms popping in and out of the shells on the Trochus snails! They're like mini moving cities.
I've switched from the mini glass lily pipes to some Aquario acrylic pipes because the hose was leaking at the point where the adapter was. Although I liked the idea of organic waste being sucked into the filter, the acrylic looks much more clean, the flow is stronger because it's just one piece of hose and I no longer have to worry about small creatures being sucked into it. I've also FINALLY installed double taps. I always don't install them initially thinking it will be fine and then instantly regret it. They're just so... bulky.
Uncouth
A few days ago I managed to capture video footage of a brittle star spawning event. Normally you hardly see them, just their tentacles poking out of macroalgae. But this day, one of them decided to venture out and do a full on tank tour, whilst releasing this milky white fluid everywhere. I've linked the video so you can see!
Courtney ♂️ on Instagram: "If you look closely at the end of this video, you can see this brittle star releasing fluid as part of a spawning event! Normally they perpetually hide, whilst keeping the more intricate macroalgae spic and span! #reefaq
171 likes, 23 comments - courtneykeeps on July 10, 2022: "If you look closely at the end of this video, you can see this brittle star releasing fluid as part of a spawning event! Normally they pe...".
A perfect impulse
Lastly, after the mini horror show that was my Clownfish pair, I decided it was ok to add some new inhabitants. Well, I only added one - A little clown goby who now goes by the name of Yellowman (zunguzunguguguzunguzeng).
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courtneykeeps
Community Member
Not yet! I did consider making this tank an edible saltwater scape but as it is my first, there's too many things I wanted to try and didn't want to be limited. Also everything in the ocean apparently wants to kill us so not sure how I feel ingesting it in these conditions.
Never say never...
I did some looking earlier and think I remember ogo and at least one other being quite eatable and tasty. Your tank your call though.
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