Tank birthday, 47+ years

Tristren · Jan 21, 2018

Paul B said:
Zack, nice to hear from you. I get my blackworms from a LFS but I realize many people can't get them and have to order online. The problem with that is that you have to buy a lot of them and you may not be able to keep them alive as they have no sense of humor. I think for you, where you live, whiteworms would be a better choice. They live in soil and reproduce very fast. You buy a small culture of them online and in a few weeks you have thousands. I believe (but I am guessing) that they would be as healthy as blackworms and also carry some really good bacteria, maybe better than blackworms due to their dirt environment. You pay for them once and have them forever. I have the same culture going maybe 8 years now and I use them every few days.

The clams I get in a seafood market of a SM. I buy the biggest clams I can find or I order some. A "chowder clam" can be almost 6" across and last a month or more. Those tiny clams you get are only good for one meal.
Big clams are common here and about 50 cents. I get them live and freeze them but you are quite a ways from the sea so i am not sure.

Brine shrimp eggs I get from Amazon or my local LFS. They are very common and I designed a hatchery and feeder for them that I have been using for many years and I use them every day. If I didn't I couldn't keep mandarins, much less spawn them.

Here is my whiteworm feeder for the mandarin that prevents the larger fish from eating them. Now my large hermit crab learned about the worms so I have to push him to the other end of the tank or he eats the mall. Whiteworms live many hours in saltwater.

Howdy,

So for the clams you feed slices of fresh frozen clams?

What is your daily / weekly feeding schedule? (How much and how often I suppose?)

All packed and ready for the move?

Cheers, Tony

Paul B · Jan 21, 2018

Tony, I try to get at least one kind of food with living bacteria into my fish every day. Either clams, blackworms or whiteworms. They need it to stay immune. I also feed LRS food.
WE have not started to pack yet because we still need to sell this house. :rolleyes:

Zack K · Jan 21, 2018

So after my trek out, I was not able to find any clams near me. I will venture up to Milwaukee tomorrow for live foods and I know I can find some up their.
-Zack, Who’s jelous he doesn’t get $.50 clams

Tristren · Jan 21, 2018

Paul B said:
Tony, I try to get at least one kind of food with living bacteria into my fish every day. Either clams, blackworms or whiteworms. They need it to stay immune. I also feed LRS food.
WE have not started to pack yet because we still need to sell this house. :rolleyes:

That's great.
I fed some live (then frozen) clams. They always have plenty at the grocery store here.
I think I've found a source for blackworms. Whiteworms I'll likely start when I've more time in the summer.

But my issue is on quantity. My system is around 150 gallons, and less than a year old. At this point there's a Foxface, a Blenny, a Firefish and a Filefish. Plus various and sundry other creatures.

I have been overfeeding and the system is overrun by green hair algae. So I've cut back on feeding (was probably close to the equivalent of "2 cubes" of mixed frozen food, including LRS).

No Skimmer yet either, but a healthy refugium has slowed the hair algae in the display now.

So I'm trying to figure out how much to feed now....

Cheers, Tony

Paul B · Jan 21, 2018

You only have a few fish, I would suppliment a few worms with about a one square inch of LRS food.
I have about 20 fish and I only feed about double that.

ramona · Jan 21, 2018

Paul B said:
Zack, nice to hear from you. I get my blackworms from a LFS but I realize many people can't get them and have to order online. The problem with that is that you have to buy a lot of them and you may not be able to keep them alive as they have no sense of humor. I think for you, where you live, whiteworms would be a better choice. They live in soil and reproduce very fast. You buy a small culture of them online and in a few weeks you have thousands. I believe (but I am guessing) that they would be as healthy as blackworms and also carry some really good bacteria, maybe better than blackworms due to their dirt environment. You pay for them once and have them forever. I have the same culture going maybe 8 years now and I use them every few days.

The clams I get in a seafood market of a SM. I buy the biggest clams I can find or I order some. A "chowder clam" can be almost 6" across and last a month or more. Those tiny clams you get are only good for one meal.
Big clams are common here and about 50 cents. I get them live and freeze them but you are quite a ways from the sea so i am not sure.

Brine shrimp eggs I get from Amazon or my local LFS. They are very common and I designed a hatchery and feeder for them that I have been using for many years and I use them every day. If I didn't I couldn't keep mandarins, much less spawn them.

Here is my whiteworm feeder for the mandarin that prevents the larger fish from eating them. Now my large hermit crab learned about the worms so I have to push him to the other end of the tank or he eats the mall. Whiteworms live many hours in saltwater.

That's awesome! So, you just drop the white worms through that blue tube I guess, and the feeder...what size is it that the tang can not fit in?

Paul B · Jan 21, 2018

Actually that is a copperband butterfly. The thing is about 1 1/2".

Paul B · Jan 21, 2018

My airship is coming along.

Zack K · Jan 21, 2018

Looking good!

Turbo's Aquatics · Jan 21, 2018

Paul B said:
My airship is coming along.

Start at ~1:04

Chasmodes · Jan 22, 2018

The airship looks great Paul!

Sea MunnKey · Jan 22, 2018

Paul ... you're one talented person!! Why not auction off/sell your custom handiworks ... they're awesome decorations to begin with. Locally we have an annual "One of a Kind" show here in Toronto and your work would best suit the show and plus most stuffs are offered for sale as well. ;Cyclops

By the way this morning I was reading from our local reef forum and someone had suggested that "scuds" (freshwater amphipods) as being more ideal for feeding saltwater fish? Also it was mentioned that it's better than the live blackworms ... I'm not one to argue or dispute as I'm not an expert in fish husbandry. :confused:

atoll · Jan 22, 2018

Chasmodes said:
The airship looks great Paul!

Na it will never leave the ground never mind fly ;)o_O:rolleyes:

Paul B · Jan 22, 2018

Thanks guys. The "Artworks" are in a gallery in Manhattan and a few of them sold already so I have that covered. They keep asking for me to build more.

SeaMunnKey. go with the worms. Freshwater amphipods are for Sissy fish. Not saltwater fish. They are worried about parasites which i am not.
Atoll, I can't talk now as I am trying to catch that airship, it is flying over my head even as we speak. :cool:

atoll · Jan 22, 2018

Paul B said:
Thanks guys. The "Artworks" are in a gallery in Manhattan and a few of them sold already so I have that covered. They keep asking for me to build more.

SeaMunnKey. go with the worms. Freshwater amphipods are for Sissy fish. Not saltwater fish. They are worried about parasites which i am not.
Atoll, I can't talk now as I am trying to catch that airship, it is flying over my head even as we speak. :cool:

You can bring it down with a baseball bat
:eek: ;)

Sea MunnKey · Jan 23, 2018

Hey Paul ... thanks for the "Worm" advice!! :)

Paul B · Jan 23, 2018

Humblefish · Jan 24, 2018

@Paul B I haven't been keeping up, but what's the plan for moving the tank? I'd seriously come help you if I didn't live 20 hours away. ;) It would be like moving a piece of history.

Brew12 · Jan 24, 2018

Humblefish said:
@Paul B I haven't been keeping up, but what's the plan for moving the tank? I'd seriously come help you if I didn't live 20 hours away. ;) It would be like moving a piece of history.

My understanding is that he has found some old Anthrax storage containers to hold the fish in while he does the move. :D