The kitchen tank: 40 g clown breeder

[Pedal Dangit]

thanks for the kind words. I added arrows to highlight some yuma babies. One is brand new just splitting of about size of a dime. the other same size looks like is forming mouth and some color.

 

[mattzang]

nice tank, but i love the guest star.. the beer! love me some IPA

 

[mmw64]

Yes. I hope to have time to drill the 40G for the overflow this weekend an paint the back of it. I managed to find time here and there this week to to put the sump together. You have to build it over a few days time because there are different panels that must be cured overnight before you go on to the next step. While I'm not proud of my silicone work, I'm not embarrassed either. It's hard not to get silicone where you don't want it at some point. If I could offer any advise to anyone else, it would be to let the unwanted silicon dry and just remove with razor blade. Trying to wipe it off wet will only make it worse and smear it all over the place.

Some specs in case anyone wants to know the chamber spacing I used:

Overall 20L length: 30"

drain section: 3.5"
sock section: 6"
skimmer: 12"
bubble trap: 2"
return: 5.25"

following

 

[Diamond1]

4 month update: (for my one or two followers)

I'm over the whole Ecotech "NOT quiet" drive issue. Don't notice it when turned below 1/2 way now so I guess I will just live with it.

The tank is very LOW maintenance. I clean the skimmer when it starts to fill up 1/3 of the way and look nasty, once every 1-2 weeks. I do a 15 gallon water change when I can, maybe 1-2 times a month. clean the glass every few days or so. I have run carbon twice now. I feed pellets on the auto feeder and then drop in some frozen once every day or so. 2 clowns were added, a springari damsel, and the blenny makes 4 fish total. When I find a nice leather I will buy one. Lately, just adding a few zoas and shroom frags when I see something nice for cheap. Such an easy tank. I decided the plexi top blocked too much light so I made a DIY screen top.

Good observations: tons of brittle stars everywhere. legs coming out from every nook and cranny. tiny little baby snails, worms, pods everywhere. The clowns look so much better after two weeks in my tank. a small bite mark in tail of the female healed right up. they seem very happy. orange yuma has two split off babies

Bad observations: green bubble algae. not going to freak out over it. I hired on a couple of emerald crabs. will see how it goes. Also a little of some other macro algae kinda looks like bryopsis hope not.

and... the MIA BTA were found in my sump. I cant believe they are still (alive?) Apparently they took a trip through my drain and I found the foot of each in my sump. I put them back in the display, and they still have a grasp onto the rocks. It doesn't look good, but maybe they will come back...

Still trying to get good pictures. the clowns swim so fast, its impossible.

Nice update.
Hope the nems make it.

 

[hockeyhead019]

Good to see you're updating, pics are looking good and glad to hear you found the nems!!

 

[Pedal Dangit]

So it has been a while... It is the ultimate low maintenance tank. Add top off water once a week and clean the skimmer. I try to do a 15 gallon water change at once a month. really don't do anything else. I don't test for anything but try and keep the temp and S.G. stable.

Not to say all things have been going well: had a huge outbreak of bubble algae, and I mean huge. I should have taken some pics. I got some green emerald crabs and then lost almost all my zooanthids almost overnight. The only remaining ones were in hard to reach areas for the crabs. Now in the last few weeks I have some bad cyano on the sand. So I added some extra water movement and doubling up on water changes.

Love my clowns. They seem to like these hairy shrooms now. Before the shrooms, they were weird sand-clowns. They dug a huge hole in the sandbed and they would sleep there. They created quite a mess every time they would "fan" the sand with their bodies and whip up huge dust storms.

 

[NY_Caveman]

Those Clownfish are beautiful.

 

[Pedal Dangit]

Those Clownfish are beautiful.

Thanks. They are pets with no names. I think maybe my favorite fish I have ever had. The damsel, the blenny, peppermint shrimp, etc... They ALL hide. The clowns are right up front and fun to watch, thinking that the mushroom corals make a good home. I guess those hairy mushrooms look like anemones. I have had other clowns but these two are my favorites.

things are going well. I'm thinking of adding on a 29G refigium this Fall

 

[NY_Caveman]

Thanks. They are pets with no names. I think maybe my favorite fish I have ever had. The damsel, the blenny, peppermint shrimp, etc... They ALL hide. The clowns are right up front and fun to watch, thinking that the mushroom corals make a good home. I guess those hairy mushrooms look like anemones. I have had other clowns but these two are my favorites.

things are going well. I'm thinking of adding on a 29G refigium this Fall

Cool shots! Technically, mushrooms are anemones.

 

[Pedal Dangit]

Cool shots! Technically, mushrooms are anemones.

are they? I thought it was the opposite. I thought they are often called anemones, although technically they are not? I'm not trying to argue, just curious.

 

[NY_Caveman]

are they? I thought it was the opposite. I thought they are often called anemones, although technically they are not? I'm not trying to argue, just curious.

There is some debate probably. I have always considered them such. They are often named as such, but on a quick search I found some different opinions and nothing too scientific. The fact that they are sticky, sting, split and detach makes it pretty close either way.

Mushroom Anemones | Animal World

The Corallimorph mushroom corals are halfway between anemones and stony corals! Corallimorphs or Mushroom Anemones are similar to sea anemones because they have no calcerous skeleton, but anatomically they more strongly resemble stony corals. Mushroom Corals also lack the long feeding...

animal-world.com

 

[Pedal Dangit]

So it has almost been a year. Thought I would update the full view shot. Refugium is still in the plans... and more fish.

before and after pics

 

[showmebutterfly]

You tank is looking fantastic. Thank you for posting update pic!

 

[Deiblerj]

What are you using for substrate?

 

[Retro Reefer]

Very nice! Thanks for the updated pictures =)

 

[Pedal Dangit]

What are you using for substrate?

I used a couple bags of carib sea fiji pink. it is a few inches deep in the back

 

[Pedal Dangit]

More cell phone pics and video updates.

I'm going to try and get motivated to add some kind of refugium this fall. A few months ago, I had to get a chiller or move the tank. The summer sunlight was causing spikes in to the low 82-84 range that got me worried it could get worse. Found a sale on Active Aqua 1/10 at the time so it just made sense. I took a pic and video with the refugium light I picked up. I am planning on drilling a 29 and placing it on the floor next to the sump. probably hidden inside a stand for my top off tank . I cracked the test tank, the glass is so thin on those cheapo 10 gallons. I barely leveraged the bulkhead...

 

[Pedal Dangit]

refugium light pic and video of star polyp growth. almost a year of growth from three small frags. anyone local want some star polyps?

OK update better video. a little more in focus. The morning Sun really hits the left side for a few hours

 

[Pedal Dangit]

So I think I may be the only one with a Somatic 90. Seems a lot of 60s were sold, but I have yet to find someone using a 90. I can't say I'm super impressed. It is solid. It is kinda noisy. (I think I'm getting used to the noise) but my main complaint is it just doesn't produce much. If I close it up a little more, I get collection cup floods. So is it just too big for the tank, am I not feeding enough, or maybe I just have not found that perfect adjustment yet? cup pic is at about 2-3 days and it never really fills up with dark liquid. Just gets that muddy film all around the top of the top after about a week

I must have 100s of brittle stars. Is that bad? can you have too many?

 

[Pedal Dangit]

Well, that was exciting! Guess I'm off to Petco and see if they still have any $1 a gallon tanks. I swear I did the test correctly. The glasses are still supposed to turn black when you turn them, right? POW! it kinda made me jump it was almost all the way through. I was going to use this used 29 gallon tank for the refugium. maybe a 20 tall instead...