TheWB’s IM Lagoon 50

[TheWB]

I see the acans now, they look nice and fat. Yea dude I hate algae it’s such a pain. I have a lawnmower blenny but don’t really feel he earns his keep. There really aren’t too many good herbivores for smaller tanks which is a shame. You could get a lawnmower or tail spot blenny. You know your tank is probably big enough to get a small tomini tang. At the very least you could have him for awhile till your algae problem settles down as the tank matures.

The owner of one of the LFS in my area suggested a Tomini Tang for my tank even though it’s a little small for one in my (and a lot of other people’s opinion), but, he’s got one in a small red sea setup and it’s been in there for many years. It seems happy and doesn’t look out of place. He runs a very successful shop and I do trust him. I think I’m going to get a small one and see how it goes. I can always take it back to that store later on if need be. If I get a small one I should be able to keep it for at least a year.

 

[TheWB]

Well the algae is just out of control now so I started dosing Vibrant on Wednesday. Manually removed as much of it as I could during today’s water change but that hardly made a dent. After watching BRS’s video on Vibrant usage I think it will do the trick. Only 8 more weeks of dosing to go. I was really hoping to just let this outbreak burn out on its own but it’s pretty bad so I broke down and went the additive route. A herbivore wasn‘t going to get this job done on it’s own but I will be looking for an Algae consuming fish or two to keep things in check once the Vibrant does it’s job.

 

[W Haymaker]

That sump photo is crazy! I didn't see that one before. Hopefully the Vibrant does what you need overall. Looking forward to see how it performs.

Also, I remembered you bought that vectra pump which I don't think I have seen mentioned on anyone's lagoon 50 build before. I liked that idea. I ordered one off here for my empty 50 for when i get to that tank this winter. Glad you tried it first!

 

[TheWB]

That sump photo is crazy! I didn't see that one before. Hopefully the Vibrant does what you need overall. Looking forward to see how it performs.

Also, I remembered you bought that vectra pump which I don't think I have seen mentioned on anyone's lagoon 50 build before. I liked that idea. I ordered one off here for my empty 50 for when i get to that tank this winter. Glad you tried it first!

Thanks, it was quite the build up of detritus back there. I actually don’t have a vectra although I believe the S will fit in my tank. The S wasn’t available when I bought my pump so I went with the CurrentUSA eflux 1090 gal model. At the time it was the only dc return pump that would fit. Now there are lots of choices. If I’d known the vectra s was coming out I could have waited. I also didn’t know at that time that I would be getting a Neptune Apex 2016 which doesn’t control the eflux pumps. The current USA pump and wave makers have been good though. I don’t have any complaints. Besides, now I have eventual upgrading to look forward to

 

[TheWB]

CurrentUSA gets big props today. I’ve been thinking about getting the Bluetooth Controller to run my return and wave pumps. I don’t really need it but it would be nice to use their app and adjust the pumps from my phone or iPad. However, my return pump didn’t have the correct hub so it wasn’t going to work. I saw some instructions on how to get the Bluetooth compatible hub on Marine Depots site by filing a warranty claim. Now it’s been about 2 years since I bought these pumps and I never registered the warranty on any of them. I sent them a warranty claim anyway and explained the situation. They responded with a request for the serial number from the hub which I gave them. They responded again that a new Bluetooth capable hub was on its way. The whole thing happened in less than 48 hours. This is how you keep your customers. They didn’t have to do anything for me, I was well out of warranty and nothing was broken. They just took care of it for me. Excellent customer service CurrentUSA.

 

[intricate_reefer]

CurrentUSA gets big props today. I’ve been thinking about getting the Bluetooth Controller to run my return and wave pumps. I don’t really need it but it would be nice to use their app and adjust the pumps from my phone or iPad. However, my return pump didn’t have the correct hub so it wasn’t going to work. I saw some instructions on how to get the Bluetooth compatible hub on Marine Depots site by filing a warranty claim. Now it’s been about 2 years since I bought these pumps and I never registered the warranty on any of them. I sent them a warranty claim anyway and explained the situation. They responded with a request for the serial number from the hub which I gave them. They responded again that a new Bluetooth capable hub was on its way. The whole thing happened in less than 48 hours. This is how you keep your customers. They didn’t have to do anything for me, I was well out of warranty and nothing was broken. They just took care of it for me. Excellent customer service CurrentUSA.

That’s great man, really makes all the difference when companies go above and beyond. I just had a problem with a wavemaker I bought from saltwateraquarium.com. I sent them a short email and they apologized and sent me a shipping label right away. I had issues two other times, once a frag rack came broken and then a bucket of salt that was busted up and leaking. They had me send back the rack and replaced it but let me keep the salt and sent a new one. I used to shop with them over BRS because they used to not charge tax. Recently they started charging but I've stayed because of the good service. Also they have no minimum amount for free shipping. How do you like you return pump and wave makers? What models are they?

 

[TheWB]

That’s great man, really makes all the difference when companies go above and beyond. I just had a problem with a wavemaker I bought from saltwateraquarium.com. I sent them a short email and they apologized and sent me a shipping label right away. I had issues two other times, once a frag rack came broken and then a bucket of salt that was busted up and leaking. They had me send back the rack and replaced it but let me keep the salt and sent a new one. I used to shop with them over BRS because they used to not charge tax. Recently they started charging but I've stayed because of the good service. Also they have no minimum amount for free shipping. How do you like you return pump and wave makers? What models are they?

I like the pumps just fine. They do what I need them to do and so far no issues with break downs. I’m not keeping any sps so I don’t need a huge amount of flow. I have the eFlux 6009 dc return pump. It’s rated for up to 1050 gph but I run it on its lowest setting to get the most dwell time in the filter chambers for skimming and the small Fuge area. I don’t know if that’s actually the best way to do it since the filtration chambers are so small but that’s what I’m doing. I also have two of the eFlux 6005 wave pumps which are also rated for 1050 gph. They can get the tank churning pretty good when you crank them up to full power. At the time I bought the return pump it was the only dc pump I could find that would fit in the back chamber of the lagoon 50. I didn’t really have a choice if I wanted a dc pump. Now there are a bunch of choices that will fit. They are on the less expensive side of the price scale and so far they’ve worked flawlessly. No complaints, I’d get them again.

 

[intricate_reefer]

Nice glad you like them. I just got a KPS wave maker and it’s actually pretty nice. Has a ton of controllability and ability to make a schedule in half hour increments which is pretty neat. Only thing is it really isn’t that strong and has a narrow flow pattern. They say 1000gph but doesn’t feel like it. That’s a good point about slowing down the return, I wonder if it helps. Maybe I should slow mine down. How are you corals doing? You get any new fish or corals?

 

[TheWB]

My corals are the same. The zoas don’t like it that I turned the lights down about a month ago so there’s been some receding. The favia still looks the same and I just moved it to where the Acan was to see if that helps it out at all. The Acan looks great but still hasn’t sprouted any new growth. I’m not too worried about it as these were just test corals anyway. Kinda wish I didn’t have them now that I’m having this super ugly algae bloom. Funny you should ask about new fish because today is new fish day. Just picked up a small Tomini Tang from an LFS about an hour away in Bellevue. I just got home and it’s temp acclimating in the tank now. I will be starting a drip acclimation in a few minutes and then it’s into the tank he goes. This LFS does a two week observation period in hyposalinity so not quite QT but better than a lot of places will do. All of my fish have been purchased there and so far, so good. No losses as of yet. I don’t have room for a proper qt in the house and it’s too cold in the garage. I’ll post some pics later once it’s in there if it’s not hiding all night.

 

[intricate_reefer]

My corals are the same. The zoas don’t like it that I turned the lights down about a month ago so there’s been some receding. The favia still looks the same and I just moved it to where the Acan was to see if that helps it out at all. The Acan looks great but still hasn’t sprouted any new growth. I’m not too worried about it as these were just test corals anyway. Kinda wish I didn’t have them now that I’m having this super ugly algae bloom. Funny you should ask about new fish because today is new fish day. Just picked up a small Tomini Tang from an LFS about an hour away in Bellevue. I just got home and it’s temp acclimating in the tank now. I will be starting a drip acclimation in a few minutes and then it’s into the tank he goes. This LFS does a two week observation period in hyposalinity so not quite QT but better than a lot of places will do. All of my fish have been purchased there and so far, so good. No losses as of yet. I don’t have room for a proper qt in the house and it’s too cold in the garage. I’ll post some pics later once it’s in there if it’s not hiding all night.

That's awesome, wish my tank was bigger so I could get a small tang. You gotta get some pictures once he gets acclimated. I don't have room for a quarantine either and have got lucky as well. Hopefully the luck continues with the new tank.

 

[TheWB]

That's awesome, wish my tank was bigger so I could get a small tang. You gotta get some pictures once he gets acclimated. I don't have room for a quarantine either and have got lucky as well. Hopefully the luck continues with the new tank.

Ok, here’s a couple of pics from this morning prior to the weekly water change.

As you can plainly see my algae production facility is operating at full capacity, creating the need for some fish that can help manage the situation. It’s a target rich environment if you think algae is tasty. Hence.....

...the addition of a Tomini Tang to get to work on the problem. It’s pretty small and the pics don’t do it’s coloration justice, it’s pretty nice looking, at least for a Tomini, they definitely aren’t the best looking of the Tangs. It’s already displaced the Orangeback Wrasse from its cave so I’ll be doing an addition to the scape with rubble and a loose piece of Stax rock or two to create a new cave in the corner. It’s a bummer getting evicted

 

[intricate_reefer]

Ok, here’s a couple of pics from this morning prior to the weekly water change.

As you can plainly see my algae production facility is operating at full capacity, creating the need for some fish that can help manage the situation. It’s a target rich environment if you think algae is tasty. Hence.....

...the addition of a Tomini Tang to get to work on the problem. It’s pretty small and the pics don’t do it’s coloration justice, it’s pretty nice looking, at least for a Tomini, they definitely aren’t the best looking of the Tangs. It’s already displaced the Orangeback Wrasse from its cave so I’ll be doing an addition to the scape with rubble and a loose piece of Stax rock or two to create a new cave in the corner. It’s a bummer getting evicted

I don’t think I remember seeing the top down of your tank. Really like the layout and spacing of the rocks. That’s a real shame about the algae. Have you considered trying vibrant? Since you don’t have much coral, I’d give it a shot. Yea that tang is sweet and pretty small, I think he will do well.

 

[TheWB]

I don’t think I remember seeing the top down of your tank. Really like the layout and spacing of the rocks. That’s a real shame about the algae. Have you considered trying vibrant? Since you don’t have much coral, I’d give it a shot. Yea that tang is sweet and pretty small, I think he will do well.

Thanks, that’s good to hear, appreciate the compliment. I don’t have too many top down shots because I always forget when I have the pumps off. The algae does suck but it wasn’t totally unexpected with my feeding habits. I was aware but it is a little out of control. I thought the clean up crew would do a better job, especially the hermits with the hair algae. I am actually already using Vibrant, I’ve dosed it twice so far. I don’t really expect to see much of a change for another 3 weeks or so. The Tang is right up front with the rest of the crew swimming around. No aggression yet that I’ve seen. I was only worried about the wrasse but they have been right next to each other multiple times now and they’re pretty much ignoring each other. So far so good.

 

[TheWB]

Today the Tomini Tang has decided to get busy on some algae. It wasn’t eating anything regularly although it did show interest in pc mysis flakes once, it ate a bunch of that Monday night but none since. It also ate a nori strip I let float around the tank after not touching it once while it was in the clip On Wednesday. But overall it was mostly ignoring food until today. I put another small piece of nori in this afternoon and eventually it started eating it. Since then it’s been busy picking at algae on the back wall and off of the rocks nonstop. Something seems to have clicked and now he’s just busy. I’ve got so much algae it’s not actually going to make a dent in it anytime soon but any help at all is appreciated right now.

 

[Pauliex77x]

I read all 9 pages of this thread between last night and today and my god do i need to chill out with worrying about a diatom bloom and nitrates being high during a cycle.

I know exactly how you feel about the back chambers of the IM Fusion line of tanks. I got mine used and it was full of sand and detritus from the previous owner dumping the remnants of his reef out when he emptied it. It was a pain to clean before the setup. Its also probably a reason why my nitrates are high and i never really thought if it.

Love your scape and livestock. If i didnt have my rock saved from 15+ years ago i would have gone with a similar aquascape.

Im following along for the ride. Hope that algae problem doesnt discourage you like it did for me years ago.

 

[TheWB]

I read all 9 pages of this thread between last night and today and my god do i need to chill out with worrying about a diatom bloom and nitrates being high during a cycle.

I know exactly how you feel about the back chambers of the IM Fusion line of tanks. I got mine used and it was full of sand and detritus from the previous owner dumping the remnants of his reef out when he emptied it. It was a pain to clean before the setup. Its also probably a reason why my nitrates are high and i never really thought if it.

Love your scape and livestock. If i didnt have my rock saved from 15+ years ago i would have gone with a similar aquascape.

Im following along for the ride. Hope that algae problem doesnt discourage you like it did for me years ago.

Thanks, I appreciate the kind words and encouragement. Glad to have you along. I’m following yours as well. I was hoping to have helped you out at least a little bit, no need to worry too much. I’m not discouraged by the algae problem at all, it’s just something to overcome, mostly by just cleaning, changing water, adding beneficial inhabitants and being patient. I’m lucky it’s not something much more difficult to get rid of, it’s just (a lot) of brown or red hair algae. I have good system for cleaning out the back chambers. I’ve been less effective at keeping them clean in the first place but I’m trying something new with my mechanical filtration that hopefully helps. I bought a 25 yard roll of 50 micron filter fleece for a roller mat filter. I’m cutting it up into 4-5” long strips and using it in each overflow. It takes a couple of pieces in each one to cover the opening fully. It seems to be doing a better job of trapping detritus than the felt pads were doing. It’s also cheaper and easier to to change out than the felt is. We’ll see how it goes.

 

[Pauliex77x]

Ive actually thought about getting those intake fish guards that IM makes and trying to fit some filter floss into that. There is a guy on youtube that used something similar but without the floss to raise the water level in his display.

You've helped me no doubt and i appreciate it. Not only with replies to my thread, but also with your own shared posts. Reading here about things that could happen to me gives me things to anticipate. Especially when it comes to the equipment and tank itself.

So do you use the in-tank fuge basket? Or do you use the media basket as a fuge?

 

[TheWB]

Ive actually thought about getting those intake fish guards that IM makes and trying to fit some filter floss into that. There is a guy on youtube that used something similar but without the floss to raise the water level in his display.

You've helped me no doubt and i appreciate it. Not only with replies to my thread, but also with your own shared posts. Reading here about things that could happen to me gives me things to anticipate. Especially when it comes to the equipment and tank itself.

So do you use the in-tank fuge basket? Or do you use the media basket as a fuge?

I’m glad I could help, that makes one person I’ve helped so far

I have the in tank fishguards but I’m not using them. The clips to hold them on break easily. I do like the idea of getting some mechanical filtration to fit inside though. I’ll have to think about how to do it.

I wouldn’t recommend modding to raise the water level if you’re planning to have a turbulent surface. Mine isn’t raised at all but with a wave maker set to surge mode near the surface I’m getting spray on my screen top and it’s leaving salt behind. Just had to clean it off this morning.

I have both an intank caddy and filter floss holder. The caddy has two marine pure blocks on the bottom and ulva growing in the middle. I have a combination of filter pads on the top level. I’m using the IM Chaetomax to light the Ulva. I have the IM 11w uv sterilizer in the other overflow area where the floss holder would normally go. As an experiment I took the floss holder and hung it on the filtration wall so that it rests inside the tank between the overflow and one of the returns. I put just a single piece of Ulva in the to see if it would grow being lit by my Radion. It seems to be working which led to another idea. I’m thinking about making a small basket out of black light diffuser and suspending it along the filtration wall between the returns and putting in 2 or 3 kinds of macro algae there. That would greatly increase my ability to export N and P using macro compared to what can fit in the back chambers.
As long as it will grow under the setting I’m running on the Radion I think it will work. Gotta get creative when you don’t have sump space.

 

[TheWB]

Weekly water change completed this morning. The Vibrant seems to be kicking in pretty well. There’s still a lot of algae but it’s stopped growing and seems to be on the decline. I have not disturbed it too much but soon I’ll be brushing off as much as I can into the water column and exporting it with a modified canister filter I’ve been working on. I’m waiting for a reducer in the mail to marry up the last component.

First 2020 FTS and updated pics of the coral.

 

[intricate_reefer]

Tank looks good, doesn’t seem like two much algae and the corals look great, seems like the favia recovered. I’m sure you will get it sorted out soon. How is the tang doing, don’t see him in there?

Also a question about your lighting. You run Radions right? XR30 it XR15? Wondering what setting and intensity you are running?