Tim's 40 Gallon

[mcdonaldtj]

Hi all, After finally getting a handle on the green hair algae problem in my tank I though I would post pictures of my tank here. Here is what I have.
Standard 40 gallon tank using HOB overflow Rio 1100 for return with coralife 18 watt UV inline. (want to change to an Ehiem 1260)
4X 39 Watt T-5 Retrofit powered by Icecap 660. 2 x Icecap 14K midday, 1 Icecap 460NM, 1 x Kz Fiji Purple.
2 Blue Stunner Strips for Dusk to dawn affect. (not enough)
Skimmer SWC 160 Cone (Awesome)
20 Long Sump with 3 sections
Flow is provided by 1 MP40. (This thing is awesome)
Fish
1 small blue tang
1 small yellow tang
1 Diamond Goby
2 Ocellerous clowns
1 cleaner wrasse
1 cleaner shrimp
various hermits and Nass Snails
1 mexican turbo snail
Before people start shouting about the tangs I know that this tank is kind of small for them but try telling your wife that and see what happens hehehe, As they grow I will change them out for small ones again. She won't let me get a bigger tank or I would go that way LOL.
Well now on to the pictures
FTS

SUMP

Pink Birdsnest from Rob This thing is growing like crazy already

Green Birdsnest from Rob

Zoas

Fuzzy Shrooms from Rob along with some green zoa's. There were only 4 shrooms to start with.

 

[mcdonaldtj]

Large frag of blue digita that I picked up from Josh last week. Already coloring up well.

Small Frag of same

Candy Canes with blue zoa's on the stem from Nick

Purple Monicap that I got from Chad that was almost gone when I got it. smaller than a dime Thanks Chad

RBTA that for some reason my clowns wont go near.

Pink Tipped hammer that has grown from 4 heads to 8 in 2 months.

And finally my Scoly that I won at a SDMAS meeting before I left for Afghanistan that Chad was nice enough to keep for me until I got back.

Thanks all for looking I will keep things updated.
V/Tim

 

[SlackTide]

very nice Tim! what were you doing for the HA?

 

[Joost's reef]

do I see apatsia? *cringe*

 

[mcdonaldtj]

hehehe yea I have a few but if I Joe's juice them they multiply I have to get a few Peps .

 

[mcdonaldtj]

very nice Tim! what were you doing for the HA?

I actually put in the UV inline of my return and then added Carbon and in about 3 weeks it is almost gone.

V/Tim

 

[SlackTide]

I actually put in the UV inline of my return and then added Carbon and in about 3 weeks it is almost gone.

V/Tim

hmm, that won't do squat for HA, must of been something else going on lol

 

[RadReef]

hehehe yea I have a few but if I Joe's juice them they multiply I have to get a few Peps .

The tank looks so clean. Is that hair algae in the sump? It might be Bryopsis algae, if you could get a better pic it's easily identified. You might try encasing the aiptasia with reef epoxy, I did that in a previous tank and it worked well. I would also buy some of those peps you mentioned.

 

[FishLipz]

+1 for the epoxy aptasia tomb. Its always worked for me if I find one here or there.

 

[mcdonaldtj]

Thanks for the comments, I will try the epoxy idea, especially where they are at. I dont think that the holes they are in are all the way through the rock. There is some hair algae in the sump along with the chaeto. It doesnt bother me there though hehehe.

V/Tim

 

[mcdonaldtj]

h the one thing that I did though was bring the time that the T5 lights were on down a couple of hours a day when I put the stunner strips in for dusk to dawn less light to feed algae in the tank.

 

[SlackTide]

h the one thing that I did though was bring the time that the T5 lights were on down a couple of hours a day when I put the stunner strips in for dusk to dawn less light to feed algae in the tank.

HA is nutrient and light driven, the reduction lighting makes more sense, running carbon will improve the lighting spectrum by removing the yellow from the water, always wondered what became of the mounds of bacteria the uv kills

 

[RadReef]

When you want to epoxy the aip I would suggest scaring it into it's hole. You can accomplish this by either poking it with your finger or tweezers etc. Large aips reproduce sexually but small and large aips can reproduce asexually, so if there's a tentacle sticking out it can make a new one.

 

[vnreef]

Nice set up

 

[mcdonaldtj]

I just hope that the hole it is in doesnt go through to the other side and it gets away hehehe. I only see 4 o them right now so they really arent bothering me too much except whn I take pictures . I am going to try that tomorrow.

 

[mcdonaldtj]

HA is nutrient and light driven, the reduction lighting makes more sense, running carbon will improve the lighting spectrum by removing the yellow from the water, always wondered what became of the mounds of bacteria the uv kills

The only thing tat I did see with the UV is that I dont have to clean the glass as often. The tank was new and I went skimmerless for while until I got the SWC in the mail (that took a month). I didn't do too many water changes and the rock that I used was in a bucket of water for 8 months that I was in Afghanistan so I think that it had some PO4 in it from die off that happened. I am waiting for the rocks to purple up now Thank you all for the comments .

 

[skinz78]

Looks great! Keep us updated on the Nem removal.

 

[mcdonaldtj]

Looks great! Keep us updated on the Nem removal.

Will do, one of them is in a hole with both sides open so I will have to fill both holes.