Two Tanked too Enjoy It...

rmorris_14 · Jan 24, 2023

MECOMI said:
At the cycles 1.5 month mark the ugly phase is going strong and old man live rock has a new fuzzy head of hair.

I may have let the cycle go for a little to long without adding a cleanup crew as the hair algae phase came on very strong once the ammonia disappeared. And once the nitrite finally disappeared the nitrate jumped all the way to 50ppm. The Microbacter7 dosing continued, a 40% water change was done, the @reefcleaners order was on its way, and everything was still progressing fine.

So much hair algae, on the bright side at least there is finally some movement in this tank!

Hooray ?!?

I ordered a mix of 30 Turbos, nassarius, trochus, and a couple other small snails to start. I also added about 10 scarlet hermits to round out the early cleanup crew. It's pretty interesting how different snails/crabs are in such a big tank, they disappear very quickly and are seen far less often then in the Biocube.

They are also very impressive and made short work of the superficial hair algae barely clinging to the dry rock.

And after about two to three weeks the algae was gone and the ugly phase was a wrap.

I do believe it is time to sit back, relax, and dream about the RSM S-500 first fish...

More fun, more challenges, more mistakes, and more life incoming.

Later days,

B-Kind

It's funny how just looking of pics of your GHA gives me PTDS.
Also....

MECOMI · Jan 24, 2023

rmorris_14 said:
It's funny how just looking of pics of your GHA gives me PTDS.
Also....

Haha silky and smooth.

My wife had the same concerns "...is this going to be another Biocube situation"

MECOMI · Jan 31, 2023

Once i moved on from the dream of a clownfish harem i realized i wanted utilitarian fish. The Biocube is to small too house many constant algae grazers so it is completely left up to the aquarist to put in the work. The closest thing i had was a Tailspot Blenny but after just a bite or two of film algae that was about it for the day.

After watching a video from Tidal Gardens Than Thein about an ugly phase take over of a large SPS show tank my mind was settled. He explains that the difference between their tank and a customers tank, that never saw the hair algae explosion, was an army of tangs. See video below:

Enter the 3" Tomini Tang

aka Secret Sex Lips or SSL for when you're around the kids

She merrily grazes on the rocks, sand, and walls of the tank all day keeping things nice and spiffy. I understood early on that getting a tang as the first fish may or may not have been the best idea. I definitely had some worries about aggression since it was officially her tank. I am still very happy with my choice but there was some more hard lessons on the way.

Sticking on the utility side of things i could not resist when the LFS got in my #2 fish on the checklist two weeks after the first addition.

A Starry Blenny named Doug,

Doug was just one of those fish that is just a joy to watch, they swim weirder then most, have an amazingly striking color profile, graze all day long (more utility, yay), and have some of the best eyebrows in the ocean.

From day one though my SSL did not appreciate a second algae grazer. After several days of chasing, it seemed like things calmed down a bit, but the tang would still give chase every once and a while if Doug was in her way. I continued to monitor their interactions...

Even with the tank in some early flux i wanted to test out my Zoa garden and buy some cheap starter corals. I just purchased a few $10 dollar frags along with a door-buster SPS to see how it would do. The SPS came slightly bleached already, i didn't expect much since it was offered at $5 but i still hoped for more. I did contact the vendor about it and they did offer a future replacement but i just let things lie and watched to see if it improved.

Geez not much to look at yet huh, good news is this is just after the dip, all the polyps opened and have worked out just fine. Gotta start somewhere,

The Red Sea Max S-500 is officially in business. First fish, first coral, and the tank has some very welcome movement. I am having a blast and now all i need is to save a little (a lot) more money cause it is time to increase the bioload

Later days,

B-Kind

Sean Clark · Jan 31, 2023

My Doug was a nightmare and harassed all fish around it. I had to rehome it because it was biting my foxface.

MECOMI · Feb 1, 2023

Sean Clark said:
My Doug was a nightmare and harassed all fish around it. I had to rehome it because it was biting my foxface.

Oh man, it is wild to me the differences fish have across the same genus. Mine was twice the length of the tang and it refused to even fight back. These types of things really keep you on your toes in the hobby!

MECOMI · Feb 6, 2023

The lighting options on the AI Hydra 26HD are dizzying

. You can set modes like lunar, acclimation, the color temp, manual mode, Wifi options, make every color palette under the sun, min/max sliders, ramp up/down, moonlight, an app to control it, and one more password for good measure... All these options and you are supposed to set it and forget it....ok i guess

Phew

, i think i need a minute, let's get back to staring at the tank, why hello Mr. Crabs

SSL the Tang says good day to you and will flirt till you bring food!

No real choices for stock lighting on the Biocube, three modes, on/off timers, and no guessing except for daylight length i suppose. Nice and simple. (Biocube heyday!)

Now after a ton of research on youtube, reef2reef, and Aqua illuminations site i ultimately decided to go with the Saxby schedule. I liked the overall lighting, length, and the idea of various light rest periods for the coral.

This was the starting point,

I quickly started to add more coral as my LFS had fully reopened and coral was pouring in. I grabbed a couple lepto's, a duncan, and chalice coral to go with my starters. The tank was definitely not ready for these corals but i just had to see how they would do.

As pretty as the 24k lepto is, i definitely did not intend for it to become a snack. I found a rouge Halloween hermit picking at this one after just a couple days in the tank. My wife about fell out of her chair when i told her i put the crab in the timeout box (sump) till further notice! The jerk,

The Green Lepto,

Please note some of these pictures that look very white were due to a cell phone filter which i believe was from Polyplab.

I love seeing the life going by in the trench. When i first came up with the idea it was always supposed to add depth and intrigue. Check and Check, i love it when a plan comes together.

"Now Doug, what have i told you about sitting on the old man rock face.....you are too cute up there, come back whenever you like."

"...and let me get a close up. Do not run i am your friend!"

If anybody has ever wondered what Starry Blennies do all day, i think these photos pretty much cover it.

I really do love reef life,

Later days,

B-Kind

MariahP · Feb 6, 2023

I love your thread and your positivity. I’m just about to start my Biocube and I’m so excited!

MECOMI · Feb 6, 2023

MariahP said:
I love your thread and your positivity. I’m just about to start my Biocube and I’m so excited!

Wow thank you very much @MariahP I am happy you enjoyed it! The Biocube has been such a joy to learn and watch grow. You will absolutely love it and good luck with your build. Thanks again for stopping by, much more to come!

Sincerely,

B-Kind

Petcrazyson · Feb 6, 2023

Hey Mecomi nice thread you got here! Favorite fish of yours is the Tomini. Following along

I’m hard to get rid of just so you know

MECOMI · Feb 6, 2023

Petcrazyson said:
Hey Mecomi nice thread you got here! Favorite fish of yours is the Tomini. Following along I’m hard to get rid of just so you know

HA! thanks @Petcrazyson for checking things out and i am happy to have you along for the ride! We are all a little crazy here my friend

. The Tomini tang was the first fish in the RSM S500, and has been an excellent utility fish along with its beauty!

Later days,

B-Kind

Petcrazyson · Feb 6, 2023

MECOMI said:
HA! thanks @Petcrazyson for checking things out and i am happy to have you along for the ride! We are all a little crazy here my friend . The Tomini tang was the first fish in the RSM S500, and has been an excellent utility fish along with its beauty!

Later days,

B-Kind

Nah this isn’t crazy lol, at least not that I know of. Or maybe it is lol and I’m the one that’s crazy. When you hang out with Frank and cru and Stan and the guys then i guess you tend to not know what crazy is as we live it lol. No crazy is the wrong word. ‘FUN’. That’s the word. We’re fun! So I will now enjoy the crazy fun

you’ve got here.

Glad the Tang has been a good purchase. Any more pics?

MECOMI · Feb 7, 2023

Petcrazyson said:
Nah this isn’t crazy lol, at least not that I know of. Or maybe it is lol and I’m the one that’s crazy. When you hang out with Frank and cru and Stan and the guys then i guess you tend to not know what crazy is as we live it lol. No crazy is the wrong word. ‘FUN’. That’s the word. We’re fun! So I will now enjoy the crazy fun you’ve got here.

Glad the Tang has been a good purchase. Any more pics?

Ah yes thats the word for it, FUN

! Stan and the guys will never know what hit them, hopefully more crazy fun!

SSL Tomini was an awkward teenager at this time in the build. Here is just a week or two ago. the gold/yellowish stripes and spots are really starting to come out.

MECOMI · Feb 20, 2023

As i walk into the house i am greeted by my fish.

Hello friends, it looks like a beautiful day.

The tank is running at 0's across the board. Zero Nitrates, Zero Phosphates, zero ammonia, so i was encouraged to get more fishy friends. Enter a Mccosker's Wrasse named William (thanks nephew), a Yellow Clown Goby named Dinky Fish, and a Golden Head Sleeper Goby named Blue Cheeks! I will admit that i learned a lot acclimating so many fish at once. It really stressed me out until they were all safely in the tank.

Of course whenever you go to the LFS your best laid plans always seem to change. I couldn't resist a couple Rockflower Anemone. Great little specimens!

For my birthday my sister-in-law and nephew were nice enough to give me a gift card to the LFS, so after a couple more weeks, i had to pick up a few more things. Ever since i lost my Yellow Watchmen Goby Doc in the Biocube, i knew i wanted another one and with a Pistol Shrimp partner this time. Good news, is the LFS just got done quarantining a beautiful specimen, a Pinkbar Goby.

Say hello to Falkor!

When Easy-Aquariums reopened they struggled for a while with algae issues. It turned out some of the strong lighting in the building was causing them all kinds of trouble. After some adjustment they did get this under control but i was more then happy to bring Falkor home either way

.

Luckily they just happened to have him with a Pistol Shrimp so once introduced to the RSM it did not take long for them to find each other. I will say that Pistol Shrimps are some serious excavators and took up residence right next to my Zoa island. This has caused me some trouble but, in the end, its their tank.

A little cleaner environment for the little guy,

FTS time, now with complementary glare!

Left side, I certainly welcome the fuzzy back wall, free tang food, and the tank has been very sterile!

Oh geez, now William is just showing off!

And the last of my first wave of fish...The Warpaint Clown Goby named Thing 1.

I did start with two with hopes that there would be plenty of room for the three Clown Gobies to coexist. Sadly this was not the case and Thing 2 never could get settled and disappeared after several weeks. Luckily Thing 1 and Dinky Fish learned to coexist and are an awesome pair in the tank.

Now just because i decided against a Clownfish Harem, does not mean that i did not want to try an anemone. The sad part is the only one at the LFS was more of a rescue as it was a badly bleached Rose Anemone. I, of course, could not resist giving it a try as they sold it to me for the cost of the Porcelain Anemone Crab that was with it. We shall see...

The fish have been acclimating well across the board and lost only one due to a territory dispute. That is a huge change from my first tank. I guess i am starting to learn a few lessons

Later days,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Mar 6, 2023

Well good morning Dinky fish,

Every once and a while i like to just put everything aside and enjoy the tank. Spending some time in the trench seems like a good place to start.

SSL is wondering if the food is nearby,

'Dont mind me, just a case of the zoomies...'

Blue Cheek's and Falkor get along just fine,

The LFS certainly is tempting sometimes

. Found this beautiful Rainbow Bubble Tip Anemone and could not resist. I know the clownfish are incoming, time to let this guy settle in. And of course it moved immediately.

FTS without filters,

And with filters,

Back to the trench,

Really neato

Duncan was not to happy of course...took some real work gluing it down in that part of the tank too...oh well,

Another beautiful day, oh summertime

Geez blennies like Doug are hard to take pictures of in the water column, such weird swimming motion. Cell phone cameras are not a fan.

Pick a spot man...

The last rock formation placed in the tank was built for a clam, fingers crossed i can make that happen!

Fluffy Rockflowers!

Ah that was a good break, time to get back at it. Glass to clean, skimmers to empty, and i am sure there is something around here i can overthink about!!!

Later days,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Mar 16, 2023

Let’s sit down and rap for a minute.

The tank at this stage is going through a ton of changes. Some I am prepared for, coral issues and some I did not understand, huge alkalinity swings. Without dosing alkalinity and with minimum water changes the alk would drop 1-1.5dkh a day, starting at 9dkh. With very little coral in the tank and no coralline algae yet I could not figure out where the DKH was disappearing too.

As previously blogged, I am still new to testing. I would do multiple tests on my Hannah Checker which would result in virtually the same measurement. So, my testing was consistent, but my numbers blew my mind. I am also testing for phosphate and nitrate which consistently read just above detectable using the Red Sea kits. The skimmer is not running, the felt filter socks are in, and there has been no chemical filtration.

Suddenly I am using 2-part to dose manually in the morning and at night. Because of the large alk swings I must dose 50ml a day (eventually more) and of course this started to cause precipitation which compounded the issue. The precipitation caused my sand to clump, the pumps turn white, and when I started to use a Jebao Programmable Auto Dosing Pump DP-4 the sump started to crust. Blah

. In response I made sure to wash down heaters/pumps, mixed the sand, and wiped what I could off the sump.

I made several changes to the way I dose during this time. First I had to let the precipitation slow down so I waited about one week before switching to kalkwasser. After doing extensive research this really seemed like the way to go. I did not use my rear reservoir in the RSM S500 as it is to hard too clean. I used the max saturation recipe and slowly dosed throughout the day. I could not maintain the kalkwasser option, I had to use a ton a day to try and maintain the alkalinity, so I scrapped it.

Enter Tropic Marin Carbo-Calcium and All-For-Reef. After watching several in depth interviews with Lou Ekus I was sold. I understood the scientific process better then any other option and they just make sense financially with the powdered additives.

After cutting out all dosing for two weeks, using the third pump on the Jebao I started dosing 25 ml a day of Carbo-Calcium. After testing everyday for three days, and then every other day for a week the system finally showed a constant 9dkh. Using the Red Sea Calcium titration test I also confirmed a steady 420ppm. I alternate Carbo-Calcium ran for three months, and All-For-Reef ran for one month, so about a 3:1 ratio. I am officially in business. Small victory dance time.

Now that the system has been setup for two years, (RSM S500 anniversary is March 27th, happy early birthday woohoo) I can confirm, I am still using Carbo-Calcium and All-For-Reef to this day.

I also have a theory on why my Alkalinity drops were so severe each day, and before I started to have the precipitation issues. It was due to starting with dry rock. The Biocube never had big alkalinity swings and it was started with live rock and live sand. The live rock seems to have a alk buffer that dry rock does not. If I were to start a new tank again, I believe I would wait longer before putting coral in the system. This type of new tank syndrome caused me all kinds of trouble and lost coral because of all the change.

Live and learn,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Mar 26, 2023

Bryopsis, woof.....

The biocube is fighting the good fight but i lost almost all my coral

. This stuff is tough. My nitrates are low at 10ppm and my phosphate .05ppm but there seems to be no slowing it down. Manual removal seems to be the only thing that works, so i pick as often as possible.

The gorgonian soldiers on.

The addition of a pincushion urchin seemed like a good call. Both the urchins however never touched the algae. This resulted in them cleaning my back wall and eating the coralline algae instead, not my favorite result. Nothing touches this stuff.

You just gotta love your fish and inverts when the reef suddenly turns into a FOWLR...

With the maintenance out of the way, time to spend some time in the red room... FTS!

A couple new corals, staying on the low end of the money spectrum. The first round of corals has not gone well. I decided to make some changes at this point. I lowered the lighting due to some bleaching, started running the skimmer more often, and ran some more tests at the LFS. All zeros still on nitrate and phosphate. Very clean environment still or a little sterile as some may say.

The first coral to start enjoying my tank was the Monster Jam Psammacora. Good grower at mid to high light. Oh, hi Thing 1.

Blue Cheeks, hello to you too,

Neat,

Dinky fish has some cute little blue cheeks as well. Love this shot.

Even though the Rose Anemone started very bleached in the tank, it lasted quite a long time. It ended up finding a very nice little hole to crawl in and even found a buddy. I loved that the LFS just charged me for the anemone crab when i bought this pair, it was my first rescue. It fought its butt off to recover.

Cute little yellow brick road zoas, 3 heads has become 4, i will take a win.

Love the colors on these two!

I am feeling the love from the RSM S500. The fish have acclimated well, survived, and thrived. As day goes to night on the reef i feel a new level of pride on my reefing journey. The road may be bumpy but i feel some good things are on the horizon for my reefs.

Night time vibes.

Later days,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Mar 31, 2023

Another weekend admiring the tank, Emerald crab in da moonlight!

When i bought a pair of skunk cleaner shrimp for my Red Sea Max S-500 i thought they would be like every other in the Biocube. Out and about and always looking to clean fish. Apparently in a bigger tank the two i bought decided they were nocturnal and rarely came out during the day

. It makes random appearances that much better.

While i worked on the rock structure i imagined the wall dive in Little Cayman. I wanted something sloping with fish swimming in and out of the structure, while keeping the rock off the sand as much as possible. This has allowed the flow to ride into the back of the tank and i have had minimal detritus build up issues from front to back. The foundation pieces of Marco Rock was a good buy, i used two medium pieces to support the structure.

Change is inevitable,

Blue cheeks the sand sifter extraordinaire and the shady Duncan,

Rainbow Nem has decided the trench seems like a nice home,

Dry rock takes some time to mature. With the amount of research i did you would think i understood just how long it would take but i have come to understand, i am an impatient reefer. I just cant help myself. If i see a piece that i think will fit on the reef i have to test the waters. A beautiful green Monti was a good call.

Coralline incoming my reefer friends!

Oh William, peekaboo

The rainbow Nem started out so small and innocent. Little did i know, that rainbow's love to multiply. I would slice small pieces of scallop and feed it about once a month. And almost every time i noticed it would split. Keep this in mind! Once i stopped feeding it regularly at 5 nems luckily it slowed down but still split several more times but much less often.

I would say, at about 9 months this tank is ready for the next big addition! Welcome two Spotted Clarkii Clownfish and a Green Bubble tip Anemone to the reef!

What a great day, say hello to Wilma and Fred,

This will become a very nice bonded pair,

Later days my friends,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Apr 6, 2023

Oh boy, those little clownfish are just adorable. I cant believe they were so small when i first brought them home. Wilma was no bigger than a couple inches, and Fred was just over an inch. The tank almost seemed too big for Fred and Wilma made sure he knew his place as the future male. Fred almost never left the back right corner of the tank for some time. Fierce little Wilma would not allow it!

A week after adding the Clowns i got a call from the LFS that my Christmas Fiji Wrasse was fresh out of quarantine. Having utility fish in the tank was important to me. I wanted to make sure i had algae eaters first to help with the uglies. Once the tank was settled in, it was time for a pest eater. Welcome a boy/girl named, Christmas!

I also learned they are near impossible to get a good picture of,

The newbies enjoying some dinner,

The new additions have been a game changer. There is some serious movement and interest flowing in the tank and on top of everything else, there are some clear signs of maturity coming along. There is some solid coralline algae growing on the back wall, Whoop

The reef is alive!

While enjoying the tank it is important to take a break every once and a while. My puppy certainly thinks so. How can you resist that face???? *Newsflash* i cannot.

Hmm the Green Bubble Tip appears to be uncertain of its location. Time to bust a move!

Ah yes, it appears the nocturnal shrimp are ready to go on an adventure. Only an hour or two of light to go.

The clowns in this tank are stunning specimens. The Spotted Clarkii suggested from my favorite LFS employee at Easy Aquariums nailed this one!

9 months in and its time for a new coral addition. Enter the only leather in the tank, a little green devils hand! It started as such a cute little thing!

The Duncan has been moved several times due to the anemone additions. It seemed like every time it was in a good spot an anemone would decide that they wanted the spot too. Oh well. Sadly the Duncan, a DUNCAN of all things never settled in the tank. But the Montipora right behind it is growing like a weed. I love seeing the growth on the Montipora, at least some of the coral is happy!

Cheers my reefer friends,

B-Kind

MECOMI · Apr 20, 2023

Lighting became a frustrating part of the reef tank hobby for a while. I started with the Saxby schedule for my AI Hydra 26HD and i left the program as is. In the early days of the tank i had a lot of bleaching issues on several of the corals so i believed the lighting was too high so i watched the 26HD lights BRS video for peak performance. Considering my lighting is in a fixed position about 10-11" above the tank using the Saxby schedule at 100% the par would have been too high.

Hey, Fred left the corner!

So i switched the schedule to the Hydra 26HD AB+ and reduced it 30%. This was my primary lighting for some time. If you have not read the scientific article from Ecotech Marine CoralLab on the AB+ schedule go check it out, it is an interesting read!

I really do love the Aqua Illumination lights, they certainly seem to do a nice job on their own. The options for these lights are wild through the app. I will reinforce the idea to read up and understand your lights as much as possible. It is frustrating that we are supposed to set these up and forget it with limited guidelines. I may not be great at DIY but i love to tinker, so giving me one thousand five hundred options and i'm not supposed to play with it.........Blah

The trench is the centerpiece for the tank. All the action takes place in or around this 'empty' space. Adding a purple Stylophora seemed like a good choice, it is fluffy which i like, and it was only $20 from the LFS. Sadly, it did not last long. Something in the tank was eating it

, i found patches of it missing nightly and never caught the culprit.

Turning back to the Biocube, i have some updates for the fans out there! After trying every natural cure possible. Fish, clean up crew, regular water changes, steady elements, and manual remove the bryopsis was still kicking my behind.

I turned to chemicals for help. Specifically Reef Flux. This did some serious damage to the flora and fauna in the tank. I had to take my refugium offline and ride it out. I felt like once i made this decision that i was hitting the reset button on my bacteria along with the overall maturity of the tank. Initially the Flux did exactly what it was supposed to. The bryopsis appeared to have been eliminated, hooray!

Dont mind the dirty glass, it is always a little messy after new additions.

I finally felt good enough to add some things back to the tank after a month of clearing out the flux. I wanted some coral to help compete with any remaining algae and i could not resist the Flametail blenny. My Tailspot Blenny passed a few months before. It was my first natural fish death of older age. Even though this was a sad day, i did have some pride knowing that it was not something i did, it just passed naturally. Thank you little guy, your blenny kisses were adorable!

Finally clear of algae and the coralline is returning in force!