Watchguy's SPS Addiction (photo intense)

reefmutt

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Mark! I’m so happy to see you back at reefing! Your reef ‘burn down’ last year (or two?) was very sad..
It’s only by chance that I saw ‘watchguy’ in an email from r2r and I checked it out.
as usual, your tank is stunning. Glad to see that!
I have not really been on any forums in a while but your thread will bring me back!
I’m going to go back and see what gems you are growing now..
 

Graffiti Spot

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Man we need some more involved updates here! Let’s see some pics! Love the dragon though, the purple and green smoothies are always a nice touch to a reef. The green always glows and contrasts very well.
 
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watchguy123

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Mark! I’m so happy to see you back at reefing! Your reef ‘burn down’ last year (or two?) was very sad..
It’s only by chance that I saw ‘watchguy’ in an email from r2r and I checked it out.
as usual, your tank is stunning. Glad to see that!
I have not really been on any forums in a while but your thread will bring me back!
I’m going to go back and see what gems you are growing now..
What a delight to hear from you. I hope all is well. The world has somehow turned upside down. Feels like we are living in a bad sci-fi movie.

The picture below is of "Rakie's Unobtainable" It truly is like no other humilis. Its got great colors and unbelievable shimmer. This is obviously under reefbrites but the glo is awesome. Frags turn green for a long time. I have had this for probably over a year (I lose track of time) but it seems to be getting better and better and growth has taken off. I have it at the top of my tank, just under the water and nearly against the back glass. Although it may not look like it, those branches are quite thick.

coral-31.jpg
 
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watchguy123

watchguy123

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I test alkalinity and nitrates about once or twice a week. I don't tend to adjust much but i like keeping a diary to observe trends. If nitrates start creeping up, I may decrease the amount of each fish feeding but usually things seem to be pretty stable. I do believe keen observation is critical and I also think keen observation includes tracking test results as much as observing coral and fish vitality. I like "seeing" that corals look healthy and i like testing to validate my "seeing". Testing regularly is never a mistake, not testing regularly may result in a mistake. I don't ever want to "see" unhappy corals, by the time you "see" unhappy corals, it is perhaps a little too late. On the other hand, I don't test phosphate very frequently. I think phosphate is critical but I hate the hanna ULR testing regimen. I so dislike trying to get all that powder out of that darn foil.

This next coral is akin to a pc superman on steroids. The red color under fluorescent lighting (reefbrites) looks unreal and the blue tips are very cool. This one is just beginning to take off. I need to trim it because it is getting near some other corals but I like it too much to cut.

coral-6.jpg


coral-29.jpg
 

reefmutt

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Mark, it’s amazing to me how, after a couple of disasters and restarts, your coral health/vibrancy and extreme corraline algae growth remain so solidly constant throughout your reef keeping journey. You really are a master.
on the previous page you mentioned Po4 had crept up ‘too high’ and you’d been using kno3 and vinegar to pull it down.. and this page you mentioned testing Alk and n regularly.. gotta ask- what are your targets for Po4, no3 and Alk these days? I say ‘these days’ because often these targets change for reefers as we follow trends in the hobby but I’m suspecting someone like you, who’s still using mh and has such consistently great results, your targets may have always been the same.
also, what’s the music in your first two video clips on previous page..
AND.. if you could tell me how to get email updates for threads I want to follow, I’d appreciate it immensely!
 
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watchguy123

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Mark, it’s amazing to me how, after a couple of disasters and restarts, your coral health/vibrancy and extreme corraline algae growth remain so solidly constant throughout your reef keeping journey. You really are a master.
on the previous page you mentioned Po4 had crept up ‘too high’ and you’d been using kno3 and vinegar to pull it down.. and this page you mentioned testing Alk and n regularly.. gotta ask- what are your targets for Po4, no3 and Alk these days? I say ‘these days’ because often these targets change for reefers as we follow trends in the hobby but I’m suspecting someone like you, who’s still using mh and has such consistently great results, your targets may have always been the same.
also, what’s the music in your first two video clips on previous page..
AND.. if you could tell me how to get email updates for threads I want to follow, I’d appreciate it immensely!

Well I apparently am disaster prone but I somehow keep coming back. My coralline algae is remarkable, it grows and covers anything it can find.

I try to keep my alkalinity around 7.5 dKh or so. Even with a large calcium reactor, there is some fluctuation. I don't think it is the tests that are shaky, rather uptake varies over time somehow. Because the changes are all are slow, I don't do much about it. Sometimes my effluent changes flow rate on its own, probably due to just being an old and slightly cantankerous calcium reactor. Usually most mornings, I do a quick equipment once over to see if everything is on and looks right. Periodically, I will note that the effluent needs adjusting. Obviously I am not using a doser or motor to control it.

I keep my Nitrates between 5-10 ppm. I manually supplement daily with Potassium Nitrate otherwise the nitrate will creep down. I try to keep PO4 less than 0.1 ppm and above 0.03 ppm. My phosphates virtually never creep low, I have a lot of fish around 20 or so and most are tangs and wrasses and I feed twice daily. Its hard to throw that much fish food in and not expect a decent amount of phosphate.

I have recently been adding vinegar as well and supplementing more nitrate in an effort (experiment) to slowly push my phosphate down (targeting a goal of 0.1 ppm of PO4). In the past, I have always used GFO in a reactor but GFO can strip PO4 too quickly and sometimes not quickly enough. Plus I hate the rinsing of GFO media, it is messy and well just not fun as far as I am concerned. I haven't had elevated PO4 in a very long time, but I was fooling around with reef roids and it skyrocketed the PO4. I surely over did it.

As a general rule, I don't use supplements but every once in a while, I fall victim to advertising and fan boys.

The music is likely U2 And I don't know how to get emails for thread updates. Thanks for the questions, I don't get many inquiries. Either I must be too long winded, or more likely, nobody cares about my thoughts.

Below is Pigmo's Plosion I share this one all the time. The body in the center is kind of a peach/orangy color and then transitions out to the branches to a purplish/pink color and finally pretty blue growth tips. I think it is a stunner

coral-35.jpg
 
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watchguy123

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I am trying a new icp test, Fauna Marin USA. I purchased a four pack for something like $63. I have used Triton previously and really like their test result format so it will be interesting to see how Fauna Marin differs. Certainly the price point of Fauna Marin ICP is pretty attractive.

WWC Heartbreaker Pretty colony and I like the growth pattern. On the lower left (bottom left) you can just see the BPC flamethrower chalice. And on the bottom right, monet's madness cyphasterea. I have those two on disks, because I don't want them encrusting on my rock work. Only sps are allowed to encrust on the rock work.

coral-8.jpg
 

reefmutt

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Thanks for the info- all reasonable targets. That pigmo’s plosion looks amazing! As is the heartbreaker.. but anything you post awesome.
What’s your carx media these days?
I can’t believe you do no supplementation..
WHO DOESN'T SUPPLEMENT THEIR SPS!?!!
You should be adding something or your tank is headed for disaster!! ;)
Curious to see your fauna test results. I have a kit sitting here at home.. I really have to send it in..
 
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watchguy123

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Thanks for the info- all reasonable targets. That pigmo’s plosion looks amazing! As is the heartbreaker.. but anything you post awesome.
What’s your carx media these days?
I can’t believe you do no supplementation..
WHO DOESN'T SUPPLEMENT THEIR SPS!?!!
You should be adding something or your tank is headed for disaster!! ;)
Curious to see your fauna test results. I have a kit sitting here at home.. I really have to send it in..

I just reordered Reborn Two Little Fishies Coarse, It works well, doesn't seem to have impurities, good product. Its been backordered recently but it seems to be showing up again. I just ordered some more today when it became available. I tried to order the large container but it was gone before I could purchase it. I will share my ICP results when I get them.

You, one vendor I sold some to, and two other friends are the only people who have this coral!

If you don't know Rakie, he is a great guy. Generous with his coral as well as his knowledge.

I have a lot of lps mixed in with my sps. I also have a large number of fish, relatively speaking. I like the diversity of life and it is all fun to watch. I wish I had a carpet anemone, I think they are stunning. However, I don't trust any anemone to not migrate around. I am fearful that in their wanderings, some of my other corals would suffer. Plus carpet anemones do get really big. My two clowns enjoy living in the goniopora. They paired up when I got them years ago and they breed regularly but I have never tried to raise the fry. Just like with an anemone, the clown fish occasionally suck on the tips of the goni tentacles. I didn't capture that moment here, but I still think they look cool playing in their home. This is one of my rare metal halide pictures. Check out my rainbow bowerbanki on the far right of the photos. The bowerbanki is on a three inch disk mounted vertically.

collage.jpg
 
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SeaDweller

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I just reordered Reborn Two Little Fishies Coarse, It works well, doesn't seem to have impurities, good product. Its been backordered recently but it seems to be showing up again. I just ordered some more today when it became available. I tried to order the large container but it was gone before I could purchase it. I will share my ICP results when I get them.



If you don't know Rakie, he is a great guy. Generous with his coral as well as his knowledge.

I have a lot of lps mixed in with my sps. I also have a large number of fish, relatively speaking. I like the diversity of life and it is all fun to watch. I wish I had a carpet anemone, I think they are stunning. However, I don't trust any anemone to not migrate around. I am fearful that in their wanderings, some of my other corals would suffer. Plus carpet anemones do get really big. My two clowns enjoy living in the goniopora. They paired up when I got them years ago and they breed regularly but I have never tried to raise the fry. Just like with an anemone, the clown fish occasionally suck on the tips of the goni tentacles. I didn't capture that moment here, but I still think they look cool playing in their home. This is one of my rare metal halide pictures. Check out my rainbow bowerbanki on the far right of the photos. The bowerbanki is on a three inch disk mounted vertically.

collage.jpg
I got the email too, and it was gone within minutes.
 
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watchguy123

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I share a lot of pictures. Two reasons: 1) I enjoy sharing and receiving a few kudos in return 2) it allows for hopefully comparisons. I have a small frag tank with about 12 gallons of water. This is a mummy eye chalice in the frag tank. Depending on the amount of light, mummy eyes are notorious for color morphing from green to orange. This one has been morphing for a while. I think it looks cool. Plus I tried a new technique, I shot the chalice top down but without a top down viewer, this is just from above with the pump turned off and the lens about 6 inches above the water.

Mummy Eye Chalice

coral-2.jpg


Below is a zoomed in image of some mouths. I was not looking for a feeding response when I took the photo, but a 90 mm macro lens lets you see things that you would not ordinarily be able to visualize. These were hand held photos at 1/80 speed.

coral-4.jpg
 
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Hi Mark , Do you know the poss names for a tenuis with orange and green polyps it has the blue tops i have only seen a poor picture from the seller under blue lighting or is it just another indo tenuis thats coming in . thanks bill
video-1598522658_Moment rainbow polyps.jpg
 
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watchguy123

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Hi Mark , Do you know the poss names for a tenuis with orange and green polyps it has the blue tops i have only seen a poor picture from the seller under blue lighting or is it just another indo tenuis thats coming in . thanks bill
video-1598522658_Moment rainbow polyps.jpg
Hey Bill, I have no idea what that may be called. It looks pretty.
 

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Hi Mark , Do you know the poss names for a tenuis with orange and green polyps it has the blue tops i have only seen a poor picture from the seller under blue lighting or is it just another indo tenuis thats coming in . thanks bill
video-1598522658_Moment rainbow polyps.jpg
better pic looks like a pink rim on coralites lower down
DSC_4493 rainbow polyps.jpg
 
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watchguy123

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better pic looks like a pink rim on coralites lower down

If the price is right, then perhaps the gamble is worth it. I take lots of photos and even so, it takes a lot of work to try and get the colors right. One never quite knows what a coral really looks like based on a photograph. reef lighting is challenging to get colors correct. there are those that are pretty good at capturing accurate color representation and others not so much. On top of that, sometimes fresh out of the ocean colonies look spectacular and then brown out and of course occasionally the reverse is true. Ultimately, it is your dollar and your call.

The frag below was initially a gift from a good reefer friend a while ago. When yellow corals started first started arriving, he was able to acquire a number of different varieties. this one is now starting to take off in my tank

coral-76.jpg


The two corals below, I really like. The dragon looks an incredible blue under reefbrites and the coral beneath it is pretty as well.

coral-79.jpg
 
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