Wen’s 280 Build

[rds85]

I have 2 empty chambers in canister filter because I’m not using the carbon bags.
Can I fill them with filter floss?
Or live rock rubble?
1 chamber has floss.
1 chamber has like cement rings.

No live rock. I would just add more bio media of some kind. ceramic media preferred IMO.

 

[Wen]

The copper power Qt is going well.
Today siphoned debris into felt sock from the bottom and returned strained water, placed 6 pearlies in net breeders so helicopter mom knows their eating, loved hearing the emperor grunt displeasure over moving the pvc tubes and it always makes me happy that CBB remembers fingers are for delivering treats. The added canister filter is keeping water pretty fresh. Only negative event was a swallow of Qt water starting the siphon.;Drool Guess I’ll be ich/velvet free too.


Regarding the CP, I probably need to remove the macro algae...or the newly added canister filter is soaking up the copper. Tested 2.13 Sunday and 1.18 today.
That gave me a window to add 5 new fish. So macro out and CP is moving up.

 

[Wen]

The fallow 280 is doing pretty good. I’m feeding it and dosing to keep nitrates and phosphates from bottoming out. My older/mistreated acros are coloring up and the 4 new CC frags are happy.

Wish I knew how to make these pics thumbnail sized, sorry.

 

[dbl]

Having had the pleasure to visit with Wendy this weekend, I can assure you the new tank is beautiful and her pictures do not do the corals justice.

 

[Wen]

Hubby’s away, so I can play!!!
Haha, ...a Tunze Comline Wavebox to add another dimension to the water movement.
Took Some time and the help of Roger @rvitko to get it dialed in, but liking what I’m seeing.

Honey Do List: caulk canopy

 

[Wen]

Every morning I dread checking on the Qt trough for fear of finding dead bodies.

I worry about ammonia, bacterial infections, how they are handling the copper level, aggression and if everyone is eating.

Yesterday had a casualty, chalk basslet. I felt something was up with him on Thursday and actually netted him to take a look. He looked ok, so I let him go. Note to self: listen closely to your instincts. (Anyone read that book, the Gift of Fear?)

I’m making a conscious effort each day to stop all flow in the trough, do a head count and a thorough visual wellness check.

To ease Qt stress, decided to feed more in combination with 3 gal cp wc every couple days and bottom siphoning (through felt sock and strained h2o back in) when needed. I have plenty of copper power and Hanna refill regents, so why not? I only have 12 more days of cp.

 

[Gablami]

I’m obviously faced with the same fear and challenge. The quandary is what do you do if you have a fish that isn’t looking good? Take them out of treatment, and treat again later?

My Achilles and a long nose hawk did not look good this morning. I was hoping I could last until Tuesday, but took all the fish out of treatment this afternoon. Will have to see over the next few days whether the Achilles can turn around now that it’s out of copper. I’m not that hopeful .

when you say CP, you mean copper power, not chloroquine phosphate right?

 

[Wen]

I’m obviously faced with the same fear and challenge. The quandary is what do you do if you have a fish that isn’t looking good? Take them out of treatment, and treat again later?

My Achilles and a long nose hawk did not look good this morning. I was hoping I could last until Tuesday, but took all the fish out of treatment this afternoon. Will have to see over the next few days whether the Achilles can turn around now that it’s out of copper. I’m not that hopeful .

when you say CP, you mean copper power, not chloroquine phosphate right?

Oh no, I’m sorry to hear about your Achilles and hawk, sure hope they perk up now out of the copper. Not eating or acting unusual?
Keep us updated.

I’m using copper power. If I see trouble, that particular fish is coming out of copper.

I had a minor bout of ich a couple years ago. It was definitely manageable but I decide to be ich free so went the chloroquine phosphate route. I followed directions to a T, and ended up losing 5 fish from bacterial issues after the treatment...called it the hillbilly hot tub massacre. I wish I hadn’t tried ridding the fish of ich after that.

How are you keeping your nitrates and phosphates up in your DT? Mine were both 0 today. I’m dosing 20ml of Trisodium phosphate and 100ml of potassium Nitrate, plus pellets, plus reef roids, plus a clam daily!

 

[Gablami]

I don’t have any corals in my DT, and it’s going through an ugly phase. Hair algae and cyano. So I’m really not doing anything. Still feeding some pellets every few days. As long as my phosphates aren’t bottoming out I’m fine.

achilles has definitely peeled up since coming out of the copper. Not lying on the bottom sideways anymore. Swimming around which is a huge difference. But still not out of the woods.

 

[this is me]

Wen,
How did you plumb in the UV sterilizer? What wattage and what GPH you're running through it? How old is the bulb?
This will be the key to your success with fish.

 

[Wen]

Wen,
How did you plumb in the UV sterilizer? What wattage and what GPH you're running through it? How old is the bulb?
This will be the key to your success with fish.

Thanks for your thoughts.
The UV is undersized for this new tank, it’s a 40 watt. I change the bulb yearly and clean the housing too. It runs off a manifold at 150gph.
It’s on the list for future upgrades, as well as the whole manifold system, needs rethought.

 

[revhtree]

Nice wave action!

Hubby’s away, so I can play!!!
Haha, ...a Tunze Comline Wavebox to add another dimension to the water movement.
Took Some time and the help of Roger @rvitko to get it dialed in, but liking what I’m seeing.

Honey Do List: caulk canopy

 

[this is me]

Thanks for your thoughts.
The UV is undersized for this new tank, it’s a 40 watt. I change the bulb yearly and clean the housing too. It runs off a manifold at 150gph.
It’s on the list for future upgrades, as well as the whole manifold system, needs rethought.

In my quick glance through this build section, I see 3 threads having issues with fish dying because of diseases. What's in common in all of them? QT. Copper and medicines and not adequate space/environment for new fish to survive. How do you expect a fish not be all stressed out and unwilling to eat?
You take my advice for what it is or not. But your best effort and money spent is getting the correct size UV and run it at the manufacturer GPH through it for killing Protozoans. Put it in the display where you've created what you think is the best environment to keep the fish. You likely won't get every single new fish to survive but it'll be a lot less headache. Get a good sourcing for fish and feed it well. No fish will want to eat if they're under heavy medicines. Again, you take it for what it is but I feel tired for members when I see them scrambling to catch a fish because of some dots on them and placed them in a poorer environment with meds hoping they will survive.

 

[Wen]

In my quick glance through this build section, I see 3 threads having issues with fish dying because of diseases. What's in common in all of them? QT. Copper and medicines and not adequate space/environment for new fish to survive. How do you expect a fish not be all stressed out and unwilling to eat?
You take my advice for what it is or not. But your best effort and money spent is getting the correct size UV and run it at the manufacturer GPH through it for killing Protozoans. Put it in the display where you've created what you think is the best environment to keep the fish. You likely won't get every single new fish to survive but it'll be a lot less headache. Get a good sourcing for fish and feed it well. No fish will want to eat if they're under heavy medicines. Again, you take it for what it is but I feel tired for members when I see them scrambling to catch a fish because of some dots on them and placed them in a poorer environment with meds hoping they will survive.

I agree with you that QT is probably the biggest killer of fish (once leaving the LFS). I agree about the stressful conditions in a qt and medications that curb appetite causing strife.

I am all for NSW and feeding the highest quality, natural foods, live foods.

If it was just ich, I would have invested in a bigger uv and stuck it out...that's why I got the uv in the first place and it kept ich nil on my 150 for many years.
But this time was different, it really looked like velvet and was spreading to my other fish. In fear of losing everyone, decided to try Copper Power at 2.25 for 2 weeks...I know folks will say 2.5, but I have time to observe.

So far, everyone is eating. I have done my best to provide the least stress possible qt tank...sand, plastic plants, plenty of pvc, natural light source and no reflections of a glass qt in a black Rubbermaid. Minus the jawfish in the net boxes (each with sand bowl, pvc and shells) and clowns in the colander, the rest of the gang are acting normally in the Brute (tangs being tangs, wrasses investigating the sand, hawkfish perching about, angelfish keeping track of everything...).

You have some beautiful fish. Are they all from sources that quarantine them? Do you do observational qt or just put them into the dt? I am assuming you've had ich and manage it with the uv, but have you had velvet?

 

[Wen]

This guy has no spots now and is his usual bossy self in Qt.

 

[Gablami]

In my quick glance through this build section, I see 3 threads having issues with fish dying because of diseases. What's in common in all of them? QT. Copper and medicines and not adequate space/environment for new fish to survive. How do you expect a fish not be all stressed out and unwilling to eat?
You take my advice for what it is or not. But your best effort and money spent is getting the correct size UV and run it at the manufacturer GPH through it for killing Protozoans. Put it in the display where you've created what you think is the best environment to keep the fish. You likely won't get every single new fish to survive but it'll be a lot less headache. Get a good sourcing for fish and feed it well. No fish will want to eat if they're under heavy medicines. Again, you take it for what it is but I feel tired for members when I see them scrambling to catch a fish because of some dots on them and placed them in a poorer environment with meds hoping they will survive.

Can’t disagree. If I get all my fish back into DT and have another infection, I’m gonna roll with it. But figured it was worth one shot.

 

[this is me]

I agree with you that QT is probably the biggest killer of fish (once leaving the LFS). I agree about the stressful conditions in a qt and medications that curb appetite causing strife.

I am all for NSW and feeding the highest quality, natural foods, live foods.

If it was just ich, I would have invested in a bigger uv and stuck it out...that's why I got the uv in the first place and it kept ich nil on my 150 for many years.
But this time was different, it really looked like velvet and was spreading to my other fish. In fear of losing everyone, decided to try Copper Power at 2.25 for 2 weeks...I know folks will say 2.5, but I have time to observe.

So far, everyone is eating. I have done my best to provide the least stress possible qt tank...sand, plastic plants, plenty of pvc, natural light source and no reflections of a glass qt in a black Rubbermaid. Minus the jawfish in the net boxes (each with sand bowl, pvc and shells) and clowns in the colander, the rest of the gang are acting normally in the Brute (tangs being tangs, wrasses investigating the sand, hawkfish perching about, angelfish keeping track of everything...).

You have some beautiful fish. Are they all from sources that quarantine them? Do you do observational qt or just put them into the dt? I am assuming you've had ich and manage it with the uv, but have you had velvet?

I'm not a fish disease expert. But many of these so called experts have killed more fish than they want to admit. I can't tell the difference between ich or velvet. They all look like white chickenpox on fish to me.
Like you and many others, I've had issues with tangs and white spots before. In my previous tank, I had a complete wipe out of fish due to white spots. By the time I've set up tanks and remove the fish for copper treatment, it was too late. Until I invested in a UV and dialed it in, I can finally keep all the tangs I want.
In my new build, I ran the UV early before even adding any fish to the tank. So far so good.
I don't oppose people do proper QT when receiving a new fish. That effort can be rewarded. But I'm also seeing too many fish being pulled out of DT into the QT after the fact. I wish you the best of luck and hope the fish will make it back to the DT again.

 

[Wen]

Noticed General Tso wasn’t as hangry as usual, a closer inspection indicated an early eye infection. Per HF, he’s enjoying a 20gal Brute all to himself laced with erythromycin.

 

[Wen]

A larger uv was on my future purchase list, but with my qt troubles and looking at the nasty sand bed in the toddler dt, the Pentair 50 Watt is all I can think about. I could sell the 40 watt (all clean with new bulb) to offset the huge price tag.

 

[Gablami]

A larger uv was on my future purchase list, but with my qt troubles and looking at the nasty sand bed in the toddler dt, the Pentair 50 Watt is all I can think about. I could sell the 40 watt (all clean with new bulb) to offset the huge price tag.

If you’re going for water clarification and algae, then 40 is fine. If you’re going for parasites than a 50 alone is not enough. I would add a 50 to the 40, or get an 80.

For anti-parasitic qualities, tank turnover should be at least 3x, preferably more. To achieve parasitic kill dosages you have to run water slowly through them (as you are currently with your 40W UV). So you won’t be able to achieve effective parasite control with a 50W.

It just depends on why you’re deciding to upgrade your UV.