You can't have everything. Where would you put it?

[Lost in the Sauce]

Have you gotten that last pita Wrasse out yet? How’s everyone still in QT? Better?

Got the last one out today yes.

Everyone's been in the HT under full dose copper now long enough to have relief enough to now just be annoying each other.

Going to be a long 11 weeks.

 

[i cant think]

So I want to use some of my sand in this tank in my new "sump" and then replace it with finer grade sand. However I hear horror stories about people doing this and releasing trapped junk into the tank and having ammonia spikes or oxygen depletion. Is this something I should worry about? I know you replace sand @i cant think ?

I personally don’t worry if it’s in small amounts or if you just remove the majority of the sand after lowering the water.
It you only want to take a small portion of sand out to create a thin layer of sand in the sump then I wouldn’t worry about going into extra steps and would just do it during a WC.
If you wanted to replace the majority of the sand then you would need to go into extra steps (which I had to do). And doing this would make the garden (and house) look like this;

This was just one water change that took a good 5-6 hours but was worth it as now I have a pleasing rock scape and different levels of fine in the sandbed.

 

[Slocke]

I personally don’t worry if it’s in small amounts or if you just remove the majority of the sand after lowering the water.
It you only want to take a small portion of sand out to create a thin layer of sand in the sump then I wouldn’t worry about going into extra steps and would just do it during a WC.
If you wanted to replace the majority of the sand then you would need to go into extra steps (which I had to do). And doing this would make the garden (and house) look like this;

This was just one water change that took a good 5-6 hours but was worth it as now I have a pleasing rock scape and different levels of fine in the sandbed.

Thanks! Yeah I'm going to do this during todays water change. And my house hasn't looked like that since setting up this tank.

 

[Slocke]

Got a photo of one of my most reclusive critters. Now I need a photo of the porcelain crab and the serpent star.

 

[Mschmidt]

I personally don’t worry if it’s in small amounts or if you just remove the majority of the sand after lowering the water.
It you only want to take a small portion of sand out to create a thin layer of sand in the sump then I wouldn’t worry about going into extra steps and would just do it during a WC.
If you wanted to replace the majority of the sand then you would need to go into extra steps (which I had to do). And doing this would make the garden (and house) look like this;

This was just one water change that took a good 5-6 hours but was worth it as now I have a pleasing rock scape and different levels of fine in the sandbed.

My house routinely looks like this.

 

[Slocke]

Did it! New sand in. The results are:

Cloudy

Also many spaghetti worms were lost in the vacuuming. Many were saved from the drain just to be eaten by the iridis upon reentry.

 

[i cant think]

Did it! New sand in. The results are:

Cloudy

Also many spaghetti worms were lost in the vacuuming. Many were saved from the drain just to be eaten by the iridis upon reentry.

Spaghetti worms thrived in my RS Max Nano and then when I transferred them into my 3’, they all vanished.. I wish I could just buy some of these hitchhikers we get instead of have to wait until I get a new coral or rock.

 

[Slocke]

Spaghetti worms thrived in my RS Max Nano and then when I transferred them into my 3’, they all vanished.. I wish I could just buy some of these hitchhikers we get instead of have to wait until I get a new coral or rock.

I feel that. I'm yet to see any sign of the massive amount of copepod I use to have in my refugium since moving it across the room. Yes I can buy copepods but like everything they are ridiculously expensive and I don't know how I lost them in such a simple move.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

I feel that. I'm yet to see any sign of the massive amount of copepod I use to have in my refugium since moving it across the room. Yes I can buy copepods but like everything they are ridiculously expensive and I don't know how I lost them in such a simple move.

If you have pods, don't buy more, grow more. Dose phyto every day and watch the population explode.

 

[Mschmidt]

I feel that. I'm yet to see any sign of the massive amount of copepod I use to have in my refugium since moving it across the room. Yes I can buy copepods but like everything they are ridiculously expensive and I don't know how I lost them in such a simple move.

Now I'm even more scared to lose my pods when I move tanks.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Now I'm even more scared to lose my pods when I move tanks.

I just moved tanks a few weeks ago and 2 nights ago saw many pods running around tank. They scramble into rock crevices and slowly come back out

 

[Slocke]

If you have pods, don't buy more, grow more. Dose phyto every day and watch the population explode.

Thanks! When buying phyto is "live" important? I usually buy Algae Barns "live" but my LFS has Phyto Feast which doesn't have "live" on it.

I did go in with a magnifying glass and find that I do have some pods (if not the extreme numbers I had before) as well as some tiny flatworms. Not that I'm worried about the flat worms; they appear to be ghosts and I'm thinking my wrasse will protect me from them anyway.

Before:

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Thanks! When buying phyto is "live" important? I usually buy Algae Barns "live" but my LFS has Phyto Feast which doesn't have "live" on it.

I did go in with a magnifying glass and find that I do have some pods (if not the extreme numbers I had before) as well as some tiny flatworms. Not that I'm worried about the flat worms; they appear to be ghosts and I'm thinking my wrasse will protect me from them anyway.

Before:

I've honestly never seen a difference of efficacy between phytofeast and ocean magik. With that said ibounce between. I have both in the fridge right now.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thanks! When buying phyto is "live" important? I usually buy Algae Barns "live" but my LFS has Phyto Feast which doesn't have "live" on it.

I did go in with a magnifying glass and find that I do have some pods (if not the extreme numbers I had before) as well as some tiny flatworms. Not that I'm worried about the flat worms; they appear to be ghosts and I'm thinking my wrasse will protect me from them anyway.

Before:

I rarely feed live. They accept bottled which I feed most

 

[Mschmidt]

I just moved tanks a few weeks ago and 2 nights ago saw many pods running around tank. They scramble into rock crevices and slowly come back out

thanks for the restored confidence. I'd be really sad if I starved my mandarin because of the move.

 

[Slocke]

I've honestly never seen a difference of efficacy between phytofeast and ocean magik. With that said ibounce between. I have both in the fridge right now.

I rarely feed live. They accept bottled which I feed most

Thanks both! The phytofeast will be much easier and cheaper.

thanks for the restored confidence. I'd be really sad if I starved my mandarin because of the move.

I moved most of the rock into the display tank before moving the tank that became my refugium and my mandarins and leopard wrasse feasted on those rocks. I also rinsed the sand lightly so probably lost a lot there. It does seem that I now have greater biodiversity than I had before though. I spotted 4 distinct body shapes on the glass and I only had one before. Maybe a good shake up was needed.

 

[quentin17110]

You can't have everything. Where would you put it?
-Steven Wright
​

My 110 gallon 60"x18"x24" mixed reef tank with a 45 gallon refugium.
Thread restart for this tank that was started in January 2022 with a used tank and rocks. It was an ugly mess that I've slowly been saving. My goal has been to experience as much as I can to find my niche in this hobby.

View attachment 2951024
View attachment 2956417
The utility corner:

Current Stock:

Fish:

• Frostbite & domino clownfish, Amphiprion ocellaris​
• 2 Benggai cardinalfish, Pterapogon kauderni ​
• Red firefish, Nemateleotris magnifica​
• Common foxface, Siganus vulpinus​
• Royal gramma, Gramma loreto​
• Midas blenny, Ecsenius midas​
• 2 Mandarins, Synchiropus splendidus​
• Court Jester Goby, Koumansetta rainfordi​
• (one eyed) Orange spot goby, Amblyeleotris guttata​
• Red Sea leopards wrasse, Macropharyngodon marisrubri​
• Radiant wrasse, Halichoeres iridis​
• Blue streak cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus​
• Pink streaked wrasse, Pseudocheilinops ataenia​
• Lunate fairy wrasse, Cirrhilabrus lunatus​

Inverts:

• Skunk cleaner shrimp
• Fire cleaner shrimp
• 5 Peppermint shrimp (3 in refugium)
• Tiger pistol shrimp
• Porcelain crab
• Tuxedo urchin
• Banded serpent starfish
• Brittle starfish
• Sand sifting starfish
• Red and pink rock flower anemone
• Zebra rock flower anemone
• Fighting conch
• Various nassarius snail species
• Mexican turbos
• Trochus snails
• Astrea turbos
• Margarita snails
• Various trochus snail species
• Bumble bee snails
• Various hermit crabs

Soft coral:

• Green star polyp
• Koji Wada Pink Nephthea
• Green toadstool leather
• Grandis palythoas
• Zoanthids:
  • Pandora
  • Utter chaos
  • Fruit loops
  • Jungle juice
  • Pixie dust
  • Tangerine dreams
• Orange ricordea
• Green pipe organ
• Pink clove polyps

LPS:

• Green duncan Coral
• Red Blastomussa
• Red micromussa
• Green elegance
• Purple/green (branching) frogspawn
• Gold (wall) hammer
• Red and green favia
• Yellow leptastrea
• Gold galaxea
• Blue and yellow goniopora

SPS:

• Green stylophora
• Purple stylophora
• Freak hair (encrusting) pavona
• Blue (encrusting) pavona
• purple (ridged) pavona
• Red (branching) montipora

Other Equipment:

Lights:

• Fluval marine 48"
• 2 AI prime 16s
• Fluval planted 36" (refugium)

Filtration

• Tunze 9012 skimmer
• Tidal 110 HOB
• Fluval FX6 (return pump and filter)

Other:

• Jebao SCP-70 wave maker
• Aquamai KPS
• Eheaim heater
• Fluval heater
• Prism ATO

Super interesting

 

[Slocke]

Day 1:

Day 10:

He's been a hungry little boy and you can tell! Colors are much better too.


Finally leopard wrasse because he(?) is too stunning:

 

[Slocke]

I personally don’t worry if it’s in small amounts or if you just remove the majority of the sand after lowering the water.
It you only want to take a small portion of sand out to create a thin layer of sand in the sump then I wouldn’t worry about going into extra steps and would just do it during a WC.
If you wanted to replace the majority of the sand then you would need to go into extra steps (which I had to do). And doing this would make the garden (and house) look like this;

This was just one water change that took a good 5-6 hours but was worth it as now I have a pleasing rock scape and different levels of fine in the sandbed.

My house routinely looks like this.

Yeah I lied my house also routinely looks like this. I have 2 dogs a cat and 2 foster kittens so its always a mess.

Also nice table @i cant think

 

[Slocke]

Got my fish from Dr. Reef. The exquisite does not look as healthy as the pearlscale but I guess that's not surprising given its a wrasse.

After swimming around for a little while it went for the rocks and I now can't see it.

Video to come