My non-photsynt tanks

[dendro982]

An illustrations thread to other threads - too much pictures to disrupt the thread flow.

All is changed time from time, trying to improve. All is kept as cheap, as possible, simple, interchangeable and easy to set. Until I find the proper confihuration (or quit the hobby ).
Oldest NPC is 1.5 years old, Xmas tree and first diodogorgia gorgonian - more than 1year, not too much, as you can see.
Several feedings daily, with filtration turned off.

So far:
New 5g complex with 2.5g sump:

Trial to reduce volume of changed water, with keeping biomedia away from feeding chamber. The Tunze nano DOC skimmer should be there, but currently it's tied upstairs, in NC12g. Micron sock is changed daily.

General evaluation: improper flow, but keeps water parameters better.





Before 5g, the main content was in 6g Nano-Cube:

That worked well, only a lot of water changes and the sump better not to be lit - had acoel worms and red slime there.
Flow - around, reflected. Mini-Jet 606 150gph and heater in back chambers - nothing more, return pump Aqua Clear 201 or, on turns
with Micro-Jet. The corals are very picky about flow and bristle worms.





And before NC6 was just plain NC6, without sump, live on water changes. Filter floss pad sometimes for the fight. Still worked well, only the rock accumulated nutrients and become green. A lot of debris collected under the rock.



Have to go, will continue.

[dendro982]

More of simple NC6:

Crud at the bottom:

in next configuration LR was moved after micron sock.

All above were low light, or no light at all tanks - mainly for chilis.

The next setup is a high light (medium in common understanding), for Christmas tree rocks, clams, anemone. Now 70W 14,000K MH (DIY), most of the time - 72W PC, plus direct sunlight, southern window (except the hot summer months).




Same idea - biomedia, incl. LR - in the sump, micron sock, skimmer. During feeding the filtration is off. Flow now - from bottom to the top, to keep food suspended. While it worked in tank without LR, it doesn't work in tank, filled with corals and LR. No wonder...


NC6 has flow around pattern, works better, but is not keeping food suspended:


This set in NC12 works worse, than previous 10g set.

Will continue.

[dendro982]

10g setup was before NC12:
Flow sides at the right, top to bottom - at the left. Sump, skimmer or not (was tied for a month in 20L refugium with dinoplagellates), micron sock, some macroalgae, mixed kinds.
Before moving to NC12:



Even before, the sump is visible:


Christmas tree rocks, without gorgonians:

Their porites are different:

Now added pavona with Spirobranchus to their company.

Even before 10g was 5g hex, picked on the street curb. Best flow pattern. Everything else - as usual.


Seems, all.

Permanent problems, requiring solutions:

1. Flow pattern, suitable for corals, conflicts with high flow, required to keep food floating and, later, be picked by filtration.

2. Flow makes unusable the significant part of the tank. What increases size of the tank and amount of water for water changes.
Ideally, it would be good to make something, like brandon429's pico.

3. Skimmers are not helping too much with cleaning water. Why? Could be daytime only skimming - one have to sleep, an this tank is in the sleeping/living room.

4. Place for a hard glass cleaning - corals have to be away from the glass for ~2"(5 cm).

Wishful thinking:

1. Reduce size of the tank and water changes, without giving away corals
2. Automatize feeding and on-off filtration (usual timer can't turn off one pump and start another, one device only).
3. Totally unreal one: put high light and no light corals in one tank (20g Xtra high, as 2 10g tanks, put one over another, have this standing empty). IMHE, flow and restricted access to cleaning makes this impossible.

Anyway, have to simplify, downsize and get my (non-aquartistic) life back...

[Purple Penguins]

wow I love your tanks and the idea of a non photsynthetic tank your diodogorgia gorgonian is amazing (caught the drool before it hit the keyboard) if you have to give away corals feel free to send a frag of that one my way

[sunfishh]

Thanks for the info. Your tank(s) are great and best off all the idea is fresh

[dendro982]

Actually, some people kept non-photosynthetic tanks with good results, only hard to locate detailed information, especially for nano-tanks.

Some links of interest:
cryptic zone pico by brandon429
I wouls like to achieve the density of the corals, like in Brandon's picos
Larger tank, it works, a lot of useful information: Jens Kallmeyer
Long thread about NPS keeping, large tanks, somehow scattered information, but a good place to start: D. study group
Another, medium-sized setup
Way to attach fuge and skimmer to Nano-Cube , thread . More slim and good-looking version of what I'm doing, more expensive too
GARF:
tank setup description
feeding
gorgonians

Good article on Deepwater Reef Tank

More:



and don't forget a sun coral - a good way to start:

[Kreeger1]

nice tanks man

[dendro982]

Thanks for a kind words!
Who is keeping non-photosynthetic corals - post here links to your tanks or to the useful information, for all of us.

[Kreeger1]

Here's a few pics from my older tank, everything is now in a 360 gal tank I'll get some new pics of the tank soon.

[JamesJR]

very interesting!

[dendro982]

Kreeger1:
Wow! I wasn't able to keep Dendronephthya - it melts withing days, but both were not in their prime.

What are corals on your photos? Correct me:
Dendronephthya hemprichii, red dendro, purple lemnalia (mine had white polyps) or neospongoides, sun coral or Dendrophyllia (or both) above it, never seen like this orange with white polyps - but had white lemnalia with the same coarse trunk sclerites, red gorgonian - what is the thickness of branches? My Elisella(?) looks like miniature, 1mm branches, but with same two rows of polyps.

Do you have a detailed thread or website?

I'm looking for ideas how to:
1 - keep food suspended for a long time,
2 - do you turn filtration off during feeding, manually or not,
3 - what kind of filtration you have, skimmer particularly,
4 - how strong light is for the purple lemnalia or neospongoides, anything particular about it's keeping. Mine had trunk rot and liked bright light,
5 - what kinds of scleros do you know, everything particular about their keeping, comparing to others NPS corals. I had the pink one, but bright orange and more pale yellowish seems to be more resistant;
6 - are you keeping chili coral?

I would like to know the other keepers experiences, tips, observations. Maybe I could pick something to improve mine