Bored =Pics

[jbarone]

It's been almost a year since I started my first Reef.
Some trial and error, a large flatworm infestation (since eradicated) and more reading than I've done in my entire life.

I think I'm starting to get it.
















More reading to do....

[Shooter7]

Nice pics.

[levon15]

Why the sand piles on each end of the tank ?

[Shooter7]

Cleaner shrimp does skateboarding.

[jbarone]

Originally posted by levon15
Why the sand piles on each end of the tank ?

After I rid the tank of the flatworms I re-scaped the tank. I moved the sand to the sides to remove it. The right side is already out. Next week the left will go. I'm only going with about a 1/2" of sand.

Strangely it created a good circular flow through the tank.

[d.french]

nice pics, got they same light but 72", very nice setup

[jbarone]

Originally posted by d.french
nice pics, got they same light but 72", very nice setup

Thanks...I just changed out the 10K's for a pair of Hamilton 14K's.
I'm much happier with the color and the corals are doing much better. The 10's were just too much. The growth in the last two weeks has been crazy.


JB

[McBeck]

Nice pics - how did you get rid of the FWs?

[jbarone]

Originally posted by McBeck
Nice pics - how did you get rid of the FWs?

My tank was heavily infested. I eradicated my flatworms over the course of a few weeks.

Note - For every flatworm you can see there is a 1000 you can't!!

First I started by making up plenty of fresh salt water matching my tanks parameters. (90 gallons) I installed filter socks on my overflow to the sump, output of the skimmer, and return pump bypass. These socks need to be changed every 3 days or less. Then I would remove one large rock to a bucket of salt water and add the flatworm exit. When they were dead I would move the rock to another bucket of fresh saltwater and treat it again. After I was sure they all were gone I would then move the rock to my sump witch had no flatworms in it. I did this, a couple of rocks a day, until my sump was about full of rock.

Then I treated the remaining rocks the same way one rock at a time from tank to the first bucket then the next bucket then into a holding tub with a heater and power head. Corals were treated the same way using a separate series of tubs. When the buckets or tubs I was treating the rocks in became too loaded with dead worms I would replace the water and continue. As the water level in the tank would get low from removing the rocks I would add more fresh salt water. When the tank was empty of rock and corals I removed any worms from the glass and sand with airline tubing attached to a dowel rod. The tubing ran to a bucket with a filter sock on the end to catch the worms. Then I would re-add that water back to the tank. Once I could no longer see any worms left I dosed the tank. After 20-30 minutes I ran carbon in a canister filter for an hour. Then I drained enough water to add all the rock back in. After I was finished. I did a 30% water change. I lost nothing. In fact the tank has never looked better. I did some much needed aquascaping and have not seen a flatworm since.

It was a lot of work but well worth it not to lose any of the fish or corals.

The lesson I learned was to never introduce anything to the tank without QT!!

[akrimmel]

nice job

[McBeck]

Thanks for the info. I'm going to be doing this on the small tank in the near future. I was planning on doing the "dunk & swish" in a series of buckets, but I think it will be MUCH easier for me b/c there are only 5 rocks in this tank.