Build and Progress of my RSM Nano Tank

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 33 - Monday July 30th

Early morning: Woke early to unf88k these pumps... Air from the skimmer made the carbon bag to float. Then, the pump intakes swallowed the carbon bag, impeding the water flow.

I decided to place the carbon bag under the ceramic balls. Not sure if this is a good idea, but I supposed that ensuring proper water circulation was more important.

I left the tank under moonlights one more day.

Back from work at around 8pm, I cleant the glass and took that picture :



Snails are quite active and the Green Hairy Algea are receding. Good! Then I "tested the waters" again:

Nitrites: 0.1ppm
Nitrates : 15ppm

A spike of nitrites - not surprising after "hacking" in the filtration system.
But the good news is the nitrates level - almost good. ( I am assuming "good" is below 10 ) I did the nitrates test twice, could not believe it All these efforts have actually taken the nitrates level from around 150ppm down to 15ppm.

So here is the plan for the near future - probably tomorow night...

- One more day in the "dark" ( Or more??? Please advice! )
- Finish curing that last rock that I can easily take out the tank - the one in the middle layer, on the medium right.
- grab more algae by hand
- clean up mechanical filters
- syphoon out snail poop and detritus
- replace water removed in the process.

It seems like the tank is finally making good progress and thanks every one for continuous good advice.

[michaelaz]

Good news for sure. Looks like corraline on the rocks so things are looking up !!

[GDESQUIRE]

Looking better. Get out as much as the hair algae as possible even if it means moving some of the rocks. When you are done w/ this pita part, you will be well on your way.

[Reefmack]

Sounding much better Laurent! Looks like you did a good job of getting off a lot of that hair algae. You may as well leave it under moonlights another day or two, and just put the T5s on if you work in the tank & need to see what you're doing. 10-20 nitrates is not that bad at all - I've been running 10-15, but haven't checked in a while, and I've read people with aged tanks often run 30+. The goal is zero but I'm not sure how many people ever reach that level. I'm starting to wonder on the nitrate test accuracy also, based on something josh&jana said in the club thread. He gets 10 nitrates with his test, and his lfs gets 0 nitrates. Achieving 0 measurable nitrates may be related more to the test kit used, rather than reality.

That was strange on the carbon bag floating - I'd never seen that one. No idea if putting the carbon under the ceramic media is good, bad, or makes no difference.

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 34 - Tuesday July 31st

- Executed all planned "tasks" listed above along with a 5 gallons water change. ( ~15% ) Syphooning out debris takes a lot of water!

After about one hour...

- Tested nitrites: Zero. Finally!
- Tested nitrates: Still at 15ppm, somewhere between light pink and darker pink... No change, and I am a bit disappointed: I was hoping for some improvement of that front too after all my "efforts". However, Nitrates tests are notoriously imprecise.. So maybe last time was 20, and now 15 is better...

Also:

- Still plenty of bug-like pods.
- All snails very active. Fun to watch.
- Cyano almost completely gone. Astrea are eating what's left.
- The tank overall looks better: Clearer water, whiter sand.
- Still plenty of bubbles.
- A fifth little feather duster in the same area as his older brothers. Are they multiplying or is he(she) a hitchhiker???

The plan is now to gradually increase lighting, watch water parameters and possibly introduce more snails this weekend.

[Reefmack]

Hi Laurent - wahooooo on the 0 nitrites! Yep siphoning takes a lot of water. Siphoning is the easy part - it's preparing the water and SW that's the biggest time comsumer. On the feather dusters - I still find new little ones that I hadn't seen before and I'm not sure where they come from - multiplying or if they were just dormant in the rock.

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 35 - Wednesday August 1st - Around 7pm

Nitrites: 0.05ppm
Nitrates : 15ppm

Added 5 more Ceriths and 5 more Nassarius: the cleanup crew is now complete.

Talked to the LFS guy: He said that these little Feather Dusters do reproduce in tanks. Very hardy animals indeed.

Also cleanup mechanical filters.

Still some green algae as you can see on the picture below:

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 36 - Thursday August 2nd - Around 11pm

Little to report tonight, tested the water and cleant the white pad.

Nitrites: 0.1ppm
Nitrates : 20ppm

Numbers slightly on the rise... Especially nitrites...

Do I need yet another big cleaning day???
Green hairy algae is receding and maybe polluting the water?

[michaelaz]

IMHO you have to ditch that white pad, your numbers should get better, I tried the white pad 1 time, after a weekend away my numbers spiked and tank looked bad.

I use chemipure elite bottom of my ph's and crack my skimmer lid open, it makes perfect foam and and all my numbers are spot on.

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 37 - Friday August 3rd - Around 10pm

- Tank is now only lit 6 hours per day. The green stuff is clearly receding.
- Cyano is gone.
- Cured smal rocks that I can easily take out the tank: Three small ones with decaying algae on them.
- Grabbed more green algae by hand: It goes away easily now.
- Syphooned out algae, snail poop and detritus.
- Replaced water removed in the process: About 7 gallons, that's 20%.

- Will test water after a little while, later tonight...

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 37 - Friday August 3rd - Around 11pm

Nitrites: below 0.05ppm, but not zero
Nitrates : below 20ppm, maybe 18.5478???

Not bad, not ugly, but was hoping better... I am probably due to another round of cleaning and curing next week before introducing any livestock.

This hobby is definitely a lesson: Patience, patience, patience... is a virtue. Now I know.

[Reefmack]

Hi Laurent. Patience is a virtue but it sure isn't easy to practice! Things are sounding better every day. I wonder if you should get a second test kit for nitrites - you might find you have none.

Were you just joking on the 18.5478 nitrate reading?

[GrandeGixxer]

This is exactly why I am so glad I went with dead rock and seeded with a few pieces of live. I had no die off to keep the cycle going. The tank is looking a lot better though.

[macro]

hey laurent, some stuff i found to work with the cycle . no lights for a week.you have no live stock so its fine.and direct your flow on the rocks.poor water movment will allow it to grow more.

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 38 - Saturday August 4th - Around 11am

Quickly checked the water:

Nitrites: Close to zero
Nitrates : Around 15ppm

Macro: Yes, I have kept lighting to minimum this last week. That helped a lot with getting rid of the green algae. As a temp fix, I have placed my water mixing pump on the right side of the tank. I will follow most RSM owners recommendation and soon add a Koralia #1 on the right. I did not add it at the beginning because of the eyesore, but I understand now that it is necessary.

GrandeGixxer: Very interesting. I have done quite a lot of reading before starting the tank and never saw that option mentionned.

Reefmack: Yes, I was joking with my nitrate reading. These color tests are very imprecise. Amount of water in the test tube, big drop or small drop of reagent, interpretation of the color, influence of temperature, pH, other ions in the water, etc, etc... I tested a while ago my newly made saltwater for nitrates and nitrites for reference. Current nitrites level is still not the green tint I got.

Leaving for the weekend: next update probably on Monday night

Thanks all for reading and continuous advice.

[LaurentSeattle]

Day 40 - Monday August 6th - Around 6pm

Little to report tonight, tested the water:

Nitrites: 0.1ppm
Nitrates: Too lazy to check...

This cycle will never end...

The green hairy algae is receding everywhere, probably decaying in the water. I guess I need yet another big Spring Cleaning session. Maybe tomorrow.

[Reefmack]

Sure the cycle will end! Hopefully very soon!

[LaurentSeattle]

This algae, macroalgae? - has survived many cleaning sessions and light starvation for about a week. Could you help with ID'ing it? Thanks



Good? "Kinda" decorative, gently moving in the current...

Bad? Should I try to eradicate?

[Colerphon]

All I can say is wow!! That is a lot of headache. To be honest I would've just taken the rock out and let it dry up on the back porch while the water and the substrate developed. I would have just left the lights off completely. You dont need lights for snails. After your rock is bone white I would put it back in and forgot about it for another month. Im sure this is dificult to do now, especially because you really want it to pay off, and you have already done all this work. But sometimes you just gotta buckle. I had a SERIOUS problem like yours one year when I left a tank to neglect. (long story) I tried to bring it out and it was next to impossible. So I broke the tank down and started over. I let the rocks dry to bone white, and now today I have a nice tank with no problems. You might want to try this.

-Tommy

[macro]

Dead rock is a good way to go.Thats what i did for my 2.5 it still works as a sponge thats why its used with coral.Pic that crap off and put it in the sun for a couple of weeks or until dry.The rock will be lighter and looks nice with actinics.

also do a complete salt change as said above .and get some Queen conchs for the future .

[Reefmack]

Hi Laurent. I think the algae may be bryopsis:

http://melevsreef.com/id/bryopsis.html

I doubt you'll be drying out your rock at this stage, after the improvements you've made. If you can get one try a sea hare - the one I had ate everything, and I was amazed how quickly it took care of that stuff and other types of algae. My lawnmower blenny will never eat that stuff for some reason. The only problem with the sea hares is that they eventually starve. I had one about 4 inches long for a while and was really impressed with the job he did - much better than snails or crabs, and much quicker. I had a few small patches of that stuff last week & took a toothbrush to it - it's impossible to get it all off by picking it off with your fingers.

[LaurentSeattle]

Thanks all but I will not start over the tank.

It looks like the algae is receding, decaying, causing a spike of nitrites. However, the tank nitrates level is relatively low. Hence I believe that I am on the right track.

Hopefully one more cleaning and a significant water change and the tank will finish the cycle.

[Bri Guy]

Coming along very nicely, now start the fun stuff, fish and corals!

I think your tank has passed the cycle and then some.

Good Luck!

[lpsluver]

Originally posted by Reefmack
Hi Laurent. I think the algae may be bryopsis:

Laurent...If this is bryopsis than do what you can, now, to get rid of it . It is a scourge, grows quickly and, from what I've read, there aren't many things that will eat it.

[Colerphon]

I was reading in one of the other forums about people using horseshoe crabs to clean their tanks. They said that it was better than emerald crabs, or any other type of cleaner crew normally implemented. All I can say is good luck. I applaud your stick to it attitude. I have seen many give up right about this point. Soon you shall enjoy the benefits of your own lil box of ocean. Then when you look back you can laugh, not to mention knowing what not to do next time.