Bored - Pictures of my dirty 50g (Don't Laugh)

[Super NooB]

I was bored tonight so I decided to take some pictures of my dirty 50g. My tank is scratched pretty bad and I didn't clean the glass first. You will also notice the Cyano outbreak on the sand, but it is 100 times better than it was a month ago.

Pictures were taken with a $100 digital camera from Best Buy. A magnifying glass was used on some of the pics. Some of the photos may seem dark because I am trying to work out the ISO balance.

Anyway - Enjoy

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Anemone.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Leather2.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Leather1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/CarpetZoo2.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Aquascape1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/CarpetZoo1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Ric1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Ric2.jpg

[Super NooB]

Some more because it cut me off:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/TankShot3.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Zoo1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/TankShot2.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/TankShot1.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/Ric3.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c304/ReefNoob/RicRock1.jpg

[john37]

your false percs dont host in your carpet anemone?

[Super NooB]

No, that would be asking way too much of them. They would rather host in everything else BUT the carpet.

[tabndust]

great looking tank, love the mushrooms

[raskal311]

wow thats a nice carpet you got there.

[s13silvia]

tank is lookin good mike, cyano should die off in time and i agree with the others, that carpet is a nice one

[bugsy714]

lookin' good! Like Nam said, the cyno will eventually go away (new tank syndrome) and the coralline will take over. Some added flow works wonders for killing off cyno and some red-tipped hermits will eat/sift it away.

That carpet looks like it could pull you in! I bet that thing is super sticky

Awesome job!

[Super NooB]

Thank you for the compliments guys.

You know I am worred - The cyano happened after I switched from my old hex to this tank back in August. Now I am planning on getting a 60 cube this X-mas and I am worried that I am going to have to suffer another 3 months of Cyano. Is there anyway around this? When I switched in August I replaced the entire sand bed so I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

[Bugs]

Forget about the dirty tank... Nice collection of corals. The blue carpet is nice... How much did you get it for and where if you don't mind?

[Super NooB]

I got the carpet for a steal actually. Dang I forgot the name of the store though, it was Window to the Sea I think... is that the store thats in the Arcadia area? I got it back in August. It was owned by someone else for 2 years and they had to get rid of it for some reason so the store was selling it for him. I got it for like $60.

I was worried cuz everyone told me how tempremental (sp?) they are but that thing dug in right where I thought he should go and has actually grown. I feed it every 1.5 week a nice sized silverside.

[bugsy714]

Some phosban/rowaphos will help the cyno. Also a larger skimmer or more frequent cleanings (weekly hot water in air intake tube & clean cup) will work wonders.

Cutting back on food helps, as well as a fuge with chaeto or a chaeto ball in the back of the display

And last but not least-lots of flow. It makes the coralline grow much faster and stunts the cyno

It will come together with time :D

[Bugs]

Mike, thanks for the info...

[Super NooB]

Quick Questions:

phosban/rowaphos: are these additives that I would put in a porous bag somewhere in the sump? Is it safe?

Cleaning the air intake for the skimmer, does this help? Do I just rinse it out?

I was reading somwhere that people clean their pumps/ph's with vinegar. Is this true?

Thanks guys

[kusanagiz]

reiterating that the blue carpet is really nice.

I like the effect of the light on the left side and shadow on the right side for the 2nd pic you posted. Reminds me of sunlight breaking through some tree leaves in a mystical setting. :lol:

[Super NooB]

I remember now, I got the carpet from Anthony at Passion of the Sea off of the 60 and Nogales.

[coralGoodie]

Nice tank! How old is it? I also have a problem with cyano. My tank is 9 months old. How long does before it goes away?

[Super NooB]

I have had my tank for 1 year as of August. It used to be a hex tank if you look at my gallery the old pictures are in there. I switched it to a rect. tank this last August. That is when the Cyano started. I think it is because I completely replaced the sand bed, the lighting is more intenseon the sand since the tank is half the height, and my flow is different as I try to figure out the best placement of powerheads. Atleast those are my thoughts on it.

It was really bad late august-mid october but it has recently started going away. I think whatever it is feeding on is depleting or something.

Thanks for the compliments.

[Super NooB]

I adjusted my flow and lighting schedule 2 weeks ago... cyano almost gone... thanks for advice.

[s13silvia]

post up some new pics man!

[narcist21]

SuperNoob- What did you adjust your lighting schedule to? I'm having the same problem and looking for solutions. Thanks!

[Kurt448]

Quick Questions:

phosban/rowaphos: are these additives that I would put in a porous bag somewhere in the sump? Is it safe?

Cleaning the air intake for the skimmer, does this help? Do I just rinse it out?

I was reading somwhere that people clean their pumps/ph's with vinegar. Is this true?

Thanks guys


I would recomend you use the phosban...what it is, is a type of media(granular feric oxide...I believe) that helps soak up phosphates and silicates in your system. The biggest word of caution here is to start slow. I have noticed in tanks that have very high amounts of PO4 and Si that the sudden use of these products can cause a dramatic clearing of the water and the corals can bleach. In any case, it is always good to start slow. For your tank you can just put 1 cup of the stuff into a 300 micron filter bag and throw it into a low flow area in your sump. High flow will grind the media together making it pretty much congeal into a nice big, hard, useless ball.

Cleaning the air intake of your skimmer is particularly helpful for those who have a lot of salt spray that impedes the air flow of the venturi. Regardless it would probably be good to clean it out once a week as mentioned earlier just to ensure your skimmer is as efficient as possible.

Also about the vinegar, it is great for removing thick calcium build up that usually develops around the impeller of powerheads. This is due to the heat generated from the impeller and the fact that for some reason the calcium is attracted to the heat. Hence why you see calcium buildup on heaters. Just buy regular white vinegar from the store and when you clean out your pumps just throw the impeller and anything else you want to clean in either pure vinegar or you can dilute it with water to conserve vinegar. HTH.

Nice tank btw, certainly nothing to laugh at.