New pics 35 year old reef - Page 2

Paul B · #26 02/10/2006, 01:33 PM

Boxfishpooalot, there is a thread about the tank on here and there is an article about the history of the tank maybe on the same post. I can answer a few of those things. As for schedules, I have none. I do things when I get the time. I change about 1/4 of the water about 5 times a year, I use ASW in the winter and NSW in the summer. The gravel which is dolomite has been in the tank almost 40 years, since it was a brackish tank. I use a reverse UG filter and I disturb it a few times a year by using a diatom filter and powerwashing the gravel where I can reach and the rocks. I have a home made 5' skimmer with ozone and I collect macro algae locally in NY and put that in in the summer. I only dose calcium with kalk and Kent two part. I feed all the animals with a thing that is something like a turkey baster only larger. I feed live black worms that I first feed with Selcon, and I also feed frozen plankton, mysis and clams. To the moorish Idol I give frozen sponge that I also collect locally in the summer. Once a week I soak flake food in cod liver oil and feed. In the summer I also collect a lot of amphipods and anything else I can collect in the mud under rocks on a beach and dump it in. All of the rock I either collected myself or built from concrete. Thats about it.
Have a great day.
Paul
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=284686

Crusty Old Shellback · #27 02/10/2006, 01:48 PM

Happy B-Day to your tank Paul. Glad to see it's still going as for some of us, it's an Insperation. Also gald to see your still sharing your knowledge that you've gained over all the years.

Anything new in the upcoming future your going to try?

Paul B · #28 02/10/2006, 02:09 PM

Hi Chevy, I figured you would come by to say hi.
I have nothing new that you don't know about. I have still been experimenting with soaking flakes in cod liver oil once a week because fish eat other whole fish and we don't ususlly feed whole fish every day I figured I would give some of the vitamin they are missing. I think it would also cure HLLE but I don't have a test subject and I have no reem for a hippo tang guinni pig.
I rebuilt the algae trough to be more presentable, I may write an article for "Aquarium Fish Magazine" It is working well. I have to rebuild my PC light. It sits at the front of the tank just above the water and it swings back for maintenance but it is all bent and warped from heat so I will have to build a new one. The moorish Idol is still eating from his dish and is doing well.
The orders for my seahorse feeder keep coming in but I stopped building them this year, no time, I sold over 6000 of them.
My kalk stirrer is new. It is in a 4" wide acrylic tube, I found a slow servo moter that turns a plexiglass vane. Works real well.
How have you been? Did you get a moorish Idol yet? When are you visiting? I don't think that in all the years that I have this tank anyone (except Bob Goemans) has ever come to see it.
I can't have a fish conversation with anyone. Anyway.
Take care and thanks cor visiting.
Paul

Paul B · #29 02/10/2006, 02:12 PM

Oh and Chevy I forgot. I found a way to keep live black worms alive and make them grow to almost three inches. I keep them in a small tank with some airation and feed them "Selcon" and some vitamins twice a day. Big difference. They can suck up a lot of Selcon.
And Boxfishpooalot. I found four more fish that I forgot about. There is a purple psudo and three more gobies.
Paul

Crusty Old Shellback · #30 02/10/2006, 02:21 PM

Sounds like you've been keeping busy. I'd like to read the article when you write it. Sounds interesting.

Interesting idea on the HLLE. I've actually got a canadite for you. Just don't know how to ship him as he's big. I've got a large sailfin that got some really bad amoina burn when he was shipped over. Too big of a fish in too little water. He now has HLLE that is a result of this. He's been doing fine though for years so it hasen't affected him. Might have to try it out.

I haven't got an idol as of yet. The room is still not done and so I haven't moved the tank yet. I just finished building a calc reactor for it but I'm still doing some leak testing on it. Plus I've got to go and get about 10 lbs of ARM to fill it with.

I'd love to head out that way for a visit sometime. Don't know when but I'll definatly give you a jingle when I do. Same for you if you head this way.

I'm hoping to be finshed pouring self leveling concrete in the room this weekend. Then I can put in the floor and have the permits signed off. That's when the real fun will start as that's when I get to tear down the"pool" and move it. Should be fun. Look for updates on my thread in the coming months.

Paul B · #31 02/10/2006, 03:52 PM

Chevy, sounds like fun. Tonight we are supposed to get a foot of snow so I am going out to start up the snow blower, no sense tuning it up in a blizzard.
You should try the vitamin A. I used it years ago on a french angel and cured the thing. If the fish is really scarred it may always be scarred though. I think the Vitamin A will stop the disease.
There is another article I would like you to read that I wrote about 5 years ago. The only problem is it's in Aquarium Fish Magazine and I don't have it on a disk. I really don't feel like typing the entire article so I will have to see if I can archive it on line somewhere.
Take care and enjoy the sunshine.
Paul

piercho · #32 02/10/2006, 04:20 PM

Quote:

I feed live black worms

Is this a nematode culture? Thanks.

Paul B · #33 02/10/2006, 04:44 PM

Howard, no these are not nematodes. These are black worms. They are very common in pet shops in NY. They look like tubifex worms but about twice as big.
Paul

waterfaller1 · #34 02/10/2006, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul B
PaulZ, pipefish are very hard to keep except for blue stripe pipe fish. They are not too easy to come by and I would like to get a couple more Paul

Amazing tank.You have to love and have respect for someone who has had a reeftank longer than most who do have been alive.

I would caution the addition of any more of the bluestripes unless you can get a good closeup look at the two you have. You either lucked out and got a pair,or have a couple females. Males will fight to the death. I have a little experience with them..in case you don't know..the male has very small bumps along his nose that the female does not. I have also found the males to be more vibrant in color than the females. Good luck..and keep up the good work.

fishman805 · #35 02/10/2006, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul B
I also hatch and feed brine shrimp every two days. They probably can get by without them but I built a very easy shrimp hatchery where it just about does it by itself. They eat them like crazy.

Paul

Paul

I'm wondering if you could share with me your design on the hatchery... I'm wanting to have a ready supply to feed my tanks without spending alot of money for a commercial version... You can PM the directions or design to me and it would be greatly appreciated....

Bob

Ocicat · #36 02/10/2006, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Paul B
Boxfishpooalot, there is plenty of light in there, 300 watts of MH and about 150 watts actinic. I take the pictures with no flash so it may look dark and I shield the back of the tank from light because I like the look.

How do you shield the back from the light? I noticed how black the back looked and wondered if you just cleaned it regularly. I like the look very much; it makes it rather mysterious.

ProjectSeahorse · #37 02/10/2006, 05:09 PM

nice.. how i wish my tank is like that!

sunfishh · #38 02/10/2006, 07:58 PM

I love your tank paul. Everytime I see it I get fired up

Thanks for the inspiration.

swclown · #39 02/10/2006, 08:14 PM

1972?!!??!
Most people on here weren't even born!!!

UGF?!?!?! Wow. When I first started SW about 15 years ago I tried a UGF and was quickly advised to get rid of it. Nice to see someone make it work well.

How do you administer the vitamin A?

nice work

Stefan

tplummer · #40 02/10/2006, 10:34 PM

Man, you're old school. That's cool.

fishdoc11 · #41 02/10/2006, 11:08 PM

Looking good Paul

chirocato · #42 02/10/2006, 11:08 PM

Sweeeeeet bit of history you have there. Presently looking fantastic and best of luck to you in the future!

Paul B · #43 02/11/2006, 07:50 AM

This is going to be a lot of typing.
Waterfaller, thanks for the tip on the pipefish. I think they are a pair just by the way they stick together but they are real skinny and hard to get a good look at. I saw them in the store and they looked like a pair so I bought them.

Bob, the hatchery is very simple. You can use a small tank, like one gallon or a smaller plastic container, mine is about the size of a quart of milk and about the same shape. Just put a black plexiglass barrier across the tank so it bisects it into two parts. Put a 3/8" hole in the center of the barrier and if you can, put a short clear plastic tube through it and glue it in. Now you have a container with two parts connected by a tube. Paint the outside of one of the compartments black. You also need something to close off the hole temporarilly. I made a sliding door but I guess you could stick a pencil eraser in it. It doesent have to be a water tight plug. You also need a black cover for the dark side. Thats it. Put some eggs into the dark side with the tube plugged and give a little airation to that side. In two days the eggs hatch.
Cover the dark side and open the plug. Put the thing near a light and all the shrimp will swim through the tube to the light. All the shells will stay on the dark side. Put the plug back in and such out the shrimp with a turkey baster of build it with a valve in it to remove the shrimp. Strain the water of shells, put more eggs back in, replace the water you removed with tank water and start over.
Ocicat, I used to have a piece of plywood hanging down just behind the MH lights almost touching the water, now I have an algae trough the entire length of the tank in the bach just at the water surface. The tank is built in a wall and I keep the lights off behind it. Nothing grows on the back because it is dark.

Project Seahorse, give it a few more decades, it will look anyway you like.

Sunfishh, thanks, no one ever told me they get fired up looking at my tank. They get fired up at me for other things though.

Stefan, people just don't know about UGFs, they fell out of favor because people try to use them the way we used them on fresh water tanks and they won't work like that for long on a reef. I found that you have to run it in reverse with a sponge on the intake and I run it very slow, 50 gph down each tube. A nd a few times a year you have to stir up where you can reach.
I give the vitamin A by putting a drop of it in a small container of seawater and shaking it up. Float some flake food on it. It will soak up the vitamin and stay with the food because it really does not mix with water. Just dump it in. It will create a small oil slick and your skimmer will not work for a few hours. I have been doing this for many years with no problem.
And I know a lot of the people here were not born yet, I can tell because they don't use UGFs. (just kidding)

Tplummer. When this hobby started in about 1971 all salt tanks were run this way. UG filters was the only way to go. How many reefs with other types of filtration systems are over ten years old? Old school is not always bad. I have been doing this over fifty years and I learned a few things that work, and a whole lot of things that don't work.

Thomas and Cato, thank you for the compliment.

Have a great day.
Paul

sunfishh · #44 02/11/2006, 10:45 AM

Bump
More people need to see this reef

swclown · #45 02/11/2006, 10:50 AM

Simply awesome

Paul B · #46 02/11/2006, 12:49 PM

Sunfishh, it has been on here for over three years, I think everyone has seen enough of it. It was also in "Marine Fish Monthly" magazine about ten years ago.

It was so easy before the internet, there was nothing to compare your tank to so it evelved on it's own. I think the internet is the reason why so many reefs look alike.
But, some of you guys have some really nice tanks.

swclown, thanks.
Paul

I don't remember if this picture was on or not, if it was, close your eyes.
I was trying to get that pipe fish but he is so small I am having trouble

Paul B · #47 02/13/2006, 07:16 AM

asphaltpilot, You should like this picture, It's New York City

Asphalt

And the same piece a few years ago.

Crusty Old Shellback · #48 02/13/2006, 10:19 AM

Hey Paul, Hope the blower worked ok for you.

Me, well the mrs. and I went out and enjoyed the sun yesterday. Took a nice ride thru the mountains on the bike.

If you can tell me what issue of AFM the article is in, I can search thru my stack of them and see if I can find it. I probably read it already but I didn't have this fish at the time. Maybe it's time to reread some of the old articles.

Keep up the good work and enjoy.

Paul B · #49 02/13/2006, 06:16 PM

Chevy, I made a mistake, it is in "Marine Fish Monthly" April 2000 issue on page 37. I doubt you have it. I also have articles in "Aquarium Fish Monthly" but I don'r even remember what they were about.
Also we got the most snow that we ever got since they starting to keep records. There was about 2 1/2 feet in front of my house. I have a corner property so I had a lot of snowblowing to do. The thing broke just as I finished. I broke the pulley that turns the vanes to throw the snow so when I get time I have to take the entire machine apart to get to it. I may have to weld it. It's a big machine and its 27 years old.
Anyway, Did you try my black worm growing system yet. I am embelishing on it and trying to feed them diferent things to see how fat I can get them.
Take care.
Paul

Crusty Old Shellback · #50 02/14/2006, 10:03 AM

You mean you have a snow blower thats almost as old as your tank?

Your right though, I don't have that one. But I do have some AFM's from back in the 70's

I don't feed black worms at the moment but may try some in the future. Still spending most of my time trying to just keep the big tank going while I finish off the new room. Then I can get it all moved and really start to tweak it and set it up the way I want. For now, I'm just trying to keep everyone in the tank happy.

Good luck on fixing that thing. Better get it done before the next snow hits. It's been warm here lately but today the temps are droping again back down into to 60's.