120 Reef Office Build (75 upgrade) - Page 5

dougie · #**101** 09/28/2006, 09:00 AM

your tank just gets better and better my friend!!! keep up the good work.

Cheers.

Bax · #**102** 09/28/2006, 09:11 AM

Thanks dougie

Bax · #**103** 09/30/2006, 09:28 AM

Yieks!

Saw some pieces of nudibrach floating around! One of them must have found the VorTech again and was not as lucky as the first one that passsed right through unharmed.

I doubt that the nudis are doing as good a job as all the snails I have, but my hair algae is slowly receeding, slowly, but there is a little less each day.

Bax · #**104** 10/01/2006, 07:39 PM

My heniochus in my QT died. No apparent reason? It was fine yesterday when I stopped in to feed. But today, it was dead on the bottom.

It had been feeding well from the start. It was getting nice and fat, and looking really good.

Something must have been wrong.

I guess this is why we QT.

It's is still sad

xtrstangx · #**105** 10/01/2006, 11:06 PM

Sorry to hear about the heniochus. They are beautiful fish. Was there a heater malfunction or something else caused an ammonia spike?

Bax · #**106** 10/02/2006, 04:28 PM

I have two heaters in the Qt, both seem to be working fine? My temp has dropped to about 79.7 in this cooler weather we've been having but that should be fine for a QT I would think.

I had just done a 10% water change on Friday evening before leaving work, so I don't think there was an Ammonia spike???

I am still just perplexed over this. The last fish to simply just die on me in QT was my very first SW fish, a kunderi cardinal. Other then that, my QT experience has been soild.

Rock Anemone · #**107** 10/02/2006, 05:25 PM

Beautiful tank! Congrats on a job well done.

Bax · #**108** 10/02/2006, 09:14 PM

Rock Anemone

Thanks so much

Bax · #**109** 10/03/2006, 07:49 PM

Well finally!

Something good to report from my QT!!!

I placed a rock, from the display, that was covered in the hair algae I am fighting into the QT. It sat there untouched for two weeks. Now, the mimic tang has developed a taste for it. He cleaned the first rock over the weekend, so I put in another yesterday. Today it was clean. So maybe, the mimic will be the steadfast algae grazer I was hoping for!

Dudester · #**110** 10/04/2006, 03:32 PM

Sorry to hear about your butterfly fish. I'm sure it's nothing you did wrong, especially in light of your successful history of quarantining. Those butterflies are, as I understand it, particularly susceptible to the stress of being placed into small tanks, as they cover a huge area in the ocean. I'd bet it's a combination of collection and quarantine stress that did it in.

Glad to see that the tang is doing a good job, sounds like it's a real pig for the hair algae. Looking forward to seeing it in your reef tank!

Bax · #**111** 10/05/2006, 07:31 AM

Dudster

Me too!

The Eibli mimic tang is really nice looking . This individual has great coloring. Which I know will change in time, but none the less it is really beautiful now. It is proving to be a solid algae eater as well.

I am going to be away all next week on an out of town job. So I will be moving the Tang this weekend as I fear my tank sitter might not be able to handle the stress of two tanks, particularly after just loosing the heniochus. It won't be the usual 5-6 week QT I like to do, but it will be just 3 weeks, and the Tang looks great, so I feel OK about moving it at that time.

I am trying to pick up some frags from another reefer this week (But work just keeps interfering with reefing!). I am real excited as the assortment will include about a half dozen ORA coral varieties. These would go in the fuge initially for grow out. That of course means I'll be changing the lighting in the fuge to accommodate a 175 MH in addition to the T-5 lighting I have over it now.

Bax · #**112** 10/14/2006, 10:37 AM

Just got back from a week on the road. Yikes! I have hair algae out the wazoo!

My CB has been giving the Eibli tang fits. That's not unusual for the CB who has had to warm up to all its tank mates but usually has. We'll see, it's only been a week so far.

.. Gotta go do lots of catch up tank maintenance.

Bax · #**113** 10/18/2006, 03:42 PM

... so ... after scraping algae from the front of the tank so I could see in, I had a slight ick problem. The tang, CB and heniocus butterfly were all in the initial phase with the CB in the worse shape. The clowns, blenny & orchid dottyback were all looking OK.

Did a water change.

Fired up the old UV sterilizer, that's just been siting under the display, unconnected, with a brand new bulb in it.

I had one blood shrimp that was pretty small and the fish were lining up for him. So, I bought another larger one.

Did another water change.

... after four days the ick outbreak seems to be diminishing, and, after cleaning the glass and doing a little siphoning the hair algae ins't much worse than it was when I left.

whew!

I think I got lucky!

This is the first time I have broken my QT program and I am feeling the pain! Never again!!!

... by the way the CB and the tang are best of buds now

Dudester · #**114** 10/20/2006, 08:43 AM

Glad things are improving. So how's the ich today, and are you manually pruning the GHA?

Bax · #**115** 10/20/2006, 02:37 PM

The ick is definitely looking better. I think the larger blood shrimp is more mature and less timid about cleaning fish, he works all day long like a barber shop. Even the CB who was definitely in the worst shape is looking much better now.

It's not gone. Not by any means. I think it has to run it's course of 2-3 weeks. Thankfullly, I am not that experienced with marine ick. I'd like to avoid the stress of catching and dipping & QTing fish if I can.

I've only been pruning the HA from around colonies and frags and from the glass. But I've been laying out an HA cultivating tool that will use a Kent scraper, old duck bill return port and some tubing. My plan is to scrape the HA and simultaneously siphon it right into a bag filter in my sump. I just have not had the time to mess with it this week. I have been doubling up on water changes and keeping after alk and such so hopefully I'll get control of the HA.

My nudis are still cruising the tank for algae ... although one is about half its original size, I belive that's due to a run in with the VorTech.

Bax · #**116** 10/22/2006, 07:22 AM

Stopped by the office yesterday to check on the tank and the D#!M UV sterilizer is tripping my GFI!

I won't have time to disconnect it or take it appart until mid week or so. I hope it's not taking on water past the seals, I just unplugged it for now.

Maybe a good excuse for a larger UV unit?

Bax · #**117** 10/27/2006, 08:03 AM

I am not having fun right now...

The tang died. Well, disappeared actually, assumed dead, been searching, but it is no where to be found.

Still have crazy hair algae. But I 've started harvesting it with a siphon tube so at least it looks a little better. The whole scrapper/siphon thingy was never completed, just too busy at work, so it's just a poly tube with a sharp cut end for scraping at the LR that empties into a bag filter in the sump, works OK.

And the ick is still pestering my other fish. They are holding their own, but I may have to bite the bullet and capture every one for a stay in QT.

... are we having fun yet?

Bax · #**118** 10/28/2006, 09:11 AM

..... Oh! and I have Red Bugs too, the joys of reef keeping are boundless!

Dudester · #**119** 10/28/2006, 04:18 PM

Sorry about the tang. You gonna use Interceptor on the red bugs? You should consider a check for AEFW while you're at it.

Bax · #**120** 10/28/2006, 04:56 PM

Dudester

Yes, I got some Interceptor from my vet this week. After reading of some of your problems, I have been looking out for AEFW but so far have seen no signs, I will do an Iodine test on the acros I treat for the RBs. I hope not to add the FWs to my growing list of reefing woes.

mflamb · #**121** 10/31/2006, 08:39 PM

Bax...I really like your rockwork. Keep plugging!!!
Mike

Bax · #**122** 11/01/2006, 08:29 AM

Thanks Mike, I am trying.

Lost my heniocus butterfly last night and I fear for my orchid dottyback as well. My other fish are hanging in there and, I think, will be fine.

I continue to harvest hair algae weekly, and I have yet to do the interceptor dip for my acros, still just too busy at work, maybe this weekend?

Bax · #**123** 11/08/2006, 06:53 AM

I think my battle with ick is now down to preventing a reemergence, at least I hope so.

To that end I just received a new 36 watt UV sterilizer that I will run with parasitic reduction in mind, nice and low flow. This should also help my hair algae situation which is still going strong.

I have been aggressively harvesting the HA and I have stepped up my water changes.

I also changed the light in my fuge as I realized that half my T-5 bulbs weren't lighting!? I pulled the T-5 fixture and set up a 175 MH for now until I can sort though that one?

I 've been skimming hard as well. But in doing so my ASM G-4x keep overflowing into the sump, sorta defeats the purpose no? So I've been backing off that skimmer until I can sort that out as well. My little ER ES 5-3 is still kicking but, love that skimmer!

My water params are all good, although I have seen a little nitrite/nitrate (not high though) since my eible tang was disappeared by my cleanup crew. That has stabilized with a few water changes.

... I just love this hobby!

STEELERFAN747 · #**124** 11/08/2006, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bax
I think my battle with ick is now down to preventing a reemergence, at least I hope so.

To that end I just received a new 36 watt UV sterilizer that I will run with parasitic reduction in mind, nice and low flow.

... I just love this hobby!

I thought you were not suppose to use a uv when you have a refugium? or am I mistaken?.

Bax · #**125** 11/09/2006, 07:25 AM

STELERFAN747

There's no one way to do it, but many systems here on RC have both. The discharge of the fuge should not be passed through the UV, that would be counter productive.

My fuge is fed by my return pump and the discharge drains back to the return chamber of my sump bypassing all other sump operations (i.e. main skimmer (ASM G4x), UV, Phosban reactor).

That said, during these early months of this tank, I am running a second skimmer (ES 5-3) in my fuge too. That's kind'a braking the rules too, but I think that for now, the benefits outway the drawbacks.