My first tank. 11 months old. 55gal

newreefinsc

Reefing newb
This is my first tank. When I get the old pictures on this computer, I will post them. It is drastically different from where I started. My local aquarium is owned by a great guy who really helped me make it through the first few months.
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The flame angel tested the corals at first, but she leaves them alone now. She is, however aggressive towards the firefish, maybe because of the color.
I thought the tank matured quickly, also, but I wasn't sure since I haven't seen many privately owned tanks. I can tell a fairly long story about how I progressed through the first year, if anyone wants to hear it. I did a lot of things that most literature tells you not to do. The aquarium owner where I buy my corals has been a tremendous help and I couldn't have done it without him. I think most of the success can be attributed to 80lbs of live rock from existing coral tanks, (started with 50, then redecorated), the Aqua C Remora, and the Alkalinity/Calcium additives from ESV.
For instance, I had my elegance coral in the tank 6 weeks after it was built, and it has flourished. I'm proud of the tank, and love to tell the story, so if you guys want a step by step, I would be glad to tell, but I don't want to bore anyone.
 
how did you avoid the hair algae and diatom outbreak? Looks like you don't have a speck of algae in that tank. Mine is 11 months old as well and is riddled with algae =( Do you run a sump or refugium?
 
The tank is entirely hang on. I have had a big problem with diatom. If you look at the picture from the side, you can see it on the front glass.
OK, I had always been fascinated by saltwater tanks, so when I decided I wanted one, I bought every book I could and studied for 2 months before I bought one. I thought I wanted an FO, so that's why I have so many fish.
The first LFS I went to had a complete saltwater starter tank for $675. I thought great! Nowhere near as expensive as I thought. It had salt, 20lbs of sand, a hydrometer, Emperor 300 power filter, and a heater. What else could you need, right? I bought the tank plus 20lbs base rock and 30lbs of rock that he let me pick from his well established coral tank. I went home, added the rock and sand, mixed the water, put the heater in, then went back the next day and bought a clownfish. I'm embarassed to tell you this, but I took him home, floated him for 30 mins., then dropped him into an uncycled, freshly mixed tank. He zoomed from side to side in that tank until eventually swimming on his side, barely moving. He was like that when I went to bed, and I was sure he would be dead the next morning. Amazingly he made it. He is the little fellow you see with the elegance coral.
Now that I had a new tank, I started looking in the yellow pages for other LFS. I went to see the only one that was open on Sunday. I picked out a flame angel and yellow tang that I wanted. While he was gathering the bags, he started asking me about my tank. After I told him how new it was, he wouldn't sell me the fish. We ended up speaking for over an hour that first day, and he told me that a tank could be set up faster than most people think if you do it right, but I wasn't doing it right.
This guy had tanks of some of the most amazing things I had ever seen. I didn't know a thing about corals at the time, but I fell in love instantly. When I saw the corals, I asked him how long before I could put those in? He said the books say 12-18 months, but you can start as soon as 2 weeks after the cycle if your water is set up right. He introduced me to the two part B-ionic supplement, and told me to start dosing the tank right away. When my calcium maintained at 400+, I would be ready.
He told me about protein skimmers, but his was too expensive. Why would I buy a $300 dollar Aqua C when the first LFS had a sea clone for $110.
I went back to the first LFS and bought the sea clone. I also started shopping at both places. I wanted to fill the tank so badly that I would buy different things at different times from both dealers, because I was too embarassed to let them know I was loading the tank so quickly. Everything you see in my tank was in there within 6 weeks, except for a few corals.
Now, you know what happened next. Algae explosions, first diatom, then red slime. Ick was rampant. Nothing died, but everything was stressed. I went back to the second LFS and told him I would do whatever he said.
I bought the Aqua C and saw an immediate improvement that day. He told me to get a UV sterilizer to help with disease control, and I did that. I bought 3 skunk cleaners and a fire shrimp (it just looked so cool!). It took a few weeks, but the ick went away with the help of medicated food. I still had horrible red slime algae all over the tank. He told me about phos-lok. That made a huge difference within days. I also bought a diamond gobie to stir the sand. That helped, and gave the sand a much more natural appearance, although he does have a tendency to bury the zoas.
Those first few months were a nightmare. I did everything wrong, and worked myself to death trying to manage every daily crisis. About 3 months later, I noticed that I was actually sitting down and watching the tank when I got home, not scrambling to keep it from exploding. After about 6 months, I started to notice the corraline algae starting to go. It has really taken off in the last 2 months. I made a lot of mistakes, but I learned a lot of lessons. I'm more fascinated with my tank every day. I'm very proud of it, and love showing it off. I just wish it was 200 gallons larger.
My favorite change in the tank was my decision to add 30lbs more live rock. I'm much more happy with the mound than the wall with holes I had.
Also, I wish I had learned more before buying the equipment. I have over $4000 in the tank (including fish, rock, and corals). I'm sure I could do it cheaper if I did it again.
Anyway, everyone can wake up now. That's most of the story. Hope it helps someone.
 
You know you found a great fish store when it won't sell you fish. They're are very few of them. Looks like you learned a lot of lessons along the way. Thanks for sharing your story.
 
Personally,I think your story should be a must for all new hobbiest before they ever buy their tank.
Tanks looking great too.
 
Im glad that you posted that story! Any newbies reading this thread will be further ahead by learning from you experiences.
 
hey your tank looks great! I wish I had access to more LFS, mine seems good though he's already given me a couple freebies to get going and answered any questions i've came to him with. Hopefully my tank will look as good as yours in a year! Good Story!
 
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