Th0r4z1n3's Fishies

[Th0r4z1n3]

Hi all! Just getting back into the hobby, and thought I'd start a Showcase Thread to chronicle my progress. I've been out of the hobby for about 4-5 years, but had a saltwater tank set up for about 4-5 years before that. This time around I'm using some of my old stuff, and some new stuffs too...trying to just take my time and do it right. I'm hoping to do some smaller fish, and maybe a couple of "beginner" corals. I've got the fish part down, but have never tried to keep any corals before, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. =D

Anyway, here's my 50 so far:

My old light housing got broken while in storage.... the new one just came in today! :trampolin 2 T5's, 2 blue actinic bulbs, & moon lights. :)

I'm thinking of adding a Siphon Overflow box so that I can set up a DIY Algae Scrubber underneath like this:

https://www.livingreefs.com/mega-powerful-nitrate-and-phosphate-remover-diy-t16734.html

That should let me get rid of all that junk hanging off the back, and give me room too house the stuff I need underneath. From what I've read, it should do a good job of keeping my chemicals in check and keep the algae under control. Anyone have any experience with these? I've read about 15 pages into the article so far and have read nothing but good things about it.

 

[little_fish]

Hurray!

I ran an algae scrubber for over a year and they do work great - BUT they are extremely messy. I couldnt handle the mess it was causing with it spraying water everywhere and took it down.

If was to do it over again I would make sure the scrubber is totally encased in something and on a separate loop with its own pump. That way when you clean it every week, you just unplug one pump and you dont have to deal with restarting the siphon down to the sump.

 

[chichimom79]

Looks like a great start!

 

[Dana42078]

ugh, theres a thread on a diff forum of a guy who did his own DIY algae scrubber that was totally encased in acrylic....was pretty sick....if i can find it ill hook u up with the link....anywho...those stock bulbs are "ok" but you should look into getting better bulbs in the future. better for corals and for your visual pleasure.

I dont think there are "hard" corals to keep. (sure some things like flower pots just dont like fish tanks) Its you keeping up with water changes and your tank husbandry. Thats just my opinion.

Welcome back and looks like a good start! Let the addiction begin. :)

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

Yea, went out to my LFS to price the bulbs yesterday. I figured the stock bulbs would be alright to start out with through the cycling and stuff, but figured I'd have to change them once I was ready to start adding some corals.

BTW...LFS, Local Fish Store or LIve Fish Store? Either works for this post but don't want to make an ass out of myself in other posts, LOL.

 

[chichimom79]

Local Fish Store :D

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

So a buddy of mine just gave me a bunch of live rock to help get me started....I mean like just gave it to me for free! I can't thank him enough, he saved me a chunk of change. :) Anyway I just thought I'd share a couple of updated pics of the tank. You'll have to pardon the kinda blue glow on the top of the rocks, it's night time and my moon lights are on right now; I'll post some better pics later, but just wanted to share right now. :D

The rocks had quite a few hitchhikers too, as he just picked them right up out of his reef tank and plopped them into a bucket of water for me. I counted about 10-15 baby Starfish, 5-6 small Brittle Stars, a few snails, some orange colored sponges, and this guy (no idea what it is):

Anyways, that's where I'm at right; just waiting for it to cycle now so I can add some fishies.

 

[little_fish]

looks good! The coral looks like a ricordia to me, which is an excellent gift!

And the baby starfish are astrenia stars, which wont get large and can become a pest in some tanks, so keep an eye on them.

 

[Dana42078]

That was very nice of him.

+1 Little fish

When the starfish get out of control buy a harlequin shrimp. He will erraticate them in no time.

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

+1 on the harlequin shrimp (hope I'm doing that right lol)

I like them, but I've seen tanks where they just kinda take over and don't want that. As long as their numbers stay low I'm happy, but if/when they get outta control I'm glad to know how to take care of them. :)

@Little Fish A couple of the folks in the ID forum also suggested it might be Mushroom Coral? I'm gonna read up on both, but thought I'd share opinions to see what the popular consensus was...I really didn't have any intention of having anything living in my tank yet, so I am ill prepared at this point.

 

[Kelz88]

ricordia = mushroom

 

[little_fish]

Also, one thing to keep in mind about the Harlequin shrimp (even though that would be a long time down the road) is that they are obligate eaters of starfish feet. So after all the pest stars are gone, you will have to buy starfish for them to eat. Some people are ok with this, others are not.

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

I'll have to keep that in mind, but like you said, that's down the road quite a ways.

Oh BTW, you were right. I got some better pics in the ID thread, and they did agree that it was a Ricordia... A Yuma Ricordia is what they came up with.

 

[little_fish]

fancy :)

still a cool coral regardless :D

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

Yea I was pretty happy with it, also had a couple of rocks that had some Daisy Polyp Corals(?) growing on em. All in all, not a bad little haul...especially for free. :D

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

I'm bored so I thought I'd share a pic of the Daisy Polyps :D

Also found some Aiptasia growing on a couple of the rocks. I got some Aiptasia X, and am hoping that it will kill off the bigger ones I found. I'll have to add some Peppermint Shrimp or something to keep them under control once my tank finishes cycling.

 

[Mr.D]

Geezer! What a great friend. Wish I knew someone that could've gave me a few pounds of some really great rock!

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

Yea I've known him since 7th/8th grade, I got him into the hobby when I set up my first tank way back when... REALLY GREAT guy!

 

[Th0r4z1n3]

I got some new corals for Father's Day, and thought I'd update with some pics. :) The zoes are mostly closed up because I turned the light on in the middle of the night, but I felt like taking some pictures. XD

 

[Th0r4z1n3]