update on my tank.

Ok first I wanna say no flaming. I understand the typical process of starting a reef tank, but everyone has a slightly different way and no way is 100% right. I admit I cycled with damsels. My 2 chromis and pink smith damsel are doing fine 18 days in. My 40 gallon with its 70 gallon marineland filter, two opposing powerheads creating a counter clock wise current, live rock, dead rock, live sand, new copepod larvae, t5 lighting one 10,000k bulb and coral sun bulb.

My tank seems to have cycled all parameters 0. I started with tap water and have done a partial water change of reverse osmosis as well as osmosis top offs. I have a firefish, sally crab, and I just added a condylactus. I know I know its too early for that. I guarantee you I had my reason, am not rushing, and do have a strategy although it is different from yours. I saved this cindy who looked horrible in store now he has better lighting better current better water so on.

I know my cycle is done because brown hair algae has appeared on my live rock.

Any questions and or advice? Remember don't judge me. I wont be adding a mother fish until 2 weeks from now.

No one will judge you here, but they will give some advice like your adding fish to quickly, also you already know your tank isnt old enough for a anemone but you got it anyways. You mite have givin it better light and flow but your tank isnt ready for an anemone. Hopefully it wont die and wipe out your entire tank. :bowdown: GOODLUCK:Cheers:

Why ask for advice if you make it clear that you do not intend on heeding any of it?

Since you are already an expert at reef aquariums, I have nothing to add! :shock:

I personally would get rid of the damsel and then add your next fish. With a tank that small you are limited to just a few small fishes.

The brown algae either diatoms, which will go away on its own, or hair algae that is growing off the excess nutrients in the tank. You can manually remove the stuff, and then try and get the nutrients under control by more frequent water changes, investing in an algae scrubber or protein skimmer and also tightly controlled feedings. What are you feeding btw? The flakes and pellet stuff are packed with the stuff algae loves to grow on, so switching to frozen will help as will not feeding as much. (Just saying, i dont know your feeding schedule)

And good luck with the nem, i would monitor it like a hawk.

Not sure why you're looking for advice, when you're obviously bent on ignoring all that is given to you?

It seems to me that you're type of reefer who is looking out for his own wants over the needs of his fish or livestock. You stock your tank before a cycle and cycle it with fish, buy an anemone without the proper conditions or enough lighting, (therefore taking it away from someone who might have had proper lighting for it), and then proceed to tell us all that no way is correct? There are better ways to start a tank, and the fact that you know this and decide to do it 'your way' tells me you're a selfish and arrogant person.

I'm sorry, but you don't really give anyone any choice but to judge you.

Yeah, I agree that there may not be "one right way" to do things. But there are definitely "many wrong ways" to do things!

little_fish said:

I personally would get rid of the damsel and then add your next fish. With a tank that small you are limited to just a few small fishes.

The brown algae either diatoms, which will go away on its own, or hair algae that is growing off the excess nutrients in the tank. You can manually remove the stuff, and then try and get the nutrients under control by more frequent water changes, investing in an algae scrubber or protein skimmer and also tightly controlled feedings. What are you feeding btw? The flakes and pellet stuff are packed with the stuff algae loves to grow on, so switching to frozen will help as will not feeding as much. (Just saying, i dont know your feeding schedule)

And good luck with the nem, i would monitor it like a hawk.

Click to expand...

thanks a lot. Im feeding instant ocean marine blend the little packets that you squeeze the stuff out. they seem to like it. I don't have a protein skimmer, is it about time to get a clean up crew or what?

little_fish said:

I personally would get rid of the damsel and then add your next fish. With a tank that small you are limited to just a few small fishes.

The brown algae either diatoms, which will go away on its own, or hair algae that is growing off the excess nutrients in the tank. You can manually remove the stuff, and then try and get the nutrients under control by more frequent water changes, investing in an algae scrubber or protein skimmer and also tightly controlled feedings. What are you feeding btw? The flakes and pellet stuff are packed with the stuff algae loves to grow on, so switching to frozen will help as will not feeding as much. (Just saying, i dont know your feeding schedule)

And good luck with the nem, i would monitor it like a hawk.

Click to expand...

i was thinking about getting rid of that damsel...lol

I would definitely get your CUC in there. reefcleaners.org is super place to get them, and i think you might get a discount as a member on here.

And that food sounds like its part of the problems. Look into frozen food, and remember verity is the key! Feed mysids, scallops, shrimp, etc. Brine shrimp is one food that i wouldnt rely much on though, it has almost no nutritional value. Rod's food is a really great pre blended mix. A lot of people also make their own food by pouring in a bunch of the above in to a blender, and then freezing it in meal sized cubes.

Remember, dont over feed! and dont over stock. Those two things will give you tons of issues, both algae and fish death wise. You are pretty close to your stocking limit, i personally wouldnt add anything else, unless you remove something first. Adding more fish is going to add to your algae issues. Adding a CUC wont solve all your algae problems, you need to be proactive about it.

Also reef octopus skimmers are a really good brand for the money. Skimmers are a "you get what you pay for" commodity. Pay for quality!

I also have to suggest you get rid of that nem. If you dont want to take it back to the lfs then i suggest you look for another reefer in your area that has a tank capable of handling a nem.

I also know you didnt know about cycling with fish, but you should remember that you can only grow as a reefer by accepting our comments and criticism. We are trying to help you, no one on here wants to see you fail, but we also dont like being attacked for giving what you asked for. Be a smart reefer and your tank will flourish!

I forgot to mention that the tap is also why you are having issues, and over time it will get better because you have switched to RODI. Just keep up with it.

But as a word of caution, the tap water could have already leached out lots of metals that are lethal to inverts, so you might want to run some carbon and try to pull some of that junk out.

There might not be a "right way" to start a tank, but you're about to find out that there is a very "wrong way" to add an anenome. You pulled an anenome out of a LFS tank that didn't look good because you thought you were going to save it in your brand new tank? They're not puppies.

You know when an anenome dies it can kill everything in the tank right?

Just in case you didn't already know this.
Condy Anemone - Condylactis gigantea

What the bleep is osmosis water?

Any way you really sound like a troll, but here are some things to look in to:

knowledge of what you buy, like the condy.
An attitude that will get you somewhere in this hobby, not "my way can work!"
Acceptance of what others tell you, as most of us here have a large collective knowledge.


Id also like to ask why you say no flaming when obviously You only want to prove us wrong on something and have us tell you- you were right in the end?

People like you in this hobby really bother me.

ElevenEleven said:

. I understand the typical process of starting a reef tank, but everyone has a slightly different way and no way is 100% right. I admit I cycled with damsels. My 2 chromis and pink smith damsel are doing fine 18 days in. My 40 gallon with its 70 gallon marineland filter, two opposing powerheads creating a counter clock wise current, live rock, dead rock, live sand, new copepod larvae, t5 lighting one 10,000k bulb and coral sun bulb.

My tank seems to have cycled all parameters 0. I started with tap water and have done a partial water change of reverse osmosis as well as osmosis top offs. I have a firefish, sally crab, and I just added a condylactus. I know I know its too early for that. I guarantee you I had my reason, am not rushing, and do have a strategy although it is different from yours. I saved this cindy who looked horrible in store now he has better lighting better current better water so on.

I know my cycle is done because brown hair algae has appeared on my live rock.

Any questions and or advice? Remember don't judge me. I wont be adding a mother fish until 2 weeks from now.

Click to expand...

WTF? Really?

A) You should never have started with tap water (especially Houston tap water).
B) No tank cycles in 17 days under the very best of conditions, let alone what you describe.
C) You know for a fact that you're a tool or your first words wouldn't have been "Ok first I wanna say no flaming"
D) Your tank looks the way it does, and acts the way it does because of you.
E) Take your livestock back, get a skimmer, and a sump and do this the correct way in order to give your animals, and yourself a fighting chance in this hobby.

Hey Eleven, I am not judging but why the rush? I haven't been at this long either but:pooh: can happen fast in this hobby and losing a tank full of livestock is a nasty and expensive mess. I did a lot of reading way before I even had a tank, and with the advice of many people here I have had a fairly trouble free experience. Good Luck and keep us posted

Had a guy with the EXACT same attitude come through the LFS last week.After 2 and 1/2 hours of the know it all attitude,I took everything I had bagged up for him and put right back in our sales tanks and sent him out the door empty handed.It would have been a $300 sale ( which we needed bad ).

yote said:

Had a guy with the EXACT same attitude come through the LFS last week.After 2 and 1/2 hours of the know it all attitude,I took everything I had bagged up for him and put right back in our sales tanks and sent him out the door empty handed.It would have been a $300 sale ( which we needed bad ).

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That's why I like you Yote..... Keep your money get the F' outta my shop.:mrgreen:

Good for you, Yote.

Wishing you luck ElevenEleven. Just what kind of advice are you looking for? Sounds like you're way ahead of most of us. I think we'll be looking to you for new methods and a new way of reefing. ;)

fastrd400 said:

WTF? Really?


C) You know for a fact that you're a tool or your first words wouldn't have been "Ok first I wanna say no flaming"
D) Your tank looks the way it does, and acts the way it does because of you.
E) Take your livestock back, get a skimmer, and a sump and do this the correct way in order to give your animals, and yourself a fighting chance in this hobby.

Click to expand...

LMAO you called him a "TOOL":fechten2: Thems fightin words

ltljoker said:

LMAO you called him a "TOOL":fechten2: Thems fightin words

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Someone had to say it, might as well of been me. :Cheers: