Dracko's 55g Reef
- Thread starter Dracko
- Start date
Squatch XXL
Well-Known Member
Is the cure tank an old sump? Looks like a great start on some new rocks.
Dracko
Well-Known Member
No, the cure tank is my hospital tank, a 10g tank I one used as a wet dry tank for freshwater hermits.
My cycle is complete. Love this Marcos rock. Looks great and cycled quickly. Put in display today. Will do a water change (15 g) tomorrow and clean the glass better, but I really upset the fish while putting the rock in. They are busy exploring now, and the zoas are already opening up again.
My cycle is complete. Love this Marcos rock. Looks great and cycled quickly. Put in display today. Will do a water change (15 g) tomorrow and clean the glass better, but I really upset the fish while putting the rock in. They are busy exploring now, and the zoas are already opening up again.
StirCrayzy
Well-Known Member
That's a good bit of rock !
Great Vid, nice find !
Oxylebius
Well-Known Member
Not mine, but ain't he cool.
So cute! I want it.
Oxylebius
Well-Known Member
I also posted this in the OT thread, didn't know you had it here as well. Great minds think alike
Looks like it got picked up by USA Today and other news networks. The original from the researchers is on YouTube:
Dracko
Well-Known Member
Still not enough, or too late, don't know which. Ordered a protein skimmer. Not top of the line, and small enough to fit in tank, but it got great reviews on 5 review sites. Looked at about 40, with only 2 not so good. Lees medium sized. Will post a review of my own in future. Hopefully that will get my algae under control. Have lowered feeding and done more water changes, but has not helped much. Hopefully this will do the trick.
Dracko
Well-Known Member
Got my skimmer up yesterday. It is working well, but took a while to get adjusted right. It is not totally cheap, but some care is required. I had to glue the bottom on, as it kept falling off. The brace to hold it to the tank is cheap, but if you are careful it should last. It also has 2 suction cups to hold it in place, but they wont stay on the pegs. Tried to epoxy them, but it wont stick to the rubber. So I just put a layer on the peg and let it dry, so the peg is a little bigger diam and stays in the hole better. For a smaller than 55g tank, I think it will be OK. They make a large one, but I don't know if it would be sufficient for bigger tanks, and you would have to have a very deep sump to use it there.
That alone pays for the shrimp.
Dracko
Well-Known Member
WOW. Things got suddenly bad. Got a buttload of red and green algae covering my rocks and walls. growth was fast, and out of control. Figured out there was a problem with my RO system. I have ordered a new one that should be here in a few days. Don't really know what to do except pull out all the rock that does not have coral on it, scrub it down, stir the sand a bit, change most of the water and say a little prayer. Any advice would be appreciated. Cant do anything until the system gets here. Easy fix. Will be able to leave RO tank in place and just plug in the new unit. Hoses are the same. Hang and go. Not sure when the system failed but the tank is covered within 5 days of first noticing. Hope I don't loose any fish.
Oxylebius
Well-Known Member
Have you tested the water to see what is out of whack?
Algae doesn't hurt fish. So, it isn't that big of an issue. Algae can be taken care of in time.
I'd also pull the algae, scrub what rocks you can, and order some more cuc. Don't do too much to the system, you don't want to pile on and create more issues.
Water changes are the way to go when the new ro system is hooked up. I would not stir the sand bed but gravel vacuum the sand bed with a water change (water from your new ro system).
You can pick up some Granular Ferric Oxide (GFO) to remove phosphate from the aquarium while you are waiting on the new ro system. There are all kinds of products on the market that have GFO in it.
Once you test the water to see where your parameters are, post them on here.
Algae doesn't hurt fish. So, it isn't that big of an issue. Algae can be taken care of in time.
I'd also pull the algae, scrub what rocks you can, and order some more cuc. Don't do too much to the system, you don't want to pile on and create more issues.
Water changes are the way to go when the new ro system is hooked up. I would not stir the sand bed but gravel vacuum the sand bed with a water change (water from your new ro system).
You can pick up some Granular Ferric Oxide (GFO) to remove phosphate from the aquarium while you are waiting on the new ro system. There are all kinds of products on the market that have GFO in it.
Once you test the water to see where your parameters are, post them on here.
Dracko
Well-Known Member
I tested the parameters that I have tests for and everything seems to be OK, but there is a lot of algae, and it grows fast. I have been cleaning as much as possible while I wait. I had a great system, but the company went out of business. I bought replacement cartridges from some other company, but they are not good, don't do the job. I found a company that sell OEM cartridges, but they have raised the price by over 120%. So I just bought a new system. I know I need to scrub the rock. What concerns me at the moment is that I cannot locate my Scooter Blenny. Have not seen him in 3 days, but I can't tear stuff down until I get the water system.
"Don't do too much to the system, you don't want to pile on and create more issues." What do you mean? I don't intend to do anything too dramatic, just clean everything as best I can. Is there anything I can do to help my corals (Zoas) recover better? They are still alive, but don't look well. I know that they should perk up once the water is changed, but is there anything else? Right now my skimmer is pulling out a LOT of stuff. Hope it get here soon. This is the problem with living in a rural area. Right now, any water I add may as well be well water.
"Don't do too much to the system, you don't want to pile on and create more issues." What do you mean? I don't intend to do anything too dramatic, just clean everything as best I can. Is there anything I can do to help my corals (Zoas) recover better? They are still alive, but don't look well. I know that they should perk up once the water is changed, but is there anything else? Right now my skimmer is pulling out a LOT of stuff. Hope it get here soon. This is the problem with living in a rural area. Right now, any water I add may as well be well water.