My 12 Gallon tank tank queries

[Ethan Chambers]

Hi guys so this is my first post on here so hi all

I have had a 12 Gallon tank for 3 years. And It has been going great so far.

I have 1 Black and white Ocellaris Clown, a Green Goby and 2 bumblebee snails.

I do have a little algae problem at the moment so I was wondering if you guys can help me sort out the problem whether I need more of a clean up crew or other helpful algae eating fish or some sort of additives to the tank. Plus I have been a bit scared to add corals to my tank so if there was any suggestions to what I can put in a sort of beginner to coral that would be fantastic!

Again guys I will listen to all your comments and I will update you on what I do for it because I need my tank looking A bit more like an Environment that my clown and goby can enjoy more.

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

to ReefSanctuary, a real Sanctuary of reef forums, with lots of very nice members

We love pics after 5 post on RS you can add pics

on the cuc, I love snails, around one per gallon - how often do you do wc? and what %? excess algae often related to excess nutrients and overfeeding

rics & zoas are corals that should be well, what lights do you have?

 

[Snid]

Welcome Aboard, Matey!

+1 to Nano

Knowing a general idea about how much Live Rock and how deep your Substrate is, plus what it is might help as well when considering what other CUC members might be added.

Plus, we love pics! Get up to 5 posts and you can start linking to uploaded pics from the Interweb!

 

[Ethan Chambers]

Hi guys thanks for the welcome, well I feed the fish half a cube (quite small) of frozen shrimp which have I think artemia in it, I usually do the WC's about once a week and with it being about 30% of the water. Not sure if that is too much or too little The rock is there is about 5kg of it and the substrate is about an inch deep. The Bumble bees were added about a year and a half ago. Lights is is an LED light not 100 % sure what the wattage though. hope this helps

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

a 1/2 cube of frozen daily... would be a lot for one Ocellaris Clown, a Green Goby

I feed one cube every other day in my 65 gallon, with a tank full of colonies of corals & seven fish

 

[Ethan Chambers]

Its just what my LFS told me but then different places say different things so I don't know what to think really :S

 

[BigAl07]

Hello and welcome to RS!

I have to agree with Glenn on that's a LOT of food. I have a 12g tank but it only has a single fish in it. Been set up now for about 8 years and going strong.

Keep in mind that a single cube of frozen food is a LOT of food. You only want to put the amount of food in your tank at one time that the tank (all fish included) can completely eat in less than 5min. A cube is highly concentrated and a TON of food once thawed out in tank water. Also depending on how the food is processed/packaged it may also have "binders" or "preservatives" added to increase form and shelf life. Both of these items tend to be Rocket Fuel for algae. When I used this type of food I would always remove the desired amount (I fed about 1/5 cube in my 34g heavy stocked tank) and thaw it in some RO/DI water. Once thawed I would strain this through a small "tea bag" strainer and discard the water. I felt like this went a LONG way to removing Rocket Fuel.

One thing to note is that I am a VERY light feeder. Some have said I'm starving my fish to death. Like mentioned above this single fish is over 8 years old (not sure how old she was when I got her so older than 8) and she is healthy and very active. I feed her every other day and then just a very small pinch of food. I feed several different things but it's always no more than she can consume completely in 5min. I have to think that if I'm starving her to death it would have been apparent long before now.

Keep in mind that we condition our fish to always "appear" to be hungry. In the wild they never know when the next meal is going to come along so when the opportunity to eat arrives they go for it. Sometimes to their very own peril (yes a fish CAN eat too much). They don't know how to tell time so they don't know when the next feeding will happen so they always seem to be starved and anxious when you approach the tank. We have "Taught" them to associate our actions and proximity to the tank to = FOOD so don't think that their actions are accurate indications of true hunger and need.

Good luck and again Welcome to RS

 

[BigAl07]

Its just what my LFS told me but then different places say different things so I don't know what to think really :S

Items that I'd commit to long-term memory:

• Not every LFS has your true best interest at heart
• Not every employee at the LFS has proper training
• Some LFS may not be up-to-date with current technology/methods and may not even know they are giving bad advice
• Remember that sometimes if the LFS offers you bad advice they also have the "Solution to the problem" there in a bottle and they are more than willing to sell to you.

Research is key and KNOWLEDGE is power. You're on the right path just stay with it.

 

[Ethan Chambers]

Thanks for the help I will cut down their food as that probably isn't helping but the Clown seems happy at the moment, he(or she) seems like a very aggressive eater and eats a lot but yeah there is always some left that it doesn't eat, so I will start cutting down on the food I will post some pics soon but as to CUC would some more snails be a good option as I already have 2 bumblebees but they feed on the left over frozen shrimp and any other small creatures I did have in my tank. Thanks all for replying though I appreciate it

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

around one per gallon is what I would suggest for a 3 year old established tank like your...

I would add some more... maybe something like this...

2- Asterea, 2- Trochus, Cerith, 2- Nerites, 2- Margarita, maybe... 1 - Mexican Turbos & 2 -Nassariu

 

[reefer gladness]

around one per gallon is what I would suggest for a 3 year old established tank like your...

I would add some more... maybe something like this...

2- Asterea, 2- Trochus, Cerith, 2- Nerites, 2- Margarita, maybe... 1 - Mexican Turbos & 2 -Nassariu

Also consider the diet of snails. The bumblebee snails the OP has currently are carnivores and will not touch the algae in your tank. Astrea, trochus, cerith, nerites and margaritas will eat various types of algae. I would not put a Mexican turbo in a 12g. The nassarius snail is your best bet for a detritus eater.

Be aware that since your bumblebee snails are carnivores there's a good chance they will prey on the other snails if they get hungry enough. Pretty but not one of my first choices when trying to build a diverse clean-up crew.

 

[Snid]

Is a 1" Substrate enough depth for a Nassarius Snail?

 

[Ethan Chambers]

I did originally have a clean up crew when I started the tank out. I added the bumblebees about a year and a half ago there are currently that last of the invertebrates I bought for my tank and I bought them in to sort out some pests in my tank. I didn't really buy them as a cleanup crew as of such but they seemed fine when I had them with other invertebrates it was just the clown I had a problem with as it would pester the hell out of shrimps i had which is probably why I didn't buy another one after that died. It is a very territorial fish so usually invertebrates that hide or look like rock are my best bet with it, although its odd that the clown doesn't mind the goby.

 

[BigAl07]

I like the "look" of the BB snail but have never added one to a tank for the reason r-g stated. They will help clean up some left-over food but in an ideal situation that should be a minimal amount.

I am a "snail kind of guy" and usually go a bit heavier than most other at least initially. Over time their population will dwindle and them WHAMO you have a snail explosion (usually after playing some Barry White tunes in the room the tank is in LOL). Their numbers will rise and fall in direct accordance to available food and level of predation (crabs, predatory snails etc). I just get up with John at www.ReefCleaners.net and have him hook me up with a CUC that's designed for my tank size and stocking level. Usually it's more snails than needed but that's not a bad thing at all. I "refresh" my CUC every couple of years (or sooner if the tank needs it). I can assure you that you will get MORE than your moneys worth when dealing with Reef Cleaners. They are VERY generous and helpful.

 

[BigAl07]

Is a 1" Substrate enough depth for a Nassarius Snail?

I've never had a problem with a shallow sandbed with them but I'd like to hear what others have to say. I make sure I have at least 1 NASS per 5g of tank in every tank I have.