Ricks' Oceanic 14G Biocube - my first salt water tank
- Thread starter djbacon
- Start date
Craig Manoukian
Well-Known Member
Fabulous growth and awesome photos Rick!
reefsmoker
Member
Thats a sick looking tank! gj rick!
djbacon
Member
Hi everyone, been a while since I posted, been busy with life and nothing too exciting going on, HOWEVER - the other day MY POM POM crab came out of hiding !!! He is alivce and well and twice the size as when I put him in there !!!!
Sadly I could not get a good picture - If I get the chance I will post one of him. He's a shy little fella.
Sadly I could not get a good picture - If I get the chance I will post one of him. He's a shy little fella.
djbacon
Member
Hi everyone, been a while since the latest post here - not much to tell recently as I have stopped adding stuff due toa lack of room - today I picked up a small red scooter blenny. I have lots of small worms and pods running amock in the tank so i think the addition of this littlwe bottom dweller ought to be a good one -
AndtheBonus
Member
Great looking addition!
djbacon
Member
Guys its been a long time since I have posted. I am on the road for work about 5 days a week right now and go home pretty much to change water. my wife is taking care of the rest. I think shes having a little troubloe with my gorgonian which has a short 1 inch spot which seems to not bloom with feeders anymore -
Will post pics this weekend when i get home- all elese is well aside from my bastard clown fish that nips at my coco worm everytime it pokes its head out.
Im a little afraid he is not feeding enough either as the territorial clown wont leave it alone.
Hope you are all well - Ill try to get some new shots up soon. Its going to be about 6 weeks o the road and I miss checking in on RS.
considering giving the clown cak to the LFS as my plans for the 35g have been delayed dye to work. i can barely maintain my 14 !!!
Will post pics this weekend when i get home- all elese is well aside from my bastard clown fish that nips at my coco worm everytime it pokes its head out.
Im a little afraid he is not feeding enough either as the territorial clown wont leave it alone.
Hope you are all well - Ill try to get some new shots up soon. Its going to be about 6 weeks o the road and I miss checking in on RS.
considering giving the clown cak to the LFS as my plans for the 35g have been delayed dye to work. i can barely maintain my 14 !!!
prow
Well-Known Member
very nice djbacon. your tank has come a long way, great job.
i think taking the clown back is a good idea if you want to put anything else in there, otherwise it will bully all new addition. if they dont starve its likely the clown will keep them in the corner of the tank hiding.
i think taking the clown back is a good idea if you want to put anything else in there, otherwise it will bully all new addition. if they dont starve its likely the clown will keep them in the corner of the tank hiding.
bskinn77
Member
just finished reading this chronicle at work your tank has come such along way makes me very excited to begin my first sw tank. I just finished my 2nd book and after spending many hours online researching I think I am about ready to start I can only hope my first sw tank comes out as nice as yours!
djbacon
Member
MAN has it been a long time since I have posted - I have been travelling for work and things in my tank are challenging when Im only home once a week, between my wife and the sitter that helps when she is gone Im sure the tank is not getting the proper care.
Let's start with the good news - the coco worm is doing great !! AFter moving him a bit away from the damn terrirtorial clown fish - he is out all the time and looking better than ever.
My zoas continue to flourish
The Xenia are OUT OF CONTROL and taking over the right side of the tank
And all my fish are in good shape and good health, including my latest addition - the scooter blenny :hallo:
The bad news is every time I get home after days on the road, the tank has a reen slime on the walls from over feeding of phyto (for the worm and gorgonian) and there is a new growth of green hair algae popping up which is most certainly due to the added nutrients in the water.
I am doing a 50% Water change every week to try to combat this but it aint helping much. Ive also found a couple aipstasia that I dispatched with joe's juice.
Any tips on this woud be great -
Worse yet is the health of my gorgonian - when I am home I target feed him mysis and kent marine or phytofeast daily when the octocorals are extended. I also blast it gently with the turkey baster to remove any accumulated secretions or detritus. In my absence parts have stopped opening up and are showing a little discoloration. No skelleton showing yet, but I can tell it is not as happy. I have 3 more weeks of travelling before I can care full time for it again. Any advice on things to do to help him would be greatly appreciated.
Im afraid I know the answer already though - unless I hire a professional to come and care for it in my absence it will likely get worse. I have tried to teach my wifee to the best of my ability how to care fo rit but I hink she gets freaked out about putting her hands in the tank still.
Anyway - miss you guys - hope everyone's tanks are doing great !!
thats all for now.
Let's start with the good news - the coco worm is doing great !! AFter moving him a bit away from the damn terrirtorial clown fish - he is out all the time and looking better than ever.
My zoas continue to flourish
The Xenia are OUT OF CONTROL and taking over the right side of the tank
And all my fish are in good shape and good health, including my latest addition - the scooter blenny :hallo:
The bad news is every time I get home after days on the road, the tank has a reen slime on the walls from over feeding of phyto (for the worm and gorgonian) and there is a new growth of green hair algae popping up which is most certainly due to the added nutrients in the water.
I am doing a 50% Water change every week to try to combat this but it aint helping much. Ive also found a couple aipstasia that I dispatched with joe's juice.
Any tips on this woud be great -
Worse yet is the health of my gorgonian - when I am home I target feed him mysis and kent marine or phytofeast daily when the octocorals are extended. I also blast it gently with the turkey baster to remove any accumulated secretions or detritus. In my absence parts have stopped opening up and are showing a little discoloration. No skelleton showing yet, but I can tell it is not as happy. I have 3 more weeks of travelling before I can care full time for it again. Any advice on things to do to help him would be greatly appreciated.
Im afraid I know the answer already though - unless I hire a professional to come and care for it in my absence it will likely get worse. I have tried to teach my wifee to the best of my ability how to care fo rit but I hink she gets freaked out about putting her hands in the tank still.
Anyway - miss you guys - hope everyone's tanks are doing great !!
thats all for now.
Craig Manoukian
Well-Known Member
Everyting looks fabulous!
prow
Well-Known Member
hey djbacon, do you have a pic of this bryopsis? bryopsis is a real pain to get rid of once its established. a couple things you can do here, first if its on one rock take the rock out. now if its spread over a few rocks you can try to mix up a paste, using water and kalk. dont need much but mix enough to make it a nector thickness. turn your water flow off, all powerhead ect.... then using a syringe or small turkey baster or similar, cover the byopsis with the kalk paste, dont go to crazy, if you have a lot only do small sections at a time. watch your ph as you do this and dont let it go to high. FYI i have used mrs.wages pickling lime in place of kalk, its kinda like the generic version of kalk
. also there maybe some
also stop adding photoplankton, later if you want to use it again, only use very small amounts and only once a week or less. your tank is too small to be adding things like that, too many nutrients all at once. if you really feel the need to target feed with it think about doing a water change shortly after target feedings and/or use very small amounts at a time.
another thing you can try is adding a royal urchin (Mespilia globulus), not the long spine ones. the royals are known to eat up byopsis, long spins will not touch it. remember though even though some/most may eat it, not all will. i would say its better odds than using a peppermint shrimp to rid the tank of aiptasia though.
a heads up; your scooter is a very demanding fish in regaurds to feeding. its even more demanding than its cousin the mandarin goby despite the fact it accepts prepared foods easy enough. if one day everything is fine and the next you find your scooter dead, its nothing you did, these guys are just that demanding food wise and in your tank it will be hard to provide the foods it needs.
. also there maybe some also stop adding photoplankton, later if you want to use it again, only use very small amounts and only once a week or less. your tank is too small to be adding things like that, too many nutrients all at once. if you really feel the need to target feed with it think about doing a water change shortly after target feedings and/or use very small amounts at a time.
another thing you can try is adding a royal urchin (Mespilia globulus), not the long spine ones. the royals are known to eat up byopsis, long spins will not touch it. remember though even though some/most may eat it, not all will. i would say its better odds than using a peppermint shrimp to rid the tank of aiptasia though.
a heads up; your scooter is a very demanding fish in regaurds to feeding. its even more demanding than its cousin the mandarin goby despite the fact it accepts prepared foods easy enough. if one day everything is fine and the next you find your scooter dead, its nothing you did, these guys are just that demanding food wise and in your tank it will be hard to provide the foods it needs.
djbacon
Member
I will take a pic of the bryopsis, prety sure its a positive ID. Looks just like this link though.
Melevsreef.com - Bryopsis
Problem is it is growing on the same little rock as a nice piece of acan i got from my LFS. the Acan is groing well and the bryopsis is just about growing out from underneath it now. Ill take a pic when I get back. Appreciate your advice. Kalk paste is pretty much the same stuff in Joes juice isnt it? the bryopsis patch is small, only a about a half inch but growing. I will give that a shot.
I know target feeding is the wrong thing to do in a tank this small but when Im away its the only I think i can get enough food to my filter feeders via my wife. Just doing massive water changes to combat it once a week. For 2 months a year I go on these crazy travel binges for work and that's exactly when these troubles started.
Fortunately "scooter" has plenty of pods and worms and whatnot running around in my tank. He seems to eat mysis too which is awesome. He's become my favorite fish. I sure hope he does OK. I have about 3 or 4 more weeks of all this travel after which i can dedicte some real time to ridding it of all this nuisance.
Always a pleaseure to hear from you Prow - thanks again for all your help.
Melevsreef.com - Bryopsis
Problem is it is growing on the same little rock as a nice piece of acan i got from my LFS. the Acan is groing well and the bryopsis is just about growing out from underneath it now. Ill take a pic when I get back. Appreciate your advice. Kalk paste is pretty much the same stuff in Joes juice isnt it? the bryopsis patch is small, only a about a half inch but growing. I will give that a shot.
I know target feeding is the wrong thing to do in a tank this small but when Im away its the only I think i can get enough food to my filter feeders via my wife. Just doing massive water changes to combat it once a week. For 2 months a year I go on these crazy travel binges for work and that's exactly when these troubles started.
Fortunately "scooter" has plenty of pods and worms and whatnot running around in my tank. He seems to eat mysis too which is awesome. He's become my favorite fish. I sure hope he does OK. I have about 3 or 4 more weeks of all this travel after which i can dedicte some real time to ridding it of all this nuisance.
Always a pleaseure to hear from you Prow - thanks again for all your help.
djbacon
Member
Hi reef sanctuary - been along time !! Ive been travelling non stop for the last month and am only home now because I caught the flu. The tank is doing well. The gorgonian, has been fragged and the remaining healthy parts are in good health. Everything else is doing great. My trumpet corals are splitting, my mushrooms are splitting like mad, and Im starting to get a handle on the nuisance algae. All in all my wife did a great job caring for the tank in my absence. I miss posting here and reading about everyone's progress but work has to come first at the moment.
I'll take some new shots of the growth soon, unitl thn, here are a couple pictures of the tank with it's other "tank sitter"
Hope everyone is doing well !
I'll take some new shots of the growth soon, unitl thn, here are a couple pictures of the tank with it's other "tank sitter"
Hope everyone is doing well !