Tank turned 49 this year

Paul B

Well-Known Member
I changed those 40 gallons of water I collected yesterday. Everything is smiling and all is well. upload_2020-5-5_10-8-15.gif


Hopefully soon it will warm up enough to collect some mud and maybe a few amphipods.
 

Blue Space

Well-Known Member
Prototype of new model of aiptasia injector. It has an 18" tube on it and I can change the needle by just sliding it out.

It is shown here full of Luguls Iodine which is something I am testing in the thing. So far the aiptasia have a nice red tinge but I am not sure if they will croak or love the stuff and do the macarana.


I also want to try metheline blue. I don't care if that kills them, but how cool will they look?


I already tried hydrogen peroxide and I think that has aiptasia vitamins in it.

I know battery acid or boiling, almost anything will work, but I am having fun



I tried most of the store bought methods. I think those products stress them out and causes the aiptasia to multiply even more. The only thing that has worked for me is berghias, and even then it was a game of rescue them from the sump and place them back into the DT. I had an explosion of aiptasia so the five I purchased soon turned into a huge army sent to seek and destroy the unholy, slimy, sons-of-fishes we call aiptasia. I sold twenty to my lfs for store credit... ;) But then again my system is only a 40 gallon breeder with a 20 long sump. Pretty easy to get to everything. I'm uncertain how successful this method is with a large system such as yours, Paul but worth a shot. Blue out....
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
My Copperband kept them at bay as I never saw any. I can't get a copperband, or any fish now as our LFSs are closed.

In the meantime I am having fun experimenting.
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
I just found out where these Rainsford Gobies are spawning. I cleaned my glass and I also cleaned the algae off my algae scrubber which is on one end of the tank where it is hard to access. But in that back corner I never saw because it is up against a duct and I never cleaned the glass there.


I got bored and decided to clean the glass to see if anything was living back there.

There they were. They made a hole behind one of the tubes that goes to the UG filter. I am not sure if they got all the way under the filter plate, but they pop in and out to grab some white worms.


I see one of the possum wrasses also hangs out there. Now that i know their hiding place, I will clean the glass there once in a while to check them out.




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Paul B

Well-Known Member
My new copperband seems fantastic and now eats everything. This is the first living thing I ever ordered through the mail.

I had linguine with clams last night but I decided not to give him any so I gave him cake instead.


He is about 2 1/2" long, just as I asked foe, is inquisitive and hunts all day. He eats just about anything he can fit in his mouth and didn't jump out yet. :cool:


So far he doesn't like to come to the front of the tank while I am there, maybe I will try it while I am not wearing my Speedo. :unsure:
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
Congratulations on the new copperband. So far I have not bought fish online, since I want to see what I'm getting, but it may come to that, since I can't really go out fish shopping.

With all the white worms and brine shrimp you feed that fish will think it died and went to heaven. I couldn't help think of the expression "Let them eat cake".
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
My new Copperband is doing great and working to become just like his predecessor who lived a long and prosperous life. He, or she doesn't seem to have any more gill parasites of flukes as I don't see him shake any more. (I think I will call "him" a "She" from now on because of her eyelashes)

The gill parasites probably went through their cycle, fell off and tried to attach to something else but "Oh Boy" were they surprised when they found out my fish were immune to them so they have to find a new hobby, maybe Line Dancing. upload_2020-5-19_8-9-53.gif

That is the entire method to my tank. Whatever disease the new fish believe they have, eventually goes through it's cycle and is over with so the fish can get down to whatever it is supposed to do.

However I have not seen this fish eat any large aiptasia. But in her defense, some of my aiptasia could eat her and I think she is afraid of them. I do see her pick at the small ones and she does hunt all day on the back and side glass where all sorts of creatures live.

She does eat live white worms but she is a little small so has to study them before she eats them. But I think she will be fine.

Of course it is early and I have not seen my tank yet as it is downstairs in my Man Cave/Workshop so she may be laying on the bottom pushing up tube worms with a big hermit crab sitting on her tail while he is watching Don Knots in "The Fish in Mr. Limpet. " upload_2020-5-19_8-9-53.gif
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
To update my copperband is doing fine and he seems to think he died and went to heaven. I notice a lot less aiptasia but I have a few very large ones and one that is bigger than my copperband and he is actually afraid of it. I would be too.

The thing is like the Godzilla's of aiptasia's and probably thinks it is a carpet anemone andI think my fireclown will host in it soon.
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I injected it with all sorts of things but I may have made a mistake and injected it with Regain which would account for it's unbelievable growth. I rubbed some Rogain on my head and have started to grow aiptasia out of my ears. upload_2020-5-28_16-20-8.gif


My Janss pipefish I think is way older than it's lifespan is supposed to be but I have no idea what that is.

My bluestripe pipefish is still trying to mate with him but being the Janss is three or four times larger, he is way out of her league.


My rainsfords seem to be constantly spawning and my watchman goby female has not come out of her burrow in a couple of months so she is also probably tending multiple batches of eggs. I can see her in there and she seems to be very content but the male doesn't allow her out so I "shoot" worms in through the back of her cave so at least she can eat. Being married to a fat bully who won't let you come out to have some fun is just mean. He seems to want to keep her barefoot and pregnant. Or bare finned and pregnant.
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I am not sure what to call a Watchman female, maybe a Watchgirl, or a Watchbabe I don't know.


My SPS for some reason are growing like that aiptasia and reaching for the stars as are "most" of my LPS. One LPS I think it was an elegance go completely covered my a Hammer coral which seemed to grow overnight. Now the thing is touching the front glass as is a very old gorgonian.

Last week I "Very gently" pushed the entire reef structure back from the glass a few inches because I was hitting some montipora that was making it hard to clean the front glass.

I need to do it again but I hate to do that as I hear things breaking and I don't like the sound of that.


I don't do much to my tank so I have no idea why some things are growing so good, but I have been playing quite a bit of Vintage Linda Ronstadt lately. I have to clean the front glass every day and really could clean it twice a day. I don't get it.


My tank is not all great, I also have some bristleworms that almost qualify to be moray eels. I really need to trap some of the ones over a pound.


This is my Daughter and has nothing to do with this post, but neither does anything else.


 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
As I was sitting in my workshop/Man Cave a little while ago, this woman walks in. (I have my door open so people out on the street can see me)


She was a nice looking woman maybe fifty or so so I figured she wanted to date me, take me out to dinner or sue me.

It turns out she is starting a salt water fish tank and a neighbor told her that I have fish.


So we talked for about 45 minutes and she has a small, like 30 gallon tank and unfortunately is listening to LFSs and is having all sorts of problems and really wants someone to explain to her what she should do.


I hate to start Noobs on this because I can tell that she wants a tank full of corals, moorish Idols, achilles tangs, SPS corals and she wants it all by 2:00 Tuesday.


Well, she wants a couple of damsels anyway.

I went through the entire speech of the no dry foods, no corals, now anyway, no whale sharks etc. I think she is getting it and she wanted to borrow my book, which I gave her even though it is my own and only personal copy. I also told her that it is not for Noobs which it says near the beginning of the book.


In a couple of weeks I am taking her water collecting because she lives behind my house so she is on the same beach and didn't realize you could collect water. Of course the LFS told her she couldn't do that because she is buying water from them.


I will also give her some rocks and bottles from my tank because she is using bacteria and ammonia from a bottle. I told her that is OK if you get your fish in a bottle otherwise that is not my method and she can choose which way to go. But she loves my tank so she is going with my system.


(which of course may be a problem unless you look like me, and she doesn't)


I am thrilled to know someone with in fifty miles of my house with a salt tank. I will let you know how this goes. upload_2020-6-2_11-21-56.gif
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
It's great to find people near you that are also into SW systems. I know a few that are sort of close, but none within walking distance.

Glad to hear your helping the beginner. All too often we have someone new to the hobby post here, and someone, sometimes myself, has to tell them about many things that they are doing wrong. Sometimes to correct the problem of wrong equipment, they might need to go out and spend even more money to correct the issues, or return some favorite livestock because their system is not suitable for keeping it.

I hate to write posts like that, but it's needed if they are going to have some decent success. Bless the people that ask the questions before they get equipment or livestock. They are the ones going in and being able to make informed choices.

Now I'm wondering when your going to tell them about growing white worm cultures and collecting mud (grin)
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
I am getting to that. She said she had some damsels and they died. I think she put them in the tank the same time she mixed the water and added the rocks.
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
A few minutes ago I was typing here, probably some nonsense and I started smelling something. It smelled fishy. I turned around and my tank looked like I was making egg nogs in it. The water was all cloudy and I could barely see the back glass.


I said to myself OMG, my tank is crashing and I should have listened to Humblefish and quarantined everything.

I quickly looked for something dead. But I just fed the fish 15 minutes ago and everything looked fine. Besides, my fish don't die, they are kind of immortal. upload_2020-6-20_15-49-37.gif


As I was looking for the cause, I noticed a huge, white cloud exuding from under one of my large anemones.

At first I thought it was spawning, but anemones don't spawn like that. They split, like this one has done three times.

Urchins spawn exactly like that and have a few times but although I have a large long spined urchin he was on the other side of the tank.


There are no corals under the anemone because like Duh. they would be stung to death.

The anemone is the only place that white "misty" stuff could have come from.


I quickly got out my diatom filter and hooked it up to the tank.

It is starting to clear up and the sponges should suck up the rest.


This may be a common occurrence in my tank because contrary to popular opinion, I have a life and don't look at my tank all day.
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
Stupid anemones are even taking over the back of my tank...

They might be "Stupid anemones", but at least they are in good health and properly extended. So many seen in various LFSs are bleached and/or not in good condition.

No doubt it's you clowns encouraging the anemones,
 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
Yesterday I threw about 25 small mud snails in my tank. Today,I can't find even one. upload_2020-7-3_15-42-44.gif

I am waiting to go out to dinner and I was watching my tank with the room lights off. (Yes,i am weird)


I noticed my new, smaller 6 line wrasse which I have not seen in the week or two since I added him. If you have a pair of fish it is hard to know if you have two unless you see the both of them at the same time. In my tank I can go months before that happens as the structure is a huge system of caves that go from one of the tank to the other.


The smaller 6 line wrasse looks pregnant although I didn't think she was old enough to spawn.


I also found my new little bi color bleeny but I am pretty sure she is to young to spawn. A few more months maybe.

I am pretty sure my Rainsford gobies are spawning as they "live" in a hole in the gravel next to an undergravel filter tube. They may even be going under that filter plate but I am to stiff to get under the tank with a flashlight to look for them.





I don't have pictures of the 6 line wrasses because they are to fast, but these guys are also spawning.


 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
Some day I need to do some work on my tank. I need to move the entire middle section back a few inches because some of the corals are to close to the glass and my magnet cleaner hits it.


I did this once before and I don't look forward to it. I have to wear thick gloves so my fireclowns don't take my arm off and I have to break a lot of growing stuff and tear a bunch of sponge and that stuff is tough as wood. I will probably also break some montipora and other SPS.

There are two large, like 6 or 7" anemones back there that won't be happy and my powerhead is also back there that feeds the skimmer/reverse undergravel filter and algae scrubber.


The middle section from about where the copperband is to about the gorgonian on the right side is needs to go back a couple of inches.

This is an older picture and the corals are not that big here.


 

Paul B

Well-Known Member
My tank seems to be in a growth spurt. I don't know why. I also can't keep enough Alk in there and I may have to do it intravenously. Yesterday I made a mistake and thought I was dosing Alk, But I put in 4 times the dose of calcium.

I figured the water would turn into blackboard chalk, but nothing happened.


My invading, engulfing blue sponge is not encrusting over everything as fast but the encrusting gorgonians, green star polyps, mushrooms and zoa's are blooming all over the place. My anemone which was pinkie nail size a couple of years ago split into 3 anemones and each one is about 10" wide which is scaring me and if I could get two of them out, I would give them away. I try not to get any food near them for fear they will take over my Man Cave.


I think my 6 line wrasses are spawning as they both disappear behind the rocks together and come out smiling. One of them is new.

My two new ruby red dragonettes still ignore each other but they are still teenagers and to young.


My Rainsford gobies rarely come out as I think all they do is spawn and of course the fireclowns are just disgusting with all their spawning.


I can't yet tell if my new hawkfish is spawning with the old guy. Of course none of my fish have ever been drugged or quarantined so none of them will ever get sick.


You can tell when fish are in spawning condition because their colors get so much brighter and most of them get a "fluorescent tinge" on the edges of their fins. You rarely see this on captive fish but you see it on fish in the sea.

That is a sign of true health but you have to look closely. The fish also have a rounded appearance, they are curious and are not dead.


Drugged fish won't show that nor will most quarantined fish as their immune system is veclumpt, or gone.

I also never have to coax new fish to eat. A natural tank has that effect and they will eat Chinese Take Our if they had thumbs to sign the credit card receipt.




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DaveK

Well-Known Member
Hi Paul, you hadn't posted in awhile, so I was getting a little worried. Good to see you back.

One point about drugged fish. Sometimes they do show very bright colors, since they are under so much stress from the drugs. Regretfully, by this point the fish is usually too far gone to save as mainy of it's internal systems have started to fail. So a warning, if the fish looks too good to be true, be very careful in it's purchase.
 
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