it snowed, so time to start a reef

koffee · 10-20-2007, 02:13 PM

Hi all. Actually, I started the tank a few weeks ago, but today was the first real snowfall. I live in Alaska... not far outside of Anchorage.

I've been doing aquariums for a while... mostly planted. I've experimented with real soil, CO2, no filtration (except the plants), etc. Currently, I have 5 planted tanks, but they are all tiny: two 1G betta hexes, one 2.5G betta bowfront, one 6G eclipse with some killi and a bfly pleco, and one 20G high running 55W of light with no filter. I also care for my wife's 10G "cheesy" (fake rainbowy plants) tetra tank, and have a electric blue crayfish in a 10G by himself... I put goldfish in there on occasion but they must jump out or something, cause I can't find them.

I had a 38G fancy goldfish tank, but tore that down when my last oranda didn't recover from ulcers. That's now my reef tank. Originally, I was going to make it a single fish (dog face puffer) tank, with plans to upgrade size of course, but I decided that I like watching the hermits scamper all over the rocks, etc.

Currently, the I'm running a 20G long sump, which was pieced together using part of an old ReefKeeper series bio-ball sump. I have a wood airstone skimmer (about 2-2.5 feet tall), and a coil tube denitrator (hey, it was free). With sand and rock, the system still holds about 45G of water. I only have about 20 pounds of rock, so that will change as I add more.

Lighting is just one 55W 50/50 CF, with a set of white moon LED lights.

Livestock in the early stages consists of a few hermit crabs and turbo snails and two mollies, acclimated from fresh. I also have a bit of GSP. My calcium is only about half of what it should be, though, so I've started adding Reef Complete. I buffer the pH with Marine Buffer, but will switch to Reef Buffer soon.

I plan on sticking with hardy, undemanding, low-light corals. I may remove the mollies as I start adding fish, but I'm going to wait at least a month or two before the next addition. Ideas include a Royal Gramma plus some sort of watchman-type goby and/or a blenny. If the tank can support it, perhaps 2-3 cardinals or b/g chromis. Right now, I'm thinking a wrasse (6-line or carpenter) might not work, but that would be the last addition if at all. Of course, I'll add more hermit crabs and snails as needed, plus a shrimp or two. I would like a slug, but I think my tank and experience might not support it.

I'm also going to throw some caulerpa in the sump in the not-too-distant future. If all this works (or doesn't fail too badly), I'll move to a 75 (or so) in about a year, with a better (LR instead of bio-balls) sump.

Btw, we calso have two dogs, two cats, 4 snakes, 3 lizards (including a 3ft iguana), many rodents, a tiel, and a goffin's cockatoo.

Witfull · 10-20-2007, 02:20 PM

welcome to RS~

Woodstock wants your snow~

AQTCJAK · 10-20-2007, 02:21 PM

Welcome ABoard

lcstorc · 10-20-2007, 02:31 PM

Welcome to RS!
Can you send some of that snow down here? It is broiling hot.
Sounds like you are well on your way to a nice tank.
Pics please.

michael_cb_125 · 10-20-2007, 02:34 PM

I wish I lived in Alaska. I would love to never see a day over 50 again.
Welcome

koffee · 10-20-2007, 02:59 PM

OK, pics:

http://www.reefsanctuary.com/photopo...=12509&cat=508
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/photopo...=12510&cat=505

As for <50 days, not where I live. Summers are short, but there are many days where it is above 70 (or even 80) and I can take my iguana out for some sun! Last winter, it hit -35F one day. That sucked - it was the same day I picked up my too.

wasupdavey · 10-20-2007, 03:54 PM

Very nice theres going to be a lot of things to see in ur tank in about a year if everything goes well

kathywithbirds · 10-20-2007, 04:42 PM

Hi!! You sound like alot of the people at RS, animals everywhere!!

I'm a newbie, (6 mos into hobby) and I've had three lettuce nudibranches, one is still living -- I'm fairly sure a gorilla crab got the other two. Lettuces are one of the "safe" nudis, apparently not all of them can "nuke" your tank. Check out seaslugforum.com

ScubaDrew · 10-20-2007, 04:49 PM

Welcome! Sounds like you could charge admittance to your home!

koffee · 10-23-2007, 04:32 PM

I moved the rock around, added a bit over 3 pounds of LR, replaced the small PH with two larger units on a basic wavemaker timer, and changed the background to a simple mirror blue.

tippMANn98 · 10-23-2007, 04:52 PM

Welcome...I remember when my sand was that white....So are you gonna keep the bio balls? I, and this can speak for everybody here, would GET RID OF THE bio balls, nitrate factory over time....maybe put some LR down there.....

koffee · 10-23-2007, 05:14 PM

Actually, the sump is kinda noisy, so I was going to ditch the bio-balls and switch to an undergravel filter.

I will convert to LR at some point, but that is months away (or more). For now, I'm using a denitrator and want to add some caulerpa. I can also use some nitrate absorbing crystals as needed.

Did I mention LR is around $13/lb in Alaska?

boozeman · 10-23-2007, 05:50 PM

Frankie · 10-23-2007, 05:59 PM

At that price your better off buying rock online.
Welcome to reefsanctuary.

You would be better off just removing the bio balls and having nothing in there at all. It's a good place to use micron bags with carbon, phosphate remover and such.

koffee · 10-23-2007, 07:36 PM

The bio-ball chamber is a box with a drip tray up top and about a 3-inch gap at bottom that empties into the sump. If I remove the bio-balls, I can get rid of the risers (about 3 inches). If I add LR to the sump, will I need baffles? It would be just an empty, wide-open 20G long with a drip-tray feeding it.

I only plan on hardy, low-light corals.

10-20-2007, 02:13 PM	#1 (permalink)
koffee Midas Blenny Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 119 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	it snowed, so time to start a reef Hi all. Actually, I started the tank a few weeks ago, but today was the first real snowfall. I live in Alaska... not far outside of Anchorage. I've been doing aquariums for a while... mostly planted. I've experimented with real soil, CO2, no filtration (except the plants), etc. Currently, I have 5 planted tanks, but they are all tiny: two 1G betta hexes, one 2.5G betta bowfront, one 6G eclipse with some killi and a bfly pleco, and one 20G high running 55W of light with no filter. I also care for my wife's 10G "cheesy" (fake rainbowy plants) tetra tank, and have a electric blue crayfish in a 10G by himself... I put goldfish in there on occasion but they must jump out or something, cause I can't find them. I had a 38G fancy goldfish tank, but tore that down when my last oranda didn't recover from ulcers. That's now my reef tank. Originally, I was going to make it a single fish (dog face puffer) tank, with plans to upgrade size of course, but I decided that I like watching the hermits scamper all over the rocks, etc. Currently, the I'm running a 20G long sump, which was pieced together using part of an old ReefKeeper series bio-ball sump. I have a wood airstone skimmer (about 2-2.5 feet tall), and a coil tube denitrator (hey, it was free). With sand and rock, the system still holds about 45G of water. I only have about 20 pounds of rock, so that will change as I add more. Lighting is just one 55W 50/50 CF, with a set of white moon LED lights. Livestock in the early stages consists of a few hermit crabs and turbo snails and two mollies, acclimated from fresh. I also have a bit of GSP. My calcium is only about half of what it should be, though, so I've started adding Reef Complete. I buffer the pH with Marine Buffer, but will switch to Reef Buffer soon. I plan on sticking with hardy, undemanding, low-light corals. I may remove the mollies as I start adding fish, but I'm going to wait at least a month or two before the next addition. Ideas include a Royal Gramma plus some sort of watchman-type goby and/or a blenny. If the tank can support it, perhaps 2-3 cardinals or b/g chromis. Right now, I'm thinking a wrasse (6-line or carpenter) might not work, but that would be the last addition if at all. Of course, I'll add more hermit crabs and snails as needed, plus a shrimp or two. I would like a slug, but I think my tank and experience might not support it. I'm also going to throw some caulerpa in the sump in the not-too-distant future. If all this works (or doesn't fail too badly), I'll move to a 75 (or so) in about a year, with a better (LR instead of bio-balls) sump. Btw, we calso have two dogs, two cats, 4 snakes, 3 lizards (including a 3ft iguana), many rodents, a tiel, and a goffin's cockatoo.

10-20-2007, 02:21 PM	#3 (permalink)
AQTCJAK Tiger Shark Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 7,085 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Welcome ABoard __________________ A Wiseman once said build a stage add a pole & they will dance - Jack 2007 www.aquaticaggression.com Projects & Chronicels http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/...car-buffs.html http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/...nts-tanks.html

10-20-2007, 02:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
lcstorc Sunshine Reefer Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Cocoa Fl Posts: 19,588 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Welcome to RS! Can you send some of that snow down here? It is broiling hot. Sounds like you are well on your way to a nice tank. Pics please. __________________ Peace LYNN You can't change the past but you can change how you view it. A reef tank is like a racecar. The faster you go the harder you crash. Lynn and Franks saltwater adventure Lynn's 20g clown tank Lynn's 90g of sunshine Every 60 seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back. In Loving Memory Of Z 01/22/07 - 08/19/08

10-20-2007, 02:34 PM	#5 (permalink)
michael_cb_125 Manta Ray Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Charlotte,NC Posts: 3,339 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef I wish I lived in Alaska. I would love to never see a day over 50 again. Welcome __________________ In the process of taking the 240 down. Setting up an Elos System 70 and Elos Mini.

10-20-2007, 02:59 PM	#6 (permalink)
koffee Midas Blenny Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 119 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef OK, pics: http://www.reefsanctuary.com/photopo...=12509&cat=508 http://www.reefsanctuary.com/photopo...=12510&cat=505 As for <50 days, not where I live. Summers are short, but there are many days where it is above 70 (or even 80) and I can take my iguana out for some sun! Last winter, it hit -35F one day. That sucked - it was the same day I picked up my too.

10-20-2007, 03:54 PM	#7 (permalink)
wasupdavey Fire Coral Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: California Posts: 78 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Very nice theres going to be a lot of things to see in ur tank in about a year if everything goes well

10-20-2007, 04:42 PM	#8 (permalink)
kathywithbirds Social Darwinism victim Join Date: May 2007 Location: The Hood, NJ Posts: 5,718 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Hi!! You sound like alot of the people at RS, animals everywhere!! I'm a newbie, (6 mos into hobby) and I've had three lettuce nudibranches, one is still living -- I'm fairly sure a gorilla crab got the other two. Lettuces are one of the "safe" nudis, apparently not all of them can "nuke" your tank. Check out seaslugforum.com __________________ (\ /) This is Bunny crying. ( ; ; ) He thinks Brainy and Bunnina . ' ' ...are having an affair. "Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of non-essentials." ~Lin Yutang Start: 163.5 Current: I'm not looking at the scale, I'm not looking at the scale, I'm not looking at the scale...

10-20-2007, 04:49 PM	#9 (permalink)
ScubaDrew Elegance coral Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Burlington, VT Posts: 1,043 View Gallery Karma Komment	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Welcome! Sounds like you could charge admittance to your home! __________________ www.NorthEastCoral.com My coral and supply website! STT2VT - Chronical

10-23-2007, 04:32 PM	#10 (permalink)
koffee Midas Blenny Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 119 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef I moved the rock around, added a bit over 3 pounds of LR, replaced the small PH with two larger units on a basic wavemaker timer, and changed the background to a simple mirror blue.

10-23-2007, 04:52 PM	#11 (permalink)
tippMANn98 Has been struck by the ban stick Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: New Port Richey, FL Posts: 2,705 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Welcome...I remember when my sand was that white....So are you gonna keep the bio balls? I, and this can speak for everybody here, would GET RID OF THE bio balls, nitrate factory over time....maybe put some LR down there.....

10-23-2007, 05:14 PM	#12 (permalink)
koffee Midas Blenny Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 119 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef Actually, the sump is kinda noisy, so I was going to ditch the bio-balls and switch to an undergravel filter. I will convert to LR at some point, but that is months away (or more). For now, I'm using a denitrator and want to add some caulerpa. I can also use some nitrate absorbing crystals as needed. Did I mention LR is around $13/lb in Alaska?

10-23-2007, 05:50 PM	#13 (permalink)
boozeman The CodFather ~ Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: new york Posts: 8,800 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef __________________ ...and when I'm old and wise little things mean little to me like autumn winds they'll blow right through me and someday, in the mist of time when they ask you if you knew me remember that you were a friend of mine

10-23-2007, 05:59 PM	#14 (permalink)
Frankie Angel Girl's Daddy Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: The End Of The World Posts: 7,642 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef At that price your better off buying rock online. Welcome to reefsanctuary. You would be better off just removing the bio balls and having nothing in there at all. It's a good place to use micron bags with carbon, phosphate remover and such. __________________ Click here to visit my thread: New Horizons If we ignore the environment maybe it will just go away....

10-23-2007, 07:36 PM	#15 (permalink)
koffee Midas Blenny Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Alaska Posts: 119 View Gallery Karma Komment Add yours!	Re: it snowed, so time to start a reef The bio-ball chamber is a box with a drip tray up top and about a 3-inch gap at bottom that empties into the sump. If I remove the bio-balls, I can get rid of the risers (about 3 inches). If I add LR to the sump, will I need baffles? It would be just an empty, wide-open 20G long with a drip-tray feeding it. I only plan on hardy, low-light corals.

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