Hi all
As my battle with red turf algae is finally beginning to turn the corner and I can now almost see the light (and no, it's not my Steve's LEDs...yet...), I've been putting some more thought into redoing the aquascape as I've never been 100% happy with it from the off.
I've been reading some really interesting articles and viewing some pics on Google and have come up with what I think might be a sensible plan to redo my scape - all of which I should have done over a year ago lol. It's going to require some more thought no doubt, but essentially I'm going to look to do this once the RTA has been beaten back a bit more by my wonderful Tuxedo urchin.
As it currently stands, the plan looks like this:
Providing everything goes to plan, I hope to have all of the above complete within 2 days. Would welcome any comments, suggestions or warnings as I know this is quite a big undertaking considering the tank has been maturing for a little over a year now.
Cheers
As my battle with red turf algae is finally beginning to turn the corner and I can now almost see the light (and no, it's not my Steve's LEDs...yet...), I've been putting some more thought into redoing the aquascape as I've never been 100% happy with it from the off.
I've been reading some really interesting articles and viewing some pics on Google and have come up with what I think might be a sensible plan to redo my scape - all of which I should have done over a year ago lol. It's going to require some more thought no doubt, but essentially I'm going to look to do this once the RTA has been beaten back a bit more by my wonderful Tuxedo urchin.
As it currently stands, the plan looks like this:
- Fill temporary container with water during weekly WC (approx 20 litres, maybe a tad more)
- Place new and spare heater in container and attach MP10
- Check salinity and temperature
- Place all corals, fish and inverts into temporary storage
- Feed fish and corals to help reduce stress levels
- Remove smaller pieces of live rock into container of fresh saltwater
- Arrange sturdy base at front left of tank, angled diagonally towards back right - removing and drilling as necessary (on a slow speed)
- Insert reef rod, just off centre to the left and in the middle of the tank and through back corner of base rock
- Determine best locations for remaining pieces of live rock based on suitability, sturdiness and aesthetics
- Drill necessary pieces to create height and desired structure (still playing with different ideas)
- Use reef putty to seal any gaps in the live rock and add additional stability
- Insert (via PVC pipe to reduce disturbance), slightly larger substrate to replenish
- Wait for everything to settle over night
- Test parameters in the morning to ensure all is as it should be
- Refit MP10 to display tank
- Begin transferring and glueing corals into place as per plan (still being finalised)
- Test parameters following transfer
- Begin transferring all fish and inverts over
- Test parameters following transfer
- Order new corals to fill gaps
- Sit back and finally enjoy!
Providing everything goes to plan, I hope to have all of the above complete within 2 days. Would welcome any comments, suggestions or warnings as I know this is quite a big undertaking considering the tank has been maturing for a little over a year now.
Cheers