The 12g Nano-Phoenix Rises

[goldenmean]

From the ashes of red Bubble Algae!

My 12g custom nano (my 1st salt water tank) was just over 3 years old when the first red bubble appeared.
It was cute and I liked the way it looked
even as it grew into a small cluster of bubbles.

A few months later they were not so cute and they had taken over the tank.
I tried manual removal but it was way too late.

After 4 years I decide to tear the tank down and start all over.

 

[goldenmean]

I had a 10g tank set up for a quarantine tank that I had not used for several months.
I moved all the inhabitants from the nano and moved them to the QT.
The inhabitants include a pair of Amphiprion ocellaris named Omen and Enom
(yes - anagrams of nemo - eNom is the 2nd largest registrar of domain names and number 1 with spammers),
a cleaner shrimp, a pagoda cup, some mushrooms and ricordias,
annoying ever multiplying toadstool leather and assorted hermits and snails.

I then cleaned out the nano. Scrubbed out the skimmer, replaced the skimmer pump, bought a new return pump, a new powerhead for in tank flow, and a brand new heater.

I added fresh saltwater and a few rock from my 55g tank to help with the cycle. The next day I have a 15g Package coming from Tampa Bay Saltwater. Live Rock - Tampa Bay Saltwater Aquacultured Live Rock
My 55g tank is a TBS tank too.
I am geting both Part 1 and Part 2 at the same time since I am splitting the rock up between the two tanks and using some of my establish mature LR from the big tank in the nano. All Critters and goodies (sponges, gorgonians, and corals) will go into the 55g tank for a week or two then they will get moved into the nano.

 

[goldenmean]

Last Monday I went out to the airport and picked up my shipment from TBS.
I brought it home and 15 lbs of live sand was added to the tank.
The sand is shipped in water so I drained as much of the natural sea water from the bag as I could.
I placed the bag in the tank and poured the sand in.
I immediately noticed a cerith snail moving around.

I also got 30 lbs of live rock which is also shipped in water.
I put all the rock in shallow containers of water so I could inspect the rock and look for gorilla crabs. ( I only found one and he was BIG. - in the sump he went.)
Half the rock went into the nano and the rest I put in my 55g.
Most of the critters and sponges got acclimated to the 55g
but I did put the decorator crab, a serpent star and one of the two sea cucumbers into the nano.

 

[goldenmean]

The best thing about TBS rock is the diversity of life that comes with your package.
There are tons of barnacles, sponges, tunicates, feather dusters, cup corals, certith and astrea snails, hermit crabs. . . . . AND . . . . .

 

[goldenmean]

. . . . . A wennerae Mantis shrimp!!

I got 3 wennerae with my 55g package 3 years ago.
One I gave away and the other two stayed in the DT.
After a year or so one of them just disappeared but the other one is still around. I think the wennerae make a great reef inhabitant. I hand feed my little smasher and he has really left all other livestock alone. They will hunt the rock looking for barnacles and other small mollusks That is why I wanted to put some of the fresh TBS rock into the 55g.

Now I have a new mantis in the nano. I am thrilled! Woo Hoo!
I even got a photo - even if it is not the best.

 

[GrendelPrime]

nice looking tank and i love mantis there amazing critters

 

[goldenmean]

Thanks GrendelPrime
I haven't even tried to do any aquascaping yet.
I will wait until the cycle is over.
TBS rock cycles quickly since it is shipped completely in water - usually less than 2 weeks.
During the cycle the goal is to keep ammonia below 1.0.
If it goes above 1.0 then you do a WC. The first full day I had to do a WC in the morning and in the evening. Since then I have had to only do a WC in the Morning.Ammonia has never gotten above 1.0
and my testing results from yesterday showed ammonia going down even more than my WC should have dropped it.
Friday Morning ammonia 1.0 - I did a 4g WC
Friday eve ammonia between .25 and .50
I am running a test right now. . . . . . . . . 0.25
ammonia is dropping on its own. well the bacteria is doing its job!

 

[BarbMazz]

The Package Part 1 looks great, Jeff! Glad you got a mantis, too!

Did you have just as much fun this time as last time? I bet it was almost MORE fun.

Sounds like the rocks are taking care of the ammonia on their own. Awesome looking scaping, but I know that will change as you sit and look at it.

Have lots of FUN! :updown:

 

[goldenmean]

Barb it was MORE fun.
I got a much smaller Package but I got both Parts at the same time.

I have found a gorilla crab under one of the rock.
He had pushed sand out from under the rock and I could just see part of his hairy self.
Looked to be of good size based on what I could see.
Now to catch him.
I'll probably try the baited spear a couple times.
I have had success with that method in the past. hee hee

ammonia has been somewhere between 0 and .25 for the last two days.
Its has been one week now

 

[goldenmean]

Ammonia is at Zero.

Here is the underside of a unknown snail.
He has been staying in the substrate so I can not get a look at his shell.

Googly Eyes the mantis was checking me out checking him out.
He stayed in this cave but I caught him with the flash.
He is a pretty red - just like the one I have in my big tank.

 

[Uslanja]

Looking Great! Your rock is gorgeous! We've kept the gorilla crab that came with our rock and so far he's stayed on 1 rock and behaved himself, (we think?). We named him "Dirty Harry", I'm an Eastwood fan! Looks like your well on the way to a great tank! we'll keep checking back to see how your doing with it.

Dave & Tracy

 

[goldenmean]

Thanks Dave & Tracy! That rock is aquacultured fresh from the Gulf of Mexico and shipped completely in water.

I got a couple of decent photos of the mantis.
He was hunting. Must have dug our a bivalve.
and here is a one month FTS
as you can see I have added some zoanthids, mushrooms, and xenia

 

[sambrinar]

Looking good J!!!!

 

[goldenmean]

So I have added a bunch of frags that I got from Mr. Coral along with some corals that I got from my LFS and from my 55g. Last weekend I moved Enom & Oman (Amphiprion ocellaris) from the temporary tank back to the nano.

I was playing with my new iphone 4 camera and these photogs are from it!
They are pretty good for a phone.
I have taken a video with it too of my 55g tank and WOW! is that nice.
I guess I need to download it and show it off in the 55g thread.

Oh tonight I discovered a baby urchin! Thats cool. I would not have seen it but I was using a magnifying glass. I will have to get the real camera and macro lens to get a shot of him

 

[deehz]

Great looking nano! I have been contemplating starting a small one myself. Oh well, time will tell.

 

[Uslanja]

Hi goldenmean! Like your scaping, looks real good! Nice looking rock! Love your red shrooms!! (I'm a mushroom fan). And that serpent star looks huge! Keep the photos coming, really enjoy what your doing!
Dave & Tracy

 

[goldenmean]

Thank you both for the kind words.
I really like this small tank that is located in my bedroom.
I have blue led moonlights that makes for some nice ambient lighting.

That serpent star is a lot smaller that the one in my big tank. The poor guy is missing one tentacle but it is growing back.

I like the shrooms too. I have some purple ones that were the very first corals I bought over 4 years ago. The are still in the temporary tank on the rock infested with the red bubble algae. I need to cut them free, re-attach, and put them in the nano.

 

[Uslanja]

Hi goldenmean! Just checking back to see if you added any more photos! We have a shroom on a frag plug that we would like to move onto the rock. We`re not very experienced at fragging. Do you just cut the mushroom off as close to the base as possible and then glue it to the rock?

We know what you mean about the blue lunar lights! We run ours 24/7 and when they are the only lights on it makes for a real nice look! There are even different spots on the rock that show some brilliant glowing colours that aren't seen under the daylights.

Dave & Tracy

 

[goldenmean]

It's been awhile but the nano is still up and running. Nearly 9 years.

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