My Ocean Reef

[ALW]

Do you have any restocking plans?

Yup another pair of Percula's, another Wrasse (either Tailspot, Leopard or Ornate) and a Potter's Angelfish

Ah, that's why you're bugging me for pictures of wrasses. LOLOL

Yup to me give some ideas!

 

[lljdma06]

I go to the good lfs again tomorrow to pick up LR & I'll ask them about their wrasses.

Llj

 

[ALW]

Well I am thinking of adding a HOB refugium on to the tank. My next choice, I now need to make is if I either use Mineral Mud form CaribSea or Miracle Mud form EcoSystem.

 

[lljdma06]

Are you doing a dsb in your refugium? From what I've read, many use both products you mentioned above, but many others use just plain aragonite, oolite, livesand, or even combinations of several substrates.

llj

 

[ALW]

No wont be using a DSB. Will be either Mineral or Miracle Mud as the substrate. Just dont know which to use as yet. Think I may go for the Miracle Mud.

 

[ALW]

Wow,i guess im long over due an update!

 

[lljdma06]

Wow,i guess im long over due an update!

Yep, so get to it!

 

[ALW]

Wow,i guess im long over due an update!

Yep, so get to it!

I will, I have some time off at the end of august, so i should do a huge update

 

[lljdma06]

haha, my August is horrible, I have a show and then the fall term starts in both places where I work.

L

 

[SaltNoob]

Hey ALW!

Hope everything is going well for you this summer. It sure has been a minute since we have seen you around these parts. I am excited for your update end of the new month here.

What kind of substrate did you end up going with? Pictures?

-Tyler

 

[ALW]

Ok so I guess I owe you guys a rather large update? Where do I begin? Ok my gran lost her second husband last summer and was very down (not that I liked the guy), but it wasn’t about me. So me and my mum decided to take two weeks off and go over to be with her. This left my tank to be looked after by my dad. Here’s were the problems start. I left plenty of food, did a water change before I went (10g). Told him that the lights needed to be on for only 8 hours a day, and to feed the fish only twice a day. Pretty easy to follow yes? After the two weeks was up arrived home to find he had almost used a full tub of flake, a tub normally lasts me about 2-3 months, there was hair algae like no tomorrow and worst of all the fish looked like they had not been fed. Every one of them was concaved. As It was late when I arrived home there was nothing I could do until the next day. Then next day arrived and went from bad to worse, the Yellow Tang had died during the night and the Regal was on her last legs. All in all within three days of been home I had lost everything other than my Humbug damsel and Cleaner Wrasse. If it wasn’t for the Wrasse I would have given up as a couple of you know. I knew the clean-up and recovery would be a long road ahead, but with a Cleaner Wrasse that takes flake and has been through hell what can you do. No way am I getting rid of Doc. For the next few months up until the New Year nothing really changed had just the two fish and three surviving corals (two leathers and a waving hand).

New Year past and I was slowly winning the hair algae war. With help from an Electric Blue Hermit and a Tuxedo Urchin. But the battle raged on.

So around may time I added reinforcements in the form of a HOB refugium. I decided that Miracle Mud with be the substrate, and would be the home to a two Red Mangroves, Chaetomorpha sp and Caulerpa racemosa. With now, the battle is all but entirely won.

Tank additions included a Conch, Bluethroat trigger that was very timid, an Ornate Leopard Wrasse and all was fine until I then made another mistake (really I suppose I have been extremely luck in the three years I have had the tank!)

I bought a Labouti Wrasse. I didn’t QT, I know shoot me! Within a week of adding the Wrasse. Whit spot attacks. Grrrrrr. UV time! The Wrasse died as did the Trigger, but without treating the UV did its job. All other fish were fine and recovered. Then added a Royal Gramm, another Yellow tang and yet another Bluethroat Trigger. Again all was well until my arm was twisted and I got 4 Lyretail Anthias. Within two weeks again white spot attacks. This time I ran out and got myself a 60l QT tank and a load of Chloroquine tablets. I have lost the Anthias and the Trigger. The tank will be left to run sterile for 6 weeks while the fish are treated. So far I’m 2 weeks into treatment. All is looking good!

Last Friday my T5 light unit had decided enough was enough and packed in on me. Which forced me into a light upgrade that was planned for Christmas time, come a little early. So I am the proud owner or EcoTech Marines Radion XR30W and will be adding another unit to the tank in the next couple of months.

 

[Xraymark]

Wow. Some bad luck there.

very flash with the radions. There a great bit of kit. I'm jealous.

 

[ALW]

Hey guys, Im BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ok i have been busy over the last 6 months). Ok so hows the tank going you may ask? Well its doing great. So after not having much luck with that bloody white spot, I left my tank running sterile for 8/9 weeks. I must say Chloroquine is some good stuff, good job I work in a pharmacy! So I now run a radion led unit and should be adding another soon hopefully. Although it does look good with just the one side under the unit. Fish wise the only ones the survived were the Gramma, and Cleaner wrasse. That guy has seen some chage. Now that im back i'll do a update with pictures soon.

 

[Donya]

Good to see you back! 

 Looking forward to pictures.

 

[nofishinginmytank]

Beautiful fish