lutz123

I like the back corner. I have a mangrove tank in planning stages (though I have the propagules). My understanding is that eventually they will break a glass tank. I am sure that's years down the road but somethingto consider. My preference is mud - not my favorite look but a more natural environment for the mangroves. Most seem to use the mesh aquaponics baskets with liners. I have been toying with how to hide that. For what it's worth, the tank you showed is one of my favorites...but I seem to remember that it crashed with no explanation.

Jbj picotope

I would say the five days is easy. The thirty day trip I would hire a service to come at least occasionally. I am surprised the cardinal doesn't eat pellet - mine all eat new life spectrum 1mm mini pellets with gusto. And moving shouldn't be impossible depending on what else you are dealing with but I would ditch the sand. Good luck!

"Filter floss" doesn't come in sheets. It comes in bags either from the lfs (or joanns). It is cheap and totally disposable.And I understand what you mean by measurably cycled. It definitely isn't normal to have cloudy water at any time. Is your cleanup crew adequate? You probably don't need much yet but a good variety keeps things in check. When my crew needed replenishing it became very obvious quickly.

Hard to tell on the video to even make a guess. Free swimming and not crawling? The the chucks addiction hitchhikers page.

It definitely could be an algae bloom, but I also agree with this approach. Your measured levels indicate "cycled" but you will find that you are far from it as far as life balancing itself. Try replacing the filter floss more often if it's gross (or remove mechanical filtration completely for now.)

Welcome! Enjoy your current tank while you are planning the next. Just figuring out a direction takes awhile. There is a big difference between equipment for a fish only and sps tank. Plus, it takes awhile to gather gear.

I have gone dry sand seeded with a bit of live sand from Marine Scene, and also just gone with a Caribsea bagged live sand (not sure what kind but it was sort of fine. Both cycled in about the same amount of time. No preference either way really. I wouldn't add copepods too soon. They will just die.

The ato would make a huge difference. Play with it while you are around to check on it. There are diy ones that would work well. I find that my pico inhabitants are less sensitive to salinity changes than I would expect, but I don't have SPS.

For what it's worth, Drs Foster & Smith has 40 lb bags of the special grade (dry) for $41 each. Free shipping over $49. Remember with the live sand you are paying for water if that matters.

If it were me, I would stop all dosing and do some water changes so that you get back into a state where water chemistry (the unmeasured factors) are back in balance - maybe 5 or 6 25% changes. Then proceed with just regular changes. I have two nanos with softies and lps and I skim on occasion depending on how much I am feeding, or in between water changes. During any time period that I am skimming daily, I only leave it on for 2-4 hours (overnight if it were a bigger tank), but definitely not 24/7. I find that including macroalgaes helps in softie tanks to allow a good breeding area for edible critters. It would not hurt at all. I don't have your initial post up so I don't remember what fish you have, but stock well (not too lightly). A strong clean up crew and feeding well will do wonders. Also, make sure your water source is rodi. My guess is that the dosing is causing your tissue recession primarily, but skimming takes out many food items and pulverizes very small organisms.

I second the urchin suggestion. They are very effective! My west indies sea egg is currently carrying around a thermometer and two snails...so not so great if you have loose frags.

My favorite hitchhiker! Really cool when they spawn.

Honestly, seahorses are more of a main focus than an "add-on" tank. They would probably be okay for a bit, but they aren't the hardiest and my experience is that they are just very needy. Having one in a giant reef tank would probably be easier. And, while some can keep them alive for longer, you probably wouldn't see more than a couple of years out of them. And brine just isn't going to keep them healthy. Mine were both fine on frozen mysis, but you really have to make sure they are getting enough at each feeding. A feeding station was great for one of mine, but the other needed to be target fed - several mysis - every feeding. They really should be in a living area where they can be observed alot. I was glad to see them go...and I had been so looking forward to getting them beforehand. I wouldn't mind having a go again one day, but I would prefer them in a large truly macro-dominated tank. Go for cuttlefish! That's my "I would love to but know it wouldn't go right" project.

My experience has been that they seem to die back on their own in most cases.

New Life Spectrum 1mm. They are cute. I actually found mine at a Petco. She had been there awhile and was eating great. They are not the easiest but I like the size.

My yellow clown goby was always very picky. Mysis of any kind would have been way too big. I have heard cyclopeez is the best frozen for them but mine wasn't terribly interested. She loved her crushed mini pellets though! She couldn't handle them whole. And only while they were floating. Darn picky fish but cute. I can't believe you can even find it in a 34 gallon. Nice setup.

Empty the water into a couple of rubbermaids and then refill after it is leveled. It will bug you if you don't take care of it, regardless of the risk.

I think if you are using lasers that can eradicate pests it is smart of you to consider the risks. I believe I saw a good bit of info on reefcentral.

Looks fantastic! Are you happy with the dimensions?

Keep in mind too that if you change the bioload greatly (meaning greatly reducing meaty foods) you may have some unintended consequences as your tank finds balance. If everything is in check right now I would just leave it. If your tank is big enough for a tang I can't imagine a clownfish making much of a dent. The biting would mean it was gone though.

Need details!

Wow - what a tragedy.

Yeah, that's why my tank is still in the garage. I really wanted the ease of that kit. I'd like to see if someone could build one for me that is similar - I would gladly pay not to have to think that through in that great of detail. I didn't read the link in the thread, but I heard that it just became a production nightmare. I still find it incredible that no one even has a bean animal type kit for sale.

I wondered that as well when I first saw the story. Interesting study though.