22bfan January 14, 2014 Share January 14, 2014 I'm new to WAMAS and the marine aquarium hobby. I purchased a used BioCube 29 about a year ago that included an upgraded LED array (dual spectrum adjustable), as well as an upgraded in sump protein skimmer. After adding a course sand bed and live rock I allowed the tank to cycle for about 3 months (work was very busy then added 3 yellow tail damsels. The healthier of the 3 picked on the remaining two which resulted in their death after about 2 weeks. As well I've added a small low light LED string that acts as a night/moon light. No coral yet but big plans, once I get an algae issue under control. So far Ive reduced my lights-on duration to about 7 hours, added a mesh bag of Phosphate absorber, added a mesh bag of carbon, and consistently perform water changes of about 3 gallons weekly. I think my skimmer may be a little undersized and I may switch to a pump fed external unit. Otherwise my levels all seem to be good (ie. no excess ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, PH is rock solid at 8.1, and temp is at 78). I added a "cleanup crew" snail collection, but I must not be paying them well since they don't seem to be doing the job. Any advice is welcome. I'm currently attempting a peroxide dosing regimen of roughly 10ml per day dumped directly into the circulating tank water. I'm excited to enter this hobby. It will provide lots of entertainment for my 3 little boys and a good ongoing project for me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 January 14, 2014 Share January 14, 2014 Upgraded skimmer would help. Manual removal would help. GFO would help. Increasing frequency of water change. Do you over feed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami January 14, 2014 Share January 14, 2014 Harvest the algae and get it out of the tank to export the nutrients that are bound up in it. If you're killing it off (with peroxide) or if it's dying naturally, then it's just releasing phosphates back into the water only to get caught back up in new algae growth. Break the cycle. Do you use RO/DI water when you mix up your change water? Do you still only have 1 damsel in the tank? If so, you really can't be feeding it that much. If you have more in the tank, tell us what you have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr.x-ray January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Hello and welcome to the hobby. With just one fish I would pick as much hair algea off the rocks as you can then turn the lights off for several days even a week. After that run the lights only when you are usually home and awake with a timer. Say like 5-10. Also, feed only what that one fish will eat in about 30 seconds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR-Tanked150 January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Welcome. What are your big plans for your tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 (edited) I just finished a hefty algae harvest, removing most of the long strands and scrubbing rocks that have carpet growing on them. The peroxide turned the algae brown but there are still other patches growing. I will try the lights out regimen to see if that helps as well. I'm probably over feeding a bit and should cut back. I don't have any other fish in the tank currently but would like to get a pair of clownies. Do you guys recommend false percula or real ones? I want the main focus of the tank to be elaborate corals. I'm going to have to do a lot of reading and get good advice on how to create an environment for lots of coral to flourish in only a 29 gallon tank. Edited January 15, 2014 by 22bfan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 Oh, do you guys see a need to for a remote sump/refugium underneath in the cabinet? There are a few chambers in the stock BioCube rear sump that don't seem to be moving water well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheyCallMeMr.703 January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 (edited) It sure does make life easier. The extra volume of water, helps also... and... Welcome to WAMAS. Edited January 15, 2014 by TheyCallMeMr.703 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 I forgot to mention, I'm on a well which has whole house sediment and carbon filtration along with a water softener. For drinking and marine tank water changes, I use a 3 stage RO setup from Lowes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Welcome to the club! Sorry to hear about the damsels. The buying of several and only ending up with one is common in smaller tanks with damsels and chromis. What exactly is your clean up crew, size and type? I think you are on the right path. It is just a waiting game while you export by manual removal and keep changing out the phosphate media. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Without DI (deionization) stage behind the RO system, it's possible that you're bringing in phosphates that way, too. The system that you have from Lowe's is almost undoubtedly set up to provide drinking water. This observation is not necessarily the prime source of nutrients, but only one to consider. Sent from my phone running CM 11.0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Let us know where you located and maybe someone close has a TDS meter...or you could test your well water for phosphates.... I personally would not dose anything, use your hands and get some snails that will eat the algae...sounds like hair algae so turbos and a few other snails will eat it... I would say 4 or 5 snails for the size tank you have should be fine...it will take them a bit longer to clean it up but they won't starve once its gone.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 Location: Martinsburg, WV Early on, before adding fish, I ordered a Quick Clean 29 crew from ReefCleaners.org. Follow the link below to see what it consists of: http://www.reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.product_details&product_id=223&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=130 I have a Salt Water Master Test Kit from API to which I added a phosphate test kit. When I test my in tank water I get 0 Phosphate. I get the same when testing my RO water after mixing in the instant reef crystals before a water change. The person I bought my setup from just let me know that the light setup is a D120 LED fixture. This might be a bit overkill for my small 30 gallon tank. Yesterday I turned down the intensity on both light spectrum adjustments to their lowest setting. Hopefully the lower light, manual algae removal, less feeding, and peroxide dosing will eliminate the algae in a few weeks so I can start placing coral. Any recommendations for good starter coral and where to get it? Thanks so much for everyone's help and support!! I was considering breaking the tank down and selling it just before joining. I'm encouraged with some new ideas and tips for getting my setup where I want it to be!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 I don't think d120 is overkill for the light, you should be able to grow anything you want. You should keep the intensity down on it though, that will help. With no corals in the tank, you can run your lights low and short, the fish will be fine. Some more food for thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 The phosphate showing 0 in your tank will be because the algae is using it... If there is no phosphate in your mix water that is good... Definetely keep your lights turned down to less than 50% on each channel... And get some turbo snails...all the snails you have are fine, but none of them will eat hair algae...if that is what you have... Also...corals... There's an extensive list of what you could have...this is all going to depend on your husbandry... Personally I would start with some easy corals, like zoas and LPS like euphyllias... Also soft corals like leathers are pretty and easy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 Thanks for the advice Reefopotamus. I'll try cutting lights back to 5 hours instead of 7 and keep the intensity really low. What would be good practice for feeding a single yellow tail? I use Ocean Nutrition Formula One small pellets. About three times a day I drop a small pinch (about 15 sugar crystal sized pellets) into the back of the tank. Most of the time the little guy isn't even there to grab the food as it sinks, and certainly doesn't dart to the surface to grab what floats. Too much food???? Another quick question. I'm seeing a lot of well priced skimmers on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/150-gal-Aquarium-Protein-Skimmer-w-530GPH-Pump-Filter-Powerhead-Tank-Salt-Water-/400349877351?pt=Fish_Filters&hash=item5d36b65467 http://www.ebay.com/itm/Large-AQUARIUM-Protein-SKIMMER-up-300Gal-Fish-Tank-PUMP-Filter-WATER-Powerhead-X-/261327655434?pt=Fish_Filters&hash=item3cd857920a http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-SC-Aquariums-SCA-301-65-Gallon-Protein-Skimmer-Atman-Pump-Free-Shipping-Gift-/251387097477?pt=Fish_Filters&hash=item3a87d6b185 Are any of these worth trying? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 way too much food... One small pinch....one time a day.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 I agree, that is a lot of food. As for those skimmers, I haven't had experience with any of those. I bet some other members could chime in, but the first two seem heavy for a 30 gallon bio-cube. How much room do you have in your sump? There are some members that have great experience with nano skimmers, and I'm sure they'll chime in soon.Your setup sounds similar to one that I sold about 6 months ago, do you have blue and white checkered knobs on your stand?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
22bfan January 15, 2014 Author Share January 15, 2014 I sure do Was this your old setup? Arkonen (Dave Cameron from Inwood, WV) bought it for me It had a UV sterilizer but the bulb was blown when I bought it, so it has been discarded. I haven't modified the sump area so it is the stock size behind the black plastic wall baffle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howaboutme January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Welcome! 2 things I will add: Your API will always show zero for anything under .25ppm since the test kit is not accurate in general, let alone for PO4 levels we usually measure at. You'll want a better test kit like a Salifert or Hanna. But your eyes are the best check for PO4. If you have algae, you have phosphates so I wouldn't put it as a priority to buy a new test. Also, could your back compartment fit the Tunze 9002 skimmer? It's tried and true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arkonen January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 I agree, that is a lot of food. As for those skimmers, I haven't had experience with any of those. I bet some other members could chime in, but the first two seem heavy for a 30 gallon bio-cube. How much room do you have in your sump? There are some members that have great experience with nano skimmers, and I'm sure they'll chime in soon. Your setup sounds similar to one that I sold about 6 months ago, do you have blue and white checkered knobs on your stand?! Lol Isaac, this is the one I bought off you at the FragFest and transported back up here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime January 15, 2014 Share January 15, 2014 Lol Isaac, this is the one I bought off you at the FragFest and transported back up here. Very cool, I miss this setup, if 22bfan decides to break it down I would be interested in buying it back! Is the sump hooked up? If so, how? I'd love to see some pictures of how it all came together. Also, if that d120 is resting on the glass, it's probably super close to everything in the tank, a light bar would be ideal. OP, I would cut your feeding back 90%, do one or two big water changes, and turn your lights off for 3 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 January 16, 2014 Share January 16, 2014 When the algae dies after lights out, nutrients are flooded back into the water like fertilizer to a lawn. So do a good water changes during and especially after. Do you have corals that may suffer lights out? I'm not a fan of the lights out theory because it kindof just puts a bandaid on the real problem and will grow back. I like to starve the algae of its nutrients and manual removal. Good luck it takes time! -Hair algae survivalist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR-Tanked150 January 16, 2014 Share January 16, 2014 What is the lights out theory? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 January 16, 2014 Share January 16, 2014 What is the lights out theory? Im not sure I never tried it but a lot of people have had success with turning lights out to starve the algae of light. Not sure if it kills corals. I got rid of mine by starving it out. with upgraded skimmer, added large chaeto growing refugium, added GFO and stopped overfeeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now