New to WAMAS, new to salt, new new

[surf&turf]

Welcome, nice start.

[Kkober]

What Origami said is correct. I think the circulation mode is doing a pretty good job - if/when I dose you can see the molecules fully dissipate throughout the tank. Now this thing doesn't work like all the new videos of the gyre, but that certainly isn't in the budget at this time. My main focus now since all the parameters seem stable is to stock it with a pair of clowns on Monday and build up my coral stock (zoas and some softies)

 

Thanks by the way for all the warm welcomes and advice, it really adds some confidence to my stride. As I am very grateful for all the helpful hints - I am like a infant learning to walk.

 

Do you think xenia will take over my tank? I like the idea and the facts I read about the benefits xenia offers to a tank. But I want to have a lot of color and other corals - all this while only being in a 20long aquarium so I have to pick and chose.  

[DuffyGeos]

What Origami said is correct. I think the circulation mode is doing a pretty good job - if/when I dose you can see the molecules fully dissipate throughout the tank. Now this thing doesn't work like all the new videos of the gyre, but that certainly isn't in the budget at this time. My main focus now since all the parameters seem stable is to stock it with a pair of clowns on Monday and build up my coral stock (zoas and some softies)

 

Thanks by the way for all the warm welcomes and advice, it really adds some confidence to my stride. As I am very grateful for all the helpful hints - I am like a infant learning to walk.

 

Do you think xenia will take over my tank? I like the idea and the facts I read about the benefits xenia offers to a tank. But I want to have a lot of color and other corals - all this while only being in a 20long aquarium so I have to pick and chose.  

 

Sorry, did not know about the new version, just the old ones I have.

 

Love your Avatar pic!

[Kkober]

Duffy,

 

Yeah this circulation pump I have seems to do the job however I am looking in to a Jebao because of the different modes it offers. Instead of unplugging from the surge protector and plugging back in when feeding of cleaning I can just turn down with a button.

 

Yeah that's a peacekeeper maroon clown photo I found on the interweb - I got tired of looking at that gray guy with the gray backround lol.

[TrueTricia]

+1 on the photos of your avatar and the tank! Does Scooter eat pellets? I prefer pellets to frozen. First, you don't get all the extra "junk" that comes in frozen (if you don't rinse or aren't using lrf). Second, it contains a blend of foods, so I look at it like getting a great multivitamin. It's also easier to deal with an auto feeder if you go away on vacation.

 

Otherwise, I agree with what everyone has said so far. My skimmer doesn't always produce dark goo either. I think it depends on how much water is in the foam, and I adjust that by moving the pipe up and down. If it's too high, I get tea colored liquid. When it's just right, I get thick dark goo.

[Kkober]

Welp.. That didn't last too long.

 

Clownfish were doing great until this weekend. Ich set in on Thursday - Did a couple fresh water dips over the weekend. Woke up this morning before work and I don't see any hope. But in other terms - coral is doing great. Mushrooms and ricordeas are always showing good color and extended polyps when it comes to feeding time. Scooter - the blenny, seems to be doing fine he is still moving steadily thru the aquarium.

 

Will ich stay in the tank?

I was going to wait a while before introducing anything new to the tank, I want to make sure this doesn't happen again.

[Rob A]

I'm no expert on Ich but I'll tell you what I've heard and what i've been through-

I've heard (read) the following:

 

1-All fish have Ich and if they get stressed it shows up and attacks them.

2-If you take all fish out of your tank and let it remain fishless for 8 weeks then any Ich in the tank Ich will die-(meanwhile you treat the fish in another tank that doesn't have live rock or inverts)

3-If you don't add any new fish (with new Ich) for a year (I think that is the amount of time) then the current strain(s) of Ich in your tank will die out.

 

I tried #2 after adding a new fish and then losing that one and a bunch of others to Ich. The "other" fishes had been in the tank for awhile and eating a variety of foods, etc. so it's not like they were suffereing from being transported across the globe or something like the new fish probably was. I moved the remaining ones into a 55 gallon tank and did the hypo-salinity treatment for 8 long weeks. A few fish survived and when 8 weeks was up I put them back in the display. A few months later I absent mindedly dumped a small bag of peppermint shrimp into the tank and a few days later some fish had Ich again. So, was it in the water with the shrimp? Or on the shrimp? Or had I just not gotten rid of it? Regardless, the work I had done had been wasted-except that I probably saved a few fish with the hypo treatement-but apparently my tank has ich in it again.

 

If theory #2 or #3 are correct you will have to worry about everything you add to the tank (besides new fish) and whether some Ich eggs could be stuck in a rock crevice for example-or quarentine all non-fish things for 8 weeks and treat all new fish with one of the methods that kills Ich.

 

I've tried copper and freeshwater dips and they haven't worked for me. I have seen spots a couple times on one of my tangs, and I bought a powder blue tang that later had a few spots but as loing as the fish had an appitite, the Ich spots went away. I havent seen any spots in many months.

[YHSublime]

Welp.. That didn't last too long.

 

Clownfish were doing great until this weekend. Ich set in on Thursday - Did a couple fresh water dips over the weekend. Woke up this morning before work and I don't see any hope. But in other terms - coral is doing great. Mushrooms and ricordeas are always showing good color and extended polyps when it comes to feeding time. Scooter - the blenny, seems to be doing fine he is still moving steadily thru the aquarium.

 

Will ich stay in the tank?

I was going to wait a while before introducing anything new to the tank, I want to make sure this doesn't happen again.

 

The "ich" conversation in the reefing world seems about as controversial as religion. 

 

The schools of though seem to be a) It always resides in fish or b) with quarantine and prophylactic treatment it can be removed. 

 

If your fish has ich, like in humans, it's believed that a low to no stress environment and a healthy diet will keep it away, but it will still be there.

 

With QT and treatment, if done right, it's believed that you can eliminate ich from your system. This of course means it has to be done properly, and with everything that enters your tank. This means that everything that enters your tank must be QT'd, rock, water, frags, fish, cheato, sand... everything. 

 

There are resources to help you with either route you choose. My 2 cents. 

[Kkober]

Not too long after the clowns went - so did the blenny. I let everything settle and added a couple peppermint shrimp and skunk cleaner over the past two months. I also added a yellowtail blue damsel - hoping everything is copacetic I will add a anemone and a pair of clowns in a month or so. I haven’t done any tests recently just doing weekly 20% water changes and clean/vacuum the detritus. I have a minor case of aiptasia, hence the reason why I own two peppermint shrimp now. Below are some newer pictures. 

ReefGen Green Death plays 

Almost….10 head trumpet coral that was a 7 head trumpet. Which, not to long ago developed a brown spot on the bottom of one the heads - I don’t know what it is. It is near where a large aiptasia is located, I’m wondering if the aiptasia reached out and stung the trumpet. Any suggestions? 

Newer skunk cleaner with a purple/green mushroom from gemerk! and two ricordeas that don’t seem to fully extend anymore.

3 Head hammer coral from gemerk!