A couple questions for the veterans

[jamesbuf]

I started my 125 as saltwater last summer, so I believe that the dried out baserock I used has finally become "liverock". I actually did get about 50lbs of established liverock in the beginning also. I have a berlin HO turbo skimmer. I have a 6 bulb t5 retro setup. i also have a 30gallon refugium filled with pods and stuff. I have some sawgrass calerpa which I've had for about a month. Also probably a contributing factor to the lower nitrates. Just got a small handful of chaet for the fuge today. Hopefully nitrates will be a thing of the past.

I just traded in my spotted hawkfish and 2 striped damsels today to start from scratch. No more fish. After months of high nitrates, my nitrates finally tested below 20ppm. Time to try some new things.

 

Here is my situation. Growing up with freshwater, I've always been, and probably always will be, a fish person. But I wouldn't mind having a few things to pretty up my rocks to go along with my fish. I plan on getting an anemone with some clowns, something I've wanted for a while but my nitrates have been too high.

1. If I have clowns with the anemone, do I still have to feed it. If so, what do I feed it?? How do I do it?

2. I have had one single mushroom, similar to this one http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Di....cfm?pCatId=668 and it stayed the only one the whole time of having high nitrates. In just 2 short weeks, there is now 3 of them. Nice. Do I have to feed these guys?? If so, what food and how??

3. I've actually read alot of stuff on here but alot of it is geared towards the hardcore reefers. If all I want is an anemone or two, maybe 2 different types of mushrooms and maybe 2 colonies of small polyps, I don't have to mess with the kalk reactors and all that hardcore stuff do I???

 

Thanks for any input guys. I'm hoping to take advantage of my dues and actually start attending some meetings and stuff. When grad school permits of course. I'm sure I can gain 100 times for knowledge from attending the meetings instead of the just asking random questions on here. Alright, enough procrastinating, got another paper to write.

 

James

[HowardofNOVA]

James,

Welcome back once again! :D

Depending on the clowns, probably a Rose or Green Bubble Tip will work, Carpets get to big, Condis not a big clown supporter. Also Green Long Tenacles are ok too! You can occasionally feed them silver sides, fresh fish or shrimp uncooked.

Spotted Mushrooms will survive fine with just the lighting that you have already!

Don't get intimidated by the equipment listing that some folks talk about. Just enjoy and work with what you got, allowing your increasing knowledge and talking with the group give yourself room to grow!

[emissary]

1. If I have clowns with the anemone, do I still have to feed it. If so, what do I feed it?? How do I do it?

Do you want a (small) cinnamon clown and (small) anemone? I've got a pair:

http://reef.korff.org/pictures/Office_Tank/DSC0020

I need to part with them both. The anemone is a bit bigger now than it was in the picture. I've never fed it. I have a LARGE LTA in my 75G that I've never fed either. Well, I won't say never... but infrequently enough to not count (anually).

 

2. I have had one single mushroom, similar to this one http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Di....cfm?pCatId=668 and it stayed the only one the whole time of having high nitrates. In just 2 short weeks, there is now 3 of them. Nice. Do I have to feed these guys?? If so, what food and how??

No need to feed mushrooms.

 

3. I've actually read alot of stuff on here but alot of it is geared towards the hardcore reefers. If all I want is an anemone or two, maybe 2 different types of mushrooms and maybe 2 colonies of small polyps, I don't have to mess with the kalk reactors and all that hardcore stuff do I???

Y'otta come by and we can chat. I've had a 75G for about 6 years now and have gotten by without "kalk reactors and all that hardcore stuff." Well times change and I'm moving into a 180G and probably going that route in the not too distant future. If there's one (well, there are WAY more than just one, but here's one) important lesson I've learned it's that dosing kalk does WONDERS for your tank. Helps keep your PH high, precipitates phosphates, provides calcium, etc, etc. Do you need a reactor? No. But a little doser that you pour kalkwasser into in the morning is something you should seriously consider.

[jamesbuf]

James,

Welcome back once again! :D

Depending on the clowns, probably a Rose or Green Bubble Tip will work, Carpets get to big, Condis not a big clown supporter. Also Green Long Tenacles are ok too! You can occasionally feed them silver sides, fresh fish or shrimp uncooked.

Spotted Mushrooms will survive fine with just the lighting that you have already!

Don't get intimidated by the equipment listing that some folks talk about. Just enjoy and work with what you got, allowing your increasing knowledge and talking with the group give yourself room to grow!

 

 

Thanks for help Howard. All of the high end stuff really gets overwhelming when you try to start learning from scratch. Also, its good to be back, even though I never really left. With all the stress of school, I realized it was foolish to throw away the one thing that I still found relaxing. Not to mention I hadn't tested my nitrates in a couple weeks when I made my decision to leave the hobby. When I tested my water I couldn't believe my nitrates had actually dropped that low. I even went out and bought another nitrate test kit to make sure.

Are there any do it yourself plans on how to kalk dose?? or a beginners guide.....possible "kalking for dummies"?? I don't plan on doing it any time soon, but I'm running out of reading to procrastinate with.

[HowardofNOVA]

There are several folks in the group if might have some extra Kalk that they could part with from our last group bulk purchase, just ask!

Small bottle with small tubing (Doser) will do just fine and can be picked up at any LFS! (Local Fish Store)

Could run as much as $20.

 

Are you using an RO/DI to purify your water?

If not, make that your next purchase ASAP!

This is a MUST in this hobby and will eliminate 99% of any future problems!

[emissary]

Are there any do it yourself plans on how to kalk dose?? or a beginners guide.....possible "kalking for dummies"?? I don't plan on doing it any time soon, but I'm running out of reading to procrastinate with.

 

It's real easy.

 

Get a doser. I think I saw someone selling a Kent 2.5 doser on this board. Otherwise you can get one at the store or make one from a 2 liter bottle, some tubing, etc. Google up, something's bound to turn up.

 

After this, methodologies differ. Some folks mix up Kalk and water in a week's supply of kalkwasser (varies based on your evaporation rate). After the water clears up, put the clear liquid in the doser and dose to replace all your evaporated water instead of topping off with plain freshwater.

 

Other folks (myself included) are more lazy. Put some kalk in some water, mix it up, and put it in your dosing equipment immediately, daily.

 

Again, put kalkwasser into a google search and you'll find more than enough information!

[JC Pollman]

Here is a link to alot of DIY stuff - including a kalk reactor. All of it is nicely documented and cheap. The only thing is that it is made of PVC, so you can not see inside, but the price is also much cheaper than acrylic, and PVC is much easier to work with. I have made the skimmer and kalk reactor and can attest that they work well.

 

http://themantledmonster.thereeftank.com/diy.html

 

Or, if you want to really go with a budget operation:

 

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthre...threadid=868186

[jamesbuf]

Thanks for the help guys. I got an RO/DI off of ebay about 6 months ago. I tested my tap water and the nitrates in that was around 20ppm alone. I'm going to get a calcium test kit this week to see if I really need to invest in a kalk setup. There was a small colony of polyps on one of my larger pieces of LR that I got last summer, but I think they died off from high nitrates. I actually noticed that I might have a couple of polyps coming back!! Not sure if they go into a spore mode or maybe hibernation of some sorts until water quality gets better, but its definitly on the same spot were the colony used to be. I do have a couple bottles of Kent liquid calcium, but didn't want to add any extra until I get a test kit.

[emissary]

Thanks for the help guys. I got an RO/DI off of ebay about 6 months ago. I tested my tap water and the nitrates in that was around 20ppm alone. I'm going to get a calcium test kit this week to see if I really need to invest in a kalk setup. There was a small colony of polyps on one of my larger pieces of LR that I got last summer, but I think they died off from high nitrates. I actually noticed that I might have a couple of polyps coming back!! Not sure if they go into a spore mode or maybe hibernation of some sorts until water quality gets better, but its definitly on the same spot were the colony used to be. I do have a couple bottles of Kent liquid calcium, but didn't want to add any extra until I get a test kit.

 

As far as things go, I don't think nitrates actually kill things. I think high nitrates are indicative of poor water quality in general.

[dchild]

Hi James!

 

A lot of the stuff we use is not necessary to maintain a successful tank. I think what happens is once we get things settled we still feel the need to tinker, improve and spend more money That said, there are a lot of things that can help make a reef a big success. I would put the items in this order:

 

1) regular water changes (not really an item, but probably the single biggest necessity)

2) patience. Second biggest necessity.

3) GFCI outlet. absolutely critical for safety. What do you think happened to Howard's hair?

4) R/O unit!!! I started with tap water and when I switched to R/O, 80% of my algae disappeared

5) sump

6) auto-topoff. There are many DIY for this, usually a float switch driving a powerhead or air pump.

7) protein skimmer. I put this after auto topoff b/c you don't really need a skimmer for light bioloads, and because in-sump skimmers are very sensitive to water levels. They really need a constant water level to work their best.

8) refugium. Export nitrates, stabilize ph, and feed the tank.

9) grounding probe. Lots of anecdotal support for these, never saw a difference myself though.

10) kalk reactor. IMO, not really an issue until you start keeping SPS and require the increased stability and calcium levels. These can be dangerous if you add too much kalk to your tank at once (happened to me)

12) bigger protein skimmer.

13) calcium reactor. I don't have one. These need a CO2 tank, which are expensive, and if you are going to get one, it will be put to much better use as part of a kegerator.

 

Just my 2cents

[Lee Stearns]

There are lots of good suggestions here-

I might add that with a fish and softie corals only tank you can pretty much run the system with small water changes only- and appropriate lighting.

We did it for years before they ever started adding skimmers and two part solutions-

Kalk is primarily a way to keep PH in balance, but has the added effect of replacing calcium that is used by Coraline algea, LPS and sps corals. If all you have is the nice pink coralinge growing(a sign of a good tank)

then water changes can keep up with all the calcium required.

Some fish require pristine water- which brings about the need for skimming and maintaining PH which will require more attention to testing ect.

If you stay with gobies, clowns, blennies, some of the hardier species of damsels(not that I would recomend a damsel- they are ounce for ounce the meanest fish in the sea) and some softies such as mushrooms and colts and green tree, cabbage, toad stool, finger leathers- then your system will do just fine and be very attractive and pretty much bullet proof requiring minimal maintenance. Aptasia Majano and bubble algea are exceptions that will require hobbyist intervention. Red tip hermits and a mix of snails micro stars and innoculation of good critters in the sand will eventually achieve a balanced system. Feed very light in any case and you are good to go with only water changes.

It is when we go to butterflys, some of the surgeon fish, angels, among others that we need to keep the environment more pristine, or in tighter tolerances of nitrogen,Phos, oxygen, ph, higher lighting. Green or Rose BTA are the easiest of the hosting anemones but will require a bit better water quality. They can be hit or miss in a "dirtier" tank.

If you get the invite go by and see and talk to a reefer- emmissary's offer is a great start here. I am in the NoVa area and you are welcome to drop by my place as well- Just pm me. You will get lots a great assistance here, and softie corals are generally freebies, or taraded for new species because they grow so well in our systems.

Regards,

Lee