KeeperOfTheZoo

Or flex pipe and the elimination of joints as much as possible! My return is all flex hose and barb fittings. So nice. Don't know why I bothered hard plumbing the drain.

Derek what corals are you feeding mysis? I have some candy canes that have a great feeding response so I target feed them mysis. The other corals seem oblivious to feeding time. I've been hesitant to feed filter feeder type foods for fear of adding to an already heavy nutrient load (which is much better but I'm still recovering from the old build up). My fish get mysis and frozen formula 2 (for the tang and angel). Once or twice a week I put a small strip of nori on a clip. The corals hopefully catch left overs.

Good point J! I didn't even think about the less rigid stuff kinking. Do you think the hose with the braided exterior will inhibit light enough to (at least mostly) prevent algae growth? I'm hoping I can avoid having to glue things so I can take everything apart if need be. I plumbed with rigid PVC the first time around and one of my regrets now is that I can't take my overflow and drain lines totally apart to clean everything.

Well, I'm about to replumb my tank. It isn't drilled (add a drilled tank to the list of things I'll do differently next time) and if possible I'd like to pick up supplies locally. I'd like to use flexible pipe this time around. I already have everything I need for my return pump. So, I need to figure out what to use from the overflow down to the sump. I stopped by our local Ace and they have a thinner walled clear plastic drain hosing that says it's not for supply lines. They also have a very thick walled potable water safe flex hose. It's so bulky thick! Would the clear drain tubing be safe to use? I know it sounds silly but I got a little nervous when it said not for supply lines. If Lowes or HD has a better option please share. Went to Ace just because it's closer.

Glad all has ended well Dan. I'm really impressed with the response from Marine Land. I wouldn't have expected that.

Well, it sure likes 3wpg of PC lighting. Not sure about high Kh. Mine stays pretty consistantly at 9dkh (calcium 420-440). +1 to it growing in low lit fuges. I have 2 grow lights over my fuge and the coraline is growing fast on the rocks. I have pink, purple and blueish coraline in my tank. All the same plus green in the fuge.

Well hmm, I'm going to have to rethink getting an anemone. Some of my rock work gets very high up in the tank. Would a GBT be the best bet under PCs? I have no problem with feeding, already have a few things I hand feed already.

I have cruddy PCs and have coraline growing so fast on the glass I'm having to scrape the front and sides at least once a week just to get it. I'm letting it go on the back glass. It's growing on the rocks but it's really liking the glass.

I didn't think you could keep nems long term under anything less than halides. I have a bit over 3 wpg with PCs on my tank and had totally ruled nems out. Ditto on the fish load, pushing it with those 3! Craigslist is great. I bought my set up for less than the cost of the rock.

Dave, Do they need to be kept in a fine sand bed? I have CC (yuck). Would the cuce be ok in that?

Derek I feed my serpent a variety of things, mostly meaty foods with occasional large chunks of formula 2. I've only had it about 4 months but in the time it's central disk has almost doubled! I'm thinking these guys need to be target fed ( so the fish n crabs don't steal from them). I was afraid to just let mine scavenge for survival. I want a couple emerald crabs. I have a little bubble algae going, will they really eat it?

I've seen several people keep tangs in smaller tanks when the fish are small. It's hard to say if the fish is happy. I tend to over research things and gkarshens is right. Most reputable online sites will list a 100g+ tank for tangs. I have a little 2" yellow tang in my 125g. It really isn't that active of a fish. I could easily see keeping one that size in a 75g with the understanding that as the fish matures you may need to rehome it. I really want a blue hippo as well but have mixed feelings about whether it would be overstocking my tank. I already have the yellow tang, 2 chromis, a Pygmy angel and an ocellaris clown (planning to add another ocellaris soon)

My favorite are the army of itty bitty blue & red leg hermits I got from Laura. They don't hurt a thing and they are constantly eating junk off the rocks. They haven't caused problems even as they get bigger. The snails I have are like little buldozers plowing over anything in their path. They knock loose frags down worse than the crabs. Simple fix is to secure all frags! I have turbo, astrea, black foot, bumblebee and a few good hitchhiker type snails whose names are escaping me! Crabs seem so iffy. What about shrimp? My cleaner is a busy, busy little dude and very cute. I have a royal urchin (also via our fabulous forum Mama). Not sure how much he cleans up but he's worth having for the entertainment value. I think my most worthless CUC member is my banded serpent star. He doesn't clean up, he just begs for food when I feed the fish and since I'm a sucker I feed him too!

But she can control the 'goods'. Never mess with the supplier who feeds your habit. Uh-hum, Laura, I need a cleaner shrimp please. You learning here Vash? PS- Welcome Melissa! This is a great group. Lots of help and information.

OK.... lets see if I can post without weird half finished double posts. Might help if I stopped posting from my phone... I've been a little skeptical about the 'mushroom ate my fish' stories, but I've been hesitant to rule out possibilities. I even gave my banded serpent star a very good looking over the morning after. It's central disk didn't seem full enough to have consumed a fish. My working theory is that it jumped... possibly startled out of the tank by the dwarf angel I'd just added. After seeing the angel beat up on a couple chromis I wouldn't put it past her to have harassed the mandarin. She only looks cute and inoccent!!

Gonzo, will hairy mushrooms eat a mandarin? I have a rock of hairy mushrooms, the largest is about 5" across when fully opened. I had a beautiful, fat healthy juvenile manderin that disapeared without a trace one night. I suppose it's a mystery that will go unsolved. I'd read a post on another forum about hairy mushrooms eating a clown. I was a bit worried because my clown hosts in the mushrooms. Seems it is only a specific type of very large mushroom that can catch faster fish though. I worried about my mandy getting enough to eat in a 125g tank with a fuge for pod production. It was fat and growing till it disapeared. Some folks have managed to get mandarins to eat prepared/dead food (VWMike has one that does in a 29g biocube) then you can keep them in a smaller tank. That's the exception though.

Ok, well I guess I'll sit on my hands (after putting the scissors away) and see if the darn thing will split on it's own. I swear it's teasing me! Laura this is one I got from you, one of my first corals. It's grown so much and is so pretty! Richie, good to know they will survive cutting if my patience runs out. Right now it appears all parts are stuck on the rock. It looks like a tube instead of a round ric!

My green florida ricordea has been in the process of splitting for over a month. It is HUGE, has two mouths, occasionally ruffles up like it's working on actually splitting then quits. What is its deal? Should I cut it and force the split? How traumatic for it would that be?

My ocellaris is happily hosting in a bunch of hairy mushrooms (see my avatar?)... I'm thinking they aren't all that picky! I wish I had a dollar for all the stories I've read where people buy an anemone and then the clowns go and host in one variety of coral or another.

Hi Chris, Welcome to the list! It's so nice to see yet another member that's kinda out in my neck of the woods. I live a bit N. East of Lampasas so not real close to Temple, but closer than most of Austin. There are a lot more people in and around Killeen than I imagined there would be when I first joined the forum. I think Versace (in Cove) had macros of different types and he has very neat tanks (worth going to see!). I have chaeto but I just gave a handful to Salt Dreams, it'll be another month or so before it grows out enough for me to give more away. If you haven't found some by then, or still need more, I'd be happy to give you some. Never feel silly about asking questions here. This is a great group of wonderfuly helpful people. Liz

Brat kids... Some of us old 30-somethings were morning people even in our party days! What kind of LPS do you have for sale? Won't be able to make it there this weekend but might by next weekend. Liz

No problem, just didn't want the poor guy to die for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Christian do you have live rock in your tank? The bioballs are acting as surface area for denitrification (biofiltration), right? If you have plenty of live rock in the tank and remove the balls slowly like you plan to I think you'll be fine. If in doubt remove them even slower and see how the tank reacts. I removed a lot of my sand bed (kinda the same concept.. removing a form of biofiltration) and I just did it real slow over a couple months and had no problems. I do have a lot of live rock though. When you get ready to add chaeto post to the list. Many folks give it away free. It was really nice to meet you yesterday by the way. Liz

Ah, poor little guy. I'll take him. I can put him in my sump with the big rotten gulf coast hermit that's already been banished there.

Will do.