Robb in Austin's Blog

[Robb in Austin]

Thought I would start a blog to track my journey.

Started with a used Oceanic 58g from the Shaker collection that I bought off of Craigslist in ~Sept of 07. I slowly started collecting

the things I needed over the next few months; got a used Tunze 9010, an Aquactinics TX5, 2 Koralia #3, a 75GPD RO/DI system from Buckeye

Field Supply(premium series), a used Sybon refractometer off Ebay, a Deltec MCE300 off Ebay(later sold on MAAST), a 150W Stealth heater, and a bucket of Red Sea Coral Pro salt. I use API test kits for NH3, NO2, NO3, Ca, Carbonate hardness, and P04.

I started this tank in Jan of 08 by mixing my first batch of water in the tank itself.

I added 70lbs of live rock, that I got from a guy in New Braunfels who was taking his tanks down, on Jan 18. The rock was in water

when I picked it up, carried home in Rubbermaid tubs, covered with cotton towels that I dipped in his water. A few aiptasia, 1 polyp,

1 asterina star(who didn't show himself until 8 weeks later) and 1 blue legged hermit crab hitchhiked over. I added ~48lbs of Pavestone

Pulverized Limestone a few days later. I rinsed it in tap water, fought sandstorms and have been happy with it ever since.

Jan 24 I added a peppermint shrimp, who did a good job on the aiptasia. He was found dead a week or two later.

Jan 30 I added a 1.5"purple firefish and 3 nassrius snails. The firefish went immediately into hiding and was found dead 2 days later.

Feb 2 I added a 1"green chromis, 7 cerith snails, and 2 more blue legged hermits. The chromis was dead 2 days later.

Feb 9 I added another 1"green chromis and he was dead in 2 days.

Feb 17 I added a 2" blue reef chromis. He is still going strong.

Feb 22 I added 2 skunk cleaner shrimp. Both molted within 3 days of being in the tank and 1 has molted again as of a few days ago.

Mar 7 I added a 1" green clown goby and a 1.25" tailspot blenny, both from live aquaria, and both are still going strong.

Currently all is well. I went through the usual blooms of diatoms and hair algae(I think). My coralline started growing after a month or so. I got the TX5 running at the beginning of March and added my first two corals, some zoas from Austinvines, on March 1.

I feed frozen mysis, frozen brine, Omega One marine flakes, and Dainichi Marine FX pellets.

I keep an Excel spreadsheet to my parameters, which are generally as follows:

SG=1.026

NH3/NO2/NO3=0ppm

Ca=440-460ppm

PO4=0(if I am reading the color correctly)

Alk=7-9dKh

Temp=80-81

I get murky green skimate from my Tunze. I think primarily due to low bioload and feedings.

Long term goals are clowns/anemone, a clam or two, some more corals(rics, maybe a brain type, some other LPS), and maybe some other fish. I don't get to worked up over SPS, they are pretty but too still I think. I'd also like to get another firefish but I worry about them jumping. I may(read probably) add a HOB overflow and sump in order to increase total volume, get the skimmer out of the tank, and all the other benefits to a sump.

I'll try to keep up with the blog as we go forward.

Pics are in my gallery for those interested.

Robb

[Robb in Austin]

I did a ~10g water change on the 24th and found my blue reef chromis dead on the 25th. He had not been eating well and I think the water

change pushed him over the edge. I was bummed.

I also noticed what appear to be planaria flatworms on the glass.

On a brighter note, I added some corals today!

I got 3 rics and a nice trumpet from FSU on the MAAST forum.

Pics in the gallery, and one of the tail spot blenny.

Robb

[Robb in Austin]

Just saw one of my cleaner shrimps having a feast of green clown goby.

One of the shrimps molted last night. That makes 3 molts per shrimp since Feb 22.

On a brighter note, I saw one of the new rics eating a mysis yesterday.

I also found some aiptaisa recently. Planning on getting a peppermint shrimp to control

that pest.

[Robb in Austin]

Wow, just looked at my blog and it's been a month plus.

Let's see. I added 1 peppermint shrimp on April 1, and 2 more on April 9th. I also added a green chromis on 4/9.

On April 11 I added a hammer coral and a 6 line wrasse from RCA. The 6 line was dead on 4/17. He was eating

so not sure what took him out.

On May 9 I added a nice brain(Trachyphyllia sp) and a Xenia + Anthelia rock from RCA.

The green chromis and TSB are both doing great, eating well, and generally providing some fun to the

tank. No outward sign of any type of infection on either.

I've also noticed that just about all of my cerith snails have been assassinated by the 3 blue legged hermits. I think I'm down to

2 ceriths now.

In between all this time I've been doing water changes every 2 weeks, cleaning the skimmer cup and tank walls every

2-3 days, and sitting back to enjoy everything.

I think the best part, aside from spending money buying corals and fish, is explaining everything to the neighborhood kids.

There are 5-6 friends of my daughter who all run through the house periodically(those with kids will know what I mean) and this

tank elicits oohs and aahhs just about every time. I can't wait to get a clam, clowns, and a anemone!

I'll put some pics of the new additions in my gallery.

Thanks for looking!

[Robb in Austin]

Wow, almost 2 months without an update.

Since the last update I have added another 6 line and green clown goby, and 2 Clark's Clownfish.

The Clarks came from RedDragon(JB) off of MAAST.

All of the fish have been doing great, eating well, and getting along fairly well. The TSB get his feathers

ruffled with the GCG but other than that...

I also added a RBTA that was attached to a nice pancreas shaped rock. The rock also had a quarter

sized piece of green slimer and a cup monitpora which is tan with purple polyps. I got this all from Starfire(Andrew).

Unfortunately, the RBTA wandered around one night and got caught either in my skimmer, or more likely, one of the Koralias. It was a beautiful anemone and will be missed. He was red with a nice green center. The Clark's took right to him, well, the female did at least. (I assume female due to size difference). She wouldn't let the male near it, or her.

I added a crocea clam that I got from zcatzmeow(Cory). He is doing fine.

I've been fighting some read algae since adding the pancreas rock. I noticed some inside it after putting it in the tank. After the anemone-cide, I added an AC110 with carbon, phosphate remover, and some floss but I'm not seeing a big difference yet. I have noticed some the the green hair algae is dying back some though. I changed out the phosphate sponge for poly filter on 7/7 and am anxious to see if that helps.

I also took the opportunity to give my skimmer a 6 month cleaning(vinegar/H2O soaking).

That's about it from the East Side.

Pics in the gallery.

[Robb in Austin]

Since the last update I've battled Cyano and that is about it.

To combat the evil foe, I went with the tried and true no lights for 3 days. It did a world of good.

After day 2.5 the war was all but won.

I initially bought some Red Slime Control from the friendly folks at RCA but my box had no scoop so I never implemented it. I contacted Blue Life USA to see if there was a household equivalent and they said they would send me a scoop but after 2 weeks of no scoop in the mail, even after an email, I went with the no lights method.

Tonight I did a ~10g water change, siphoned the sand(which I do every water change) to get the last bit of Cyano, plucked some Calupera off one of the rocks, and cleaned my Koralia 2.

All my livestock is doing well. The Xenia is trying to take over.

My clam is showing new shell growth.

I did start dosing Mag on a not so frequent basis. As a result, I've started seeing Coralline algae growth.

[beefytang]

Cyano is a real drag. I fought mine back by siphoning my sand bed and adding a new pump for increased circulation. I've read mixed reports about cutting back on the light cycle...some say it lives even without being exposed to light. Seems to have worked in your case tho. Bravo!

[Robb in Austin]

Is anybody out there?

Guess I can join the WIAGAS club now...

Not much change since the last go round. Added some CUC(3 nerites, 3 ceriths, 2 crown top, 1 emerald crab) over the last 2 weeks. These additions were based on discussions on the board and with Dudester.

I also got a private tour of Dudester's office tank. As those of you who have seen it can attest; uh, wow!

His tank is impressive in all sorts of ways.

(I now propose a Dudester Tank Tour once his new home setup is up and running. I'll bring Caucasians!)

Anyone want some free pink pulsing Xenia? I got tons! It's like crab grass.

[Robb in Austin]

Since the last update I have added a few things and, thanks to a few members, subtracted too.

I have "donated" a number of frags of Xenia to 4 or 5 folks. This stuff was, and still is, trying to take over my tank. It's pretty, but sometimes I wish it didn't do well in my tank. I've also noticed some of the anthelia breaking off and drifting around looking for a new home.

I added a GBTA that I picked up from RCA on Oct 8, along with a few snails, and a emerald crab I got at Aquatek. The anemone settled in fairly quickly. I ended up moving the rocks around a bit due to the anemone making progress towards the Monti cup and I didn't want to lose it.

I covered my Koralia's in black netting I got at Walmart in order to prevent a repeat of the last anemone attempt. I secured the netting with tie wraps. It seems effective, but somewhat unsightly. I will probably remove it in the not to distant future.

I also started dosing ESV B-ionic. My Ca seems to be about the same as before but so far I think the alk is coming up some. Last test was 460 and 8.5.

As an interesting aside, the new Ca test I picked up read as 460 but the old one I had read at 520. These are API test kits, about 2 years apart in manufacturing date.

Pics of the anemone are in my gallery.

[+ACampbell]

I saw some pics of your GTA in the gallery. Looks Nice.

Thanks again for the Xenia. It is doing well in my system.

[Robb in Austin]

So, things have been moving along slowly and in an ugly manner.

I've developed a bit of an algae problem over the last few months, GHA and red slime mostly.

I attribute this to a few factors. Bad RODI filters, too much food(mostly flake), too few water changes, no sump.

I also took down a few FW tanks with the big deduction being the 75 Malawi I had. Therefore: upgrade time!

I purchased a new 75 from RCA last week and dropped it off with Prof for drilling and overflow building tonight. (Why a new one you ask? Good question. I have a Midas/Red Devil/Petsmart hybrid in another 75 that I bought second hand 2 years ago. It was a solid tank, but not in the best shape. I moved the Midas into the old Malawi setup, sold off the old 75, and will place the new one onto the nice stand the old one was on.)

I plan on using the "Silent and failsafe overflow" setup described here: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p...hreadid=1310585

I'll start a build thread once I get the tank back from Dave.

Things to do yet: lighting(planning on Aquactinics TX5), plumbing, sump/fuge. Also looking at a Tunze Nano wavebox vs Koralias. Or maybe both. I'll get some sand from Dave as well, and probably some rock too.

I *might* post a pic of the 58 later. It's embarrassing.

Stay tuned for more as things progress.

[+mcallahan]

hit me up with a piece of your LR that has the GHA on it...I'd like to see if my tang likes it.

prof showed me your tank tonight....looks...brand new!

[Robb in Austin]

In the battle against GHA, I got a Bulk Reef Supply dual stage reactor, high capacity GFO, and some GAC. This thing has made a fairly huge dent in the offending algae. I also got back into the swing of water changes.

Still planning on upgrading to a 75 in the near future. I have everything to put it together except time.

At RCA's Carlos B-Day sale I picked up some salt, sand, a yellow coris wrasse, and a blue reef chromis. I want to add another wrasse or two as well as a tang of some type when I get the upgrade done. Leaning towards a leopard, a lubbock, maybe a mystery, and a Scopas tang.

Stay tuned for updates in the next few weeks!

[JamesL]

Scopas tangs are cool, I really like mine. Very personable. They are not the most colorful though. I recently got a twinspot bristletooth tank that has more blue in it. Another fine algae eating addition.

[Robb in Austin]

After a few months of planning(AKA; selling FW fish, rearranging other tanks in house, buying a new 75 and having it drilled and overflowed by prof, buying a used 30 long for a sump, collecting parts and equipment, and waiting for school to stop for a few weeks) I have started the 75g upgrade!

The plans for the overflow are the BeanAnimal's silent and failsafe system as outlined here:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1310585

I'm using 1.25" plumbing throughout.

Other equipment:

Eheim 1260 for return pump.

Vortech MP40W for flow(hopefully this is all I will use, but I have a Koralia 2 & 3 in the wings if needed.)

48" Aquactinics TX5 with the following bulbs: All ATI; Blue + x2, Aquablue special, True Actinic x2.

Tunze 9010(on the current system).

CF flood light, 6500K, from Lowe's for fuge.

Bulk Reef Supply Dual GFO/GAC reactor.

That's all for now. I'll start a build thread once I have the sump built.

[JamesL]

[+mcallahan]

awesome. another tank is born.

[Robb in Austin]

I built my sump this week.

Things I learned: cutting acrylic is not easy using hand held tools. Well, cutting it _is_ easy. Cutting it correctly...

I'll start a build thread, with pics, next Mon or Tues. I get to work all weekend which means the sump baffles have plenty of time to dry before water testing.

[+mcallahan]

glad to see that you started. I know it has been draining on you waiting to start.

[+dapettit]

Working with acrylic ain't that easy. I found running a water drip while cutting keep the acrylic from melting to the saw blade. Waiting on pics. . .

[Robb in Austin]

So, after approximately 18 months this thing is finally taking off.

But first a brief update:

After I started my build thread, I restarted school and then started in grad school in Jan 10. The net result is that the build was put on hiatus once again. In the fall of 10 I got around to working on the tank again and with help from CafeRacerMike got the plumbing done. I managed to get the tank in the house and water tested it and then more delays. In late Nov of 10 we decided to get our foundation fixed which caused further delay. In the last few weeks of 10 and first 2 weeks of 11, lots of progress was made(relatively).

On with the show...

As outlined in the thread, I finally added SW to the tank this week. I added Stability, my old MagFloat which had been in the current tank, and 180mL or so of old tank water to get the tank seeded.

Today I added sand and have some HOB filters running to help clear the sand storm that has occurred.

Hopefully, tomorrow I can add a rock from the current tank that is covered in GSP to help get the tank running.

I'll try to get some pics up soon.

[caferacermike]

It's been like a month already, update us.

[Robb in Austin]

The tank went live on 1/25/11.

I added a sixline and yellow coris wrasse earlier this month. The six line is doing fine. The YCW lasted about 3 days. I am done with them, this was the second one I've tried.

About a week ago I added a sailfin tang I got from Laura. I was hesitant to add a tang due to fears of bringing in ich or getting one that wouldn't eat. But, when Laura's came up, I knew it would eat and was most likely ich free. So far he has been great, has started eating flake and pellet, and just adds that splash I wanted in the tank.

Today I did the first water change.

It was a bit different then doing one on a non drilled tank. I did the majority of the change from the display and a little bit from the sump. I was able to vacuum some goo out of the sump. As I was filling the display tank and watching the water rise it occurred to me that I better start the return and see exactly where I was in terms of needing to quit adding. Fortunately I was short and not too full. Whew.

[JamesL]

Hmm.. with the two tangs I have in my tank, I have never had issues with ich. But maybe because they are a harder breed? I have a scopas (same family as your sailfin) and a twinspot bristletooth.

And yay for the first water change