280g FOWLR Tank Diary

R

rcreations

Guest
I've had 3 cleaner shrimp for at least 2 - 3 years and they do great! But I tried putting in 3 peppermint shrimp and they were gone fast and I'm 90% sure the Queen Angel did them in. She does a number on different corals I've tried as well. The only ones I'm able to keep are mushrooms and even those... she ate the red ones but left the frilly, recordia and the blue ones alone. Also ate zoas and leathers.
 
kylev

kylev

Member
I will have some cleaner shrimp for sure then and will probabley try some of the blood red ones I believe they are. I'm figuring ill need around 225-250 members of CUC before its over but am guessing i shouldnt add more than 20-30 to start it off?? Damn that queen angel I hope I get one that behaves, I've seen a few tanks fully stocked with coral and queens before I just hope I can get lucky enough to at least get by with zoas and mushrooms. The queen is one of the fish I cant remove from the list I love them too much
 
kylev

kylev

Member
Would my DT be ready for a hippo tang by the time its through the QT? One of my LFS has been holding me a large hippo tang for quite some time and I can't wait to bring it home. I'm currently undecided on what type of clowns I want so they could wait
 
R

rcreations

Guest
Not really a tang expert but I would think you can add one once the tank is cycled. I don't see why not? As long as you feed it nori and other algae based food, it should be ok.
 
kylev

kylev

Member
I'm planning on getting some cheato soon for my refugium, is there such a thing as some sort of QT for it in order to ensure none of the water on it is bad?
 
kylev

kylev

Member
I want to order some clowns (black onyx true percs) but my QT still has some nitirites. Could I just drain the QT and re fill it will my DT water and order up the clowns or am I better of to wait for the QT to cycle on its own?
 
R

rcreations

Guest
Definitely wait for the QT to cycle before adding fish. QTs take longer to cycle so you need to be patient and not rush it. Trust me, I say this from personal experience... having a well cycled QT is important, otherwise you add the fish, the readings spike, then you're constantly fighting to keep them under control, while your fish get stressed out.
 
levinjac

levinjac

Active Member
you should always add clowns first if you get clowns unless they are marrons or clarkii but if your qt is cycled you could get thhe two clowns put them in the qt 2 weeks later add them in the dt then pick up your hippo but her in the qt then repeat the process with all your fish
 
kylev

kylev

Member
Alright RC I guess I pull out the last bit of patience I have and wait for the QT to become stable on it owns, but I might be doing a couple extra w/c's to help speed it along
Not sure on your reasoning levinjac, I don't see a hippo being added before clowns becoming a problem of aggression or anything of that sort. Plus I will be QTing for at least 4 weeks
 
kjr_trig

kjr_trig

Active Member
I don't believe ick or velvet can be transferred by inverts, but Aquaknight would be the best answer on that.
CUC is overrated in a tank like you're doing, but if you don't have any Wrasses or Triggers, it would be possible to have certain crabs and snails. I have had 3 Zebra Snails in my tank for more than 2 years now, they are HUGE now though. I don't think juvi Angels would bother decent sized snails or Crabs though.
I think you could potentially do Cleaner Shrimp, but I would get them in before the Angels. Then hope for the best as the Angels get older.
 
kylev

kylev

Member
As of now there wont be any triggers or wrasses, so that means I could have snails and hermits, correct? I just like to watch them they add a lot of life to a tank i think. And I will add the cleaner shrimp way before the large angels because they will be the last addition before the sohal.
Is the CUC not necessary in a tank my size because the tangs will do plently of cleaning?
 
R

rcreations

Guest
I think the idea is that a cleanup crew is not necessary because with a tank that big, you'd need A LOT of them to actually make a difference and you can clean the tank faster than they can. Plus a lot of fish will eat remains of food and stuff and tangs graze off algae. I just think they're cool to look at, especially emerald crabs... they do some funny stuff.
Something I recommend is to get a fish that likes to eat off the bottom as it'll keep your tank clean. The red coris wrasse is a perfect example but there are others too.
 
kylev

kylev

Member
Ya, the main reason I want some CUC is to watch them.
I have thought about the red corris wrasse and like them a lot, would they let any crabs or shrimp survive though?
 
R

rcreations

Guest
My red coris wrasse doesn't bother any of the inverts but it's still a juvi, pretty small, like 3". I'll let you know when it grows up. lol
 
kylev

kylev

Member
haha....I think I'm going to add one to my list, cause I think they are really cool fish plus I like the idea of it cleaning the bottom of the tank. Could it be one of the earlier fish to add or should I wait until the tank is pretty established?
Would it get along with a mystery wrasse since theres a lot of tank space?
 
R

rcreations

Guest
Mine seems pretty peaceful, doesn't bother any other fish and no fish bothers it. I also have a yellow wrasse in the tank and they completely ignore each other. I don't think it matters when you add it, first or last.
Oh, one thing... it needs a deep enough sandbed to sleep under.
 
kylev

kylev

Member
thanks for the info
How deep are you talking on the sand bed? I've got on average between 2-3"
So I've sanded on my tank enough to where Novus #2 buffing compound takes out the majority of all scratches so I plan on ordering up #3 just to see if that would do the
trick, cause sanding takes forever and is flat boring and painful to do hours on end. My question is does anyone have any experience with using a buffer at a low speed to do this or is it to much risk?
I also ordered up my (2) 48" 6x54 ATI Powermodules today with the following bulb setup
First one
(2) ATI blue plus T5 HO
(2) Geisemann 11000k aquablue plus T5 HO
(2) ATI true actinic 03 T5 HO
Second one
(2) UV lighting 1200K actinic white 50/50 T5 HO
(2) Geisemann 11000k aquablue plus T5 HO
(2) ATI true actinic 03 T5 HO
 
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