fake plants?

[skysmom]

my friend has a tank with some fake plants in it. The live rock and corals look awesome theriselves, but the plants do add a little to the tank, making it look more real. Plus his fish like to hide in the plant.:happy:
What is everyone's opinion on fake plants in a nano reef? :help:
and being that i have a very small nano, 2.5gal, i have 1.2 lb of LR. is that enough? It's on black marine sand. Will the LR "awaken" the sand, to make LS? or...?
I am EXTREMELY new to this, just added the LR today, after getting the salinity and SG of the tank set. What other things should I look for, besides the nitrates and nitrites? And as to lighting, that is confusing to me too....:notsure:
I have done a lot of reading, and I know that this is going to be a great undertaking, having a tank so small. but I am a stay-at-home mom/business owner, and I do have the time on my hands. I thought that land hermit crabs were interesting, and loved reading about them, but now that "Finding Nemo" has sparked all of our interests on the whole saltwater tank idea, I am ready for all help and ideas, put into layman's terms, of course

 

[lefty]

I have one fake plant in my tank. As long as it doesn't have any sharp edges poking out, I can't find anything wrong with them. Mine isn't the most real looking fake plant, but it seems to fool most of my friends . The one thing I have heard about fake plants is that some fish will try to eat them. But I'm sure they'd learn it wasn't food pretty quick. I have never witnessed my two clowns going after the plant, so I don't think it's much of a concern.
Yes, I believe the LR will help make your sand live. The bacteria on the rock could easily be transferred to the sand.
-lefty

 

[manjisann]

Welcome to the hobby

. First off it is a lot of work, sort of, but like children (when they are good) it is very rewarding. You need to be testing:
Ammonia,
Nitrite,
Nitrate,
P.H.
and Alkalinity,
These are the bare minimum tests. With a tank that small your fish choices are very limited. There are a few small gobies and small blennies. But with that said, I have seen some very gorgeous 5 gal or less nanos, so don't get too discouraged. You just have to put interesting inverts and coral in there.
What kind of light came with your tank, if any? Can you post a pic of the tank, or at least the dimensions? For general info, conventional wisdom says at least 4-5 watts per gallon, but that is by no means the absolute rule. The one thing you will need to know about this hobby is there are not any absolutes (within reason, ie I absolutely guaruntee at 90 F your fish will be belly up).
What kind of filtration do you have on your tank?
As a suggestion for a fish, Clown gobies are fun and fairly small, you may be able to fit one in there.
Hope this helps.

 

[skysmom]

We weren't really planning on adding any fish to this tank, we just wanted to make sure it was something that we could fit into our life before spending the money on a bigger setup. But if I have anything to say about it, I want a bigger one NOW. Even though I am just in the cycle stage right now, I still love it, it is interesting to me. Plus it gives me something to dote over along with the 2 y/o during the day while waiting for our phone to ring (we have our own roofing and construction businesses...run 2 seperate ones out of our house!!)
If you go to the AllGlass Aquarium site, you'll see the tank. It's a MiniBow 2.5. It came with a regular incandecent light bulb. I have to get a mini compact sometime soon, but was told the other was ok for now, until I decided to add corals and such.
I can get a pic here, but it won't be the greatest because my digital camera is a P.O.S.
The filter is a Whisper MicroFilter. I was told that it would be ok for such a small tank.

 

[skysmom]

this is before I took out the fake plant that the 12 y/o daughter wanted in there.
I also am going to change the background paper, that was to make the 2 y/o happy before we put nything in the tank, I just haven't changed it yet...oops

 

[skysmom]

This is a shot of the LR. Do you think that looks like enough LR for the tank?

 

[lefty]

If you wanted, I'm sure you could fit another small piece in there. I would recommend getting a small piece of Fiji or Florida for some contrast.
-lefty

 

[skysmom]

This is a stupid question, at least for me.
What do the other types of rock look like? What kind does mine look like? my LFS has a few tanks of LR, but from my memory, they all looked the same as this. And there are no other LFS's around that sell SW supplies. (at least that I can drive to. I am not too familiar with this area, LOL, and not too fond of driving in new places. Like to stick to the familiar :yes: )
I am not sure either that they have smaller pieces. Besides that, I need to get the other test kits first. :happyfish

 

[lefty]

I believe the rock you have is Tonga branch live rock (I could be wrong, but the branch shape is often associated with Tonga). I've attached a couple pictures of the two most common types.
Florida

 

[lefty]

There are many more types than these two. Florida LR is denser than Fiji. Fiji LR is more porous and lightweight and is recommended more often than the Florida. Also, Florida LR isn't always covered in coralline algae (I couldn't find a very good picture...oh well).
Hope this helps!
Oh, and here's a link to the LR I got off of this site: http://photobucket.com/albums/v255/l...ul/FijiLR2.jpg It's Fiji LR as well.
:happyfish
-lefty
Fiji

 

[skysmom]

ok, interesting. What, do you think, kinds of hitchhikers may I end up with, if any at all? I really haven't seen anything yet, how long usually till a hitcher is found, if at all?

 

[lefty]

The hitchhikers you get will depend on where you got it from and a few other factors. Mine didn't come with anything on it. I only purchased 20lbs. though. I could pretty much tell after the second day that I had no hitchhikers. Common hitchhikers are worms, sponges, snails, miniscule sea stars, feather dusters, button polyps, etc.
Make sure to watch your LR at night, too. Many hitchhikers tend to be nocturnal.
-lefty

 

[skysmom]

K, so we have found a few "critters", at least we think.
There are a LOT of little white "bugs" all over, are these pods? and my step-daughter said she saw a white slug-like thing, I haven't seen it yet so I don't know.
And I have found something before, that disappeared, so I had thought it was just a piece of the rock flaking and moving around with the current. But it's back, so I don;'t know what it is. It's kinda transparent.
Anyone have any LR they wanna give away?? I love seeing all the neat-o critters you can get...Kinda like a cracker jack surprise!!
I am still looking for anyone who may have some water testing supplies they are willing to part with for cheap/free....we are going thru a rough time with all this snow. FOr us, snow means no work. (the pains of owning 2 roofing businesses...I HATE WINTER!) We thought we were getting away scott-free this year without any real snowfall, but now we have almost a foot, and more on the way! So all the money we had for the kids' tank is gone for electric bills and such, and now we are lost. BLAH enough sob stories.

 

[skysmom]

I have red algae growing on the LR. Looks like mold...but it's bright red. That's not good, is it?

 

[manjisann]

Can you post a picture of the red algae? It sounds like micro algae that most new tanks get, you just have to keep up with your water changes and it will eventually go away. You can also brush it off the rock during the water change. I used to get a nasty brown algae on my sand, and I would just use a small gravel vac and clean the first 1/2 inch or so, but it has now gone away.

 

[skysmom]

I thought you were not to change water during the cycle? I believe that I am still cycling. I know I am going to run into a problem here, but I do not have all the water tests I should have. I didn't get them when I had the money to, and now I am dead broke and I can't get them.
here's the best pic I can get

 

[skysmom]

it won't allow me to attach the pic...hmhmm

 

[rubberduck]

yep the web site is down

 

[manjisann]

I believe that you should do the water change especially when the tank is cycling. The point of a water change is to help export waste before it can be broken down. I am not suggesting massive water changes, just the usuall 10%, it will ofter help with algae problems. The water change also helps to keep the levels of minor chemicals up, and helps to keep ph, alk, etc. stable. If you haven't been doing them, don't panic, I would just recommend starting.

 

[kiharaconn]

No you do not do water changes during your cycle. It will just extend the length of time the cycle takes. The brown algae is normal and will most likely go away or change colors later. I have a pico tank and have alittle over 1lb of lr. Of course since it is so small I don't have fish but love looking for all the creatures that come out. If you develop thick red algae it is due to lack of water movement. That will go away after you fix the water movement issue. Just pull it off or pick up the rock and give it a good shake. Some or most of it will come off and will filter out.