jawja peach
New Member
Just found this AWESOME board & wanted to introduce myself before I start peppering you all with questions.
I set up my first SW tank in July of 2005 and have had great success, even though I tend to fly by the seat of my pants.
I started with:
Of course, I had some deaths when I started stocking, but I was careful to stock with cheap fish in the beginning. I developed a good relationship with the LFS owner who had been a hobbyist since he was 11 y.o., and was very willing to teach me. I paid him to do my bi-monthly water changes so I could watch/help and learn.
About a month after setup I got serious - added a giant cup mushroom, favia brain, tonga rock w/ star polyps, button polyps and I was HOOKED!!!
A few days later I added a Coral Beauty (She had been returned to the store by someone taking down their setup and was at least a year old. She lived with me for 2 years before she died), a Sally Lightfoot, a sand star, a glider ladder goby, and a 36W UV Filter (turbotwist).
Month 3, I added Tangs - a Powder Blue and Sailfin Yellow. The Sailfin is still with me and doing great - the Powder Blue lived about 1.5 years. Then came the cleaner shrimp, Candy coral, Plate Coral, Lawnmower Blenny, Orange Fan Sponge, and more LR.
Month 4, I added my Yellow Banded Maroon Clown and a Bubble-Tip Anemone, a sun coral, Electric Flame Scallop, Fairy Wrasse, and another plate.
Along the way I had a matched pair of true-percula clowns die within days of coming home, and got to watch a huge, gorgeous bubble tip anemone split. I flushed a blue carpet anenome down the toilet
, battled & beat a nasty case of red flatworms, and spent more money than I would have ever DREAMED I would spend on a hobby!!!
I was lucky enough to get my hands on two different show quality corals - both multi-branched - a Frogspawn and a Hammer. Both were about 10 inches in diameter and absolutely beautiful. I had great luck for about 9 months with a goniopora and mourned when it died. I had three aiptasia that never spread but had lots of personality as they moved around the aquarium. Other Corals: Kenya Tree, Wellsophylia Brain, several different zoos. Also, a decorator crab, and a clam.
Eight months into things I added a Protein Skimmer in my sump and bought a 12 gal Nanocube.
The Nanocube is currently stocked with LR, LS, a Sebae Anemone, a Clown, a lawnmower, pencil urchin, hermits, and a gorilla crab (which, despite his bad reputation, we LOVE!)
So... Now you know me... sit back and prepare for the questions. I've had a run of bad luck lately and am going to do my darndest to pick your brains dry!
I will try to do searches and make sure my questions aren't too redundant, but if I ask something that has been asked/answered a million times - just bop me upside the head and I'll search further.
Now - I'm off to the fish forum for my first question...
I set up my first SW tank in July of 2005 and have had great success, even though I tend to fly by the seat of my pants.
I started with:
- a 120 gal. with a 75g sump
- homemade canister-type filter
- overflow box w/dual 1200 gph
- 2 mag-12's
- 3 maxi-jet 1200's
120# Fiji LR
about 120# LS
a 48" Aqualight Pro (w/ 2-150W HQI, 2-96W CF, & 3 Lunar lights)
2 - 250W Stealth Heaters
Of course, I had some deaths when I started stocking, but I was careful to stock with cheap fish in the beginning. I developed a good relationship with the LFS owner who had been a hobbyist since he was 11 y.o., and was very willing to teach me. I paid him to do my bi-monthly water changes so I could watch/help and learn.
About a month after setup I got serious - added a giant cup mushroom, favia brain, tonga rock w/ star polyps, button polyps and I was HOOKED!!!
Month 3, I added Tangs - a Powder Blue and Sailfin Yellow. The Sailfin is still with me and doing great - the Powder Blue lived about 1.5 years. Then came the cleaner shrimp, Candy coral, Plate Coral, Lawnmower Blenny, Orange Fan Sponge, and more LR.
Month 4, I added my Yellow Banded Maroon Clown and a Bubble-Tip Anemone, a sun coral, Electric Flame Scallop, Fairy Wrasse, and another plate.
Along the way I had a matched pair of true-percula clowns die within days of coming home, and got to watch a huge, gorgeous bubble tip anemone split. I flushed a blue carpet anenome down the toilet
I was lucky enough to get my hands on two different show quality corals - both multi-branched - a Frogspawn and a Hammer. Both were about 10 inches in diameter and absolutely beautiful. I had great luck for about 9 months with a goniopora and mourned when it died. I had three aiptasia that never spread but had lots of personality as they moved around the aquarium. Other Corals: Kenya Tree, Wellsophylia Brain, several different zoos. Also, a decorator crab, and a clam.
Eight months into things I added a Protein Skimmer in my sump and bought a 12 gal Nanocube.
The Nanocube is currently stocked with LR, LS, a Sebae Anemone, a Clown, a lawnmower, pencil urchin, hermits, and a gorilla crab (which, despite his bad reputation, we LOVE!)
So... Now you know me... sit back and prepare for the questions. I've had a run of bad luck lately and am going to do my darndest to pick your brains dry!
I will try to do searches and make sure my questions aren't too redundant, but if I ask something that has been asked/answered a million times - just bop me upside the head and I'll search further.
Now - I'm off to the fish forum for my first question...
