....point of no return diary
- Thread starter tferrante
- Start date
tferrante
Member
Thanks for the kind words. I took about 2 hours to get it stacked that way. I am sure most folks understand that. stack it...look at it....stack again.....look at it......tear it down......stack it again. Call me picky, but I figured it was the best time to get it right. The structure has a lot of holes for fish to swim through and to hide in the future. It does look great and the water is crystal clear. everything checks out well.
Ph=8.2
Ammonia=0.0
Nitrates=0.0
Nitrites=0.0
temp=80
Next week I will begin adding some fish and some critters. I am thinking a pair of clowns, a cleaner shrimp, a few hermits, and a few snails. The mushrooms that are on the rocks are absolutely beautiful after being under the light for an hour or so. They open up as wide as the can go, covering a fair amount of the rock that they are attached to. It looks like I will have to work on a little aptashia that I also inherited. It shouldn't be too bad if I get to work on it now. More to come in a few days. Going to enjoy the Labor Day week-end.
btw...thoughts on my fish for this tank
2 clowns
royal gramma
some sort of gobie (really want a mandarin, but so difficult to keep)
either a coral beauty or flame angel
and some sort of tang...undecided...like brown powder, purple, and sailfin.
still researching....
Ph=8.2
Ammonia=0.0
Nitrates=0.0
Nitrites=0.0
temp=80
Next week I will begin adding some fish and some critters. I am thinking a pair of clowns, a cleaner shrimp, a few hermits, and a few snails. The mushrooms that are on the rocks are absolutely beautiful after being under the light for an hour or so. They open up as wide as the can go, covering a fair amount of the rock that they are attached to. It looks like I will have to work on a little aptashia that I also inherited. It shouldn't be too bad if I get to work on it now. More to come in a few days. Going to enjoy the Labor Day week-end.
btw...thoughts on my fish for this tank
2 clowns
royal gramma
some sort of gobie (really want a mandarin, but so difficult to keep)
either a coral beauty or flame angel
and some sort of tang...undecided...like brown powder, purple, and sailfin.
still researching....
azfishgal
Active Member
Tank is looking VERY nice, LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the rock work!!! Great Job! You know....with having mushrooms you've crossed over to the reef side, do you realize that.
Your fish list looks good minus the tangs. Your tank is just to small especially for the Sailfin, so I would wait on those until you upgrade. Tangs are big swimmers and need as much room as possible.
Have fun and I look forward to seeing this tank develope.
Have fun and I look forward to seeing this tank develope.
tferrante
Member
Thanks Azfishgal....I read your post from beginning to end. Your tank is gorgeous. yes, I was afraid I would like the reef appearance with the mushrooms on the rocks. I have already started looking at other soft corals. I also have some small zoos on the rock my friend gave me. I think she pushed me to look at the reef side of things. But I am keeping to my word on being patient, perhaps too patient. I need an opinion....I know I was going to go with a couple of clowns, but I was thinking that maybe I would try to go with a mandarin at first.
my reason for this is to get it in the tank alone to get it acclimated and used to eating without the pressure of other fish. This is of course if the fish is eating at the LFS. Perhaps this way, maybe it would stand a better chance of making it. I do have some pods in the tank. They came with the same rock as the 'shrooms and wiped a bunch off the glass. She had a manadarin in her tank with this rock and has had it for over a year....the mandarin is such a pretty fish and would be a great addition to any tank. Thoughts?
my reason for this is to get it in the tank alone to get it acclimated and used to eating without the pressure of other fish. This is of course if the fish is eating at the LFS. Perhaps this way, maybe it would stand a better chance of making it. I do have some pods in the tank. They came with the same rock as the 'shrooms and wiped a bunch off the glass. She had a manadarin in her tank with this rock and has had it for over a year....the mandarin is such a pretty fish and would be a great addition to any tank. Thoughts?
azfishgal
Active Member
Mandarins are hard to keep usually, the reason I say usually is there are some people who end up "lucky" for a short time, because when a Mandarin starves it takes time. It's often suggested to have a year old tank at the least before adding a Mandarin. I too LOVE those fish, they are beautiful, and I plan on adding one to my tank, but not for another 6 months or longer. Remember, you said you were going to be patient and this is one you might want to really hold to.
A pair of clowns were my first fish and they are doing great. Have never picked on any of the new fish added and they are a lot of fun to watch.
A pair of clowns were my first fish and they are doing great. Have never picked on any of the new fish added and they are a lot of fun to watch.
tferrante
Member
deep down I know that trying the mandarin this early is just a roll of the dice. I need to stick with my game plan...how about a green clown goby?...I also think I need to drop the temp of my tank by a couple of degrees...I am running around 80 and as high as 82 after the lights have been on all day. I am going to put timers on my lights so they will be a little more regulated. just want to be sure the temp is not too high for the fish I want to add.....
azfishgal
Active Member
My tank is usually at 82 by the end of the day, doesn't hurt your fish or corals one bit. Some people have tanks that even reach 85 (my QT tank does, but I now have a fan blowing across the top and it takes it down to 80). You have to remember most coral reefs around the world range from 78 to 86, with the average temp being 81, so your tank is fine. Keeping the temp stable is more important.
azfishgal
Active Member
Well, it seems like you are doing everything right.
I to was completely new when I started to set up my 125. Ask lots of questions, read (The Conscientious Marine Aquarist is a great book), research and you will do just fine. After starting my tank 7 months ago I will finally be getting my last fish this week and have a few more corals to get. Then I can finally sit back and watch it grow. Talk about needing patience.
tferrante
Member
Well I changed my game plan just a little bit....I added fish, but they are 3 green chromis and one yellowtail damsel. I know, I know.....I have read about the nighmares around Damsels, but since this was my first tank, I wanted to make sure I was good to go. I am not too concerned about the chromis, but going to keep my eye on the yellowtail. I will post a picture later...they look good in the tank. If all is well, I will add some inverts soon, then on to my clowns....
tferrante
Member
I have had a slight setback....I had my water tested yesterday when I got my fish and my calcium tested low. I purchased a reef enhancer kit (seachem), thinking I would move towards a reef soon anyway...well I added the calcium and my water turned cloudy the next day...I thought it might have been created from something else, but I think I narrowed it down to the additive....a delayed reaction. Well I thought maybe I need to to change out some water and clean the filter (needed to be done anyway). I will look at the water in the morning. I will get my Calcium and Alklinity checked again tomorrow. I was going to post a picture, but I figured no one wanted to see cloudy water....
. I think they call this gaining experience.
tferrante
Member
I made it through my crisis....at least for a newbie...I bought some new bulbs today and they look awesome.....18K and blue acintics...I tried to get pics of my fish, but not successful. Here are some some pics with the new lights. Cloudiness is gone...tank is looking good and fish are eating well. one nice picture of my mushrooms...
tferrante
Member
Thanks.....the tank isn't that exciting as compared to others but it is looking pretty good for a first tank. It will be better after I add some more fish. I really learned a valuable lesson around adding supplements. After reading he many threads surrounding calcium, ph and alkilinity, I believe this is probably the most difficult item to understand. But at this point the tank is clear again and my parameters look good after my fish have been in there a few days. I do have some slight build up which I believe to be the precipitate from my calcium episode the other day showing on some of the coraline. I am going to continue to monitor....I just love the new lights
tferrante
Member
I thought it was time for a small update. Here is a list of all the creatures in my tank:
3 Green Chromis
1 Yellowtail Damsal (Jury is still out on this guy)
1 peppermint shrimp
3 astrea snails
2 nassarius snails
1 emerald crab
2 scarlet leg hermits
1 featherduster
Below is pic of my emerald crab, a few fish, and my featherduster. My yellowtail turned out pink in the picture (odd). Sorry for the blurrieness...I need to work on my close up shots. The tank is really starting to settle down. The clean up crew is doing a good job and all the diatoms are gone. The mushrooms look great and I have some new coraline and mushroom growth. The water tested perfect today and is crystal clear. I will be adding a pair of clowns by the end of the upcoming week...I can't wait.
3 Green Chromis
1 Yellowtail Damsal (Jury is still out on this guy)
1 peppermint shrimp
3 astrea snails
2 nassarius snails
1 emerald crab
2 scarlet leg hermits
1 featherduster
Below is pic of my emerald crab, a few fish, and my featherduster. My yellowtail turned out pink in the picture (odd). Sorry for the blurrieness...I need to work on my close up shots. The tank is really starting to settle down. The clean up crew is doing a good job and all the diatoms are gone. The mushrooms look great and I have some new coraline and mushroom growth. The water tested perfect today and is crystal clear. I will be adding a pair of clowns by the end of the upcoming week...I can't wait.
