Recent content by londonwriter

Hmmm, interesting Ski Fletch. Thanks for that. I was starting to suspect that it may be too fine for the tank as well, and just cause issues with the filter. I wonder whether it's possible to get black aragonite sand though? Any ideas?

Hi All, At the recommendation of my LFS, I'm going to switch the substrate in my tank over from crushed coral shell to sand, in order to try and reduce the Nitrate levels which I've not been able to get under control since actually starting the tank. Apparently, I'm aiming for at least...

OK, thanks. Should I be worried about the worms though? They're spreading over the rock and sand. They also seem to interfere with the coral - I have some big green mushrooms that recoil when the wormy strands come out and touch them.

Hi All, I've not been on here for a little while - been too busy watching my hairy legged crab eat BOTH my cute new Boston Beans. What a day that was! Anyway, I've got two things I'd really like help id'ing if anyone has a moment. The first is a big green bubble thing. I've got small patches...

I'm not sure - there's 4 T5s a metre long. I think the tubes are pretty old though, so may need replacing. I'musing 2 T8s at the moment

Hi All, I just bought a load of live rock from eBay and it came with some soft corals and tube worms on it. One of the tube worms measured about 10cm across when fanned out - it's pretty impressive. I have a common soft coral (don't know the name bu it's brown and you see it everywhere) and...

Hello, For what it's worth I had a very similar situation, but I sorted it out, and now have just one large bugger which I keep for decorative purposes! I tried peppermint shrimp but they were utterly useless. I guess if you starve them of any other food they might get stuck in, but they were...

Hi Everyone, After Ski Fletch - keeper of the free fishes and font of knowledge on all thing scaly - strongly advised some more live rock, I've decided to go for it. So, I was just wondering whether anyone reading this has any for sale? I'm looking for about 20-25kg of cured, ready-to-rock...

OK, I'll adjust the time down for the lights - hopefully that'll be a start! I'm thinking about buying an external filter rather than investing in 20kg of live rock, with the hope that the live rock I already have will seed onto the ocean rock in the tank. Would a filter such as the Eheim Ecco...

Hey Ski Fletch, Thanks so much for the info - very, very helpful indeed. I shall name my next fish after you or something! I'm using 2 T8s at the moment. I think the bulbs are alright, they came with the tank, but are bright and don't appear mottled at any point along the tubes. I have a...

OK, so... I haven't tested the TDS of the RO water so far - the unit is only a few months old, and probably produced 400litres total. Likewise with the membrane. Salt is Tropic Marine I feed frozen brine shrimp once a day and flake food once a day too. I've got it to the point where there's...

Yes, and recently did a fairly large water change as well.

Hi All, My tank went a bit green when I set it up. No problem I thought, it's just cycling. Then it went greener, so I bought some more snails. Now it's REALLY green! I have algae smothering my live rock, one piece of which now looks like a grass meadow, and even the sand is being overcome by...

Well, she's been top dog in the tank for ages and has loads of food (read, I have an algae problem still!) so it wouldn't surprise me. I saw her malt the first time - quite an amazing thing actually. She'd sat on a rock for three days hardly moving and I assumed the worst. During this time she...

Hi All, Just a quickie - does anyone know how often hermit crabs malt? My resident superstar malted about a month ago and is now displaying the same signs again - inertia and generally reclusive. Was just wondering if it's the same thing, or whether I should be concerned!