Orca Tl450 Nano Reef Log

[seffieuk]

Wow, that is cool I don't know what it is but something so lovely can't be bad, can it!

Seffie x

 

[garry_boyd3]

Good recovery mate. At least you kept your head.

 

[daveo_irl]

Good recovery mate. At least you kept your head.

Cheers mate! The critters still seem a little less active then they usually are, so might not be out of the woods yet!
Yeah Seffie it is a pretty cool looking thing, there are about 4 so far I have spotted in the tank.

Water readings since the disaster!
Thursday: Nitrates: 0, Nitrites: 0.05, Ammonia: 0 (On old Red Sea Ammonia kit)
Today: Nitrates: 5, Nitrites: 0.1, Ammonia: <0.25 (On new Salifert Ammonia Kit)

So looks like I'm getting some spikes. Actually got a new Salifert Ammonia test today, and why is the lowest reading "<0.25"?!?! Surely there should be a 0 reading on their colour chart? Or is anything less that 0.25 ppm just not a big deal?

 

[daveo_irl]

Found some more hitch hikers. I have about 6 Spionidae Worms on one of the rocks.

Also the above unidentified species in the last picture, seems to be Flabelligeridae, or "Bristle Cage Worm". Cool!

 

[seffieuk]

Also the above unidentified species in the last picture, seems to be Flabelligeridae, or "Bristle Cage Worm". Cool!

Interesting - I had to look that one up

Seffie x



ps you might want to tell people what you have found out about them

 

[daveo_irl]

Also the above unidentified species in the last picture, seems to be Flabelligeridae, or "Bristle Cage Worm". Cool!

Interesting - I had to look that one up

Seffie x



ps you might want to tell people what you have found out about them

Sure, well there doesn't seem to be much info regarding them apart from that they are filter feeders and a good sign of a healthy tank. Most sites seem to also suggest they mainly come from around Singapore, although they could be just referring to the particular species in their articles

 

[daveo_irl]

Just a quick question, can someone point me in the direction of where I can buy replacement fans for the TL450? Current ones are quite noisy!

I know you can replace them with PC fans, but is there a particular size or make which I need to get that would fit onto the hood?

 

[Morri]

Not sure on the size of the fans but it might be worth opening up the hood, as I have know some people have had a build of salt that made the fans noisey all they did was clean them and they were silent again.

If this is nt the issue and you have the hood open you can measure the fans and order replacements I think they will be one of the standard PC fans if they are any "Silent" PC fan will do the job

 

[daveo_irl]

Not sure on the size of the fans but it might be worth opening up the hood, as I have know some people have had a build of salt that made the fans noisey all they did was clean them and they were silent again.

If this is nt the issue and you have the hood open you can measure the fans and order replacements I think they will be one of the standard PC fans if they are any "Silent" PC fan will do the job

Cheers! Yeah I am pretty sure they are just your bog standard PC fans, they look like it anyway. I will give them a proper check this evening, was just checking here in the meantime in case anyone had previously changed them and new off hand which ones worked for them (size, wiring etc).
Also noticed my new pump is pretty noisy, so will sit it on top of some wool to see if that helps.

 

[xxBarneyxx]

If I remember correctly they are just 8cm PC fans.

I had one of the sparkly worms before. At the time someone told me they could be a predator of certain corals but cant remember exactly (think its in my nano journal somewhere).

 

[daveo_irl]

If I remember correctly they are just 8cm PC fans.

I had one of the sparkly worms before. At the time someone told me they could be a predator of certain corals but cant remember exactly (think its in my nano journal somewhere).

Thanks for the info Barney!
I can't imagine the Bristle Cage worm being a coral predator, as it never leaves it's tube. Plus a lot of sites state it is a filter feeder. Will keep an eye on it though.....

 

[daveo_irl]

Well, took apart the hood and gave it a good old clean. There was a good buildup of salt and dust in there!!

The fans do seem a bit quieter, but still noisier than they should be. Will just get a couple of new ones I suppose. However a lot of the ones I see on the internet have 3 pin connectors (eg: 3 wires), but my Orca ones only have 2 - so might take a bit of messing about to get them fitted ok.

Tank parameters remain the same for the past 2 days
Nitrates: 5
Nitrites 0.1
Ammonia: < 0.25

However I have noticed that my temp is higher then it was before the crash, it is now just under 28C, and even lowering the heater temp dial hasn't made much of a difference. Will probably be getting a new heater anyway, so that might help.
I thought my Halloween crab had died last night, but it was the old "Haha, I've only shed" trick, thankfully. My astraea snail seems to have taken a liking to it though, it is constantly hitching a ride on it's back! lol

My clove polyps (of whatever they are lol!) have really took off in the new setup, they look great! I would love to get some green star polyps, anyone have any info/experiences with them?

 

[youngfisher]

I wouldnt worry about the temp, I keep mine at 28C.

YF

 

[daveo_irl]

I wouldnt worry about the temp, I keep mine at 28C.

YF

Cool, mine sort of fluctuates between 26 - 28, I suppose once it isn't creeping up and up it is ok.
The Red Sea test kits are doing my head in, going to just order some Salifert ones when I get paid. Going to get pH, Nitrate, Nitrite, Po4. Already have Ammonia.

 

[daveo_irl]

Is there anyway to tell if a hermit crab shedding is just that, or an actual dead hermit??

Basically I retrieved my Halloween shedding (which it definitely is, because he is walking around the tank!), but when taking it out I noticed what looks like a shedding from one of my scarlet reef hermits. The thing is I haven't seen one of my hermits in a couple of days, so I was wondering could it be it's carcass? Anyway to tell the difference?

Getting a little buildup of brown diatoms at the moment, as to be expected I suppose.