Pearls Of The Antilles... Llj's Planted Marine
- Thread starter lljdma06
- Start date
hensonc4098
Fish Herder
I'm not gonna even pretend to know anything about marine tanks but found this when I was browsing there and thought it looked good 
OP
OP
@Ian... hahaha! Was wondering if someone would play with the reverse. Always, it's my planted partner in crime, because we are so clever in that section.
Slaroc is at Amazon. I just paid full price for it. It's hard to find on the cheap. I saved on a couple of the other books and sprung for that one. Was just too important, IMO.
@hensonc4098... That tank is fabulous. Something like that appeals to me, though I don't expect to achieve those results unless I had a much larger tank. Haha! Even if I had that size tank, I wouldn't get that result.
Liz
Slaroc is at Amazon. I just paid full price for it. It's hard to find on the cheap. I saved on a couple of the other books and sprung for that one. Was just too important, IMO.
@hensonc4098... That tank is fabulous. Something like that appeals to me, though I don't expect to achieve those results unless I had a much larger tank. Haha! Even if I had that size tank, I wouldn't get that result.
Liz
hensonc4098
Fish Herder
Agreed, it is a bit of a monster, but it is purty I'm not so much a fan of mixmash reef tanks either - I like my order lol - so when I read about you doing something different I was like hmm, have a look at this. Although I know absolutely nothing about the salty side so I'm on a rather steep learning curve! Especially when I first read about deliberately growing algae, I was like whaaaaaat. 
Claire
I'm not so much a fan of mixmash reef tanks either - I like my order lol - so when I read about you doing something different I was like hmm, have a look at this. Although I know absolutely nothing about the salty side so I'm on a rather steep learning curve! Especially when I first read about deliberately growing algae, I was like whaaaaaat. Claire
OP
OP
Update:
Ordered the following. No going back now.
2 Koralia nano 425s
1 Hydor Slim Skim nano (this tank is going to feature macro heavily, I didn't think heavy skimming was necessary)
2 Coralife digital thermometers
2 Eheim Jager heaters at 75W each (deliberately went with less wattage)
1 Portable refractometer (the splurge, but if I go collecting, may be interesting to measure the sg of the local water)
2 API test kits (Saltwater & Reef, tests what I need to test for now). Salifert is too expensive.
Didn't order the saltmix yet, but will be going with Oceanic Natural Sea Salt, as they sell it right at the local Petsmart. Go get dog food and kitty litter, get my sea salt. There are still some odd and ends, like the mag float, buckets, and other things, but I can go do that on my own time. Ordered the big ticket items and that's important. Not too expensive either, really helps having the tank and lighting already. Want to look for a book on macro algae.
Liz
Ordered the following. No going back now.
2 Koralia nano 425s
1 Hydor Slim Skim nano (this tank is going to feature macro heavily, I didn't think heavy skimming was necessary)
2 Coralife digital thermometers
2 Eheim Jager heaters at 75W each (deliberately went with less wattage)
1 Portable refractometer (the splurge, but if I go collecting, may be interesting to measure the sg of the local water)
2 API test kits (Saltwater & Reef, tests what I need to test for now). Salifert is too expensive.
Didn't order the saltmix yet, but will be going with Oceanic Natural Sea Salt, as they sell it right at the local Petsmart. Go get dog food and kitty litter, get my sea salt. There are still some odd and ends, like the mag float, buckets, and other things, but I can go do that on my own time. Ordered the big ticket items and that's important. Not too expensive either, really helps having the tank and lighting already. Want to look for a book on macro algae.
Liz
ALW
What works for one may not work for another!
Update to the Update
I hit the jackpot! Check out this website!
http/marineplantbook.com/
This tank is going to kick some butt!
Liz
Good find Liz
OP
OP
Update to the Update
I hit the jackpot! Check out this website!
http
This tank is going to kick some butt!
Liz
Good find Liz
Thank you, but really I was just doing a google search on Planted Marines and there was a journal that featured this link, so I can't take the credit. I just clicked and book-marked it.
Liz
ChilliPepper
Fish Gatherer
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Oh great to see you turning salty, Liz 
I am too, but am documenting my journal somewhere else as get a huge audeience/advise base there. Will keep checking back on how this is going though
I am too, but am documenting my journal somewhere else as get a huge audeience/advise base there. Will keep checking back on how this is going though 
seffieuk
I used to be indecisive but now I'm not so sure!
Oh great to see you turning salty, Liz
That's a real shame, we may not have many salty members here but often less is more
you would always get an answer, receive friendly help and advice and whats more be part of a community/family rather than just one of many!We would love to see your journel and tank
Seffie x
Oh and
to the salty side of the hobby
OP
OP
I maintain my journal here, & in two specialty forums. May start a fourth in an even more specialized location. Better to do both. I believe in learning & getting advice, but I also believe in passing on what I've learned. This is a great place. Lots of great members with good advice to give. Chillipepper, I'd start a journal here too.
Liz
Liz
OP
OP
Hi,
Went to that store (see chitchat thread) and a couple of others today. Picked up some bulbs and a background. They sell the graduated blue ones, which I like better than just the plain royal blue. It'll serve as a temporary background until I make one for photo shoots. I want something a bit more subtle than deep royal blue. Want it to look like how it looks when you snorkel in the shallow reef, having done this.
The lighting I got...
You may ask, but doesn't Liz have her bulbs already? Well, yes and no...
Previous bulb configuration:
1 65W CF 10k
2 65W CF Actinic
1 14W T5 10k
1 14W T5 Actinic
Based on what I've read about Macro algae and seagrasses, I need at least 3-5WPG of full spectrum lighting. With the above configuration only 79W are full-specture, so only 2WPG, give or take. Yes, there are better ways to measure light, I know this, but this is the easiest for Newbies to understand and this journal is for newbie and me, because I really don't care about PAR, and I'm not going to invest $150 for a PAR meter. While corals need actinic, they will not be playing a major part in this scape, but only a supporting role. I think I'll have enough Actinic for them. I'm really limiting species right now and you'll see this in a revised stock list that's coming soon that will include species of macros not mentioned before and seagrasses. Probably tomorrow.
New bulb configuration:
2 65W CF 10k
2 14W T5 Actinic
So now my full-spectrum load is 130W or 3.6WPG, much better for macros and seagrass. The 28W of Actinic should be sufficient for the species of coral I intend to keep.
You also notice a 50/50 in the mix. Still not sure if the above configuration looks best, so I got a 50/50 just in case. If I don't need it, which I don't think I will, I'll sell the bulb. I can also opt to switch out one of the T5 Actinics for another 10k, which would bring me to 4WPG. Don't think I'll need this, but it's an option, if the macros and seagrass are especially light hungry, but I think again, I'll be ok.
Haha, can you tell I've been thinking about this?
Thanks for looking,
Liz
Went to that store (see chitchat thread) and a couple of others today. Picked up some bulbs and a background. They sell the graduated blue ones, which I like better than just the plain royal blue. It'll serve as a temporary background until I make one for photo shoots. I want something a bit more subtle than deep royal blue. Want it to look like how it looks when you snorkel in the shallow reef, having done this.
The lighting I got...
You may ask, but doesn't Liz have her bulbs already? Well, yes and no...
Previous bulb configuration:
1 65W CF 10k
2 65W CF Actinic
1 14W T5 10k
1 14W T5 Actinic
Based on what I've read about Macro algae and seagrasses, I need at least 3-5WPG of full spectrum lighting. With the above configuration only 79W are full-specture, so only 2WPG, give or take. Yes, there are better ways to measure light, I know this, but this is the easiest for Newbies to understand and this journal is for newbie and me, because I really don't care about PAR, and I'm not going to invest $150 for a PAR meter. While corals need actinic, they will not be playing a major part in this scape, but only a supporting role. I think I'll have enough Actinic for them. I'm really limiting species right now and you'll see this in a revised stock list that's coming soon that will include species of macros not mentioned before and seagrasses. Probably tomorrow.
New bulb configuration:
2 65W CF 10k
2 14W T5 Actinic
So now my full-spectrum load is 130W or 3.6WPG, much better for macros and seagrass. The 28W of Actinic should be sufficient for the species of coral I intend to keep.
You also notice a 50/50 in the mix. Still not sure if the above configuration looks best, so I got a 50/50 just in case. If I don't need it, which I don't think I will, I'll sell the bulb. I can also opt to switch out one of the T5 Actinics for another 10k, which would bring me to 4WPG. Don't think I'll need this, but it's an option, if the macros and seagrass are especially light hungry, but I think again, I'll be ok.
Haha, can you tell I've been thinking about this?
Thanks for looking,
Liz
OP
OP
Hi everybody! Here's another revised stock list, but you can see that I've narrowed things down, and I'm including some pictures, especially of the big ticket items. These images are not mine, so please don't reproduce them. They're only here for educational purposes, especially since the macros and seagrass are not commonly seen. Not a lot of corals, but that's ok.
Fish
Serranus tortugarum - Chalk bass, a shoal of 5. So this is a species tank essentially. Very odd, but I think it's fascinating.
Sessile inverts
Corallimorphs - would prefer an actual species rather than a genus, so the Discosoma sp went off the list.
Ricordea florida - love this coral, a definite.
Discosoma sanctithomae
Discosoma neglecta
Gorgonians
Erythropodium spp (Caribbean encrusting gorgonian) - I really like this, doesn't look like your typical Gorgonian and likes brighter light.
Motile inverts
Cleaner shrimp
Lysmata grabhami - would love a mated pair
Lysmata wurdemanni - everybody knows what these look like.
Crabs
Mithrax sculptus - will eat algae, I know, but useful for pruning
Paguristes cadenati (potentially harmful in large numbers, but they are very little)
Snails - pictures not needed for now.
Turbo sp
Trochus sp.
Tectus spp.
Strombus alatus (no large hermit crabs if I go this route; may be too large for the tank, but definitley a FL native)
Sea slugs
Elysia crispata (needs algae Bryopsis, Derbesia, and possibley Halimeda, advanced species)- Yes, I still kind of like it.
Macro algae & Vascular Plants - or what makes this tank unusual.
Macro algae - You can see that in the macro algae, three distinct leaf shapes are emerging. Excellent for layout contrast. The colors, barring the dictyota are also on the subdued side. Mostly greens and darker reds. All species can be found in the Caribbean. Bonus.
Halimeda sp
Halimeda discoidea
Halimeda opuntia
Acetabularia calyculus
Chondria sp.
Gelidium Sp
Ochtodes sp
Dictyota sp
Sea grass - These are the three toughest species, based on my reading. I'm most in love with the shoal grass, but am considering the other two as possibilities.
Halodule wrightii
Halophila decipiens
Halophila engelmannii
Thanks for looking. Again, will probably narrow this down some more as I would rather have fewer species. I'm also getting some moonlights from a friend in South Carolina.
Liz
Fish
Serranus tortugarum - Chalk bass, a shoal of 5. So this is a species tank essentially. Very odd, but I think it's fascinating.
Sessile inverts
Corallimorphs - would prefer an actual species rather than a genus, so the Discosoma sp went off the list.
Ricordea florida - love this coral, a definite.
Discosoma sanctithomae
Discosoma neglecta
Gorgonians
Erythropodium spp (Caribbean encrusting gorgonian) - I really like this, doesn't look like your typical Gorgonian and likes brighter light.
Motile inverts
Cleaner shrimp
Lysmata grabhami - would love a mated pair
Lysmata wurdemanni - everybody knows what these look like.
Crabs
Mithrax sculptus - will eat algae, I know, but useful for pruning
Paguristes cadenati (potentially harmful in large numbers, but they are very little)
Snails - pictures not needed for now.
Turbo sp
Trochus sp.
Tectus spp.
Strombus alatus (no large hermit crabs if I go this route; may be too large for the tank, but definitley a FL native)
Sea slugs
Elysia crispata (needs algae Bryopsis, Derbesia, and possibley Halimeda, advanced species)- Yes, I still kind of like it.
Macro algae & Vascular Plants - or what makes this tank unusual.
Macro algae - You can see that in the macro algae, three distinct leaf shapes are emerging. Excellent for layout contrast. The colors, barring the dictyota are also on the subdued side. Mostly greens and darker reds. All species can be found in the Caribbean. Bonus.
Halimeda sp
Halimeda discoidea
Halimeda opuntia
Acetabularia calyculus
Chondria sp.
Gelidium Sp
Ochtodes sp
Dictyota sp
Sea grass - These are the three toughest species, based on my reading. I'm most in love with the shoal grass, but am considering the other two as possibilities.
Halodule wrightii
Halophila decipiens
Halophila engelmannii
Thanks for looking. Again, will probably narrow this down some more as I would rather have fewer species. I'm also getting some moonlights from a friend in South Carolina.
Liz
fishy55599
Fish Gatherer
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- May 7, 2010
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very interesting
but if you are wanting a mated cleaner pair, the fry are hard to raise
but if you are wanting a mated cleaner pair, the fry are hard to raise
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