Ready For The Marine Challenge (again)!

[jetbox]

Kill Sponge Bob!!!

Why did you make a phosphate reactor? I added rowaphos and within a few weks my phosphate levels were 0 (although it does make a bit of a mess which ends up in the sump)

don't want to kill sponge bob but a light pruning is required urgently...

I had put rowaphos in a bag in the media compartment of the MCE 600 but it did not appear to be very effective (it lowered the level a bit but not to 0) So made the reactor to fluidise the rowa.... works well after three days the reading is now down to zero. that should slow the algae growth!!!

 

[Lost_Jock]

Got my first coral and another fish... (toadstool & gramma)

Gramma is a bit timid, but has been attacking the crabs when enter its newly found territory

Toadstool been sprouting everytime main light is on, inverts with the blue LEDs

I placed the bag of rowaphos in the sump and it clouded everything for a few days but seems to work well

 

[fishstick]

Update.

MCE 600 skimmer arrived and installed today. Perfect fit on the sump in the cabinet. Needs running in for few days yet but looks like its going to work a treat. well pleased with it.

Also got some cheato today to put in the sump, waiting for a better light to arrive to light the sump at night when the main tank light is out.

Making progress. Can't wait to get my first fish now.

Jetbox

Hi Jetbox Interested in your thread - I have a Betta Lifespace (not set up yet) glad you seem happy so far with it. I was hoping that if I put miracle mud in the sump with algae growing, there would be less need for a skimmer. How are things going with your Betta? are you still 100% for a skimmer? seems to me if it is put before the sump/refugiam it makes the refugiam rather overkill, if it is put after the refugiam the small items of live food from the refugiam will get chewed up. What are your thoughts on this 3 or so months after setting your Betta up? Foxyreef

 

[jetbox]

Update.

MCE 600 skimmer arrived and installed today. Perfect fit on the sump in the cabinet. Needs running in for few days yet but looks like its going to work a treat. well pleased with it.

Also got some cheato today to put in the sump, waiting for a better light to arrive to light the sump at night when the main tank light is out.

Making progress. Can't wait to get my first fish now.

Jetbox

Hi Jetbox Interested in your thread - I have a Betta Lifespace (not set up yet) glad you seem happy so far with it. I was hoping that if I put miracle mud in the sump with algae growing, there would be less need for a skimmer. How are things going with your Betta? are you still 100% for a skimmer? seems to me if it is put before the sump/refugiam it makes the refugiam rather overkill, if it is put after the refugiam the small items of live food from the refugiam will get chewed up. What are your thoughts on this 3 or so months after setting your Betta up? Foxyreef

Hi the Betta tank is great.... well pleased with it... not an expert on whether to go skimmer less or not but all I can say is I have a sand bed in the sump, 20kg of live rock, some cheato, a uv a phosphate reactor and the skimmer hung on the front of the sump. The cabinet is FULL.... but with all that setup the skimmer still pulls out about half a cup of really nasty skimate a week...

Note also that the refuge area with the cheato is still buzzing with life (copods etc) so the skimmer etc does not affect the pod population....

Zero nitrates tells the story I think... when I had my last marine tank 10 years ago or so I always struggled to get low nitrates...

Good luck with your tank, let me know how you get on

JB

 

[jetbox]

New stock added!!!!!!

2 x picasso clowns

carpet xenia


settling in well..........................

 

[jetbox]

Well, the sponge detached from its rock as it grew so big so I had to remove it.... Zenia doing well but have noticed the calcium levels are down now (320) so i need to address this.

Also got a bit of an algae problem with lots of green hair algae... Have cut down the lighting period to 7 hours to try to control the growth. Thinking of more clean up crew and/or a fish that would eat it..

Nitrate and phosphate levels remain at zero

 

[jetbox]

Update!!!!

Green hair algae WAS still a problem although cuting down the photo period was working a little... Since then i have added a coral beauty and an algae blenny, they have btoh been grazing like mad and almost finished off the algae....

Also got a couple of zoa's mail order which are doing well... Tank looking much better without the hair algae.

Calcuim level is now up to 400 but the mag level is down at 1100 but do not have anything to raise the level yet...

Other than that all is going well. Here's a couple of recent pics





Another full pic...

 

[SkiFletch]

Looks great

 

[jetbox]

Looks great

Thanks Ski...

I am happy with the tank too. Just want some more colourful corals....

Started to dose mag today to slowly raise the level

 

[jetbox]

The new inmates!!!!!!


What a Beauty....



and Dougal ( as my wife calls him...)

 

[fishstick]

Gorgous fish, Jetbox. Cant wait to get enough pods growing so I can get some dragonets. You kindly sent a pic of your sump setup on another thread and I am about to hang my MCE600 skimmer on the sump as you have it. With the clear side of the skimmer facing outwards you can see whats going on inside EXCEPT for in the collecton cup (if you assemble it per the diagram with the overflow tube exiting on the left into a very small compartment) Is it ok to put the cup with the clear side facing you as you open the door? There is a convenient hole on the right to take the skimmate overflow tube.

 

[jetbox]

Gorgous fish, Jetbox. Cant wait to get enough pods growing so I can get some dragonets. You kindly sent a pic of your sump setup on another thread and I am about to hang my MCE600 skimmer on the sump as you have it. With the clear side of the skimmer facing outwards you can see whats going on inside EXCEPT for in the collecton cup (if you assemble it per the diagram with the overflow tube exiting on the left into a very small compartment) Is it ok to put the cup with the clear side facing you as you open the door? There is a convenient hole on the right to take the skimmate overflow tube.

hi fishstick,

maybe your skimmer cup is different as mine has the clear side facing out (so you can see it easily) and the overflow is still on the left side. Its a bit of a tight squeeze inside the l/h doorway (the hinge gets in the way when you try to remove for cleaning etc) but at least you can easy see what is going on.

Hope you sort it out ok...

 

[jetbox]

Gorgous fish, Jetbox. Cant wait to get enough pods growing so I can get some dragonets. You kindly sent a pic of your sump setup on another thread and I am about to hang my MCE600 skimmer on the sump as you have it. With the clear side of the skimmer facing outwards you can see whats going on inside EXCEPT for in the collecton cup (if you assemble it per the diagram with the overflow tube exiting on the left into a very small compartment) Is it ok to put the cup with the clear side facing you as you open the door? There is a convenient hole on the right to take the skimmate overflow tube.

hi fishstick,

maybe your skimmer cup is different as mine has the clear side facing out (so you can see it easily) and the overflow is still on the left side. Its a bit of a tight squeeze inside the l/h doorway (the hinge gets in the way when you try to remove for cleaning etc) but at least you can easy see what is going on.

Hope you sort it out ok...

just checked mine and it fits both ways fine.. the only thing I see is if it overflows around one way the oveflow will be processed by the skimmer agian and the other it would not..... (I have the latter, the only time it has reached overflow was when I just fitted the UV and it made the skimmer go mad for a few days

 

[jetbox]

Magnesium!!!!


Well I bought a salifert Mag test kit and find it difficult to use... The tank level was down at 1100 so I bought some bio mag (TMC) and started to dose. been doing this for a week now and level still only 1160

So having been using instant ocean salt (Calcium 340 , mag 1120) I bought some new reef crystal to help boost both ca and mag levels with water changes. Measured a new mix before a water change today and Ca is 400 but Mag is only 1140, is the Mag reading ok or am I doing something wrong with the test kit.

Any tips on using the Mag test kit, problem being adding the third liquid with the syringe

 

[SkiFletch]

I assume this means you're using the Salifert test kit? If so, what's your difficulty?