Start Over Again

[JP-79er]

View attachment 53117right where to start......

I am new to tis forum business so please bear with me, but here goes my current tank set up was based on a basis approach due to limited understanding of the marine world and due to a poor mainatnce regime over the past year (due to becomming a father of twin girls). But now i am starting to find more time to get back on top of things.

My tank set up is as follows:
Tank: -brand, stand, glass or acrylic

Volume: 125l

Lighting: - Arcadia I-Bar with 2 Marine white, 15,000k Aqaua-Madic T5, 24watts, which run from 10:00am to 8:30pm and 1 Arcadia T8 18watt Antinic Blue which runs 24hrs

Filtration: - Currently the standard internal filter but with the new refugirum i will removed this totally from the tank

Refugium: - CNC Milled Plastic 7lr HOB refugium with 340l/hr pump, shallow substrate of live mud and Calpura Algea growing rapidly under a Arcadia Pod light running 24hrs, this has been running for approx 3week now awaing bio-balls to reach a month old and i will start slowly removing the internal filter peice by peice

Substrate: - 1 1/2" of crushed coral

Aquascape Theme: - A shear wall to the rear of tank with pleant of hidey holes for fish and shrimps

Equipment: - Standard 100w Juwel heater, 300l pump keeping flow behind rock (this is to be substituted with a Hydo Koriela 1 when internal filter is removed)

Skimmers: - TMC V2 Skimmer which runns for 8 hrs during the night and half our during day to flush standing water through this replaced my Via-Aqua Multi skimmer which started leaking and had problems with.

Water Parameters:
Average temp 26 - 28
pH - pH Buffered using sea-chem -8.4
average nitrate level - Unknown
Calcium - Unknown
kH - Unknown
specific gravity - 1.023 -1.025

Corals: - 2xLarge leather corals approx 5-6" across, Small Xiania frag, Large H.Malu Anemone, the odd mushromm coral around, & 1 Large finger Coral

Fish: 1x Regal Tang, 2xCommon Clown Fish, 1xTalboti Damsel, 1xRoyal Gramma

Invertebrates: 1xCleaner Shrimp, 1xTurbo Snail

Feeding: schedule: Marine Mix & Mysis most evenings, flake food occationally, and marine plankton based coral feed

Maintenance: 30l water change 1-2months, Rea Sea salt 1.1kgs approx, Home made RO water fed of mains

Comments: - Any additional notes you'd like to give

I have had my maring reef tank for around 3 years which has unfortuantly fall in i slight state of horribleness due to becomming a dad for the first time , i have not had the time to manange my tank properly so the enevitable has happed all my occupants are happy and fine but the hair algae and Majano (I which i am starting to plan mass warfare agaist with Jose - Juice as they are on a take over bid).

I will post some pictures of it former glory along with what i look like now (A bit embarrasing) and if any one can can give me any advise to how to rejuvenate at tank with out upsetting the occupant whicah have been living there happiy of over two years.

Cheers

This piccy is my tank in its former glory....

 

[Crazy fishes]

Just one point... well two points on the same subject. If you don't have experience with coral then anemone are not a good idea. If the most experienced have difficulty keeping them alive. The second point is anemones require bucket loads of light much more than is proposed. Think big halides .

Regards

 

[JP-79er]

I hear your concerns regarding the light intensity and requirement that Anemones require, but in light of this (no pun intended) prior to buying my Anemone i investigated it quite the requirements and needs to keep them. After alot of discussion with people who readily keep them and marine specialist shops i have found that there are many people who keep them successfully under T5 lighting, providing that there is a good water flow and they are not sited to deep within the water coloum. As my tank is a standard Juwel tank the overal depth is not that substantial and my water parameters were ideal ecepth for elevated nitrate levels i decided to try and the results is that my Two clowns have been living in to for two plus years with no visiual sign of ill health as it always remains plumped out day and night with the occational shrink back from time to time normally only when weather has been `el scorchio! and tank temp rises inexcess 28 deg. (somthing i try to avoid) and has alway had a healthy apettite - i have had cut down on his feeding as he had grown to emencie proportions for my tank sizes but with controlled feeding i have reduced it down by 1/3 of size.

I do how ever sruggle to keep tube worms/feather dusters and starfish....!!! Shops keep telling me that these are easier to keep but i am not so sure.......

Also i am haing trouble getting the images of my tank below 100kb can any one help...