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View Full Version : Some general comments on my tank.



SamsonNY
07-03-2003, 10:50 AM
Nothing special, just thought I'd share my observations until now.

All is going well. The biggest problem I encountered was the temp running hot which was fixed by leaving the a.c. on more (but my g/f complains about the den being an iceberg now. :rolleyes: )

I did hate the dust clouds so I removed the 4" DSB and replaced with the estes marine sand (in white) which has no dust. (This was a nightmare of a project but, it's done.) Roughly a 1" layer now. I'm giving up the benefits of the DSB but, with a FO tank and my current set-up, I don't foresee any difficulties. However, I am open to any suggestions and/or criticisms that will help me in the long-run. Lots of corals (4 dead skeletons to help with ph; 3 fake) for the fish to swim around and hide in.

Am 0
Ni 0
Nitra 40 (tap 25)
Ph 8.2
SG 1.023
Temp ranges from 78 to 81

(Tank specs: 400 gallon tenecor; 80 gallon w/d with 28 gallons of bioballs; Berlin turbo XL skimmer; double helix 36 watt U.V.)

The clown trigger is more peaceful than expected. (He's also the smallest fish in the tank so maybe that's part of the equation. I'm certain that his temperament will change as he grows, but I hope it remains on the more passive side.) And, he is absolutely gorgeous.

The niger trigger is a nutball. I believe he's on speed. :p

The golden dogface puffer is "adorable" (g/f's quote).

The stars and stripes puffer eats so much I think he's going to pop.

The hippo tang is THE MOST aggressive fish (so far) in the tank.

The yellow tang is another nutball.

The last addition was made last night: black-edged moray eel. Ate a ton of shrimp and made himself at home.

Their diet consists of: AquaDine wafers and cut-up shrimp, squid, scallops....


My most remarkable observation: s/w fish go to bed at night!

I never noticed anything like this with my f/w rays and dragons.

When the white lights shut off and only the actinic are on, they start looking for their beds. Once the actinics shut off as well, niger sleeps straight up and down wedged into the big blue coral's back crevice. Puffers go inbetween the barnacles. Hippo also makes himself a home. Clown trigger stays up.

BUT, wow. I've never thought that fish do this. Then, when the lights come back on.... They take turns "waking-up" (for lack of a better phrase) and come back to life.

And, final comment: my god are these fish active. Non-stop swimmers. I thought my 400 was a decent sized tank, but these guys check ever single inch of it.

That's all.

Thank you to all for the help along the way.
Pics soon (my sister is borrowing the digital cam taking pics of my 6 month old nephew taking swimming! :D ).

Richard.

JillianNY
07-05-2003, 9:22 PM
Sounds great! Sorry your girlfriend is having a tough time with the temp of the house. Must be rough on her.

But still the fish sound great. And the tank seems crystle clear, excellent.

Thank You for sharing. I love seeing animals cared for in their best intesest. Your pretty good at this.

I saw that you went from freshwater to saltwater. That had to be a lot of unlearning and relearning. Adapting must have been tough.

But you got it. And as a result you have a much more active and beautiful tank. Seems like a metopher for life for me. Unlearning and relearning... and getting a better result. Thanks SamsonNY.

I saw in other posts that you have no shades on the windows behind your tank. Get blackout shades. They are inexpensive and easy to install. That would be a start to keeping things cool without upseting the household.

Otherwise, I love your tank, fish and set up. Very cool!:D

Triggerman
07-07-2003, 1:18 PM
Beautiful tank there dude.I love the tenecors.
That is an awesome tank.
Nicely done.


The moray eel was a perfect addition.
Triggerman

SamsonNY
07-07-2003, 9:05 PM
Thanks Trigger and Jillian,

Yeah, I really wanted the moray but I wasn't getting one until I changed the sand and got rid of the dust storm problem. This eel is very active (contrary to what I've read and also, contrary to my former f/w fire eel). He's behaving nicely and only nips around (not really attacking the other fish) when he's in his eating frenzy. But, the other fish get all of the food while it's sinking and the bigger pieces that make it to the bottom all end up in the eel's stomach: so it's a pretty peaceful arrangement, SO FAR! :p

Tenecor's quality is top-notch. They use 3/4 inch acrylic (versus other acrylic manufacturers that use 1/2") all around (except the bottom which is 1/2") and, considering the size of the tank, I like having that extra piece of mind. The 8' long front shows no bowing at all. Perfectly straight.