my sw tank

[chefjamesscott]

Great pics.

thanks i love your cat in your avatar.

ok so stage 1 was done last night with the 180, I brought it up to 1.025 and it looked like this

Today one of the profs who is a sw expert came in to check on my progress and he pointed out that my return pipe was creating to much air in the tank and that it would cause extra fast creep. So I turned the pipe so that the water shoots down the back of the tank.

To start off what I did tonight, I thought I would show a picture of the 65g that I have been talking about sterilizing the sand and rocks. Personally I could do the small scale with a uv sterilizer, but, I figure why bother when I can actually move stuff to a 180g.

As of tonight the tank looked like this

The scats were actually in the 75g but the vil tang seemed to take exception to them so I moved them to this tank, I wanted to see if they would try to eat the corals. Thankfully, they did not seem to have a taste for soft coral.

Here are some pics of the 75g in my bedroom, it is a wee bit crowded because I have actually divided the live rock from the 3 above tanks into the 65 and this one.

Here are some of the rocks with corals in this tank that I have been experimenting with to see if I could actually make them stay alive.

now im not sure but I have 2 spiny stars in this tank the niger trigger took a good shot at the legs on them but they have survived. I have a ? though, how do starfish reproduce, because there is either a hitchhiker starfish or a baby starfish because that thing was not in there a week ago. If you look on the rock to the bottom left of the star there is a mini me

and one last pic of a 75g resident

Now here are some shots of the evening at the restuarant
acclimating the scats and corals

1 1/2 hour later in the tank you go

the full tank shot as of tonight

Now for anyone who read my thread about when my ceiling caved in beside my brackish tank, these are the same scats that I then moved to my first sw. I think they have done ok.

More to come on this in the next few days.

 

[chefjamesscott]

Ok, so this morning I brought a few more corals from home. One is my favourite its like a siamese twin thing its the one in the first picture(i really gotta learn how to clean up my picture taking skills lololol)

I also brought my panther grouper and my vil tang

and a full tank shot

I am actually gonna move most of my rock from the 75 here and then transfer what remains in the 65 to the 75 and shut down the 65.

 

[chefjamesscott]

ok so now the dorie fish from finding nemo is in, the koran angel is in and the mandarin. I also added some more live rock with corals on it and have moved all the residents from the 65g to the 75g. My 8 year old son hebron said he wanted to take the pictures tonight so here they are.

various rock/coral shots

I just am amazed as how corals get everywhere and I mean everywhere so many place where there was nothing but rock now there are polyps everywhere, should be interesting to see how this tank looks when it is totally set up and has a year under its belt.

This rock was near the bottom and yet it had stuff like this on it

some pics of the fish

the full tank shot just to show the amt of rock in there now, my thoughts are as much active live rock as I can put in makes for a better start to the tank, correct me if i am wrong please

i still have the a bit more rock to bring and some fish

 

[greech]

Oh my goodness. I really don't know where to start. I wasn't going to say anything but please for the health and well being of those animals do some research. Stop throwing every animal you can find into a tank and calling it a day. Oh and by the way, a UV will do absolutely no good against that cyano bacteria.

 

[chefjamesscott]

Oh my goodness. I really don't know where to start. I wasn't going to say anything but please for the health and well being of those animals do some research. Stop throwing every animal you can find into a tank and calling it a day. Oh and by the way, a UV will do absolutely no good against that cyano bacteria.

oh great one :bowing:how about you read the thread

Edit: if anyone here uses chemi pure can they please post what the cost is to install 5 full cases in one shot at 12 units/ case
because you know I use chemi pure because I just call it a day after I throw a living creature in a glass box!!!

for your info the end result algae will very much be affected by a uv and for your information, I prefer to shut down the nightmare and make my own tank that is free and clear from red slime, personally I will keep the phosphate and other nasties in control with starting my own tanks. FYI not one time in my first sw set up did I ever have red slime or green carpet algae!!!!

Hmmmmm HOW ABOUT YOU START BY DROPPING YOUR CONDESCENDING ATTITUDE FRIEND.

PERHAPS THAT IS WHY I CHOSE TO SHUT DOWN THE NIGHTMARE I INHERITED FROM THE DUDE WHO LET THE TANK GO TO RAT POOP AFTER I GAVE HIM A RETAINER. Because it is better off that I keep the corals, live rock and livestock alive by moving them to a better tank and eradicate the red slime but wiping it out of existance. Of course I could have just dosed the tank with chemicals to wipe out the red slime and really have hurt the soft corals in the process would you rather I do that?

Perhaps, the salties who have been coming in who know a thing or two about sw and have told me it looks good etc.... etc... etc....

I can take your post with a grain of salt friend, but I don't just throw every animal I find into a tank and call it a day.

HMMMMMMM I wonder why over the past 4 weeks I have spent on the average of 2-8 hours a night making sure that proper tank maintenance is done on all of my tanks.

HMMMMMMM perhaps I don't just call it a day at the end of my work day, perhaps that's why at 10pm I have just arrived at my restaurant to do a good 6 hours or so maintenance on my tanks.

HMMMMMMM perhaps there is a reason why I just switched out all my filter media for chemi pure and did my routine monthly rip apart of my filters to clean then and make sure the sponge is nicely cleaned out in wc water.

HMMMMMM perhaps the established media, live rock etc... that is coming from my sw tank that I started over a year and a half ago and then moved to a 75g to give my fish more room and then moved it here to a 180g shows that I don't just throw my fish in a glass box, but, rather that I spend the time to find larger and more appropriate tanks.

Or perhaps you would rather I left the scats to languish in the petland fresh water system when they were surrendered that year and a half ago.

Perhaps the fish store employee who is very knowledgeable about sw., brackish and fresh who comes in on a regular basis to talk shop knows a thing or two about tanks especially since he has quite a few of them going at hom. Perhaps just perhaps some of the people who are up close and present who know a thing or two about fish keeping and are very passionate about it would make sure to tell me if what I was doing was wrong.

Well sir I am actually done wasting my time responding to you.

To the rest I will have an update later tonight when I take some shots while doing tank care.

 

[chefjamesscott]

Oh my goodness. I really don't know where to start. I wasn't going to say anything but please for the health and well being of those animals do some research. Stop throwing every animal you can find into a tank and calling it a day. Oh and by the way, a UV will do absolutely no good against that cyano bacteria.

So greech just a FYI, it is now 4 am in the morning my time, time to go home and sleep for 3 hours so I can get up get ready and then do my restaurant all day! Yup I am one of those call it a day guys who don't do anything but throw fish in water NOT!

Ever heard the statement PUT YOUR BRAIN IN GEAR BEFORE PUTTING YOUR MOUTH IN MOTION :raspberry: !!!!! Try it you might like the effect better.

 

[Sploke]

It is true that a UV unit won't have any effect on cyanobacteria. A UV unit will only kill what flows through it. Cyano is not a free-floating, suspended organism - it attaches to rocks, glass, subtrate, anything really. Unless you are doing passes over your tank bottom with an exposed UVC bulb, the UV unit won't have an effect.

Is that a live clam in one of those pictures? If you plan on keeping it alive you're going to need some very intense lighting. I'm not sure what you are running now, looks like some sort of fluorescent fixture. All the giant clam species that I know of require something along the order of MH or a big array of T5HO to support them.

While I don't agree with the mix of fish in there, the tank itself is coming along nicely. Are the hippo tang, the mandarin and the koran all going straight into the 180?

Also - that first pic looks more like a dying urchin that's dropped all its spines than a coral.

 

[greech]

Ok, I am sorry for my outburst but I did read through your thread and I just couldn't get my mind around what you are doing. There seems to be so much going on and it seems to be happening so quickly. I know there are 100 different ways to accomplish something in this hobby so please proceed however you see fit. This is your tank after all. I wish you the best of luck.

 

[chefjamesscott]

It is true that a UV unit won't have any effect on cyanobacteria. A UV unit will only kill what flows through it. Cyano is not a free-floating, suspended organism - it attaches to rocks, glass, subtrate, anything really. Unless you are doing passes over your tank bottom with an exposed UVC bulb, the UV unit won't have an effect.

:iagree:which is why I used a turkey baster to suck it up and blow it off, and the floating particulate that I could not get with a turkey baster because the stuff went everywhere would indeed go through a uv sterilizer if I hooked it up due to it being free floating. Now since this red slime problem child tank was not my making I see no issue with moving the stock and coral and taking care of business whereaas the infested substrate, tank and rocks are concerned.

Is that a live clam in one of those pictures? If you plan on keeping it alive you're going to need some very intense lighting. I'm not sure what you are running now, looks like some sort of fluorescent fixture. All the giant clam species that I know of require something along the order of MH or a big array of T5HO to support them.

In terms of lighting, I am not so novice as to simply run a standard flourescent on a sw tank. I have picked up 5 different sw lights from various tank buys. I know that corals need different spectrums of light to simulate the natural cycle. The particular light fixture has built in fans and 4 bulbs. The 2 outside are UVR super actinc 8t17/vho and the 2 inside are Actinic White Fr48t12/bp vho-1. Though this light fixture lacks the led feature that a few of my other fixtures have which helps to actually simulate night time. This one can simulate early morning , daytime and dusk but can not do evening, so I might actually switch it out. I have a fixture here that I can switch out in a moment that runs odyssey bulbs that say true actinicx2 and daylightx2 and also has the built in led. Then if that one is not good enough I have the fixture off the aforementioned 90g set up at home, that one is a veritable tank of a light that is just insane.
Regards to the clam I know that clams need top notch light and to be affixed to a rock face full up. One thing I try to do with my tanks when I am putting fish in is to have the lights keyed down so as to make it a soft introduction, I figure the residents of the tank are spooked and have spent transit time plus acclimation time in a plastic transport and are better served to be introduced in an either no light or subdued light environment. As a side note the light fixture on my 75g at home is a corallife pro 250w which I really like for the way it warms up the daylight.

While I don't agree with the mix of fish in there, the tank itself is coming along nicely. Are the hippo tang, the mandarin and the koran all going straight into the 180?

Only going in after having spent a good hour being acclimated to the new water they will live in. Now regarding the mix of fish well to some it may be :Angel:, there are 2 factors to be considered. 1-what works for some people wont work for others.(if there happens to be a compatability issue in this tank I have my 75g up at home and I am setting up a 90g to propagate corals in may as well make some money from my hobby since corals sell for so much around here). I personally hate betta fish but for some reason people seem to love them something which I don't agree with but hey it's their tank, so I will try my best to see their tank in the best light. 2. as it is with over 60% of my fish I have acquired them as a result of buying other peoples tanks, so to a great degree stocking is not always something that I would stylize myself if I were to actually purchase the fish with intent. Yet, when I can pick up a sw set up that the guy spent over $4500 on for $500 I will deal with the inherited fish issue and smile while doing it because around here that is a heck of a deal. As well I have tanks where I have chosen to put fish together that people would say not to and I have no issues. My 300g has 3 zebra tilapia in it and there is no agression.

Also - that first pic looks more like a dying urchin that's dropped all its spines than a coral.

the urchin in the picture is actually one of these, neither dying nor sick in the least it just does not have spines to drop.

http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/store_pages/product-info.php?product_ID=i-ucolor

Though I do have one of these at home

Ok, I am sorry for my outburst but I did read through your thread and I just couldn't get my mind around what you are doing. There seems to be so much going on and it seems to be happening so quickly. I know there are 100 different ways to accomplish something in this hobby so please proceed however you see fit. This is your tank after all. I wish you the best of luck.

Accepted :thm:

First I wish to say not sorry for the rapid response , it is just the way I have come to deal with things head on. Secondly, I do not wish to come off as a know it all, but rather as someone passionate about the hobby. Even the name of my fish company dictates utmost concern and responsibility for that which we take into our care.

The best analogy I can come up with would be food. Mamma Leoni would go bonkers if she saw how I made my minestrone soup today, but so long as no food saftey issues were broken does it really matter how I made it. To true there are many ways to reach the end goal of a thriving aquatic world. As a chef I have concocted many ways that are of my own device that have yet to fail me. For example, since the whole pinion of a successful tank is the biological bacteria my studies of beneficial bacteria showed that it can indeed be transfered to a virgin envrionment and literally super cycle a tank if done right! Very much the same as a sourdough starter which follows the same principle. I have heard of sourdough starters that are over 100 years old:bowing::bowing::bowing:!!!!!

The one thing about the thread here is I have decided to dispense with photodocumenting everything. Though it seems breakneck speed with this tank, I am simply moving a well established (albeit allowed to go to pot) 65g that was in a hotel for 2 years and then in the guys house for 6mths and my 65g from my basement which had been up for 1 1/2 years which in my books says cycled to a 75g in my bedroom which used the filters straight off of the 65g basement. I am also using the thing from the previously posted 90g which was about 3 years old at time of purchase.

The stuff from the inbar tank that I bought, I totally sterilized to make sure no algae survived. There is also my seed tank downstairs that I was using to season up a bunch of live rock I bought from someone. The rock in that tank had been cooking for at least 6 mths. There is also my 75g brackish tank which as well has rock in it. I have spent the last 2 years mass purchasing a huge amount of aquaria stuff because I have a big vision for what I want to do.

Here are a couple of pictures of one of my purchases I made this summer. Just a couple of pics though.

Basically a sw store went out of business here in town, and I was able to buy $24,000.00 in stock and supplies for $2,000.00. Not to mention the insane set up this guy had for his 800g built in sw tank in his house.

A few weekends ago I went to finish up the purchase deal of a angel fish hatchery that had been in operation for over 9 years. Good trip except for one problem, when I arrived I found that I was to bring back over 200 fish. Something for which I could have prepared by bringing appropriate transport materials etc... Though I am glad to say that the losses were only 5 demasoni, 7 angels, 3 live bearers, and 2 cory cats. So this coming spring I will roll up with my truck and bring back a complete hatchery fish company and a 430g tank. The beauty of this is I have the rest of his breeding angels in a 230g here so when I reset the hatchery up I already have breeding stock.

What I am trying to do with this thread is one thing to keep the simple simple and take back fish keeping from the lands of the experts who have complicated the simple so that they can take credit for simplifying the complicated. To make it so that people can see that these corporate fishstores are not interested in showing people how to keep their fish alive but to keep them enslaved to a never ending cycle of short lived fish.

 

[greech]

Holy cow!!! That is one heck of a supply you have!!!

I am all for simplicity. My tank has no skimmer or sump and I love it that way. Don;t worry about being straight forward. My apology was directed at the fact that I cam on your thread and dissed your setup (not cool thing for me to do). The thing that got me was that I just can't quite grasp is the mixture of life you have going on. I mean having a school of scats mixed in with tangs, angels, a grouper and a mandy just does not compute. That's not to say it won't work but I have never seen anyone go this direction. Chalk one up for originality!!! Best wishes with your setup and achieving your goals.