HELP! Not sure what happened...

[nema]

Checked this morning and my levels are such:


Phosphate - 0
pH - 8.4
SG - 1.025
Ammonium - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - looks like 0 but it might be just above... def not 5.


The LTA has stayed where i dug the little trench in the sand and seems to be ok. He isn't as fully open as when i first put him in but his tentacles are not stringy, they are inflated and the mouth is visible. I'm going to look at t-5 lighting online today but its hard finding any that would fit this tank. Outer limits of the tank are 18.75" wide and inner limits are 17.75".


Any recommendations would be appreciated as well.

 

[TL1000RSquid]

36 watt total or 2 36 watt pc's? LTA's don't need high lighting but 36 watts isn't enough imo, 72watts should be adequate I never dealt with PC lighting though but it would be plenty if it were t5's.

Whats your budget to upgrade the lighting? I would personally go with DIY LED's in your existing top or if you don't think you're upto that, then a premade fixture. reefbreeders or kessil would probably work well over it.

At some point it may outgrow your setup, LTA's can get upto a good 20".. BTA would be more suited for a smaller tank if you want a hosting nem.

 

[nema]

36 watt total or 2 36 watt pc's? LTA's don't need high lighting but 36 watts isn't enough imo, 72watts should be adequate I never dealt with PC lighting though but it would be plenty if it were t5's.

Whats your budget to upgrade the lighting? I would personally go with DIY LED's in your existing top or if you don't think you're upto that, then a premade fixture. reefbreeders or kessil would probably work well over it.

At some point it may outgrow your setup, LTA's can get upto a good 20".. BTA would be more suited for a smaller tank if you want a hosting nem.

The online specs read "It is installed with (2) 36 watt 50/50 CF lamps..." but I think its 36w total, not two sets of 36w. I was going to go with a BTA but the LFS didn't have any in stock for a bit and I liked the color and plumpness of the LTA so I leaned towards the LTA.

I would strongly consider the DIY kit but seeing as how its almost the same cost as a pre assembled light and in the summer I'll have to deal with over heating (top down heating the tank). I'm more for swapping off the top and putting a light overhead so that I can cool the tank down easier with some fans down the road.

Is LED vs HO vs MH just one of those Coke vs Pepsi debates or is there truly some hard facts behind it? Lastly, I've heard numbers thrown around such as 4 watts per gallon or 5 watts per gallon, is there any solid information behind this? 96 or 120 watts for a 24 gallon tank seems a bit excessive imo.

 

[nema]

Ha. So i found out that there are two versions of the JBJ Nano 24 gallon. One version comes with the 50/50 CF lighting 36 watts. And Mine comes with 13 1.3 watt LED bulbs (only 16 watts) - 8 - 10k white and 5 20k blue.

needless to say I'm going to the LFS today to get new lights

 

[greech]

First off Pepsi is no comparisson to Coke .

I would agree that you need to upgrade lights but it is also a very good idea to acclimate nems to lighting. The open top is the way to go IMO. You and your tank will be happy with it. This will also allow you to use window screen to acclimate the nem. Lay 4 or 5 sheets over the tank and take one off a week.

Lighting choices are wide open and as you already know, there are also differences between individual LED, T5 and MH fixtures. MH lighting is tough to beat in terms of color and growth but heat, energy costs and bulb repllacements each year are the drawbacks. LEDs are typically the most cost effective in the long run but the technology changes daily and some are not happy with their results (I am not one of them). Note that LEDs can be deceptively dim and you can easily bleach your animals. A dimmable fixture is suggested for these reasons. T5s are a happy medium. Great color, good growth, low heat but also require bulb replacements.

Whichever you decide, by quality the 1st time.

Can we get a pic of the nem?

 

[nema]

This is what the Nem looked like the day i put it into the tank

Here's what it looks like right now, fully inflated, floating in place, mouth open slightly but looking very firm


I did notice that it left behind this stringy something that looks like mucous?



I just did another water change as my Ammonium was .25 again and my Nitrate looked to be 10!!! I'm going ask my LFS to order the JBJ LED Unibody light as it can do the full range of 6500k-20000k and is dimmable which will allow me to acclimate much easier. They had also recommended the Kessil A150W but that can't dim and doesn't have moonlight lighting with the daylight... thoughts?

 

[TL1000RSquid]

The JBJ will do the job, kind of overpriced IMO though.

 

[OrionGirl]

Dimmable is good.

 

[greech]

That anemone is pretty bleached. You will not want to blast it with strong light. Your 1W LEDs may be perfect for now. If you do upgrade lighting, you should definitely consider using window screen (maybe even use it with the lighting you have now).

 

[nema]

To wrap things up i up graded the lights to the JBJ Unibody 54 Watt which has dimmable toggles for each light. I started them off very low and will increment them up each week. My ammonia has gotten as high as 1 ppm before i get a water change in, I've turned off the skimmer for the next few days and added a couple cap full doses of Instant Ocean Bio-Spira to try and help speed up the Mini cycle as its more drastic than i thought it would be.

The nem seems happier now, accepted the feeding i gave it a day or so ago and is slowly settling into the sand. I'm testing the water every day and keeping an eye on the nem's behavior.

Thanks again for everyone's help.