Journey's journey into SW Aquaria

EWWWWW...go to my happy place

How do you all do this???

Alright, so I really want to be "cool" and "ungirly" but seriously, some of the stuff that is "natural" and probably "beneficial" to reef tanks is really nasty.

This morning before I turned on my aquarium lights I took a look around. Staring to see some sponge die off...expected...not as bad as I thought it would be. Plants are all doing well. Crab is happy. Cucumber has found a new home since I didn't want him puking his guts out and poisoning my tank. But then...

I see ALL SORTS of new stuff. Some kinds are cool, some totally nasty. First, worms of all varieties. Red and long and flopping around in the water...ewww. Others small and thick with white/yellow coloring...more tolerable. Ugh...just saw another...white/clear and flat...about an inch long. I'm trying not to be totally disgusted but dang...I put my hand in there. How do you all do it? Now I see a red skinny spiralling worm, about an inch long but way skinnier than the white flat one.
This is all on one rock!!! Hubby taking pictures...will post if any come out. Then, on another rock are these bunches of tentacles...maybe 25 per punch flowing out into the water...kind of pretty...like very tiny long anemone tentacles...they are straight and spirally mixed. I see at least three distinct groupings of these...what the heck are these? I need an invert book.

Alright...I've got to check the water and I'm going to be grown and admit that I'm kind of freaked out about sticking my fingers in there. This should not be a big deal. I grew up by the ocean...swam there all the time. Probably had these creatures on me and never knew.

EGADS! How do you all do this?

Amber:help:
 
You are right, parasitic cirolanids aren't incredibly common. I am glad I scared you enough to research them, though, as it is better to be aware of them and how to get rid of them than to be caught blindsided.

On the other hand, there are tons of other isopods, most being harmless and beneficial. Within a few days to weeks, you should start seeing munnid isopods appear on your glass--just about everyone has them. You may even find a nice sphaeromatid or two, which are also harmless and quite cool (you can even differentiate between males and females). I agree that uncured rock is among the best stuff to get, though. Have fun with what critters pop up, even if they are a little on the weird or scary side.
 
Okay...so here are some pictures of the "wormie" things in my tank now. Let me know if you recognize any of them. I'm seeing now that they are not only on the rocks but some are crawling through the sand bottom.

worm1qv7.jpg


2. Worm

worm2gz0.jpg


3.
worm3ko1.jpg
 
Hard to tell with the first. It could be any number of polychaete worms--probably just an amphinomid or "bristle worm." I couldn't really tell if it had antennae or anything like that.

The second is also pretty difficult to zero in on without seeing more detail.

The third appears to be a terebellid worm (or maybe a type of cirratulid, but one of the two).

None of what I see looks immediately a problem. Not to mention problematic worms aren't nearly as common as many think.
 
You rock at identification:

Here is a pic of the cirratulid which I found in the tank
http://www.marineaquariumadvice.com...ghlight=&sid=2def5c10f0c87855391684e00fd199c6
moz-screenshot.jpg

And you are definitely right about the The Curly Terebellid Worm
http://www.nwmarinelife.com/htmlswimmers/t_crispus.html


This is soooo cool.

Amber
Amphiprion said:
Hard to tell with the first. It could be any number of polychaete worms--probably just an amphinomid or "bristle worm." I couldn't really tell if it had antennae or anything like that.

The second is also pretty difficult to zero in on without seeing more detail.

The third appears to be a terebellid worm (or maybe a type of cirratulid, but one of the two).

None of what I see looks immediately a problem. Not to mention problematic worms aren't nearly as common as many think.
Click to expand...
 
Cycling

As I mentioned in the beginning, this is a slightly different type of cycling then I've heard described here. The goal is to avoid letting the ammonia hit 1ppm by doing water changes.

I've had the rock since Saturday night. Didn't have my equipment in yet so I held off doing much other than getting it in the tank...I put in an air stone since it was the only thing I had to create movement. Monday I got to the store and added a powerhead for flow and got a stand in ammonia kit. I added the bacteria last night (Monday).

Monday am: .50ppm Ammonia
Monday pm: .25ppm
Tuesday am: 0ppm

Does this make sense? Why would it be going down? I haven't had to do a single water change yet. Confused.
 
Oxygenating?

Another question...am I supposed to be oxygenating my water in some way?
 
Right now, hardly any flow...just a Maxi-Jet 600 Powerhead
situated in the middle of the tank...hardly any surface agitation...I have a air stone...should I add it for now?

Tomorrow I should have my filter, skimmer and Hydro Koralia Nano Pump Powerhead 260 GPH.

Am I okay?
 
You have a 25g tall right? And want to go reef? In that case the general formula would be 25 x 25 = 625gph minimum I don't use filters when counting flow personally. Just powerheads and pumps for a closed loop.

The MJ 600 isn't all that powerful in my opinion and because it puts out water in a jet it isn't going to cause a chaotic flow. What you're trying to avoid are deadspots in the tank..and if some of the water on top is moving thats great as it will add oxygen.
 
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