Blog Comments

Ive had them for about 3 years now (I was told they were 2years in captivity, wild caught when I got them) but no eggs yet I'm sure if they were alone in the tank they would lay em.

I hear you about the substrate valleys, it keeps my jawfish busy!

Thanks again.

Very Nice. I just love Gold Striped Maroon Clowns and both in the BTA. Gotta love it. I hope as they mature they both stay good citizens in your tank, as they usually become the trouble makers. My clownfish bite me during maintenance (nasty female) and make hills and valleys of the substrate right at the front of the tank. I smooth it out and unbury polyps but to no avail as she does it again.

nice vids and beautiful nems

I also wanted to share what I've learned with these setups. I know reef forums are full of pompous know it alls, but here are some tips for those who want it.

1. Just because it's cycled doesn't mean it's stable. I was showing zero readings for two months and out of nowhere I was hit with phosphates out the wazoo, nasty slime dino's, and nitrate buildup. Give it a good six months so you can assess whether or not your scheduled maintenance is sufficient in keeping everything in check.

2. Seed that marco rock like no other. I was so afraid of bad hitchhikers that I only added a few pieces of live rubble to seed it. It turns out even after dipping all additions I still contracted various plagues and my live rock wasn't maturing with micro-fauna AT ALL.

3. Marco rock or any similarly sold dead white rock can leech phosphates over time. They say it wont, but I beg to differ. The way I understand it is, hard phosphates are released overtime and "fall" down sort of like a sediment. Marco rock is dug from the ground and quarried. You do the math.

4. Fish aggression shifts like the seasons. The individual personality of a fish must be observed and factored. Every fish in my tank has been not only friends but enemies with another fish.

5. Jawfish are the best.

XOXO
Justin

It sounds like everything from this point is uphill. Stay alert and on top of things and you'll get it reigned in.

I bought some emerald crabs for the angled tank to eliminate valonia, and surprisingly they devoured the caulerpa next. What a perk! You might get lucky that way.

Possible to make the straight rectangle that does not go past your HOB stuff then fill the gaps with small pieces attached to the main piece..
BTW you are posting to an old thread so, you are only getting limited readers of your post...try posting a brand new blog about your cover and dilemmas and some pictures of the tank and HOB stuff and I think you will get more response.

So, I'm guessing nobody has any advice on how to overcome such obstacles?

I just had a nightmare of a day trying to make one for my tank. The problems were kicked off by listening to one of the Home Depot employees who told me to put back the .160 spline and get .125. I got some .140 just in case, but it was still too small. Then there were the box outs. I have things coming out of the top of my tank. I have never been huge on keeping the top of the tank free of objects. I have an overflow box, a HOB skimmer, 2 return lines and the support brackets for my lights. I have to go in for those then back out to the rim of the tank for support and to cover possible fish jump areas. I have them as condensed as I can get, but I still have spots that need corners turning in the opposite direction. I can't find 90's that go the other direction, so I had to modify them. It didn't work so well. It looked great till I started putting the screen in, then it warped out of shape completely. I'm thinking 90 degree aluminum angle brackets and aluminum rivets...

I really enjoy your aquascaping, it looks very planned out and clean. I look forward to see new pictures as the tank ages...

It takes a lot of magnesium to bring it up, and you are way low. Mg should be 3x the calcium level. 1300 to 1400ppm is what I aim for myself. Your water changes will bring it back down if the new salt mix doesn't have enough Mg in the first place.

Congrats on the new corals. That chalice was a deal in today's economy.

- Thanks Hat, I appreciate it

- Yeah Phil, I was doing some research and IO salts arent the best or even consistent. When I get payed I plan on buying the new formula of RED SEA Coral Pro salt. It claims 430 CAL, 8 ALK, and 1300 MAG which is exactly what I want to shoot for.

My dosing is so out of wack that I did a water change and plan on pausing the dosing so I can retest the water over the course of the week. I might just go off of 3 days testing because as ALK levels go down, so does ALK consumption.

Haha, Im just trying to figure things out like the rest of us.

I've never used reef crystals, but Instant Ocean used to be low in Mg. So it wouldn't surprize me if your test kit was accurate.

Hey Justin, ya tank is looking good! That's some nice frags you got. I really like that Purple chalice. ;-)

Just tested my water again and my params are bonkers. I also think my Elos mag test kit is bad, and I'll tell you why.

CAL - 400 (was 420, dosed earlier today to compensate)
ALK - 7 (was 8, have not dosed yet)
MAG - 1100 (was 1050, dosed earlier today to compensate)

So I scratched my head and decided to test MAG in the Reef crystal water I mixed up yesterday.

It read 1100.

Either I got a bad batch of salt or I need a new test kit. The joys of reefing

The only thing I could see upon inspection was his anus was extruded ever so slightly. Almost unnoticeable. I have a 14 day guarantee, but I dont want another to die for no reason. I'm going to have nightmares.

He died today. Was feeding well, everything loved him. He went from happy and eating, to lathargic, then dead all in a matter of 5 hours.

Extremely disappointed and disgusted. I dont want to look at my tanks for the rest of my life.

Thanks for the pics. I was just checking back to see if you got around to posting them. I love this fish and hope to have a pair in my new 60.... Its going to cost me a pretty penny though. Totally worth it in my opinion.

You're take is very well executed! Once everything grows in, I think its going to be a stunning tank.

Added some photos Hope they are working, thanks for looking!

My camera has digital zoom, not optical zoom so they are kind of blurry. If i move close they hide.

I'm so jealous. I've seen Helfricis once in person, and have been wishing for a pair for years. Congrats on your addition, and its very awesome name. I do hope you post photos.