I think surface temps can change a bit (my first open water dive was last Feb and surface temp was colder than bottom temp!) but the sound is generally pretty stable. I'd be surprised if the water around Shaw was over 50F most of the time. I imagine most of your stuff that can hang out in tidal pools is used to a little warmer temps.
My Coldwater Tank
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I think surface temps can change a bit (my first open water dive was last Feb and surface temp was colder than bottom temp!) but the sound is generally pretty stable. I'd be surprised if the water around Shaw was over 50F most of the time. I imagine most of your stuff that can hang out in tidal pools is used to a little warmer temps.
NWDiver
Swimming with the fishes
The temp in the sound can be very different depending on the tide and depth. Most of the areas that I dive are from 47 to 55 though many bays get much warmer in the summer, especially on low exchange days. Many areas have a very noticable thermocline.
All that said, most of what you have in your aquarium is intertidal and very resistant to temperature changes. I had a friend that kept a 55 in the garage ~64 deg and it did fine for more than a year. My chiller did not restart after a water change two weeks ago and the temp went from 57 to 70 before I noticed. Ouch. The anemonies were looking a little off so I started investigating. Eventually after putting my hand in the water I figured out the issue. I only lost a chiton and my large rock scallop, so I was lucky. The other critters were not happy for a few days, but all is well now.
How big is the Gunnel that you have in there?
If you want some free swimming fish, let me know, I caught a few surf perch and a striped perch at langley that have been doing great for more than a year. I also see a fair bit of candlefish while diving there, but my net was not fine enough to keep them. I plan to make another trip with a new hand net.
"Shore crabs" work well, but avoid red rock and dungeness unless you want your whole tank re-arranged every night.
In my experience the game wardens have been very nice, asking questions and giving advice. I did get asked to return a red urchin because I forgot my license once.
All that said, most of what you have in your aquarium is intertidal and very resistant to temperature changes. I had a friend that kept a 55 in the garage ~64 deg and it did fine for more than a year. My chiller did not restart after a water change two weeks ago and the temp went from 57 to 70 before I noticed. Ouch. The anemonies were looking a little off so I started investigating. Eventually after putting my hand in the water I figured out the issue. I only lost a chiton and my large rock scallop, so I was lucky. The other critters were not happy for a few days, but all is well now.
How big is the Gunnel that you have in there?
If you want some free swimming fish, let me know, I caught a few surf perch and a striped perch at langley that have been doing great for more than a year. I also see a fair bit of candlefish while diving there, but my net was not fine enough to keep them. I plan to make another trip with a new hand net.
"Shore crabs" work well, but avoid red rock and dungeness unless you want your whole tank re-arranged every night.
In my experience the game wardens have been very nice, asking questions and giving advice. I did get asked to return a red urchin because I forgot my license once.
Really? It seems like it is 55 everywhere, the channel between shaw and lopez or between shaw and orcas. I could be wrong, that is surface as you said.
Do you have any pics of your aquarium??? I want to see more. Yes I am actually!!!! I want some fish. I dont have any fish in the tank currently, I had a mini crash bleh. Have you ever caught a spiny lumpsucker or grunt sculpin? I am also looking for those. Have any extra anemones haha?
Haha season starts soon! I love fishing for them. I caught a 50 incher, no joke, but had to let the beast go, amazing fish.
NWDiver
Swimming with the fishes
Grunt sculpins are pretty easy to find, spiny lumpsuckers not so much. I have seen a few at cone islands and one at keystone. Anemones are everywhere 
I often see the giant plumose at three feet or so tall. I have not yet found a colony of strawberries, but that is on the agenda for this summer.
Here are some images of surf perch
http://week.divebums.com/2006/Dec26-2006/shiner-surfperch_kevin-lee.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/190/485248920_ce60559ed1.jpg?v=0
Here are some (bad) photos from the 55 to 100 move:
I often see the giant plumose at three feet or so tall. I have not yet found a colony of strawberries, but that is on the agenda for this summer. Here are some images of surf perch
http://week.divebums.com/2006/Dec26-2006/shiner-surfperch_kevin-lee.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/190/485248920_ce60559ed1.jpg?v=0
Here are some (bad) photos from the 55 to 100 move:
Nice tank! I like the big fish eating/painted nem!
Alright the second pic of the surf perch, what species is that? I like it. How big does it get? I am guessing my tank would be too small, but there is actually a lot of swimming room in my tank.
Grunt sculpins are pretty easy to find eh? Awesome. My dad has caught them before, since he has been going to our cabin on shaw since he was born. I guess the lumpsuckers come into the shallows in the winter. And our bay is full of eel grass and I guess that is where they go.
Also, have you seen any tube or swimming anemones? I guess they live around here too. Also colorful anemones in general, dark reds greens etc.
Alright the second pic of the surf perch, what species is that? I like it. How big does it get? I am guessing my tank would be too small, but there is actually a lot of swimming room in my tank.
Grunt sculpins are pretty easy to find eh? Awesome. My dad has caught them before, since he has been going to our cabin on shaw since he was born. I guess the lumpsuckers come into the shallows in the winter. And our bay is full of eel grass and I guess that is where they go.
Also, have you seen any tube or swimming anemones? I guess they live around here too. Also colorful anemones in general, dark reds greens etc.
NWDiver
Swimming with the fishes
Thanks
I don't want to hijack your thread, but I can post some nicer pictures if you want
It's funny that you can't see most of the fish in any of the pictures.
The fish in the link is a striped perch. It is the same as the fish in my first (really bad) picture. They actually get quite big, but they grow really slow. It is tough to find them as juvi's, but I have caught a few at Langley. They have pretty, electric blue stripes.
Swimming anemonies are around here, but I have only seen them in Nanaimo BC.
Tube anemonies you should be able to find at shaw in the softer silty areas, I don't see them all that often as we mostly dive rocky areas.
I feed the painted nems a silverside once a week and the plumose I give a couple of krill or a piece of silverside once a week or so.
I don't dive eel grass typically so that may well be why I have not seen lumpsuckers often. If you are still into keeping cold water stuff next winter, I will swing up and take a look at shaw.
for fish I have three silver surf perch, one striped perch, a really pretty 1 foot long green gunnel, and two sculpins. I hope to add a warbonnet, gobie, and a flounder this spring. I have also been looking for a juvi rockfish, but no luck catching one yet.
Are you using artificial sea water?
I don't want to hijack your thread, but I can post some nicer pictures if you want
It's funny that you can't see most of the fish in any of the pictures.
The fish in the link is a striped perch. It is the same as the fish in my first (really bad) picture. They actually get quite big, but they grow really slow. It is tough to find them as juvi's, but I have caught a few at Langley. They have pretty, electric blue stripes.
Swimming anemonies are around here, but I have only seen them in Nanaimo BC.
Tube anemonies you should be able to find at shaw in the softer silty areas, I don't see them all that often as we mostly dive rocky areas.
I feed the painted nems a silverside once a week and the plumose I give a couple of krill or a piece of silverside once a week or so.
I don't dive eel grass typically so that may well be why I have not seen lumpsuckers often. If you are still into keeping cold water stuff next winter, I will swing up and take a look at shaw.
for fish I have three silver surf perch, one striped perch, a really pretty 1 foot long green gunnel, and two sculpins. I hope to add a warbonnet, gobie, and a flounder this spring. I have also been looking for a juvi rockfish, but no luck catching one yet.
Are you using artificial sea water?
NWDiver
Swimming with the fishes
Two more from my phone
Thanks
I don't want to hijack your thread, but I can post some nicer pictures if you want
It's funny that you can't see most of the fish in any of the pictures.
The fish in the link is a striped perch. It is the same as the fish in my first (really bad) picture. They actually get quite big, but they grow really slow. It is tough to find them as juvi's, but I have caught a few at Langley. They have pretty, electric blue stripes.
Swimming anemonies are around here, but I have only seen them in Nanaimo BC.
Tube anemonies you should be able to find at shaw in the softer silty areas, I don't see them all that often as we mostly dive rocky areas.
I feed the painted nems a silverside once a week and the plumose I give a couple of krill or a piece of silverside once a week or so.
I don't dive eel grass typically so that may well be why I have not seen lumpsuckers often. If you are still into keeping cold water stuff next winter, I will swing up and take a look at shaw.
for fish I have three silver surf perch, one striped perch, a really pretty 1 foot long green gunnel, and two sculpins. I hope to add a warbonnet, gobie, and a flounder this spring. I have also been looking for a juvi rockfish, but no luck catching one yet.
Are you using artificial sea water?
Its fine, more pics the better. And ohh cool, I like the fish. If you ever find a really small one, let me know haha. Cool, I will look for the tube anemones next time I am up there! Thats too bad, swimming anemones are incredibly neat creatures. I need to get some silversides, I have just been feeding them fresh deli shrimp. Yup, I plan on having this aquarium all year
I catch (fishing) baby rock cod all the time, some that are about 5 inches or so, those fish can live 100+ years too haah. Yup I mix my own water. Two more from my phone
I had those but I was not able to feed them correctly
dogfrog
latezonatus
Now if you could only add some of the coral thats off of Vancouver Island
abushr
Well-known member
Nice tank! Interesting idea...a cold water tank...
dogfrog
latezonatus
I don’t remember the name but it was one hell of a deep dive. On a wall face in Saanich Inlet. I was kind of the dive master as I had a broken leg and could not dive. All I got to see was the pictures that night while se sat and drank in the Bengal Tiger room at the Empress.
But my hat is off to you on the cold water tank. Very cool and 30 years ago when I was doing most of my diving keeping a tank cold was not the simplest thing to do. So take a big bow and keep the pictures coming.
But my hat is off to you on the cold water tank. Very cool and 30 years ago when I was doing most of my diving keeping a tank cold was not the simplest thing to do. So take a big bow and keep the pictures coming.
Thanks! And they are one of a kind tanks haha!
Very cool! Too bad you didn't see them in person. Were they yellowish orange? If so then prob cup coral, one of the corals that we would think of as corals, hard skeleton and all. Not much of a better place to review photos, I would be distracted in there though haha.
Thanks! Yea they aren't amazing stable thats my only problem, but I will take some more when the tank changes haha. I need to collect some stuff I suppose!
iroll253
Well-known member
DDDROOL...
