Tank for a year--still a beginner

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M

Mahoney

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 26, 2012
Messages
55
Location
Coeur d'Alene, ID
Hi! My name is Amanda. This is my inaugural forum post, so forgive me if this is totally foreign. I've had my tank for a little over a year now. My hubby's friend gave us an empty tank with old run-down lighting, some rock, and a tired protein skimmer. We have finagled our way through this first year with many losses and frustrations, almost giving up the whole thing a time or two. But, I have been patient and persistent, and really like the process of things and enjoy taking care of our fishies and corals. I would like to continue to have a tank flourishing. I joined here to maybe see some light at the end of the tunnel and get tips from all you experts out there :) We've have a couple different saltwater aquarium stores in town and have gotten mixed messages on many different issues which has only made things even more difficult/frustrating. But again, I am patient and would really like to see our tank thrive. :)

Here's the low-down:

50-55 gal tank
CPR Back-pak 2 protein skimmer
3 powerheads--2 pointed at rocks, one ruffling the surface
Heater
No sump--I know there are mixed reviews, but we seem to have been doing okay with out it
Lighting--T5's Coralife

Fish
- 2 Black clowns ("Benni and June")
- 1 green clown goby ("Merle")
- 1 chock bass ("Chuck")

(fish losses from moving/didn't work out due to aggression: court jester goby x 2, orange lined cardinal, blue damsel, 6 line wrasse, orange clown, lemon-peel angel, yellow wrasse, cleaner shrimp x 2, turbo snails x 5, lots of hermit crabs)

Corals:
- 3 hammers
- yellow polyps
- green zoas
- xenia
- green star polyps
- blue mushrooms x 2

Clean up crew:
Various snails
4 peppermint shrimp (to kill off all our aptasia)
Various hermit crabs
Tons of baby starfish--they are multiplying like MAD! Same with the snails. We had a turbo snail that had so many babies before it suddenly died.... there are hundreds of little pin-prick sized snails in the tank. I love the snails, so it doesn't bother me, but is that a bad thing?

Other:
- 2 feather dusters

Stuff I do daily--
- feed x 2-3 frozen food
- scrap the glass
- note how much is accumulating in the protein skimmer cup
- marine snow every few days
Weekly--
- Dump skimmer cup, clean
- check salinity
Monthly--
- Water change of 5 gallons, cleaning sand at same time by sucking stuff off the top of sand gently

I do have water testing stuff (ph, nitrates, KH) that I do only really when I notice something out of whack--pouty corals or something.

So, I have a zillion and one questions about so many different things, that I don't even know where to start. haha I've tried looking things up here and there, but without knowing what to look for, it's been somewhat difficult.

1. Why has our tank turned purple? I know it's some kind of algae/bacteria? How come no other pictures of people's tanks have that!?!? I feel like everything in our tank is purple-ish hue!
2. Is the placement of rocks and such good?
3. Every now and then we get this film on top of the surface of the water near the end where the protein skimmer output is--it's like a film of protein or something? It kinda comes and goes, maybe with feedings? Is this a lack of adequate skimmer functioning?
3.5. We bought our current protein skimmer used when the first died because we didn't have a chunk of change for a new one, and 6 months later I was looking up the model of it regarding question 3, and saw that it should have Bio-Bale in it? Is this a must--possibly causing the problem in question 3? And if so, where can I buy black bio-bale, I've only found white and blue for sale, but seen black advertised.
4. How many more fish can we feasibly add to the mix? 6-7 for total number?
5. How do I get stuff in the tank to be bright looking? I feel like things look so different from others' pictures--paler maybe. Is that the difference from metal halide lighting? For instance, we have "blue mushrooms" but they look the same damn purple as everything else when they are fully open. They have somewhat of a bluish hue when the light first flips on, but otherwise.... purple.
6. Are the number of hermit crabs that survive in the tank a self-limiting kind of thing? Like, because they have killed themselves off with fights to the death down to a certain number, that that's what the tank can support? Or do I need to keep adding more of them every now and then?
7. Is my routine for stuff done daily/weekly/monthly correct?
8. Are there any obvious things we are hugely missing? I ask because, as there is always more than one way to skin a cat, we've had different opinions about so many different things--Ca dosing, using a sump, how much to water change monthly, etc, etc, etc.
9. From time to time when the corals get irritated--moving for example, they put off this spitty substance for several hours. Is that normal? Does it have detrimental effects to the tank that I need to be aware of? I've tried looking this information up, but haven't been too successful.

I feel like I have so many more, but can't think of them at the moment. Any help would be much appreciated. I'll attach a photo of our current tank. It's a little cloudy because we had to do some rearranging-- the yellow wrasse we bought a few days ago: we were told was reef safe, but they failed to tell us at the store that it would eat feather dusters. We had a HELL of a time catching that little bugger what with his habit of sand-diving. Good god, we had to tear apart the tank, which lead to rearranging some of the rock around, and needless to say, the corals are a bit pouty and things haven't quite cleared up yet.

Thanks so much!

Amanda

OKAY---tried to post a photo and I got this message: To be able to post links or images your post count must be 3 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

Please remove links from your message, then you will be able to submit your post

What does that mean?
 
Well welcome to the forum .....mass questions there. Did you say you feed 2 to 3 times a day???? That can be a big issue and what are you feeding ,flake, frozen??? Over feeding can be a big problem. I have 4 fish and feeed them rods food every other day. A good skimmer will help and properly setup. A refugium with macros and some rubble rock will help alot in filtration and feeding the tank with pods. And as far as being a noob after a year ,I have ben doing this for a few years and am still a noob, and as more technology comes out and different equipment it keeps me a noob. Others will chime in on this post and youwill get great advise and knowledge.
 
Amanda,

Welcome to RF!!!

you will find alot of people here friendly, knowledgeable and willing to help.

Yes. you will need 3 posts before you can post pictures...

by purple, do you mean coralline algae on the rocks? or is this on the sand..Unfortunately, this is where pics would help to give you a good answer...if you want u can send to my email which I will send to you in a PM.

3. Need more flow in the water..there is excess nutrients in the tank that the skimmer is not skimming.
3.5..Bio balls can be a source of nitrates, just make sure you rinse them now and then..this is a personal preference..to me I wouldnt use them.

4. the rule of thumb is 1 inch of fish to every 5-7 gallons of tank water.

5. how old r u current bulbs? maybe change a different brand of bulb...no doubt MH will give you more intense lighting, but also increase the heat in the tank
6. again another personal preference...most hermits kill each other AND snail for their shells..i dont have any in my tank cuz of this fact...why do u have hermits in your tank..
7. u shouldnt have to scrap the tank every day, and should be doing 10% water change every 2 wks...5 gallons is not enough IMO.
8. what are your parameters for Mg, Ca, Alk, pH, temp, SG
(if you haven't already purchase it, I would recommend the following book (as I do to all newbies as I feel strongly about this book):

The Conscientious Marine Aquarist: A Commonsense Handbook for Successful Saltwater Hobbyists (Microcosm/T.F.H. Professional): Robert M. Fenner,Matthew L. Wittenrich,Scott W. Michael,Alf Jacob Nilsen,Christopher Turk: 9781890087999: Amazon.com: Books

I've been in this hobby 18+ yrs, and still use this book more for reference, but still use it.

9. No. Normal process of being irritated.
 
Welcome to Reef Frontiers Amanda. Your in the right place. You will get all the help you need here. There is a great club in your area too. Check the club forums. Someone in your area, I am sure, would be more than happy to stop by and help you out with any questions.
Again, welcome.
Happy Reefing
 
welcome. I agree with nc2wa. but I would cut out the marine snow. all it is, is detritus. and what are you scraping off the tank?

Sent from my Galaxy S3 using Tapatalk 2.
 
When you feed your fish 2-3x a day, do you mean small feedings or normal feedings? Ive read allover the place its best to do small feedings 2-3x a day. I dont, i only feed once a day and my fish seem fine. Also up your waterchanges. With a 55g tank, 5.5 gallons or 10% every 2 weeks at a minimum, be better and easier to just do 10g every 2 weeks. How deep os your sand? If its deep, you so not want to stir it up. As for your light, you said its an older unit, try replacing the bulbs, updating your fixture, or go with led. The biobale youre talking about for your skimmer, i wouldnt use. It would do the samething as the bioballs as mentioned above and trap detritus. The trapped detritus will dissolve in there and get released back into your tank and cause issues, as in more algae, due to the increase in nutrients. Unless you clean it religiously. As for the skim on the water surface, try pointing a powerhead upwards to really get the water surface moving. The idea here is to get the water moving so much that it pulls that stuff back down from the top, and also pull the stuff from the bottom, so that it can get filtered out. If its sitting on the bottom, and sitting on the top, its not getting filtered out. Krish on here had a tank with a turnover rate of 100x. Lets use your tank for example, 55g. 55x100=5500 gallons per hour! Thats a crazy amount of water movement, maybe a lil high, but it depends on what your trying to keep.
 
WOW! Thanks everyone! I wasn't expecting such fast responses! How exciting! Haha

Feeding--usually 2x a day; frozen omnivore food. Just a couple thin scrapings. Just enough so that everyone eats and there's not a bunch left floating around in the tank. I may give them more if they are especially hungry. It's not often that i do a third feeding. The clowns are pigs sometimes and gobble up everything right outta my hand before anyone else can get a bite or two!

@NC2WA--Purple stuff--yes, I believe it's the coralline algae, and it's just on the rocks.
--lighting: The bulbs are actually brand new. The ballast on our old light went out and it was florescent compact. This new light is the T5's, and bulbs are about a month old. Replace every 6 months correct?
--Hermit crabs--hmmm. I was told I needed them to clean stuff up. haha. They really aren't necessary?
--parameters of the tank. Hmm. The temp is about 77-78 degrees. pH was 8.2, nitrates were 5ppm last time I checked a month ago. Kh was 9gtts or 160ppm. No idea on the other stuff.... :/

Scraping tank--it's just the little magnet one that slides across the tank. I just quickly wipe it across the surfaces of the glass to prevent buildup so often. Usually once a month I take an exacto knife blade and scrape the stuff that isn't being taken off by the magnetic cleaner---it's usually green in nature.

So it sounds like I should invest in another power head. So I'll look into that. And then changing water more often. I also do add about a half-gal or so every day to top off the tank with RO water. I forgot to mention that in my first post.

As far as cutting out the marine snow--what will the corals eat? They are suspension/filter feeders correct? It's only a half a capful (maybe a teaspoon?) every 3-4 days. And wouldn't my nitrates go sky high if it was causing a problem?

Where do people go for buying corals and such? There are a few stores in town, but they don't offer much compared to what I find online. Where are people going that they trust? I liked the looks of liveaquaria.com. They seemed pretty reputable. Are there other online stores? I feel like our tank is pretty empty and really want to beef up the corals and things.

Are urchins good to get? or do they destroy stuff mostly?

Thanks again so much everyone! All your help is greatly appreciated. Also, I will check out that book!
 
from the pic, tank looks good.

coralline algae on the rocks is GOOD!!, if it is on the glass, then this means lights are position to forward..move them back so light is not directly shining on the glass..

correct. you do not need hermit crabs in your tank....to me, they just steal snail shells and not necessary...again personal preference.

T5 bulbs shoud be replaced every 12-18 months...

I would invest in a good test kits like Elos or Salifert test for Mg and Ca, but the mere fact you have coralline algae on the rocks tells me you have sufficient Ca..Mg level should be around 1200-1350; Ca 400-450ppm
 
One thing I thought when I saw your tank, besides that you have some nice pieces of coral and your tank looks great at a year old, was that you need more live rock. Live rock is the main filtration. IMO, you should have a little more than 1lb of rock per gal of tank size. If you were using a sump, you could put rock there if you didnt want more in the tank. The more rock you have the more bioload you can put on it.

Yeah, powerheads are kind of an eye sore, but you have to have water flow. There are a few brands that are less obtrusive than others, like the ecotech mp's, but they are a little pricey. I am using Koralia powerheads. I had three of the K4's in my 55 before it upgraded to the 75. I placed one behind the rock towards the bottom of the tank to move water under the rocks. Then one on each end closer to the top to help keep the surface moving.

The brightness and color of your coral do have to do with lighting. Could be too much or too little. There is a good article here Reef Frontiers - How lighting effects corals on how lighting effects corals. T5 is good lighting for LPS and soft corals. Mushrooms like less light. Otherwise I think the colors in your tank look great.

You should have test kits for Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates, pH, Calcium, Alkalinity, Magnesium and phosphates. Salinity, Ammonia, Nitrites & Nitrates should be checked on regularly. If keeping SPS, Calcium, Alkalinity and Magnesium should be checked regularly too. IMO, Once the tank has been stable for a while and you are on a regular schedule with dosing and water changes, these parameters dont need to be tested quite as often. I only check them once a month in my sps tank. The other tanks, I dont think I have check them in months. But you really need those tests kits if there are any signs of something going wrong.

The film on the surface is due to not enough surface movement and water flow. You want the surface in constant ripples to keep it moving so more of it is being moved to the filter and skimmer. Invest in a good skimmer rated for a tank larger than needed. Bigger is better.

These are all my opinions from my experience. Others will have different opinions and experiences. We have all said it, what works for one person, may or may not work for another. I have done a lot of reading, asked questions and gotten a lot of different answers too. I have taken, from all the suggestions and aswers, information that I felt would work for me and used that. Sometimes it worked well and sometimes I had to change what I was doing.

We look forward to watching your tank progress. Keep posting pics as you go.

And again, welcome.
 
Last edited:
Oh, there is the Spokane Reef Society close to you. There are also a couple /few really nice LFS's in your area. They are sponsors here too, I believe. Check the sponsor list. One off the top of my head is Coral Props. I know there are a few more but cant think of the names.
 
IPisces--Thanks for your opinions :) So, for rock, I believe I have purchased a total of about 75lbs that is in there right now. Should I be building it up higher then? And then with the protein skimmer, is ours not adequate then? The pump on it says Rio 600 I think.

Now, I don't know all the acronyms yet. What is LFS's?

I will definitely check our the lighting post.

Where do you get your stuff--corals, fish, etc for your tanks? Online anywhere? Or is that what you were referring to with the Spokane Reef Society?

Thanks for all the warm welcomes!
Amanda
 
Its hard to tell and maybe i missed it but do you have any powerheads at all in your aquarium? I didnt see any in the pic u just posted.

Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2
 
I was wondering the same thing. I think I can see one on the left but not sure.
 
There are 3 power heads--one at the bottom on the right side pointing directly into the rock, below the protein skimmer. And then on the left side, there are two--one at the bottom pointing directly into the rock, and the other is at the top ruffling the surface of the water. After posting here and getting people's responses, I'm going to have to invest in another one for the upper right hand side to get more water movement. :)
 
Mess with your pumps to get the water turning. You can try a pump on the left and one on the right, bout halfway up or a lil higher, pointing straight across at eachother.
 
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