i got saltly.new pics 06/06/07 its been like 6 months

[mr funktastic]

ok well i finally caved in and decided to ddo a salt tank. i am going with a 15 gal. about 20 pounds of live rock. possibly gonna thin costs by using a bit if base rock. going with a 65 watt coralife fixtures. hydrometer for now untill i get fish then i am going to buy a refractometer. a 50 watt jager heater. a penguin 125 and 2 maxijet 400. probabaly arag alive substarte(i can get it for cheap) its gonna be a reef set up. all softies. probabaly a pair of clows(not sure which type yet) or a single clown and a goby or something. then a shrimp(not decided yet) and a assortment of snails. i have a thread going on www.fantasyreef.com . i am going to be getting the bulk of my supplies from big als boxingday sale tomorrow. then the rest online. i am gonna post pictures tomorrow aswell. they will just be of a tanks and sand lol but its something. any sugesstions feel free to comment.

 

[DragonForce]

sounds like a good deal, try and get a bit more lr in there if you can, shoot for closer to 30 lbs if you can afford it. There are some really nice zoanthid and palythoa corals as well as all the different types of shooms and leathers that are both beautiful and easy to grow. Good luck

 

[Devilishturtles]

Good luck.

 

[mr funktastic]

i got some supplies today. pick up a 200 gal salt mix of red sea salt for for 30 bucks. 2 maxijet 400 for 30. my 15 gal tank and a 50 watt marineland heater for 30. i am going to pick up a hydrometer for now to get things rolling then buy the refractometer. gonna get it all filled up tonight then get the rock tomorrow. big als is having a sale. might aswell take adcantage.

 

[roka64]

Sounds pretty sweet!

 

[flamingonhot]

I would skip the pair of clowns idea- I really suggest 30 gallons at least for a pair. One small clown and a small goby is a better route to take. If you want snails, get cerith snails possibly, and be careful when getting a shrimp, most are peaceful but common beginner shrimps like Banded Corals are territorial. I once had one take on a Dwarf Lionfish.

As for the Arag-Alive, I would skip it unless you can get it cheaper than other substrates. It's really not worth the extra money you pay for it.

Good luck!

 

[mr funktastic]

i got my live rock today!! i got 14 pounds to start. i need about 10 more i think to build the height up in the centre. i got all figi rock. was 6.99/pound plus 20 percent off. boxing day special. i couldnt believe how cheap it was. i got the SG all balanced and the filter running with some rubble in it. i also put a peice of sponge in it to catch all the loose crud floating around. gonna start doing water test tomorrow and moniter it till it cycles. some the rock was partially cured some of it was fully. got some interesting things attached to the rock. the guy was really patient as i routed through the tanks finding peices i liked. well enough blabbing. here it is.
sorry its still a bit cloudy.

 

[blazeyreef]

Looks awesome! although $78 is not that cheap for 14 pounds.... (cheaper than here though..here it is 9.99/ pound) but I got 22 pounds of LR for about $73 online....

 

[mr funktastic]

i prefer to choose the peices i am getting. i thought about online but after shipping it wasnt worth it (gotta love canada) i may be getting some from a guy near me from his established tanks. that should complete the look of it. then i will fill it up with corals i ordered my light. should be here tomorrow. along with the mounting legs and a new digital thermometer.

 

[austinsdad]

Watch your ammonia to ensure the rock is cured and no die off occurs. If so, then you've got a cycle going.

 

[newfound77951]

Looks great! I like the rock layout. I think your digging for good pieces paid off.

Welcome to the salty side....I came over recently too....beware, it's just as addicting as FW!

 

[mr funktastic]

lol i think its a little more addicting. so many more options and things to do. i like the layout of the rock now but i think it needs to go higher. i want it almost coming out of the top. i was hoping to recieve my light today but it doesnt look like i did so hopefully come monday i will have some new pics of the light and evrything. and more rock coming possibly next week aswell. i cant wait to add an actual fish or snail or anything!!

 

[mr funktastic]

well here are some updates. nothing huge. i have been watching the tank and had a mini spike in ammonia but that was it. it balanced off and everything has been stable. so i was at a really nice fish store and i had to pick up some stuff. i got 2 corals. i need some identifications. there were labels but i forget. i also got 3 snails and a clown. i got the smallest one i could find. it is a tank breed not wild. thats what i wanted. i named him mr orange(resevoir dogs lol) i found a nice place for the corals. the pne split during transport so i i just placed it under the main one. i cant gte a good pic of the stupid fish yet. i still need some more rock but i am working on that. i also have a refractometer on the way. so without further adue......(i cant spell that word but u ge what i mean) here it is
best picture i have gotten so far lol

i got one of these guys(what kind is it??)

and i got 2 of these guyswhat kind is it??)

coral one

broken peice of coral 1

coral 2

and the whole tank

tell me what u think.

 

[Devilishturtles]

Wow, funk. I'm really diggin' the tank! It looks great and I can't wait to see it all done.

I'm guessing that snail 1 is a margarita snail and snail 2 is an astrea snail.

As for the corals, the first one are zooanthids and the second are star polyps.

Nice pick ups.

 

[loyalrogue]

Wow, that is beautiful.
I love the aquascaping.
Can't wait to see how it progresses.
Great start!

 

[blazeyreef]

WOW, that makes your tank look like a 30 long or bigger!!! looks amazing!

 

[neilanh]

That's crazy! It's really a 15gal tank? Those pics make it look huge!!!

 

[Devilishturtles]

I'm so ditching my black background for a blue one. I'm tired of seeing all these nice looking blue backgrounds. Black looks nice but makes the tank look so dark.

 

[blazeyreef]

I'm so ditching my black background for a blue one. I'm tired of seeing all these nice looking blue backgrounds. Black looks nice but makes the tank look so dark.

I agree, I ditched my black this week, got a blue freshwater one with plants for a temp. arrangment

 

[mr funktastic]

just get any old plant backround or something like that becasue most of them have a blue back side. just use the back instead of the picture side. or a different approach is to buy some krylon blue paint. the only reason i say krylon is becaseu they have this incredible blue colour that goes on like plastic and looks awesome. that was my original plan but i went with the old vegetable oil and credit card trick lol. they actually have a product now that they sell in fish stores to attach your backround. its just freakin oil and its like 4.99 for a tiny little bottle. i will be working on getting some more corals over the next few weeks. i want a larger centre peice coral in there and then more softies all around. i am playing with the powerheads right now trying to even out the flow. i will try to take some better pictures later tonight. i am still learning the settings of my new camera. thanks for the comments everyone.