3 gal picotope (build thread!)

[bribo12]

It is green with red polyps and a blue rim around the edge. Here's a really crappy pic of mine lol

[Autumnsky]

A little late, I guess I previously missed the time lapse, been working a lot...

But that is really a good idea, and amazing to see the changes. Please keep adding to it periodically so we can see the updated time lapses!

I am drooling over some encrusting Montis now, Mystic Sunset and Rainbow from the local place I bought my last ones from. They have 2 Mystic Sunsets, a Peach Monti and a Undata in their $20 and under section. I just need to make sure I can give them enough light so I don't torture or kill them...

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

It is green with red polyps and a blue rim around the edge. Here's a really crappy pic of mine lol

I'd love to find one, that looks great! I guess I assumed all montis would be single colored just bc I have an orange-ish plating one. Definitely going to look for one of these. On a side note, do you know of any good ways to get them to encrust a tank wall?

[Sniperhank]

There are some really great monti color combo's out there. I want to take pictures of some of mine now. I usually talk about my marshall island latana, which is yellow with blue polyps, but I have a really neat periwinkle monti with lime green polyps as well.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Autumnsky

A little late, I guess I previously missed the time lapse, been working a lot...

But that is really a good idea, and amazing to see the changes. Please keep adding to it periodically so we can see the updated time lapses!

I am drooling over some encrusting Montis now, Mystic Sunset and Rainbow from the local place I bought my last ones from. They have 2 Mystic Sunsets, a Peach Monti and a Undata in their $20 and under section. I just need to make sure I can give them enough light so I don't torture or kill them...

I'll definitely keep up to date with pictures, in a couple months I'll have enough to make another vid It's always cool to see the progression of a tank, but know that in even a couple months the tank will look completely different, just from growth and such.

Sounds like your LFS has some nice montis, lucky you :p mine doesn't carry much coral overall, and barely any sps. Well, I guess you might not even call them a "fish store" since they are 90% just a pet store...

[bribo12]

Yeah agree with hank. I have rainbow as well which is a blue base with green polyps but the new polyps it grows are reddish orange.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

Yeah agree with hank. I have rainbow as well which is a blue base with green polyps but the new polyps it grows are reddish orange.

Originally Posted by Sniperhank

There are some really great monti color combo's out there. I want to take pictures of some of mine now. I usually talk about my marshall island latana, which is yellow with blue polyps, but I have a really neat periwinkle monti with lime green polyps as well.

That's pretty cool, so many color combos an yet they are all the same species. I'm wondering, is there really this much variation in the wild or is it a result of hobbyist trait selection?

I'd love to see some pics of these! It would be nice to have an idea of what I'm looking for next time I head to an LFS that has a decent selection of coral.

[bribo12]

They're all found in the wild and then propagated in captivity. Pretty neat, no hobbyist involvement to get these colors.
Not all encrusting montis are the same species either . There are so many encrusting species it can be hard to tell what species they are. Here's my rainbow (excuse the algae lol)

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

They're all found in the wild and then propagated in captivity. Pretty neat, no hobbyist involvement to get these colors.
Not all encrusting montis are the same species either . There are so many encrusting species it can be hard to tell what species they are. Here's my rainbow (excuse the algae lol)

Very neat! It'd be amazing to see a huge colony of these opinion the wild, considering now cool they look in aquaria. I learn something new about coral every day I love that there are so many species and color combos that we can't easily ID them all.

[bribo12]

Yeah it would be! I think an all montipora tank would be awesome

[Autumnsky]

Originally Posted by dingusplease

I'll definitely keep up to date with pictures, in a couple months I'll have enough to make another vid It's always cool to see the progression of a tank, but know that in even a couple months the tank will look completely different, just from growth and such.

Sounds like your LFS has some nice montis, lucky you :p mine doesn't carry much coral overall, and barely any sps. Well, I guess you might not even call them a "fish store" since they are 90% just a pet store...

It is mind blowing corals . com and they are a home hobbyist business, and Allyson is very nice and helpful to work with. She gave me a bucket and old sw water to get the cycle to strengthen, I guess because of the ammonia.

Since I don't know much, she was very interested to help me get a good start, she is keeping my 4 corals I bought until I get back there to pick them up (probably this next week). Since I/we didn't want them in the tank without it being completely ready for them .

It will be exciting to see your progress/changes, even due tho the re-configuring you do to add more in.

So I have a question for you, what advice would you give for new starts, and let's say corals to do or not do, etc? Any observations and wise thoughts?

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

Yeah it would be! I think an all montipora tank would be awesome

That would be amazing it would be cool to make a really hilly scape with lots of surface area for the montis to grow over.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Autumnsky

It is mind blowing corals . com and they are a home hobbyist business, and Allyson is very nice and helpful to work with. She gave me a bucket and old sw water to get the cycle to strengthen, I guess because of the ammonia.

Since I don't know much, she was very interested to help me get a good start, she is keeping my 4 corals I bought until I get back there to pick them up (probably this next week). Since I/we didn't want them in the tank without it being completely ready for them .

It will be exciting to see your progress/changes, even due tho the re-configuring you do to add more in.

So I have a question for you, what advice would you give for new starts, and let's say corals to do or not do, etc? Any observations and wise thoughts?

Thanks for the link, they have some really nice montis! I love the rainbow, just like Bribo's, and for good prices too!

I'll be updating with pics when I do the rearranging, mainly will be moving things upwards , more towards the back, and inwards to leave room for shorter frags at the front corners and sides of the tank. I did some drawings to figure out what areas need more visually, and what parts could be compacted with existing colonies to leave more room. It's always fun to move things around haha.

As for advice, I have a few tips but there are many on here far more experienced than myself, the same folks who helped me get started
- Start corals at the bottom, this is to ensure that they don't become bleached from too much light, and you can always move them up.
- When you get frags, leave them on the frag plug for about a week to let them recover from shipping, then you can cut off the glue and attach the m wherever you want. This also is a good way to find out where the corals will do best in the tank.
- Always do a bit of research on the corals you'll be adding, before buying. Just a good practice in general and can help ensure you don't introduce something that is going to be a nuisance *cough* anthelia *cough*

[Frankie_Garcia]

Originally Posted by dingusplease

Link to the time lapse... still in production with various captions, but here's a working video

__________________

06-04-2014, 12:24 PM	#455
dingusplease Aquarium Advice Addict     Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 1,364	Thanks Frankie!! Appreciate your following this build, I'm glad I can share it. __________________

06-05-2014, 02:23 AM	#456
Autumnsky Aquarium Advice Addict Community Moderator     Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Northern Colorado, USA Posts: 16,637	Thank you for the advice. Different people can have different jewels of wisdom, so I look for it all over! I was told no Cloves and no Pulsing Xenia, ....and after I got it, no Calerpa, Feather and Grape, so it got ditched into a jar /vase and seems to be doing well. with a couple snails, I have a million now, and a rock. I was sad about them all being pests, but I need to be strong for the rest of the tank! Especially need to be careful in selection good matches for the small space. -Some one was giving away a 12-14" Leather and I wanted to go get it, lol but of course know better, and the bigger tank isn't up yet!!! The MBC coral store is going to be at the convention in Denver this year. They are ramping up and have nice expensive stuff too for collectors. Planning on going there to drool and be amazed! __________________ New to FW fish? First tank in a long time or EVER??? Need some info on keeping fish? Start here - Aquarium Advice Article https://www.aquariumadvice.com/guide...ater-aquarium/ FW Favorites right now Clown Loaches, any shrimp - SW Vase Red Mangroves

06-05-2014, 11:30 PM	#457
dingusplease Aquarium Advice Addict     Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 1,364	Originally Posted by Autumnsky Thank you for the advice. Different people can have different jewels of wisdom, so I look for it all over! I was told no Cloves and no Pulsing Xenia, ....and after I got it, no Calerpa, Feather and Grape, so it got ditched into a jar /vase and seems to be doing well. with a couple snails, I have a million now, and a rock. I was sad about them all being pests, but I need to be strong for the rest of the tank! Especially need to be careful in selection good matches for the small space. -Some one was giving away a 12-14" Leather and I wanted to go get it, lol but of course know better, and the bigger tank isn't up yet!!! The MBC coral store is going to be at the convention in Denver this year. They are ramping up and have nice expensive stuff too for collectors. Planning on going there to drool and be amazed! You're welcome! I totally know what you mean about "pest corals", in fact when I learned that Xenia and GSP can grow really fast I only wanted them more... that's kind of why I got them, to fill up the tank. Neither of those particulars have been a problem, but anthelia on the other hand, is huge, fast growing, and can coverup the view of other corals quite quickly. I actually think some types of caulerpa look pretty cool, but unfortunately they are another of those super fast growers that are often inedible. Glad you could preserve the caulerpa, sounds like a really cool little macroalgae display! Even cooler with snails :p __________________

06-05-2014, 11:41 PM	#458
bribo12 Aquarium Advice Addict     Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Maryland Posts: 9,729	Oh you will hate gsp eventually. Trust me, at least Xenia is manageable. Gsp is a whole other monster...I loathe that coral... __________________ 20 Gallon SPS reef 29 Gallon FW "fat catfish" tank 20 Gallon Long Dart Frogs "Zig" and "Zag"

06-06-2014, 12:23 AM	#459
dingusplease Aquarium Advice Addict     Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 1,364	Originally Posted by bribo12 Oh you will hate gsp eventually. Trust me, at least Xenia is manageable. Gsp is a whole other monster...I loathe that coral... Haha, well at least for now my porcelain seems to be holding it down :p. Every day this crab will cause half the GSP to stay closed... Iam keeping an eye on it but all it seems to want to do is grow up the front wall, which is annoying, but not loathsome, at least not yet. I really like the flowing look of GSP, but I don't really enjoy the idea of it owning my tank. So far, it has grown pretty slowly... can it really take off after being a relatively slow growing coral? __________________

06-06-2014, 12:45 AM	#460
bribo12 Aquarium Advice Addict     Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Maryland Posts: 9,729	It is a beautiful coral but super invasive. Mine was a real slow grower the first couple months and then exploded. It was ridiculous the growth I was getting from it. __________________ 20 Gallon SPS reef 29 Gallon FW "fat catfish" tank 20 Gallon Long Dart Frogs "Zig" and "Zag"

[dingusplease]

Thanks Frankie!! Appreciate your following this build, I'm glad I can share it.

[Autumnsky]

Thank you for the advice. Different people can have different jewels of wisdom, so I look for it all over!

I was told no Cloves and no Pulsing Xenia, ....and after I got it, no Calerpa, Feather and Grape, so it got ditched into a jar /vase and seems to be doing well. with a couple snails, I have a million now, and a rock. I was sad about them all being pests, but I need to be strong for the rest of the tank! Especially need to be careful in selection good matches for the small space. -Some one was giving away a 12-14" Leather and I wanted to go get it, lol but of course know better, and the bigger tank isn't up yet!!!

The MBC coral store is going to be at the convention in Denver this year. They are ramping up and have nice expensive stuff too for collectors.

Planning on going there to drool and be amazed!

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Autumnsky

Thank you for the advice. Different people can have different jewels of wisdom, so I look for it all over!

I was told no Cloves and no Pulsing Xenia, ....and after I got it, no Calerpa, Feather and Grape, so it got ditched into a jar /vase and seems to be doing well. with a couple snails, I have a million now, and a rock. I was sad about them all being pests, but I need to be strong for the rest of the tank! Especially need to be careful in selection good matches for the small space. -Some one was giving away a 12-14" Leather and I wanted to go get it, lol but of course know better, and the bigger tank isn't up yet!!!

The MBC coral store is going to be at the convention in Denver this year. They are ramping up and have nice expensive stuff too for collectors.

Planning on going there to drool and be amazed!

You're welcome! I totally know what you mean about "pest corals", in fact when I learned that Xenia and GSP can grow really fast I only wanted them more... that's kind of why I got them, to fill up the tank. Neither of those particulars have been a problem, but anthelia on the other hand, is huge, fast growing, and can coverup the view of other corals quite quickly. I actually think some types of caulerpa look pretty cool, but unfortunately they are another of those super fast growers that are often inedible.

Glad you could preserve the caulerpa, sounds like a really cool little macroalgae display! Even cooler with snails :p

[bribo12]

Oh you will hate gsp eventually. Trust me, at least Xenia is manageable. Gsp is a whole other monster...I loathe that coral...

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

Oh you will hate gsp eventually. Trust me, at least Xenia is manageable. Gsp is a whole other monster...I loathe that coral...

Haha, well at least for now my porcelain seems to be holding it down :p. Every day this crab will cause half the GSP to stay closed... Iam keeping an eye on it but all it seems to want to do is grow up the front wall, which is annoying, but not loathsome, at least not yet.

I really like the flowing look of GSP, but I don't really enjoy the idea of it owning my tank. So far, it has grown pretty slowly... can it really take off after being a relatively slow growing coral?

[bribo12]

It is a beautiful coral but super invasive. Mine was a real slow grower the first couple months and then exploded. It was ridiculous the growth I was getting from it.