3 gal picotope (build thread!)

[BigRedsReefs10]

Nice pick ups dingus, i think I'll be down in Peoria in the next month or 2 to pick up a tank from pico, might have to check out that store


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[Macscale]

Colors that aren't very typical, or corals that aren't easy to get your hands on. Along with what Bribo said of course.

[dingusplease]

Thanks Red, they look a bit more colorful with the new lights.

They're at the lowest setting (20%.) Also, they're not nearly as purple looking as they are through the camera.

Edit: They seem really nice - much higher color temp, very sleek, very little heat, and controllability.

[dingusplease]

I dimmed them very, very low, because I really want to take it slower than necessary. They actually go pretty dim which is nice, so I can work it up slowly.

[carey]

Just thought I'd chime in and say you got a nice looking tank going there.

Keep up the good work.

[dingusplease]

Thanks Carey! Your pico was very nice, is it still running?

Also, I'm planning to start feeding my sps - what would be a good food to start out with?

[Macscale]

I'm gonna try Acropower with Amino Acids.
As far as actual food, reef chili.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Macscale

I'm gonna try Acropower with Amino Acids.
As far as actual food, reef chili.

Please let me know how it goes, it looks good for being a cheaper option. Apparently amino acids can help growth more than actual foods(?)

[bribo12]

I fed reef Roids for a bit. I saw no difference really in growth.


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[carey]

Nah, took down my pico awhile ago. I have enough tanks for now. lol
I would be careful adding too much as far as coral food, the smaller volume of water will get mucked up quicker as you I'm sure are aware.

A little trick I picked up from a reef club meeting was to raise strontium. Make sure you have a test kit but raise it to the max recommended levels and i bet you will see some rapid growth. I was dosing that for awhile and my corals went crazy with growth, specially my monti and my duncans. I have never mentioned this little trick for fear people would take it the wrong way and just destroy their tanks. lol But I feel you can handle it and wont just dump a ton of it in the tank. lol This little tidbit came from a speaker that manufactures oceans blend, which is a two part product, he swore by it so I gave it a try. Worked wonders.
if you do try it, let me know how it pans out for you. Once I get a tank back to coral happy Iwill do it again but for now I have bigger fish to fry such as massive algae and those darn aipastias. :-(

[dingusplease]

I'll definitely be careful with any new supplements/foods - the first thing I learned in reef keeping is don't overfeed .
And thanks for the bit about strontium! I did some research and many people keep their tank at 8-9 ppm when 20 is a maximum in aquaria.

I found the oceans blend online, but the test kits are expensive at $50. If I find a cheaper test kit I'll try this, maybe with amino acids to see the results of each.
Good luck with your tanks, I hate algae - it dominated this tank for a month in the beginning.

[Macscale]

Here read through some of the pages of this thread: shows cool results.

Power Up Your Acro's

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Macscale

Here read through some of the pages of this thread: shows cool results.

Power Up Your Acro's

I skimmed through, and it looks like it's worth a try. I'll update withhow it works! I'm ordering a 250ml bottle on Amazon for $10:

http://www.amazon.com/Two-Little-Fis...ords=Acropower

[dingusplease]

Just added micro-colonies of green slimer, blue tenuis, and pink stylophora. The slimer apparently grows quite quickly(?)

Pics tonight!

[Macscale]

Aww dingus! That's awesome. The slimer grows at a decent rate IME.
Wish I could have me some mini colonies.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Macscale

Aww dingus! That's awesome. The slimer grows at a decent rate IME.
Wish I could have me some mini colonies.

Thanks mac! Come spring I'll be sending out frags
The stylo and tenuis are more like frags, but I'd say the slimer is a mini colony. Also, here are some pics of the acro, pocillopora, and staghorn(?) I added on Monday.

Sorry for the quality, the new lights look great in person and lackluster in photos.

Acro:



Green poccilopora:



Green staghorn... Still need an ID



Haven't found a better photography angle for the slimer yet:



Blue tenuis:
Looks bleached in photos, I'll experiment more with the lights for photos of this tank.

[IMG]http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p422/dingusplease/Dingusplease%203g%20Pico%20Reef
/A99F3F29-C6A2-4BB9-8C7A-7F98EF4D729A_zps5ymcbz3r.jpg[/IMG]

Pink poccilopora:

[bribo12]

The green stag is a monti digitata! Is that slimer super bleached or just the pic?


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[Macscale]

The green pocci is hot! Sign me up buddy.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by bribo12

The green stag is a monti digitata! Is that slimer super bleached or just the pic?


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Thanks for the ID on the digitata!

The slimer seems to be somewhat bleached, but the picture makes it way more white-looking. It's nicely green in most areas.

[dingusplease]

Originally Posted by Macscale

The green pocci is hot! Sign me up buddy.

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