Adopted 12gal Nano Cube - Need pointers

[mbonus]

I think the Nitrate portion of the API test kit I have is not reading correctly. Do these kits go bad over time? I just purchased it but who knows how long it was sitting in the pet shop.

The reason I think it is off is when I test using my kit, I always get >20 nitrate. Twice now I have taken it to two separate local shops to have it tested and their readings both came up at >5.


The good news is all of my parameters are looking good including phosphates, alkalinity, and calcium hardness.

Ordered a refractometer because my floating hydrometer always reads 1.018 when it is really 1.024. Just about gave me a heart attack last week.

 

[clark4feathers]

My clown fish likes to play with the emerald crab. It will tap it on it's shell and swim away. I have seen this behavior alot. Had a BTA however it got sucked into my rear chamber. I am done with anemones. I have a pistol shrimp that lives with a gobie but a when he clicks everything in the hole clears out real fast.

 

[mbonus]

Please ID the following picture. I noticed this thing on the underside of one of the pieces of live rock. It is probably 7 mm in height.

Sorry for the crummy pic - I was trying to hold a flashlight on it and the camera at the same time.

 

[clark4feathers]

Yup....That is a lesson learned. Wash everything in saltwater from the PWC

 

[mbonus]

Wait, so what is it? Aiptasia? Pardon my ignorance, but what do you mean wash everything in saltwater from the partial water change?

It is possible that it has been there since I got the tank. It is in a obscure location in the shadows that I never really looked at. I have only done partial water changes and have added zero livestock.

 

[clark4feathers]

when you do a partial water change, I do mine about once a week the water you syphon off can be used to wash your sponges. Regular tap water will kill the good bacteria. Only use distilled water to top off your tank when you have evaporation.

 

[mbonus]

Oh ok, thanks. That is what I have been doing. I don't have any sponge media as far as I know. I have been using RO ~ .01 tds for top offs. It must have been in there all along.

I wonder what I should do with it. Is it plant or animal?

 

[iDream]

its aiptasia, animal, huge pest

go to your local LFS and get either Joe's Juice or Aiptasia X to kill it, if you dont get it now it will overrun your tank, and they arent pretty to look it

and it is very possible its been in there since you got it

 

[mbonus]

It's on a small piece of live rock, maybe racket ball size, could I just remove the rock?

I was thinking about getting a peppermint shrimp anyway, should I leave it in there and see if the pep eats it?

 

[iDream]

you could remove it, but dont be surprised if more show up, when they are disturbed they release eggs and spawn more. but as long as its smaller than i believe and inch then peps usually eat them. people will tell you theyre hit or miss but as long as you dont feed them much they will eat aiptasia like no ones business.

 

[mbonus]

Well, I found another larger one in the back filter area where my protein skimmer is stationed. I ended up getting some AiptasiaX and dosed pretty heavily on the one in the back area. Seemed to take care of it, time will tell.

At the same time I purchased a peppermint shrimp to take care of the display area. It was a good test to see if the pep would eat the aiptasia. After acclimation, the pep went right where the aiptasia was and looked at it and then went into hiding to finish its acclimation. The next day the aiptasia had moved a couple of centimeters from its original spot. At least it moved to a position that would be easier to dose. I made sure I didn't feed the tank and waited another day. The next morning there was nothing but a white little stump where the aiptasia had been. I guess the pep did his job. That is good to know in case anymore pop up.

The shrimp is cool, but really shy. The specimen I received has the parasitic lump on its side. I'm thinking of calling him lumpy. I'll take pics if I can ever catch him out in the open. Now that the aiptasia seems to be gone, I have resumed normal feedings. Lumpy ventures out at these times. He also likes to poke the clown with his long feelers. Pretty funny to watch!

 

[cabezon]

I used the aiptasiaX on one of mine, and all seemed well. A month later the aip poked his head out again. lol.

 

[mbonus]

I used the aiptasiaX on one of mine, and all seemed well. A month later the aip poked his head out again. lol.

Yeah, I'm not holding my breath. One thing that might be in my favor; the one I treated was attached directly to the plastic wall of the filter area, so there was no rock to suck into.

 

[mbonus]

more pics:

pretty red thing but maybe more aiptasia? 1mm in size:

false percula:

PJ cardinal note te ragged lower fins from clown

nips:



Macro post hermit carnage - smaller crab never to be seen again!

 

[mbonus]

Last week I stumbled upon a local thread where some kind member was offering to give away free corals. I was all set to do it and then we started to talk about my tank parameters. With better judgment we decided it would be better to wait on adding any corals until I can get consistently lower nitrate readings. I had tried just about everything except changing the substrate, so with the help of some step by step instructions I proceeded to jump in.

Once I got to the bottom and started to remove the crushed coral I got to see just how nasty it really was. Eventually I had a half full five gallon bucket with this white/brown sludge. It was fairly nasty. Even if the nitrates are being caused by something else, I’m glad I got that out of there!

Here are some pics.


Close up of Crush Coral

New substrate – Used a carib-sea Special reef flor – I would like to say I gave this much thought, but that would be a lie. I picked up whatever bag of sand was closest to the counter. Only afterward did I think about the fact that there would be different grain sizes – doh, face palm.

Closer view – I do like the grain size though, and the snails and other inhabitants seem to as well.

Hopefully the nitrates will be in check; we’ll see where we are after this weeks pwc.

Thanks,

Mike

 

[pat8you]

I actually really like the sand you used. I have the same thing in my tank. It is nice because it doesn't blow around in high flow. Getting that crushed coral out of there should be a good start.

 

[mbonus]

Thanks, I really hope the nitrates drop after this.

 

[pat8you]

Lots of people make a small fuge that they grow macro algae in the back sectons of those cubes. You can try doing that if you are still having problems or want to reduce the nitrate levels lower.

 

[mbonus]

Yeah, I recently got some chaeto that I have in the display area. I started out with a really small clump and it hasn't seemed to grow yet. It did have a cool brittle star hitchhiker though.

If the chaeto works out for exporting excess nutrients, I'm going to put it in the back with a light on reverse cycle.

 

[mbonus]

Got some great ideas from another forum for building some media baskets...

In the meantime, I am FOWLR no longer....

Picked this up via a local forum: