My tank has finished cycling and my lr needs some help

[peterac]

Hi all,

I have posted some pics in the past and mentioned my 450g marine setup. I have cycled this tank for 2 months and have added a Yellow Tang and some Green Chromis.

When my lr first came it looked very nice. As the tank cycled the colors faded and the rock lost its nice appearance. Many of you said this is normal and the corraline will return. While I was cleaning the tank today I realized that besides the large chunks of die-off that are hanging all over the place, there is a very large amount of detritus covering the rock. I vaccumed as much as I could during the water change, but with 380lbs worth I did not get close to all of it (I mean there is a ton of this junk).

Is this normal? I feel like if a use a strong pump such as my Mag 9.5 to blast away this garbage it will be the most helpful. What do you think?

Thanks,
Pete R.

 

[Devilishturtles]

What kind of filtration are you using? In a tank that size, some pretty fierce water flow would be needed to keep the detritus off the rocks, and even then you won't get anywhere near all of it. I take a turkey baster to my rocks to blast alot of the gunk off. Or, try using a small tube( as a vaccum) to get the harder to reach places.

 

[midiman]

TURKEY BASTE IT! You can turkey baste it right before you do a water change, and then you'll end up sending some of that gunk on a return trip to the ocean.

 

[seaham358]

In a tank that size your hand will get tired in a hurry using the turkey baster :?

I would use a pump as you mentioned and when you do a WC and if you can get a canister filter and run it while you do that with some filter floss to help clear the water up.
With only 4 fish I dought the waste is from them its just left over die off, What kind of clean up crew do you have? Crabs will help with this.. I would get a large number of crabs to help keep the lr clean. With 350 lbs lr you will need a large number of crabs... I would a good mix of blue, red, scarlet hermits..

coralline algae growth take a while to get going some times. Do you test your calcium(400-480) and alkalinity(9-11)? You will need to us a additive to keep these levels up and regular water changes also helps keep levels up.
Also I see you have MH lighting.... MH tends to slow Coralline growth from what I have seen. I'm not saying you can't grow coralline if you have MH its that it seems to grow slower when MH are used.

 

[midiman]

With 350 lbs lr you will need a large number of crabs... I would a good mix of blue, red, scarlet hermits..

How many would you recommend?

 

[seaham358]

As many as you can efford...

In a tank that size it could easily take a hundred + crabs..... Snails will also be a big help...

 

[midiman]

As many as you can efford...

That's the answer to a lot of questions in this hobby!!!!

 

[lando]

A turkey baster will work well. You might want to consider throwing on a canister filter or two if you have them. This will just help clear the water faster and remove some detritus. You can remove them when the clean up is done.

 

[nickthapainter]

Is the detritus brownish in color (small chunks, some of it a little stringy)?

 

[steve-s]

Personally I would opt for a good mix of snail species over crabs. Absolutely no concern to coral species and will do just as good if not better a job if choosing the right species.

Here are some you could look at:

Nassarius great for detritus, carion and the sand bed.
Nerite especially good at film algaes.
Cerith cleans both the glass and the sand bed..
Margarita another excellent algae eater.
Banded Trochus IME, the best bang for your buck you'll ever get in an algae grazer.

Given your tank size, a few fighting conch's would be a good addition to the sandbed once it's matured a bit more. The only one I would really stear clear of is true Astraea sp. In a tank that size they will quickly become fodder. They cannot right themselves without help and typically die soon after if not helped up.

Cheers
Steve

 

[peterac]

What kind of filtration are you using? In a tank that size, some pretty fierce water flow would be needed to keep the detritus off the rocks, and even then you won't get anywhere near all of it.

I am using two overflows into a wet/dry with bioballs and 2 return pumps. Like you said, the amount of water flow I would need to keeo the rocks clean would be ridiculous.

Is the detritus brownish in color (small chunks, some of it a little stringy)?

Yes, much of the detritus is brownish as I am in the brown algae (bacteria) stage right after cycling. There are many different types of chunks, some stringy....

Thanks all who recommended clean-up crews. On that topic, I am concerned that some of the larger fish I will eventually house in this tank will eat the various inverts mentioned. What fish will eat snails (with shells not Nudies) and crabs with shells??

Thanks,
Pete R.

 

[steve-s]

Thanks all who recommended clean-up crews. On that topic, I am concerned that some of the larger fish I will eventually house in this tank will eat the various inverts mentioned. What fish will eat snails (with shells not Nudies) and crabs with shells??

Depends on the fish you intend to add but triggers and/or puffers would be your biggest concern as would some eel and wrasses species.

This is to be an FOWLR set up?

Cheers
Steve

 

[nickthapainter]

I'm still fighting the brown algae (new tank syndrome for me). The snails and crabs seem to be helping. A lot of flow will also help. Running a closed loop or powerheads will help with this (dual overflows just won't be enough)

 

[peterac]

This is to be an FOWLR set up?

Yes....

 

[peterac]

I'm still fighting the brown algae (new tank syndrome for me). The snails and crabs seem to be helping. A lot of flow will also help. Running a closed loop or powerheads will help with this (dual overflows just won't be enough)

What would you consider a good closed loop setup? My problem is that this tank is an acrylic with only 2 large opening in the middle and 2 smaller opening (one over each overflow). I can't picture how I could do a closed loop without drilling. Also, when you say closed loop do you mean just simply running a pump on the outside and pumping water through an enclosed hose and back into the tank without going through any media?

I'll post a pic of the top of the tank.

Thanks,
Pete R.