Fish/Invert only Saltwater

[Trinityblood]

I'm rather late to this thread & know zip about keeping fish except that they can be very challenging. So sorry about your previous freak losses- looks like you're making wonderful progress though, & what I can see is beautiful- no wonder that many get hooked on keeping fish (no pun intended).

Thanks! It's been bumpy and I'm just glad I was able to finally have it running for a decent time with no problems. After getting the two clowns I have, I threw my hands up and did nothing but regular maintenance. I'm just now getting brave enough to add more animals and make some changes.

[Trinityblood]

I'm going to have to change the thread title....I decided to take the plunge and convert the tank to a reef tank

The Clowns think I have food at all times now : https://imgur.com/LzUM2h1

I cured new rock and added it to the tank. New lighting and test kits...I'm debating if I should cancel the chalk bass on order for bio load and space reasons. I have no sump.



I ordered two soft corals...Nervous and excited.









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[Malum Argenteum]

Nice softies! Rhodactis and Clavularia?

I'd be more concerned about aggression against the added fish, though maybe bioload is an issue; I don't know how folks run their reefs these days. My 90g is pretty oldschool, biggish skimmer, LR sump and a sulfur denitrator.

I do know that when I was really oldschool (small skimmer, wet/dry) Corallimorpharia and Xeniidae did far better for me than when I started to run things more lean, dissolved organics wise.

FWIW, I'm a big proponent of feeding Metronidazole-laced food for the first couple weeks after (and if possible, a few days before) a fish gets moved. It has some effect against external protozoan parasites.

[Trinityblood]

Nice softies! Rhodactis and Clavularia?

I'd be more concerned about aggression against the added fish, though maybe bioload is an issue; I don't know how folks run their reefs these days. My 90g is pretty oldschool, biggish skimmer, LR sump and a sulfur denitrator.

I do know that when I was really oldschool (small skimmer, wet/dry) Corallimorpharia and Xeniidae did far better for me than when I started to run things more lean, dissolved organics wise.

FWIW, I'm a big proponent of feeding Metronidazole-laced food for the first couple weeks after (and if possible, a few days before) a fish gets moved. It has some effect against external protozoan parasites.

Right on both accounts for the corals! Nice eye.

Aggression is a concern as well. After having the 20 gallon for a while, it's starting to look a bit small to me for 4 fish. Your 90g sounds fancy to me lol! A lot of the new snazzy stuff is mindboggling to me so I'm slowly building up it as needed. If all goes well in another year or two I want to upgrade my tank size to maybe a 40 and keep this current tank as a frag tank. Maybe. Then I could get a Chalk Bass...
I read a lot about Corallimorpharia and Xeniidae being able to be grown in a toilet Same with green star polyps. I think green star polyps are really pretty but dang it gets to plague proportions in some tanks.

The guy I get my fish from actually feeds Metronidazole-laced food. He quarantines fish and inverts and puts fish through treatments for common parasites and diseases before sale. I got my clowns from him about 7 months ago and they have been amazingly healthy and good eaters.

What's your favorite coral to keep?

[Bogertophis]

...I read a lot about Corallimorpharia and Xeniidae being able to be grown in a toilet Same with green star polyps....

I know I'll never be brave enough to get into keeping fish, but they're so awesomely pretty to watch- too bad they're so tricky. Thanks for sharing w/ us.

[bassistjon112]

I was going to say stay away from coral to keep your life stress free, im to late... If you want let me know if you're looking for any thing specific soft coral wise or lps, I might have it.

[Malum Argenteum]

Right on both accounts for the corals! Nice eye.

Aggression is a concern as well. After having the 20 gallon for a while, it's starting to look a bit small to me for 4 fish. Your 90g sounds fancy to me lol! A lot of the new snazzy stuff is mindboggling to me so I'm slowly building up it as needed. If all goes well in another year or two I want to upgrade my tank size to maybe a 40 and keep this current tank as a frag tank. Maybe. Then I could get a Chalk Bass...
I read a lot about Corallimorpharia and Xeniidae being able to be grown in a toilet Same with green star polyps. I think green star polyps are really pretty but dang it gets to plague proportions in some tanks.

The guy I get my fish from actually feeds Metronidazole-laced food. He quarantines fish and inverts and puts fish through treatments for common parasites and diseases before sale. I got my clowns from him about 7 months ago and they have been amazingly healthy and good eaters.

What's your favorite coral to keep?

I think 40g is a nice size, though once you've gotten into that 36 x 18 footprint (a great footprint size), it makes some sense to go with a slightly taller tank. My FW planted is a 36 x 18" 75 gallon, and that's a nice sized tank to work with.

Agree on the toilet comment. They really seem to thrive on dissolved organics -- not so much ammonia, of course, and algae growth can outcompete Clavularia and similar corals, but heavy feeding and substantial water changes was my reefkeeping MO for many years.

Favorite coral is a tough one. They all have their pros and cons. Euphyllia (hammer/anchor/frogspawn) are pretty easy to get along with, and plating Montiporas are the only SPS that I ever thought was worth the trouble. I like easy to keep species, in aquatics and herps -- at least, easy in relation to my skill set. I'd rather be successful, and I know I'll learn stuff whether I push the boundaries or not.

A not very high quality photo of my reef is below (first time posting photos here so I hope I did it right). The photo is about 6 months old, but that tank has been up since about 2010, and a couple of the corals (the Turbinaria in the middle, and the zoanthids on the lower right) have been in my care since 1992 or so, the Sarcophyton since about 2004, and the hammer coral since about 2008. The fish are all more than 5 years old, and we very recently lost the ornate wrasse apparently to simple ageing after 12 years.

[Trinityblood]

I was going to say stay away from coral to keep your life stress free, im to late... If you want let me know if you're looking for any thing specific soft coral wise or lps, I might have it.

Yeah I'm doomed now . Thanks for the offer! I'm going to see how well I can get these coral to grow.

...but heavy feeding and substantial water changes was my reefkeeping MO for many years.

Favorite coral is a tough one. They all have their pros and cons. Euphyllia (hammer/anchor/frogspawn) are pretty easy to get along with, and plating Montiporas are the only SPS that I ever thought was worth the trouble. I like easy to keep species, in aquatics and herps -- at least, easy in relation to my skill set. I'd rather be successful, and I know I'll learn stuff whether I push the boundaries or not.

A not very high quality photo of my reef is below (first time posting photos here so I hope I did it right). The photo is about 6 months old, but that tank has been up since about 2010, and a couple of the corals (the Turbinaria in the middle, and the zoanthids on the lower right) have been in my care since 1992 or so, the Sarcophyton since about 2004, and the hammer coral since about 2008. The fish are all more than 5 years old, and we very recently lost the ornate wrasse apparently to simple ageing after 12 years.

I'm convinced water changes can solve almost anything. Euphyllia are really pretty. I'm the same way. Keep it simple and aim for success.

What a beautiful reef! Congratulations on 10 years! I love seeing tanks that have been up long term. That's a great accomplishment.

[Trinityblood]

I got my corals!

The Rhodactis frag had two of them and one of the heads looks a little strange missing the bumps. It has a bald spot of some sorts. Over two days the bald spot has started filling in and I swear it has gotten bigger already. Or it inflated out? I don't really know lol.

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The clove polyps fully opened up in one day and seem happy. I target fed them both a little bit of reef roids and they both reacted to it. I haven't glued them to the rocks yet and I have my lighting set pretty low for them.

[Malum Argenteum]

My Rhodactis can look pretty variable, both in general appearance and size. Yours looks nice.