Another Reef in the Desert - Page 2

aikenreefkeeper · 05/03/2019, 05:11 AM

Some bad news. The Powder Brown died a couple of days ago......the Disbar is still going. I have been running Copper for four days now.

aikenreefkeeper · 05/13/2019, 05:06 AM

More bad news.

I was planning on moving the Disbar to the Observation Tank this weekend. On Sunday Morning, I found he had died during the night.

aikenreefkeeper · 05/30/2019, 04:45 AM

I put three Flame Cardinals in my QT tank yesterday. Also, I added a Goniastrea Brain to the Observation tank.

The Cardinals actually ate just before I turned out the lights.....this morning they were out swimming about and looking good.

Desertoasis · 05/30/2019, 08:44 AM

Following along, I live out in the desert as well. Always sunny but presents its own challenges.

aikenreefkeeper · 06/12/2019, 05:26 AM

Both the Tang and the Disbar died while in QT. The Tang went from swimming around normally and eating well to dead in about four days. The Disbar lasted about three weeks. It is getting really frustrating. Out of about twelve fish I have bought, only one has survived due to pests and disease. Some came from my LFS and the rest I purchased online.

I changed tactics and purchased three Flame Cardinals from DD. They have been in QT for 15 days and are looking good and eating well. I will probably leave them in QT for another week before I move them to the Obversation tank.

aikenreefkeeper · 06/20/2019, 05:11 AM

One good thing about having a reef in the desert is the evaporation rate. On my 120, I am losing about 2 gallons a day. An easy way to add Kalkwasser.

The Flame Cardinals are still doing great. I will probably add them to the Observation Tank this weekend.

aikenreefkeeper · 07/07/2019, 05:42 AM

I moved the Flame Cardinals directly to the display tank. They are doing well and are hiding less now. Whenever they see me come into the room, they come out of the rocks and expect to be fed.

aikenreefkeeper · 07/14/2019, 04:58 AM

Here is a picture of one of the Flame Cardinals I moved to the DT.

aikenreefkeeper · 10/20/2019, 06:46 AM

My observation tank is doing well now. The Cyno has subsided. I am doing a 4 gallon water change weekly, stirring the sand on a weekly basis. I am cleaning the filter in the HOB every two days.

aikenreefkeeper · 10/20/2019, 07:29 AM

My Display Tank is doing well also. The three Amigos are growing like crazy. You can see them in the lower right corner. It's been a while since I did a full water parameter check. I will probably do that today.....depending on my outside chores today.

aikenreefkeeper · 10/22/2019, 04:43 AM

I ran my tests yesterday and the following are the results:
Display Tank Observation Tank
Salinity 1.024 1.025
Ph 8.15 8.0
NH4 0.0 0.0
No2 0.0 0.0
No3 0.1 0.1
Ca 475 450
Mg 1400 1440
Po4 0.02 0.01

aikenreefkeeper · 10/30/2019, 03:41 AM

I took this picture of my Blastomussa wellsi last night just after the sunset lights came on. It is growing well.

aikenreefkeeper · 11/13/2019, 05:01 AM

Here is a picture of my Gonistrea Brain. This picture was taken in November 2019. It is receding at the edges. But my Blastomussa wellsi had grown from four polyps to eight polyps in a year.

aikenreefkeeper · 12/14/2019, 05:16 AM

Here are pictures of my latest additions.

This is an Elegance Coral I picked up at my LFS. It is about 4" when it is fully expanded and will probably split soon. It has three visible mouths in the center disc.

This is some kind of Brain Coral I got at the same time. It is about 3" x 4". It has about 8 polyps on it.

DimaS · 12/31/2019, 01:42 AM

Hi aikenreefkeeper.
Very nice tank.
Monologue is your best side =)

aikenreefkeeper · 02/03/2020, 05:38 AM

I have added some new corals to my 20 gallon Observation Tank.

This is a Favia that I added on 1/28/20

This is a Plating Montipora I added on 1/21/20. It had a spot in the center that was bleaching, but it appears to be adding back some color. It is also transitioning from a bright pink to a more tan color. I wish it wasn't changing color. Hopefully it will change back to the pink. Probably has something to do with the lighting.

[IMG]http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/picture.php?
albumid=11548&pictureid=81036[/IMG]

This is a Plating Montipora I added on 1/28/20

aikenreefkeeper · 02/03/2020, 05:42 AM

Well I made a mistake with the picture of the Plating Montipora. Hopefully this will be correct this time.

This is the Encrusting Montipora.

aikenreefkeeper · 04/11/2020, 07:03 AM

Is my Brain Coral going on the attack?

aikenreefkeeper · 04/11/2020, 07:07 AM

This is how I handled my Aptasia problem - BLOW TORCH!

aikenreefkeeper · 04/11/2020, 07:15 AM

The bleached section in the center of my Plating Montipora is completely colored up now.

aikenreefkeeper · 06/14/2020, 03:53 PM

Here is a new picture of my tank. It is doing well.

aikenreefkeeper · 10/25/2020, 05:03 AM

Update,

My 20 gallon tank is doing well. Here are some new pictures.

This is a picture of my Gonistrea Brain. It has regained the tissue it lost plus it is growing now. You can see new polyps being added along the lower edges.

Here is a picture of another small coral I purchased from my LFS. You can see new polyps starting to form on it as well.

My Blastomussa wellsi is doing well also.

aikenreefkeeper · 10/25/2020, 05:25 AM

So, the last post did not work so well. One of these days I will get better I hope.

Here is a picture of my Blastomussa wellsi. It is doing well. Some new polyps are stating under the larger polyps.

Here is a photo of a coral I purchased from my LFS. No Idea what is is really.

Hope this works.

aikenreefkeeper · 02/05/2021, 08:52 AM

Here is a photo of two butterflies I have added to my QT tank......so far so good. They are eating well.

aikenreefkeeper · 02/06/2021, 03:50 AM

I tried something different yesterday morning. I took some Instant Ocean flake food and soaked it in Selcon. The kleini took right after it. The mertensii did not care for it. So, I target fed some pieces of shrimp.

It was so funny......one of the pieces was too large. So they would snatch it from each other or play tug of war with it like a couple of dogs. They finally tore it into small enough pieces that they eventually ate it.

10/25/2020, 05:03 AM	#47
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Update, My 20 gallon tank is doing well. Here are some new pictures. This is a picture of my Gonistrea Brain. It has regained the tissue it lost plus it is growing now. You can see new polyps being added along the lower edges. Here is a picture of another small coral I purchased from my LFS. You can see new polyps starting to form on it as well. My Blastomussa wellsi is doing well also. Last edited by aikenreefkeeper; 10/25/2020 at 05:14 AM. Reason: Description of picture wrong

05/03/2019, 05:11 AM	#26
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Some bad news. The Powder Brown died a couple of days ago......the Disbar is still going. I have been running Copper for four days now.

05/13/2019, 05:06 AM	#27
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	More bad news. I was planning on moving the Disbar to the Observation Tank this weekend. On Sunday Morning, I found he had died during the night.

05/30/2019, 04:45 AM	#28
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I put three Flame Cardinals in my QT tank yesterday. Also, I added a Goniastrea Brain to the Observation tank. The Cardinals actually ate just before I turned out the lights.....this morning they were out swimming about and looking good.

05/30/2019, 08:44 AM	#29
Desertoasis Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2019 Location: La Quinta, CA Posts: 45	Following along, I live out in the desert as well. Always sunny but presents its own challenges.

06/12/2019, 05:26 AM	#30
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Both the Tang and the Disbar died while in QT. The Tang went from swimming around normally and eating well to dead in about four days. The Disbar lasted about three weeks. It is getting really frustrating. Out of about twelve fish I have bought, only one has survived due to pests and disease. Some came from my LFS and the rest I purchased online. I changed tactics and purchased three Flame Cardinals from DD. They have been in QT for 15 days and are looking good and eating well. I will probably leave them in QT for another week before I move them to the Obversation tank.

06/20/2019, 05:11 AM	#31
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	One good thing about having a reef in the desert is the evaporation rate. On my 120, I am losing about 2 gallons a day. An easy way to add Kalkwasser. The Flame Cardinals are still doing great. I will probably add them to the Observation Tank this weekend.

07/07/2019, 05:42 AM	#32
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I moved the Flame Cardinals directly to the display tank. They are doing well and are hiding less now. Whenever they see me come into the room, they come out of the rocks and expect to be fed.

07/14/2019, 04:58 AM	#33
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Here is a picture of one of the Flame Cardinals I moved to the DT.

10/20/2019, 06:46 AM	#34
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	My observation tank is doing well now. The Cyno has subsided. I am doing a 4 gallon water change weekly, stirring the sand on a weekly basis. I am cleaning the filter in the HOB every two days.

10/20/2019, 07:29 AM	#35
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	My Display Tank is doing well also. The three Amigos are growing like crazy. You can see them in the lower right corner. It's been a while since I did a full water parameter check. I will probably do that today.....depending on my outside chores today.

10/22/2019, 04:43 AM	#36
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I ran my tests yesterday and the following are the results: Display Tank Observation Tank Salinity 1.024 1.025 Ph 8.15 8.0 NH4 0.0 0.0 No2 0.0 0.0 No3 0.1 0.1 Ca 475 450 Mg 1400 1440 Po4 0.02 0.01

10/30/2019, 03:41 AM	#37
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I took this picture of my Blastomussa wellsi last night just after the sunset lights came on. It is growing well.

11/13/2019, 05:01 AM	#38
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Here is a picture of my Gonistrea Brain. This picture was taken in November 2019. It is receding at the edges. But my Blastomussa wellsi had grown from four polyps to eight polyps in a year.

12/14/2019, 05:16 AM	#39
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Here are pictures of my latest additions. This is an Elegance Coral I picked up at my LFS. It is about 4" when it is fully expanded and will probably split soon. It has three visible mouths in the center disc. This is some kind of Brain Coral I got at the same time. It is about 3" x 4". It has about 8 polyps on it.

12/31/2019, 01:42 AM	#40
DimaS Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: Moscow, Russia Posts: 0	Hi aikenreefkeeper. Very nice tank. Monologue is your best side =)

02/03/2020, 05:38 AM	#41
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I have added some new corals to my 20 gallon Observation Tank. This is a Favia that I added on 1/28/20 This is a Plating Montipora I added on 1/21/20. It had a spot in the center that was bleaching, but it appears to be adding back some color. It is also transitioning from a bright pink to a more tan color. I wish it wasn't changing color. Hopefully it will change back to the pink. Probably has something to do with the lighting. [IMG]http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/picture.php? albumid=11548&pictureid=81036[/IMG] This is a Plating Montipora I added on 1/28/20

02/03/2020, 05:42 AM	#42
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Well I made a mistake with the picture of the Plating Montipora. Hopefully this will be correct this time. This is the Encrusting Montipora.

04/11/2020, 07:03 AM	#43
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Is my Brain Coral going on the attack?

04/11/2020, 07:07 AM	#44
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	This is how I handled my Aptasia problem - BLOW TORCH!

04/11/2020, 07:15 AM	#45
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	The bleached section in the center of my Plating Montipora is completely colored up now.

06/14/2020, 03:53 PM	#46
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Here is a new picture of my tank. It is doing well.

10/25/2020, 05:25 AM	#48
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	So, the last post did not work so well. One of these days I will get better I hope. Here is a picture of my Blastomussa wellsi. It is doing well. Some new polyps are stating under the larger polyps. Here is a photo of a coral I purchased from my LFS. No Idea what is is really. Hope this works.

02/05/2021, 08:52 AM	#49
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	Here is a photo of two butterflies I have added to my QT tank......so far so good. They are eating well.

02/06/2021, 03:50 AM	#50
aikenreefkeeper Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 121	I tried something different yesterday morning. I took some Instant Ocean flake food and soaked it in Selcon. The kleini took right after it. The mertensii did not care for it. So, I target fed some pieces of shrimp. It was so funny......one of the pieces was too large. So they would snatch it from each other or play tug of war with it like a couple of dogs. They finally tore it into small enough pieces that they eventually ate it.