almost 35 year old reef pictures

[Paul B]

Those figure eight puffers also last forever in saltwater as I had one for 12 years. They are not at all reef safe though.

[Timbor]

Originally posted by Paul B
Tim, I have had some of them for about a month. They seem fine, swimming around making faces at each other.
I think they will live forever in salt water but I will have to wait forever to see.
I have seen those dragon gobies but they get too large for my tank. They would be able to eat most of my fish.

Hey Paul,

I doubt the violet goby would get more than 10-12 inches, and they are very long and slender, almost eel-like. I am sure they would be fine in your size tank. Plus, they feed mostly on detritus, not fish. They have very small eyes which would not allow them to be able to catch other fish. They are definitely not predators. From my experience, they are very peaceful, and could not even catch a fish if they wanted to.

The main thing I would be worried about for the gobies is that eventually they might have kidney failure if they are not built to handle the salt load of full strength saltwater. Similar idea to keeping reef fish in hypo for too long.

I loved my figure 8 when I had it too. I wouldn't want one munching on my clams or corals though!

Tim

[Timbor]

Not sure if this link will work, but here is a study done on the violet goby in the wild - main stomach contents were filamentous algae and detritus:

http://www.usm.edu/gcrl/file_dump/Mata%20Vol%2016.pdf

[Paul B]

Thanks Tim, I have plenty of filimentous algae, thats for sure.
I still think they will be too large even if they did not eat the gobies.

Here is another pregnant gobi. I don't think she is too pregnant and I diden't even think the pair was the same species but I guess they know better than I do.

[Paul B]

I also have an update for these tiny pieces of colt coral that have spawned from the parent.
I lost one of them. It diden't croak but it got loose in the tank.
I have no idea where it went as they float pretty far. I had them in a small container in the tank and it made it through the holes.
I still have the other one in a smaller container sitting on the bottom. It seems to have grown and the polyps are extended all around, it looks like a sattelite. I wish it would attach to something before it too takes a walk, or a float

[Aquarist007]

A soap dish might be great Paul

http://www.reefcentral.com/wp/?p=281

[Paul B]

Capn, that is almost exactly what they were in. I used a guppy breeder with small holes. I also took a 1/4" tube and stuck it in a powerhead with one end in the breeder for circulation.
Now it is just in a small plastic container in the bottom of the tank. If it floats out, it is on it's own and will grow somewhere

[Aquarist007]

The kenya tree here was from the same thing--a couple of floaters landed here---and same with the mushroom --it was a piece off the big one that got away from me in the tank when I was trimming the big one

[Paul B]

Very healthy looking stuff there Capn

[Whys]

Indeed.

[Paul B]

I just dropped almost a whole can of flake food in my tank.
I love when I do that and I don't even hardly feed flakes but I use them to get some cod liver oil into the fish.
I have an automatic feeder that puts three or four flakes and some pellets in the tank for one feeding the hippo tang.
I was filling the thing and OOPs
I turned off the pumps and got most of it out. Luckilly it floats. The rest got caught in my overflow which has a screen in it so I was able to get almost all of it out.

[Whys]

Paul, try to be less flakey.

[Aquarist007]

Paul---our distinguished reef buddy seems to have gone awol again

Please join us on this thread---if he is looking on then I am sure he is appreciating it

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...5#post14443305

[Paul B]

Capn, I posted there, Where does he go?
Even the President of the United States we can find.
You don't think he is really the President, do you?

I just found these guys hiding in my tank.
I am sure all older tanks has thousands of them

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by Paul B
Capn, I posted there, Where does he go?
Even the President of the United States we can find.
You don't think he is really the President, do you?

I just found these guys hiding in my tank.
I am sure all older tanks has thousands of them

are they a type of worm

speaking of interesting creatures---I have these really dark green bubbles forming. At first I thought it was bubble aglae but it is not.
I've seen a couple of snails or ampipods with dark green shells on the top matching the bubbles--I've never seen these snails before but they seem to be harmless--going after the algae on the glass.

I can't get a good enough close up pic of them

any idea of what they are ----and I have not been dosing with vodka

[Aquarist007]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Paul B
[B]Capn, I posted there, Where does he go?
Even the President of the United States we can find.
You don't think he is really the President, do you?

no Paul I believe it is Obama not "Otoma"

[Paul B]

Capn they are a type of tube worm. The fans are not extended because I moved them to take the picture. They may be a type of hydra, I really don't know.
I don't know what type of snails you have. Sounds cool though

----and I have not been dosing with vodka

They also must be very happy snails

[Paul B]

Tonight I received new MH lamps that I ordered from some place for just about half price. I was leary that they would even work but I ordered them anyway.
I had 10,000K lamps but now I have 14,000K for a change.
Of course the new lamps were a couple of inches larger than my old lamps and would not fit in the fixture. No problem, I figured I would just drill a large hole inside the housing to allow the bulb to fit.
I opened it up and found the ballast was right there and I also found everything melted. There was almost no insullation on most of the wires. I am very surprised the thing worked. Luckily, none of the bare wires were touching anything.
Now being I am an electrician I can't put the thing back together like that so I had to go to Home Depot to get some fixture wire which I am surprised they had.
I removed the ballast and mounted it on the outside of the fixture in a seperate box. This way it will run much cooler, not being above the lamp. I also drilled a 2" hole in the back of the fixture to allow some heat to escape and I made all my splices outside the fixture outside that hole, which is a violation but it will work. Whats the sense of being an electrician if I can't install a few violations.
I put the thing back together and it works beautifully.
There are no flames but it looks very blue which I am not used to . The tank used to look like that but not in a couple of years.
In this picture the 14,000 lamp is on the left side and the 10,000 lamp is still on the right.
I will have to do the same thing with the other fixture as soon as I get a chance. I am sure that one is all melted also and the lamp does not fit in it anyway.
These are fixtures I took home from lighting up the Plaza Hotel.
They came with oval shaped lamps and these are tubeular shaped

The old lamps were there since 2004
.

[conorwynne]

I think the new blue looks better Paul. Cool tube worms too. I've lots of interesting tubes in mine as well. Just don't have a camera any more since the wife "borrowed it" for some Xmas pics of me for a change. ;-0

Smashing the lens within 15 minutes of using it with drunken flailing arms ;-0

[Aquarist007]

actually I like the combination of the two on at once with half the tank blue---unique look.

from what I understand the 10k to 14 k is only a matter of reefer preference. It has no affect on the inhabitants of the reef?

Is this true Paul?

[Micki]

I'm a fan of 14K myself.

[heyfredyourhat]

What kind of wire did you use Paul? I had used regular wire on my mh light and if got so brittle it shorted out on the case and tripped the gfi. I eventually found some high heat stuff, but man what a pia to find in my area!!

[Paul B]

Capn I think you are correct and 14 K doesen't give much if any advantage. My stuff lived fine with 10,000K

Most THHN wire today is rated for 105 degrees centegrade. That is what you need for ballasts. They also sell teflon wire for higher heat temps but that is harder to get.
Just don't let any wire touch the ballast, lamp or metal surfaces.
No wire will last forever in a hot fixture.
Home Depot sells THHN stranded wire as do any electrical supply

[supervdl]

I have them too. Some kind of snail. Many of them actually in my tank.

Originally posted by Paul B
Capn, I posted there, Where does he go?
Even the President of the United States we can find.
You don't think he is really the President, do you?

I just found these guys hiding in my tank.
I am sure all older tanks has thousands of them

[Paul B]

I have them too. Some kind of snail. Many of them actually in my tank.

Are you looking at those little tube worms that are stuck to the rock?
There are no snails in there unless you are looking at something I don't see.