Dosers and Calcium Reactors are very useful in reef systems. They provide calcium and other nutrients to your water when they are low and needed. They are a necessity for keeping a stable tank. A good one is a bubble magus doser. They tend to be extremely expensive but in the long run, they are cheaper than all the liquid and solid supplements you have to put in your tank. They are a fantastic thing you can rely on to keep your tank stable. Keeping an unstable tank can lead to many casualties and deaths of coral and fish because your water parameters could be good one day and horrible the next. That is why you should save up and buy a calcium reactor or doser.
11/16/2015 0 Comments My Favorite SPSThis is the coral that I would love to get:
Meteor Shower Cyphastrea Poison Ivy Acropora Seasons Greetings Montipora Sunset Montipora Killer Bee Acropora Jewel Stone Goniopora Comment below what your favorite SPS Corals are! 11/13/2015 0 Comments Flame AngelThis is a beautiful dwarf angel, by far one of my favorites. They are small, cool, and hardy. Although, more flame angels have been dying in captivity more than ever for some reason. These are not very pricey which is great. These angels will swim back and forth along the walls of the tank in a small tank. Keep them in a tank of at least 30 gallons. It should be the last fish introduced in a peaceful community tank because they are known to be aggressive. These are not able to breed normally which is the downside. Also, you cannot tell the difference between males and females. They are not good when exposed to high copper levels, so put it in a qt when treating your main tank with copper. These are coral nippers so I would recommend only putting it in a FOWLR tank. It is an omnivore so it will eat most everything. Feed it color enhancing foods because it tends to lose color easily. Overall, a great fish that can be aggressive though. Some have been known to do okay without nipping at corals in a reef tank so if you are willing to take the risk, try it! This is also probably the most well known and available dwarf angel so you can easily find it.
I was reading a fascinating article in Reef Hobbyist Magazine. It was how he figured out a good way to feed copperband butterflyfish because when they normally eat, it is more difficult than other fish. They are very precise. Normally, they will end up looking thin because they don't eat enough. This is the new approach: Take a small pvc pipe and drill small holes into it, just big enough for the fish's beak. Cap and glue one end of the pipe. Also, I forgot to mention this, don't put a ton of holes because you don't want a lot of food floating around your tank. Now, all you have to do is fill it up with mysis or whatever you prefer to feed it, and cap the other end tightly. Put it in the tank and your fish will be looking good in a matter of time. If you want to spice up the feeding mechanism, put a suction cup on the end and you can hang it to the side of your tank. You could also use this for other fish with long beaks, like yellow tangs.
Everyone says you need RO/DI water to start a saltwater fish tank. I did not use RO/DI water for my first tank but everything has turned out okay so far. RO/DI water is one thing you have to have for certain types of tanks. Without a doubt, you need this water for a reef tank. However, depending on how you set up a FOWLR tank, you do not necessarily need RO/DI water. Some people have actually called my water a cesspool, despite the fact my levels were great. If you are thinking of setting up a tank using tap water, be prepared that you will not be able to have most corals and will have to treat bacteria and algae outbreaks. These are some corals, fish, and inverts that you can get with tap water.
Inverts: Most all inverts will be fine in a tank using tap water, they are just more succeptible to disease. Fish: In my experience, fish are a lot like inverts using this water. Almost all are able to be in tap water but are more likely to get disease. There are only a few fish that can't be kept in tap water and those fish are nearly impossible to keep. Coral: This is what really needs RO/DI water. Only zoanthids and palys are able to be kept successfully in tap. Everything else will porbably end up dead. Although, clams are sometimes able to be kept in tap water. They will just be stressed and possibly could die. Be careful with these though, if you have a different tank with RO/DI water, put them in there right away. 11/6/2015 0 Comments Worst fish for a tankIn my opinion, I think the worst fish for a tank is a yellow brotula. They are a horrible fish for a show tank because you barely see them and they are very hard to feed and keep alive. They are no fun to have because you will most likely only see it with the lights off and a red light. If for some reason, you are looking to get this fish, keep it very limited with the live rock and shelter. Also keep the lighting dim for more chances to see this fish.
In my opinion, unless you are trying to get rid of bubble algae, DO NOT GET EMERALD CRABS. I got a few hitchhikers a while ago on a rock full of vegetation for my yellow tang. All the crabs would do were fight and cut off the vegetation. It made so much algae in my tank and they were impossible to capture. I brought them back to my LFS and thankfully they took them. If you want to get emerald crabs fro your clean up crew, do it for the removal of bubble algae.
Aptaisia anemones are a pain to have in your tank. They are pests and could possibly kill your fish. If a fish goes up and rubs against one, it will sting it, possibly killing or severely injuring your fish. They could also sting you, so be careful when removing it. I often see my sixline rubbing up against a rock because it got stung. What you want to do is go out and buy some Joe's Juice. Put a small amount of it in a syringe and inject it softly into the mouth of the anemone. It will give results instantly and is completely reef safe. The best part is you don't need to put it in a quarantine tank! Just make sure to turn off power heads or wave makers!
I am getting a JBJ 20 Gallon Rimless Frag Tank and have been looking for good LEDs. Lighting tends to be extremely expensive so if you see any for 150 or lower, do not get it, it's not good. Ecotech Radion xr15 lighting is great for this tank and so is AI Prime. I would suggest AI Prime because it is good and cheap. This tanks dimensions are 20"x24"x9", which is a nice size for a beginner frag tank. Mounts are also important, for the AI Prime, there are 2 choices, one is a hanging mount and one is a clamp mount. I think clamp is the best because it is easily adjustable. The clamp mount is much cheaper for the AI Prime than the XR15. If you are experienced in this hobby, you could try a DIY but I would not recommend it because it is about the same amount of money and much harder. This is a very nice tank and if you want to have great lighting for your coral to grow, these are the two you should go for. |
ReeseI love saltwater fish tanks, coral, and sports. Archives
December 2015
Categories |