wobble

I've got so many weird things growing on the LR, in the sump, etc. I just wanted to make sure whatever this was wasn't harming the coral. Thanks!

Anyone know what these red things are on the stalk of my hammer coral? Are they harmful to it?

Thanks dsoz, I'll do that. I have my lights on for 12 hours/day. Do you think that's too much?

75g display, 4x54w T5 w/icecap reflectors (bulbs are six months old), K4 and Ocean Runner 2500 return pump for flow. I notice the icecap reflectors aren't very shiny anymore. Maybe they could use a polishing. Tank has been set up for three years. Purchased the frogspawn around six months ago. Past couple months it's been puffy like that. Right around the same time I removed one of the K4s. It had too much current and the tentacles on the frogspawn were twisting around each other and some were breaking off. Frogspawn is located in the middle-upper portion of the tank. I have a hammer coral that's doing great. I also have a branching hammer coral that's puffy like the frogspawn. They were also purchased around six months ago and the branching hammer coral has looked round and puffy for the past few months as well. Fish: yellow tang, kole tang, yellow wrasse, maroon clown, yellow banana moray eel, (3) blue devil damsels. Hermit crabs and snails. Did a few tests: SG 1.025 Nitrates 0 Alk 8 dkh (buffering with baking soda daily to maintain or it drops to 6)

Why is my frogspawn so puffy? It doesn't look like other pics I've seen. Is this normal?

I've heard peppermint shrimp work, but I don't think they would last long in my tank. Look at the last pic I posted. Directly behind the clown and you'll see my eel's head poking out. His favorite food is raw shrimp. (laugh) Hopefully I won't see any more, but I have a feeling I will.

I googled it. Yep. That's exactly what it looks like. It's gone now along with a chunk of that rock. Hopefully there aren't any more. I'll keep an eye out. How did he get in there? I haven't added any LR for years.

That's what I suspected. I'll get it the rock out right now and chisel it off. Thanks once again chewie.

Can someone tell me what this is? I first noticed it about a month ago. Sorry about the poor quality pics. To give an idea of size, it's directly to the left of the yellow tang.

Thanks chewie!

What do you recommend feeding it on a regular basis?

Wow Chewie, you're good! Yes, I got it from SWF in Jan or Feb of this year. It's really darkened up since then. Just hasn't looked so good recently. Been feeding it mostly silversides for the past two months or so. Before that it was a mix of silversides, shrimp, and squid. I tested water a week and a half ago (before water change). Nitrates 0 PH 8.0 Alk 9 (been buffering with baking soda) SG 1.025 I've been doing changing 16g of water every two weeks. I have another anemone in there and it's going great. The other one is on the bottom of the tank though. This rose is a little above mid height. It's pretty much been there since I put it in. It's a 75g with 216w of T5 w/icecap ballasts. Blues are on from 9am - 10pm. Other two lights are on from 10am - 9pm. Fuge light is on 24/7.

I've been feeding it weekly silversides mostly. Sometimes little chunks of shrimp or squid when I feed my eel. It's difficult to feed him though since my maroon clown usually grabs the food away from the anemone and puts it elsewhere in the tank so he can have his nice soft anemone bed to himself again. I try to guard the anemone with a feeding stick until the anomene has a chance to get the food in it's mouth, but sometimes it takes a long time and I get tired of standing there chasing the clown away. Should I feed more often? Should I feed it something else? More light, less light?

My rose anemone has been looking strange the past few days. It's mouth is very wide open and it looks like the inside of it is coming out. White and puffy stuff is pushing out of it's mouth. I've noticed in the past month or so it's been alot thicker and puffier than it has in the past. Should I be concerned? Thanks, Dave

I got mine from Seahorse for free. That would be a closer option for ya. Or, if you wait a week or two, I'll have more. I'd give you some now, but I just threw away a bunch last weekend.

I don't know of any test kits that accurately test copper at such low levels. Someone else may know of one. I would do a large water change and see if things improve. If you have any copper in the tank, it will be reduced over time by continuing regular water changes. Copper may not even be the issue, but doing more water changes won't hurt anything. There is also come chemical media you could add to your canister filter to remove any leftover copper. Someone that knows more about that could suggest which one works best. I don't know enough about chemical media to suggest any.

I agree. Copper could be a reason. IMO, the tank is too young to have so much added so quickly. I would suggest increasing amount/frequency of water changes. That should help get your nitrates down to zero and will help remove copper that may be in your tank. I would also suggest putting some chaeto in your sump for additional help in reducing nitrates. My corals seem to be happier in the 1.025-1.026 range than when I had them in the 1.023-1.024 range. Might be worth raising it to that level and see how they respond. Also, re-check calibration on your refractometer. I calibrated mine a few months ago and just checked it again today to be sure it was still correct. It was off by .02. Must have gotten bumped or something. HTH

Not all kole tangs do. Mine didn't touch it. I ended up getting a yellow tang and it devoured it.

That looks alot like the pic here: http://reefkeepingfever.com/toadstool-leather.htm Do you have a pic of the actual one you have?

I'm interested. How big is it?

My experience with a toby wasn't so good. He was really cool looking and had a great personality at the LFS. However, right after being introduced to my tank, he went straight at my little maroon clown. Ate his tail off in about 2 minutes. I had to scare him away with my hand then net him. He spent the night in the fuge and went back to the LFS the next day. Bummer too. I really liked him.

Just take it slow. Cut back to a FO tank for awhile. Then, when you are able to, you can get back into the reef thing. I did the FOWLR thing for a couple years and am now dabbling in reef. One thing I've learned is.......no impulse buying fish. Normally I end up regretting it and lose money in the end. Do plenty of research for your tank size and what kind of fish you will want. Also what tankmates your existing livestock can have. I've had a lion before. Him and my eel had a mutual respect for each other for a couple months. Then they started fighting more and more. Since the eel cost me 10 times what the lion did, the lion went back to LFS. I've had a few other fish that just didn't get along with some of my tank occupants too. I don't even like to think about how much money I've lost because of fish incompatibilities and impulse buying. I got bored with the aggressive tank not too long ago. I wanted to do reef. So, I've done a hybrid. I still have my eel, but got other semi-aggressive fish that don't eat coral. So far so good. A lot of action in the tank and some LPS and an anemone to look at. I'm pretty happy with my current setup. Oops.....now I'm babbling. Anyway...Hopefully things will work out for ya and you'll have some kind of marine tank to enjoy. Just take it slow and try to research before buying.

I agree, but with such a small tank, it's a ticking time bomb.

I agree. Looks like a little red zebra. One of my favorite mbuna.

Lamprologus sp. are actually Tanganyika Cichlids. I feel like such a newbie at this reef stuff......finally the topic of African Cichlids comes up. Something I actually know something about! (laugh)