Pies

Yeah i've often woundered about cucumber, i'll buy some tommorow in the groceries and see how they like it. Any thoughts on fresh food (MUST be low poultant) I can feed my other fishies (Odessa barbs, loaches, cardinals etc?) for a treat? I have some frozen food, and they get mosquito larvae sometimes, other than that its flake/tetra bits & sinking shrimp pelets.

My bristle noses are often about. I lightly feed my fish so food will FORCE them out, even the Feather Fins Upside Downs come out now (its take 6 months). I good trick to get the bristle noses out is to feed zuchini (sp?). One Zuchine disk with some lead to get it to sink. The Bristle noses RACE for it! I've never had much luck with Simease Fighters personally. They seam to have a SHORT lifespan with me, so I havn't had one in years. Don't panic about them. Remember that every time you intorduce a new fish the tank will re-cycle, and on a small tank it will be more pronounced. So keep up the water changes, maybee do 1 week every week for the next month, may help with the settling down issue (and take care of the nasty algae prob you have). Pies

I'm in Wellington... As for number of fish in the tank, there is all sorts of math you can do. But here is my tanke on it, this is based on my own 400ltr planted Co2 tank and all other tanks I've ever had: Are this fish happy? Don't stick more fish in a tank if the current inhabitants are unhappy or already crampt for space/free swiming areas or hidey holes. Are your Nitrates detectible? My large tank has NO nitrates, so I would feel happy adding more fish. That being said I have 1x 1500ltr/hr 1x 1200ltr/hr canister filters on there, Co2 & 5x 4ft 6500k lights. My tank has: 10 Bristle Nose cats 20+ Cardinal Tetra 5+ Rummy nose (want more) 10+ Harliquin 2x Pearl Gouramis 4x Feather Fin cats (all for sale) 4x Bolivian RAM 2+ Khuli Loach (should be 6 but havn't seen any for ages) 4x Clowns loach 3x 12 bar loaches 2x assorted loach? 10+ Corydoras Cats (skunk, banjo, juli) 5x Odessa Barb 1x Nanacara (would move to other tank if I could catch it) 5x Ghost Cats 2x horse face loach I am sure there is some other stuff in there. Ohhhh and BTW I personally find that the larger tanks are much easer to maintain. For my tank I clean 1 filter 1 time a month, water change 20% every 2-3 weeks (tap water with ager), clean glass of green algae every week or 2. I also have to clean the cover glass 1x per month, and clean the filter intakes (get clogged with Java Fern runners) about 1x ever 2 weeks. I replace the fluro tubes 1x every 9 months on a 3 month cycle. GET THE BIGGER TANK! hehehe

We have bristle nose catfish breeding NON STOP. Would give away for pickup or if purchaser organised freight (freight of LIVE FISH is expesnive). $60.00 is not too bad for 5x clown loaches. and they are about the coolist freshwater fish (imho).

HAIR ALGAE. This is VERY common. Its not an 'intoduced' algae, it will be in all our tanks. 1st to make sure we are talking about the same stuff, is it black/brown. less the 3mm long, and looks fluffy? Its also as hard as nails to remove and NOTHING you have will eat it? Most likley its RED HAIR ALGAE (i know its not red). VERY common, VERY easy to control. I have 2 freshwater tanks with NONE of it, 1 had it for a month (small amounts) which I have forced into recessions and now is not visiable anywhere. Here is what causes it - Bad water conditions. Most notibily High NITRATES and lots of nutrients in the water (over crowded tank?, dieing plant etc). NITRATES are easy to combat, best method is BETTER bilogical filtration, lighter bio-load, less feeding, more water changes etc. Co2! Co2 is a seceret weapon against algae. Not sure why but if you have a tank without C02 and LOTS of algae, and you introduce a C02 reactor of somesort, the Algae will go. I PROMISE. To anyone out there NOT using Co2, you really should. I can't stress how big a difference it has made to my display tank. Once you have it there is no going back. Yes its semi expesnive, but it now lives on my 'ESSENTIAL EQUIPMENT; list with a heater, flilter and light. Light! By increasing the light on the tank, you will promote green alage growth which is good. Its about the most efficiant form of algae, so if its growing other algae can't compete, and die off. What eats green algae? What doesn't.... Also if you want to intoduce fish that EAT you HAIR ALGAE, the simease flying fox (NOT the normal flying fox) will do it. Not well but its the only fish that will. You will want a school of 4+ of them, and I think they are about $10 ea. But none of the above will work until you get the Nitrates down. Good luck! Pies

Well Peety you seem to be a very full on with the salt water. Check you water params, as you know nitrate and amonia are KILLERS in the salt. Snails, not sure if they are what you want. Snails are just another life form, so the problem is they are competing for food/air etc just like fish/coral etc. If you have brown algae (Diatom Bloom should be common is a salt tank less than 4 months old?) and are worried about it. Water change and since your into introducing life in there, HERMIT CRABS! Hermit Crabs are supposed to be the ULTIMATE for this issue. I am not sure if NZ hermits are the same as the ones I read about in the USA but you seem to be the MAN to find out I am also keen to hear how it goes as I want Hermit crabs in my tank (which is comming along nicely, will be 'wet' in a few weeks). Also if you are having Algae problems, some people are useing a refugium (www.reefcentral.com, www.thereefweb.com). this i am convinced is TECHNOLOGY. Get something in your tank, or plumbed into the sump and grow algae in there. by growing the Algae/Micro in the Refugium you won't get it in the display! You can also harvist out of the 'fuge' to feed the critters in the display. I have some plans for a 'fuge' so if you want to talk about it 021 455 946 (Mark). Good luck with the prob, and would LOVE to hear if you get some hermits in there. Ohhhh 1 last thing, I am EXTREMELY interested in the 'feather duster' worms you mentioned. Photo or better descriptions? Maybee when I am in Auckland next month I can come over and have a look (flog some 'live sand too?). Ohh and the temp 'may' be an issue. But its hard to say. My best guess is that its unlikley to be temp (cause of the time it took to become a problem), but its only a guess. There is an article in the latest UK MArine mag that has a guy with a cleaner (boxing) shrimp, living outside his house in a tank. He has to break the ice to feed it and its still alive. Good luck and keep us informed. Pies

I was reading on www.reefcentral.com a few months ago about people using skimmers in freshwater setups. A large number of people used them for very large freshwater tanks to remove the 'skim/film' from the top of the water if it became present. But they were slightly modified to better suit that purpose... ? Not sure if its a good idea or not, seems like easier ways to do that, but the common thing was very large tanks.

Nice work on the tank. I can't wait to get mine up and running. I've got some questions for you. 1. What type of fish did you put in? 2. Do you have any pictures? Sounds good to me. I've been warned away from using 'live rock' from NZ shores because of the high degree of 'silicates' (spelling?) and 'trace metals' in the rocks here. But I guess if its working for you and your fish are happy thats all that matters! Are you going to keep any inverts or fish only? 1 last question. If you could go back & start again, would you do it again? And if so what would you do differently? I would love to know what you've found from NZ beaches etc. I dive often so access to the ocean is no drama Good luck!

I have an update on LION FISH in NZ. The are banned for import because they are toxic. The have been spotted on the Poor Knights islands but are classed as VERY RARE and are suspected to 'drift' from further north and only survive in the heights of summer. They are also listed as common(summer) in the kermadec islands (which is part of NZ, in NZ waters and does not require CUSTOMS inspections when returning from the Kermadecs. Its about 5 days by boat. So if you had the ability to get up there you could net/dive for some, bring em back and keep one and sell the rest. I suspect you would want (and could easily get) over $1000ea as the cost of getting there and back would be extremely high. FYI

Thanks for the link. Similar to what I was planing so good to know I'm on the right track. If I get organised I'll take some pics and let you guys know how I am getting on... Thanks Pies

Yeah pumps are good ideas, and for huge volumes of water makes sense however they do have a major disadvantage. The impellor on a pump kills/damages any thing in the water like Plankton/Shrimp etc. This is why it is reccomended that if you do build a refugium into you system that it should gravity drain into the tank, and pump from the tank back into the 'fuge. It is reccomended that if you use a pump, you should let the saltwater 'stand' for 7 days before using it, that way the dead/dieing life will sink to the bottom and can be left when you siphon out the good water. Pies

The guy with the PICs above uses artificial sea salts. I asked him why, he said 'natural seawater' is better (casue its real), but quite a lot of haslte. He found it easier to use RO/DI & artificial. But he has used natural. The other 1600 ltr tank I know of here in Wellington, the guy ONLY uses natural sea water and has had nothing but problems with artificial (he did admit it was more likly a problem with him than the product though). I intend on using natural sea water (at least initially). BUT there is a catch... If you go get it, you MUST use it within about 4 hrs if its left standing with no airation. After 4 hrs the animals in it (plankton etc) will die and poulte the water. If this happens you can leave it for a week, then syphen out the good water and just not take the bottom inch. Obviously take care with any sediment in water you collect and check for obvious poultion. I am also going to take afish from the ocean and use it to 'cycle' my tank. I dive in wellington, so I am sure I can catch something small somehow Pies

Yeah its expensive, but like any hobbie (race cars, boating, sking, diving etc) it does cost money to do it correctly. Also remember that it will have a resale value too, so think of it as a 'non appreciating asset'. There are several 2nd hand options, which is what I am trying to do (buy 2nd hand). Also if you are handy there are lots of DIY options if you have the time/skill/tools. I don't have any photos of that tank, or many of the others I visited. Check www.thereefweb.com for a really nice reef tank and 'my template'. Get into it! You know you wanna!

Power is a cost I can 'absorb'. I also suspect that I will enjoy the Marine so much I will dismantle and sell my 2 freshwater tanks, therefore not adjusting my costs too much... I run 2x external filters and 5 4ft fluro on my larger existing freshwater. + its Co2 suplimented and I can use the Co2 system for the Calcium Reactor....

Forgive my spelling, its actually Kalkwasser: I stole this********* Even the most inexperienced hobbyist can easily make Kalkwasser. Kalkwasser is extremely beneficial for corals, coralline algae and many reef inhabitants. It also helps raise the pH level, which is needed in a marine and reef environment. It might come to a surprise that Kalkwasser, which is German for lime, does not contain any lime at all. The name comes from the main compound used: Calcium hydroxide. ************************ You need to make the Kalkwasser EVERY DAY for evaporation top off. However you can build a 'stirer' than allows for far less maintenance by dripping in 'fresh' kalkwasser daily etc. I am not sure exactly how it works but the Kalkwasser canot touch the air, as the gas exchange does somthing to it, not sure exactly. There are a few DIY options for this. I am no expert however I have seen them on almost EVERY reef I have visited. I think that just mixind the Kalkwasser by hand is fine, but gets boring as has to be done everyday (because of the gas exchange you can't store it, or it settles or something). Hope that answers your question? Pies

I have 2x RESUN canister filters, model 808 (claimed 1500ltr/hr). They are basically copies of the Eheim PRO/PRO2 filters. These filters present GREAT value as they come with taps/media and even a spare impellor etc. The problem with them is that they are shit. YMMV. My 2 RESUN filters are both about 6 months old, initially I was very happy with them, but now they have lost ALL their power. I would be lucky to be getting 400ltr/hr now. I have just disconnected one and replaced with a FLUVAL 404, which so far seems to be AWESOME, although the actuall size of the filter media baskets is a LOT smaller than the RESUN/EHIEM. I am returning one of them tommorow, and then if they fix it I am selling it, and if they say it needs replacing I will get money back and buy another FLUVAL. I also have a EHIEM Pro II filter, which is excellent, but sooo expensive. I researched the FLuval and I think they will now be my filter of choice. Good luck and if you want to buy a cheap 'recon' RESUN give me a call.

I am looking into some pumps. Large volume 3500ltr/hr+. I have seen a VIAQUA VA4900 model that does 4100ltr/hr for $160.00 at www.sog.co.nz. This is going to be 1/2 price on Ehiem equipment. Anyone used/using viaqua? I would like to use it 'inline' and from what I found it comes with an 'inline' adapter (so i don't have to have it submerged). Pump will need to run 24/7 in saltwater. Cheers Pies

Hi all! As some of you are aware I've been looking into keeping a Marine Reef tank for quite some time. The options and advice I have recieved has varied a great deal. Infact i've spent more time confused with contridictry information than I care to count. The technology for the marine hobby has changed quite drastically over the past 10 years. Also Marine fish keeping is much different than freshwater, so you need to 'un learn' some things. I have visited people with reef tanks, and taked to dozens online. Typically the more 'scientific' (read expensive) the tank, the better it looks. I have taken the success of other peoples tanks and come up with... Its expensive. Very. I've seen people talking about ideas for cutting costs, skimping on bits and pieces etc. I think that this is a reciepe for disaster. $5NZ per litre is an averge cost for a Marine reef not including stock. And a high technology option will go as much as $15 per litre (I have seen a $55000.00 1600ltr tank in NZ. I have done all my research into a 'reef' as opposed to a 'fish only'. Fish only can be a LOT cheaper, but requires lots of filtration, lots & lots. Do you need a protein skimmer? Yes, and it has to be big enough for you tank. I have not found any successful aquirums anywhere that don't use a protein skimmer. Do I need a sump? Yes. Gravity fed water cirulation is by far the most efficient and cheapest method. Also has EXCELLENT options for flow control etc. Do i need power heads? Yes. You will want to circulate the contents of your tank no less than 10x per hour, and 20x will harness better results. 6x is consider the least and can be problematic. Do I need Metal Halide lights? Only if the tank is deeper than 450mm and you want corals or enenmy. Do I need a chiller? Only if you are using Metal Halide lights Do I need a wet/dry filter? No. Live (seeded) rock is much better than a wet/dry. Wet/dry filters are 'too efficient', think "less technology, more biology". Do I need a computer? No, its a luxury option for people with a lazy 5k sitting around. It does take some hard work away but its not a requirement. Do I need a KalkWeisser stirer/reactor? Yes. Used to add calcium to evaporated water, will buffer PH and keep coral alive/healthy. DIY option abundant. Do I need a Calcium Reactor? No, but is usefull (expensive). Sorry about the woffle, but may be of use to those who are interested in setting up a Marine Aquairum. So, am I going ahead with it? Yes! Where am I at? I have brought a 700ltr tank ($500) & am DIY the stand ($200). I have a Deltec skimmer (2nd hand - $850). I have a RIO power head with sea swerl thingie ($0.00, gift). What do I need? Rock 100kg to start $1000.00 Sand 2x Bags $160.00 Metal Halide 250/400 watt 10000k x2 bulbs ($700 DIY, $1200 cheap new, $3600 high end) 4x 5ft Fluro tubes and ballasts + reflectors - $400.00 Sump (convert old 3ft fish tank - $0.00) Return pumps x2 Ehiem 4000ltr hr $800.00 RO/DI unit? Not sure... Kalkweisser? Not sure... Calcium Reactor? Not sure... Salt water? Not sure... Stock... The skys the limit!... Hope this of interest. Also anyone knowing anyone selling 2nd hand Marine equipment, have them contact me! Cheers

OK I brought the Silicone you both recomended (5 tubes should be enough?). I have all the glass sitting behind me and I am shit scared to continue. Tommorow could be the day. Thanks for all you help guys, I have listened and feel a lot better for it. If anyone has and web site links or info on building a secure cabinet for a tank, please share them with me I am not a joiner, so its going to have to be simple, yet robust. I am going with all wood as I am worried about the salt water and RUST... On another note, Warren, I have installed 3 (of 6) 4ft fluro tubes of the type you recomended elsewhere on this site. I brougt Sylivana tubes, but they gave me a philips -> sylivana reference card the converted them to be. I brought 2x 6500k 1x6000k. The colour is VERY pleasing to the eye, which I was concered about. But the best thing is the my plants have responded to it. I mean, I am sure I saw a difference in my plant leafs/shape/colour in less than a day! So i'll keep an eye on it, but so far I think I have found my new standard freshwater tube selection. Cheers! Cheers Pies

OK well its official. I have brought the Silicone this morning. I got the hole I needed drilled into the bottom payne. I have got the last of my pressure piping plumbing. Everything is ready... All I need to do now is build up some courage... Ohhhh and get a frame made (to hold the tank and house the sump), tossing up between wood and metal. I can build a wooden one myself (will sit on a concrete floor), but if I go metal I need someone else to build it. So it will prolly be wood. Will think longer on it today. Thanks for all the help and advice. I will start the tank in the next few days. Should it be built in stages or all at once? All at once prolly. Cheers!

Well its here! Thanks for the advice Warren I have used it and reduced the height of the tank to 600ml. I have also had extra braces for the top and bottom cut. So assembly is about to begin. I need a hole drilled in the bottom for plumbing my Dorso Standpipe, and the people who cut me the glass could not drill a hole larger than 25mm and I need a 32mm hole drilled. So i'm off to take the 'bottom payne/pain/pane' elsewhere tommorow. All up the glass cost me $400.00 for the 1600x600x700 tank with bracing. Keep in mind that its all 10mm glass but this tank has no lid like a traditional tank, just bracing (i want lots of evaporation). So now its onto Silicone. Anyone have any thoughts or know brands to use (or avoid). I'm eager to start. Ohhhh and a last question, for my overflow box am going to use perspecs (sp?) for the divider. Is there any special considerations for attaching perspecs to glass? Will the normal silicone work? Cheers

Hey thanks for the decipher of the calculator. I saw it on this site but really couldn't figure it out. I will reduce the height to 600mm and leave the specs the same. I'll also talk to the 'glass guy' tommorow and see if there is some thicker glass about for the bottom. I'll also get full braces cut. I guess i'll just have to work harder to hide them Thanks again.

Heya Everyone. Well I am about to embark on my Marine Reef tank and the first thing I need is a tank! So I am looking to get the glass cut tommorow, but now I am scared its to big and will not hold its weight in water. ALL 10mm glass - 1600mm LONG, 750mm HIGH & 700mm DEEP (back to front). Will this be OK? Will I need to brace the sides/front etc? I don't want to brace the front cause I will be using a shallow sand bed and it looks bad... Bear in mind its for a reef so it will be 1/4ish rock, which will incrase the weight but reduce the pressure... You 2 cents please... Also no cracks about it being a baby tank since Warrens monsta effort! :> Cheers Pies

I will buy a few of those tubes Warren and check em out. What should I expect to pay for 4t tubes?

Ohhhh BTW the cool white philips tubes are 4500K and about $6 for a 4 ft. The light the emit is not that 'white' though, its yellow/pink so needs to be ballanced with some white. Pies