tHEcONCH

Not yet, but I'm quite keen on the idea - the stock skimmer just doesn't work very well, and I'm sick of having to wipe the crud off the inside with my finger.

So, how about some of you other fellas and felleses post up some pics of your RSM's? I'm keen to see how different people aquascaped their tanks, and what look they are trying to achieve. Bung them in this thread if you don't want to start one of your own - more the merrier

I haven't had any problems at all - the only thing that kind of irks me (but not seriously) is the urchin - when it eats off the rocks it scrapes all the marine algae off too - it leaves a big white scar. It grows back soon enough, though.

It just died one day - It was a refugee from someone else's tank, so I don't know how old it was - it was quite big, so maybe it was just time for it to go to the big Surimi bowl in the sky...

Bigger is always better when it comes to canisters, but you should also consider ease of maintenance etc. - media in trays so that you can remove them easily, good quality fittings and pipework etc, built in priming pumps. It is often also a case of getting what you pay for. I really rate the Eheims, especially the 2028, and have had 4 running continuously for nearly three years with no problems at all.

Yep, they are the ones I'd be keen on. I had a little Acro crab for a while - I used to give it a Novotab every few days and it would run around the tank holding it above its head - Wooohoooooo!!!!!!!!!!

Just chuck a few into your cibup hair... :lol:

They are completely different species - the ones you get off our beaches won't survive in a marine tank for very long at all, plus they are comparatively drab. I'd be keen on a proper reef dwelling hermit too.

That will be fine - if you can, transfer water, gravel, and plants etc from your old tank to help get it all started (make sure you wash new gravel until the water runs clear). Buy test kits for Nitrite and Nitrate, and once the Nitrite spike falls away and you can measure Nitrate, you can start adding other fish

Yep, I have to agree that learning to just let things settle down and find equilibrium is essential. I think I was almost too attentive in the early days of my RSM - picking algae off, measuring Calcium and Salinity every 10 minutes, etc., etc., - when all I really needed to do was wait. It seems inevitable that things will go a bit astray every now and again, but so long as you cover the basics its seems that most things will self-resolve. Cyano is particularly irritating though. One last thing - have you changed your charcoal recently? I've taken to doing mine once a month and it seems to make a positive difference.

It will be interesting to see how you guys get on now that the weather is cooling off.

And if you can't make any real money breeding easy freshwater, there is no way you'll turn a profit on marine. It'll just be a case of having to pay the price or go without.

Hi, welcome to the forums Ask away, and try the google search function at the top centre of the screen

Just keep saying 'Computer says 'no'', then cough in their faces...

Not directly, but they will consume food that would otherwise rot - I'd leave them in whilst you are re-cycling the tank.

Supermarkets often end up with spare eggcrate - maybe ask if you can have some.

I wouldn't have thought so - its effectively cycled by now. I suspect that your tank is just nutrient-loaded and once that is reduced the cyano will go. Make sure you syphon as much as possible out - its a form of nutrient export too.

No probs, just let me know.

I'm not to worried - 5?

Its good stuff, but quite potent - and you don't want to add what can't be used up before the cyano metabolises it. I direct feed it to corals mixed with their food rather than just tip it in to try and get it where it needs to be without poluting the tank too much.

You can have the Xenia for a few snails - I regularly chop it off and throw it out - nutrient export 'n all :lol: Beware, it is a weed, and will grow very quickly in a high nutrient environment (which is exactly what you want)

I'd leave the skimmer as is and stop dosing until the cyano goes, then restart only if you are keeping Cataphyllia etc - most other things don't seem to need too much over what gets introduced by food anyway. I can do you a big lump of Xenia if wilson can't, but you'll have to get it to attach to a rock yourself - he might be doing frags already attached which makes it much easier.

Another thought - the crud might be in your rocks - I've still got grey silt coming out of my live rock - it might be that you still have quite a bit of organic matter leaching from them.

If I understand it correctly, once established cyano photosynthesises, so you need to knock back your trace elements. I'd stop dosing the tank altogether and try to starve it of the nutrients it needs to complete the photosynthesis process. If you don't have one already, I'd also add a Xenia - they seem to be good 'nutrient mops'.

Agreed, long overdue, however I'm sure Indonesia will simply carry on where Hawaii left off