elusive_fish Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 Hi all, it has been a while since I've been around. The last time I had a functioning marine aquarium was February 22, 2011. I'm sure you can figure out the rest of the details So I've always been fascinated by rock/tide pools and the amazing creatures within. Now that I have two little kids I'd love to be able to set up a tank that we could collect, study and look after some of these things in. I have a bunch of questions I'm hoping the wise people around here can help me with: 1/ My initial thinking was to keep a relatively low water level - say 6" - which also happens to work well in an area that tends to randomly slop water eveywhere. Then have maybe a third at one end set up so that it is out of the water, in order to have a place where estuary crabs could get out of the water. But I'm not even sure they would, seeing as its normally the water that comes and goes, not the crab. Would this be necessary/useful? 2/ If I used 'live' sand, natural sea water and some rocks from a tidal area, would the aquarium cycle still take months? 3/ I don't have, and don't ever plan to have, a chiller. I know the local stuff likes it colder, but surely tidal creatures can tolerate temperature extremes better? Some of the pools get quite warm after spending hours in the sun. 4/ What are some things I should and shouldnt keep? I saw a small octopos in one of the time pools once and would LOVE to keep one of those... but I know they have have very specific requirements and tend to grow large. Triplefins? Catseye snails? Anenomes? Amphipods and copepods? Crabs? starfish? Any suggestions or insights are appreciated. Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 you could do it outside in a shady place using a big plastic bin or paddling pool rock from a rock pool is not really "live rock" as it is not porous enough to contain much bacteria some rock from tide pools and coral rock will work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hovmoller Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 3/ Like someone else much wiser than me said: because these creatures can tolerate extreme conditions doesn't mean they thrive in them or that they can survive them for very long. 4/ I asked same question (about what NOT to keep) on another forum and got this answer from Puttputt: "crabs, nudibranches that eat a specific food, snails that eat other snails, anything that you dont know what they eat, sea squirts, big star fish - they'll eat everything, big kina - as per starfish (my purple urchin consumed a live limpet (black footed one - you know) on the weekend, Sponges (they die and pollute), and thats all so far." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 plus octopus require pristine water and are awesome escape artists. Used live sand in my nano mudflat tank and the de-nitrifying bacteria have done their job from day one, had a minor ammonia spike initially but was stable after day 3 and hasn't gone out since really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marinefish4life Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 good triplefins are blue eyes provided you have live foods :thup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 good triplefins are blue eyes provided you have live foods :thup: have you kept them before Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marinefish4life Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 have you kept them before nope but hoping too, just repeating what i've read everywhere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 is there a lot of info around on keeping them in tanks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 is there a lot of info around on keeping them in tanks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marinefish4life Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 is there a lot of info around on keeping them in tanks? not really.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 Keep us informed on how you go as I'm about to embark on a setup much the same. I'm planning to have have tripplefins and shrimp in a ~160 L 700x600x400 + a refugium in a standard 2ft probably above the main tank. Have the two tanks and skimmer just have to empty the 160 L of fresh water and move my 430L native freshwater back inside. This is the advice I was given on another forum: Start with a clean up crew like hermits, turbos, chitons and glass shrimps. Also, if you look under large-ish boulders (on sand) try and get some mottled brittlestars, they set up shop beneath your liverock and are brilliant at sorting the accumulating nitrogenous crap. If you go for a sand bed, make it ~10cm and seed it with about 3 cm of rich natural substrate. have a look round locally for areas with lots of polychaete worms in a fairly course 1mm substrate. (if the worms are there, then there should also be all sorts of micro-molluscs, echinoderms and other microbial life) If there is mixed larger shell, remove it. any large shells are shit traps down deep. Also remove any large predatory polychaetes if you encounter them. They are the big pearl white ones with visible legs that can swim like eels!) You can then top up with whatever you want as long as its not too course and not too fine. Lots of debate on grainsize, but I've had good success with the coarser stuff that looks like pumice sand and accumulates on the surface on mid to low tide sandy beaches and on the sandy fringes of rocky headlands (on the east coast anyway) aim for ~ 1mm. Keep the load low for at least 6 months - Thats the hard part- Let it balance out and then you can start to add your finds. LA has put together a really good compatibility guide on the other wing of this sub forum. Immediate forgetaboutits that you may easily encounter are.. all pelagics and anything that takes a bait off a wharf, Juv snapper, spottys, stargazers, olive rockfish, nudibranchs without foodsource consideration, most sponges (purple dysidea ok for clown nudi's), dwarf scorpionfish.. actually there's heaps, refer to the guide or ask as you go, and really, it depends on how you want to set up too, some younger members have had shit heaped on them for keeping say, spotties . Turns out that spotties are fine - and really interesting- If you consider the co-habitants. and thats really what it's all about. Research the co-hab of all your species and what they may eat, consider any filter feeders if you protein skim, go slow, keep your bioload minimised, and you'll be fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matto Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 i have just started to cycle mine now,waiting for the rock to become live is the hard part Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoon Posted October 8, 2012 Report Share Posted October 8, 2012 http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/sh ... uction-log this may give you a few ideas along a slightly different angle perhaps a chiller can be acquired secondhand cheaper but good to see you back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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