The Reef Tank Experience

Falling star

2008-09-12T17:58:00.001-05:00

Blue linkia is about to fall off the rocks. He did fall but recovered and slithered off.

Teasting

2008-09-04T22:07:00.001-05:00

I have set up so I can mobile blog here. Hopefully this will work well & people will read.

Orange Tube Coral

2007-08-13T16:06:00.000-05:00

Probably the prettiest coral in the tank as of now.

New Fish

2007-08-13T16:04:00.000-05:00

I have added some new fish to the resident list as well as a new coral. Check them out on the left side of the page. I will post some pics as soon as I can. The newbies are:Orange Tube CoralBlue Regal TangYellow Head Jawfish (a really cool pair)

Vote Now!

2007-08-09T22:52:00.000-05:00

Be sure to vote in my new poll. Let your opinion matter.< ------- Vote Here.

Looking Good

2007-08-09T22:37:00.000-05:00

The tank is looking really nice today. The new lights are really making the corals happy. Everything did well in the move to the new tank and have opened up nicely. The fish all seem happy and are eating well. Checked my water and everything is looking like it should.

2007-08-07T13:43:00.001-05:00

Here are some photos of the new tank. See more by clicking on the link to my photo page on the left of the page.

New Tank!!

2007-08-07T12:33:00.000-05:00

I have set up my new tank. It is really amazing and I am much happier with this tank compared to the old ones. This one is an 80 gallon half circle made by Oceanic. I have a cabinet and hood as well as a sump and some new lighting. I will be posting some more info and some photos of the tank shortly.

This is fun

2007-07-28T18:17:00.000-05:00

Check this out. Posted on the MI Reefers chat. Let me know what you are worth.$3990.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth. From Mingle2 - Free Online DatingMingle2 - Free Online Dating

A new era...

2007-07-26T21:33:00.001-05:00

I have been lucky enough to be upgrading my set-up! I have purchased a new 76 gallon half-circle Oceanic tank. This baby is amazing! I got an amazing deal from someone on Michigan Reefers. He is upgrading to a 200 gallon in wall tank and no longer needs this tank. Here is a link to the thread about the tank as well as a picture. I am getting the stand, tank, canopy, sump, plumbing, and

The future of the reef

2007-07-24T20:23:00.000-05:00

Stay tuned for some possible news about the future of the reef!

Bad Luck and good news

2007-07-24T20:20:00.000-05:00

I have had a string of bad luck lately. First my urchin and cleaner shrimps died due to me over salting my water change. I also bleached out a couple of corals. My fault and it is a bummer. Then one of my pumps sucked in my Kole tang and it died. I tried a blue tang (dory) same problem after 30 min in the tank...doh! The good news is the other guys are all doing well. The two clowns are

New Photos!!

2007-07-24T20:12:00.000-05:00

It has been a while (again) but I have posted new pictures of the tank on the link to the left. Let me know what you think.

It's back...

2007-03-26T08:19:00.000-05:00

So about 2 months back I pulled out my feather duster. The butterfly was picking at it and I was going to take it to the fish shop for a trade. Well in trying to remove it I tore it in half and then had to pull it out and made a real mess. Well last night I was looking over the tank and noticed the feather duster is still there. It is small but growing and has a real nice feather. It is in

New Fish

2007-03-26T07:51:00.000-05:00

I have added a new fish. It is a foxface. This is a great fish I picked up from a fellow reefer. He had an overload of tanks and was clearing out his fish room. It is about 4" long and in great condition. The coolest part of this fish is his ability to change colors. When he is scared or stressed he becomes spotted and hides. He plays dead really well! I have added a link to a description

New Relationship

2007-03-08T22:28:00.000-05:00

Ok so I added a Pistol Shrimp today. (link on left to see him at saltwaterfish.com...he is only about 1" so too hard to photo in the tank) This little guy is really cool. The coolest part is the relationship he has with my Randall Goby. I have added a link for you to read more about this amazing relationship. Probably my new favorite thing to check out in the tank...if I can catch a glimpse.

New Photos!

2007-03-08T22:25:00.000-05:00

At last I have posted a whole new page of photos. The tank is looking good (in my opinion) but you be the judge. Click the photo link to the left to see more. I have put a preview below:

My Favorite Coral

2007-03-08T22:16:00.000-05:00

Ok it was hard to choose but I think this purple polyp is my favorite!

Danger, Danger

2007-03-08T15:10:00.000-05:00

I have added a sweet long spine urchin today! Photos to follow. Also added a Brain Coral and a Big Red Mushroom.

More adjustments

2007-03-07T19:57:00.000-05:00

I have added some more live rock and done a bit more to my aquascape. It is really looking nice now. New photos will be up soon so you can see all the new corals. I added a branching millepora today. Looks really cool!

My favoite site

2007-03-07T19:49:00.000-05:00

There are a lot of saltwater sites out there. I have been on the Michigan Reefers site a lot lately. Check the forums! Click here

New Gear

2007-03-04T22:14:00.000-05:00

I have added two essentail items to the tank. First, a CPR BAKPAK protien skimmer. This is a hang-on model good for tanks up to about 65 gallons. I have a maxi 900 pump feeding it right now. It has been taking out great skimmate from the moment I powered it up. More info can be found here.The second item is a UV sterilizer. I have a 9 watt Coralife Turbortwist. I have it set-up as a hang

Back to posting

2007-03-04T22:11:00.000-05:00

Well I haven't posted here in some time. I have been keeping my hands out of the tank and letting it run its course. I made a deal with Emily to leave it be (and no more spending for a while) I made it about 10 days without any changes. I did have to poke at the occasional snail or crap and do some glass scraping to clear of algae but I have some tools for those tasks. I have a pair of

New Corals

2007-02-21T20:39:00.000-05:00

I have added some new corals to the tank. I have a rock with several new Xenias and a Red Monitpora Coral. This is a hard coral and is much different from what I have had up to now. I have also added a piece of Green Montipora Coral. Hopefully these will continue to grow. They look really cool under actinics!I have also updated the photo page. Be sure to see my new aquascape (10 additional

Been a while

2007-02-18T15:15:00.000-05:00

Ok well I haven't posted in a while. I have been busy and the tank has been doing well. I made a deal with myself to let the tank be for at least a week. I had been putting my hands in and messing with it a lot. Well I made it 9 days without a hand in the tank! In that time I had a lot of algae bloom and some good coral growth. The xenias both split so instead of 2 I have 4! Also my

Sick tang?

2007-02-15T10:34:00.000-05:00

I have been seeing what might be ich on my tang! My just be sand though.

Update to site

2007-02-06T12:43:00.000-05:00

I have added a new spot on the sidebar to follow my water parameters. Hopefully this is of some interest. I will try to post trends as well as I notice them. I have also updated my poll since the Copperband is going to stay. Also be sure to add yourself to my new guestmap on the left sidebar. I am interested in who is reading this and from where.

Photos

2007-02-06T12:42:00.000-05:00

I have put all new photos on the photo page. See the link to the left.

News from reef town

2007-02-06T12:24:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted in a while but have been busy. Lane has been really sick and I have not had much time on the tank. However there are some revisions to the LR set-up and some new fish. I have links on the side of my two new fish - Randall Goby and a Six-Line Wrasse. Both are really cool fish. The wrasse is very active and has great colors. I will try to get up a real picture of mine shortly

new goby

2007-02-03T09:34:00.001-05:00

a glimpse of my new goby. More to follow.

Tank Update

2007-02-01T21:17:00.000-05:00

We made it home from Florida and I am happy to report the tank looks great! Erin did a great job feeding while we were gone. I did have some algae growth and some minor cleaning to do but all in all it looks great. The one thing I am going to have to fix is the Damsel. That fish is a terrible bully and is picking on the maroon striped clown. He is all beat up and his tail and fins are torn

Nemo

2007-01-30T16:12:00.000-05:00

Nice looking anenome tank

Mom? Dad?

2007-01-30T16:10:00.001-05:00

This is one pregnant seahorse!

sea dragon Seahorse

2007-01-30T16:09:00.001-05:00

emily was really sad when her seahorse died. I told her we will get one of these as a replacement.

2007-01-30T16:04:00.003-05:00

2/2 t time.--===============================================Brought to you by, Cingular Wireless Messaginghttp://www.CingularMe.COM/

2007-01-30T16:04:00.001-05:00

1/2 We are at the florida aquarium today. There is a 500000 gallon main tank. They have all kinds of mini tanks too. Ill send some photos as I ge--===============================================Brought to you by, Cingular Wireless Messaginghttp://www.CingularMe.COM/

New tank

2007-01-30T16:03:00.001-05:00

I plan to install this baby in our next house :-D

New photos

2007-01-26T12:20:00.000-05:00

I have posted some new photos of the entire tank on the photocast page. The tank really looks good. I am heading to Florida for a week so I probably won't be posting much to the blog. Be sure to check out our other BLOG to see how our trip is going.

Aquascape

2007-01-24T19:59:00.000-05:00

I also mentioned earlier I did some more aquascaping. This was due to a rock that fell off its perch while I was at work on Tuesday. Anyway I have repositioned a couple of rocks in a more stable position. I would like to get about 2-3 more good size live rocks to finish up my aquascape. I think that project will wait about a week.

New Purple Tang

2007-01-24T19:55:00.000-05:00

I got a great purple tang today! This fish is fantastic. I have been looking for one for a while and I guess they are pretty rare. I have put a link on my inhabitants list. Enjoy the photo.

New Additions & Aquascape

2007-01-24T15:59:00.000-05:00

I found a new local fish shop today off of Wayne road called 'The Fish Tank' They have a georgeous display tank and lots of great looking fish. I bought some new guys and am currently dripping them into the tank. I'll put up some links on my current residents list. Check back later for more.

New coral

2007-01-22T18:44:00.001-05:00

I have placed a great looking new coral in the tank today. It is a frogspawn. The picture is not the best but you can just make it out on the left side (green bubble like piece)

Photo Page

2007-01-20T21:37:00.000-05:00

Ok I have done it...after all this time I have finally gotten a photo page up and running. I will try my best to keep up and keep the photos current. It can be found here: Photos

H2O change

2007-01-20T21:19:00.000-05:00

I have done my first water change. I did it tonight at about 8:30. I changed out roughly 7 gallons. the tank is 38 so i figure i did a 20% change. The guys at fish doctors were EXTREMELY helpful with this. (http://www.fishdoctors.com/) I bought my R/O H2O there today. I'll have to update you Mon. as to how it went.

comments

2007-01-20T21:16:00.000-05:00

this one is for you patty...if you click on the 'comments' link below each post it should bring up a window where you can post. I don't think you need to be a guest or anything. just type and click post. try again and let me know.

BUMMER!

2007-01-20T08:17:00.000-05:00

Well I awoke this morning to find my blue linkia star melting off the rocks. It looks like he lost his insides and was dead. I really liked this star and am very disappointed. I am going to do some research and look into this death a bit closer as I would like to add another in the future.

Actinics

2007-01-19T08:41:00.001-05:00

This is a pic of my new actinic set-up. These will be on until 10:00. Then the daylights will kick in too. I'll send a picture of that later today.

Copperband woes

2007-01-19T08:17:00.000-05:00

Well as beautiful as the copperbanded butterfly is he is a pest. I think he is munching on some of my corals. That however is not my big bother. I have a very nice featherduster. I have made him a really cool little cave to live in. The butterfly has found the cave and now 'sleeps' in there and nips at the duster. So here is the question...should the butterfly stay (he is really cool

Lighting

2007-01-19T08:07:00.000-05:00

I have installed my new lighting. I now have 80 watts of lighting. I have made my own custom light set-up based on some fancy (more expensive) light sets. I have two coralife T-5 units. Each came with a 50/50 actinic and a 10k daylight bulb. (20 watts/bulb) I have taken the actinics out and put them in one unit and the daylights in the other. I also have dual led night light set. It is

Tank Updates

2007-01-19T08:05:00.000-05:00

It has been a little while since my last post. I'm going to work on the tank today and will get some more photos up today and some good posts. Thanks for reading.

Contact Me

2007-01-15T21:07:00.000-05:00

I have been working on this for about 2-3 weeks now. I have no idea who is looking at it or following the updates. Let me know via email if you are keeping up ad what you would like to see me posting about. Thanks.

New starfish

2007-01-12T18:20:00.001-05:00

Lane and I picked up a blue linkia star today. It is really cool. Sort of melts into the rock.

2007-01-10T12:47:00.003-05:00

2/2 my new lighting is in & I'm goong to install it today. Hopefully it will ressurect my anenome.--===============================================Brought to you by, Cingular Wireless Messaginghttp://www.CingularMe.COM/

2007-01-10T12:47:00.001-05:00

1/2 Tank adjustments & additions. I have some new corals to add today. I also added a sally-lightfoot crab. I will get a pic up of him asap! Also--===============================================Brought to you by, Cingular Wireless Messaginghttp://www.CingularMe.COM/

anenome shrinkage

2007-01-09T19:49:00.001-05:00

What is happening to my anenome!?

The Trouble With Anenomes

2007-01-09T19:16:00.000-05:00

Well the new anenome isn't looking so good. he is sort of shrivled up and on the bottom of the tank. I have had this problem with 2 of them now. I am thinking it is a lighting problem. Tomorrow I will be getting another set of T-5 lights and double my wattage up to 80 watts or just over 2 watts/gallon. This should hopefully help. I hope he makes it until I can get the new lights. I will

Tank Check/Update

2007-01-07T20:40:00.000-05:00

So far so good. I was at the station for 3 days and came home to some serious algae. However all the locals are doing well. After a nice Mysis (shrimp) brunch they were quite happy. Did a water top off and a water test and everything looks good. Have to go now. As I said earlier I will try to get some pictures up soon.

Tank Status

2007-01-05T19:13:00.000-05:00

Today the tank is looking good. All the fish seem happy. The GSM clown is a bit skiddish. I think he needs time to warm up to everyone. He does have a nice cave he has taken to. The feather duster also is skiddish only coming out at night. I will just have to watch the GSM closely to be sure he is eating. I will get some more photos of my tank up on Sunday. I will try to get some good

Tank Update

2007-01-05T16:43:00.000-05:00

Lane and I went to the LFS (local fish store) yesterday. We had our water checked for pH. I have been having trouble keeping the pH right on my tank. It turns out the pH was holding well but perhaps I was not reading the test right. The guys at the Fish Doctors (www.fishdoctors.com) set me straight once again. I have re-arranged my aquascape and will try to get up some pics a.s.a.p. I have

New Reef Tank

2007-01-04T14:27:00.002-05:00

Here is the new tank all set up. I wish I had photos of the set-up process but I thought of this a bit too late.

2007-01-04T14:27:00.001-05:00

Test mobile post.--===============================================Brought to you by, Cingular Wireless Messaginghttp://www.CingularMe.COM/

Original Reef

2007-01-04T14:24:00.000-05:00

Here is quick photo of the 12 gallon I started with. This tank has been dis-assembled and all the inhabitant moved to the main reef.

Tank Details

2007-01-04T14:13:00.000-05:00

Lets get right to it!I am starting a reef aquarium at home. The tank is a 38 gallon received from Matt Lambert's home. I have it set-up as follows:38 Gallon - 36" x 18" x 13"30 lbs. Live sand10 lbs. Crushed Coral Substrate40 lbs. Live rock200 watt heaterAqualife hang-on filter (3 - stage bio filter w/carbon)Powerhead unit (i don't know what kind or the volume...im working on that)Coralife t-5

WELCOME

2007-01-04T14:11:00.000-05:00

Here we are January 2007. I am starting up this new blog to track my new aquarium. I will try to do a daily post on the happenings here at 'Reef Central'. I will post notes on the population, the water, changes, additions, deletions (let's hope not too many) and much more.I hope you will check back often and let me know what you think. I am up for suggestions, changes, comments, etc.Seth