40g Long Naturally lit macro-algae tank

[RyHaN]

awesome tank! something we dont see everyday

[CKS]

Thanks guys!

New photos taken today 14-April, about a month from the last FTS update.

Not much have changed, except the Aiptasia, managed to exterminate most of the visible one with RedSea's Aiptasia-X. Also gotten alot more C.Prolifera from F&M. They've been growing well so far on the sandbed *keeping my fingers crossed*.

 

[CKS]

New macros added

Orange Gracilaria parvispora (i think?) from CoralFarm, didnt look quite healthy with the white-tip, so it might be short-live

 

An unknown green macro gotten from the F&M, anyone has any idea what this might be?

And the FTS, the hitch-hiker slimy brown macro didnt make it

[monkeysee]

Did you dose iron supplement in your tank?

Sent from my SM-N920I using Tapatalk

[CKS]

14 hours ago, monkeysee said:

Did you dose iron supplement in your tank?

Sent from my SM-N920I using Tapatalk

Hi monkeysee, i dose about one cap full of about~5ml Iron supplement once per week. Same for nitrogen & iodide+magnesium

[christan1959]

Nice set-up. How are the seahorses doing? Hv always wanted to try keep them. Maybe will try a small setup like yours. I hv a pair of mandarins and the female is eating pellets. You can see a clip of them in mating dance on YouTube (search for "courting mandarins").

[sharonleong]

Very unique set up Thumbs up

[CKS]

20 hours ago, christan1959 said:

Nice set-up. How are the seahorses doing? Hv always wanted to try keep them. Maybe will try a small setup like yours. I hv a pair of mandarins and the female is eating pellets. You can see a clip of them in mating dance on YouTube (search for "courting mandarins").

Thank you Only the tigertail black/white seahorse is alive now. Added a tiny seahorse 2 months ago but it went missing and havent been found for 2 weeks
Oh yea the mandarins r happy and still fat I've also caught their mating dance on video

19 hours ago, sharonleong said:

Very unique set up Thumbs up

THank you Sharon

 

The tank is very different now actually, lost most of the non-green macroalgae. They just vanished suddenly. Still have a tiny strain of purple Ochtodes in the sump lighted 24/7 together with the ATS. Hopefully it will return to its 'glorious day'. I've no idea what could have caused it, probably lack of certain nutrient which i'm unable to measure. The display tank is dominated by green macro now.

[christan1959]

Algae can crash for no clear reason. 

How come only one seahorse left? Not enough food?

[Harlequinmania]

On 7/25/2016 at 1:12 PM, CKS said:

Thank you Only the tigertail black/white seahorse is alive now. Added a tiny seahorse 2 months ago but it went missing and havent been found for 2 weeks
Oh yea the mandarins r happy and still fat I've also caught their mating dance on video

THank you Sharon

 

The tank is very different now actually, lost most of the non-green macroalgae. They just vanished suddenly. Still have a tiny strain of purple Ochtodes in the sump lighted 24/7 together with the ATS. Hopefully it will return to its 'glorious day'. I've no idea what could have caused it, probably lack of certain nutrient which i'm unable to measure. The display tank is dominated by green macro now.

Did you try to test for Nitrate , Phoshpate and iron level ? Which might be the cause of the algae dieing off. Also i find that the ATS is pretty strong in absorbing nutrient from the system which is also why the reason why your plant is not doing well now. 

[CKS]

On 25/07/2016 at 8:42 PM, christan1959 said:

Algae can crash for no clear reason. 

How come only one seahorse left? Not enough food?

No idea really, one contacted gas bubble, though we managed to cure it with antibiotic and 'needling' but died a month after recovering due to unknown reason.

Another smaller one just went missing, thats the risk when the tank is not dedicated seahorse setup

12 hours ago, he said:

Did you try to test for Nitrate , Phoshpate and iron level ? Which might be the cause of the algae dieing off. Also i find that the ATS is pretty strong in absorbing nutrient from the system which is also why the reason why your plant is not doing well now. 

Tested, Nitrate usually 0-10ppm, Phoshpate always ~0.25 and iron always undetectable Have been fighting with redslim as well, maybe something is wrong with my redfield ratio. Oh yes, I think the ATS could have been working too well. Its a paradox thought, i needed it to hopefully stave the redslim but at the same time its fighting with the macroalgae in the display.

[tuajia]

Lol I have the same dilemma now. My red macroalgae and the caulerpa from you are doing well, but there's stiff hair algae as well. Damn ugly! But if I use an ATS, it'll fight with the red algae for nutrients. How?! Hahahaha

Sent from my E6653 using Tapatalk

[christan1959]

Increasing flow + lowering temperature might help address slime algae.

[CKS]

5 hours ago, tuajia said:

Lol I have the same dilemma now. My red macroalgae and the caulerpa from you are doing well, but there's stiff hair algae as well. Damn ugly! But if I use an ATS, it'll fight with the red algae for nutrients. How?! Hahahaha

Sent from my E6653 using Tapatalk

that was why i was distributing them when they were healthy, hopefully can buy back the same crop from you guys one day I'm at a fixed too.. maybe i'll post a photo of the current status here and also over at RC to get more ideas.

3 hours ago, christan1959 said:

Increasing flow + lowering temperature might help address slime algae.

Yes you are right, i actually reduced the flow significantly due to introduction of small seahorses. It was struggling with high-flow. I should not have introduced them :| And i've no control of the temperature since its outdoor tank XD

[Clamence]

Very nice, looks like some of those freshwater planted tanks haha

Sent from my Mi 4i using Tapatalk

[CKS]

Finally managed to make some new photos of the display tank. Left with only the greens, I am now constantly fighting a battle with the aiptasia and nutrient (lack-of). I've almost doubled my nutrient dosing to keep the macro happy. The fishes and seahorses are still healthy thought It is about time to harvest those pesty brittle starfishes again

 

[vidios]

Can i have a few of the harvest 8) thanks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[hijackng]

Is there wavemaker in your tank?

[Guest]

How long do you keep your lights on?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[CKS]

9 hours ago, vidios said:

Can i have a few of the harvest 8) thanks


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Sure! i'll be posting them in the 'buy & sell' probably at the same price as previous release

 

5 hours ago, Willy Guccivera Yap said:

How long do you keep your lights on?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

its for 'decorative' purpose so it is turned on only when i'm at home in the evening and morning.

 

7 hours ago, hijackng said:

Is there wavemaker in your tank?

Yep yep,  a gyre wavemaker, full spec in the first post is still valid except no more skimmer

[Limited]

Nice..

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app

[CKS]

The full tank shot as of Nov-2016

The aiptasia are gone! but its not exactly a good news, i've also lost many brittlestars and fanworm which might be the result of the aggressive anti-aiptasia campaign. Think i went overboard and added copperband & filefish, and one or both of them found the starfishes and worms to be delicious too. My plan to sell the brittlestars has been ruined

I have also discovered that the Gyre wave-maker hasn't been performing as it should after a year of running. Had to replace the impeller and its all good now. And that could be the reason why the macroalgae hasnt been doing well. I have also been monitoring the water level more closely to ensure NO3 stays above 5ppm.

These are what I have dosing now.

More regular dosage + higher water flow and now the Ochtodes are back! Hopefully i've have luck replanting them into the main display.

The C.Prolifera have also taken root in the sediment and almost everywhere else

And the status of the sump/ATS/algae incubator where i keep 'back-up' of algae strains

The fastest growing macro today is the Ulva, they can multiply nearly by twice everyweek

 

 

[Harlequinmania]

Those are tasty food for tangs !

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app

[CKS]

19 hours ago, he said:

Those are tasty food for tangs !

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app
 

Unfortunately my regal tang is too spoilt with meaty food, it has never nipped on the ulva. I do find lots of pods attached on it thought

[CKS]

Rescaped the tank slightly so that its not too empty in the middle.

 

I've been growing the macro in the sump attached to egg-crate, it makes them easier to be shifted to another part of the tank. Heres one egg-crate-O-Macro stuck on the sandbed.

And lastly the beautiful copperband with 3 different kinds of green macro (C.Prolifera, C.Serrulata, C.Taxifolia)