Danano's Reef

[danano]

I've got two of these focused on the tank.

[danano]

Here are two screenshots of the aircon controller. I upgraded and equipped an existing Daikin Aircon with this WiFi and cloud feature. Fortunately, the nine year old Aircon model I had was compatible and the controller module worked.

[danano]

The SSC has grown on me, I'm starting to like it.... 

[danano]

At low tide....

 

[danano]

The Forest Fire has taken on an interesting growth form with branches tightly clustered together. The banching monti is less than six inches from the surface in between both light fixtures, and the flow is moderate and fairly constant. An example of how light and flow influences SPS growth.

[danano]

Coral clusters. Stylopora, Tubipora Musica and Goniopora. Happy reefing and have a great weekend y'all!

[danano]

On 5/2/2020 at 1:44 PM, danano said:

Today, water test followed by WC.

Key parameters tested as follows:

Ca 410

KH 7.3

Mg 1360

Corals are happy. Will try to maintain close to these levels.

Finished the RS salt bucket few weeks ago. Now on TM Pro-Reef.

Did another test today, CA and KH dropped a little. Mg no change from a week ago.

CA 395

KH 7.0

Mg 1360

Manually topped up Ca by 30ml and tweaked the daily dosage from 30 to 33ml.

Not touching KH for now, still within acceptable range. Currently dosing 184ml/day.

And MG, 12ml/day.

[danano]

I've been using the Coral Box WiFi Dosing Pump since September, and it's been reliable and fairly accurate. The doser and mobile app are easy to setup, use and maintain.

With calibration and accuracy down to 0.1ml, it allows for some serious fine tuning and dosing in very small quantities. However, for the three major elements (Ca, KH and Mg), I find 1ml adjustments do just fine. The fourth channel is for water top-up, to address the 500ml daily evaporation rate.

The check valves that come with doser are connected to the outlet hoses to prevent backflow and minimise air bubbles in the tubing.

[danano]

A flower bouquet for MOTHER'S DAY 

[danano]

Let there be light! Two AI Hydra 52HDs and a single OR2 60 Blue Plus provide ample illumination for the corals in the 650mm x 650mm x 500mm glass box.

 

[R0B]

Great tank. Thanks for sharing!!

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app

[danano]

Thanks Rob et al. Happy to share my passion and the little and simple things I do to care for a small piece of the ocean in my living room.

Sunset Montipora.

[teck4300]

Very nice coloration especially the mille at the bottom. 

[danano]

Medium to strong turbulent flow, a must have for SPS. Even with good flow, I use a turkey baster every so often to remove detritus and sand stuck in the corals.

Beneath the waves....

[danano]

Before introducing corals into the tank, I dip everything in Coral RX. Double the  recommended dosage and duration. I typically leave the coral in the original packaging with LFS water, add Coral RX into the bag and shake it vigorously for several seconds. I repeat last step after about ten minutes later and let it sit for another 10 minutes. After shaking the bag with the coral in it one more time, I remove it and place it in a container filled with tank water and leave it for a few minutes. As a final step, I inspect the container and coral/plugs/rocks closely for any undesirable parasites before introducing the corals into the tank. If I discover any, I will dip it one more time.

Note that dipping corals alone is not full proof. Even after introduction into the tank, I monitor the corals closely for health. Good polyp extension plus encrusting growth after about a week are good signs. Continued growth at the base and tips, and improved colouration over time is what I strive for. Any deterioration would be cause for concern requiring closer inspection, investigation and treatment, if necessary.

 

[danano]

On 4/22/2020 at 1:35 PM, danano said:

Thanks for the kind words all!

Jim, it's been a long time... how are you and how's the reef?

For those unaware, once upon a time, I had a 110g SPS dominated reef tank. After 12 years away from the hobby, I'm back and still nuts about reefkeeping, with SPS in particular

The Blue Face, one of my favourite large angels. And staghorns, love the look when grown out.

[danano]

Another purple bonsai variety, grown out from a small two branch frag. This is growing in the lagoon tank, directly beneath the Kessil LEDs. Several inches from the surface, it enjoys optimal lighting and flow conditions.

[danano]

A close-up of the purple bonsai.

[CalvinKlein]

Very nice tanks and SPS. May I know what is your secret to getting those awesome colours?

Also, you didnt mention on checking the newly purchased coral for aefw eggs. Aside from dipping and shaking the bag, how do you remove any eggs found on the coral?

[danano]

On 5/20/2020 at 12:48 PM, CalvinKlein said:

Very nice tanks and SPS. May I know what is your secret to getting those awesome colours?

Also, you didnt mention on checking the newly purchased coral for aefw eggs. Aside from dipping and shaking the bag, how do you remove any eggs found on the coral?

Thanks CK.

Maintaining optimal water parameters coupled with mixed turbulent flow contribute to bringing out the best in SPS corals.

Plus I've kept the bio-load low from the start, and maintained a low nutrient environment. This translates to "less brown" in the corals, allowing the colour pigmentation to standout.

Equally important are the lights. I've always liked the look of corals under T5s. Its spectrum and coverage are still the benchmark. Going with full LEDs, I played around with the settings/spectrum and program to achieve a similar visual and effect. I blanketed the small tank footprint with two AI Hydra 52HDs, providing the corals with ample illumination and good light coverage. Added an Orphek light bar at the front for a little extra.

The reefeeping principles I apply can be easily followed and replicated. The idea is to keep things as simple as possible, the overall setup and its maintenance. It just requires a little effort, discipline and commitment.

As for checking newly purchased corals for aefw eggs, yes, that's a must. I inspect everything closely. If I see anything that resembles eggs, I will cut off the affected sections liberally and only keep the healthy branches/frags.

[danano]

On 4/22/2020 at 4:51 PM, danano said:

Yes, lots to learn indeed, with LEDs and all the new equipment and reef keeping methods.... it was back to school for me.

Here's a growth sequence for a hoeksemai frag I salvaged from the mother colony, a piece that started in a nano tank before the 50g. Attached to a small piece of coral rubble, it's now fully encrusted with a few new growth tips.

Growth in a month

[Ashtrax]

On 5/10/2020 at 12:07 PM, danano said:

Let there be light! Two AI Hydra 52HDs and a single OR2 60 Blue Plus provide ample illumination for the corals in the 650mm x 650mm x 500mm glass box.

 

May i Know what size of gravel are you using?

[danano]

Ash, the gravel consists of a mixture of 40% course sand (approx size 2-3mm) and 60% coral chips/crushed coral (5-10mm). Just a thin layer for aesthetics. Sand for the wrasses.

[danano]

German Blue Polyp Acropora loses battle against Mini Hot Pink Stylopora. They've been friendly neighbours for over half a year until they grew within millimeters from one another. I fragged the German Blue once to allow more space for the pink stylo to grow. It didn't take long for the stylo to get up close and personal with the acro again. That's when the chemical warfare began. Notice the exposed/burnt section on the right side of the German Blue (in the first pic). Seeing that my only German Blue specimen was losing the fight, I made the decision to rescape a small section of the reefscape, moving things around a little. Given space constraints, I was forced to "resize" the stylo colony and relocate it to a less then ideal partially-shaded location. It's a fairly hardy coral species and should do fine, just that the pink colouration will be muted and growth stunted to some extent. At the same time, a Blue Hoeksemai was moved closer to the front, exposing the encrusting base with growth tips to more light. Stuck a small rock and a few frags to the recaped section as well, leaving a little space for perhaps another coral .

[danano]

The original spot, before the minor rescape. Thin branch Hot Pink Stylopora with German Blue Polyp Acropora on the far left. Blue Hoeksemai in the background.