29 Gallon Setup - Almost Done

[chrisfont23]

After about 7 months, I am finally (almost) ready to declare victory. Some pictures of the setup

[Kmoriarty]

Looks great! I saw the iccellaris in one pic, is that the only fish in the tank?

[chrisfont23]

2 of them

[Kmoriarty]

Cool that's what I did in my 40. Also have 1 shrimp goby. Looks nice man!

[chrisfont23]

I am just nervous to go add fish and crank up the bioload. Fish-wise, right now I have 2 clowns, 2 damsels and 1 royal gramma. I also have 1 coral banded shrimp and about 10-15 snails (turbo/cerith).

[Chasman]

Chris

Tank looks good. You were asking Twisted about paint for the back. I've always painted mine black with Krylon Fusion paint. I've used Rust-Oleum in days past with no ill effects. With your tank up it will be more difficult. Maybe you could use a small roller to paint it. Any black paint will look glossy from in the tank. Spraying it with fish and such in it might not be a very good idea. I've never tried a laytex paint on glass. Try some on a scrap piece and see how well it sticks.

[FoMoCo Master Tech]

Looking good Chris! Let us know how the skimmer works out.

I'm going to paint my new tank's back with latex. Not that its better or worse. I just figure that if I ever need to repaint it, it would just peel right off. Not that its all that hard to use a razor for other paints. I'm just lazy.

[Matities23]

the tank looks pretty good! congrats!! do you any idea of what fish/fishes are you planning to add? Asking bcz those damsels and clowns might become a problem.. also what are you feeding your corals? Is that a duncan by the candy canes?

[twisted]

hey chris! tank looks good! the only thing i see that i would recommend is more surface turbulence...unless you shut things down to take pics..
maybe try taking the powerhead on the right(facing tank) and lower it about 4" and aim it more towards the surface. just be careful not to break too much surface and splash the bulbs

[chrisfont23]

Thanks guys! Twisted, I have the Maxi Jet 1200 on the left aimed at the surface and I get some real good turbulence. IMO, better at that than the nano I own is. I had the Koralia aimed high too but a little too many splashes and noticed some dead spots toward the front. I am now dealing w/ a cyano outbreak, so we'll see. BTW - your tank looks incredible. Keep inspiring! I am looking at getting a Red Sea Max250 next Spring, w/ the 29 g as my starter.

Matities23 - I am feeding the corals Oyster Feast and PhytoPlankton a few times a week. The candy canes were way too high up and seemed to hate the light, so they have been moved to a lower position w/ med flow. Those are two Duncan frags though next to the candy cane. 2 damsels. 2 clowns. 1 royal gramma. That's it for me.

[twisted]

mmmmmm oyster feast.......my favorite. best food out there!

[chrisfont23]

mmmmmm oyster feast.......my favorite. best food out there!

Out of curiosity, do u feed daily? My whole assumption was that light was enough though...until I came on the boards and noticed differences of opinion. For my 29G, I usually rotate oyster feast (1/4 tsp) and phyto plantkon weekdays (M-Fri) and hit w/ CoralVite on Sat. Seem reasonable?

[twisted]

Out of curiosity, do u feed daily? My whole assumption was that light was enough though...until I came on the boards and noticed differences of opinion. For my 29G, I usually rotate oyster feast (1/4 tsp) and phyto plantkon weekdays (M-Fri) and hit w/ CoralVite on Sat. Seem reasonable?

i spot feed with oyster once a week. since i make my own foods, i use oyster and reef plus from sea chem in the mix. so they get a little each day but just for corals, id recommend twice a week by spot feeding...phyto is overrated i think...unless you are growing pod cultures.

[Matities23]

m... I would recomand target feeding the duncan,hammer and candy with some baby brime, regular brime or mysys when the tentacles are out ( usually at night) They will love it.. I run an aquaculte place and I feed em 3x per week... my duncans frags got about 5 to 7 new heads in about 3 weeks.

[chrisfont23]

m... I would recomand target feeding the duncan,hammer and candy with some baby brime, regular brime or mysys when the tentacles are out ( usually at night) They will love it.. I run an aquaculte place and I feed em 3x per week... my duncans frags got about 5 to 7 new heads in about 3 weeks.

I just took your advice and it was pretty incredible. I haven't owned a Duncan before and to see the head pretty much engulf a few mysis was pretty cool.

On another note, I am replacing my Koralia Nano with another Maxi-Jet. For those looking, the nano is too light for this setup. Oh well, win some, lose some.

[Matities23]

Im glad it worked.. feed your hammer too. I agree with the koralia nano. not enough flow IMO. How often do you change the water?

[chrisfont23]

I do 20% biweekly...roughly 6 gallons. I recently started fighting cyano so I am replacing the nano. If that doesn't work, considering dosing vodka w/ MB7 to reduce nitrates and contributing algae factors but am chicken My recent bloom is quite the hassle so I am considering it. I think the idea was .1 ml per 25 g for 3 days. Then gradually increase over days 4-7, doubling by day 7. Then incremental each week... sounds plausible given the biological substance the theory holds. Just wondering if it's worth it.

[clownygirl]

Looks pretty good! Are those 2 clowns paired? Any advise for me I want to have a pair of clowns?..

[Matities23]

m... I would try increasing water floss in the areas with cyno.. How much are you feeding em? over feeding could be a cause... also what water do you use for tap off? Vodka teatment is great but not as easy as it sounds... remember the gallons they are telling you is the total water volume.. not the amount of water your tank holds... for example if your tank can hold 29g.. it doesnt mean you have exactly 29g in there... rocks and sand will drop the volume. Also you will need a skimmer due to the bacteria bloom the treatment will cause. Good luck.

[chrisfont23]

Yeah, I am going to pass on it for a while. I am replacing a Nano later this week with a Maxi Jet. Will never make that mistake again.