Pasty's JBJ28 Haddoni Biotope--New Video (7.4.2014)

You should have seen them both when I was adding the snails in "waves". Every time, they thought it was food so they'd chase them to the bottom....only to realize that they were not, in fact, food. They seemed so disappointed. I'm going to treat them today with some frozen food since I played a cruel trick on them

 

Picked up my candy cane, green polyp leather and finger leather last night. Don't have any pictures because they were obviously still acclimating and didn't look great. Candy cane had a nice mucus'y discharge and the leather had sort of folded over on itself. After doing some reading, I'm not terribly worried and I'm positive they'll be just fine after a few days once they get settled in.

My clownfish weren't very happy with me for messing with their home. My black occ. decided he wanted to sleep upside-down against the back wall instead of in the front where the 2 normally sleep side by side.

My largest stripe leg hermit got a little too curious about my finger leather and candy cane. I'm going to keeep a close eye on him and if I see him messing with them again, he's out of there.

All in all, I think everything went well. I hope they're looking better by this afternoon so I can snap a few pictures because I'm leaving tonight and won't be back until Monday afternoon.

 

Everything looked open and healthy this afternoon. Clownish seemed stressed out...possibly from all the chaos I caused in the tank putting all of that in. I had a measurable amount of ammonia so I did a water change but all the corals were open and none of the other fish seemed strung out so I think it will all be alright. Anyway...enjoy the pictures

 

Had my roomate check on my fish yesterday and he said all looked well. Leaving a tank for 3 days when you think your fish are stressed out is a terrible feeling. I'll be glad to get home and check everything with my own eyes.

A move may be in the very near future as my girlfriend of 2 years is finally making the move from New Orleans to Baton Rogue (where I live). At long last, no more switching weekends as to who goes where. This means I won't be doing much more to the tank until we are settled in a new home. The less I have to move, the easier it will go and the less I'm likely to lose anything. The idea of tearing this down and moving is already makes my stomach a little upset.

 

Came home yesterday to one of my pump putting some bubbles in my tank. A tank that size is very difficult to leave for three days without topping off. My acans were absolutely unhappy but after fixing the problem and spot feeding some mysis, they were plump and seemingly happy before I went to bed.

The green polyp leather was standing at full attention with all polyps extended. It really is a beautiful peice. I'm sorry to say that I didn't take any pictures. After meeting with a realtor after work and trying to get everyone fed (including myself....last), it was time to shower and get in bed.

One of my knuckle-headed hermits knocked my candy cane over so I have a feeling that I'll be water-welding it to a rock somewhere also....the sand simply isn't enough to keep it steady.

The house I looked at yesterday is potentially the one we'll be moving into and I'm sad to say that the bedroom isn't laid out in a way that would support having my tank in it. I'm a little bummed about that since I loved laying in bed and watching the tank right before I fall asleep.

 

Nothing new to show but just some observations.

1. This CuC is amazing. I haven't even had to clean the glass in a week...it's spotless. I used to have to clean it every day or, at least, every other day.
2. With the addition of the new media/media basket, my water has become sparkling clear. Very noticeable difference.
3. I've noticed 1 or 2 new heads on the acan. I don't know if that's because I never noticed them before or they really are new. Either way, I have to assume it's a good sign that they're looking good/healthy.

 

Evaporation is a real concern if you leave for even 1 to 2 days, I am adding roughly 1/3 of a gallon or more daily. I do not worry so much about the bubble affect on the corals, I worry more about burning out a pump and the swings in SG. Hence the ATO DIY I am going to do. With winter coming the evaporation should not be so bad.

Acans love to be feed, routine feedings results in faster growth, same with the candy cane.

 

I may buy a peice of acrylic and design my own "lid" for the back section of the tank. I have to imagine that most evaporation is taking place there since I normally keep my access lid on the tank closed (except on very hot days). Now that I should be in town every weekend very soon, it shouldn't be any issue for normal top off's but for vacations and what not...it would certainly help.

 

Caught my largest stripe legged hermit picking at my candy cane last night so I tossed him into my SW mix tank. I have a feeling my CBS isn't far behind. They both have been on my bad side after stealing food when I spot feed my corals.

Forgot to mention: I've noticed my clowns acting strangely and it has me a bit worried. They're still eating healthy amounts but after my actinics kicked on, they both started swimming around hyperactively (at times)...spastic even. I know clownfish have peculiar habits so I didn't think much of it until I saw one rubbing his face in the sand and, at one point, on a rock. This has me worried that something is amiss. Obviously, no visible signs of ich or loss of appetite but sometimes the difference between a fish living or dying is catching the early stages and taking evasive action.

I will recheck my water levels when I get home to make sure it's nothing related but everyone else is healthy and acting normal.

 

I never updated about my clowns. They seem to have calmed down so I have no explanation for the way they were acting except clownfish are strange creatures. If something was wrong, I did nothing to fix it and it must have worked itself out.

This weekend is the big weekend for moving. Luckily, the new place is only about 5 min. away so this should make moving the tank less stressful for everyone (myself included).

I've got 10gal. of fresh SW mixed and ready to go should i need it but I'm hoping I can do everything with the water already available to save acclimation times. I'm going to bag the corals, put fish in a bucket, rock in a seperate bucket, empty the tank until I have just enough water to cover the sand and then move the tank over. It will be the absolute last peice I move so that I can dedicate as much time as I can to it. I hope I am able to get the rock scape back to something similar but if not, I'm sure I'll come up with something decent. Keep an eye out around Sunday for some pictures of the tank in it's new place.

Once it's all said and done, I'll be able to pull the trigger on a coupel of peices I've been eyeballing