My New Aquariums

[Medym]

So thus far I have only made one post to OVAS forums, I have been mostly lurking.  I shall lurk in the darkness no more!  I have was keeping a fresh water tank with loaches for a few years and decided to make the exciting switch over to salt.  As I learned very quickly, one simply does not keep one tank.  I will start with the smallest,

First, is my 1.6 gal IQ3 Pico aquarium I have setup on my desk:
http://i.imgur.com/87qyw.jpg

I currently am running it with the stock pump, with two robot LED lights.  Submersible heater is tucked into the back with the lid added to help fight evaporation coupled with a home made auto top off dripping in to keep it nice and fresh.  There is a nice little green mushroom, and what I believe to be a few frags of zoos which are really starting to open up.  I need to find a new spot to put the two on the bottom right now.  That should be sorted shortly.  As you can see I have an adventurous little snail and three blue legged hermits crawling about happily.

I have been searching for a new means of lighting as I am currently restricted to the soft white LEDs.  I needs the blues!  There is a clamp on LED with blue available in the states (where I purchased the pictured pop tarts) but the Walmart in Masena was out of stock.

Second, is my 56gal setup

http://i.imgur.com/WuP2w.jpg

Within this one you will notice my
50lbs of live rock.
Koralia 1050 and 750
150W Jager Heater
Boyu 65gal Skimmer
and yes, that is a canister filter, Fluval with some number.  Yes I am familiar with the pit falls of running a canister, thus far it has not proven to be problematic (yet).   I have noticed a small growth of green algae developing on the filter intake, maybe a signal its time to remove it.  I have a more live rock stuffed in here for filtration as I do not have room  right now for a sump or any fun additions like that.

In terms of wandering life forms, I have 5 curious little snails, 18 hermits and one recluse emerald crab.  There was also a peppermint shrimp who picked a fight with one of the larger hermits and chaos ensued (poor shrimpy).

This 56 gal has been running since early June and is doing swimmingly well (all levels are looking great).  My intent has been to keep this FOWLR; however more and more I am tempted to go with a small touch of corals, but nothing has inspired me yet.  Any suggestions for further stocking are most welcome!  I keep doubting my aquascaping, so please be gentle.

If anyone has any kind feedback or suggestions, they are most welcome.  Also, a special thanks to AZ at Aqua Valley for encouraging me to post after my visit on Monday

(as a small footnote, the iphone camera does not do colours much justice)

[az]

looks nice and clean!!

you could use more rock in setup #2, it dosent look like 50lbs of rock, I would atleast add another 20lbs, more rock = more filtration = better overall system. Liverock is the key.

[Medym]

I was questioning that myself.  I picked the rock up from a few sources on kijiji and it was dirty as hell.  It was practically brown and fluffy from so much algae growth.  When it was all weighed in, it was at 50lbs, however since it has been cleaned and all the crap remove, I strongly suspect you are right, that I am a little low. 

I think my concern is at this if I add more rock and change my scaping I will hate it.  I cannot see in my head how I could rearrange my rocks to get a new look.

[Cheebs]

It's looking great so far!

Although I really like the aquascape in the 56, I agree wiht Az that more rock would definitely help in many ways.... it would allow for more hiding spots for your critters, more spots for coral, and more of the ever-important biofiltration. I think with a couple mediumish pieces added in there, perhaps 6-7 lbs each, you could achieve a similar aquascape. You could add them on either side perhaps, on top of or under the rocks that are already there, and still maintain those neat caves you have going. Either way, fantastic start!

[Medym]

I guess I might have to do some more shopping then... the wifey is gonna give me some dirty looks! >.<

[az]

no need to rush.

[az]

I was questioning that myself.  I picked the rock up from a few sources on kijiji and it was dirty as hell.  It was practically brown and fluffy from so much algae growth.  When it was all weighed in, it was at 50lbs, however since it has been cleaned and all the crap remove, I strongly suspect you are right, that I am a little low. 

I think my concern is at this if I add more rock and change my scaping I will hate it.  I cannot see in my head how I could rearrange my rocks to get a new look.

I think you got the 'heavy type' rock and safe to say close to 50lbs, algae and plants cannot weigh that much.

[Greatwhite]

I think my concern is at this if I add more rock and change my scaping I will hate it.  I cannot see in my head how I could rearrange my rocks to get a new look.

More rock means more caves for the fish to hide in at night, which means happier fish in the long run.  If you aim for lighter weight porous rock, there's more surface area for filtration and more space for various pods and other delicious treats to grow.

Keep in mind that lots of fish like to hang around rock-level as well. (yes there are exceptions)  If you keep all your rock down low, the fish stay down there too, and it makes for a boring upper half.

AND - when/if you decide to start adding corals, some like to be up high - closer to the light...  You need a good rock pile to get up there.

[Medym]

I think you got the 'heavy type' rock and safe to say close to 50lbs, algae and plants cannot weigh that much.

Well, thank god I only paid $1-2/lbs for the stuff when I picked it up then!

If I pick up a couple more medium sized peices, is it detrimental at all to have the rock piled against the corners or even against the back of the aquarium (assuming it is stable)

I assume I have more than enough live rock in my pico since no one has commented about that.  Although, that might change as I am considering a new DIY project with acrylics...

[Greatwhite]

Well, thank god I only paid $1-2/lbs for the stuff when I picked it up then!

If I pick up a couple more medium sized peices, is it detrimental at all to have the rock piled against the corners or even against the back of the aquarium (assuming it is stable)

I assume I have more than enough live rock in my pico since no one has commented about that.  Although, that might change as I am considering a new DIY project with acrylics...

Pico looks like most I've seen... seems like a nice amount of rock.

Keep the heavy rocks down at the bottom and stack lighter on it.  Az has some nice premium rock that practically snaps together like a puzzle.  This gives a nice stable structure to work with.

[gerryo]

I also have the IQ3 Pico tank, and couldn't get anything to live in it.  Even lost a beautiful Wrasse to the problems with the lights.  Tried a Rapid LED screw in light and it didn't work either.

Those tiny 1 watt white lights are not sufficient for corals.  Even the old 3 watt ones need to have the additional blues - Royal Blue preferably.

I finally cleaned my little tank out and now have it running with Platys and seaweed.  Oh, and many little snails.

[Medym]

I also have the IQ3 Pico tank, and couldn't get anything to live in it.  Even lost a beautiful Wrasse to the problems with the lights.  Tried a Rapid LED screw in light and it didn't work either.

Those tiny 1 watt white lights are not sufficient for corals.  Even the old 3 watt ones need to have the additional blues - Royal Blue preferably.

I finally cleaned my little tank out and now have it running with Platys and seaweed.  Oh, and many little snails.

It is a great little tank, by far the one LED fixture is not enough, I got mine with two though which has better output, but still nothing blue.  If I can get something from the states that will work it might be better, I may even venture to dismantle it and DIY it into one complete fixture on a switch.

I should add I so very much enjoy having this on my desk, I am going to be looking to DIY a new tank to custom fit into this space.  The intent will be to match the wood within a frame and craft it to allow a sump and whatnot in the back.  I will be doing some drawings and some research to see how I can craft it to my vision and ensure proper flow throughout the system.

[Darth]

nice so far seems we have the same 56 gal tank, always nice to see what others can do with this tank, good thing about is the width, bad thing the height its a PIA to get things in and out of the bottom 1/3 of the tank
good luck

[Medym]

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