Saturday, September 30, 2017

57 MONTHS

This is the current state of my aquarium.

I haven't posted for a while and of late, things are heading down south.

Ever since I came back from the Europe trip at early Sep, the aquarium was covered with lots of hair algae which I couldn't eradicate. I lost a number of stuff and I have decided that instead of going for a new aquarium next year, I will likely decommission it. I don't know if I will ever go back to this hobby because it is an expensive and time consuming one.

I can't say I will feel sad but I will definitely miss it. I will focus my efforts on gardening instead.

Monday, July 31, 2017

55 MONTHS

I have been so busy and lazy that I haven't posted for months now. In fact,I just realized that I haven't posted for 3 months now. During this period, the aquarium suffered from high kH and was suffering from a bad case of nuisance algae when several corals died back, including the ones that had been growing tremendously well for me for the past year. 

Today, the aquarium is still recovering from the aftermath. I couldn't believe that it didn't occur to me to replace my phosphate remover media when the algae overtook everything but now the algae is more in control.


Aquarium 3 (3 x 1.5 x 1.5 feet and sump - 250 litres)
I rescaped some of the rocks recently to give more space for the water to flow through them instead of covering every possible opening between the rocks.

The livestock update is as follows:
  • Fishes
    • 2 Blue-yellow Damsels
    • 2 Royal Grammas
    • Yellow Tang
    • 2 False Clown Fish
    • 2 Flame Angels
  • Invertebrates
    • Turbo and Nassarius snails
    • 2+1 Sea Urchins
  • Corals
    • SPS
      • Horn Coral
      • 3 green Poccillopora frags
      • orange Cyphastrea
      • red Acropora digitata and multiple frags
      • red Montipora
      • 2 pink Birdnest
      • beige/purple Montipora plate
      • Acropora valida frags
      • red Montipora plate
      • green Acropora digitata
      • green Acropora frag
      • purple polyps Acropora digitata
      • green Pocci frag
      • unknown Acropora (smooth-skinned sps)
    • LPS
      • green Candy Cane
      • Duncan Coral
      • yellow Torch Coral
      • green Elegance Coral with blue tip
      • green Frogspawn Coral
    • Mushrooms
      • green Ricordea yuma mushrooms
      • red mushroom
      • green mushroom
      • blue mushroom
    • Soft Corals
      • Chilli Coral
      • Toadstool Leather Mushroom with luminous polyps
      • luminous green Tree Coral
      • pink Rose Bud Tip Anemone
      • green Tree Coral
      • white Tree Coral
      • brown Tree Coral
    • Polyps
      • purple Zoas
      • Fiery Red Zoas
      • 2 green Palythoa
      • green Star Polyps 
      • 3 gold Clove Polyps
      • pink Zoas
      • green base purple skirt Paly
      • green base brown skirt Zoas
      • orange Zoas
      • Sympodium
      • Zoas rock and frags
      • green Clove Polyps
  • Macroalgae (in sump)
    • red Bamboo
    • unknown red algae
    The technical details are:
    • Jecod Marine DC Pump DCS-7000 return pump
    • Aqua Illumination Hydra 52 HD
    • Sanrise Aqua Pro (without wifi) 30 cm
    • Hailea HS-66A chiller
    • Skimz SN143 skimmer
    • Two Little Fishes Phosban Reactor running NP reducing biopellets
    • Jebao Cross Flow CP 25
    • Jebao WP 25 Wavemaker
    • Tunze Nano Osmolator
    • Marine Magic Triplet Dosing
    the sad state of the aquarium
    a recovering green Pocci with dead parts with brown algae


    another green Pocci frag

    partially dead red A digitata

    the pink Birdnest overgrown with algae

    the second unrecognizable pink Birdnest

    the third lime green Pocci and what's left of the big clump of Pocci

    3 different A digitata and a green Clove Polyps

    one of two green Palythoas which are doing well

    a fast growing colony of Nuclear Green Zoas

    unknown red Montipora plate


    an island of frags and Zoas

    the new purple A digitata

    brown Tree Coral

    white Tree Coral

    clumps of nuisance hair algae

    a new unknown Acropora

    a new green Pocci frag

    Monday, May 1, 2017

    52 MONTHS 1 DAY

    I am posting this a day late because I worked late on Fri and Sat nights till 7 am and I was catching up on some sleep.

    Anyway, I came across the following photos and am really tempted and inspired to do this drop cliff reef aquarium next year.


    Closer to home, the following is what I own now. This is reality.

    Aquarium 3 (3 x 1.5 x 1.5 feet and sump - 250 litres)
    I am impressed how others maintain their aquariums in pristine condition. I battle scarring of the glass with growth of algae all the time. I don't know how to keep the glass clean all the time.

    The green bubble algae is appearing every now and then at some areas, so I can understand why it was recommended not to let it establish itself in the home aquarium. Once it is there, it is hard to get rid of it completely.

    The unknown fine red algae suddenly grew fast and covered my Duncan coral, so I had it thinned out.

    The livestock update is as follows:
    • Fishes
      • 2 Blue-yellow Damsels
      • 2 Royal Grammas
      • Yellow Tang
      • 2 False Clown Fish
      • 2 Flame Angels
    • Invertebrates
      • Turbo and Nassarius snails
      • 3+1 Sea Urchins
    • Corals
      • SPS
        • Horn Coral
        • 2 green Poccillopora and 3 frags
        • orange Cyphastrea
        • red Acropora digitata and 4 frags
        • 2 green Poccillopora frags
        • red Montipora
        • red/brown Poccillopora
        • 2 pink Birdnest
        • green branching Stylophora
        • beige/purple Montipora plate
        • blue Acropora
        • Acropora valida (in 3 separate frags)
        • 2 Radioactive Birdnest frags
        • red Montipora plate
        • fibre optic Poccillopora
        • Acropora (bleached)
        • Acropora
        • unknown birdnest
        • green Acropora digitata
      • LPS
        • green Candy Cane
        • Duncan Coral
        • yellow Torch Coral
        • Bubble Coral
        • green Goniopora
        • green Elegance Coral with blue tip
        • green Frogspawn Coral
        • orange Plate Coral
      • Mushrooms
        • green Ricordea yuma mushrooms
        • red mushroom
        • green mushroom
        • blue mushroom
      • Soft Corals
        • Chilli Coral
        • Toadstool Leather Mushroom with luminous polyps
        • luminous green Tree Coral
        • pink Rose Bud Tip Anemone
        • green Tree Coral
        • white Tree Coral
      • Polyps
        • purple Zoas
        • Fiery Red Zoas
        • 5 assorted Zoas
        • 2 green Palythoa
        • 4 types of green Star Polyps and 
        • 3 gold Clove Polyps
        • pink Zoas
        • green base purple skirt Paly
        • green base brown skirt Zoas
        • orange Zoas
        • Sympodium
        • Organ Pipe Coral with sea squirts
        • Zoas rock
        • Zoas frag
    • Macroalgae (in sump)
      • red Bamboo
      • unknown red algae
      The technical details are:
      • Jecod Marine DC Pump DCS-7000 return pump
      • Aqua Illumination Hydra 52 HD
      • Sanrise Aqua Pro (without wifi) 30 cm
      • Hailea HS-66A chiller
      • Skimz SN143 skimmer
      • Two Little Fishes Phosban Reactor running NP reducing biopellets
      • Jebao Cross Flow CP 25
      • Jebao WP 25 Wavemaker
      • Tunze Nano Osmolator
      • Marine Magic Triplet Dosing