Discouraged

[BanjoBandito]

Yeah.... I just look at others people's tanks after like a month and they already look so good. I'm taking care of it and you don't think 3 months is a long time?

Most of those people, myself included, are usually moving existing system and rock over. It’s a little different. That dry rock just takes time to get a good biofilm on it so it’s not an algae mess. Slow and steady wins the race. You are doing fine!

 

[Chrisv.]

Yeah thats the plan. I'm adding one fish at a time. Hence the reason pf only having a pair of clownfish. Yeah im going to add watchman/pistol, six line or a yellow corris wrasse, lawnmower blenny, tang and a few others. Thank you so much for the help and the tips

The pistol shrimp and goby will do an excellent job on your sand bed. My vote is that they are the next fish.

Go for the yellow corris over the six line. Six lines are not all evil, but enough of them are (on a long enough timeline) that it's just worth skipping them, IMHO.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

The pistol shrimp and goby will do an excellent job on your sand bed. My vote is that they are the next fish.

Go for the yellow corris over the six line. Six lines are not all evil, but enough of them are (on a long enough timeline) that it's just worth skipping them,

The pistol shrimp and goby will do an excellent job on your sand bed. My vote is that they are the next fish.

Go for the yellow corris over the six line. Six lines are not all evil, but enough of them are (on a long enough timeline) that it's just worth skipping them, IMHO.

Yeah, do they eat frozen brine/mysis/rods and pellets? I don't want to run out of stuff I'm the tank for those guys.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

Most of those people, myself included, are usually moving existing system and rock over. It’s a little different. That dry rock just takes time to get a good biofilm on it so it’s not an algae mess. Slow and steady wins the race. You are doing fine!

Thank you so much!

 

[Lyss]

I used dry rocks (twice) and only had diatoms for a short period. Dry rocks isn’t a curse. I’s rather use dry rocks than deal with the critters that come with live rock later.


You should see it for what it is : a normal phase of a new reef tank. That is rather encouraging, on the contrary.

Go slow, don’t use chemicals, don’t use too much light and don’t feed too much and you’ll get there !

RE: avoiding critters by using dry rock…

The critters will come anyway once you start adding corals, even if you dip, unless you QT them like crazy. I used 100% dry rock and just caught a Eunice worm in my tank.

To OP: My tank didn’t look too much different at 3 mos. Start doing what you can to increase biodiversity — pods, PNS substrate sauce, aqua forest life source, etc.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

RE: avoiding critters by using dry rock…

The critters will come anyway once you start adding corals, even if you dip, unless you QT them like crazy. I used 100% dry rock and just caught a Eunice worm in my tank.

To OP: My tank didn’t look too much different at 3 mos. Start doing what you can to increase biodiversity — pods, PNS substrate sauce, aqua forest life source, etc.

Just added first batch of pods today

 

[Jedi1199]

Hang in there.. It DOES get better... As others have said, your tank looks pretty good actually.

I started my 55g out with 2 fairly large pieces of rock from an existing tank and the rest was dry rock. A few months in, I had an outbreak of GHA/ Bryopsis. That has passed thankfully, I still get some algae on my rocks, but a quick shot with the turkey baster does a good job of cleaning it off.

For the record, ALL of the rock in these photos and in the tank currently is dry rock.


This was taken in July. (tank started in early March 2021)

Here is a shot from a couple days ago...

There IS light at the end of the tunnel. I promise it is not just the glow from the gates of He**. lol

 

[Acros]

Did you do anything? Or just let it ride with regular maintenance? It looks amazing!

I kinda stopped doing many things. Let it ride for a while. Understood my tank’s preferences. By that, I mean, what nutrient levels can I keep effortlessly in my tank with what kind of filtration? Once I figured that out, I kept to it. Lucky for me, all I do is change filter pads twice a week, do a 25% water change once a month, and feed rather heavy with frozen food (with a small auto disposal of pellets mid day). Everything has been stable since last Feb.

I also rented a par meter and mapped out my par, which greatly helped with all acros.

To solve the specific ugliness you see in that picture (dinoflagellates), I sucked out all sand and any dinos on the rocks every three days, replenishing with high nutrients water.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

I kinda stopped doing many things. Let it ride for a while. Understood my tank’s preferences. By that, I mean, what nutrient levels can I keep effortlessly in my tank with what kind of filtration? Once I figured that out, I kept to it. Lucky for me, all I do is change filter pads twice a week, do a 25% water change once a month, and feed rather heavy with frozen food (with a small auto disposal of pellets mid day). Everything has been stable since last Feb.

I also rented a par meter and mapped out my par, which greatly helped with all acros.

To solve the specific ugliness you see in that picture (dinoflagellates), I sucked out all sand and any dinos on the rocks every three days, replenishing with high nutrients water.

Thank you

 

[Reefgirl0412]

Hang in there.. It DOES get better... As others have said, your tank looks pretty good actually.

I started my 55g out with 2 fairly large pieces of rock from an existing tank and the rest was dry rock. A few months in, I had an outbreak of GHA/ Bryopsis. That has passed thankfully, I still get some algae on my rocks, but a quick shot with the turkey baster does a good job of cleaning it off.

For the record, ALL of the rock in these photos and in the tank currently is dry rock.


This was taken in July. (tank started in early March 2021)

Here is a shot from a couple days ago...

There IS light at the end of the tunnel. I promise it is not just the glow from the gates of He**. lol

I appreciate all the input. Your tank looks really good

 

[damsels are not mean]

So should I add coral?

I would, but I also know how to diagnose coral issues and can move them if I need. But I am a firm believer that adding corals earlier is something we should be doing in dry rock tanks. The old method of waiting a year made sense when we had something to wait for. With no initial source of biodiversity there is nothing happening in that tank that is doing much progress. Corals bring with them a microbiome that then colonizes the tank.

 

[Jedi1199]

I would, but I also know how to diagnose coral issues and can move them if I need. But I am a firm believer that adding corals earlier is something we should be doing in dry rock tanks. The old method of waiting a year made sense when we had something to wait for. With no initial source of biodiversity there is nothing happening in that tank that is doing much progress. Corals bring with them a microbiome that then colonizes the tank.

+1 here.

It seems counterintuitive, but adding corals and bio load to your tank, may actually solve your current issues.

My tank is, and generally has been since the start, very heavily stocked. I am convinced, without scientific data to reinforce this thought, that the heavy load in my tank had outcompeted the nuisances that cause those ugly stages.

It has been discussed before and the general accepted theme is that the more stock you have that eats up the nutrients that those nuisance algae's need, the less issues you will have with them.

For example, my tank had an issue with GHA/ Byropsis last year around September or so. I made a couple changes (added a skimmer and more stock as well as a one time treatment of FluxRx) and have not had algae issues since. I still have a few patches of bubble algae, but nothing to be concerned about.

I currently have 16 fish, and over 100 coral pieces in this tank.

As a counterpoint, my 32g tank, is absolutely INFESTED with some form of hair algae. This tank is very lightly stocked. Even though I have very good filtration on it, the algae continues to be an issue.

This tank has 4 fish and about a dozen or so corals.

Again, what you have is really a very minor issue. Imagine your entire tank being not much more than a swaying batch of ugly green hair flowing in the current.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

I would, but I also know how to diagnose coral issues and can move them if I need. But I am a firm believer that adding corals earlier is something we should be doing in dry rock tanks. The old method of waiting a year made sense when we had something to wait for. With no initial source of biodiversity there is nothing happening in that tank that is doing much progress. Corals bring with them a microbiome that then colonizes the tank.

Ok I might get something like a pulsing xenia or a GSP. I heard those are beginner coral?

 

[Slocke]

GSP is a safer bet as it won't spread as aggressively. It also glows more than almost any other coral!!
I got old rock from another reefer and I didn't even know one rock had GSP it survived me completely messing up salinity and very cold water so it must be one of the toughest too.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

GSP is a safer bet as it won't spread as aggressively. It also glows more than almost any other coral!!

Perfect! I'll go with that. And it'll add a nice pop of color

 

[Not an IT guy]

Yeah thats the plan. I'm adding one fish at a time. Hence the reason pf only having a pair of clownfish. Yeah im going to add watchman/pistol, six line or a yellow corris wrasse, lawnmower blenny, tang and a few others. Thank you so much for the help and the tips

Wait on the six line. They are hit or miss but more miss. I have experienced my six line which is now at the LFS killing others.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

Wait on the six line. They are hit or miss but more miss. I have experienced my six line which is now at the LFS killing others.

Most likely going to get the yellow corris wrasse

 

[Jedi1199]

Most likely going to get the yellow corris wrasse

Do you have a gameplan in mind for adding new fish? I would suggest that you not only get a LOT of fish in that tank over the next few months, but also understand their compatibility AND consider if they will be helpful to the system you envision.

This whole process can be laid out in a manner similar to when you were in high school and had to do a book report. Start with the main point. "What is your vision"? Then you can break it down to subpoints. "What can I add to realize this dream?" What are the potential risks/ benefits? Are there compatibility issues? If so, what are they, how best to avoid this? Do you have something that eats algae? Do you have a detritus remover?

Start off with the brainstorming phase. List your goals, AND your questions. Then work on fulfilling those goals and answering those questions. You may not be able to achieve everything you wish, but at least you will have a solid foothold as to where you are going.

 

[Reefgirl0412]

Do you have a gameplan in mind for adding new fish? I would suggest that you not only get a LOT of fish in that tank over the next few months, but also understand their compatibility AND consider if they will be helpful to the system you envision.

This whole process can be laid out in a manner similar to when you were in high school and had to do a book report. Start with the main point. "What is your vision"? Then you can break it down to subpoints. "What can I add to realize this dream?" What are the potential risks/ benefits? Are there compatibility issues? If so, what are they, how best to avoid this? Do you have something that eats algae? Do you have a detritus remover?

Start off with the brainstorming phase. List your goals, AND your questions. Then work on fulfilling those goals and answering those questions. You may not be able to achieve everything you wish, but at least you will have a solid foothold as to where you are going.

Yes, I definitely have a goal. I have a pair of clowns right now. And pretty much building around them. I am adding a firefish, royal gramma, watchman goby/pistol, green clown goby, lawnmower blenny, yellow corris wrasse, and bristletooth tang, and down along the road when the tank is established and has lots of pods, I am planning on adding a mandarin dragonette

 

[Reefgirl0412]

Do you have a gameplan in mind for adding new fish? I would suggest that you not only get a LOT of fish in that tank over the next few months, but also understand their compatibility AND consider if they will be helpful to the system you envision.

This whole process can be laid out in a manner similar to when you were in high school and had to do a book report. Start with the main point. "What is your vision"? Then you can break it down to subpoints. "What can I add to realize this dream?" What are the potential risks/ benefits? Are there compatibility issues? If so, what are they, how best to avoid this? Do you have something that eats algae? Do you have a detritus remover?

Start off with the brainstorming phase. List your goals, AND your questions. Then work on fulfilling those goals and answering those questions. You may not be able to achieve everything you wish, but at least you will have a solid foothold as to where you are going.

A yellow eye kole tang not a bristletooth