Vibrant Orange Zoanthids
Community Member
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2018
- Messages
- 45
- Reaction score
- 44
Hello. I'm quite new to the hobby and I have some questions about my (nearly) 2 month old tank. First, here's a little about my situation.
-Both local fish stores went under a few months before I got the tank. The nearest is 2 hours away.
-My tank is a 35 gallon Red Sea 130 D about 2 or so years old. Most of the parts have recently been replaced.
-I have about 9 species of coral in the tank (including my prized Zoanthids), 2 anemones, 5 fish, 12 crabs, 10 snails, a brittle star, and an urchin.
-I water change about once every week and a half
-My light is on for 8 hours a day
Here are some issues you might be able to help me with. Firstly, my tank has an enormous amount of microbubbles. They're everywhere and while they don't seem to effect anything, they're not appealing to look at. The main cause is most likely the protein skimmer, as these models have been known to create bubbles, however fine sponges between it and the return pump haven't provided any relief. The return pump itself is where the bubbles are noticeable. They only seem to appear once the water goes back into the main portion of the tank. The return pump is an upgraded model and brand spanking new. Any possible causes or solutions to the bubbles?
Also, my corals are attached to the large frag bases so I'm not sure how to get them to grow on the rock. Though my orange Zoanthids are doing just fine, I'm having trouble with another group of them. I say group but in a tragic accident where a crab ran off with the base under the rock only one remains. How quickly will it repopulate on its own? Some purple spots are forming on my glass and they are difficult to remove. Is this bad? Lastly, I have a lot of empty, crevice-y, bumpy rock to fill. What are some eye pleasing corals which populate quickly? Thank you all. I love this hobby.
-Both local fish stores went under a few months before I got the tank. The nearest is 2 hours away.
-My tank is a 35 gallon Red Sea 130 D about 2 or so years old. Most of the parts have recently been replaced.
-I have about 9 species of coral in the tank (including my prized Zoanthids), 2 anemones, 5 fish, 12 crabs, 10 snails, a brittle star, and an urchin.
-I water change about once every week and a half
-My light is on for 8 hours a day
Here are some issues you might be able to help me with. Firstly, my tank has an enormous amount of microbubbles. They're everywhere and while they don't seem to effect anything, they're not appealing to look at. The main cause is most likely the protein skimmer, as these models have been known to create bubbles, however fine sponges between it and the return pump haven't provided any relief. The return pump itself is where the bubbles are noticeable. They only seem to appear once the water goes back into the main portion of the tank. The return pump is an upgraded model and brand spanking new. Any possible causes or solutions to the bubbles?
Also, my corals are attached to the large frag bases so I'm not sure how to get them to grow on the rock. Though my orange Zoanthids are doing just fine, I'm having trouble with another group of them. I say group but in a tragic accident where a crab ran off with the base under the rock only one remains. How quickly will it repopulate on its own? Some purple spots are forming on my glass and they are difficult to remove. Is this bad? Lastly, I have a lot of empty, crevice-y, bumpy rock to fill. What are some eye pleasing corals which populate quickly? Thank you all. I love this hobby.
Your tank looks great, I love the scape (and that anemone placement is perfect). Your zoas will repopulate over time relatively fast as zoas do. If you wanna fill out space, I suggest more zoas! LPS corals also work well, look into acans for those shaded spots.
