View Full Version : 28" miracle mud cube 7 months on.....
steviejasp
21-07-06, 15:54
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/july07tank_edited-4.jpg
still no skimmer:eek:
steviejasp
21-07-06, 16:27
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/monti2.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/acro1.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/acro2.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/acro3.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/clam1.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/endview.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/monti1.jpg
mmmmmmm, they all look a bit brown in the photos, whats the secret of taking pictures and still showing the real colours?:confused:
Anyway, im sure youll get the gist of it:)
dan-the-man
21-07-06, 16:35
What lights are you running fella?
Looks great, probably just the white balance a bit out, looks like you used the flash?
steviejasp
21-07-06, 16:39
thanks for the kind words chaps.
Dan, ivegot an arcadia single 250watt ( guisemann 14500k) with twin actinics
dan-the-man
21-07-06, 16:40
Ah nice, looks great :) Are the guisemanns worth the extra cost?
very nice mate!
can we see some sump piccies?
:)
nice
like the clams :cool: any more details on them :D
steviejasp
21-07-06, 16:44
Ah nice, looks great :) Are the guisemanns worth the extra cost?
hard to say really Dan, much nicer colour to my eyes, than 10000k, but ill probably try something else next time.
ill post some sump pics tonight
steviejasp
21-07-06, 16:48
nice
like the clams :cool: any more details on them :D
I got all but 1 of these from clams.co.uk, im very pleased with them.
There are 8 maximas and a crocea.
Some of the max's have layed down 3 scutes of shell in about 3 months
steviejasp
21-07-06, 17:05
sump and overall shots.....:) http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/overall1.jpg
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q1/sumpy2.jpg
Amazing looking tank. I'm very jelous :D Tom http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif
Prometheus
21-07-06, 17:25
looking good dude, i will have to pop round and have a closer look :D
kev
steviejasp
21-07-06, 17:29
looking good dude, i will have to pop round and have a closer look :D
kev
anytime kev, i have some chaeto if you want it, bring chocolate or beer;) and simon
Kevin you didn't tell me you had friends apart from me ;) .
Prometheus
21-07-06, 17:32
i will do that this weekend then dude :D do you mind if i bring tom with me as well THOMJ that is
steviejasp
21-07-06, 17:34
i will do that this weekend then dude :D do you mind if i bring tom with me as well THOMJ that is
No probs, the more the merrier
Tanks look super - clams look to be becoming a bit of a pest though! :D
Nice sized tank & like the aquascaping.
John
steviejasp
21-07-06, 18:35
Tanks look super - clams look to be becoming a bit of a pest though! :D
Nice sized tank & like the aquascaping.
John
Yeah i know John, i keep chucking them in the bin, cant seem to give them away anymore;)
Lovely Set-up looks very mature and natural;) :D
very nice mate, what livestock do you have in there?
jamie
Very nice, love the clams :)
Very nice, just shows what you can do with a small tank!
Nick
Small? I don't think it's far short of 80 gallons! :p
Ditto above, lovely tank.
excellent a good mix of coral i like the aray of clams excellent
steviejasp
04-10-06, 20:14
ive recently changed to 400watts over my little tank, here it is as of today, im hoping for good things with the new lamp, ill keep you posted
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q4/oct06reef.JPG
Looks grand, love the aquascaping, always hard to get substrate space in cubes imo, you have done a good job. Love the clams too :)
this is one nice tank pics really dont do the tank justice looks so much better in the flesh the polyp exstentions on the corals are amazing well done steve
wow.... very very impressive... decided i have far too much live rock in my little puddle... I think i will be doing a full strip down and adding a DSB to the main tank as well... :)
whats the circulation that your running?
steviejasp
09-10-06, 15:06
aww shucks, thanks peeps, you're too kind.
Fuzed, ive got quite a bit of flow, i did have a o/r 3500 return pump via a scwd, 4 maxijet 1000,s blowing behind the rock, a seio 1100 and a stream 6060, but due to a good price from a friend (prometheus), ive lost one of the maxijets and added a second 6060
where are the streams located as I can't see any in the pics...
I'm running a 2x2x2 with a 6100 and a 6060, i think the 6100 is over kill though... I think i'm going to have to reduce the flow and or the rockwork...
steviejasp
09-10-06, 15:11
the original one is behind the pink acro on the left at the back blowing toward the left side pane and the new one is now where the maxijet was on the back to the right of the central weir
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q4/midoct.jpg
lovely tank congrats. I'm interested in the MM side if it, have you had any problems? Do you run your lights with caulerpa 24/7 and syphon your sandbed as per instructions?
steviejasp
09-10-06, 15:45
fras, ive never hooverd the sandbed, its only about 1cm deep.
Im really pleased with the mm, i havent had any probs really apart from a little cyano outbreak a few weeks ago but i think that was me doing too many waterchanges, as now ive stopped doing too many its all cleared up! oh, and a bit of hair algea in a couple of spots notsure what to do about that yet, but its bearable.
I run chaeto in the sump and its reverse lit for 12 hours, hth steve
I may have to get another 6060... and remove the 6100...
i see the location of them... clever photo taking ;)
I was thinking of redoing the pipework so that theres a little more flow behind the rockwork... at the moment the sump return is flowing at the front of the tank (pipes routed that way...
steviejasp
09-10-06, 16:16
could you not drop a maxijet down the back?
I think the way your outlet returns at the front is a good idea.
It seems our tanks are pretty similar. Do you ever run the skimmer?
i could do, but I don't want to run any more pumps in the tank, what I may do is just run the 6060 into the back of the rock work... although I am still not happy witht the rockwork... alot of things need to be moved around.
the returns at the from work very well... but I see them as a pointless excercise as the flow from teh 6100 negates what they do anyway.
I ran the skimmer when I first setup but I havent since... I don't think I will run it again... its starting to come along... the macro algea is doing well...
are you running bio balls? i'm thinking of removing them and replacing with dead coral/rock etc.
steviejasp
09-10-06, 16:24
im using an inert manmade thing called alfagrog, i believe its used a lot in koi filtration
ahhh what sort of sizes does it come in, and any noticible differences (if youve ever used the bioballs?)...
steviejasp
09-10-06, 16:28
ive never used bioballs, so cant comment.
I hand picked pieces from my lfs that were about 2" diameter, only cost about a fiver
i definatly need to get my hands in your tank and nock a few things steve hehehehe
are they supposed to do the same sort of thing as bio balls?
steviejasp
09-10-06, 16:53
i was thinking about this the other day.
They definately stop the cheato and/or caluerpa from getting into the main aquarium, but they must go biological after a while. I dont suffer any nitrate so im not too bothered, but if i detect any ill start to wash them all out in tap water on a regular basis i suppose
I think the bio balls are there to create nitrates, but this is in place for the cheato to feed off...
again i've not gotten into the science behind why or how it works, but it does, so who am I to complain! :)
Anyone who has been tempted to set up a eco system really should pop over and see this tank in the flesh. Like stingray said the polyp extension is unbelieveable! I'm planning a new set-up and steve's corals have converted me to removing the skimmer form my plans :D
A really stunning tank, and a top reefkeeper.
Tom http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif
steviejasp
09-10-06, 17:06
:o :o :o :o :o :o :o :o
Stunning tank steve well done M8;)
Quick question I had a 6060 in my 2ft cube but had to remove because it was blowing sand all over the place do you have this trouble? If not how did you over come this?:o
Once again well done Steve:D
steviejasp
09-10-06, 18:50
Stunning tank steve well done M8;)
Quick question I had a 6060 in my 2ft cube but had to remove because it was blowing sand all over the place do you have this trouble? If not how did you over come this?:o
Once again well done Steve:D
Hi, one of them is pointing slightly upward and the other seems to just move the finest grains a bit, i suppose cos its at the top of the tank and hiiting the front glass, it kinda runs out of steam a bit
How about running a phosphate reactor for the cyano/algea probs? Or is that frowned upon with MM?
steviejasp
09-10-06, 20:11
the cyno has all gone and the chaeto in the sump has slowed right down recently so i would imagine there might not be any phopate in there really. Test kit shows nothing fwiw, ill see what happens in the next few weeks
Hi, one of them is pointing slightly upward and the other seems to just move the finest grains a bit, i suppose cos its at the top of the tank and hiiting the front glass, it kinda runs out of steam a bit
Thanks for the quick reply Steve I will have to try a different combo me thinks at the Mo i have replaced with x2 seio 620 and all is fine but I could remove both of these in favour of the 6060 and have more flow:rolleyes:
Cheers M8
steviejasp
27-10-06, 17:47
latest piccy: http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q4/cubeist.jpg
Reefer Madness
27-10-06, 18:19
That's a nice cube you have there mate, hope mine turns out as good,
cheers,
Pete.
Tank looks stunning buddy......I see you have some rather tasty brain corals.......... looks like the brainiac is rubbing off alittle onto you :D ;)
steviejasp
27-10-06, 19:04
it is Tom, trouble is you havent caught acro-enteritis yet
Very nice - look forward to seeing it.
Cheers
Simon
How do the anthias behave? i understood they needed subdued lighting and a long(ish) tank?
Not wanting to jump in steve but thought I'd offer my two pence. I've got six anthia's in my cube.one male and five females. The male does get alittle fiesty sometimes but it's all a show nothing nasty. They get fed 5-6 times a day and I think this helps reduce the problems. Other than that they have been a piece of cake to keep. I was really worried about them when I added them but now they are settled seem relatively easy.
Tomhttp://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif
looking better and better mate... :)
great little tank...
I added a few anthias recently but lost 3 within a couple of weeks, teh 2 remaining are doing fine... so will add a few more when I can... great little fish.
steviejasp
31-10-06, 17:13
thanks chaps:o , the anthias are doing well, they love to face the not inconsiderable :D current and they're constantly eating stuff in the water column ( dont you love mm systems), i bought 4 and still have them although no male as of yet.
When i worked in a lfs, some batches of anthias did really well and some died within a week, i suppose you ought to leave them in the shop for a couple of weeks really
steviejasp
16-01-07, 20:58
Sorry to drag up my weary old thread, but i did a bit of re-arranging and had a bit of a swap around, got rid of a couple of lps and got a few more acros. This is it as of today, 13 months old now
http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploader/2006Q4/tankmidjan07.JPG
6 months between the first pic and the last and the growth is fantastic;)
Q.....how many jars of mud did you origionaly place in your sump.
as iv'e just started on mm and added 1 jar but thinking of adding another.
joe
so it wont be long till an upgrade steve hehehe well packed in LOL wheres the big acro that use to dominate the front gone ?? looking good though mate
urban_hippie
16-01-07, 22:00
Looking good Steve old chap.
And for the record, its ecen beter in the flesh, his Acro's have amazing colouration and growth rate.
IMO!
steviejasp
16-01-07, 22:03
Thanks lads:o . Joe, there is 1 bag of mud in the sump. Carl, the big acro is on the right now behind the green monti.
on the right mmmmmm dont you mean left LOL
steviejasp
16-01-07, 22:06
Bugger, ive got my wellies on the wrong feet too
now we no where you have been going wrong all theese years LOL , it is looking good though cant wait to see it again
i did a bit of re-arranging and had a bit of a swap around, got rid of a couple of lps and got a few more acros.
Looking good Sir,
Seeing as your in the mood for selling your lps..... I've always wanted a brain coral.......would you be interested in selling your orange Lobo :p :D
Still no skimmer? The tank looks lovely mate, well done :)
steviejasp
17-01-07, 16:53
No Tony, still no skimmer, although i think i might try one. I used to think my corals were quite colourful till i saw trythechi simons. :mad: Bastid. :D .
I just wonder if a little light skimming for a few hours a day might make them colour up a bit more. And Tom, not yet matey, though you might tempt me if you bring me a nice acro:)
Prometheus
17-01-07, 16:58
stunning dude :D
what's your nitrate & PO4 (do you test PO4 with Deltec test kit?)
I found Ultramin S helped bring my colours out more.
steviejasp
17-01-07, 17:11
its .008 on the deltec kit and 0 nitrate with salifart. I Have got ultrimin s and i did start dosing 1ml a day but didnt notice anything except a couple of acros slimed up a lot and the polyps went in:confused: . I think ill start it again. How long until you noticed a change Tony?
I dose well under what is recomended as I hardly do any water changes so I'm cautious of building up compounds within the system. I'd say after about 4 weeks I could notice an improvement.
steviejasp
17-01-07, 17:21
Rightio, ill start again. What would you dose into my 80 gallons?
I dose about 10-15% of what fauna marine suggest...
And Tom, not yet matey, though you might tempt me if you bring me a nice acro:)
:D I'd better get steven to order some more acro's for the shop lol...one or two may just happen to end up in your tank :p
steviejasp
17-01-07, 17:56
none of your brown rubbish, im a connes, conesu, connas, fussy bastid
none of your brown rubbish, im a connes, conesu, connas, fussy bastid
Haha sounds like you had better sell me that brain coral then :p surely you don't want dross lobophyllia's spoiling your lovely elitist sps cube :D
Tom http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/images/icons/icon14.gif
Hi Steve
looks much better in the fleash!:)
Have you started with the Nightsun regime yet?
Cheers
Simon
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