EvilTwin's 75g tank - Frag Outpost Forums - Coral Propagation and Reef Aquarium Forums

EvilTwin · 02-28-2006, 11:48 AM

Yes the leather appears to be doing nicely, but then again, what do I know. This is all new to me.

When I looked at it this morning, the polyps were all out and it appears that the branches are now much more spread out. If you look at the first picture of it above and the latest, there is a noticable difference in spreading of the branches. When I bought it, it was very compact. Heeding your advice that it should have a good amount of water flow, I swapped out one of my two powerheads. I had a Penguin 1140 which I was using to mix my saltwater with. It has a 300gph rating so I put that in place of the other Penguin 550 that was there. I had feared too much flow in the hex tank thinking that with the shape it would have turned it into a big swirling underwater tornado. Once I changed the powerhead, I started to see an immediate difference in the coral and my BTA appears to be much happier as well.

I'm curious, does my Blushing Leather count as something orange for the next contest?

Also, I was considering adding a serpent star to my tank. I see they are reef safe but I think I need to get the additional rock first, since I will need some more spaces for it to hide in. I also wanted to get a cleaner shrimp, but I already have a peppermint. Will they get along?

FragOutpost · 02-28-2006, 12:35 PM

Great. Glad to hear that adding more flow seems to have helped. You could probably drop in another powerhead or two with no problems. The blushing leather branches should continue to spread out.

Quote:

I'm curious, does my Blushing Leather count as something orange for the next contest?

I'd say that it is more pink than orange, maybe you could get a shot of your clowns. But enter whatever photo you want.

Quote:

Also, I was considering adding a serpent star to my tank. I see they are reef safe but I think I need to get the additional rock first, since I will need some more spaces for it to hide in. I also wanted to get a cleaner shrimp, but I already have a peppermint. Will they get along?

I think a serpent star would be a great scavenger for your tank. You currently have plenty of rock for a serpent star. Once they get settled in they usually won't move around too much, especially if you always feed it in the same spot. Peppermint shrimp are usually kept in small groups. You shouldn't have any problems adding a cleaner shrimp to your tank. From what I understand, shrimp are usually only cannibalistic when larger groups are place in an area too small. But in a 75 gallon you have plenty of space for a few shrimp.

D12monkey · 02-28-2006, 09:40 PM

Definately yes to the serpant star. As Frag said it's a great scavenger.

How good are you with photoshop?

I'd change the color to a dashing neon orange. LOL

FragOutpost · 03-01-2006, 03:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by D12monkey

How good are you with photoshop? I'd change the color to a dashing neon orange. LOL

Hehe!

EvilTwin · 03-01-2006, 09:36 AM

Would I be better off with something like a Linkia Blue Star or serpent? From what I was reading most serpents are carnivores. I don't like the idea of using my livestock as food. I saw different species of serpents being labled as one thing, but the species says they are something else? What species of star is a good, reef safe detrivore and where should I look to get them?

FragOutpost · 03-01-2006, 10:38 PM

From what I understand blue linkia stars can be difficult to acclimate. I would stick to the serpent star for now as they are very hardy. I would say that serpent stars are more of a opportunistic scavenger than a carnivore. Yes they will eat meaty foods but it is unlikely that it will hunt down and prey on healthy tank mates. I just recently acquired a serpent star from FloridaPets. I posted a thread about it last week with a photo of the star. This is also usually a common item at local stores. Usually they will hide underneath a rock with only an arm or two sticking out and can be difficult to notice if you are not looking for them.

EvilTwin · 03-06-2006, 03:35 PM

A newer pic of my blushing finger leather. Looks like it filled out a little in the last two weeks. I also suspect it is starting to align itself to a more vertical position for lighting since my placement kinda had it on it's side.