Hello all
Here is my first tank journal. It was pandemic times and I really wanted to get back into the hobby after a long break. I had three false starts since then and here I am. How I wish I had known about BAR at that time?!?!
Now I have a Fluval 32g. It was given to me by a hobbyist who moved up to a bigger tank. I started this tank during the pandemic and this one failed. So I thought that I would shut it down but I kept cycling the water without the light for three years.
I switched on the Kessil Ap9x in spring of 2025. It was just the light and a pump to cycle the water. The tank had a 2” sand bed with a lot of rock. I left the light on in a timer cycle for a few weeks to see if there would be a diatom outburst which was one of the reasons for me to shut down the tank previously. There was a bit of diatoms. I noticed that there was more algae forming in the sand bed on one side of the tank only, so I taped a piece of cardboard and covered that side. The algae has reduced on that side almost completely but the diatoms were still there.
I, then, added an in-tank Hydor slim skim nano protein skimmer. No difference in the diatoms. After about two months, of waiting, the diatoms did not go away unless I turned off all the light and covered the tank for three days. I started playing around with the intensity of the Kessil and dropped the intensity to 30 and killed the red and green lights. Still no noticeable difference in the diatoms.
I added a CUC crew from ReefCleaners:
20 dwarf ceriths
9 nassarius
10 florida ceriths
7 nerites
6 hermits
2 emralds
2 peppermint shrimp
1 porcelain crab
I was looking for other livestock when I came across this hobbyist in San Jose on CL who had a shallow tank with a similar depth of my Fluval and was using a apx9. So I asked him for his settings and changed mine to the same – intensity is 15 and 10 hours of light. I also got some gsp from him which I glued to the back of the tank.
I also acquired this gorgeous RBTA with these beautiful striations on the tentacles. So now I have this tank that I want to add more livestock to but I have this annoying diatoms with some hair algae to boot. So I reduced the light intensity to 10 and only 4.75 hours of light. More internet research and I decided that I needed macro algae. I was looking around and then found some on CL. This hobbyist not only gave me chaeto for free but pointed me to this website!!!!
That was when I posted first on BAR. So here is where the tank is at. Since I first posted, the changes I made are:
1. Added a small tank heater that I had in storage. Do not know the brand.
2. Sourcing my saltwater from HTA
3. Started using a new water container
4. Added 5 Trochus snails from HTA who went to town on the hair algae
5. Added chaeto to the main chamber and the back chamber
6. Switched off the reflow pump in the back chamber
After all this, the diatoms just disappeared. I honestly think it has to do with the reflow pump. But I am wondering what is in the back chamber that it was spewing out diatoms like that??! The back chamber has carbon and filter floss placed in these media baskets I found on Etsy. Apparently, the back chambers are useless and the water does not flow in one direction. This Etsy media basket forced the flow in one direction, that is, through the media chamber through all the filtration. I happened to switch it off one day and the next day, the diatoms were gone. I have kept it switched off for three weeks now and the diatoms have not returned. So now, I am wondering if I should clear out that back chamber completely. The back chamber also has chaeto.
Here is a picture of the full tank from this afternoon. The gsp has been growing amazingly. It used to be below the rock line. The anemone is doing great as well. Both emerald crabs, the porcelain crab and one peppermint shrimp have disappeared. One trochus snail also seemed to have kicked the bucket.
This is what I am thinking about doing with the tank over the next few months
1. Get a M3 screw for my ap9x so that it stops drooping.
2. Increase the intensity from 10 to 15
3. Increase the light period from 4 hr 45 minutes to a 8 hours of light. Since it is only the gsp and anemone, I might do this in a shorter span than a longer span.
4. Get yellow or orange mushrooms, zoas, one leather, one frogspawn and orange yuma and just let these propagate out and fill up the tank. No LPS coral.
5. A pair of baby perculas, more shrimp, a watchman goby and a lawnmower blenny
6. Get a frag rack to grow some for the next frag exchange
7. Get test kits instead of going to HTA all the time
Questions
1. The hydor skimmer is working great. Should I switch it off for a Fluval FS1 mini-skimmer that fits neatly in the back chamber? This would allow me to use the lids like they were meant to instead of the picture below where you can see the hydor does not allow the lid to get all the way to the edge of the tank. So I had to get another piece of plastic to put over the open portion. Or should I trim the lid to fit the Hydor? I am leaning towards this option tbh.
2. Should I think about emptying the back chamber. It currently has the media baskets in two chambers, the reflow pump in one chamber and chaeto in two tiny chambers.
3. Should I think about adding a fuge?
4. Is there too much rock in the tank?
5. Anything else?
Thank you!!!
Thanks everyone!!
Here is my first tank journal. It was pandemic times and I really wanted to get back into the hobby after a long break. I had three false starts since then and here I am. How I wish I had known about BAR at that time?!?!
Now I have a Fluval 32g. It was given to me by a hobbyist who moved up to a bigger tank. I started this tank during the pandemic and this one failed. So I thought that I would shut it down but I kept cycling the water without the light for three years.
I switched on the Kessil Ap9x in spring of 2025. It was just the light and a pump to cycle the water. The tank had a 2” sand bed with a lot of rock. I left the light on in a timer cycle for a few weeks to see if there would be a diatom outburst which was one of the reasons for me to shut down the tank previously. There was a bit of diatoms. I noticed that there was more algae forming in the sand bed on one side of the tank only, so I taped a piece of cardboard and covered that side. The algae has reduced on that side almost completely but the diatoms were still there.
I, then, added an in-tank Hydor slim skim nano protein skimmer. No difference in the diatoms. After about two months, of waiting, the diatoms did not go away unless I turned off all the light and covered the tank for three days. I started playing around with the intensity of the Kessil and dropped the intensity to 30 and killed the red and green lights. Still no noticeable difference in the diatoms.
I added a CUC crew from ReefCleaners:
20 dwarf ceriths
9 nassarius
10 florida ceriths
7 nerites
6 hermits
2 emralds
2 peppermint shrimp
1 porcelain crab
I was looking for other livestock when I came across this hobbyist in San Jose on CL who had a shallow tank with a similar depth of my Fluval and was using a apx9. So I asked him for his settings and changed mine to the same – intensity is 15 and 10 hours of light. I also got some gsp from him which I glued to the back of the tank.
I also acquired this gorgeous RBTA with these beautiful striations on the tentacles. So now I have this tank that I want to add more livestock to but I have this annoying diatoms with some hair algae to boot. So I reduced the light intensity to 10 and only 4.75 hours of light. More internet research and I decided that I needed macro algae. I was looking around and then found some on CL. This hobbyist not only gave me chaeto for free but pointed me to this website!!!!
That was when I posted first on BAR. So here is where the tank is at. Since I first posted, the changes I made are:
1. Added a small tank heater that I had in storage. Do not know the brand.
2. Sourcing my saltwater from HTA
3. Started using a new water container
4. Added 5 Trochus snails from HTA who went to town on the hair algae
5. Added chaeto to the main chamber and the back chamber
6. Switched off the reflow pump in the back chamber
After all this, the diatoms just disappeared. I honestly think it has to do with the reflow pump. But I am wondering what is in the back chamber that it was spewing out diatoms like that??! The back chamber has carbon and filter floss placed in these media baskets I found on Etsy. Apparently, the back chambers are useless and the water does not flow in one direction. This Etsy media basket forced the flow in one direction, that is, through the media chamber through all the filtration. I happened to switch it off one day and the next day, the diatoms were gone. I have kept it switched off for three weeks now and the diatoms have not returned. So now, I am wondering if I should clear out that back chamber completely. The back chamber also has chaeto.
Here is a picture of the full tank from this afternoon. The gsp has been growing amazingly. It used to be below the rock line. The anemone is doing great as well. Both emerald crabs, the porcelain crab and one peppermint shrimp have disappeared. One trochus snail also seemed to have kicked the bucket.
This is what I am thinking about doing with the tank over the next few months
1. Get a M3 screw for my ap9x so that it stops drooping.
2. Increase the intensity from 10 to 15
3. Increase the light period from 4 hr 45 minutes to a 8 hours of light. Since it is only the gsp and anemone, I might do this in a shorter span than a longer span.
4. Get yellow or orange mushrooms, zoas, one leather, one frogspawn and orange yuma and just let these propagate out and fill up the tank. No LPS coral.
5. A pair of baby perculas, more shrimp, a watchman goby and a lawnmower blenny
6. Get a frag rack to grow some for the next frag exchange
7. Get test kits instead of going to HTA all the time
Questions
1. The hydor skimmer is working great. Should I switch it off for a Fluval FS1 mini-skimmer that fits neatly in the back chamber? This would allow me to use the lids like they were meant to instead of the picture below where you can see the hydor does not allow the lid to get all the way to the edge of the tank. So I had to get another piece of plastic to put over the open portion. Or should I trim the lid to fit the Hydor? I am leaning towards this option tbh.
2. Should I think about emptying the back chamber. It currently has the media baskets in two chambers, the reflow pump in one chamber and chaeto in two tiny chambers.
3. Should I think about adding a fuge?
4. Is there too much rock in the tank?
5. Anything else?
Thank you!!!
Thanks everyone!!
