Kessil

Newbie 24g reefer

Chrism1330

Chrism1330

Supporting Member
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Hi its a pleasure to be in this forum my names Chris, Im a newbie in the hobby. I started out a month ago. Steve from Lucky Ocean aquarium put me on to this forum. He's been guiding me since I've started a 24G LifeGard tank. I started out with a pair of clown fish, 2 peppermint shrimp, reef safe hermit crabs, and two trochus snail. I recently bought some coral frags (I dont think my tank was ready) but I bought a couple from Neptune Aquatics anyways, two of the corals have been getting eaten by the shrimp. Seeking guidance from fellow aquarists that can share any tips on how to grow and maintain a healthy tank. Thank you anything helps
 

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Welcome. Most Shrimps will only eat coral when they are dying. They are eating the rotting flesh.
I’ve known Steve for an extremely long time. He’s a good guy.
Btw. When snails start to die. Take them out. Well when anything dies, take them out. It makes your water bad.
Also , consider becoming a member. It will be the best 30 dollars you can spend on your aquarium. Seriously.
 
phc567 said:
Welcome. Most Shrimps will only eat coral when they are dying. They are eating the rotting flesh.
I’ve known Steve for an extremely long time. He’s a good guy.
Btw. When snails start to die. Take them out. Well when anything dies, take them out. It makes your water bad.
Also , consider becoming a member. It will be the best 30 dollars you can spend on your aquarium. Seriously.
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My Duncan had tentacles a few hours ago… now its just a nugget. Should I be feeding my corals anything? Its only been 2 days in the tank. Definitely will become a member and thank you for that tip on the snails.
 
Klems said:
What type of lighting do you have on the tank?
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I just picked up a Marine Fluval 3.0. Ive been trying to find videos that can help on what percentage color lights should be set to for corals to grow. Just been following other people’s settings blindly. Im aware whites can create algae
 
Ive been using the API master test kit, I just ordered the Red Sea foundation test kit so i can test the water for the corals. It comes today, my dkh was a little low for the corals. I have been bringing it up with reef builder by seachem. My alkalinity is currently at 8.
 
Chrism1330 said:
Ive been using the API master test kit, I just ordered the Red Sea foundation test kit so i can test the water for the corals. It comes today, my dkh was a little low for the corals. I have been bringing it up with reef builder by seachem. My alkalinity is currently at 8.
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Ok that's good, honestly you don't need to go higher than 8. How is your salinity and what method are you using to check it?

The fact the snails died so fast is a little concerning so we'll try to troubleshoot here.
 
Oh ok so should I stop adding reef builder for now unless the alkalinity drops again?
Salinity was reading 1.028 on my refractometer. I used Steve's Hydrometer and it read in between 1.025-1.026. Not sure which device to believe but I've been taking out water and replacing with RODI water little by little to drop down the salinity. Yesterday I took out 2qts of water from the tank. I have yet to check it today to see what its at now.
Snails are alive they haven’t died seems like they’re happy, my Peppermint shrimp have been eating my Duncan frag that I just bought two days ago. I was thinking removing the shrimp
 

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Ah ok those are just empty snail shells then, I think that's what confused me!

Peppermint shrimp need to be fed too, so yes you can run into situations where they go after other things. Hopefully they aren't misidentified camel shrimp which can be problematic.

This is a good video on how to read and calibrate your refractometer:

You can make your own solution too or buy it: https://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-06/rhf/index.php
 
Welcome to BAR @Chrism1330 ! Lots of wisdom can be found here. I rely heavily on a lot of the veteran keepers here. I'm new to the hobby too. Never think you can't ask a question here and also utilize that search function often. I tend to forget about it and can find answers quickly.

Something to note, is that you need to calibrate that refractometer. I ordered a calibration solution online. You can also do it with distilled water too. I've been relying on a digital probe, but they all have their nuances. I'm leaning toward sticking with the refractometer though.
 
ReyDeFarts said:
Welcome to BAR @Chrism1330 ! Lots of wisdom can be found here. I rely heavily on a lot of the veteran keepers here. I'm new to the hobby too. Never think you can't ask a question here and also utilize that search function often. I tend to forget about it and can find answers quickly.

Something to note, is that you need to calibrate that refractometer. I ordered a calibration solution online. You can also do it with distilled water too. I've been relying on a digital probe, but they all have their nuances. I'm leaning toward sticking with the refractometer though.
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Thank you for that information, Ill for sure be using the search bar to find answers. Definitely going to be recalibrating it when I get home from work. I thought about trying the ORAPXI tester its a pool tester. Someone at Lucky ocean aquarium told me they use that. Any thoughts?
 

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Chrism1330 said:
Thank you for that information, Ill for sure be using the search bar to find answers. Definitely going to be recalibrating it when I get home from work. I thought about trying the ORAPXI tester its a pool tester. Someone at Lucky ocean aquarium told me they use that. Any thoughts?
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That's an Oakton knock off. Get the real deal, only buy once ;)
 
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