Cali Kid Corals

The Long Awaited Elos 120 (3/17/14 - 4/14/24)

It's the overdue Spring Training update. Tank is still kicking but it's become survival of the fittest. I spent 2 hours cleaning the tank last night - for the first time in a year +. Coralline had grown on all 4 panels and the tank was looking quite dingy.

Updates:
Lost ALL my chalice colonies due to an ALK overdose by yours truly. This was heartbreaking as I had many of the mainstay named chalices from the 2014-2015 period, some of which were dinner plate sized.
Lost a couple of beautiful fish, including a flame wrasse - Looking for replacement.
Kessil died after less than 1.5 years of use. Beautiful light but major concerns over longevity.
The anemone experiment was a terrible idea, esp. for a common rose. If you don't think you should add something, don't... Stings and has stung many nice corals as evidenced by the trail of white death. Unfortunately, I can't commit to taking it out.
This tank is no longer tested for anything. Weekly small water changes and a check every now and then for salinity. Dosing is automated, but well under any recommended doses to avoid overload.
The light bleed in the back is still incredibly annoying but I've given up on it.
APEX DIED. Or, so I think. It just stopped working the other day so I went the less technology route with a Ranco controller - Rock solid, time conscious, tested and true. Being able to watch your tank parameters from anywhere in the world is so overrated. (This is what spurred the cleaning session and tank thread update)
On the good side, my Jawbreaker mushrooms are starting to color up - seemed to correlate with stronger lighting. Pretty cool!

Looking for:
Old school frags and DBTC stuff. If you have some available, send me a PM please :)
New home for a proven pair of Picasso Clowns.



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Wow talk about an actual GOOD necro post, nice to see you still working it!

Totally feel your pain with losing a bunch of stuff, it's made me a bit dead inside which is why I don't care about cleaning the coraline so much anymore :D
 
Wow talk about an actual GOOD necro post, nice to see you still working it!

Totally feel your pain with losing a bunch of stuff, it's made me a bit dead inside which is why I don't care about cleaning the coraline so much anymore :D

Pretty sure I stopped caring after watching a grand worth of coral die because of user error. :oops:
 
Boy do I feel ya! Sorry about all that. If you are ever in Pacifica, send me a PM and I'll hook you up with some sticks. For me a crash just motivates me, and often allows for a new approach, or change in aquascape / coral focus. Good luck.


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Yup....one of these days I'll post something. ;)

Hah, be sure to include 'great' audio. By the way, I was going to offer you a pair of Picasso clowns, but decided to move the tank into the garage instead. I think the garage has become 'last resort' before your tank! Hope the beast is doing well!
 
Con,

Tank has taken lots of hits, most recent is the decline in health and amount of time I was able to care for it. Was working 12-14 hr days non stop for almost 2 months straight. No chance to do anything except top off the reservoir. But haven't had chance to watch pH, Alk or salinity, hell even water changes. I've since been able to do a watch change. I knew things were not right in the tank when I bought 3 $10 SPS frags from Robert, RTN'd within a couple days.

Finally got a control on Aiptasia only got 4-6 big ones not sprouting babies, they grew back after my Berghia farm was taken down.

I might ask for a couple pieces from ya when I get things back into shape ;)
 
Con,

Tank has taken lots of hits, most recent is the decline in health and amount of time I was able to care for it. Was working 12-14 hr days non stop for almost 2 months straight. No chance to do anything except top off the reservoir. But haven't had chance to watch pH, Alk or salinity, hell even water changes. I've since been able to do a watch change. I knew things were not right in the tank when I bought 3 $10 SPS frags from Robert, RTN'd within a couple days.

Finally got a control on Aiptasia only got 4-6 big ones not sprouting babies, they grew back after my Berghia farm was taken down.

I might ask for a couple pieces from ya when I get things back into shape ;)
I often wonder why people don't call tank maintenance companies to help out for short term routine tank maintenance for these types of occasions. @Coral reefer dont you do stuff like that?
 
I don't trust people that I don't know in to my house when I'm not there.;) maybe that's just me.

Yup, I wouldn't want someone in my house while I'm not there and maintenance guys are not cheap. That said, I know a handful of tanks that ONLY have maintenance guys work on them, with the actual owners barely even feeding the tank. To each their own.
 
I agree they aren't cheap but neither is the livestock that we keep. There's a point where the cost of the maintenance would surpass the cost of replacing livestock but we're not talking about using them indefinitely, only to get by through a time of hardship or extended vacation. Surely paying someone to provide basic maintenance 2,3,or 4 times would cost less than a tank crash. Even if it didn't actually crash, the amount of time you'd spend on it once you did have time is compounded the longer it's left. To me the cost seems worth it.

Not wanting someone in your home is another story. Whether you're afraid of theft, you don't want others to see how much of a slob you are, you're just a private person, or whatever the reason is I can understand not wanting someone in your home. I'm probably desensitized to this since I'm a contactor and am in other people's homes every day usually without them there. Still, I would trust someone I knew from here on the forum that I've gotten to know.
 
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