Here I will attempt to document this tank.

It is a little peice of my reef. I live by the Florida Keys and although I love to fish on top of the water and look into the water at the pretty stuff below, I am a chicken shit. I do not like to get into the water. Everyone laughs at me, but when you see a 14' shark on the end of your hook floating up to your 12' boat, in 3' of water, you tend to think again.

So we decided to set up a tank here. thats lead to another 10gal cycling water for qt or whatever, and a empty set up 150 in the living room. But that tank will get its own thread started soon.

The current set up on my 55 is as follows. I dont understand the words wait, And have suffered many consequences because of it this last 9 months. The tank has only been set up since May of 2008, Son started it and wanted a mean agressive tank. After he purchased a few things, filter,sand, water, and ran outta money, I took it over. We added a couple of chromis right away within the first week. and the rest was up and down hill from there.

I purchased test kits and attempt to keep an eye on things here, but my testing abilities must really suck because when I test I find stuff wrong, but when I take it to the LFS they tell me its perfect...Uh huh thats why I just lost a yellow eye kole, and atlantic Blue, and chromis, a sand sifter and a green wrasse with in 3 weeks time. Never figured out why, but when I went to the LFS yesterday he retested and found everything A-ok. i took my nitrate test kit that always tests high for nitrate here, and tested it against his. I let him perform the comparison test, and low and behold it came out perfect. So is it me or him....Im gonna beleive him but I dont know why. He told me that his tanks test higher in trates than mine does.

anyway... Im gonna get this party started. So bear with me today as I learn to use this awesome site, and I will write the story with pics...

I appreciate all advice, dont hesitate, I know I need spanking for alot of it, but its all a learning process. and as long as I keep learning, its all gotta be good.

Stay tuned....And thanks for hanging

This is a 55 gallon tank.
Equipment
2 HOB filters.
1 Emperor 400
1 Fosters & smith Bio System Power filter & Oxy Surface Skimmer
1 Red sea HOB prizm skimmer
1 heater just in case
1 korallia 3 PH

Here is a List of inhibants of a very stocked tank as I am about to write it all down and admit.
1 b&W clown, Popeye
1 engineer goby
2 chromis 1 just died within last month. was 3
1 yellow wrasse
1 green wrasse died 2 wks ago
1 6 line wrasse
1 yellow eye Kole died a week ago
1 atlantic blue tang died 3 days later

3 mythrx
20+ turbos
various snails
few blue leg and various red leg crabs
1 brittle star
1 tube worm that just lost head... 1 month ago but I still see the worm in the tube until 2 wks ago. now gone
1 electric flame scallop
1 flame scallop
1 cond. Gigantee anem.
Candycane coral Neon
candy cane coral NEW YESTERDAY pretty baby blue
Hammer coral 4 head just split 2x
torch coral just split
red mushrooms dividing and lots of babies
2 giant umbrella mushrooms Discosoma Neglecta 3 baby frags. mixed zoas
2 small blue ricordeas
1 purple bubble mushroom Rhodactis sanctithomae , some call it a hatian, snake polyps, we call them the stiffies, they look like a male body part!
small leather mushroom/toadstool + 2 tiny frags from it.
Star polyp rock
other star polyp frag stopped opening. had great growth then I moved it and now its not showing signs of much of anything but 3-4 babies..
1 large purple georgonian expanding nicely
2 zenia frag
and a new softie leather. ok now for the pics... in the next post.

WOW that was a confession!! I

The most important thing I now have to learn is what is the proper thing and way to feed them all!!
It is amazing how quickly it filled up, just one frag here and there. But the newest LFS has a very nice zoa frag tank and always sells nice size peices for very cheap. Getting me or my tank in trouble every time I step foot into the door!
Why cant I just say NO!! Well now I have to! No more room and have to focus on finishing new tank and getting it running so that I can have more room!!

And where are the picts??

__________________
Brenda ~ B9

Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music ~ George Carlin

ok now lets do some pics. Dont let the backdrop fool you!!!

Proper name for this guy? I forgot. Hes my new addition as of yesterday.
Where would this guys happy spot be?


This is frag corner, Here there are 2 leather frags, 1 neglectus, and what I was told were button polyps. on the left.


here is the mother umbrella mushroom and my mixed rock of zoas, zenia,and another unidentifiable something or other. and my other zenia frag. the leather was just sitting there for the night. not his happy place im sure.

here is the mushroom with the shrimp just before she ate it!!


here's the convict/engineer and my hammer and the other umbrella mushroom. with a little one on the shell with him. due to his moving his foot.


here is one of the orange mushrooms, she has a baby on her too!

Emerald Crab larger of the 2


New Candy Cane


New Candy cane with Neon candycane that just never seems to open to the fullest. maybe its not in the right spot...need info.



and my Stiffies---Snake Polyps


My leather and the baby blue Zoas

Baby Rics that dont seem to be growing fast at all.



the star of this tank...Introducing POPEYE!!
Smile for the camera and show me your best side buddy. I cant keep him outta the camera!


HEre is my brown mushroom rock, my newer hatian mushroom Rhodactis sanctithomae, and my star polyps


Here is my other red mushroom rock. all natural babies. but ive been known to clip the mama!
Shes on top of the rock.
my mixed shell zoas, I have worked very hard to save these. they are the last 2 original Ebay Zoas. the dissapearing ones. well the orange ones got down to 1 and now there are 5 so they are on the comeback yea. I had to glue these 2 peices on this shell to keep them from getting lost. I need a maginifying glass to see some of these frags. LOL
and of course the Yellow Coris wrasse.


my mad scallop after water change, my pink zoas and my 2 mystery zoas on the ther rock.



Partial tank shot but mainly showing the georgonian...
16.00 find at my LFS and its as tall as the 55 and as wide! awesome fella

my anem hidding under the georgonian.


One of my fav spots in the tank stepping back a little






my floating breeder with the cheato and some baby orange frags from the mama!


and we'll finish this off with a FTS


Got a little camera happy, thanks for looking.

Geesh give a girl a chance to finish.... ok now on to the next thread!! LOL

Nice pictures! I think we have talked about umbrella mushrooms in a past life...

Do you have an RO/DI unit? If not, what are you using for source water?

__________________
"You can explore the universe looking for somebody who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and you will not find that person anywhere"

you and I have spoken of those mushrooms before. heres a fun link of some of the anitcs of mine. In fact I was looking for you a couple of weeks ago while I was loosing the fish.. this mushroom was looking like it puked for about a week. now its better. cant remember do you still have yours? Im gonna have acouple for trade. LOL Orange ones to and leathers. LOL

the water source I should have mentioned is natural Reef water from about 6 miles off shore. no mixing for me, and I purchase RO/di from the LFS where I get the reef water.

We have discussed getting a unit of our own before my 150 is to far into this.

Chronicles of a man eatting mushroom Mushroom Chronicles