Foam Filter in Refugium

Since the Ick scare with my Yellow Tang, I've been motivated to finally get the quarantine tank going.  Here's the foam filter I'll be using -- really simple one that I put in the refugium of my Display Tank for now.

Fire Shrimp Molts Again

This is the third time he's molted since I bought him.  This time, I took the shell out right away before anything else would tear it apart.

Timer for Refugium Lights

Now that the chaetomorpha has been growing and the overall algae situation is better, I'm going to put the LED aquarium lights on a reverse daylight schedule.  It's supposed to balance the CO2 levels in the tank.

Mexican Turbo Snail

I wanted to wait a bit before getting a snail to see what impact the RO/DI unit, the Chaetomorpha and Yellow Tang would have on the nuisance algae.  But it turns out there is still noticeable algae growth on the sides of the aquarium, so I went ahead and got this Mexican Turbo snail.  The only warning the LFS had for me was to make sure that if he flips over on his back, to help him out.  Otherwise, he picked one with good suction and by my request, not too big.  Here he is.

LED Light for Refugium

The chaetomorpha has been growing very slowly.  So I've finally decided to get a 6500k LED gooseneck light for the refugium, which according to online reports is the right spectrum for chaetomorpha.  I'm a little worried about the suction cup design -- some reviews were down on that -- but I'm going to assume that this is such a fundamental part of the design that it has to work reasonably well.

Chopstick Nori Feeder for Yellow Tang

I've been worried about the Yellow Tang not eating.  So I've created a chopstick nori feeder that I bury in the sand to make the nori seem more natural.

Yellow Tang

I bought a Yellow Tang today.  They are supposed to be good swimmers, they add a splash of color to the tank, and help control algae.  Technically, you're supposed to add them later because they get territorial.  So it's possible I've added it too early.  I saw a pretty good specimen in the store today, so just went for it.

 

SpectrePure MaxCap RO/DI System

I had read that purifying tap water through reverse osmosis and de-ionization has numerous benefits for achieving a well-balanced, marine ecosystem.  However, since I never did that for my freshwater and it requires a new piece of hardware, I initially decided hold off.  Well, it's been a couple of months now and while my fish and shrimp are doing fine, the algae is still a problem.  And while my tap water only has a total dissolved solids (TDS) reading of 25 ppm (which seems pretty low), I considered purchasing an RO/DI unit an investment that was ultimately the right thing to do.

I decided to buy a SpectrePure MacCap RO/DI unit that's capable of producing 90 gallons per day.  This was more expensive than the cheapest models out there, but time is so precious these days that I was pretty sure I would appreciate having something faster than slower.  We'll see over time.

Plastic Cage for the Chaetomorpha

My chaeto has been getting stuck near the baffle.  Although it's a high flow area, part of the chaeto is exposed to the air and the rest of it does not tumble around as it's supposed to.

So I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond and found a clear plastic crate that was the perfect size for my sump.  

I drilled out a grid of holes on the bottom of the crate.  

Then I set it on its side in my refugium, keeping the chaeto submerged inside of it.  The chaeto is also now directly in front of the light, so that may also help it grow.

Although I've had the lights off in my tank, the nuisance algae is still growing.  Hopefully this little adjustment will help the chaeto do its job.  If not, I may get a more powerful light for the refugium, as well.