Hi all -
I am a brand new reef keeper, and thanks to all the articles and individual threads I was able to setup my first tank last week.
About my tank ... BioCube14 (10 gallon), standard 3 chamber filtration system w/106gph pump, 1 x 24 watt 10,000K 1 x 24 watt Actinic 2 LED night lights, 100 watt heater. No mods to tank, except I added some LR rubble to chambers 1 and 3 since there is so much open room (suggested by LFS). I put the LR and sand in last Sunday. Although I planned to let it cycle naturally over the next several weeks, my LFS talked me into adding 'Cycle' which seems to have accelerated the process quite a bit.
Readings ... taken with API test kit
Temp - 77.5 - 78.5 (this is the max range over a 24 hour period)
Specific gravity - 1.022 (almost 1.023)
PH - 8.2
Ammonia - less than .5ppm (hard to match exact color)
Nitrites - 0
Nitrates - less than .5
In the past 48 hours I have noticed a significant algae bloom .. Mostly the brown algae starting to cover the LR; however, I have also noticed some small patches of what looks like slimy green bubbles. Also some of the LR is starting to show some purple growth, not corralline as I can whisp it away with a turkey baster.
Hitchhikers ... A very happy and active feather duster, a bristle worm(s) - haven't actually seen him, but he stung me when I was aquascaping !! I used a red light last night, but still haven't been able to find him.
Questions ... I assume this algae bloom is typical, but is there anything I should be doing at this point ? My plan is just to let the tank do its thing for at least a couple more weeks.
The pump that came with has a turnover of 106gph .. I have read that many people upgrade the pump because some of their corals need better flow rates - I don't have specific plans for particular corals, but I don't want to limit what I can stock due to an inadequate pump - The upgrade is fairly inexpensive so I would be happy to do this if it's recommended.
Sorry about the pic quality ... It's the only camera I have
Any comments and advice is greatly appreciated !!!
I am a brand new reef keeper, and thanks to all the articles and individual threads I was able to setup my first tank last week.
About my tank ... BioCube14 (10 gallon), standard 3 chamber filtration system w/106gph pump, 1 x 24 watt 10,000K 1 x 24 watt Actinic 2 LED night lights, 100 watt heater. No mods to tank, except I added some LR rubble to chambers 1 and 3 since there is so much open room (suggested by LFS). I put the LR and sand in last Sunday. Although I planned to let it cycle naturally over the next several weeks, my LFS talked me into adding 'Cycle' which seems to have accelerated the process quite a bit.
Readings ... taken with API test kit
Temp - 77.5 - 78.5 (this is the max range over a 24 hour period)
Specific gravity - 1.022 (almost 1.023)
PH - 8.2
Ammonia - less than .5ppm (hard to match exact color)
Nitrites - 0
Nitrates - less than .5
In the past 48 hours I have noticed a significant algae bloom .. Mostly the brown algae starting to cover the LR; however, I have also noticed some small patches of what looks like slimy green bubbles. Also some of the LR is starting to show some purple growth, not corralline as I can whisp it away with a turkey baster.
Hitchhikers ... A very happy and active feather duster, a bristle worm(s) - haven't actually seen him, but he stung me when I was aquascaping !! I used a red light last night, but still haven't been able to find him.
Questions ... I assume this algae bloom is typical, but is there anything I should be doing at this point ? My plan is just to let the tank do its thing for at least a couple more weeks.
The pump that came with has a turnover of 106gph .. I have read that many people upgrade the pump because some of their corals need better flow rates - I don't have specific plans for particular corals, but I don't want to limit what I can stock due to an inadequate pump - The upgrade is fairly inexpensive so I would be happy to do this if it's recommended.
Sorry about the pic quality ... It's the only camera I have
Any comments and advice is greatly appreciated !!!
