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Sixline


Post: [URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fish/i-love-my-sixline-42022.html"] I love my sixline![/URL] [IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/sweetheart.gif[/IMG]


[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Best%20of%202008/IMG_4731.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Best%20of%202008/IMG_4731.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/SixlineWrasse/t6991.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/SixlineWrasse/Feb06_2008_22-1.jpg[/IMG]


[URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/fish-month/pseudocheilinus-hexataenia-six-line-wrasse-sept-05-fish-month-33998.html"]Pseudocheilinus hexataenia (Six Line Wrasse) - Sept '05 Fish of the Month
[/URL] (Matt Rogers)

[URL="http://homepages.tscnet.com/omard1/aquariumblog_Sixline.htm"]Family Reef Tank - Sixline Wrasse[/URL]

[URL="http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/SixlineWrasse/?albumview=slideshow"]Sixline Pics[/URL]

 


 

Water Changes (Calfo)



"Amen" on regular water changes...!!!!!!! 

In my tanks, results in:

Cleaner water.

My water clarity stays consistently 340+ "TDS" (Can't get much better without pushing in Ozone. (and use of filter socks on all returns....)

Because of water clarity, I get increased light penetration, thereby increasing light efficiency.

Removes water "yellowness" - (if exists...)

No cyno for 6+ years.

No other "nuisance algae" build up that hermits and snails, asterinas can't handle. (Except for some front glass scum and coraline built up...have to scrape every 4-5 days...

Flat nitrate readings over time.

No need for any kind of additives. (Using RC's - I get more then enough Ca for tank full of softies...)

Ca and other mineral levels stay level and consistent.

Greatly reduces the need for periodic water param testing.

And of very great importance to me and my tank, loaded with a wide range of different "softies" - which no way in heck, In nature, would they be this close to each other. :-/

So there is some aggressive chemical warfare going on, drastically increasing concentration the amount of coral toxins in water column. Proof...my leathers, and kenya trees get very "pouty' day or so before water changes and not fully extend or stay shriveled up. But just moments after water change they start to perk up and become their regular happy selves. ;D

Regular water changes significantly dilutes build up of coral toxins in water column.




Additional practices to help increase water clarity:

Run air stone in sump.
Surface skimmer with good volume.
Powerhead directed at surface to add to surface water turbulence .


People that don't do water changes, generally have larger tanks, greater LR volume, very efficient skimmer, refugium, much stronger lighting to penetrate tank depths and "dosers" of various kinds.


Re: [URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/watchgantart.htm"]"Water Changes/Ex-changes"[/URL]
By [URL="http://www.theimac.org/anthonycalfo.htm"]Anthony Calfo[/URL] [IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/bow2.gif[/IMG]
([URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/index.html"]Webmedia.com[/URL])

[I]"...Under the best of circumstances, water quality in the aquarium after one month typically strays unfavorably downward in pH. It certainly increases in dissolved organics. Water clarity from discoloration becomes darker, however inconspicuous that might be to the naked eye during casual daily inspection. In heavily stocked reef displays – allelopathic compounds (chemical warfare) between corals, plants and algae amplify. Phosphorous and nitrogenous compounds inevitably accumulate too. The list of challenges to water quality goes on. Now instead of allowing these dynamics to crescendo before reducing them abruptly with a large monthly (or less often) water change, the smaller, more frequent water changes will dull the peaks and valleys of such swings in water quality to minimize the stress on the tanks inhabitants..."[/I]

 

 

Good Startup Reads


[URL="http://www.netpets.com/fish/reference/tao/tao.html"] The Tao of Marine Aquaria (Tips for Our Hobby and Life)[/URL]


[URL="http://www.3reef.com/modules.php?name=Content"]3Reef Articles[/URL]


[URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_3/cav3i2/marine_planning/marine_planning.htm"]Knowing How to Set Up a Marine Aquarium, Adam Blundell M.S.[/URL]


[URL="http://www2.hawaii.edu/~delbeek/homerf1.html"]Your First Reef aquarium: How to Create a Miniature Coral Reef System at Home.
by J. Charles Delbeek B.Sc., B.Ed., M.Sc.[/URL]


[URL="http://saltaquarium.about.com/c/ec/1.htm?PM=ss11_saltaquarium"] About.com - Saltwater Aquariums 101 "Getting Started" FREE Email Course [/URL]


[URL="http://www.melevsreef.com/tanks.html"] Thinking about setting up a saltwater aquarium? (melevsreef.com)[/URL]


[URL="http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/371351/an_introduction_to_the_marine_aquarium.html"]An Introduction to the Marine Aquarium Hobby (Part 1) - Associated Content (Parrothead)[/URL]


[URL="http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/372887/an_introduction_to_the_marine_aquarium.html"] An Introduction to the Marine Aquarium Hobby (Part 2) - Associated Content (Parrothead) [/URL]


[URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fish/list-good-beginner-fish-41561.html"]A List Of Good Beginner Fish[/URL]


[URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fish/fish-avoided-part-i-41563.html"]Fish To Be Avoided - I[/URL]


[URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fish/fish-avoided-ii-41562.html"]Fish To Be Avoided - II[/URL]


[URL="http://home2.pacific.net.ph/~sweetyummy42/cleanupcrew.html"] Your Aquarium Cleanup Crew [/URL]

 

[URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm"]
Answers to about Everything - Marine Aquarium Articles and FAQ's -
WebMedia.com[/URL]


[URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_3/cav3i2/marine_planning/marine_planning.htm"]Learn to Live With It[/URL]

"...As surprising as it may seem your tank will look ugly at first. This happens to all new marine aquariums as they cycle through their initial filtration phase. Your tank may go brown, and then green, and then red, and then just look junky. It happens. Consequently the one coral you really want to keep may not live. You may struggle to raise the prize fish you originally intended to acquire. It's okay; just learn to love whatever is working for you. Remember, not only is this a hobby, but we are keeping living ecosystems. Special efforts should be put forth to enjoy and appreciate what we are keeping, whatever it may be. It takes time and patience to turn a glass box full of rock into a beautiful, thriving reef tank..." (Adam Blundell M.S.)

 

(Corals)

[URL="http://www.aquariumfish.com/aquariumfish/detail.aspx?aid=529&cid=3790&search="] Corals: What They Are and How They Live, by J. Charles Delbeek[/URL] [IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/bow2.gif[/IMG]
[I]
"...They are mysterious guests from an exotic world. Unlike anything else we keep in an aquarium, they represent the essence of the coral reefs that we try to duplicate in our living rooms. Our success at this effort depends greatly on how well we understand these unusual life forms..."
[/I]



 

 

 

 

 

Damsels

 

[QUOTE=Brandon1023;445109]Take it out and use a raw shrimp from the grocery store to cycle instead. Damsels are evil and get meaner as they get older.[/QUOTE]



Sorry, have respectfully disagree once again (polite way of saying "baloney"/"B.S." ;) ) to any fish being inherently "evil" or "mean."

Many, upon many tanks have been shown here populated by various damsels, along with all kinds of other fish...

Damsels are vibrant and beautiful and loaded with personality (besides advantages of being very cheap and durable)



(Repost from - [URL="http://www.3reef.com/forums/tropical-fish/damsel-bully-47536.html"]"Damsel Bully"[/URL]

No such thing as an "evil" fish...only "evil" people that put them in tank with incompatible species, not enough room or not taking into account living habits...

Shove any six of us in a small room, and see how quick we start tearing each other apart...::) (guaranteed won't take long with me in there... :angry:)

I really like my damsels. They bring great color, activity and character to tank... :sweethear

Can't beat the price. ($4.00 ea for any damsel you want at my LFS) --- maybe I have been lucky, but have never had a ornery one to selves or others.

Again, I think age of fish and when introduced has much to do with success/failure. Also have no so called "docile" fish in tank. All can well hold own against any other.



You know me...never miss chance to post pics... (gotta stay on Luna's good side!) ;)



[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Aquarium%202008/April/AQ_Apr2008a_168.jpg[/IMG]


[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Tank%20Fish%20Pics/Mar2908071.jpg[/IMG]


[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Tank%20Fish%20Pics/March08_13_029.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Tank%20Fish%20Pics/Aquarium_March08_062.jpg[/IMG]

Guess depends much on what you want and expect from your own piece of reef...takes some thought. :thinking2 :fish::fish::fish::fish::fish::fish:

(looks like I need to keep this post handy, as I seem to have to repost it fairly regularly...;))

 

 

Number of Fish?

 

Depends entirely on maturity of tank, your filtration system, and how much effort you are willing to take to keep water params stable...Oh, and ultimate size, eating habits of fish.

If willing to do daily waters changes, you can keep a whole lot of fish...

Let your water params tell you over time whether you can add additional fish...If stays completely stable with your current system and maintenance regime over couple of months, you can probably add to population.

According to popular "rules of thumb" i.e. 1" of fish per 5 gallons, I guess I would need about a 350 gallon tank to support my current fish population. :-[

But I have a very good skimmer, do regular water changes, lots of live rock and keep a very, very close eye on water params...;)

Much better starting off with few and adding to over long period of time...

[URL="http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_3/cav3i2/marine_planning/marine_planning.htm"]Learn to Live With It[/URL]
Adam Blundell M.S.

[I]"...As surprising as it may seem your tank will look ugly at first. This happens to all new marine aquariums as they cycle through their initial filtration phase. Your tank may go brown, and then green, and then red, and then just look junky. It happens. Consequently the one coral you really want to keep may not live. You may struggle to raise the prize fish you originally intended to acquire. It's okay; just learn to love whatever is working for you. Remember, not only is this a hobby, but we are keeping living ecosystems. Special efforts should be put forth to enjoy and appreciate what we are keeping, whatever it may be. It takes time and patience to turn a glass box full of rock into a beautiful, thriving reef tank..."[/I]


Good luck.

Keep us posted.

 

 

Coral Poisoning


[IMG]http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/th_aniwarn.gif[/IMG]

[IMG]http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/th_skullglow.gif[/IMG]


[B][I][HL="red"]Palytoxin[/HL] [/I][/B]is an incredibly complex marine natural product containing 71 stereochemical elements. Palytoxin, isolated from soft coral ([B][I][HL="red"]most notably, zoanthids[/HL][/I][/B]), [B][I][HL="red"]is considered to be one of the most toxic non-peptide substances known[/HL][/I][/B], second only to Maitotoxin.

Typical symptoms of palytoxin poisoning are angina-like chest pains, asthma-like breathing difficulties, tachycardia, unstable blood pressure, hemolysis (destruction of red blood cells), and an electrocardiogram showing an exaggerated T wave. The onset of symptoms is rapid, [B][HL="Red"]and death usually follows just minutes after[/HL][/B]. [IMG]http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa79/omard1/Animas/th_eek.gif[/IMG]


[B] "Always wear gloves and protective glasses when handling these creatures!"[/B]

:-/

 

 


Expect we all have different degrees of emotional attachment to creatures living on our created reefs.

I, for one, develop a much closer relationship with each critter, the longer I have it.

There are a number of fish that have been with me since I first got into hobby.

We are extremely close.

I know their habits, they know mine.

Ever notice how they learn feeding times and go into frenzy when you approach tank during regular feeding periods and just kind of wander about and do their thing when you come close during non-feeding periods. (expect this is much more pronounced if you generally feed at same times every day.)

Also ever observe how they will come up to glass to say hello(?) whenever you or family member comes into room or come near glass...but ignore or actually go into hiding when a stranger approaches? (esp. visiting children...they know, they know...) Even when my cats which like to perch on nearby chair and sit for hours watching and dreaming about getting in there with them, the fish used to go into hiding...but now totally ignore or put on shows for.

Losing a long held resident is a traumatic event.

Trip to LFS is best means to remedy sense of loss.

But even same kind of replacement fish is just not the same as lost one.

Its just looks different, habits are not the same and there is very little sense of attachment or emotional bonding for long period to come. Even to point of little regret if for some reason it does not make it for one reason or other, or if does not get along with other fish in tank...except of loss in $$ spent.

Usually I only give it a few days to adjust to other fish and new environment, or out it comes and goes back to LFS if does not. Existing fish have priority

Even while looking the same as lost one, other fish tank know it is a different fish and will generally harass it for a while till accepting new resident...

Enough blabbering...guess I am still in grief period over demise of my sixline.

R.I.P.