TMC microhabitat 15l

got this tank on 9th of jan


a week later (15th) and there was sand water and rock


then sat and waited
decided levels were stable and all was good...no nitrates/ammonia and all levels looked spot on
on 12th of feb introduced 1x nass snail and got a frag of zoas (no pic of these open as yet)
a week later and got a mushroom and another zoa frag
this had 3 orange and one yellow zoa on




and thats where i am now
atm my levels of nitrate and ammonia are high but trying to sort

I recommend do a 3L water change once a wek every week, This is by far the best way of keeping things right.
In effect you'll be diluting the bad water down

Any questions keep them coming.

exactly what im doing mate
every sunday afternoon

edit: filter wise i havent changed a thing so this could be part of the problem?

Can you get a picture of the filter area and tell us what all is in there?

Admin wrote:Can you get a picture of the filter area and tell us what all is in there?

right chamber has return pump and heater
centre has sponges (as shown below)
and left has skimmer

I would remove sponges mate and put in a bag of rowaphos.

any carbon and/or filter floss?

looking the part,I was goning to convert my fluval edge to a marine at some stage.

as for carbon you can use it now and again but I personally wouldnt keep carbon
in, a few reports on activated carbon say they can leach phosphates into your tank
which is what you want to remove so you need to check the carbon you want to use
wont do this.If you read up on it you will read the pro's and con's of using it,
most of the write up's I read say if you do your water changes weekly then there
is no need to use but it does give good results if used for say a week in every other month.

them sponges you posted look a lot like carbon sponges as I had them in my fluval edge.
I personally with stick with filter floss and water changes.....keep it simple and let the water mature

thanks and cool cheers for the advise
my dad is running filter floss, phosguard and purigen
any of these suitable...obviously filter floss but the other two? can make small bags up if needed

phosguard does the exact same job as rowaphos, just a different colour lol
not sure how if its better or worse then rowa but should be ok to use.
the purigen does basically the same job as activated carbon except its ment
to have trace elements that carbon doesnt.this is used to scrub the water
which you dont need.......oh and a wee note: Zoa's like dirty water,not meaning
high in chem's but they like a lot of mico particals to feed on.a pinch of cyclop-eeze
works a treat for them.when I started using it mine coloured up brilliantly.

Ive never heard of food colouring up zoas? Only bad things happen quickly in small systems Matt, In older times when I attempted marine about 14 years ago people were using an old dish towel hung have in there tanks as a bacterial growth spot.

I would start with buying Rowaphos and removing them sponges and putting filter wool in there there do a 20% water changed and you should see a difference in a week or two

zoaid say zoas colour up better on when feeding on zooplankton
which is what cyop-eeze is.personally mine were coloured better
when I was using it,compaired to when I stopped using it.

Zoas feed on light mate!

They can feed on brine, mysis and even Lancefish but there colour comes from the algae the they create through light to feed.

If that is the case why do people add iodine and iron to colour up corals in ulns systems if its the light that colors them.its also well documented that zoas colour better in lower levels of light and will turn brown in high levels.
Sprung also said apart from zooplankton high mag levels also help them colour better.who thing about it on reef centrals US site.

ok thanks for the advise
another question (sorry:))...would it be an idea to change the return pump for bit more flow?
currently i have about 300lph but thinking this may be a little low...even in a small system
have been looking at the JBL ProFlow t600 Powerhead which is adjustable from 320-580lph and looks as tho it would fit
worth considering?
cant really find any powerheads small enough to put in...looked at the tunze 6015 but bit heavy i think?


and then theres the LED diy project perhaps

Been looking these up as I needful them for the fluval nano, these ones are getting good reviews
http://www.charterhouse-aquatics.co.uk/catalog/hydor-koralia-nano-900-circulation-pump-p-3471.html

did see these but little big are they not?
a flow of 900lph and rated for 36-60l marine tanks so maybe to much for a 15l?

Lol my bad for some reason I had it in my head as a 15gal set up.
Yeah better to try for an adjustable flow pump

Or could you get a hang on filter with a high flow rate, then the filter can hold the rowa and the return with a directional nozzle will be enough flow for your tank

will try pump first i think
will be cheaper for a first try

Maxi jet adjustable 1000lph pump and phos reactor
Would cost about £40 so its worth thinking about.
Problem with a power head in a 15ltr tank is the fact
It's taking up valuable room.

hmmm need as much room asi got
and then problem with a lot of the pumps is they dont fit in the chamber
have bought the phos guard today tho

one of them http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Mini-Reactor-Phosphate-/370103586042?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Fish&hash=item562be48cfa
an one of them http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAXIJET-MJ1000-INDOOR-PUMP-AQUARIUM-SUMPS-MAXI-JET-/370485453204?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Fish&hash=item5642a76194

the pump doesnt need to go into the tank,some ehiem pipe will fit over the intake of it.
or if you wanted just buy the pump and use two bits of pipe to circulate the water just
like a powerhead.then just use a marine ball valve tap to control the flow