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Candi's 8g biocube adventure

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Candi

I was terrible about documenting the setup and development of both my 24g aquapod and my 70g oceanic so I'm going to make sure to do it with this tank!

I've been wanting another tank for some time and knew this was about the max size I had any room for. I had been putting it off until my fish decided it was time for me, my new yellow headed jawfish was evicted several times to the overflow by my other fish in the 70g so this tank, although small, is for her. I can't take credit for any of the mods, took the ideas from threads on both RC & nano-reef.

Started with a stock 8g (8.9g according to Oceanic) biocube (thanks Roy!!!).

Plan:
- replace stock pump with mini jet 606
- add rotating hydroflo head
- pull bioballs, sponge, filter insert
- stealth 50wt heater
- pull grate from chamber 1 (LR rubble on bottom)
- add in some chemical filtration somewhere in the back, most likely chemipure, maybe purigen.
- pull grates from chamber 2, some LR on bottom, replace bottom grate, turn chamber into fuge
- round puck light from Lowes mounted via velcro in some sort of holder on rear
- create a pvc tunnel for the jawfish (to try to keep her from digging and so I don't have to fill the tank with sand)

Stocking:
- yellow headed jawfish
- tiny green banded goby (lost the one in my aquapod, he was my first fish and I really liked him)
- small cuc
- ? (I'm bad with overstocking my tanks so I'm sure something else will find it's way in)

Up keep:
- weekly 2g water change
- additional water changes if needed via exchanging water with my 70g
- nano nimble glass cleaner (once I find the old one I know I have and put new surfaces on it)


I'll start going into more detail and include photos later or tomorrow. At this point I have sand, rock, and water in the tank, puck light on the back, and pvc "tunnel" in place :) but I'll walk you through how I got here during the past few days and you can join me on the adventure of learning to use a dremel this weekend to increase flow to chamber 2 and flood it for the fuge!
 
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Candi

Setting up:

First order of business after removing the grates, putting in the heater, & swapping out the pump was getting the fuge light assembled and installed. I opted for a pvc grate cover (with the grating removed) and a cap that fit over the back of it for the light to sit in, we didn't have a dremel so it's rough looking now but once I clean it up a bit I will photograph the actual "fixture" better, I also plan to spray it black with some krylon paint. To get the backing cut I wanted it clean, I borrowed from my craft supplies and used a circle cutting rotary to score my circle on the rear (worked great, I put the light inside the empty tank to highlight my cuts) and then used a straight edge to scrage off the backing. The light is held on with some industrial velcro. If I could do it over I would have scraped a couple inches lower, I had no idea just how low the water level is in chambers 2 & 3 (less then 1/2) so I definitely have to get that modding done to increase the flow and flood them out right away, can't put in cheato until I do.

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Next I fit together the pvc for my jawfish house (top tube will be replaced with a barnacle as soon as I get one).
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added some sand (more will come from the 5g my fish are currently waiting in...put a shower gel cover over the tube to keep sand out)
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next up... LR & water
 
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Candi

Deciding where to get the LR from for this tank was an issue. I swore after previous issues in my other tanks that I would never again use anything other then dry rock (ie marco rocks), as I wanted to keep any bad algae, critters, etc out. However all I had left from stocking my 70g with marco rocks was rubble and a few small pieces, I did have a good amount of smaller rocks in my fuge but I wanted something more. Noone here had any dry rock for sale, I contemplated buying LR from a member but then started reading about fresh for the ocean LR and my excitement about possibly getting some cool hitch-hikers got the better of me and I ended up ordering 7lbs of LR from sealifeinc.net (who I already use for rics etc and love) shipping wasn't cheap but I ordered some other things to balance it out some and was sure I'd get some cool coral hitch-hiker or neat critters or something.

Rock arrived Wednesday, not sure what I was expecting I mean it was only 7lbs which ended up being 3 rocks (2 decent sized 1 smaller). I wouldn't say I was disappointed at all, but no coral hitch hikers. Good corraline coverage, some macro such as halmadia and shaving bush, flat colored sponges (which seem to thrive in my tanks so that's good). A nice small sized serpent star who was in not great shape but seems to be alive still (hiding under rocks today) & 2 astrea snails. I was extremely surprised more by what I didn't see... no pods at all. Normally everything I buy from Ken is crawling with pods (they are even in the bags with my rics) but nothing at all on the rocks or in the bag. After getting the rock tossed in the tank (leaned up so that I could keep as much off the sand as possible to see what might be growing) I went through the wet newspaper... came up with another small serpent star (worse shape, status unknown), a pencil eraser sized pencil urchin (alive), three even smaller crabs (2 dead, 1 alive but with tiny black pinchers... reading before those are bad he moved downstairs to the sump on my 70g).

My plan is to do frequent water changes to keep the critters alive and hopefully speed up any cycle, the rock didn't smell at all and the tank has no off odors so that's a plus.

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Looking forward to adding some of the rock from the 5g in here to get an actual aquascape.
 
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Candi

Self doubt & second guessing....

So my plan up until tonight has been to keep my fish in the 5g until this new tank cycles and I feel relatively confident no bad hitch hikers are around. Now I'm not so sure...

In typical reefer fashion I've been staring into the tank even though there is not much going on, the snails are creeping around, the blue leg I tossed in is picking at things, I see the starfish leg every so often from under a rock. Still no pods at all (weird), I add a piece of LR from my sump hoping to introduce some pods or mysis.

Came back after lights out with a shrimp pellet, nothing can resist a shrimp pellet right? I toss it in and wait to see what comes out to get it. After a couple mins I see movement and quickly shine my flash light expecting a pod... what the... that thing looks like a teeny tiny pill bug.. ISOPOD. I immediately flash to the posts you read every so often where someone has some horrible fish flesh eating isopod in their tanks and are losing fish etc. Then I think of the tiny black claw crab, if there was some in the paper there are bound to be more hiding in the rock and I've read even small ones kill fish, these are tiny but it's only a matter of time until they grow and the fish going in this tank are also very small (green banded goby is so small right now I have him seperated from the jawfish as it wanted to eat him!) WHAT HAVE I DONE?!?! Probably had enough rock in my sump for this tank, looking at the 5g I think there is enough in there and here I go and introduce god knows what.

So what are the chances of flesh eating isopods and killer crabs in my little 7lbs of rock? Right now I'm actually thinking maybe I should reverse my plan, pull everything out of the biocube, put everything in the 5g into the biocube (no worry about a cycle since it's all cycled sand & rock) and then put the stuff in the biocube into the 5g where I can watch it for a few months if need be to be sure nothing creepy is in there... I'm in no rush and in the mean time my fish can enjoy the better/bigger tank.

What would you guys do? ???
 
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Candi

I think I've talked myself into the redo. Though rationally I'm pretty sure anything I saw isn't harmful what if it is, these are small fish and it's not worth the chance to me. So this weekend I'll grab a rubbermaid and drain the biocube into it, pull the rock and sand (darnit just bought that sand but short of rinsing in fresh water I can't be sure something weird isn't in it right?) wash out the tank (will at least make using the dremel to open up the back a bit easier) and then refill it using the water currently in my 5g (along with some fresh saltwater) and transfer my sand, rock, and fish into the biocube. Then the new sand & LR will go into the 5g where it can be observed for however long and eventually the rock will come into the biocube.

Ugh. Could have saved myself how much money and time by just using my pre-existing rock in the first place.

So tune in soon for the quick tear down & rebuild LOL
 
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REEFLECTIONS

i kind of agree with you with the redo candi.... but atleast the tank is small enough as to make a not too huge ordeal.... and when i get my biocube 14g or 29g i'll be sure to speak to you about your mods.... good luck
 
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Candi

Thanks for the post. I feel silly doing it in a way, but at the same time what if it is a bad guy (was reading about them on RC and many people who get the TBS packages get them, that's FL rock not far from where mine came from I believe) so better safe then sorry right. Like you said it's a small tank so not a huge deal, just a bit of a pain/bummer.

Will update with new pictures this weekend once I do this (or might wait till next week after I can get the barnacle I'm buying).

Just thought of another positive, since it'll be cycled I can add some corals, I have some rics just waiting and my plate coral is being picked on by the big hermits so he'll go in here too!
 
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calaxa

Candi,

I like the PVC pipe for the jawfish home. Makes me think about adding a blue spotted. Oh wait....no cover for my tank. Don't want a $100 carpet surfer.
 
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calaxa

I wonder if you can build a house out of clear material and push up against the glass so the jawfish can be observed inside his home.
 
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Candi

I suppose you could use those hamster tubes, usually colored but still clear... I'd wonder though if the fish would feel to out in the open if you could see in and then decide to try and build a house elsewhere in the tank? Neat idea though!
 
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calaxa

I read just the other day someone coaxing their jawfish into building his burrow up against the glass and being able to view him inside his burrow. Candi, you really have me thinking about going for this blue spot jawfish.
 
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Candi

Do it! Do it! (reef enabler/peer pressure) hehehee


calaxa said:
I read just the other day someone coaxing their jawfish into building his burrow up against the glass and being able to view him inside his burrow. Candi, you really have me thinking about going for this blue spot jawfish.
Click to expand...
 
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Candi

I got mine from sealifeinc.net, she's gorgeous... very yellow head and lovely pearly w/blue highlights body. $12 (of course you have shipping... but if you get some rics or something too it works out not to bad) but hopefully you can find a pretty colored one locally!
 
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Candi

Couple updates:

Increasing water level in chambers 2 & 3 has been done, and it was so easy. I had pm'd a couple people on RC who mentioned the fuge mod and asked for recommendations on how to trim the panel... both said a dremel wasn't the best idea as it seemed to melt the plastic more then cut it, one guy said he just used some big strong scissors. Well I had a pair of I think they are metal cutters or something, figured they aren't electric so lets try with it running... snip snip, twist a bit with some pliers and pull off the plastic and WOOHOO done! I might trim it up a tiny bit more but will wait to see how it is once I have the cheato in there before deciding. Very happy with it and the reduction in noise, no more running water sound!

Jawfish house: I was going to get over to Tito's house sometime hopefully early next week to get a barnacle I'm buying from him... he surprised me a little bit ago by saying he'd be in the area and could drop it off WOOHOO now hopefully he makes it fine with this nasty weather but this means I can do the swap this weekend and have ms jawfish's house ready for her.... assuming some gel glue holds it, I don't have any putty.

Photos coming after the transfer!
 
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Candi

Thanks! Tested reef safe I'm sure right? ;) He hasn't made it yet but assuming he still does let me see how the fit is on the pvc and then let you know, probably could use one.
 
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Candi

Today's Lesson: You can build a tube for a fish, but you can't necessarily make the fish go in the tube.

Today was the big swap out, fresh LR & sand out of the biocube and into the 5g hex and my fish and their sand/LR (originally from my 70g sump) into the biocube. I had everything planned out well, or so I thought.

Long story short, swap is done. I was still questioning my decision as I was doing it (the new LR is really so neat, great colors and stuff all over it) but as I was doing the swap I found two more tiny little black clawed crabs... who knows what else is still in there, particularly any isopods so I'm sure I made the right choice. I'm not happy with the aquascape in the biocube now but there wasn't much I could do with a large (well 3/4" and 1") pvc tube in the middle and tiny pieces of LR hardly bigger then rubble for the most part. It's not long term so I'll make due and there are plenty of places for corals (just worry about gunk collecting in the rocks, hopefully the hyrdo rotating flow will help with that).

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So... my plan to get my jawfish into the tube was to transfer her into the tank in the pvc pipe she arrived in originally with a net holding her in it until I got her to the opening in the new tube and to set her free into it hoping she'd stay. I get her 1/2 the way there and she flips and flops/jumps and I lose my grip and into the rocks she goes. Last I just checked she's building a lovely home to the left rear side of the rocks ::sighs:: what I should have done was have nothing but the tube and sand in the tank, put her in and spooked her into the tube, then gone ahead and aquascaped and hoped she'd stay put. I might give her a few days and if she doesn't find it on her own pull the rocks and try the above plan (once I get the barnacle and get that glued on too)

My two little gobies are free in the tank also, the green banded is still very small (in the photo that's him next to the tube opening, remember I only used 3/4" and 1" pvc parts... hope he doesn't become lunch for the jawfish! My other goby is a tad bigger then him, it's a masked goby and it bobs up and down in a very cute way... we're considering calling him Bob LOL

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