A few questions!

[Big K]

Hello, everyone thanks in advance for your advice on these questions!

My wife and I have bought an entire setup locally and set it all up a few days ago and I have a few questions:

1. My T5 6-bulb light has two separate bulb types, one more ultra violet and the other is a sun/grow light. Are these supposed to both be on in the daytime? Both off at night? Only one on at night?

2. we've noticed some sort of "cobweb" type stuff floating around. Ay ideas what that might be?


I know I had more questions than that...hmm.. my old brain fails me.

OK guess that's it for now! Glad I can be around and make all you reefers feel smart. lol

 

[Bifferwine]

With your lights, the blue ones are called actinic bulbs and the white ones are called daylight bulbs. They should be run at the same time, during the day. At night, lights out. Fish need dark-light cycles too. :) To simulate dawn/dusk, some people turn on the blue bulbs an hour before the white ones, and leave them on an hour longer. But that's not necessary unless you want to do it.

The cobweb stuff could be anything -- detritus from the rocks or sand, or they could be the webs of a type of snail called a vermetid snail, that uses a spider web like thing to catch food. Whatever it is, it is probably completely harmless and nothing to worry about.

 

[Big K]

That's what I was doing with the lights anyway, just wanted to check.

I'll have to see what the web things do in the future. I'm glad they're not some super tank killing death webs though.

You're awesome, Bifferwine. Many thanks!

 

[Big K]

Ok another question!

I checked out my tank today and noticed beside the green coral button polyps a small green grass-like growth with orange tips. It is in a few other places in my tank but this is the only place it seems to be close up on another coral (if indeed it is a coral). Here though the polyps seem to be spreading out but the heads near this growth are gray in places or all over.

What is this growth, and is it too close to the polyps? Should I pluck the ones near the polyp or all of it?

 

[Bifferwine]

That's a majano anemone. It's a pest, and it will sting your corals. You will not be able to pluck it out. You will have to use Aiptasia X to kill it. Treat it just as you would an aiptasia. If you don't get rid of it ASAP, it will spread like crazy. And that's a problem you don't want to have -- trust me!! I had to end up boiling over 500 lbs of live rock on my stove because of a terrible majano infestation at one point.

 

[Big K]

ACK!!!

Ok, thanks!

 

[Big K]

Will a red-legged hermit eat them?

 

[Bifferwine]

Nope. Some people have had luck injecting them (using a needle and syringe) with lemon juice, vinegar or boiling water. But none of that worked for me. Aiptasia X is best way to go.

 

[Big K]

Headed to teh LFS in the morning then to get some Aiptasia X!

and some snails.:mrgreen:

Will the gray areas on the polyps return to normal or are they dead?

 

[yote]

I dunno. For a Majano, that's pretty nice.:D I've not seen one that colored up.
I had 3 Majano's that grew on a large zoanthid rock.The zoa's finally crowded out the majano's.
And Biff has you covered on your lights.

BTW
If your ever in the Chattanooga area, Stop in at Bermuda Triangle. I'll get you a 10% discount on anything you buy.

 

[Big K]

Hmm.. my wife and I were actually planning a road trip to Chattanooga later this year to see the Aquarium! I don't know how smart (for my wallet) it would be for us to visit a store after getting all jazzed up at the Aquarium though. lol

I will totally let you know when I'd be out there though, Yote, Thanks!

 

[Big K]

I dunno. For a Majano, that's pretty nice.:D I've not seen one that colored up.
.

Check these out:

i really thought these were cool but I can't abide them killing my corals. Think I could leave the ones that aren't harming my corals? The ones in the above picture seem to be doing no harm.

 

[Bifferwine]

The ones that aren't hurting your corals will multiply and spread. And that will make it that much more difficult to get rid of them once you either add more corals or they've spread closer to the corals.

You have a lot in that picture. Get rid of them now, before they get out of control. Which won't be long. Majanos getting out of control killed all the corals in my 240 gallon tank, except for the kenya trees. The smell of 500 lbs of live rock boiling on the stove is not pleasant. :lol: That's the only way I was able to kill so many of them.

They may be pretty, but make no mistake -- they are a pest.

 

[Big K]

Hmm.. ok I'll Terminate dem [/schwarzeneggervoice]

 

[Bifferwine]

Good luck...and god speed. :mrgreen:

 

[Big K]

Did the X (lol) and they seem to be eradicated. That stuff worked great! I even picked up the rocks I could and checked all around them. In doing so I found two sneaky ones that I duly killed. Plus I found a tiny offshoot of my pulsing xenia growing on the back side of a rock AND a Feather Duster tubeworm! How cool is that?!

Before and after treating my Green Polyp is very gray and retracted. Will it heal the gray areas now that the anems are dead?

 

[yote]

They should spring back. Those polyps are pretty tough and can usually handle anemone stings.

 

[Big K]

YA! That's one of my favorites so I'm glad to hear. Actually they've sprung back a bit since my post.

Patience, I will learn it....right away! No...wait.

 

[Big K]

Ok so that really depleted the population of Anems but I see a few tiny green ones still around. Any harm in dosing again so soon?

 

[Bifferwine]

Nope, nuke 'em! Some of them may take a couple treatments.