Hi everyone! I'm Tom, My goal here on RU-vid is to educate reefers on building, setting up, and maintaining their reef aquariums. AND, HAVE FUN! Happy reefing!
Have you thought of putting a Mandarin Goby in there? I have a pair in a 20 gallon that is full of macroalgae. They are thriving. I never ever feed them.
Hi! My tank is 2mos old and 40 gallons fish only with few invertebrates. Nitrates are 14 ppm and I know it thats an ok level but i just want to prepare before nitrates creep up high. Water is crystal clear but i dont want to water change if its not going to do anything for nitrates. Im apprehensive to do vinegar bc im fairly new to hobby but should i try this method or just do water changes. Or would just getting plants be better to keep my nitrates stable? Please help, dont really know which path to take
hey tom johnny here miss you dude , but i have a question i am trying to find a toadstool leather (my fav) the one you had in your 75 that got the brown jelly and you had a vid called dont let your coral die. i have been trying to get that coral for a year , i ordered it a few times but did not get what i was looking for. do you know what the name is or were i can get it thx johnny ,hope all is well !!!
Don't let people get to you Tom only upload what you feel is enjoyable. The internet can and will be extremely negative about everything don't sweat it. Also great paintings!
Your videos were great. Learned a lot thanks for the help. Do what makes you happy. I also got that hair algae. Everything was good then boom everywhere. Took me 4-5 months to get it under control. Lawnmower Benny and other utilitarian fish that helped me. But it was almost a total crash..wish you the best in your endeavors.
Hi Miguel, happy you learned from my videos. I’ll probably do one video per month, possibly. I just can’t promise anymore than that. I’m looking to get a fish for it also 👍🏻
Hi danroo, watts really don’t matter. Kelvin is more important. you want 6500K minimum to grow sps. But so many other variables in growing SPS it may not be your lighting at all. It could be other things nutrients, etc.
@@TOMReefer I got good flow my nutrients control could be better but the lack of coralline growth makes me think it could be lighting. My 20 gallon is running for 3 years now. I have orbit marine r34 55 watts and si prime running on it.
@danroo3294 good Coraline growth can be a combination of things. The right amount of calcium and alkalinity, lighting and nutrient level. It’s hard to pinpoint one thing that’s causing it to grow or not to grow.
TomReefer, Your channel was a major influence that got me to start my first reef tank. I was able to reference some of your older videos for tank problems along the way. As you said: it’s all there. Thank you for sharing your expertise over the years. Your paintings look phenomenal and I hope you have success and happiness with all of that.
I just spend almost 300 on an aquamaxx 1.5 hob skimmer. It was alot of money but my god this should have been the first thing i bought for my tank months ago ! Its amazing !
Going through the same hair algae in my tank. Definitely not biopsy’s. Started to do major pinching with a hose and less feeding. I love that 6 gal so much
Hi Tom can I dose Alk and magnesium same day I mean first dose Alk and 2 hours later dose magnesium? Cause I have problem I added daily Alk and magnesium but both of them didn't raise
Hey friend i did an aqua spin test at my lfs and my phosphates were at 0.3 i heard thats way too much specifically for a 10 month old tank. What can i do to fix this ? And is 0.3 overboard ?
Hi @Coral reef, textbook says that 0.3 could be high. However, I’ve had my tanks many times in that range and everything is fine. You can use GFO to lower your phosphate, but that may need to be exchanged quite frequently. Continue to test while using it and that will tell you when you need to exchange it. A larger water change will also reduce it if your tank is only 10 months old.
Hi Gmnjean. 13dkh is a bit high, but 440 ppm cal. Is ok. Try a larger water change. As long as your fresh saltwater mix is OK this should stabilize it.
Slow and steady wins the race! Hope you keep up with the maintenance and get inspired to do more. What’s going on with the cylinder tank with the damsel?
The six gallon is ok, it’s tricky because of it’s design, hair algae forms in the bottom because it doesn’t get a lot of circulation. If I add more circulation, it disrupts the top portion in the rest of the tank with too much flow..
I have a two-part dosing system. Dosing pump so they continuously run. They’re on timers so they only come on for about two or three minutes twice a day. They dose, calcium, and alkalinity.
I wish you the best buddy . May you have much success moving forward. I still go back and watch your library when I’m having an issue in my tanks . Thanks for all your help over the years Tom!
Oh yeah! And by the way, your artwork is, can I say, banging? I mean Bang!. I couldn't be more excited for you and your followers, me.😂 Thanks for sharing 👍
Yeah, that gooey hair is something else. I just ran my first automated manual water change. So hopefully I'll be performing WC more consistently and getting rid of that gooey hair. I'm thinking 8 gal a week for now until i am satisfied. While testing of course. I'm thinking at least till the waste water is no longer green. And then spread it out to maybe biweekly. Opinions comments welcomed.
I changed my career 2 years ago to do aquarium maintenance because it's what makes me happy but i still dont have time to film so i understand. You gotta do what makes you happy.
I’ll miss the videos Tom, I’m having a bit of a slump in my tanks too and it can really take the stoke out of the hobby. Once your tanks bounce back I’m sure you will get excited about them again. Sometimes it helps to simplify down to a single tank, I’ve burnt myself out with too many tanks in the past. The 10 gallon looks awesome and Your art is fantastic too!
Beautiful artwork. You are very talented. I've always enjoyed your videos. I like your tanks and your attitude and now that I've seen your paintings I would like to see more of them.
This style impromptu is my fave, short and sweet. It doesn’t always have to be educational. Just an update here and there. Maybe a Timelapse video of your artwork and stuff would be cool too.
Thats a shame i got into reef keeping from watching your videos. Everytime i got a question or see a problem in my nano reef i look up your videos. You gotta keep your body and mind happy and if painting is doing that for you now then throw yourself into it completely. Stay healthy and take care Tom much love from England ❤
Interests shift , keeps life exciting. Why not create videos about your artwork ? Might not be everyone's cup of tea but to some it may be interesting. It'll shift your viewership for sure. Problem with fish or any other pet , you're committed on a daily basis . You can drop the paintbrush for weeks and continue the process when inspired.
I've been using vinegar for several months now but have seen reports from Tropic Marin that it fuels cyanobacteria. They sell a longer chain carbon they say is better as cyano can't use it. Anyone have any thoughts on this?
Damn Tom wats up that it’s not about the money it’s about sharing the knowledge of the hobby with people u did great sorry about ur tanks it’s a bummer hair algae is taking mine over too natural brotha anyway good luck god bless
What type of Gorgonian are those fluffy ones? Good fortune with the painting. Going to miss your personality on the reef videos. Thank you for the great memories.
Hey James! That’s a Florida gorgonian. And you never know I could be back. I may need a few more months off and if time lends itself to me, I’ll do a few more per month. I’ll still be around 👍🏻😃
