Journal SALTWATER Iwagumi??? - UNS 45U

Ultum_Hiep

Ultum_Hiep

Community Member
Sponsor
Joined
Nov 15, 2022
Messages
24
Reaction score
59
Location
Austin, TX
Hey all! I decided to finally start my first ever saltwater tank after being gifted some macroalgae from a friend. In an attempt to bridge the gap between freshwater planted aquascaping and my new saltwater journey, I decided to try an Iwagumi concept. I was at a local shop talking to an old acquaintance about trying saltwater and he pointed at a 1ftx1ft patch of green star polyp on his overflow and told me I could have it for free, as soon as I saw it I had the idea of using it as a carpet to look like hairgrass... I cut it up and glued it down to pieces of live rock and placed them down like tiles, very much in the same way Amano used to tie riccia to flat riccia stones back in the day

compressed.jpgThis thread will be a journal for the progress of this tank. Today marks 7 days since filling and the GSP is finally starting to come out in large patches, I can't wait to see it all come out completely
 
Nice to see you here Heip. Always wanted to setup a macro tank but havn't pulled the trigger yet. Here is a great wealth of Youtube info regarding keeping macros.
It'll be great watching the progress of this tank.
 
Very nice @Ultum_Hiep , always wanted to have like a small marine (or saltwater) aquarium but didn't have enough courage specially that we keep hearing that such aquariums require a lot of maintenance and a lot of money in the process

What about if you share with us more details about your aquarium, things like:
  • Tank dimensions
  • The protein skimmer make and model
  • Filtration
  • Salt and other chemicals that you does
  • And of course the names of these macro algae and the other inhabitants
Good luck and I believe your journey with salt water will probably inspire many forum members to give it a try, keep it on (y)
 
That's a nice rock setup whether it be fresh or salt. I could see the rules for a future saltwater aquascaping contest. Must use at least one species of "fauna" as "flora" in your scape. :D
 
That is an awesome idea, Hiep! I too love both sides of the hobby and hope to have one of each at some point in the future.

While macro algae is used mostly as a filter on the salt side, there are more and more people using it as a full on aquarium. Can't wait to see the patch of green star polyps swaying in the current!
 
Awesome looking build! The atmosphere of the tank exudes so much peace! I am concerned about two things though; some freshwater rocks are known to leech harmful contaminants that are more of an issue saltwater like silicates and heavy metals (though not everyone has issues) and flame scallops often starve in captivity as they require large quantities of phytoplankton (dosing twice a day, perhaps) though the resulting nutrients could benefit the macroalgae in such a sparsely stocked setup. Seagrasses (ex. Halophila decipiens) and low-lying, rooted macroalgae (ex. Caulerpa brachypus) can be used to form carpets on the sand alongside the star polyps (though they can be difficult to come by and seagrasses require DSB's) and livestock like guppies and mangrove trees would be awesome ways of bridging the gap between saltwater and freshwater since they can tolerate both environments.
 
WheatToast said:
Awesome looking build! The atmosphere of the tank exudes so much peace! I am concerned about two things though; some freshwater rocks are known to leech harmful contaminants that are more of an issue saltwater like silicates and heavy metals (though not everyone has issues) and flame scallops often starve in captivity as they require large quantities of phytoplankton (dosing twice a day, perhaps) though the resulting nutrients could benefit the macroalgae in such a sparsely stocked setup. Seagrasses (ex. Halophila decipiens) and low-lying, rooted macroalgae (ex. Caulerpa brachypus) can be used to form carpets on the sand alongside the star polyps (though they can be difficult to come by and seagrasses require DSB's) and livestock like guppies and mangrove trees would be awesome ways of bridging the gap between saltwater and freshwater since they can tolerate both environments.
Click to expand...
Hey WheatToast, welcome to ScapeCrunch. Thanks for swinging by the freshwater side!
 
WheatToast said:
Awesome looking build! The atmosphere of the tank exudes so much peace! I am concerned about two things though; some freshwater rocks are known to leech harmful contaminants that are more of an issue saltwater like silicates and heavy metals (though not everyone has issues) and flame scallops often starve in captivity as they require large quantities of phytoplankton (dosing twice a day, perhaps) though the resulting nutrients could benefit the macroalgae in such a sparsely stocked setup. Seagrasses (ex. Halophila decipiens) and low-lying, rooted macroalgae (ex. Caulerpa brachypus) can be used to form carpets on the sand alongside the star polyps (though they can be difficult to come by and seagrasses require DSB's) and livestock like guppies and mangrove trees would be awesome ways of bridging the gap between saltwater and freshwater since they can tolerate both environments.
Click to expand...
LOL this reminds of the when I first started researching high tech planted tanks. I thought some of the posts from experts in the hobby were gibberish or people speaking in tongues!!:D I am sure all of this makes perfect sense on the salt side but coming from the fresh side it's over my head.

Now I know how new freshwater people must feel when I post some of the my thoughts on the hobby that make perfect sense to me! Also makes me want to learn more about the salt side. Another puzzle to solve might be interesting someday.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Art
I am back with an update: added some things :)
here are some stats on the tank as well
—
TANK: UNS 45U 9 Gallons
LIGHTING: 9hrs
MAINTENANCE: 20% twice a week
FILTRATION: UNS Delta 60
HARDSCAPE: Basalt stone (inert)

—
FLORA:
Palm Tree Caulerpa
Gracilaria Hayi
Pulsing Xenia
Green Star Polyp
Kenya Tree
"cluster duster"
—
FAUNA:
Sexy Shrimp
Court Jester Goby
Pictus Blenny
Yasha Goby
Blue Leg Hermit Crabs
—
 

Attachments

  • smaller.jpg
    smaller.jpg
    1.4 MB · Views: 15
Hey Hiep - you making your own saltwater or buying from the LFS?

With those twice a week changes, you probably won't need to maintain Ca or Alk and NO3/PO4 won't be an issue. Interesting that you're running the canister. Do you think it's necessary given the water change schedule? I realize your stone isn't the porous live rock and won't provided as much biological but it may run without the canister filter.

Also, what are you feeding the tank? I see you took out those fire clam thingies, should be easier now.
 
With these water changes I mix my own salt with RO water. I feed the tank with reef roids and seachem reef phytoplankton. You can't see it but there is a good 5 lbs or so of live rock hidden in the rockwork of the tank and under the macroalgae. The Canister provides good circulation for the tank and I am running the entire canister on Aquachar carbon. New update!
 

Attachments

  • DSC_3461.jpg
    DSC_3461.jpg
    1.7 MB · Views: 14
Hiep - looking beautiful, my friend! I used to think that freshwater aquascaping techniques couldn't be brought over to the salt side but you've proven me wrong. Love the iwagumi style and adding the movement with the GSP and Xenia, it looks amazing!
 
Very cool tank. I have been reefing for 20+ and have gotten into the planted tanks in the last year and I have never seen this before so congrats for your originality. Is the stone you used seiryu stone and have you seen any negative effects? I know that many of the freshwater hardscape stones can leach limestone and raise the PH but that's not a bad thing in the saltwater side of things.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Art
Ultum_Hiep said:
With these water changes I mix my own salt with RO water. I feed the tank with reef roids and seachem reef phytoplankton. You can't see it but there is a good 5 lbs or so of live rock hidden in the rockwork of the tank and under the macroalgae. The Canister provides good circulation for the tank and I am running the entire canister on Aquachar carbon. New update!
Click to expand...
That is one really interesting, unique, and beautiful tank. Very well done!!
 
7 gallons that will be fun. Make sure you have an ATO set up. You will be dealing with salinity changes. Also will be fun dealing alk changes. The green star polyps if they like this tank will take over and coat the tank completely.
 
Thanks for all the compliments guys! It's really encouraging. So here's an interesting thought, I have stumbled upon a very promising technique in regards to keeping the GSP at bay and in its intended place. If you look at the placement of my red macros, they serve not only as a very pretty "midground plant" but they also serve as a protective border to the other corals, and more importantly the rockwork. As the GSP spread and approach the red macroalgae, the algae completely shades out the GSP and it can't move forward. As far as the glass is concerned... well it's not acrylic, so a razor is gonna keep that in check just fine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top