I swear I am about to quit.

[aznt1217]

Hello Guys,

I love reefing, but I am quite pissed off. My Biocube 14 seems to be like the tank of death. I got like a MaxiJet 1200 and a Koralia hooked up into the Biocube. This tank was awesome... till it became fish killer.

So I thought all was well and came home and realized my tank was awfully quiet. No flow was going into the tank. I checked for all my fish but I couldn't find my Bicolor Blenny so I figured... he was hiding. I pick up my Maxijet and I see this orange tail sticking out. I take apart the maxijet expecting to find the other half of him... NOTHING. So I take the tail out and I have to UNFOLD my Bicolor Blenny.

I want to quit this hobby after these two freakin casualtys due to my overflow. I don't know what to do. Any suggestions

http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y70/aznt1217/?action=view&current=photo-6.jpg

 

[clayperro]

i had the same problem very futrating. the overflows suck. i suggest a reef ready tank. thats what im thinking of doing. still have a 92 with overflow system and hate it

 

[ocholoco]

Hey

Things are bound to happen in this hobby, So far i have painted my downstairs neighbors apartment two times. I have lost many fish and i'm still here.

 

[Domboski]

You can use mesh or a sponge to cover the teeth on the overflow. When I had that tank I did that when I put baby banggaiis in the tank when I was trying to rear them and I did not have a problem. If the fish are jumping over the overflow you can put the cover over the maxi jet inlet to avoid fish getting into the propeller. If you do not have the inlet cover I have plenty and can give you one.

 

[aznt1217]

I don't know how they would be able to fit if they jumped into the overflow. The light fixture doesn't give it any gaps... For now I used filter floss to cover the teeth of the overflow.

Dom thanks for the help I actually just called you to see what you would suggest. I am actually going to take you up on that inlet cover offer, when are you available?

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

I just lost about 90% of my livestock, corals fish and inverts I know exactly how you feel. Now it is time to take a step back and analize things anf figure out what could be inproved and what doesn't need to be improved.

I would say the mj1200 needs to have it's intake covered and as far as the fish in the overflow part I would drop the water level of the tank to the point where there is a 1/8th of an inch space where the waterline is below the top of the teeth for the overflow.

What is in the tank now?

 

[aznt1217]

Yea Chief I just saw the thread. I am so sorry man... these cubes are ugh.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

You know dude, I like the cube alot but the limitations are frustrating as are the swings in water parameters. If you want to quit I'll let you if you can honestly say you wanted the fish to die. And since I and everyone else here knows that answer is no then you're stuck with a tank my friend.

Ok now back to work, looking at your tank mechanically and biologically what works and what needs improvement? This is of course in YOUR opinion not the opinion of anyone else.

 

[aznt1217]

It's not that I am going to stop. I am thinking of just freaking upgrading my tank immediately instead of putting it off.

I guess I will do the mesh and get the inlet cover from Dom temporarily

 

[Domboski]

I don't know how they would be able to fit if they jumped into the overflow. The light fixture doesn't give it any gaps... For now I used filter floss to cover the teeth of the overflow.

Dom thanks for the help I actually just called you to see what you would suggest. I am actually going to take you up on that inlet cover offer, when are you available?

Sorry I didn't realize you called. I was on a CC. I'm leaving early tomorrow morning for Chicago but I'll be back Wednesday. When I return I'll shoot you a PM and let you know I have it ready for you and we can make arrangements to meet up. If I had known earlier I would have mailed it to you before I left. In the meantime you may want to put up a thread and ask if anyone has one laying around you can use until I get back (if you still have fish in the tank). You can always cover the intake with foam too.

 

[Domboski]

What issues did you have with the Koralia 1?

 

[aznt1217]

The Koralia 1 is fine. I think the Maxi Jet is too much. Jay said go back to the stock pump. But now I am thinking about just speeding up my upgrade to the ZeroEdge because I am spending so much time and money on this tank and I might as well jump to it.

My Clown is fine he seems to be smart (and fat) enough. The Jawfish I am not worried about he stays in his sand bed. The firefish just stays in his cave now too. I can wait a bit, now that I stopped freaking out.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

What would you upgrade to?

 

[KathyC]

A couple of suggestions for what you can do to prevent fish from getting past the overflow & the issue with the maxijet..

A foam filter block - you can take this and slice it like a roll (not cut all the way through) and place it over the teeth. The water will still go through but the fish won't be able to.
One of these things..
http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/prod/215466/product.web

Before you can get the inlet cover for the Maxijet jet from Dom, you can tie a mesh bag (or put a piece of panty hose) tightly over the entire maxijet to keep fish from getting caught up in there.

 

[aznt1217]

A 40 Gallon ZeroEdge Aquarium is the planned upgrade.

 

[aznt1217]

Thanks KathyC for the advice. I just wrapped the whole pump in panty hose. Massive Damage control and really just thinking where I should go from here.

 

[fernandokng]

Just wondering, what's your water parameters like?

For a 14G, the easy swing in parameters can stress a fish quickly, making them weaker and more subceptible to getting sucked by a strong overflow.

Not likely though, but it could happen, especially since this is your 2nd time (I believe).

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

zeroedge is not for jawfish, you may want to find that fish a new home.

 

[KathyC]

zeroedge is not for jawfish, you may want to find that fish a new home.

Assuming you are saying this due to the jawfishies tendency toward jumping...it would be okay if it had a cover on it

 

[moonlightxpress825]

defeats the purpose of getting a zero edge if you cover it...