Recent content by stevebydac

^^^ what they said... plus, I wouldn't trust inverts with one. They MIGHT leave shrimp/crabs/snails alone, but are just as likely to eat them. If I ever try such a tank and risk mobile inverts, I'd try a baseball sized hermit crab or a big chocolate chip starfish -- but even those might get...

If you want to entertain your trigger, put in a ping pong ball. They usually will whack it around when they are bored. Also toss in a bunch of shells. They like to crunch them, rearrange them, toss them around the tank.

I dunno...think about it. What is smarter, a lion or an antelope? The antelope is certainly the more vulnerable, but any of us who watch Animal Planet enough can see the greater intelligence of the lion. Mantis shrimp vs. snail? Wolf vs. sheep? House cat vs. yard mole? Octopus vs. crab? I'm...

If you have the cash and can squeeze it into the sump you might want to upgrade the skimmer to a Euroreef or something comparable. The skimmer is the key to your whole system. Get the best you can afford.

I purchased a snowflake moray 11 years ago when he was already 18". He lived with me for 10 years before passing away from what I believe was old age (no symptoms or problems). He was 30" when he died, which is their max. size. So he had to be AT LEAST 13 years old, maybe more.

Could someone please explain something to me though? A generator hooked up with gasoline would be fine for blizzards because you remain at home during the storm to tend to the generator. But if you are evacuated for an impending hurricane, you may not be back for 72 hours in a moderately bad...

The grouper shot just shows that anything is possible in a tank. We're all told not to put small fish in with predators, yet when you go to a public aquarium you see scenes like this. I bet they GORGE that grouper with food so that he doesn't go hunting. 8O I'm off now to go find a green...

As I said, I think he'll eat when he's ready. Are your parameters ok? Ph? Ammonia, etc? Is he breathing normally? Everything else normal? If all is well, then just be patient. Offer him the food, and if he doesn't accept it within a minute or two, remove it. Don't leave it so that it decomposes...

Don't sweat it. If he seems healthy, he'll eventually eat. I have had one for seven years and every once in a while he stops eating for several days. At other times he eats an unusually large amount over the course of a week or two. Yours might just be in a little mental funk since his tank got...

bdelaney, How nasty was he? I think they are gorgeous, but I have attempted three in the 4-7" range at various times and they all were moody and annoying to the other fish. One kept killing new fish for some reason -- it was a big tank and I made the other fish very dissimilar. Didn't...

I haven't fed live food to my fish in about ten years, but back when I was young and stupid I would invite my buddies over to see my 5" (?) clown trigger kill and eat goldfish. It was like watching an underwater version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Eyeballs over here...the rest of the head...

Thanks John. My next tank will likely be a 240 or 300, nothing bigger. I am leaning toward MH long-term for the next tank, but can't fit them now (and have no desire to replace my existing canopy). You think PCs are better for me than VHOs in the meantime? I have no experience with...

I have a 180g FO. It has three predators with no inverts at the moment. I am adding a lot of LR to my existing rockwork ASAP, and am interested in keeping some low-light corals. Because of my current setup, I have been ok with just 120 watts from NO tubes. Obviously, as I make the above changes...

Do they munch coralline? I'm assuming not given everyone's enthusiasm?? Also, have any of you kept one with a trigger or puffer? I read that large hermits can sometimes cohabitate with them --wondering if conches could too. I need a cleaner for my FOWLR and am pondering my (limited) options.

I have a 180g FOWLR, heavy bioload. I use a Euro-Reef CS8-1. It works very well, though if I could fit a taller version under my stand I would have done so to lower my readings even more. The CS8-1 is 20" high. I believe the CS8-2 is 24"?? The company makes an outstanding product. Go to their...