The Florida Project

Ezreal · 07/23/2020, 11:59 AM

So I used to have a reef... I say used to because for a month I have been bed ridden with Corona. In that time I wasn't able to maintain water changes and parameters. My beautiful reef turned in to a hair algae covered wasteland with some snails sponges and a lonely damsel.

However out of this disaster I can follow a dream I had a long time ago.

I will be transforming my wasteland in a to a slice of Florida reef by sourcing inverts and possibly fish locally. I'll be using local drifitng Saragassum as the primary aquascape around the live rock to offset nutrient spikes and provide shelter and food for oddball inverts. I'll probably anchor them to rocks with glue.

I need a bit more sand to house some sand loving organisms such as clams and brittle stars.

For filtration I have some chemical filtration in the form of carbon, got some mechanical with a filter sponge and floss.

And to top that off I have a nano skimmer that did a dang good job in the past.

I want this tank to be rich in nutrients for the most part which is the biggest challenge due to the tank being only around 16 gallons. Hopefully the skimmer and macro algae along with the inverts can balance things out nicely.

Over top of the reef I have some Mangrove pods sprouting which will form an interesting aquascape with their roots, when they reach a size too large for the tank they will be replanted at nearby beaches in an effort to maintain our mangrove population and provide shelter for many organisms suffering due to mangrove removal.

As for coral, I would like to source some zoas ricordeas and gorgonians but I'm a little unclear about locations and species allowed to be collected so I'll be contacting some reef conservation groups for more info. Not at the coral point anyway.

This has been a dream for a long time. Hopefully I can make it a reality. Any advice is more than welcome and I'd love if you guys would join me on thos journey!

Ezreal · 07/23/2020, 12:08 PM

There's a jetty with a very jagged set of rocks surrounding it. The rocks are caked in beautiful snails, chitons, limpets, gobies and coral.
With my license in hand I collected specimens of Sargassum and caulerpa and the previously mentioned inverts. Haven't been able to nab a gobie yet. Soon hopefully. Also hoping to get some mithrax crabs and other peaceful crabs. I might be finished with hermits. Not sure. Going to collect some sand fleas too and clams. Want a very very Florida sourced aquarium. Keeping lights to only a few hours a day.

Cleaned the rocks as best I could to remove the hair algae and glued down the caulerpa and Sargassum. Also harvested some zoas to test them. Beautiful neon light green/blue. Gorgeous zoos. Hope to collect some ricordeas and leathers. Have to find out the laws on gorgonians. I love them but I'm unclear if they're legal to harvest and what the bag limit is if they are. Also need a safe way of harvesting them so I don't damage any colonies. Maybe wire cutters...

Ezreal · 07/23/2020, 12:13 PM

Some pics20200723_123658.jpg 20200723_132333.jpg 20200723_001619.jpg

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Ezreal · 07/23/2020, 12:13 PM

Skimmer is up and running again too

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Michael Hoaster · 07/23/2020, 01:35 PM

Congrats on beating Corona. Also welcome to RC!

I love the Florida concept. I'm also a big fan of plants. Good luck with your new setup!

Ezreal · 07/23/2020, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Hoaster

Congrats on beating Corona. Also welcome to RC!

I love the Florida concept. I'm also a big fan of plants. Good luck with your new setup!

Thanks!
Hope you enjoy the build!

Believe it or not I've been a member since 2015! This old tank has been with me for a very long time and has seen many builds over the years. At one point it was even a tropical killifish breeding tank!

This project was a long time backburner but hopefully this old thing will see it's finest iteration yet!

07/23/2020, 11:59 AM	#1
Ezreal Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Florida Posts: 1	The Florida Project So I used to have a reef... I say used to because for a month I have been bed ridden with Corona. In that time I wasn't able to maintain water changes and parameters. My beautiful reef turned in to a hair algae covered wasteland with some snails sponges and a lonely damsel. However out of this disaster I can follow a dream I had a long time ago. I will be transforming my wasteland in a to a slice of Florida reef by sourcing inverts and possibly fish locally. I'll be using local drifitng Saragassum as the primary aquascape around the live rock to offset nutrient spikes and provide shelter and food for oddball inverts. I'll probably anchor them to rocks with glue. I need a bit more sand to house some sand loving organisms such as clams and brittle stars. For filtration I have some chemical filtration in the form of carbon, got some mechanical with a filter sponge and floss. And to top that off I have a nano skimmer that did a dang good job in the past. I want this tank to be rich in nutrients for the most part which is the biggest challenge due to the tank being only around 16 gallons. Hopefully the skimmer and macro algae along with the inverts can balance things out nicely. Over top of the reef I have some Mangrove pods sprouting which will form an interesting aquascape with their roots, when they reach a size too large for the tank they will be replanted at nearby beaches in an effort to maintain our mangrove population and provide shelter for many organisms suffering due to mangrove removal. As for coral, I would like to source some zoas ricordeas and gorgonians but I'm a little unclear about locations and species allowed to be collected so I'll be contacting some reef conservation groups for more info. Not at the coral point anyway. This has been a dream for a long time. Hopefully I can make it a reality. Any advice is more than welcome and I'd love if you guys would join me on thos journey!

07/23/2020, 01:35 PM	#5
Michael Hoaster Registered Seaweedist Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 5,807	Congrats on beating Corona. Also welcome to RC! I love the Florida concept. I'm also a big fan of plants. Good luck with your new setup! __________________ As many naturalists and environmentalists have suggested, we should set aside our arrogance, our desire to conquer and control everything, and walk hand in hand with Mother Nature. -Walter Adey Current Tank Info: 180g Seagrass Sandbar Lagoon, START DATE November 28, 2018

07/23/2020, 12:08 PM	#2
Ezreal Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Florida Posts: 1	There's a jetty with a very jagged set of rocks surrounding it. The rocks are caked in beautiful snails, chitons, limpets, gobies and coral. With my license in hand I collected specimens of Sargassum and caulerpa and the previously mentioned inverts. Haven't been able to nab a gobie yet. Soon hopefully. Also hoping to get some mithrax crabs and other peaceful crabs. I might be finished with hermits. Not sure. Going to collect some sand fleas too and clams. Want a very very Florida sourced aquarium. Keeping lights to only a few hours a day. Cleaned the rocks as best I could to remove the hair algae and glued down the caulerpa and Sargassum. Also harvested some zoas to test them. Beautiful neon light green/blue. Gorgeous zoos. Hope to collect some ricordeas and leathers. Have to find out the laws on gorgonians. I love them but I'm unclear if they're legal to harvest and what the bag limit is if they are. Also need a safe way of harvesting them so I don't damage any colonies. Maybe wire cutters...

07/23/2020, 12:13 PM	#3
Ezreal Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Florida Posts: 1	Some pics20200723_123658.jpg 20200723_132333.jpg 20200723_001619.jpg Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk