lewisweil

I can't wait for the next meetup!

I am very proud that Fish Gallery is sponsoring ARC. The board has done so much for the aquatics community, it is nice to give back and support ARC.

That is high praise indeed.

Yep, we'll move it to the next place where we are having meetups. We are doing it again at Butterfly Bar to thank them for hosting last time. November will be in a different place and we'll move the tank there. And so on and so on. If people tweet for their bar/store/office #gillmurray to @fgflow we'll bring the tank to them.

Plus it's good for the business. We tell people where the tank is so they can go check it out. So the business should get some extra visitors. We'll change the tank up now and then so it doesn't get boring. If it is popular we'll keep doing it for as long as people want to hang out with Gill Murray.

FG I think gets them custom from a shop in dallas. If you're interested I'll get the shops contact info.

I went back to check on Gill Murray today. That's a good looking Frontosa. I might buy him after the tour is done...

Can y'all think of some other fish that could work in there that he won't tear apart? He's a big fish but there is still room for some dithers.

0_0 it was hard enough working in that one. You should have seen me aquascaping with my fingertips.

No he won't. It just for the next couple months. I don't trust most people when they say "we'll get a bigger tank we he needs it." But I know we will. We have a tank or two available...

I thought y'all might dig this. I set-up this tank at Butterfly Bar in east Austin. It is part of a promotional tank tour I am doing with Fish Gallery for the new Austin store.

I just set it up so it is cloudy and the fish is still freaked out. It is such a nice specimen. I sorta want him when the tour is over. We named him Gill Murray. It is a 47 tall. I am really happy with the rock work. This tank is going to be set up wherever we have our meetups.

I'll try to post some better pictures once the water clears up and he acclimates a little more.

PM sent. It is yours for the taking.

p.s. I am editing the OP with roll call as people check in.

Do you deal with them often? I don't have use for it now but I have long wanted to do a tank with their stuff and see what crawls out.

Its dark and cloudy and I'm stuck in the lab, but I at least have coffee. Someone please post a picture of a shiny coral under some shiny new LED system.

Also someone do me a favor, go to the Fish Gallery booth and give Sarah a highfive and tell her I'm jealous that she is getting to work 18hour days at macna.

I unfortunately had to work over the weekend and cannot make it to Dallas.

But I bet there are a few of you up there. Shout out if you are there. Maybe y'all can get together for afterparty drink.

Fish Gallery said if you come by their booth and tell them you're from Austin Reef Club they'll give you a free shirt (if they seem confused say Lewis said so!)

Please share pics and thoughts for the sad people not at MACNA this weekend!

Roll call so far:

Chad and Belinda

Sherita

Roy V

So I follow the Japanese restaurant Komé (great restaurant on Airport Blvd.) on facebook. They post this photo fish that just came in from Japan. In the middle is this gorgeous fish, they said it is called Aka-isaki. I'm sure it is delicious but I want one for my fish tank! I am guessing it never makes it into the hobby. Anyone familiar with this fish? I couldn't find it's scientific name.

I am quite interested. I'll try to get out of the lab in time to be there. I'll see if I can get someone from Mikhail Matz's lab to come. That is part of what they study.

That it is very cool. I'm adding that to my short term wish list. Its not the site I saw awhile back so maybe the other one is still out there.

Once upon a time I saw a site that tiny coral from larvae that had recently settled out. Not frags, but actual baby corals from sexual reproduction. They called them micro coral or something. I haven't been able to find it since I saw it awhile back. Does this sound familiar? Anyone know who the seller might be?

Wow, so fragging can start very early in development then. This is a brilliant adaptation. I doubt that the "frags" from broken embryos actually settle out very often, but it increases the likelyhood of at least one surviving. I will have to get someone at UT to download the full text of the Science paper for me. I wonder if this is common across coral genera?

I remember there were a couple people doing LED a few years ago. I do mean just a couple. Lots of arguments against it. But it seems like the technology has more than caught up with the needs of reef keeping.

What are y'all hoping/expecting to see in the next few years.

I am very happy about LED developments. But like all new tech it scares me that it is creating more barriers to entry for new people. But I am probably worrying too much. A new person probably doesn't even know enough to know how little they don't know!

How long will this shindig be going? I won't get out of the lab until 6 or so.

Those were what caught my eye. I knew LED was popular. But I saw some Kessil lights on some tanks at Fish Gallery in Dallas and was very surprised to see so much shimmer coming off an LED. That sorta sold me. I know its a silly thing but the shimmer effect gets me, it makes you forget it's artificial light.

Still have it. If no one takes it by next week I am breaking it down to scrap wood.

My guess is the advent of the single emitter die based LED, vs the old school 'bulb' type LED we all grew up with, as well as advances in mfg that decreased the cost enough that it made it viable. They are still a bit high cost wise, IMO, for the name brand fixtures but rapidly dropping.

That coupled with 'proven results' over the last year or two=success.

Don't listen to Oooza; he's dumb and cheap.

This and everyone else, great info. Thanks. It got me reading more now that I know what to google. Single-Die is brilliant. I had no idea. The wiki article on LEDs had a great graph showing the rate at which LED luminosity has developed. We just recently got to the point where it was practical and based on past trends there is a lot still to do. Very exciting for reef keeping!

Also now seeing the surface mounted single die lights I get it why DIY is so much more practical. There is no end to the tweaking and customization. I have a lot to learn. This is cool!

inverted soda bottle with a treat inside? wait for him to go in and the scoop the bottle out.

did you check overflows and sump for him?

First, you'll have to pardon my ignorance. I haven't been doing reefs the last couple years. I've been working in aquaculture and that took up all my aquatic energy. So a few years go by and I come back to the hobby and LEDs are everywhere. Was there some technological breakthrough that I missed? LED tech has been around for decades, but when I last was serious about reefs it wasn't a viable option. Now they've displaced MH. Was there some tech breakthrough that made it possible? Or was it a manufacturing issue that made them practical and affordable?

interested in this set up where exactly are you located?

I am just north of 51st (north of Mueller) and east of 35.

Im going to say that coral is sexy. How wide across is it?