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Isaac

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Posts posted by Isaac

    Losing coral

    in Emergency Discussion

    Posted

    testing brands are like religion... you use what you like.  I use api for nitrates, alk, ca.  simply because lower price point means more testing, and they are accurate enough if you have a good eye.  i use redsea for mg, hana for phosphates.  when things get squirly, i pull out the redsea alk or ca. for salinity, the hanna ones are best.. i tossed the refractometers looong ago.

    search a bit on here and you will find full threads on comparisons, and even some arguments.  but at the end of the day... you use what you like. :) 

    Losing coral

    in Emergency Discussion

    Posted

    i'd suggest more frequent testing, check for variations/swings, specifically alk initially.  always check at the same time every day.  while this brand test kit isnt the best, its good enough to see swings that might be affecting you:  https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001D6Z7QW

    "they were good" is relative.  while each param has an acceptable range, swinging from one end to the other in a short time will cause issues.  For example, your alk dropping from 11 to 8 overnight, while its "in range and good" on paper, its bad to have drastic swings.  same applies to salinity.

    also keep in mind the reefing "holy trinity" alk+ca+mg.  they all work together, if one is out of balance, you will be chasing the others.  get things stable. $25 test kit is worth protecting your investment.

    • Like 1

    Isaac's 180+

    in Tank Builds

    Posted

    So i was going through my thread trying to find my post about my water filters and I think i need to provide a ton of various updates.

    1. The axis of paly's war has somewhat spread, it has combined forces with GSP.... which totally sucks. orange sponge experiment failed, its just too slow.
    2. my turf scrubber is still working too well, nitrates hover at 5 while overfeeding.  phosphates i cant get under 0.22, but nothing seems to be complaining too much.
    3. skimmer-neck cleaner worked for quite a while, but seems to bind more often now.  I need to figure out a bearing system for it between the cap and rod.
    4. the bristleworm trap works too well, i rarely use it until i see more than 5-10 out at first glance
    5. no fish deaths this past year *knock on wood* the maroon clown is a hog, the rest look healthy AF.
    6. the corals i have are waaaaaay overgrown in both DT and frag tank, i need to find time to take picts and post
    7. cleaner shrimp is gone (or hiding), peppermints are still in there... probably 8-10? 
    8. asterina's are back in full force, Harlequin's require more consistent husbandry and are gone, ugh.
    9. i've amassed a 5gal bucket of spent DI resin.  I plan on taking the DI recharge thing and supersizing it with https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BQKUAC (i got a steal on it)
    10. it took 16mo until my Alk started dropping from my CARX, finally changed it out.  I used 100% reborn that batch.  I had issues all year tweaking the CARX ph trigger value lower and lower and lower.... was all over the place.  replaced with cleaned up leftover, which included neomag that was still not spent (was about 30%), 20% coarse ARM, 50% reborn. and raised initial ph trigger.  im hoping this gives me a bit more stability.
    11. i have 3 spare UV bulbs by using keepa's alerts on amazon warehouse deals at avg $10 each
    12. 3-d printed overflow on frag tank is still working very well  *knock on wood*
    13. i've started using z-wave water sensors everywhere in the house (sinks, washer machine.. and under all tanks)
    14. i put my spare apex on my office tank, w/ a cheaper pH probe from ebay. 1st probe fails in 2 weeks, second probe is at a year
    15. someone still has my blue laser *lol*  (going through inbox)
    16. im sure i missed more, my head hurts after trying to remember this much so far
    • Like 3

    Isaac's 180+

    in Tank Builds

    Posted

    Mini-PSA.

    when you clean your pumps/powerheads/etc... make sure to check your level sensors if you have any.

    I noticed by return pump blowing bubbles, my "sumplow" sensor didnt detect it.  since its a saltwater environment, they are expected to fail.... these lasted about 4yrs. (not bad at all)

    • Like 1
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