JamesL

Would hate to taste the air on those

I know you were joking when you said this, but that is a good thought. The only thing is though, I don't think they would leave starfish arms/parts laying around.

Do you have hermit crabs? My hermits went after my sand sifting star that I used to have. But they never touched stars that would crawl on the glass/rockwork.

I am already double booked for that day, so won't be able to make it. Have fun y'all (and thank you offroadodge for hosting)!

Merged the duplicate topics.

No problem.

I would probably stick with bulbs don't don't add any more actinic then. It is the 10K/14K part of the spectrum where you are going to get the most growth from, thus if you decrease the amount of the daylight portion, you will see less growth. The actinic is mainly there to make the colors "pop" out in florescent.

Moving this to the WTT/Free section.

The numbers! Oh, the numbers! How many bulbs are you replacing? The reason I ask, is because if you are replacing just one, I would not go with the 75% actinic/25% daylight... you would loose a lot of white spectrum. I guess it depends on what color you are looking for. If you are happy with your current mix (sounds like separate 10K bulbs, with supplemental actinic), then I would stick with that. Especially if you are planning on changing to T5s or MH down the road. I would think the 2-n-1 14K bulb with actinic would be too blue. (BTW, the money spending does not stop with the end of the wedding ceremony )

Even though they are not part of the main lighting, their spectrum will shift over time (as you indicate). And this shift will most likely be into a range that is more favorable for nuisance algae. So I would put them on a replacement rotation also. Now this will not "harm" your corals ... more just enjoyment of the tank

This is a very timely thread. Lately I have been having some issues with my bubble tip anemones not being happy... and one of my LPS brains has not been as inflated as usual. So I went searching today to see when I last changed my MH bulbs... and it was June 2009! Needless to say, I have new bulbs on the way now I agree with Mark, in that it is probably better to have a set schedule for changing bulbs, before you see effects like this. When I had my 24g tank with CF lights, I would see a boost in algae when the lights started getting old. And come to thing of it, I am seeing that in this tank too. I am getting a type of hair algae, but only in the shadows on the back wall.

A very nice hitchhiker to find!

The one I got from you is still hiding int he sand, but it keeps an ever watchful eye sticking out

You will have lots of time after the birth to take pictures. I spent a good couple of hours with our little one in the first nursery while they took care of mom (fed her, cleaning, moved rooms). The first nursery is where they check the vitals and bathe the baby... I got lots of pictures during that time.

I see a "rent-a-fish" business popping up here

After watching the showtime "Dexter" show, I would be afraid the dog would be a secret serial killer!

I would be surprised if it is the goby... you were smart in moving the brittle to the sump, as they can be predatory hunters at night. How long has the tank been set up?

Nevermind... I was fooled by hermit molt... the big guy was half way across this tank this morning. It was weird, because the molt looked real "fleshy"...

Just in case anyone was wondering, they are all gone.

OK Mama, I think you are right... this squat lobster is a tough one! I think he killed a hermit that was twice his size! I don't have direct proof, but he was close by when I found the deceased one

I am leaning towards bubble tip also.

It is doing fine, hasn't moved too much. It partially buried itself yesterday, but I didn't see where it was this morning.

The funny thing about talking to Mama is that her seahorse seem to thrive in a "don't do this" type of tank. When I last stopped by, she had seahorse living with dendros, anemones, and lots of other corals. But I definitely plan on utilizing her knowledge when I get to the point of setting up my seahorse tank.

My squat lobster is doing great. He is hanging out on my filter intake.

You should have been at the meeting yesterday... lots of zoa frags