Kaplanm

Ideally I'm looking to lay my hands on some Eagle Eye Zoas.

I'd also be interested in some other ultra/unique Medium -> Large Polyp Zoas.

If anyone thinks they can hook me up, please let me know!

So are most of the DI/RO systems these cobbled together amalgamations of parts and are readily expandable?

I need some help understanding RO/DI systems. I'm finally going to invest in one, but I don't understand all the terminology and what is a "need" vs. a "I'm a tech geek". I'm running a 60 gallon reef and a couple of nanos at the moment. I hope to add at least 1 more medium tank to that once we move.

Could I get some guidance on what I need?

Ugh, hadn't thought about that. I'll need to pull the plumbing when I move it. Might be a good time for me to just toss all of it and do a clean rebuild

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I'll just throw this out there... Once our tank is running, I'm more than happy to host a meeting now and then. We're north, but not super north. (Off 360 just north of 2222).

If there isn't already, there definitely should be an introduction every meeting. Not just the noobs, but everyone should at least say their name, ARC name, and give a very quick summery of their tank related stuff. This way the noobs will feel more comfortable chatting and may be able to put a face to the username they've been reading on the forum.

I've actually always found the "This is my name" bit to be really creepy. You're being put on the spot by a group of people you don't know.

I've had some luck in the past with puzzles/games. A crossword, or a puzzle, or something as simple as pictonary. Something where you can break into small groups for a little while and get to know 4-6 people without feeling like you're under the gun. Doesn't have to take a long time, but for those of us not familiar with people it's a great way to break down barriers.

OH lord, I hear you on the safety moments Wardlaw! My company requires a safety moment before any meeting can begin. I'm over here in the BP Refinery in S. Chicago and they made me sit through an entire day's worth of safety training just so I can renew my badge!

I agree though, we get a lot of new people in the hobby at the meetings and it would be good to run over the basics of reef keeping since so many people are clueless getting into the hobby. Not everyone should be required to sit through it, but it would be a good way to get the meetings rolling while answering a lot of questions people may have (or even clarify on things they thought they knew, but were actually wrong or out dated).

The promise of good prizes is what gets me in the door. I agree with Ty, knowing in advance is the best way for me to plan and prepare for a meeting, but location also plays a role. If there's a meeting way down south, or pretty far off the beaten path from the larger Austin roads, I won't waste my Saturday driving around town. Some people don't mind going out of there way and there's really no way to fix the issue to make everyone happy, but with my work travel schedule, it's hard to get out of the house when I'm home on the weekends.

It's also hard for me to convince my fiance to go with me, she was pretty bored last time I took her. And without her "permission"/(preventing her from getting upset that I chose fish over here when I'm home) it's difficult to go. Maybe have a little cocktail lounge for the wives/significant other to gather and talk about their spouses annoying obsession while they can mingle and do their own thing?

... dreams, sweet sweet dreams

Being one of the n00b members I can attest that there is a great deal of anxiety with attending meetings at members houses. The one meeting I did attend it seemed like everyone knew each other so well and I was the one guy crashing a family get together. Having an "Ice Breaker" moment at the beginning to really get the n00bs involved would be a significant gain in terms of boosting future attendance.

I also love the ideal of a cocktail lounge for significant others of "Reef-Oholics". My fiancee has minimal interest in the hobby, but would love an excuse to meet some new people and knock a few back.

That said... our new house is actually going to be configured like this. We're putting in a bar up front, and then we'll have a main lounge/entertaining space past the kitchen. As soon as I convince my fiancee that we've actually "moved in" I can't wait to host one of the meetings.

Maybe we need some neutral grounds? Perhaps someone knows someone with a meeting room or somewhere central? I'm assuming downtown would be a pain with parking.

Does that make Lake Austin the 38th Parallel?

Is it perhaps simply a matter of making the effort to try and schedule every other meeting down south?

Perhaps a car pool setup might make it more palatable to some club members?

Half of the fun is seeing the hosts tank. Some of the presentations require a display as well.

I'm of a like mind. I thought Ty's point about making sure to schedule far in advance is a great point. It's easy to book off calendar space earlier in the month than it is the last week. Perhaps we make an effort to at least announce the host/date of the next event at the beginning or end of the current months event? Even if all the details aren't set in stone, at least knowing where/when can be enough to pencil something in.

We need a better RSVP system. When I had my meeting and spent time and money getting my tank and house ready and even got a business owner to talk about Scuba diving I only had 5 people show up.

It was set up in June on a Saturday last year so the sunday scheduling wasn't an issue.

I would like to see my friends monthly if just to talk shop.

Amen.

There is always plan C. We could have formal club meetings quarterly and just do something a little less formal on the off months.

There are certainly incentives for going to one meeting or another, whether it be topic, gifts, or food, but we should want to meet. Low attendance means there is a disconnect for one reason or another. Reef nerds don't really need a reason to talk to other reef nerds, we just need a place!

I think this is a really solid point. I for one would be really interested to diagnose what the disconnect is.

A "couple of nibbles" shouldn't hurt anything. Has part of the skeleton changed color because of the angel?

The tissue has gone from a healthy green to patches of exposed white skeleton. I don't see any signs of infection though, yet.

The combined football watching coral meeting sounds good in theory but I'd start getting irked if I was watching the game and then someone came up and tried to talk CARXs (calcium reactor) with me. C'mon man, you made me miss the TD! [emoji33]

Isn't that what halftime is for, or do cheerleaders take precedence over corals too?

Doesn't mean that those of us who don't give a crap about football don't want to meet. or as a plan B, we could do a combined watch party / club meeting.

I think it would be really nice to do it monthly still.

I know I've not been to meetings in a long time, but I've been excited to start coming now that I've got a tank built. We're finally moving to a house that is just built for entertaining and I would love to host, often. I'm quite OK hosting for 10 people or 40. I would appreciate an RSVP, but that's only for informational purposes, I wouldn't wind up turning anyone away or canceling.

I think some of the topics that Sascha suggested would be fantastic talks that I would love to hear. They're common issues that people like me, just starting in the hobby, could really benefit from.

I think it could be cool to get a lending library started, I've got subscriptions to the big fish mags and goodness knows those back issues are just piling up.

I would love to see frag swaps, even if it's just tiny stuff. Again for those of us just starting, anything to cut down on our cost of entry is appreciated. I'm fine with having the patience to wait, but $30 a colony is starting to kill me.

I loved the door prizes the last time I went to a meeting. I use the grabber that I won almost every day.

It might be cool to have someone do a "showcased livestock of the month" find someone who's passionate about keeping a specific type of critter and have them do a deep dive talk about their passion. We could film them and pop them up on youtube later for people who couldn't make it, or just to get us some exposure. I think it could be really cool if we could try and reach out to individuals who aren't necessarily in the club, but who do have this sort of passion and try to video conference them in for a meeting.

I'm sad that I wasn't able to go on any of the "special trips" this past year, a lot of them looked really cool. I'm hoping we continue doing some of them so I can get on board.

Anyway, long story short, I'm up to doing as much as I can to keep this alive and well in the Austin area.

I'll have to invest in some heavy duty bins then to mix up fresh water. I had thought I would just use the old stuff as it got moved over, but it sounds like that's a poor idea.

I don't know what 60 pounds of sand looks like in your tank, but if it is more than 2" then I would toss it. If it is less than 2" then I would vacuum it really well while I was removing the water and reuse it in the tank after you move it.

It's about an inch and a half in most places. The sand doesn't lay flat due to my asymmetric, largely laminar flow.

Alright, I'll have to see what I can do. How do I handle the loss of the bacterial colonies in the sand? Won't I have to deal with a massive nitrate spike?

Would it just be best to see if I could get a friend to house them until things settle down?

+1 on tossing the sand. Too risky to use it and its cheap to replace.

Why do you toss the sand? What is there to worry about w/ it? Don't get me wrong, I acknowledge that basic argonite is fairly cheap, but the stuff I like would wind up being a $60 replace. I'd hope to avoid that if I could. Goes a long way to getting my next Vortec pump.

I may just take you up on that. We're probably moving in the 3rd week of April, so there is plenty of time for me to come up with a battle plan. I just wanted to see what other peoples experiences were moving tanks from house to house.

I'm moving from an apt. to our new house.

When you say tubs do you mean like a bunch of 5gal buckets, or something like those swimming pool variety plastic tubs?

This is my first time every having to move a reef tank. I've a 60 gallon bow front, with about 80lbs of rock, 60lbs of sand, and an assortment of inverts and fish. I'm wondering what's the best way to move this beast? Is it something I should do myself, or is it worth calling up one of the local fish stores who do aquarium moves and have them do it?

Almost all of my rock work is simply pressure fit. I have no idea how I'll manage to get it back in the same way that it is now, but I can probably get close enough.

What is the long term damage to the ecology in the tank? Should I let stuff re-cure in the tank once I move it and keep the fish separated?

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

I don't think it'll be a long term problem. I'd simply reduced my feeding schedule to deal with a Nitrate spike, he doesn't care for being fed every other day. I'm going to see if I can clip some Nori in the tank and if he'll nibble on that over time. He took care of a huge clump of algae over night when he was hungry the first time. Hopefully he'll prefer the Nori to the coral.

I've got a Montipora frag that I've finally found a location that it is happy in, when of course my flame angel decided that it now looked like a tasty specimen.

My question is, will the couple of nibbles that the flame angel took out of it regrow, or is that portion of the skeleton permanently dead?

Solid chance I got hit with this. I'm in the process of disputing charges and working with the Identity theft protection company that BRS hired.

Just be prepared to wait 20 minutes before they'll ever connect you to a support rep.

I've a flame angel, a banggai cardinal, a diamond goby, a sunrise dotty back in addition to the fire fish.

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My fiancee caught something for me. I hadn't noticed that my purple firefish was apparently not eating well. Feeding once a day obviously wasn't enough, but in order to lure him into food he needs small particles in suspension. With the foodstuffs I have it would necessitate overfeeding in order to insure that he's not out competed for the types of food that he likes best.

I think my answer would be to use a suspension of baby brine, the problem is I don't know where I could source a reliable supply. I know they're not amazingly tough to raise yourself, but at this point I'm simply out of space to set that up.

Any suggestions on either alternative food stuffs that'll stay in suspension, or where to source baby brine?

OK,

The Neon Goby also vanished yesterday. The Firefish and Cardinal are still OK, and looking perfectly healthy. Is there an easy way to tell if I've got a predatory shrimp or crab in there?