Bill B

Well it looks like things are going to work out, thanks to Truckin, on the reflector and whole setup. But he does not have a bulb. Anybody got any inexpensive used bulbs they are wanting to get rid of? I don't really care how old or super duper they are/aren't as these are being added to the VHO's I already have, and a little less initial shock is probably even desireable. I am also looking for a 150W above 10K also. Thanks Bill

I am far from an expert on the CPR's although I have one. Mine has a Rio 600 RV so I am not familiar with the Accela. Stating the obvious it either just isn't pushing any water, in which case the pump must be bad or the venturi/ air mixing hose/mechanism are dirty/stopped. The 600 has a'head' area that turns. What for I do not know, but if your's has anything similar perhaps it is turned to no/limited flow. That's all the guesses I have. I'm don't think you are in the situation for mods. I think mods take your stuff from okay to better, not typically from not working to working. Bill

I would be very suspicious of the pump. As tiny as they are it wouldn't take much to impede the flow. If you are getting zero microbubbles I would also check out the tubing and nipple on the venturi hose as well. Do you have a little knob to adjust the amount of air/bubbles? It might just be the power head has gone bad. On a relative basis they are very inexpensive to replace. HTH Bill

I have been told that Hippo, Powder Brown and Powder Blue Tangs are the most sensitive and prone to ick. By my observations many tangs are more susceptible to ick than other families of fish. I introduced a Hippo Tang to my tank from the RCA sale. I ended up losing the Hippo in a week to ick. Though they held up for a while my other tang and Royal Gramma both caught it also and eventually passed. My Coral Beauty, 6 line, yellow tail damsel, and maroon clown all seem okay (knocks on head). The moral to the story is 'buyer beware when introducing the terrible trio to your tank'. Bill

Matt I am interested in this method but I think you have explained something wrong. I read it as saying a one gallon ziplock will hold 5 or 6 gallons of water?? Bill

Thanks folks I appreciate your comments!!! Bill

Well, it looks like it would probably be Tuesday before I could come get it, so go ahead and let the next in line have it. Sounds like a good deal! Thanks Bill

I've am running a 75 and was thinking about running a single 250, but I am a little concerned about the fixture being, presumably, right over the center brace. Are there any issues with that? Perhaps it was just a fluke but it seems I remember Capt Obvious breaking his center brace a while back and he was suspicious of his halide contributing to it. Also wouldn't the brace 'weaken' the light somewhat? Thanks Bill

Would you tell me more about the Duncans - color? how many heads for $25? Thanks Bill

Someone has been trying to get a FW/Aquarium Society going, but it is still in it's formative stage - not much ongoing conversation that I can see. http://www.austinfishboard.com/

I was messin with my 'frag tank' the other day and underneath a larger rock I found two slugs, about an inch long. They looked to me very similar to what you might see slinking down your sidewalk, after a rain - big antenae, dark brownish with minimal pattern, a little flatter than the land size and a rounded V shape posterior. They actually moved quite quickly for snails. Are these good, bad or depends? Thanks Bill

I had a new one once, that I was convinced was gone. Nearly A WEEK later, there he was swimming around.

What part of town are you in please?%#/

Would you indicate both online and on your profile where you are located please. Even a general part of town will be very helpful. Bill

Sounds good Ric.

Thanks for the info fellas, keep it coming if anything else occurs to you. As I suspected it sounds like I do need to investigate on the possibly semi plugged? outflow in the HOB. aha - Jim suggested a possible fix while I was writing and composing. I also have a HOB CPR separate skimmer on the smaller tank. It might could do a little better but it does skim, the price fit my budget, and I really like the relatively small amount of space it takes inside the tank. I have a PM RL 100 on the 75. I would like to address my strange sump layout in another thread. It sounds like I probably have too much Cheato in the 75 and maybe even in the 29. I guess I need to throw some away. - just kiddin. I will look into something other than the Cheato in the HOB but I had been shying away because of having read references to problems with sexual reproduction (drats - causes ya problems even in a hobby). The variety might be interesting although I can barely see anything since my tank is painted. Bill

Ric, You are welcome just about anytime my friend - except this weekend. I will be out both Sat and Sun helping with the Austin Pond Society pond tour. Mine was reaaally easy and cheap to make. I believe the float switch was $6 or so, the moldable 'hanger' $3, 5' of 5/8" tubing $1.50?, one short extension cord $1 (already on hand), a $5 garage sale pump (already on hand), and the litter container(already on hand). I think postage was $5 or $6, so I bought 2 'sets' at the same postage. I DO NOT use a relay or any fancy 2nd switches. Using the 3 gallon container I am confident if the switch were to stick even on the first try I would barely overflow, if at all. The litter container is rectangular so tucks away more easily. I don't mind filling it about every 3rd day and my skimmer (your ex skimmer) works sooooooo much better. It seems to me there are at least two major truths that do not get mentioned often enough. 1) Zoa's can be hazardous to your health, fraggers beware. and 2) Most/many skimmers will not really work unless you have an ATO. Bill

Hey wait a minute. When you organized that buy a little while back, didn't you say people could bring you a GOOD beer as a thank you? What, are these Lone Stars what people brought and you wouldn't drink Bill

I bought this a few months ago and I have never been totally convinced I have it running as it should so I thought I would ask a few questions. (A little more info: It has a little bit of sand, a little bit of LR and a bunch o Cheato. It doesn't have the built in skimmer. I have sometimes wondered if the pump is strong enough. It seems to fit but it doesn't appear as big or possibly as powerful as the Maxi 900 which I believe was the original equipment) 1) It's getting a little better but about 2 weeks into it, the top of water got really viscous and started trapping bubbles galore. I could/would reach into it and get some of a layer of slimy, clear stuff. Normal? 2) There is a tube that runs almost to the bottom of the last chamber. I believe the water is supposed to come up the tube and empty back into the tank. However, frequently the water level is 1" or higher above the mouth of the return spout = it is alllllmost overflowing. Huh?? I guess while I'm at it, I have a question or two about the small fuge section I just started in the sump of my 75 thanks to Cool Breeze. First a description of it. My water flows into about a 1 cubic foot section - under a 'wall', up and over about a 1" lip and then into about a 4 or 5" wide section and under another wall. This little area is where I have my macro algae. The last section is also about a cubic foot and this is where the return pump is. 1) I have primarily cheato in here but I do see at least some grape caulerpa and possibly one other green macro. Thus far I have just run the fuge light at the same time I run the tank lights. When should I run the fuge light? 2) After perhaps a month there is some cyano in the macro section and that 1" lip is really getting grody looking already with a kind of thick reddish brown layer of crud. Normal? 3) In both of my refugiums the cheato tends to float above water level and get crispy. Do you just leave it alone or stir it up occasionally? 4) About how full, percentage wise, should the macros be before I pull some out? Thanks Bill

Binswanger and Ventana Glass are two of the bigger glass places. Bill

I have read these posts several times and just had to make a comment: there is something very irreverent, to me, about the attitude of "If you're not sure what it is, kill it." I would agree that perhaps you should isolate it, till you can get a better guess what it is and kill it if necessary. I do understand there are definitely some undesirable hitchhikers. However, as I have heard Mike mention before there are also some rare and/or beneficial hitchhikers which you'll never have a chance to buy. Mostly though, it just seems like a very reckless disregard for the nature, we are taking from the sea. btw - I think you should kill aptasia. I think you should kill majano. My guess is that is not a majano. This is not necessarily good as most anemones do sting to some degree. Sponges I know even less about. I wasn't aware they were in the 'kill it' category - in fact I thought they were generally beneficial filter feeders. JMO Bill

I have know several people that have used them in FW. One of my favorite TV medical terms is they were 'unremarkable'. Think about it before you think that means bad Bill

I use one of those apprx. 3 gallon cat litter buckets. They work great for me as they have a hinged lid, so you can refill without disturbing your tubing/pump. Mine is not concealed but a painted .rectangular box should be pretty easy to construct. Bill

The one on Anderson Lane close to N Lamar. I think to some degree they are still letting it 'grow' but when I was there they did have a good sized Vlamingi ? Tang and a number of other occupants. Right now it is primarily fish. Seems I did see a few shrooms or nems. It's definitely a biggie though. Bill

I have a small number in my tank. I haven't kicked them out yet, but I don't particularly like them, because they gnaw off coraline leaving the rocks kinds blotchy white. Bill