Bill B

Matt - I know you have at least one more post on this but I do not see what I am looking for. Could you tell me what brand this is and where is the credit to (it goes a little farther at some places than others:). Does it have individual reflectors? Is it complete? Is it 4x54-48"? Thanks Bill

I still want a hippo tang, but remember the Hippo, Powder Blue and Powder Brown are probably the 3 hardest tangs to keep due to their susceptibility to ick. The LFS that told me that said they went through 4 hippos in their display tank before they kept one alive for a long time - and apparently the smaller they start, the harder to keep. I had a 6 line and rarely saw it. I had a royal gramma who was always visible but seemed to hang around one side of the tank. I know this is going to put out an alarm to 'the Tang police' but I think Tangs are generally active and visible around the whole tank. Between my FW and SW tanks I have quit worrying about fish that are going to outgrow my tanks. So many things can happen between the time you get it and the time it gets too large for your tank, or you just trade it. I did have a Kole tang and he was a bit wimpy. Bill

To my mind, partially it is a crapshoot. If where you get a frag from has really brite lites I seem to have troubles acclimating them to PC or VHO lighting. To a lesser degree it seems like the more colorful zoas grow more colorful with better lighting. These are some tendencies I have noted. In general though I would say the answer to your question is no. Bill

Welcome to ARC Chuck. I think you will find a great group of friendly, helpful people here. Bill

Thanks Dave, Robin and Mark for stepping forward. The efforts of a few and enjoyed by many often with little fan fare. So Thank you, Thank you, Thank you in advance. and Andrew that goes for you quadruple. Bill

Ric I'm gonna be really surprised if this is your 'problem' at this point. If you are not having any ammonia spikes you're probably fine. Yes coral based rock is more porous and is better for culturing bacteria. However it also 'works' much better when it is getting a steady flow of oxygen which most tanks do not, except in their sump. If you are going to add perhaps you should buy coral based rock. Definitely do not just take out a bunch of your current rock. It does have cultures on it and removing lots could cause you to go into a very detrimental new cycle. If you have even been to Mike Del Gado's, all of his aquascape now, he got from his back yard. He has bunches and bunches of coral and fish and apparently it's adequate for him. Bill

Boy this sounds like much adieu over nothing What is it you're afraid of on dead rock. Funny many buy live rock and pay a premium for it and that you KNOW has some unknown 'stuff' on it. You don't torture it to death. I'd wash it off good and put it where ever it's going for cycling. I could be wrong but the bleach sounds like a really bad idea. By definition since this rock is really porous, for myself, I would be very concerned about how long it would take all of the chlorine to leach back out of the rock. JMO Bill

Live Rock? I thought that was Lava Rock. That's what I put in all of my canister filters to cultivate biobugs. But to your point, I have noticed the same thing. Frankly I think it is partially an older term. It seems to me that some in SW still consider Live Rock the Holy Grail of 'equipment', whereas they don't 'advertise' FOWDSB or FOWWD or FOWR or FOWCF or ...., well you get my point. I suppose if I had bought 100# of LR at 8.99 I would want to make sure everyone knows I have it also I know you know it, but yes, beneficial bacteria grows on all surface areas. I have also wondered why they call it 'Live Rock' when it is dry and dead?? Bill

Kyle I still work out of the house so I can probably work around whatever time is good for you. I have to go to Westlake fairly early in the a.m. but will be back by 10 or so. If your number is still 431-.... how about if I just call on the way back to come right after, and if you're busy then get a more up to date time? Bill

Hi Kyle Welcome back. If you have any left I would love to have some of it . Bill

Yes - the whole point of having it in the crushed coral or small rubble bed is to have something not so slimy to put the super glue on. Shroom attaches to lil rocks, superglue lil rocks to bigger rocks. Even with shrooms or zoas it is okay to get a little glue on the specimen. Bill

Rick - I think most just use Super Glue GEL. There are many different varieties but they are supposedly all the same so long as the primary ingredient sounds like it has something to do with Cyano (Cyanoacrylate). The mushroom or zoas should have no problem being out of the water the short period of time that is involved. I get the rock - dry the spot slightly - apply a little SG - grab the frag - apply a little more on the bonding surface - stick the two together for maybe 20 seconds and put it back in the water. You can tell pretty quickly when it has set. It is much easier, for me, to glue frags to rocks, than to glue the frag rocks to other rocks in the tank. That's all I know Bill

Nic I would like two 10K's or 1 10K and an actinic if you don't have 2 10's. I am not absolutely sure when I can make it but I will definitely come as I did with the skimmer. If you are going to the meeting we could meet there, but haven't seen you there yet. Otherwise please pm me your address and ph #. I had them in my message box and didn't realize we were losing that with the conversion. Bill

I know there is some discount code. Can you remind us what it is, please. Bill

Rats - your 'inbox is full'. I would like to arrange a daytime pickup if that's possible. Bill

I'm glad to say it looks like I will make it. I really enjoy the meetings and hate to miss them but is always in limbo whether I can make it. We get my granddaughter every other weekend, so depending on the weekend and when she is coming over, plans etc. I can't always make it. TMI I know but this is an open forum section isn't it Bill

If John doesn't want it I would like it, please. My next tank I am hoping will be a 6 x 1.5 ft 125 gal. If that is the size of this I would likely be using it sooner than later. Thanks Bill

I do understand your reluctance but let me suggest two upsides to 'home visits'. 1) I believe one of the draws of this site is that it is a form of a social networking site but for people who really enjoy SW aquariums and talkin' about them. If you were answering an ad on Craigslist, that person may or may not be very personable, and may be interested in just makin a buck. I can honestly say I have not met a person through this great club who was rude or aloof. There have been a few that just aren't real talkative but the majority of the 'addicts' on here relish the opportunity to talk about reefin'. I think you will find almost everyone on here just plain ol good folks. 2) Going to someone's house allows you to see what these frags really look like. Naturally people will show their best pictures in the best lite and what they have is not as impressive when it is not under idea light and viewed under 10X magnification. Also when you are new and funds are limited you may see some very common brown and green zoas which are often much more interesting in person but will typically be very inexpensive both in overall price and price per polyp. Bill

I don't know anything about the tank but know at least a little about the rest, but you will need to supply a little more info. What kind of T5 is it - tubes, length, watts - Filter is a HOB or a canister and what size - doesn't matter much but what size type of heater is it - if it is a clamp on I would say that is a bad sign for the quality of the 'system'. Is all this stuff a generic Hagen - Hagen makes AquaClear, Fluval (and Laguna). Bill

That sounds like a heck of a deal Wes. I gotta ask the traditional "Does it have any chips, cracks, leaks or scratches". Thanks Bill

Just fyi - I believe the most common 110 is the same footprint as a 75 (4' x 1.5'), which is prolly why medi asked if it was 4 ft - nooo biggie. Bill

Kind of huh Congrats on yet another beautiful addition to your tank(s), I'm sure. Bill

If you buy eggcrate at the stores I believe you have to buy a 2'x4' piece for well over $10. Perhaps someone has a small piece to share with you. I do, but I don't know how convenient it would be to you, as I live in Leander. Bill

I have seen these advertised but could never really tell from the pics exactly what they are. Are they like a feather duster? Bill

I have always understood the majority of a tanks weight is 'transferred' on the corners. I once knew a guy who had 3 55 gals (FW) sitting side by side on 4 pillars of cinder blocks (front and back) so all but 2 of the front 6 corners were resting on 4" of cinder blocks = no center support at all. I am no carpenter but I would think the only concern would be that the wood and fasteners could twist. If you braced it twice closer to the ends my guess is you should be fine. JMO Bill