rosslonghorns

I use a RO / DI filter and have the dual TDS meter, so I check output off the RO and also at the DI. I'm consistently at 0 or 1 ppm.

I use Reef Crystals. I perform a water change every two weeks. It is about 15 gallons.

So I have all Fiji rock that I purchased from Wolf Reef in SA. So no holey rock.

I have three tangs currently. Livestock is: Yellow Tang, Power Blue Tang, Sailfin Tang, Scooter Blenny, two Lyretail Anthias, and two O. Clowns. I also purchased two Sea Hares and still no dent in the GHA.

I'm in the process of planning / adding a refugium in the hopes of getting some macro established to help starve it out. That is probably two weeks to a month away.

I'm guessing I will get a nitrate and phosphate kit to determine if the levels have risen. Then dependent on that, get some time of phosban reactor going?

I seriously doubt the test kits will read anything as I'm sure the GHA is already consuming it, thus the reason why it seems to be thriving, but what could be driving the nutrients?

I feed once a day, but only what the fish eat in a few minutes.

I'm just frustrated and lost.

Okay, here is a little background.

180 gallon aquarium, running Euro-Reef CS 8-1 Skimmer. It was setup early November 2008.

I have a few test kits: PH, KH, Cal, and Mg but everything is normal. I continue to have green hair algae multiplying.

I'm looking for some assistance to identify the culprit and beat it. I'm assuming I need to get a nitrate and phosphate test kit first.

What else?

Nice, I'm seriously considering the Vertex Alpha Cone now!

Yep, I've been looking at the new Cone line from Vertex / Royal Exclusiv.

Pretty neat and an awesome introductory price, but will hold out a bit as the cone skimmers become established and all the kinks are worked out.

Nice skimmer, let's see some skimmate pics!

As already stated, it can be done but does take some patience and effort.

You must remove the old silicone completely and clean the surface thoroughly. I used rubbing alcohol. I also suggest using painters tape to lay out your seams, then apply silicone into the corner, and just after finishing the application, remove the tape to leave a perfect seam. It makes a big difference as it looks professionally done with no silicone smeared, etc.

Just don't let it setup too long before you remove the tape.

+2 for Buckeye, no issues thus far and always get my questions answered quickly.

Just plain neat. Awesome pics.

When I setup my tank, I used the Caribsea Oolithic Aragonite. With my flow, I hated how it always got pulled up into the water column.

I ended up purchasing some Tropic Eden (Reefflakes) to put about 1/4" over my current bed to weigh it down.

I'm very happy with the sand. It was very clean. In the future if I ever start a new tank, I plan to use it entirely. Do half of the Mini Flakes and half of the Reef Flakes and that should be perfect. I purchased mine through Premium Aquatics.

http://www.tropic-eden.com/english/substrates.html

I will take a set also if still available. I'm off tomorrow so I can pick up!

Brand new in Box. Maxi-Jet 900.

$12

Willing to trade for coral. Looking for a purple, orange, or red cap.

Well after completing a water change and running double carbon, I didn't lose anything else. I did get a diatom bloom on the sand and I'm guessing that is a result of not finding one of the dead fish.

Now everything looks okay and the algae bloom is beginning to recede. I will give it another week or so for the algae to disappear before trying to restock the tank.

I did end up picking up a Kalk Reactor and finally got my check valve in from Tunze and got it all setup. I have my Tunze ATO attached to it to feed the reactor. Overall I'm very happy with the result and not having to fill up my 5 gallon Kent Dripper is unbelievable. I love this thing! I will try to get pictures loaded.

Green Hair Algae

Full Tank Shot

One last check before I purchase a sheet of acrylic...

I've started thinking about plans for adding a refugium to my tank and before I pick up acrylic to build it myself, thought I would see if anything is lying around that fits my dimensions.

I'm looking for something rectangle / square. Max would be 32" x 18". Also has to be acrylic.

-Justin

I will not be adding Kalk directly to my top off water, but the line will feed from top off reservoir into the Kalk Reactor and then into the system, so the Tunze pump will never touch Kalk.

But as a result of your comment, I'm now thinking about potential siphon back to the Tunze pump from the Kalk Reactor.

I'm guessing I need to put a one way valve between the pump / Kalk Reactor. Do they make ones that fit 1/4 tubing?

I picked up a used Kalk Reactor today, the Precision Marine. It has the quick connects 1/4" on top. The output from the Tunze is a metric size and is just a bit bigger than 1/4" and barely fits in the connect.

For those of you that use a Kalk Reactor with your Tunze ATO, how do you connect the output from Tunze ATO pump into the Kalk Reactor? Do you use the stock tubing from Tunze and jam it into the fitting or use some kind of metric to 1/4" reducer?

Over the last week we ended up losing another Anthia and also our Naso Tang. Over the last two days, we started to notice that the Scopas was not eating any frozen food or Nori. This morning we woke up to find it was dead also.

Here is the total list of dead:

Three Female Anthia (one body was never found)

Naso Tang

Scopas Tang

Everything remaining is eating and looks great. The remaining two anthias are actually starting to put on some weight.

Remaining: Two Anthias, Power Blue Tang, Scooter Blenny, and two O. Clowns.

It looks like the one dead Anthia that was never found has caused a small spike because I'm starting to see some algae growth on the sand. We haven't seen this since the first month during the cycle. I have the skimmer set to wet and have been running two batches of carbon over the last two days. I will replace it every few days and hopefully the system will be able to equalize from the issues it has seen.

We don't plan to add anything else for at least 2-4 weeks. Also we have decided to only purchase fish from other reefers so we can ensure the health.

Overall the corals we obtained from Princer7 are all doing great and have seen some growth. Very exciting. We will get some updated pics within the next week.

I also moved my ATO container out from under the tank. I built a chest for it with the top to completely open.

Skimmer:

ATO Container / Chest:

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That is what I thought too. I've done that twice and also allowed the pump to run in a bucket of vinegar / water for 24 hours.

In order to pull skimmate consistently, I must continue to raise the water level on a recurring basis. I ended up having to even extend the pipe with regular PVC to allow me to get the water level higher.

I'm not really sure what the issue is. I've cleaned everything. The pinwheel is fully intact and made sure the airline tubing feeding the pump is cleaned. No cracks or leaks in the skimmer body. I'm just confused and frustrated!

The pump was is just over 3 years. It is the Sedra 5000. We will see as I'm about to the point to break down and buy a replacement as I don't want to dish out 600-800 bucks for a replacement skimmer.

I also have a 180 gallon tank with a footprint of 6' x 2' x 2'.

During the setup, I was going back and forth between two or three halides. I ended up going with two LumenBright Pendants that each hold a 250 watt Reeflux 12k. Since I have two islands, it works out perfectly and overall I'm happy with it. I thought I would end up with two spotlights and dark spots over the six foot tank but the LumenBrights at a height of 14" provide enough light for the six foot tank. I'm happy with it and have seen good growth on my SPS over the past few months. Also the benefit of 14" height is minimal heat is being introduced into the tank and it gives me plenty of space to work without getting burned.

I also supplement with two 4ft VHOs for actinics.

I run the halides for six hours a day and the actinics one hour before halides turn on and one hour after halides turn off. I don't run them consistently while the halides are on as as the 12k bulbs are already blue enough for me.

I'm also thinking about a possible skimmer upgrade. I've heard a lot of good things about MSX skimmers, but also some negatives related to the Sicce pumps. I currently run a Euro Reef CS 8-1 and I think the pump is about dead on it. I have been having to continually raise the level inside by raising the pipe to get it to skim. Not sure if I want to buy a replacement pump or invest into a new skimmer.

I was thinking about getting the MSX250 but haven't made the plunge. I'm still trying to find good information / data on the cylinder versus the cone. Is it really worth the extra dollars for the cone?

I'm been looking at MSX and Warner Marine but my recent research is pointing towards a skimmer with Askoll 1500. It seems this pump has received some great reviews. I think MSX 1A offers it along with the Hurricone CAT2. It seems both skimmers are getting good reviews plus the CAT2 is like 200 dollars cheaper, so I have my eye on it right now and waiting for the K2 Warner Marine to be released to get some additional details on it.

Anyone?

Well here is an update:

So far we have in the tank: Power Blue, Scopas, Naso, Scooter Blenny, and two O. Clowns. We have been looking at the Lyretail Anthias for some time and finally decided to take the plunge. Our LFS that we frequent had a few so we picked up one male and four females (2/10/09). Everything was going great and they were eating the DIY fish food along with frozen mysis.

We woke up to one dead anthia and also another one missing that I could never find. We weren't happy to see this, but pulled them out. It has been the first fish we lost since taking the plunge.

We added some carbon and started skimming wet.

Want to do a group order and split shipping?

I need to replace my two actinic VHOs.

What material are you using to make your own?