Eckreef

Not to disagree but... I setup a 40g breeder with 90% dead rock and 10% LR. It fully cycled in 2 weeks and has been running for 6 weeks now with only a CUC (bunch of snails and 2 shrimp) My Euroreef RS80 has been skimming like a champ since day 1....

Looking forward to the meeting

I'll be bringing 10 lbs of cycled live mud from reefcleaners that i have decided to not use. Will also be bringing $$$ for frags as my tank is finally ready for corals and I am tired of looking at snails for 6 weeks

+1 on dry rock from BRS. I used this in my tank and it is extremely porous and light weight with interesting shapes. After one month it already has a great start to looking like LR.

What sensors did you get?

socaltropicalfish sells the ACIII new for $400 according to their website. I went with the Apex (from Reefgeek) and so far love it although I still have not been able to get the email notifications to work

What type of sand is the LS? i.e. coarse or fine

Placed my order. Thanks again to Reef_pug for setting this up!

PM sent

Count me in for some GAC and GFO.

Update: Thanks to everyone for their advice. Big thanks to caferacermike for loaning me his dremel (greatest device ever invented). Worked perfectly especially in a tight space. I drained the sump and initially enlarged the holes. I then decided that more is better and don't want to have any issues with restricted flow through my sump so I removed the slots and made a opening that I then covered with plastic gutter guard. In the second picture you can see a crack that I made in the acrylic when trying to drill out the holes. Thanks goodness for silicone. Not pretty but it works. It's working great at the moment.

Interested in opinions on the Neptune Aquacontroller Apex. Anyone got one and happy with it? I am looking for a controller and really like the fact that the Apex and AC3 are compatible with the iphone. I wouldn't mind an AC3 but have not been able to find one new and they are scarce used. Was about to buy an Apex when I saw this review on Marinedepot.com "0 of 3 people found the following review helpful: Below Average NOT ready for prime time. by RICHARD TISDALE Experience Level: Expert Posted on 9/8/2009 from KENNEWICK, WA UNITED STATES Comments: As a previous owner of the Aquacontroller Jr. and Aquacontroller III, I was very excited when I order my new Apex controller. That excitement has dimmed considerably after receiving this controller. I truly wish I had my III back. The Apex is just not ready for prime time yet. Although I was told before I purchased it, that my AquaNotes would be compatable with it, it is not. The manual is a joke. Please, please save your money on this one. I would not recommend this product to my friends. " Is this a legitimate review or just a disgruntled party? Any comments or experiences appreciated?

Thanks to all for the tips. This is why I love this club! I am going to try to enlarge the holes for now although I have the valves tweaked now to where it is working pretty well and silent. I would like to have more flow so that the system has more capicity if it is ever needed as i think that it will be less likely to overflow.

How much can you restrict a Eheim pump without damaging it?

So I finished setting up my 40g breeder and custom sump and FINALLY filled it with water. Here is a pic of the setup It is a 40g AGA breeder with custom internal overflow. Custom sump which I just built below The sump is as seen from left to right is 1" return (feed by 1.25" durso) to left chamber which will house Euro-reef RS80 Center section for refugium Right section with baffles to Eheim 1260 635gph with 3/4" plumbing My problem is that my flow through the sump is slower than the pump The water backs up in the 1st two chambers and the pump chamber is emptying too fast. Here is a picture of the slots I cut in the black acrylic I thought they would be big enough but obviously they are not I tried to enlarge the slots but it is difficult to do with the dividers in the sump and all I have is a drill. So my question is...... Do I take down the tank, pull the dividers out of the sump and completly replace/redo them or Do I go for a smaller pump. I could try a Eheim 1250 (317 gph). Would this be too slow flow? The main circulation for the tank will be a Vortec MP40w and I may add another pump for circulation if needed Opinions? Thanks, John

I have been considering a Booster pump as well. FWIW my pressure is only 40 in Round Rock I do not generate a lot of water so I will probably just spend the extra money on DI refills instead of getting a booster unless someone has a better option....

Went to Aquatek today looking for filter material. At Bruce's recommendation I got some Poly-filter. It fits perfectly under the eheim 1260 and is about an inch thick and somewhat resistant to compression so it should keep its "shock absorbancy" for a while. As an added bonus it passively filters phosphates, ammonia, heavy metals etc.

Thanks Mhart! I like this idea. I was about to use a mousepad but it has a strong "rubber" smell and was making me nervous about using in my reef.