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My 325 in Sterling VA!


TonyB13

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Hi My name is Tony,

Moved here to the Dc area back in 2011from Augusta GA with the Navy probably going to try to retire here in a few years. I Was in the hobby about 20 years ago then after my divorce in 2011 I got back in with a little jbj 24 gal then jumped up to a 75 gallon. After moving to Sterling from Oakton and going from a condo to a full house with huge basement i got this monster. 325 gal from Kirk at DAS.

Sorry if i screwed this up tried to add some pictures

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Thanks Sump is from Adam down at artfully acrylic.really nice work his attention to detail is awesome.Sitting here hunting for  lights hoping to steal something for black Friday,

I have two kessil 360 which is what i was planning on adding 3 more but i don't think they are strong enough to get to the bottom of the tank. Anyone see any deals please hook a brother up. 

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Have you needed to adjust the skimmer since the initial dial in on Saturday?

Hey Rob, nope you did such a great job its perfect just cleaned it out pulled some crud out.also I am probably evaporating a couple of gallons a day does that seem right?

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That manifold is pretty hot!

Thanks, Kinda kicking myself for not doing the drains and returns in the same colors, might have to fix that at somepoint

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Couple gallons a day is a lot less than my 300gallonish system. But yours is covered system that must help! The dry winter air also will make my evap faster

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I keep thinking that I have made my decision on lighting and then I hear about another issue or bad review or another shinny object. I thought I wanted to get the t5s then someone said it could lead to tank heat issues. Then i almost bought the giesmann auroras for 3200 dollars and they said no returns if I don't like them. Im thinking of the reefbreeders, biggest reason is logan he actually will talk to you and offerd me 30 day money back if i don't like them. Which i wont need a week should be good. I am contemplating radion g4 pros but thats more than double the reebreeders. Cant get anyone with experience to say if they are twice as good as the others. One thing I have learned in my 51 years is that people who buy really expensive stuff will say they are the best even if they really aren't. For example the stupid adjustable beds u pay a ton of money for them and my gf had one but i hated it but she thought it was the best thing ever. Sorry for rambling

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I like my G3 (XR30W) Radion Pro's, but "upgraded" with (lightly) used units to replace my 6-year old DIY LED assemblies when one of the drivers started going on the blink. I have no idea if they were "the best" but, compared to where we were with LED's six years ago, they're certainly an upgrade. I especially like 1) spectrum adjustabilty; 2) wireless control by my Apex through a WXM module (which also controls my MP40's); 3) efficient lenses; 4) how compact and clean they are compared to what I had; and, 5) lower power consumption than what I was running before (i.e. operational cost savings). I use lower-cost Chinese-made LEDs over my 12-inch deep frag tank that basically switch on and off (under Apex control). I run my lights cooler (less bright) to reduce the heat and aging of the LEDs.

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  • 3 weeks later...

This is a funny hobby, when i was a kid i had racing pigeons back in the 80's there wasn't this much dispute about what to do. While I am sitting here writing this im thinking would there have been so much dispute over how to keep pigeons if the internet was around. I am thinking probably so i guess its not the hobbies fault but the internet. My reason for these thoughts or small rant is its hard to get anything definitive. So i was struggling with my light decision so i figured i would take a break from it till the day after Christmas sales so i started looking at biopellet reactors and same as the lights evrey one and their mother has an opinion and all sound convincing. I dont have Facebook or cable TV and I rib my gf for being on Facebook all the time i am starting to get that way with reading these blogs lol.

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The problem youre having Tony, is that there's a great deal of opinions and anecdotal evidence at best when it comes to much of the equipment available to the reef enthusiast.

In a sea of choices, I tend to pick the products that have been around the longest and have best service records or customer service.

I personally have gotten to use more products than the average reefer and can sometimes be biased based upon my own opinions and hands on knowledge of that particular product.

 

In the meantime, just put one light on the tank and start the algae cycle. If you somehow are able to let the tank cycle 3-4 months without adding livestock other than fresh live rock or fresh livesand, you'll have an awesome tank further down the road.

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Funny, I had racers and rollers back in the day too.

Awsome yea i had rollers two. Maybe I give this up and go get me a couple of birds at least i knew what I was doing.lol

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Hey Rob, yea i know, whats the old saying opinions are like ......

This was more of just an observation pondering etc kinda thing.

Yea I am in no hurry i know how you feel about the t5s but im still considering the t5 led combos. But probably will go with the ai hydras. EcoTech is just too much

Here is a funny story so i was talking about how expensive the lights are and some kid suggested I do a go fund me page so out of curiosity i went to go fund me and the cover story was a refuge family from Afghanistan who got tboned in sterling killed the mom dad has spinal injury both babies in the hospital, so i didn't start a page and donated a couple of bucks. To be clear the family tragedy is not funny me thinking i was going to get free money and end up giving is funny

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One cool thing about the Radions is that you can make that hospital white light in your tank that actually shows the true colors of everything without looking radioactive. You can also do the radioactive look.

Kinda difficult to set up and need to be controlled via computer or iphone, but a good, dependable product. They blend seamlessly with all the other stuff Ecotech makes. I haven't used a reeflink, but I use dozens of Mp40's and Mp60's.

 

I used a Kessil a350w for 2 years on my home tank and was impressed by the ease of use and manual fine tuning of the color. I like the fact that they are small and compact and can be hung from a simple hook.

 

I've used AI's on several tanks and with the manual interface, somewhat easy to program. I've also replaced many of the fans and experienced several burnt emitters along the way. Still nice and dependale lights IMO.

 

T-5's in my experience provide a nice blend of colors and an even blanketing of light in the tank. They generate a lot of heat and replacing fans and other components are required to keep them running for long periods of time. Buld replacement at 8-12 months gets expensive and makes you seriously contemplate switching to LED.

 

VHO/MH combo- very popular in the 90's. Put out lots of light and many of the Hamilton fixtures were constructed to allow ducting to be added to move the heat out of the fixture. Excellent light coverage by the VHO's alone, and a little actinic pop if you had the right MH bulb- (before Radiums)

 

Evergrow and other black box units all work well. Some of them had motherboard issues- especially the legged IT series. All of them regularly (2-3) years require fan and/or driver replacement. Cheap cost components and easy to replace. Cheaper than most any LED fixture on the market. Customer service is non-existent, unless you have the hotline to China.

 

PAR 38 LED's are another way to look. Typically used with track rails and adjustable heads, you can make dramatic lighting effects like spotlighting and shadow play to create a truly custom lighting scheme. I used these 5 yrs ago on numerous tanks and had good results with them.

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I think you will be very happy with your choice

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