jnguyen4007

I like the bluer look so I replaced my 10K with a 14K and use arctinic along with it. It comes down to matter of preference, faster growth but more wash out look, or slower growth but more bluish look. James

If you notice what looks like something small, stringy, brown, and it has miniscule size bubbles like attached to them, then you probably have cyano as well. Had that problem not too long ago. James

That is about 3 to 4 hours drive, isn't it?

I'm sure there is a list somewhere out there and possibly some members know what they are. I surely don't. Zoanthids are gorgeous so don't let your fears keep you from enjoying them. I think just like everything else, if you use a bit of a precaution, you will be fine. James

Good tip to know. Thanks. James

the latext gloves go up to your wrist. If you put your arm in the tank, the water will get in between the gloves and your hands and your hands will get wet. My main concerns was not so much keeping my hands dry but to keep me from touching the rocks and corals with my bare hand. If I have something like sea urchin or a lion fish where the spines can be poisonous or extremely painful if touched, I would definitely wear my heavy duty arm length gloves. If you have zoanthids in your tank, it might be a good idea to handle it with gloves as I heard that the chemical it releases can pose a hazard to your health if inhaled or entered your bloodstream from cuts on your fingers. Other than that, I don't know of anything else in your tank that would be considered as risky. James

Easy to do for most folks. For those with 2 left hands like mine, it's not so easy. I was lost after the first photo. LOL James

I have a pair of thick gloves that extend all the way up to my shoulders that I bought from Drfostersmith. I use it now and and more specifically when I have to clean my discus tank because of the mucus that discus release from their skin and I find that it gives me rash. What I use quite frequently whenever I need to move things around in my reef tank is latex gloves that I bought from Costco. I use them so I don't have to touch any of the corals or fish with my hands. Once I'm done, I threw away the gloves then wash my hands and arms with soap and water all the way up to where any part of them is in the reef tank. James

I believe it was one of the articles in one of the reefkeeping magazine that I read where it said that for the MH light to be on for 8 hours with the arctinic light on for two hours before and stays on for 2 hours after, making the arctinic lights on for total of 12 hours. Anyway, that is how I set up mine with 12 hours of moonlight on. I had cyano problem up until couple of months ago. I did a massive water change, scrubbed down the sump, then use filter socks to capture those from the main tank. My cyano problem had since went away. James

All I can say is ..... SCHWEEEEEET!!!!!!!!!!!

I think it was in drfostersmith catalog where i saw that it said electronic ballast is better than magnetic. i'll take a look later on today from home and see if I can find it again.

I read somewhere that MH electronic ballast is better than magnetic ballast. OK, I don't know why. Can someone clarify? Then I go to sites like Champion Lighting & Supply and I see small ballast such as those by Icecap that says electronic. I also see PFO ballast, PFO pulse start ballast, and HQI PFO ballast. Are the PFO ballast magnetic then? Talk about confusion. James

Hmmm.... Haven't thought about that. I'll keep that in mind. I'm going to play with the water flow first for the next couple of weeks and see if I notice any improvement. If not, then I'll move it to one side away from the direct MH light then gradually move it back and see if that helps or not.

LOL I'll bring close to 5 gal of freshly mixed salt water with me then. James

I see what you're saying. In my case, I think the high flow might be more of a cause than the lighting is. My light is only 150W and the light is about 6" above the water level with the sps being about another 3" below the water surface. I'll rearrange the water pump first and see how the sps look in the next couple of weeks. If there's no improvement, I'll take a look at the light next. Thanks again for the clarification. James

I didn't think light would be a factor because I thought it requires a lot of light. If too much light is also another factor, then I will have to move it a bit away from the main MH light source as well as from the path of the water pump. James

It looks like we'll have plenty of water without me needing to bring some. Please let me know if you still would like me to bring 5 gal of either aging water or new water. James

Interesting.... I will have to take a look at the placement of one of my water pump to see if the flow is directly facing at one of my sps as well. It looks like it might be bleaching as well. Thanks for the info. James

I believe A1 has 200 gal box of IO for $35 and that's tax included. If you buy couple of boxes or more, then it would be worth the drive. James

I agree. Do what I do, write a formal complaint to their corporate office. Don't let this manager get away with it. It's his responsibility to make sure their inventory are up to date, not you. James

I ordered something from them couple of days ago and encountered the same thing. In the instruction box, just mention that Dr Mac will be at the WAMAS meeting in Vienna, VA on Nov 10 and that you would like him to bring it with you. They will see that and will not charge you thes shipping and handling fee. I emailed them and asked if the fee would apply and they said no. James

Dan, Those links help a great deal. Thanks again. James

WOW, i didn't know there was a difference. I even did a search on palythoas and they look like zoas as well? How can you tell the difference? Shape, size? Sorry. Still learning.... James

I'm curious to know if anyone feeds their zoas and if so what? Is cyclopeze ok to feed them with or is zooplankton better? James

PM sent. James