Lee Stearns

If I were betting I would say they were lead to weight the bottom of the thermometer down. Who knows what lead will do in the tank?

If you are going to the symposium I am bringing in some for Micheal, as well as some rotis - I can bring one in for you as well- I will start new bottles tonight in prep. Look me up- Lee

I can toss in a digitata and small frog spawn and would be hapy to buy a pair of Bangai on your return- I too would like to try to raise a batch or two. Putting some efforts into clowns now.

Love Reef, I have a little 3 head piece onf the same neon green that I got from Grav about 6 weeks ago- Hope mine grows like that! Anything you target feed it? Sorry to be off subject. It is extermely easy to frag a head or two from- I fragged a geen and red candy cane to payback Grav with. Look at the underside branch and with a screw driver simply wedge off the brach/branches you want. Regards, Lee

reverai, steve, You will find that folks at the meeting will give away a lot of stuff that will be perfect for the Nano cube- The nano cube has fairly low lighting- 24 watts 50/50 PC so you will need to stay with soft corals mainly- I am certain that people will give you some zoanthids, some sand to swap and populate your sand bed, maybe a snail or two, some mushrooms and some xenia, macro algea, pods- when it come to LPS or some SPS they generally trade-- but any of the above that you can not get at the frag swap let me know and you can pick some from my tanks. I got starters from folks in this club just as you are about to. The best part is being able to pick some of the more experinced keeper's brains on what is happening or will be happening in your tank. Regards, Lee

I believe a certain amount of hair algea is normal- taking up nutrients in the cycle- there are lots of articles on controlling it, but basically it involves the control of nitrogen available in your system. Either by having Macro out compete it in combo with feeding less, or as most folks just accept it and add something to the tank that eats it. On the Skimmer I would not sweat it much just wipe it off. You must have some light there for it to grow there. Mithryx crabs, and Tangs(surgeon fish) seem to eat it. Some hermits such as the scarlet legs will pull at it a bit as well. Several snails eat it-My favorite Nerites. Ceriths in my short experience seem to focus on film algea. Astreas and turbos may do some damage to it as well as long as your tank is Turbo snail proof for they are the mini dozers of the reef, which is why I do not keep them. Both conches I believe will eat it, but more as a last resort- no film algea around. There is a difference between the hair and the filament algea which look somewhat simular initially. The filament is longer remains green and is more relished by the Tangs.

My main reason for not stacking against the back glass is that I wanted to ensure I had a large amount of water flow back there. That is the one place you will not get to check out regularly once the tank has been running and do not want it collecting detrius. I put a couple of 1200 maxi jets back there behind the rocks, and wanted them to have unobstructed flow to push anything out from behind there.

Anyone have experience in neon gobies setting up cleaner stations for other fish with ICH in their tanks? I have 3 Cleaner shrimp that do some work but would like to see if there was anything more effiecient at cleaning.

No , I think that is cool. Everyone needs to try something and share thier experinces- Would love to talk to you at the symposium- Welcome aboard. Lee

Dave looks like you have added all the pertinent changes I would have made to a nano cube. You are really trying to get me out to the hinter land to visit and see your main tank and this as well. Are you coming to the symposium? I wasn't till I got the guilt trip about not bringing some frags and macro to share at the frag sawp, because so many have shared with me. Only portion worth anything for me. We are doing a car pool from Eddi's again if you are interested. Regards, Lee

Ok OK- I wil have to spend some time fragging- Knew If you guys started talking swapping I woulds have to show up. I'll bring: Green Kenya Tree- orig from John, VAReefman 2 frags some assorted zoantids- several bags mushrooms-2-3 bags calurpa- Rasor, Feather, and grape- couple bags each If anyone wants a devils hand leather I will frag otherwise I am not cuting on him Cabbage coral- 2 frags Could bring small frog spawn good for nano - if someone wants it Have live PHYTO and Rotifers for anyone intersted in culturing. I would be interested in: strombus maculatus snails, ceriths, or orange terebellid worms sand swap anyone with a torch? Can bring some$ Maybe some of the easier encrusting monti

Now that is almost unbelieveable- Nice set up in only two months? Looks great! Regards, Lee

Grav, Good luck. Let me know if you need help- 5' seemed difficult to light.48" and 72" are kind of the comercial ligting standards, at least in flourecents. I couldn't be happier with 10K DE 250 Hqi's with E-ballasts. 2'x2' each seems about right for bright white lighting- which would also support the 4 foot or the 6 foot tank theory- I personally would go with the 2x2x6 if you have the wall space. If I recall the basement space you are looking at does not have the capability to put the fuge behind the wall rather than under the cabinet. Seems like we always want to hang something like a kalc reactor, lime water drip tank, phos reactor, mechanical filter pump or something that just doesnt fit under the cabinet. So I wouldn't use the entire space under for tanks, sump or fuge. I have the 50G breeder split between sump and fuge 1/3, 2/3 and except for how low I set it I have no complaints so far. The only reason I see for the fuge is a grow out place for macro as a nutrient sump-And a pod breeding ground. The sump on the otherhand has many things that can be accomplished in near and around it, not the least of which is skimming. So If I were redoing my Fuge sump I would reverse the portionment-1/3 Fuge and 2/3 sump for more working area. If you need some plexiglass, tools, or another pair of hands moving the stuff around give me a call. Regards, Lee

Do not want to start this but it need to be said often- 1st rule of Marine aquariums-- do not buy and place in your tank an animal that you haven't researched, and know its requirements/compatability- and for this area you really need to be an informed aquriast to shop at Rootzens- I'll leave it at that.

Dave- Darn if you are not the second one that I have heard of recently to have the flex hose come off the pump and the pump start spraying water. When I look at my system I can not fathom how I would ever have a major spill from it. Plenty of sump room to take any of the water above the corner overflows in the main tank. BUT a pump that began sprying water from the sump would certainly empty all the sump water and overflow water. might have to try the tie-ties myself. Was the Hippo from your recent rootzen trip? Regards, Lee

Iceman is on track here-Not a lot of rock for a 50 Gallon tank. No sump. What type of fish are you buying, what is the mix of fish- Most butterflys need pristine water. How many fish and what are thier sizes in this tank? A sailfin Tang can get quite large. If you have any amonia- then you are not cycled, or have too many fish for the filtration. Marine aquariums are balanced systems- one fish in let the system balance for a week or so- No new fish till the problems are corrected. Is there a film at the surface of the water? If so the O2 exchange is severly hampered even with a small skimmer- Is the skimmer producing dark foul skimate and how much are you pouring out each week?

Yea, one small six line wrassse type fish might make it in about 150 gallons with lots of pod growing areas and Macro, or a strict herbivore in a macro growing large fuge, but wouldn't be much to look at. Most corals will require something other than light and the sparce spawning of pepermmint shrimp for feeding.

Eddi, You got it- I 'll try to make it somewhere about noonish on Sunday- I get one of the boys to drive me- Be good for them and me. Besides, I am in a walking cast now! Regards, Lee

I have had a pistol shrimp eat a peppemint in my nano, but in my main tank and the 29 the cleaners rule over the pepermints from the time they were even close to the same size. Regards, Lee

Eddie, You want Grape, feather, or rasor calurpa or cheato(spaghetti)? I will bring you a bit of any to your house this weekend in trade for some of your fuge live sand, and a chance to oogle eye your beautiful tanks. Let me know what you want- I even have a small bit of red macro(Tang heaven). Regards, Lee

Other opinions from the seasoned vets? Like to hear any resons for concern and what might eat them if they showed up in the rock work as a pest. I see some poking out of my rockwork at feeding time- but have not thought them a problem- Are there two different species ones that live in rocks and ones that live in the sand bed? I have seen them in my rockwork many times some fairl large, but I never see them in the sand. In my 29g which is half CC substrate and half Sand bed- I have seen them in the CC side. Thanks, Lee

I have had the same experience- pepermints will eat the aptasia- espcially if you wound it with kalk paste or inject with vinegar, and if you don't keep them too well fed with other stuff. I know it is a balance similar to cleaner shrimp and getting them to do thier job on parasites- there is a fine line between keeping the cleaners hungry and the fish and corals properly nourisherd. I know you have tried many things- gues if you are looking for new or innovative- I have heard good things about Joe's Juice but never used it myself.

Eddi, I have blueline E-ballasts running 250 HQIs and they are only barely warm to the touch- I do not recall any requirement to cool them further- If the cases are barely warm I would not think that you could get much cooling effieciency from running a fan on them. I wonder whether you can replace just the capacitors- if that is what burned out on them. But I am not that much of an electronics guy- Xeon seems pretty competent at this stuff, you might PM him. Regards, Lee

Look at Kalkawasser in the sticky on this board. Use pickling lime just as you would Kalkawasser.

I rotate a piece of live rock from my Refuge with grape and or feather calurpa growing on it. Within a week it is completely stipped clean- I would be careful just putting some in the sand- as it will get pulled up and end up growing more or less out of control behind some rock structure. My Tangs do not like the Spaghetti Macro, or Rasor Calurpa. I too am growing some unattached Red macro in the fuge and let a bit of it float in the main tank occasionally and have it jumped upon by all the tangs- Powder, yellow, and hippo. But then My tangs like Nori, and the peels of zuchini squash in a vegie clip. There is also Spirulina flake that is inexpensive- but I only use them when I am in a hurry- Worry a bit about the phosphates.