Tink

Hey folks, have an SPS question. I have a frag of Green Slimer (have had it about 2 months now), that as of this morning is losing some of its flesh around the middle of the frag. The loss seems to go 2/3 of the way around the middle portion of the frag. All the other corals (other species of SPS included), seem to be doing just fine (all have polyp extension). The odd part is that all the polyps are out on this slimer frag (with the exception of those that are now missing of course). The frag does sit in the direct path of my MP10, but it has for the entire time I've had it. Here are my parameters as of this AM: - Salinity 1.026 - PO4 0.06 - NO3 0 - KH 10.5 - pH 8 - Ca 480 - Mg 1300 As for tank residents: - Yellow Tang - Tomni Tang - Red Tip Anthias - 2 Ocellaris Clowns - 2 Cleaner Shrimp - 1 Fire Shrimp - various snails and hermits Any ideas on why it would begin to lose it's flesh around the middle? Should I move it from the flow (is this blowing on the wonded portion making things worse)? Here are a couple pictures (sorry the second one is so bad, it's a cell camera and I was just trying to show how the loss continues to extend around the frag)

+1

So, I have a 24" deep (and 24" wide for that matter) tank. From a PAR standpoint, is it a good idea to use lower (3500-4500k) LEDs in order to balance out the high amount of blue LEDs people enjoy? Will it keep the PAR up, or just serve to wash out the blue more ( making the use of 7500-10000k more reasonable)? Also, what is the general consensus on the blue LEDs, stick with 450, 480, or a mix of both? Thanks

What do you guys think of this layout? I added 2 violets on each channel so as to avoid too much violet. I wasn't sure which spectrum of LEDs was the way to go (450 vs 480). I'm shooting for a bit of a blue tint, but not quite a full 20k. I do want decent growth as well, is this too blue to achieve that? If so, what would get me the most blue tint while retaining good growth?

I've seen it stated that the D120 can provide a 24" x 24" area sufficient for SPS. What I don't understand is how this is possible for a fixture that measures 16"x8.5". Wouldn't a 24" x 16.5" are be more accurate (figuring that it can project 4" from each edge of the light)?

Yea, he has a home based operation at the moment.

Wanted to post an experience I had with a new coral guy in Frederick. The business is Exotic Reef Creations, and it's owner Richard is a great guy. He's just getting started in the coral biz, and already has some great stock at amazing prices! I was there to buy a tank he was selling on Craigslist, and he invited me to see his new coral shipment he had for sale. WOW, I couldn't help but buy some frags. Another good thing is he'll meet you in the Rockville or VA area, because he's down there often (save you a drive). He also offers shipping to anywhere within 150 miles of Frederick for only $15 (great to see a guy not looking to make any extra money with inflated shipping charges). Not too sure of the rules regarding posting contact info, so I'll just say that if you search his business name on Google you'll see his Yellow Pages listing (he's listed in Ijamsville, MD). If you need more info just PM me. Tell him you're from WAMAS, and he'll give you a great deal. Here is a picture of a Duncan frag I picked up for only $25! Each of the 4 heads is the size of a golf ball. I'm in no way associated with this business, but I'm just elated to have another great place to buy some quality coral. What with all the stores in the area going out.

Personally I say look into an ATS (algae scrubber), cause those suckers work. Been skimmerless for months, and no algae in the display.

I saw that tank on Craigslist, guy was trying to sell it for a while, yea? Good luck with the set-up, it's gonna be killer

I don't know about drilling holes in them, think I read somewhere that all sides are tempered on 10 gallon tanks. I also had a friend of mine try to drill a 10, and he exploded it in 5 seconds. Sent from my Kindle Fire using Tapatalk 2

Soon I'll be moving into a new place that has well water. They have a soda ash injection system installed just after the well pump to raise the pH of the water before it goes through the plumbing. My question is this: I use a RO/DI system to filter my tank and top off water, and must continue to do so due to the new water being high in NO3 (7.4mg/L). Will the soda ash injection system serve to wear out my filters sooner? I would imagine the RO/DI will just filter it all back out, thus making the system work that much harder. Anyone have any experience with this sort of situation? Thanks

Oh, and PS..... Don't even bother with Aquarium Depot. Their new store is tiny and awful, dirty tanks and overpriced livestock.

That stinks man, maybe it was an off day at the store. Normally I have a pretty easy time getting help there, but I know things like that happen when you get a disinterested employee. The sad part is we Marylanders are getting fewer and fewer options as far as aquarium stores. Exotic Aquatics just "temporarily" closed up ( they say they're moving, but the had the worst customer service of all IMHO). My only other suggestion of somewhere somewhat local to get a good deal is That Fish Place in Lancaster,PA. I know it's a bit of a hike, but they have a massive selection. They're also almost always having some sort of sale. Join their member club and you'll get all the emails and mailers to clue you in. I can just about promise they'll have everything you'll want and then some. The only 2 downsides are that they can get pretty busy on weekends, and since the have a .com, sometimes items go out of stock quickly. This weekend is 30% off livestock and 20% off corals.

The thing to note is distance from the lamps themselves, not so much the distance under the water. How high off the water is your fixture? To compare I'm using a 5 bulb T5 retro I put together using some OK reflectors, standard ballasts, and 36" ATI bulbs. My PAR reading measured 7" under the surface (12" from the lamps) is about 315 with all 5 bulbs, and 244 with just 4. TEK fixtures are great quality with really nice reflectors, not to mention if yours is new it'll be nice and clean.

I had planned on doing the 14 day treatment with Cupramine. They are 2 Ocellaris Clowns and one Red-Tipped Anthias. I wonder if the move to the new tank would provide them enough stress to have a second outbreak.

Here's the story, I picked up a few fish a while back an added them to my tank, only later I noticed each had what appeared to be ich (small white spots on fins and body). I quickly removed them all to a hospital tank that I have for observation. After a week they seemed all clear (no spots, eating well, active), so they've remained in the hospital tank since. It's been 6 weeks since I removed them (keeping the main tank fish less), and in another couple it'll be time to start adding fish back to the tank. My question is this: If they're looking healthy, but at that one point had what looked like ich, should I treat them before they go back in the tank? At this point I've gone through so much trouble to make sure my display is free of ich, I'd hate to go and perhaps reinfest it. I know they can still have it in their gills and everything, if at all. Thanks

I like the way you think!

Moved them back under a bit of a rock shelf, so we'll see how they like that. As for the calcium, I'm not sure how to lower it, it comes out that high. Any ideas on how to get it down in the ideal range? Thanks

What should I let the NO4 and PO4 get up to?