amos

Thanks for the insights, everyone. Can anyone share how a blue throat has done with the cleaner crew? Jon

I'm considering adding a blue throat (jaw) to my 90, and was wondering if anyone had experiences to share on fish compatibility/behavior. I've read through all the general (stereotypical) information on the various sites, but am looking for more anecdotal/actual experiences. Thanks for sharing. Jon

Awesome. Thanks for sharing. Jon

Larry, If you weren't aware, another member is auctioning the Deltec you mentioned here: http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?show...c=25731&hl= Jon

The monti caps have been doing great (the red one on the left side has grown pretty big). I don't dose anything, so I'm hesitant to overstock sps. I did get a frag of green slimer from reefhunter that I will post growth pictures of in a month or so. SPS tends to grow fairly quickly, but in thinner structures in the tank under these lights. Jon

Yep. Its quite amazing to watch. It becomes a long nub, and then grows the entire appendage back! Coral bandeds tend to be slow and lumbering, so he never could catch up to my skunk to bother him. He was huge too.

IME experience, no to both. I had a coral banded that co-existed with a GBTA and a cleaner for many years. Jon

Some general updates from the 90. My GBTA (pic 1) tangled with a green yuma yesterday evening. Apparently the yuma won, as the GBTA is now on the move for the first time in over a year. I'm going to watch his path with great interest, as I don't want this to start a chain reaction... In September, I inexplicable lost two of my oldest inhabitants. I lost a coral beauty that had been with me for 6+ years. She had lived in the 29, and the 55. I wonder if this is a good length of time for survival in captivity? I also lost a coral banded shrimp which had been around for the same length of time. My oldest inhabitant is now a crusty old scarlet reef hermit (the only one of his kind in the tank). Lastly, I have what I think is a very smart and ornery starry blenny. My wife and I are convinced that he is methodically looking at ways to escape the tank. He has located the overflow box and jumped in numerous times (somehow going up and over the baffles). He also has a penchant for sticking his head out of the water to assess his surroundings (pic 2). Is this normal behavior? Regards, Jon

good looking 'shroom. Haven't seen too many like that.

IMHO, majanos are very difficult to get rid of, and may not be worth the hassle. If you haven't battled them before, I might not recommend taking it on full blown. Its hard to put a price on inheriting that type of pest, unless you are willing to completely bake all of the rock (and lose all of the corals). Just some thoughts. Jon

Eric, You should see quicker results if you siphon off the cyano and let the algae in your fuge absorb the nutrients. Jon

If you want really low tech, use a turkey baster. Works for me. Jon

Just tacking an observation to this old thread: I have had two maxi-jets (900 and 1200) hooked up to a wavetimer. In both cases the impeller broke through the shaft seat (the cap that sticks out of the back and can been scene when the plate is taken off) after 5-6 months. I'm assuming since it was not intended for this type of intermittent use, and because of the pressure induced by the propeller, the plastic cannot stand up to the wear and tear. I fixed it by covering over with epoxy up to the case. We'll see if this holds. Jon

One thing to try is to use large (or just larger) pellet food. In my tank, only my tangs eats the large pellets, as the others can't fit it in their mouths. That will allow you to target feed your bigger fish, while not overfeeding the smaller ones. Jon

Here's a good thread that will lead you to some great information here and on RC: http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?show...c=24167&hl=

Thanks, all. reefmontalvo - I'm running a 4 bulb teklight fixture. Currently, I have the following bulbs. ATI Blue Plus GE 6500k ATI Blue Plus Geisemann Actinic+ (their blue bulb) I've swapped out that second ATI Blue Plus for pure actinic, aquablue, and the UVL 75/25, but I'm happiest with the blue plus I think. Without having a blue background on the tank, I don't think it makes things too blue, and makes the colors pop best with decent PAR. Just my uneducated observations. Jon

11/2/08 Edit: Updated pics Its been great seeing other's tanks on this site, so being a newer member I thought I would share a couple of pics and history of my 90 gallon. My experience started in 2004, when I transitioned from a casual freshwater owner to a full fledged (obsessed) saltwater owner. I started with a 29 gallon, which was confusing for me because it fell somewhere between a nano and "regular" sized tank (55 gallons+). I started slow, cycled with some three stripes (*cringe*), and was on my way. Don't see too many devils' hand leathers around, as in the picture. That one came from petco, and didn't survive. About one year later, I upgraded to a 55 (no good pic), and this past march I upgraded again into a RR 90 gallon. This is a 90 gallon corner RR with a 15 gallon sump. Its a fairly low-tech build compared to some others, but it fit my budget and my needs. I run an Octopus 150, 4x54w TekLight fixture, and two maxi-jets modded on a wave timer. I don't dose, but I do weekly water changes and target feed corals that will accept it. As you can see, its fairly mushroom dominated, and will probably remain so, but I've ventured into SPS to see what this tank can handle. WAMAS has been a great place to learn and share experiences, and I've gotten some great corals from fellow members (thanks reefhunter!). Thanks for looking and sharing! Jon (amos)

So let me add some more weird observations. I actually had the same thing happen to me the other day. I felt a "sting" from a cut on one of my fingers. I verified that when I turned off all of the devices, it stopped (I also plugged in one by one and every one of them caused the sting to occur on their own). Then I realized I also had a cut on another finger. When I stuck the second one in the water, the sting went dead. It only stung when I had one of the two fingers with cuts on it. Am I just imagining things? Jon

Great information. Now why is it that one could feel voltage as a "sting" from a cut?

Great post. Thanks for sharing.

Pupchow- Looks great! I was thinking of columns for aquascaping too, so I'll look forward to when you get those in place. Thanks for sharing. Jon

NightOwl - What do you mean when you said you take it out for a "growing out phase"? James - I'm running the following right now: ATI Blue Plus GE 6500k Current 10K Geiseman Actinic+ I've swapped the current 10k for the UVL 75/25, but color-wise I think the aqua blue bulb works better in there. I'm really happy with growth, and the color is nice- but not as nice as systems with more bulbs. I'm actually thinking of just putting another ATI Blue Plus in that slot, since the blue bulbs seem to penetrate best and make the colors pop. Admittedly, there's not a lot of science in my testing here. Jon

That would be more than enough PAR imho. Here is a good recent thread on bulb selection: http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?show...c=23422&hl=

http://blogs.usatoday.com/sciencefair/2008...nterstitialskip Yet another reminder of why we should never let our tank contents get anywhere near a natural body of water. I'm sure somebody would have taken him in!

I just replaced replaced the filter and carbon blocks for my RO/DI using the following from airwaterice: 1 Sediment 10 Micron 1 Coconut Carbon Block 5 Micron 1 Coconut Carbon Block One Micron It was reading 3-4 TDS before the change, and now is reading 4-5 TDS following a run of 5 gallons. Does any have any suggestions? Is it possible I reversed my block 5/block 1 micro carbon blocks? Is there anyway to determine which is which by sight? Thanks, Jon