LCDRDATA

Reef Crystals; +1 on previous comments vs. IO.

One thought for a temporary solution - if you are reasonably confident that your current tank salinity is acceptible (even if not optimum), then for the purposes of a water change you don't need either the refractometer or hydrometer to be accurate in an absolute sense, only in a comparative one. Get a reading for your tank and use new water that matches that reading, and you won't have to worry about the salinity changing. Then you can take a little more time getting the refractometer working properly so it's accurate in an absolute sense as well.

I borrowed one from Hypertech not long ago and it worked like a champ - you might try contacting him directly.

I'll take them - Could I swing by tomorrow after work (I'm in Springfield)? Please PM contact info, and thanks!

I just did screen covers for my eel tank, which uses a CPR overflow box and a top return. Rather than try to do angles with the screen, I used a narrow piece of eggrate (probably 3") running the length of the back that I could break the appropriate squares out of and leave the rest intact for jump-proofing. Then the screen is a simple rectangle.

Our clownfish pair have been living in my frogspawn for about two years now.

Assuming the plywood dimensions are equal to or slightly greater than those of your tank, and both are centered on the stand, you should be fine - you're really just trying to ensure the weight gets distributed evenly.

So my FOWLR tank for the eel is up and running and gradually being populated; however, after 4 years of running mixed reef tanks it seems pretty sparse. I know that looking at fish guides the primary determinants of whether a fish is "reef safe" is its propensity to nip at or consume polyps (SPS/LPS/Zoa), clam mantles, and small/ornamental inverts (crustaceans, tube worms, etc). I'm wondering, though, coming at it from the other direction, what (if any) non-fish reef critters would be unlikely to be bothered by typical non-"safe" fish (angels, puffers, etc). Mushrooms? Leathers? Anemones (rock/bubble-tip/mini-maxi)? Your thoughts, comments, and experience are appreciated. Thanks!

Assuming that the tank doesn't really need the carbon, I don't see any problem with the idea in principle - of course, the resulting 'fuge will be relatively small. What function are you wanting the 'fuge for - nutrient export, pod supply, etc?

75 gallon DT w/20 Gal sump and HOB 'fuge: ~ 85 gal water volume 55 gallon tank w/15 gal sump: ~ 60 gal water volume 30 gallon cube w/HOB 'fuge: ~ 25 gal water volume 5 gallon nano: ~ 3.5 gal water volume TOTAL: roughly 170-175 gallons water (~200 gallons total volume) - this excludes the 15-gallon mixing tank (generally full in water change prep) and 2x~8 gallon buckets of RO/DI water for topping off and freshwater tanks.

I started out on IO for about the first 18 months, and then switched to Reef Crystals - I think my tank parameters are more stable since the switch. Provided you make up the difference in Calcium & Magnesium with IO, though, I don't think you can really go wrong with either.

I haven't tried it with the old volute, as I'm concerned about causing the same problem in the reverse order (starting with the bad volute instead of the bad impeller shaft, but still ending up with pump failure). The other pump is actually a Mag 12, which I'm going to pick up sometime this weekend. With its higher flow it will take some time determine the best way to split and apportion the extra volume - preferably to the 'fuge (if the overflow can handle it) or to the biopellet reactor (if it can't), so I still want to have this one usable, both as a competent backup or alternative use in one of my other tanks.

Anybody?

UPDATE - I just got an email from the place I ordered the replacement volute from -- over a week ago, paying extra for expedited shipping -- telling me that they have now discovered they don't have it in stock! SO, does anyone have a volute/pump cover for a mag-drive 9.5B available locally for under $20, or do I need to go back into internet land? - of course, the replacement impeller that I ordered at the same time (different vendor) arrived last Satureday. Dr.s Foster & Smith and ThatFishPlace both have it (the latter being relatively close by [Lancaster PA]) for about that price (including "standard" shipping), but I really expected to have this resolved by now and don't particularly care to wait or pay an absurdly high charge for overnight. Any other recommendations? Thanks!

Because it was just coming out of QT, of course!

We had a bunch of flickers and 3-4 longer stutters (15-20 seconds) but that was all, so it looks like we got lucky this time around. All in all, we've done pretty well - since moving here in 2000, the longest we've ever been without power was ~ 36 hours (of course, now I've probably jinxed it ).

If intervisibility is an issue, it seems to me that you could do the same thing with the side(s) most visible to the other fish out of eggcrate instead of plastic canvas. They could definitely see each other then.

Could be - we had a Tuxedo Urchin collect a frag off of the rock and carry it around for probably six weeks - I'll have to see if I can find a picture later.

The Rio is down in my sump - otherwise I'd be putting micro-bubbles into my DT all the time. Mine hadn't worn all the way through a side yet, but it was well on its way. I came to about the same conclusion y'all did, and this morning I ordered the impeller and new volute. I also ordered a diverter to take one line off of the outlet if I want; I think I'll plumb it into the HOB 'fuge to I get some "extra" circulation out of it (what goes in must come out). The rest I think I can figure out later, although I'm leaning toward one of the Waveline DC5000s.

Well, I don't know if it was age or some other factor, but since I had it apart a week ago two things appear to have happened: 1) the ceramic shaft broke, which apparently allowed the pump to keep running but just slightly off-center, so that 2) one side of the recess in the pump cover/faceplate wore such that the impeller binds. Now I just have to decide whether to replace those two items or get a bigger pump & set up a manifold. ~$40-$50 vs. $200+ ought to be an easy decision...

I'm opening it up as we speak - normally I would have tried to do that first but, aside from the other factors previously mentioned, I had it apart for cleaning last weak and it was fine then, so it would seem strange for the impeller to freeze in that time.

Can you give a quick pros/cons of external vice internal pumps? I guess I'm not sure about how to run the plumbing, although it may be very simple & straightforward - I haven't to date give that option much thought. So - Waveline, Water Blaster, Sicce, Iwake, Blueline - with enough flow to run (at minimum) DT/reactor/'fuge and head losses through the manifold - does that about cover it?

I love all the help you can get from this site! My DT is 75 gallons - the sump is a bit crowded but there might be enough room if I can actually eliminate a pump or two. Unfortunately, I can't run the 'fuge off the Rio 800 - since it's a hang-on-back design, it would have 3-4' of head and that just isn't enough flow through the cheato to function effectively. In one sense I can't complain too much, because it came with the setup when I bought it in June of 2008 - so a little over four years for me, plus however long the original owner used it. I'm not familiar with Waveline pumps - any suggestions on good local and/or online sourcing? Do you know what the flow for those two models would be? Replying to all three of you - your various sets of rationale is pretty much along the lines of what I was thinking. I thought the reactor would be the easiest, then the fuge; I wasn't sure about the Rio or skimmer due to the venturi factor on each. Do you have a take on those? As to how it died, I can't say. Essentially, I unplugged it last night while feeding my corals, and when I plugged it back in nothing happened - not only no flow, but no apparent vibration or other sign of attempting to operate. I swapped it back and forth with other outlets I knew worked, so that isn't it. I haven't had a chance to take it apart and check the impeller properly, as I was more concerned with restoring movement between the DT and sump. I've got a pair of the small JBJ powerheads and an MJ400 for in-tank for circulation; they were on a wavemaker but it died about a week ago of unknown causes. I've got them on a new intermittent setup but haven't had a chance to really see if that's working the way I want it too or not. I was under the apparent misapprehension that the mag-drives were fairly efficient; other than the Water Blaster, what would you say are the "other more efficient" pumps? Tank size is above - 75 gallon. On flow numbers you're partially correct - the skimmer & reactor are entirely in-sump operations; however, the 'fuge pump and outlet are in the tank, so it does figure in the overall tank flow. I will have to check that out - thanks for the tip. Going back up a bit (and something I should have asked in the first place) does anyone have a spare mag-drive 9.5B impeller I could use to diagnose what the actual problem is? If not, it sounds as though the consensus is to get a larger pump and run the reactor and perhaps the 'fuge off of it, assuming I can locate and/or make an appropriate manifold. Did I miss anything? Thanks all, and I remain open to suggestion.

In the last while I've had a number of pumps/powerheads die on me. Maybe they were at the end of their lifespan, but it's become frustrating. To top it off, tonight my main return pump (a Mag-Drive 9.5B) died. Taking stock, I wonder if there isn't a better way to do this. Leaving aside the powerheads in my DT solely for circulation, in my sump (which I believe is a 20 long, but I don't remember for certain offhand) are the following pumps: - Mag-Drive 9.5B main return (either 3/4" or 1" single line, I forget which) rated at 950 gph; - Cobalt maxi-jet 1200 feeding biopellet reactor, rated at 395 gph; - Sedra 3500 needle-wheel feeing ASM G-2(?) skimmer, rated clean at 350 gph but more likely ~ 120-150 effective; - Rio 800 RVT keeping my overflow running, rated at 211 gph; - and, in my main tank, a second Cobalt Maxi-Jet 1200 feeding my HOB 'fuge. So, all told I'm at a bit less than 1900 gph total "rated" flow. Assuming my main return has in fact given up the ghost, I need a replacement ASAP, and I'm out of spare pumps - I can run a trickle from the Rio but that seems to be it. After all that background/context, here's the question: Am I better off getting another Mag-Drive 9.5B (or close equivalent) and keeping everything else the same, OR would I be better off getting something with a higher flow and running one or more of the other feeds off of it as well? My sump is pretty crowded as is, so I don't have a ton of room for an expansive manifold, especially one likely to turn out as something that would do Rube Goldberg proud if I tried to DIY it. Which other feed(s) would be best to run in addition to my main return line, and what would be the best way to configure the mainifold(s)? Recommendations? HELP!

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