Glenn

BOHICA ..... Bend Over Here It Comes Again

Not sure about the Jr. but another consideration "against" the RKL is that you can only have four modules connected to it (or so I've heard - still looking to confirm this.) So if you have the SL1 (or SL2) for pH probe, and two PC4's (for the 8 outlets), you'll only have room for one more module.

they're all nice but that first one ('Candy Cane' :-) ) is my favorite

prediction is 20-30 for my area so I'm going right in the middle - 25" in Harpers Ferry (25425)

2 - I agree ... anytime I do an upgrade (or a downgrade) I make a partial water change part of the routine. Usually about 50%. 3 - I have a canister that I use periodically for polishing the water. Load it up with fresh carbon and let it run for a few days in each tank. Seems to keep the water looking great and the fish/coral don't care :-)

it's acrylic .. and it looks to be about 5/16" .. maybe 3/8"

As far as I can tell, I did .. there's no master/slave so it was just a matter of attaching it to the cube and plugging it in. I saw in the manual where the red/green is a binding issue but the propeller seems to turn quite easily (when it's unattched from the motor). I'm thinking it's bound in the motor .. and I'm not touching that since it's brand new! As for the drive, for us it's not that big of a deal - we travel anywhere for anything we're interested in .. but not after the 'fun' we had on the roads yesterday.

John - after we got home (wow are there ever people who can't drive in the snow - why don't they stay HOME!!!) from picking up the light bulbs and buying my MP-10, the VorTech doesn't work !!!!!! I hooked it up, plugged it in, some lights flash, and then NOTHING. The second time I plugged it in, I noticed that the propeller 'jerked' once, then the lights flashed red/green but still no movement in the propeller. I've put it all back in the box but I don't feel like putting up with the roads again today so I'll probably wait until Friday (no carpooler) and leave work at lunch time to bring it back. I was sooooo hoping to experience what everyone has been raving about but this has left me empty .....

This is a cross-post from another thread but it got me wondering >>The addition of organisms (cucumbers, etc) seems to delay or stop the process as they keep it mixed up and perhaps break tiny links between grains before they become too established. << What other organisms should we have in our REEF tanks to keep the sand clean? I know that I've heard some of the clean-up crews work in the sand but I think I only have blue-legged crabs and some type of snails (glass cleaners) in the tanks. And are there small cucumbers that would be appropriate for nano tanks?

So I guess the answer is -- I didn't buy "PVC" bulkhead fittings. The ones that I bought have the barbed end for a flexible hose. Since I would rather not mess with PVC for a 'nano' tank, is there an issue with using barbed end bulkheads? And if I go this route, my fittings will be larger than they were expected (i.e. 1.25 vs. 1 for the drain, and 1 vs. .75 for the return.) I would think this would be OK. Or, do I get PVC bulkheads of the proper size, then get 1" slip x barb PVC fitting to get me to a flexible hose?

I was told that the aquarium I was buying was being drilled for 1" bulkheads so that's what I bought but they don't fit. The actual diameter of the hole in the tank is 1.75" - does anyone know if this would equate to a 1.25, 1.50, or some in-between size bulkhead? Pics will be posted as we work on the tank - it's a 50g cube (sorta - it's 24x24x20h) that's going to replace Brenda's 20-something AIO tank.

Same for Koi .. I have a solid black koi in my pond and it looks absolutely stunning !

Remember, not just a "flat" board .. you need to level the board to ensure the stand has some semblance of "level"

Cut a sheet of plywood to the dimensions of the tank stand that you are building (or a bit larger) - e.g. a 49x25 piece of plywood for a 4'x2' stand. After you've cut the plywood, place it on the floor and level it as best you can. Then build your stand on top of the sheet of plywood. When you're done, move the stand to its final location and level it with shims.

Actually, I did some of this prior to setting up the frag tank - the reason I used the 65g (3' tank) is that post-retirement (733 days :-) ) I plan to set up a 6' tank (6x2x2, if I can find it) so this light unit will fit over half of the new tank. And if LEDs do become better established or better priced, or MHs do drop in price, I can get a second 3' unit for the other half of the tank.

I've used the turkey baster but also I've taken one of the powerheads and directed it at the live rock to blast it clean. Either seems to do a good job but the baster is better for tight quarters while the powerhead cleans larger areas of rock. The corals seem to appreciate it because they look much better the next day! ----------------------- gds

I've never used a bucket, but I do have a 5g aquarium (5-1/2 ??) that I do the same thing with. The one thing that I wanted to add to this thread was that I have a sponge filter just sitting in my sump of my Frag Tank to use for filtration in the QT when I need to set it up. -------------------------- gds

I currently have a 65g tank setup as my frag tank; it has a three level eggcrate shelf (bottom is 6" off floor, then 12", then 18", each about 5" wide) that has Zoo's, Gonio's, and a few other pieces that I've collected. DaveS' former plexi sump is being used as the firsl level overflow with dark sand housing the mangrove farm* and Chaeto refugium, and that feeds down to the second level sump (20g High) with the skimmer and return pump along with some pieces of extra live rock from our nano-reefs that are setup in various upstairs rooms. The frag tank has a 6x39w T5 light set (3 Actinics, 3 10KK (?? I think they are 10000K)) and I drip Kalkwasser from a one gallon jug. My intent is to upgrade my frags (hard corals, Acro's, anything that strikes me) SO - do I upgrade the lights or the calcium supplements first - I have a 2x250W HQI light system that I've been looking at (I am NOT worried about heat; it's a cold basement) - I have an opportunitity for a reactor system from a WAMAS'er But my current cash-flow will only allow one of the upgrades during the first half of the year... * Those of you who attend the WAMAS Fall mtg and heard Mr. Fellman's talk - I was the one that was using dark sand w/ the mangroves. http://www.glenndsmith.name/frag_06.html

As was previously stated, the Lionfish (Pterois volitan) is not generally a reef-compatible fish, nor is it a "same size or smaller fish" compatible fish. The mouth on this beast can open VERY wide and he will suck down and attempt to swallow anything that he thinks will fit :-) .. In my first fish-only saltwater tank, I had two volitans (one red, one black), about 6-8 each, and they were quite pleasant to watch. The key thing w/ volitans is to wean them off goldfish (or any other freshwater feeder fish) as quickly as possible. Most everyone feeds them common feeders due to the availability of them - but this is NOT an adequate food source. I fed mine silversides and they did very well. There are also several varities of dwarf lionfish available in the market. I could never find one but I was always looking out for a Fu Manchu lion - still not sure if it would be reef-compatible but it would definitely ignore anything but the smallest of fish. ------------------------------ gds

ROFLMAO --------------------- gds

what he said :-)

We've been to Todd's 'house out back' twice now and have been treated very well. Nice guy to talk with, very knowledgeable about his products and his abilitly to get stuff for you. we were there today and he's just purchased a new dual system rack to house his fish in. Looked to be about 21 'houses', seven on a chiller sytem for acclimation and the rest on a separate system. Should be nice when he starts filling it up w/ fish. Brenda got some live rock for her nano tank 'do-over' and I picked up a nice purple 'shroom as well as a few other pieces.

The only "problem" with Mr. Coral is Brian - he's always ready, willing, and able to make you 'the next best deal' in the store. Everytime we've been in there it costs us triple digits in dollars but we walk out with BAGS O' FRAGS :-) Great guys and great pieces ..

I'd like just the sump - afraid that much pump would be overkill for my frag tank. please email me at gdsmith56 at excite dot com to see if we can work this before the mtg next wkend (I work "near" Tysons) gds

You didn't include a price for the sump ... It looks like a bulkhead w/ fitting for external pump - Could that be closed off (ball valve ??) and just use a submersible pump in the sump?? (sounds feasible to me) gds