beatle

That's a bummer about the tanks previous hard life. Sounds like you're on the right track sourcing a new tank. Waterbox is another frontrunner of mine. Here's a video comparing the two from someone who has owned both, though there are some notable changes from his review if you're going with a larger setup that doesn't have some of the drawbacks he mentions. BRK sells Waterbox and they have both 3 and 4 foot versions on display, but they don't carry Red Sea. I believe I saw a Red Sea setup @ Reef eScape (but no Waterbox). Waterbox maxes out at 6 ft while you can get a Red Sea that is 82" (just shy of 7 feet). I don't think you can go wrong with either brand. I was impressed with both of them.

Though I actually haven't bought anything from them yet, I had a good experience talking to the staff over at Reef eScape in Fairfax. The crew there really knew their stuff and didn't make me feel rushed or dumb for asking 1,000 questions even on a weekend. I know they do installs as well. The only other vendor I'm familiar with is Blue Ribbon Koi out in Catharpin. From what I can tell they still have a great reputation and would be worth a call as well. Also curious why you think your Reefer is nearing the end of its life. Tanks really don't have a lifespan as long as they aren't damaged. I'm also in the market for a tank and the Reefer 250 is near the top of my list. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to clutter this thread.

I knew the blue tang was a reach. I understand tank bred mandarins now eat prepared foods, even pellets. I kept one for over a year (no deaths) in each of my previous tanks, but those setups were larger with decent sized refugiums. I'll still have a fuge on the new setup, but it may not be quite as big.

I'm on the hunt for a new tank. I had a 90 and a 120 before which provided me the room to keep most any reef fish I wanted. I'm considering a smaller 3 foot tank of around 60 gallons or so, perhaps a Reefer 250-300 or a standard 57g. I kept most of these fish before with decent success in a mixed reef. Can someone give me a sanity check on any potential issues with crowding? Pair of clowns (would love a pair of white stripe maroons, but may go occellaris again if aggression is likely to be too much) Cleaner shrimp Fire shrimp Gold head sleeper goby Yellow clown goby Neon goby Red firefish Purple firefish Pair of bangaii or pajama cardinals Pair of mandarins Midas blenny Royal gramma Dwarf angel (perhaps lemon peel or coral beauty if I can find one that isn't hungry for LPS) Sally lightfoot crab Blue tang? Stocking these will be slow, as before. I planned to stock in roughly the order listed unless there are other suggestions.

Hi all. I got out of the hobby back in 2014 but have always thought about getting back in, perhaps with a slightly smaller tank this time around. My last tank was less successful than the one before it due to location. It was in a weird part of the house that didn't lend itself to me enjoying it much or taking care of it. This one will be in my office where I tend to spend the most time these days. Assuming I make the plunge to buy a setup soon, I'll be back to posting here again. I went to Reef eScape this past weekend and picked Dave's brain for what seemed like an hour. I don't recall it being around 10 years ago, but I am already a fan. A lot of other things have changed! Not only are MHs not "the thing" anymore, they are no longer available! Maximum PAR is no longer the goal. Dosing is bigger than it's ever been. Reef controllers are less popular since many pieces of equipment now have their own controllers. Livestock prices are way up (especially for Hawaiian fish and corals), but many fish can now be aquacultured including mandarins that eat prepared food!

Still got it. Had numerous people ask to come by to pick stuff up, but apparently nobody is actually serious.

The ballast that does not come with the lights is the same dual output 250w Galaxy electronic ballast, but only one of the outputs is working.

It's your regular 40g breeder. Don't have the measurements handy, but pretty sure it's 36x18x12 or something like that.

All my livestock is gone and this is the last of my equipment. It's double posted on CL so I can update what's left. It's been a good run with a lot of great people, but I'm on to the next hobby. http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/for/4477314489.html

Here's an update of what's left with new prices. I'll repost this list whenever something is updated. Really looking for these to go to good homes. Hippo tang (3 inch) - $40 Coral Beauty Angel (2 inch, reef safe) - $25 Green mandarin (2 inch) - $15 Mated pair of ocellaris clownfish - $30 Helfrichi firefish (2 inch) - $50 Banggai cardinal - $10 Coral: Large toadstool (8 inch, home for clowns) - $50 Small toadstool frags (2-3 inch) - $10 Assorted peach palys on rock, (50+) $20 All other live rock (needs cleaning) - $1/lb

Zoas, monti, and cap are gone. Wish you could still edit posts - this will become a nightmare for people to tell what is still available...

Hmm, for some reason I'm unable to edit the original post to reflect what's spoken for. I wonder if that's a "new" forum setting. Forgot I also have a healthy banggai cardinal, $15 Zoas, monti, and cap are pending.

No pics. Apparently my mailbox was full. Empty now.

**Leaving Hobby Sale** My tank has basically been on cruise control for the past year and a half. It's no longer its former glory and I'll be moving in the spring, so I'm clearing out my livestock. Fish: Hippo tang (3 inch) - $50 Coral Beauty Angel (2 inch, reef safe) - $30 Green mandarin (2 inch) - $20 Mated pair of ocellaris clownfish - $30 Midas blenny (3 inch) - $40 Purple firefish (2 inch) - $25 Helfrichi firefish (2 inch) - $70 Yellow clown goby (3/4 inch, big!) - $15 Coral: Large toadstool (8 inch, home for clowns) - $50 Assorted peach palys on rock, (50+) $25 Safecracker zoas on large rock (12 inch, 30-40) - $40 Some kind of pinkish/bluish monti on large rock - $20 Few tubbs blue zoas - $15 Orange cap (4 inch) on rock - $20 All other live rock - $1.50/lb Please bring your own containers for fish/coral.

I've had a relatively stable system for a while, but in the past few months I've had several mysterious deaths. Back in early February I left town for the weekend on Friday night and came back Sunday afternoon. My gold head sleeper goby and midas blenny were both gone. They had been in my tank since late last spring. I had a bacterial bloom for the next few days and I never found them in my sump or the floor, so I'm betting the cleanup crew got to them. I never saw any signs of aggression or disease. March 17th I got a heniochus diphrutes butterfly. He adjusted very well and was eating ravenously the first day. On the 24th he was stuck to the side of my powerhead. No signs of aggression here either. Today I found my coral beauty dead on the bottom of the tank and being consumed by a few hermits. She'd been in my tank since early summer or so. Same story as the others, no sign of disease or aggression, great appetite. I have no idea what's killing my fish. My water parameters appear to be sparkling: 1.026 sg, zero phosphate, ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate. Ph swings from 8.35 to 8.45, and temperature is stable around 78-79. I can barely grow any algae in my tank. Here's my current stocklist: Mated pair of ocellaris clowns Red firefish Purple firefish Helfrichi firefish Midas blenny (added 2 days ago) Red mandarin Fire shrimp Mated pair cleaner shrimp A few peppermint shrimp Assorted snails and red/blue leg hermits Any ideas? It's frustrating to pour money down the drain and to watch happy fish disappear for no apparent reason.

Odd, RC had the most brown film for me. I'm back to IO which seems "cleaner."

Petland is also pretty cheap. I think IO is $40, RC might be $50, no other purchase required. They're also not far from you.

While the rate of evaporation doesn't fluctuate that much, it does change from time to time, and you have to adjust the Litermeter to compensate. It's not totally maintenance free in that respect. I've also had the LM3 "fail" on me a few times. Before I switched to the Avast ATO, I would sometimes come home and find the level in the sump was lower than normal. The LM3 had been set into "all pumps off" mode for some reason. Not sure if there was a freak power outage or what, but this has happened to me a few times. Nothing is really failure-proof. Each system or method just has its different outcomes in the case of a failure.

Not sure why someone would buy LM pumps to use them on a different controller. There are plenty of cheaper options out there for peristaltic dosing pumps. I have 3 pumps (including the built in one) on my LM3. I use them for water changes and kalk. I am only able to add 0.6 liters/day of kalk out of my stirrer without sending the pH over 8.5, so I have a dedicated Avast ATO that I use to make up the difference. One of my pumps is the water exchange module, but I don't use it as such. I guess it's a failsafe in case one of the pumps gets stuck on? If you're going to do 2-part, just buy one additional pump. Save your money and use a dedicated ATO. If/when I ever start to dose 2-part, I'll likely switch to BRS dosing pumps for water changes since the LM is so easy to adjust the amount you dose.

I have a similar scenario, but it's a Kenya tree growing off a snail.

I had the same situation this weekend. My Midas blenny and gold head sleeper goby both vanished. They had both been in the tank for over 6 months. I leave for the weekend and poof, they're gone when I get back.

I didn't know Sean before like you guys, but I know him now. It's pretty easy to see why you guys missed him. My tank is now fully lit with his help.

I am using an AC3 actually. I'll swap it out to a dedicated power strip tonight and see if anything changes.

250w. I've tried several bulbs but none fire.

I've noticed my lights randomly shutting off and then coming back on 10-15 minutes later. It's usually one bulb, but sometimes it's both. Today I noticed both were totally out. I checked the connections and found the power cable was loose on the ballast. I plugged it back in and the left bulb fired and came on. The right is still out, but connections seem solid. I'm running Plusrite bulbs, but my old spare Radiums do not fire either. Is this a sign of a failing ballast or something else? Anyone have a good set of things to test beyond what I've already done? If it's toast, how is the turnaround time for warranty work if I qualify?