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Steve Ramos

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About Steve Ramos

  • Birthday 03/19/1982

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Herndon, VA

Steve Ramos's Achievements

Hatchling

Hatchling (3/13)

  1. Great, thanks. I will try to add more tape tonight and hopefully that solves the issue. I was nervous last night because I noticed the elbows were in there very tight, so I didn't want to mess with it too much before asking here first. Thanks!
  2. Hey guys and Air Water Ice. I received my booster pump tonight and was able to get the pressure right at 70 psi. The only problem is that I see some leaking going on around the pump. It looks like the leaking is coming from the two connections and the end of the pump that was already put together when shipped (wasn't from any of installation connections). I really like the pump because it was easy to install and didn't take that much time to get it right at 70 psi. Is there a way for me to un screw the connections and try to re-wrap the connections with Teflon? Or will this need to be shipped back? Thanks!
  3. Did you guys order the booster pump? I just ordered mine since my PSI was in the same range... 38-40psi. I was just wondering if you guys had any tips on adjusting the pressure.
  4. I saw your ATO in action at the Spring social event and was very impressed. I was going to buy one right there but you guys mentioned an updated ATO with a back-up float valve that will be out soon. When do you think this will be available? Thanks!
  5. Here is a picture of the bottom of my bulkheads. The left is the Drain and the right is for the return pump. I'm assuming these are barbed... Thanks!
  6. I'm back again with a new questions for the experts. My tank is getting there slowly. I have my 75 gallon corner overlow tank, sump, and return pump on the way. What material is best to connect everything? I think 3/4 flexible vinyl tubing is best for the return line because it'll be longer and I can bend it around to reach the 3/4 bulk head/return pipe to flow back into the tank. My main question is what type of pipe to use that will go straight down into the sump. It won't have to be too long because the sump will be directly below the corner flow drain. I have the All Glass kit which came with the 1 inch drain pipe and bulk head. Do I simply go to Home Depot/Lowes and get a straight PVC pipe that will drain straight down into the sump? Or do I get a flexible PVC so that I can bend it a little to restrict some of the flow? Or do I stick with the flexible vinyl tube just like the return pump? Once I have these connected, do you recommend I get anything to clamp down at the end to prevent leaks? Plastic clamps work best? I know getting the flow just right can be trial and error so I'm hoping the different types of plumbing could help. I did get the new Tunze Silence pump that is able to change the return flow. I will provide a review once everything is up and running! I appreciate all of the advice!
  7. I appreciate all of the advice on this topic. You guys have now convinced me and I am researching RO/DI units and will go that route. I think it would be easy to install it right next to my washer and dryer. That way, I can run the drain hose right down the washer's drain hose. I'll just have to make sure I get a Y connector so I can connect the washer and RO/DI units into the same faucet. I've heard good things on the RO/DI units at Bulk Reef Supply. It's well made and the price is pretty good as well for what you get. Thanks again for all of the help. I tried to convince myself to take the easy way out and just pay for the water but it just doesn't make sense to do this every single week.
  8. Thanks! I am very glad I came across this website and community. I've already posted my first question and I'm hoping to join everybody on Sunday.
  9. Newbie here tying to decide wether or not to invest in a RO/DI unit or just head down to marine scene in Herndon to buy all the water. I will have 75 gallon tank with a sump underneath and I am planning on doing 5 gallon water changes every week. I know this a popular debate so here is my situation: Distance is not an issue because I live right by Marine Scene so I can always drive there or stock up. I believe their water is a little over $1 a gallon for SW and a little less for RO/DO freshwater. So that's about 5-10 bucks a week for a simple remove and dump process. I also live in a condo so I don't want to install a fancy or complex unit under my sink or by my washer & dryer. I definitely do not want to deal with any of the pipes. My thinking would be to store the RO/DI unit somewhere. When needed, bring it out of storage, install it somehow onto my bathroom faucet (not really sure how but I believe its possible) and create the water into a 5 gallon bucket. I guess I would need 5 gallons of SW and 5 of FW. I would then remove the unit and back to storage. Doing it this way, I would also need to buy the salt mix, heater, small pump, to mix everything. There is also the cost of replacing the filters on the RO/DI. I guess my question is do I take the lazy way out and spend 5-10 bucks a week, I'll skip lunch one day =), or do I buy all of the equipment and handle everything on my own? Maybe start off buying and then buy the unit? I appreciate any advice!
  10. Hello everybody! I am brand new to the saltwater world. I had a 40 gallon freshwater tank before with African Cichlids but I decided to give everything to my brother so that I can start a bigger saltwater tank. At first I thought it was going to be easy and probably cost me around $1K....boy was I wrong. I am slowly learning all of the aspects to the saltwater world and the initial costs to get good equipment that won't fail right away. Don't get me wrong, you can probably get started at $1K but I kept reading its better to buy the good stuff right away then having to buy the cheaper equipment multiple times. This is why it's a slow process for me. So far I have a 75 gallon tank with a corner overflow that I got from craig's list that. I decided to refinish the wood in order to make it look new and I wanted a black stain to match my condo. Doing this I realized the wood is very good quality so at least I got a good deal on the first setup. It took a lot of effort to even drill a couple holes so I know it is quality oak wood. I then bought a new all-glass overflow kit because the old pipes didn't look like they were in great shape. I am now currently about to finish buying all the lighting. Since I am new to everything I decided to go with LED after some research. I figure I would pay up front but then not have to worry about heat or replacing bulbs. After talking to the experts at my local LFS, I went with 4 Exocotic LED modules on the left and right so 8 total. I also went ahead and bought 4 blue stunner strips to add some color on each side. I thought I was done but I was told I should get the UV stunners to create moonlighting because the blue ones are too strong. So I will start with one UV stunner on each side for moonlighting and go from there...I may need two more but we'll see. That's pretty much it for me so far. I also bought an ADHI Refugium sump online because I decided not to do the whole DIY setup and I thought ADHI had good quality for the price. My next step is just to continue to research and purchase all of the plumbing/pumps to go with the sump. I came across this website and got mad at myself for now searching for it sooner. At least I got lucky and noticed an event going on in Vienna this weekend. I went ahead and purchased the membership and I'm excited to be a part of this community. I think its funny for a newbie because once I think I find a nice protein skimmer and think that its, I come across the whole calcium reactor device. So I research that...then I come across Kalk and its benefits. I think its done there but then I find with Kalk it's recommended that you use an auto-top off system. It never ends! Its definitely fun to research but I don't think research will ever end!
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