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miggs76

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Posts posted by miggs76

    Skimmer microbubbles question

    in General Discussion

    Recently my skimmer is emitting an abundance of microbubbles.  I've had the skimmer for almost a year.  I haven't done anything differently with the height and water level.  Is there a fix for this?  I'm trying a vinegar bath overnight as I type this.  It is not a small problem, there are a ton of microbubbles when I turn the skimmer on.  None right now with the skimmer off.  Any help is greatly appreciated.

    Effect of house CO2 levels on pH

    in General Discussion

    · Edited by miggs76

    You run a line into the skimmer air intake.  The air from the house is pulled into the air canister.  The excess CO2 is "scrubbed" by the media and the O2 rich air is injected into the tank.  Right at this moment my pH is 8.24 (2:56pm).

    It would NEVER have been that high without the scrubber.....it would have been about 8.05 at 3pm.  I'm not saying this will work for everyone, but it certainly did some magic on my tank.  I had a couple Acro's that would not extend polyps at all.......a few days after I put the scrubber in they all started extending polyps.  I just think acro's do much better at a higher pH.

    Effect of house CO2 levels on pH

    in General Discussion

    I bought a canister from BRS and filled it with CO2 scrubbing media.  My pH used to range from 7.9 to 8.1......now it is 8.1 to 8.3

    My tank is in the basement and air is stagnant.  It was a bit of a last resort for me, but it totally works and doesn't cost that much.  I would estimate I have to change the media every 5 weeks.  BRS sells the media in a 9 lbs. jug so it will last me over 6 months.  I have definitely noticed an improvement in SPS coloration.  People kept telling me that my pH was fine.  It may have been OK, but a pH in the range of 8.1-8.3 brought out enhanced coloration.  For you people that have basement tanks like myself you may want to look into it.

    Dosing 2 part

    in General Discussion

    When I hand dosed I was doing 35ml (part in the morning, part at night)......after getting the BRS dosers, it went all the way down to about 17ml per day.  Continuously dosing is actually saving me $$ because I'm now using half the amount of 2part that i did before.  

    Donations to Schools

    in Education Forum

    If anyone has an all in one tank that they'd like to donate let me know. I teach math, but one of the science teachers at my school is intrigued with my reef tank and he'd like to set one up during the school year. I'd be his guide. He pretty much has about 20 different animals in his room but the kids would go bonkers for a mini-reef and it relates to the curriculum to an extent.

    SPS looking paler each week, what can I do?

    in General Discussion

    5 hours may not be enough. I was giving mine only 6 hours and saw some pale colors. People kept telling me to lower my intensity. It was actually the opposite.... I increased the photoperiod (slowly) to 10 hours and upped the intensity a bit and my colors responded very well. I have a radion pro led light.

    I made the switch From MH's to LEDS

    in General Discussion

    On reefcentral.com there is a thread where people trade graphs.  I've gotten a lot of useful information about the radions over there.  I have found that it takes a while for the corals to get used to leds, with some showing either no growth or bleaching/browning, then all of a sudden they color up and start growing.  I had a strawberry shortcake acro frag that I got last September that died in my tank from too much light.  I mean this thing was white as a ghost.  I left it in the tank because my clown goby loved perching on it.  8 months later it colored up and is alive and well again.  I found that putting corals directly under the leds is fine if it is at the bottom of the tank, but not so good if the corals are in the middle or top of the tank.  I think the beam is too strong at that point. 

    pH and skimmer intake

    in General Discussion

    · Edited by miggs76

    Just noticed this:  When I close the cabinet below my tank the pH level drops a few hundredths, but when it is opened it rises a few hundredths.  I am assuming it is because the skimmer air intake is down there and with the cabinet closed the air is stagnant. 

     

    Think it is worth it extending the intake outside the cabinet?

    cube tank questions

    in General Discussion

    I have a deep blue 2ft cube....60 gallons. I love it. I view the tank from all 4 sides and love how little real estate it takes up. Only downside is swimming room. Since it is as high as it is long there is less horizontal room for fish to swim as there would be in a standard 60 gallon.

    Tip: JBJ ATO (be careful)

    in General Discussion

    Just a tip about these if you have one.  The float valve can get stuck.  I came home the other day and noticed that all my freshwater was gone in my 5 gallon reservoir.  I saw a small puddle on my floor because my sump just barely overflowed when I turned the skimmer off for feeding.  Since I only use a 5 gallon reservoir if all of the fresh water is put in my tank it wouldn't change the salinity by more than 1 or 2 ppt but even that can be dangerous.  The reason mine got stuck is there was some built up salt/silt/sand around it.  It had been in the tank for a year.  I promptly took it out and gave it a nice vinegar bath and it works fine.  I know some of you have huge ato reservoirs so just be careful.  It has been a rock solid piece of equipment for a year and I don't think you can beat the price I paid for it brand new (75 bucks)

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