Anemone

I got thinking about this question after some recent flooding and we were supposed to boil drinking water. Chloramine isn't at high enough levels to kill some contaminants that might get into the pipes, I guess. When I worked in a lab, there was a DI water supply for the whole building, and they also UV sterilized that water. Like I said, maybe just paranoia to even think about this... Though it would beat having to boil water every now and again.

Just curious, does anyone bother to sterilize their RO water? The instructions on my RO system specifically says that it is not able to remove microbes.

Jason, how dark do you recommend?

"Drill, baby, drill." If you're nervous, you can practice on a spare tank first. It probably took me 15 minutes per hole with the bits that came with a Glass Holes kit. I used my cheap Black and Decker cordless drill/driver with the torque limiter on the lowest setting to limit the risk from binding. Other than that, just keep your work wet and don't push. Some people recommend constant water flow but mine worked fine just with a little water poured onto the glass (tank was on its side).

For those who use a salinity probe, just wondering how long they keep giving stable readings. Any experiences appreciated.

One way of thinking about the flow rate is that, if the goal is to keep consistent parameters between the display and refugium, then the flow rate is dictated by the size of which ever has the smaller volume. To take an extreme example, if the ocean was your tank, you wouldn't have to push 5 ocean volumes per hour through your fuge. It'd be sufficient to turn over the fuge volume a few times per hour. Let the ocean mix itself.

If splicing you might consider selling the splice point with heat shrink tubing for a more finished look and to help seal against water. It probably goes without saying but this type scenario is another reason to make sure your circuits are GFCI.

Depending on your art skills and time you can spend on this, there are some fantastically beautiful ways to get greater depth on this RC thread. http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1868825 Another option is to use a cling or poster board to try out the black/blue/purple choices to see which one you like best. Personally I am in the "black" camp just because I think it is forgiving if you don't always keep the back glass clean. But a dark blue or dark purple might be just as good in that respect.

Thanks for the input. I've started with the caulk. Hard to find the time with a new house full of projects. I should have asked, if the painting and liner are equally good for containing leaks, but the liner is faster to install (true?) maybe I should switch over to a liner just for time savings. Comments?

Awesome, thanks for sharing. Makes me want one. Species tank only, I think. Surprising that they haven't taken over the entire ocean. "Stay afraid." Good advice.

If you find a place to buy one please do let us know. Another mantis article, sadly without a source for purchase (his was bought locally in Fla.) http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2013/5/inverts

Slightly off topic but as a mantis fan you might appreciate this (warning, there is some NSFW language on the site, though this comic is clean): http://theoatmeal.com/comics/mantis_shrimp

Probably have to wait for fall to be able to find the Prestone for sale...

Very good to know! I'll try to remember to place a water sensor in there too.

Any chance it'd just a mistake by the shop? Not many here would know your full name, right?

Really liked this sentence: "If I can maintain readable values, then I know my import/export is balanced." Seems very good to keep this in mind, else your starving corals may start digesting themselves.

Just reading this again and wanted to say thanks to all who shared their experiences. It seems that if natural reefs have lower N and P levels than the open ocean, it must be because they are absorbing those nutrients faster than the ocean currents can replenish them. Which is kind of incredible when you think about how much water must be moving through the reefs 24/7. Something in there must really have an insatiable appetite for N and P.

My RO reservoir sits on the basement floor and I'd like to run an overflow to the floor drain (for in case the shut off fails). The floor drain is ancient, embedded in the 60 year old concrete floor. Is there a recommended way to make this connection? The drain cover can not be removed (at least, not without breaking it out of the floor).

So, even odds then. Trying to DIY my own version inspired by them. Some things are secret, like the mystery carbon source they dose with. We know that the ORP set point is -200 and target pH in the reactor is 7. The idea of dosing carbon without skimming appeals to me (would take some time to explain, maybe if I get around to starting a build thread). Alan raises a good point about clogging tubes, especially with such slow flow. I wonder how they deal with that in the commercial Dymico system.

I've got a large clear plastic tub of pretzels from BJ's that I'm looking forward to testing out, once we've polished them off. Seems sturdy, hopefully it holds up.

Congrats mate. Make sure to add this to your CV!

An alternative could be to replace the lower drain with a gap under the left baffle and have a layer of coarse rock on the bottom of the middle chamber for even drainage and to contain the calcium substrate. The return could go over the baffle instead of through it. Probably easier to maintain, eh? Will my 1/8 inch thick baffles crack when I fill the middle chamber with what is basically crushed coral?

That is a good point Alan. How about using screw on connectors and caps? Then I can shove some kind of pipe cleaner through the horizontal pieces from time to time. May want to widen one of the chambers so I can get an arm in there to get the pipe cleaner in.

Good point, thanks! I'm trying to create a recirculation loop in my sump like in the picture below (hope the Photo bucket link works). Two perforated horizontal pipes run through a coral substrate and a pump draws flow from one of the lower pipes and out through the upper one. CO2 injection lets you run this as an in tank calcium reactor. So there will be a substrate in the middle chamber. Not sure whether 1/8 glass will be strong enough. There may be another way to do this with less glass drilling.

Excellent, thanks!