Josh&Sarah

I tested the one I have and its pretty accurate.. Thanks though. I dosed 3ml NEOPHOS yesterday. 0 ppb today on the checker. So I dosed 6 ml today. I'll try to find a sweet spot once I'm registering.

Thanks!

Tank is great other than a monti cap browning in the middle and some slower growth. I'm mostly LPS these days. But I did have a Dino outbreak last year so bad I almost tore the tank down. I fed constantly... like an insane amount for months and did a series of black outs. Lost a lot of SPS during that period. Gave away what I could. Fortunately my LPS and softies and all my fish pulled through just fine other than my prize Aussi gold. Now everything looks good but I'm creeping up in nitrated to 15 or so and 0 phosphate again. I'm just not home to feed 3 giant meals per day. I can't do Dinos again. That was miserable. But... I beat it with patience and work. I would like to get into SPS again more heavily, but not with 0 phosphate. Once I figure I can control it a bit I will feel more comfortable. I will definitely take it slow with the neophos. Thanks for the info!

Copy. Don't add to ATO. I actually have a doser, it just isn't hooked up because I don't trust it... haha. I need to step up and get an Apex, but that is such a huge purchase. I'll just make due with what I have for now. I really appreciate the help. Thanks!

Thank you Both! I'll pick some up this week. I wonder if I could just add some to my ATO as a doser? I have a 100 gallon display, but I fill up my 5 gallon ATO reservoir every few days... maybe start slow and see what happens. I'll read the directions when I purchase. Thanks again! Joshua

I want to get my Po4 off 0. I already feed heavy and my skimmer drains into sump. My nitrates are climbing, but my Po4 stays in the basement. It's definitely not a testing issue, and there is no algae soaking it up. Likewise I do not use any GFO or anything like that? What would you all recommend? The Brightwell product? That seems to be the recommendation on R2R. Thanks all!

Looks like a Mel to me. Keeping them together.... I don’t know. I have one with a yellow coris and leopard and they get along great, but the Mel was added last. It definitely isn’t something I’d try without confirmation on here from someone who knows way more than me.

Yea, I go local for CUC. For me that means Capital or Blue Ribbon. Both have great selections and I like supporting the LFS when possible. Even if it means I gotta pay an extra buck.

Yea... I think every tank is different. When my Po4 hits 0 I get frustrated corals. But for me to raise my Po4 I have to get my nitrates too high for my liking. So it’s a dance. I guess consistency is key.

Yea I was more thinking to clean it up some and not mess with the current system. Maybe that’s no big deal.

I got a new skimmer and I’m replacing the one currently in the tank. Should I let the new one run in a bucket or something for a while to clean it and “break it in”? What is the recommendation for swapping skimmers?

I second @BtmDweller. Get the ALk stable. I run 8.5 via dose and if I'm off .5 I can tell. I try to run Cal around 430... I definitely don't go above 450. I was having similar issues a while back and I did a complete RO cleaning... I changed all my filters and cleaned my mixing station with RO/Vinegar and then rinsed with RO again. I then increased my flow. Don't put any additives in there. It will just muck things up later. I think your nitrate and phos are fine. I aim for "detectable" not high... Just get stable, use good water, check ALK daily, and bump your flow up a touch. My .02.

All better. 4.0 running dead silent. No power brick, no multiple wires, no controler, no worries.

I use a ranco controller that will outlive my tank and is cheap enough... the 2 finex heaters it runs I will replace in a few years no matter if they fail or not. I've already had a wave maker "fail" or at least start rusting out. Those were recently replaced. I'm hoping to get a few years out of them if properly maintained. As you know I just had a return pump failure. That will be replaced Friday with an AC pump (sicce silent 4.0) which will maybe outlive the tank. As things fail in the future I will be transitioning to less bells and whistles and more time tested. My next powerhead will probably be butt simple tunze or some other thing like that. My skimmer is also an old freebee with an AC pump. Still runs great. It is harder to adjust but it probably won't fail anytime soon, and its older for sure. That leaves lights..... That at least seems to be the safest thing we purchase... radions and T5s probably will last a while. MH is time tested though for sure.... Great topic.

I did not. It’s a tight overflow and the lid slides tightly under eurobracing. I didn’t glue inside for maintenance purposes. It’s a T pipe anyway.... middle pipe is return and Ts over herbie. It seems to have stopped. I’m just gonna be careful and not touch it. Now I need a new pump. I think I might just grab a sicce but one a bit bigger than mixing station.