davjbeas

I am using the B-ionic 2 part additives. I dose 30 ml every evening of each part for my 75 gallon reef. The cheapest way to do this is to buy the gallon jugs from marine depot which go for about 27$ and order enough goods for the free shipping(min $175 order) . There a lot of people using I think dow flakes and something else for a home made recipe. I have noticed that I need to add every night or my tank seems to suffer. I am thinking I need to add more than 30ml now because my Alkilinity/DKH is at 7-7.5. I have a very heavily stocked tank. BRK has some setup there that looks like an autodoser system. I think a dual peristalic pump would be the best( one unit that has 2 hoses) because with the 2 part additives they need to be dosed in equal amounts. I also dose 30ml of magnesium once a week. I have a precision marine calcium reactor but could never get the bubble count stable and just gave up on it. It only takes a minute to dose the 2 part additives once a day. Heres a link to aqua medic dosing pumps http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic...exid=wp-wp-dos1 Here is a nicer one. http://www.championlighting.com/home.php?cat=387 David B.

I tried the clip on fans. My temp swing was up to 84-85 degrees with dual 250watt MH. I went ahead and bought an inline chiiler. no worries now. however if the chiller fails, my controller will switch off the lights when at temp of 83 degrees is reached. I dont think above 81 degrees is acceptable for a reef. 78-80 degrees is fine. Just my experience. Others have had success with fans. I saw someone selling a good chiller drop in style in the for sale section. Good luck, David

Jamal , here is the info the bade scraper http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=AF1311 The magnet it is designed to be superglued to http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=MF1115 I prefer this one because the blade is wider. If you want the oceanmotions one i have abrand new one I never decided to use. I will sell to you for the same price as on the website. Before using this magnet razor cleaner i had my hand in the tank with a utility knife razor blade scraping the glass. now i have no more bite marks on my hands from my angry clownfish. and my water is better off. David B.

I would go with the maxijets. They are cheap and reliable, also if you add a wavemaker later they tend to not jam on startup. The koralia i have no experience with. I guess you don't have a sump. David

There is no rio 900. do you mean maxi jet 900. if its a rio, you can find the flow output here. http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_powerh...rio.asp?CartId= Are you using a sump with a return pump or just the 2 powerheads? If a sump, what return pump are you using? If no sump i think you need more flow, where are your powerheads placed? sides or back of tank? David B.

Check out these deals, both of these salt mixes are great. there is more shipping cost because these buckets are heavy. also the buckets come in usefull in our hobby. http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/Prod...p;N=2004+113009 David B.

I have shopped at the marine scene since it first opened in the 90's. I like to shop there for live stock and emergency dry goods. I bought my new tank and stand from them. They are all knowledgable staff there. The quarentine practices are good. On the complaint about the sale of livestock to the marine scene without a price. I would find it a bad practice to let anyone who called know how much my wholesale cost is for corals and fish. I work in retail and I would never disclose the costs we pay for any item. I believe the practice at the maine scene is fair. My understanding is they only accept livestock on tuesdays when melissa is working. and store credit is offered, not cash. I once traded in a xenia rock which was from the same colony that i bought from them 6 months before. I will continue to shop there. I also live 5 minutes from them so i want to give them my support/ business. David B.

One thing worked for me. Salt creep had got into the airline hose connected ot the venturi. i took a coffe mug with water, microwaved it till the water was very hot and let the tubing on the venturi suck it through. It worked like a charm. the air bubbles were back in the skimmer chamber immediately. David B.\

I had to remove a rock with green cap growing on it because there was green bubble algae growing on it. I removed the algae and scrubbed the rock under the kitchen tap. I tried to not get much tap water on the green cap. when i returned the rock to the tank most of it turned white. I was very disappointed. however it regained the green color after a week and is completely healthy. I would give your coral 2 weeks to be sure if it is dead or not. David B.

I have a python syphon system that i use for water changes. I use the toothbrush sized wire brushes from home depot to remove the xenia from the live rock then i suck it out of the tank with the python hose. It is a difficult chore. The xenia sometimes comes back.The wire brushes work far better than razor blades in my opinion. The marine scene has bought mounted xenia from me in the past. I have my xenia cut back to 1 spot in my tank only a3"x3" patch. I love the way it pulses. David B.

I am really happy with the growth of the sps corals. That giant green millipora is the same 1" frag I got from you jake. I've lost some fish due to jumping. Otherwise everything has has been doing great. If I didn't live in a condo I would have a larger tank. The tank is now hosting 26 species of coral and 5 different fish. Also a sally lightfoot crab, serpent star, hermits and snails. and 1 green bubble tip anenome. I have dual 10K 250watt halides and t5 actinics, deltec apf600, reefkeeper2 controller. aqualogic chiller. And an auto topoff system. I am happiest that mostly everything is thriving. 15 years ago I couldnt even keep sps corals alive. David B.

Here are some pics of my 75 gallon mixed reef. It has been running for over a year. I just replaced the lights. http://s40.photobucket.com/albums/e241/dav...=1172435626.pbw http://s40.photobucket.com/albums/e241/dav...=1172435813.pbw and some pics of my 55 gallon fowlr http://s40.photobucket.com/albums/e241/dav...=1172436183.pbw Thanks for looking, David B.

I use Kent reef carbon on my 75 gallon reef. I use black diamond on my fish only tank. I use a magnum 350 canister filter for the carbon which i change monthly. The reef carbon claims not to leach phosphates. The black diamond I don't think makes that claim. David B.

I think my hammer coral is droping a clone. this blob is dropping from one of the heads. I haven't seen this before. Here's 2 pics David B.

I agree with davelin, the are some basic methads that we all folow for a succesful reefs. premixing saltwater to the correct specific gravity and oxygenate the new water and it helps to make it the same temperature as the tank before changing the water. David B.

I am not sure what you mean by mixing new salt water directly in the sump. does this mean you are adding water to your sump and pouring salt into the sump? If this is the case that is a serious problem. I use a big rubber maid trashcan. I fill with deionized water, then i add salt while testing specific gravity until the specific gravity in the new water matches my tanks specific gravity. I run a rio 2100 in the trash can to aerate the new water for at least 3 hours to a day before use. If you are adding turbo calcium and calcium buffer are you adding the powder directly to the tank? If you are adding more than a teaspoon you should mix it with water and slowly drip the solution to your sump in high flow area. I think for you since you are a beginner its better to not add additives. Since you are using reef crystals salt if you do a 20% water change every 2 weeks and you match the specific gravity of the new water with your tank water and also the temperature. Reef crystals salt has extra trace elements/calcium and alkalinity and ph buffers which should be good enough for your tank. Adding turbo calcium will not make your corals grow faster. this should be added if your tank is heavily stocked and the stony corals are depleting the calcium in your tank water. I have found that STABLE water parameters is the key to healthy fish and corals. David B.

Since I work in vienna, it is fun to stop by there twice a month or so. I wouldn't buy any dry good there. they have some plumbing parts but the selection isnt well ordered or kept fully stocked(BRK is the best on this point) They had a lot of fish the last time i stopped in. They had some fish that the marine scene wont carry such as anthias. It is not unusual to spot a dying fish in their displays. as for corals/snails, live rock don't make the trip. They don't put prices for fish on the tranks. they have a large room with tanks and stands for sale. i bought a plumbing part for $4.00 that turned out wouldn't work they only gave me store credit for the refund. They definitely won't give a wamas discount , I've asked. David B.

I don't know what it could be. Do you have kids that might have put something in the water? Do you wash your hands thoroughly with tap water to ensure no soap/ handlotion get in the water when working in the tank. How long from the addition of these fish was it until they died? Oxygen levels are very important. maybe something happened that would cause oxygen levels to drop. lack of circulation at the water surface and a bacterial bloom (nitrifying bacteria need oxygen). I am guessing. what water are you using for salt water and top off? when you found the fish dead, were part of them eaten or were they dead like they just died? What is your water temperature at and is it stable throughout the day within 1-2 degrees? What fishes are still alive? how much are you feeding per day? I can think of nothing else to ask, i will wait for your reply. David B.

I would rinse it very well, and slowly add it in the tank, maybe 1 piece a week. bacteria should naturaly colonize the surface and the crevices. I think for the rinsing tap water would be fine because you are not trying to import anything living from the rock(I assume it is dry and has been for a while). If you have a deck spraying a garden hose on it would be good. This is what I would do. There are probably other opinions as well. David B. \

here is a link to where to info can be found. The nice thing i liked was that it shows controllers I never knew were out there. I definitely would have researched the ones i never heard of before i bought my reefkeeper2. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthre...threadid=997688 David B.

Are you sure its polyurethane and not polyethylene? Polyurethane is a finish used on woods. you can seal and protect your wood stand with it. if imersed in salt water it would probably disentegrate if its polyurethane. What part is it and what part of it is polyurethane? David B. PS. jamal, i can probably replace the frag you lost. Let me know when you have time to come by.

Wow, that is a lot of info. Thanks Davelin for the suggestions. You are right abouth those sweeper tentacles. The one spot I have where I would feel safe putting a clam is on the florida crushed coral substrate(bottom of tank) where i have a maze brain now. BTW the other night I noticed the maze brain has tiny sweeper tentacles. not nearly as long as the galaxia, maybe a half inch long. I never noticed them before. I don't think I will try the clams that go on rocks. So that leaves the tank bottom which is not fine sand but crushed coral. So that means durasa, maybe. Or maybe no clams are suitable with my substrate? David B.

Well, the eel mostly stays within the rocks. He is not very big. I had one before that got out of the tank and ended up dead. this tanks top is sealed and he cannot get out. he has been there for a year. I feed him prime reef every day. There is one option though. I could put him in a 55 gallon fish only with live rock tank that has an adult dog faced puffer, diamond goby, gold striped clown, yellow tail damsels. however the eels do not see well, and it might not get enough food in the larger tank because of competition. I will think on it for now.\\ David

My lighting for the reef tank is 250watt DE metal halides 10K with t5 actinics. the tank is a standard 75 gallon RR tank. There is pleanty of light. Are they equal with the difficulty of keeping them? and just different with light requirements? I should probably go with one that can handle a lot of light. The eel tank is really just a satelite tank off the same sump that i an using as a refugium/ eel tank it is 10 gallons and under PC lights. I would prefer the clam to go in the reef tank. I am thinking I will get a clam next tuesday. Is one species better for the light i have? or is the durasa the best one for my setup. David B.

Ok, so probably the only fish that I should be concerned about is the cherub anglefish. And it is a gamble..... It doesnt nip at anything else so maybe it would work out. Would a clam be safe in a tank with a snowflake moray eel? It would be under PC bulbs. I've never had a clam before. But my reef is very stable for a year. David the eel tank and the reef are 2 seperate tanks.