davjbeas

Hello, I have been wanting a clam. I have heard that an angelfish will destroy clams. My flame angel jumped out of the tank and is dead. My current live stock in my 75 gallon mixed reef are 1) yellow tang 2) lawnmower blenny 3) psuedochromis/ purple dottyback 4)Pygmy/ Cherub anglefish 5) clark clownfish 6) green bubbletip anenome 7) skunk cleaner shrimp 8) sallylightfoot crab snails/hermits SPS, LPS Is it safe to add a clam? Thanks in advance, David 6)

Looks like orange ricordia. I have 2 in my tank. David

This is a interesting topic for me. I just ordered a unit for my 75 gallon reef. I plan to put it on my return line from the sump. Im not sure if i should put it before the chiller or after. It probably doesn't make a difference. I ordered this one http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=AV2283 but i got it from www.customaquatic.com for $273 with the twist which means you can rotate the body of the unit to have the input or output going in any direction that is better for the install. I took note about not running it full time in the begining. maybe 5 hours a day a good start? It seems that the poll is pretty much split down the middle with people using these units and people that don't. I would be happy if it helped my cyano problem which i have in 1 tank that is a satelite on the main sump. It probably will insure that cyano doesnt spread to the 75 gallon display. Good topic! David B.

This is a store no one really talks about. So heres my opinion. 1) They sell tropical fish, Koi, birds and reptiles and salt water fish. 2) The prices on dry goods and Misc things are a bit high(tap water purifier unit $60.00) 3) They will not give wamas discount. 4) They have a lot of nice marine fish(however the tanks are seriously overcrowded) Its worth stopping by if you want a new fish, the have some really nice species but prices are high dont shop here for live rock or corals. David B.

Also, deltec is reputed to have excellent customer service. Here is a link to a forum you can ask any questions. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdis...amp;forumid=337 I plumbed mine into the drain from the tank. It actually took me about a month after purchasing to get it installed properly. I didnt have a lot of free time and also the plumbing part was difficult to figure out. David B.

I was noticing over the past 3 weeks that my skimmate production had really decreased since purchasing my APF600. And also when i removed the cup that the water level was lower(about 1-1/2") So I thought that maybe there wasnt much to skim out at first. Maybe things were fine and that was what i should expect. then i was thinking about the instructions saying salt creep could get in the air intake of the recirculating pump. What i did was connect a air line tube to the little red airline valve beside the collection cup. and let it suck up about a 16oz cup worth of deionized water! It completely cleared the airline and the skimmer works like its new again. This method seems simpler then doing any dissasembly to clear blockage. Also I run the airvalve completely open all the time. I did a little extra plumbing on the outflow for my skimmer. Heres a pic before putting in sump you can see I added more piping on the outflow. I don't know if this would make for more dry skimmate. But it does control better exactly where the skimmer drains(less splashing in the sump) running Maybe Byron at BRK would have a suggestion also. They are great to answar questions there. David B.

Hello, I have a 75 gallon reef that has been up for a year. I planned the tank equipment and setup before actually putting it up and running. I wanted to have an open top for the best oxygen exchange. so i decided on something i could suspend from the cieling. I chose the aquamedic dual 250watt metal halides with dual T5 actinics. because of the way the ballast is wired i have one power cord for the halides and one for the actinics. I was able to use 2 timers. the actinics come on at 12:30, the halides at 1:00. the halides go off at 11:00. and the actnics turn off at 11:30. This sort of brings a dawn/dusk effect. I did have to add a chiller to the system because the temperature swung as high as 85 deggrees. I have no temp swings with the chiller in place. heres a pic of my tank product link. http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic...h&offset=15 If you want to see the setup you are welcome to come by. David B.

I would suggest that you buy the 90 gallon tank with a megaflow system(This is a built in overflow with return plumbing). you could use your existing 20 gallon tank as a sump. The modern series of stands don't have a center brace in the front wich makes it easier to work in your sump and under the tank. Buy the best skimmer you can afford. If you would like to see my tank you could come by. I have implemented everything you listed mostly and also a chiller. I believe the 90 gallon tanks are 48" wide. If so the 30gallon sump might not leave enough room for other things under your tank(wiring,timers,reactors,ballasts,fluidized filters). Most in sump skimmers will not generate enough bubbles that would cause the return pump to put bubbles in the tank. David B.

I don't think buying a denitrifier would be a good idea. If you are keeping sensitive corals that require low levels of nitrates(fish only aquariums can have higher nitrates with no problem) ways to keeps nitrates low------- 1) water changes 2) deep sand bed 3) refugium with macro algae One very improtant factor I want to mention is use only reverse osmosis and deionized water for you salt mix and also for evaporation top off. *never use straight tap water* David B.

I bought one from brk months ago. It was suggested ta add him after the lights were out for the evening which i did. the next day he had excavated itself a cave under a coral which was fine. When he covered the coral with the gravel i had to uncover and remove the coral so he lost his home. the next day he was on the floor. I was warned at BRK that this fish was a jumper. Be careful. David B.

www.oceanussystems.com also using aquamedic dosing pump for the pump. david b.

rocko918, what magnet are you using this with? I have one of these at home i decided not to use it. However I should try it probably. David

Hello, Every 2 weeks to a month I need to scrape my glass tank down to clean off all the coraline algae. every time i do it the tank looks great again. I have collected some tools to make it easier. The basic tool is a utility knife razor which I bought 50 for under $10.00 The next one is the red handle one which i use to get into tight spaces. The one that looks like a screw driver is for very hard to reach spots. the last 2 you can buy at the autoparts store cheap and they use regular razor blades for replacement. The one that looks like a screwdriver had oil on the metal, so I ran it through the dishwasher to make sure the tank doesn't get contaminated. here is a picture...... These tools will not work for tanks that are acrylic. however the screwdriver looking scraper comes with 3 red plastic blades that can be used to scrape acrylic. the red handled tool cost $5, the scredriver one costs about 8$ I hope this helps some people out there. David B.

I have the pinpoint model of digital calcium monitor. When I set it up the first time, i kept getting error messages when calibrating. I called technical support and the sent me a new probe which was sealed and didn't need to be filled with reference solution. Then it worked fine. however, this instrument is not designed to read continuosly. they suggest get the reading and then store away the probe dry after use. it has an accuracy of abot +-20ppm i would say. It is easier than a test kit and runs on 9v battery. it will cost you about $249.00 I don't know of any other maker currently selling a CA meter. David B.

Thanks for the attention. I am feeding this guy chunks of prime reef once a week, i know it is healthy because when i touch the food to it it grabs and retracts the tentacles. Thanks, David B.

I bought this guy months ago at the marine scene. They were selling as a Green Bubbletip anenome. The tentacles look kind of long to me. Here are some pics... What do you think? David B.

I did find some info on reef central. for people intersted in this subject here is a link. http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthre...threadid=908786 David B.

I am thinking about automating my evaporation top off. My plan is to buy a kalkreactor and keep a resovoir of Deionized water and a dosing pump. I have a reef keeper 2 which tells me that after the lights are out my ph drops from 8.3 down to 7.73. What i want to do is buy a sensor that will be active only during the lights are out that will sense a low level in my sump and activate a dosing pump( probably aquamedic single pump) the dosing pump will push water from my resoivar through a kalkreactor and into the sump. which should raise the ph a little while the lights are out. The only problem that concerns me is that there are several top off level sensing devices out there. I have read posts where a float switch got stuck and overflowed the sump and other problems. People have posted that the jbj auto top off is not safe. I am considering the tunze osmolater and other devices. Please if you have any experience either positive or negative with any of the topoff level sensing devices let me know. thanks in advance, David B.

I have the same issue. I use a rubbermaid heavy duty trash can for mixing saltwater. i prepare new water 3 days to a week in advance before a water change. i noticed the brown dust accumulate and never thought much of it. i decided to clean the trash can a week or so ago. I put it in my shower and scrubbed it with a old washcloth. It was incredible how much filth was washed out of the can. This stuff is definately not algae of any sort. I doubt if any elements in the salt react with the plastic of the trash can, but it is possible i guess. I don't know what the brown dust is. I do plan to keep the can cleaner in the future. I have a low alkalinity problem in my tank(7 dkh) I wonder if this brown dust could be a sign that the new saltwater is not perfect. David B.

It may be the solenoid valve is closed if you have one. mine is open when plugged in. David

I think if you have a good amount of live rock you will be fine, you might have a spike of ammonia or nitrite until the biological filtration of the live rock catches up to the bioload but it should be small. feed sparingly or at least don't over feed for a couple of weeks. If your tank is a reef you should gradually remove the bio media over maybe 2 weeks. if it is fish only you can leave the media in the filter. Just my opinion, David B.

I have the same light you are thinking of. The aquamedic brand. I have mine suspended from the cieling. It generates a lot of heat. My temperatures got as high as 86 degrees. I had to add a chiller to the setup. I am happy with mine. You could go with dual 175 watt metal haide unit. Mine is a 2x250 watt unit with T5 actinics and it is hard to keep zoos. there is too much light in my opinion I am keeping a small frag of zoos in the shade under a hammer coral. However the light is great for SPS corals. Here is a thread where you can see my tank. http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=8360 David B.

I use Kent Marines "Reef Carbon" on my reef tank because i want to be safe. Poorer quality carbons can leach phosphate into your water. I use the Black Diamond brand on my FOWLR tank as there are no sensitive corals there. I don't have any actual data on which carbons leach phosphate more or less. But I feel safe with the "Reef Carbon" or The Seachem brand "Matrix carbon" I use a magnum 350 canister filter with chemical chamber. Changing the carbon and filter sleeve once a month. On the FOWLR tank i use a whisper 1 filter. changing the carbon and filter once a week. David B.

I have used an ETS reef devil skimmer for years. They don't even make the model anymore. I run an Rio 2100 for the pump. make sure there are bioballs in the air-water mixing column. and that they are clean. this will make sure you get the best air/water mixing. These skimmers need to be elevated so that the exit gate valve is above the water level in the sump. You will need to do some fine tuning on the gate valve. water level in the skimming chamber should be 1-2 inches below the collection cup. Good Luck. David B.

Thanks for the replies, the bubble algae is gone, along with some xenia that has gotten out of control. I am Working on the 10 gallon satellite tank that I am trying to use as a refugium and home for my snowflake moray. i have the grape caulerpa and a really cool red macroalgae growing on the rocks. I am trying to get the macro algae to out compete the hair algae and red slime. To speed this up i've put in 16 magarita snails as I was told these were less likely to eat the macroalgae. Thanks, David B.