EBR

Ah-ha! I normally don't follow what the next thing is that Apple throws at us, so thanks for the insight. I don't really want the iPhone because they don't have a pay-as-you-go plan like I have now (my cell phone was free and just stays in the car). I did hear about 3rd party apps being locked out a while back, since Apple would release an API for them to use (that's what was explained to me, anyway), so I'm glad to see that door opening up. You guys are convincing me, I think. Need to figure out what I would want to do with the AC first, and then scope out the pieces and cost. Hmmmmm.

I swear, you crack me up :-) Hadn't considered that -- thanks Never even heard of the Zen Vision -- looks interesting -- I'll have to check it out. I must admit that I'm little surpised -- I thought there would be at least ONE sincere vote for the ipod. Tough crowd, I guess. Matt

Work has been good lately, and I recently fell into a nice little bonus. So what to do with it? 1) Get an AC and start building that functionality out for the tank -- PH, temp, web access, yadda yadda. It's a 125g, and I certainly want to get one eventually, but right now the tank is stable, not over stocked, and pretty darn easy to maintain -- not really pushing the limits at all. But after reading a recent thread where someone's tank melted down with a rouge heater, I would like more protection. or, 2) The iPod touch. My wife has the iPhone (I don't really want the phone part), but all the rest is just too cool. I'm sure some of you have one or the other, so I ask for a truly unbiased opinion: Given a pile of free cash, which would make you squander it? Thanks. Matt

Very cool -- what size/type nano is that? FTS? Matt

It's funny you posted this now. Just yesterday, I was watching over the tank with a cup of coffee, just checking out all the critters, and realized that some of the new corals I got from the last meeting (zoos, in particular) were a little off color. Not much, as they still look great, but enough to make me think about the lighting. Chris: how often do you change the bulbs for T5s? I'm sure mine are due... Matt

Welcome aboard/back, Phillip. I, too, witnessed the debacle for which you were [clearly] a victim. I've seen it too many times: someone raises a stink, gets their nose of joint, or just doesn't like someone, and everyone piles on -- how else do explain over 1800 views of a thread with 20-something posts? It was really sad to see -- I think some would just as well eat their young. Anyway, GOOD FOR YOU for taking the high road -- you handled it much better than most would ever hope to (or understand how to). And I would also agree that this forum is one of the most professional and welcoming I have the privilege to visit. Enjoy! Matt

Count me in.

Chip -- Very slick, indeed. Customizing to fit the wall like that is so cool. Jeff -- way to drop a hint, Dude. You know, a baseball bat COULD be a little more subtle :-) Matt

Well, I tried replying to your thread, Jeff, but it said I didn't have permission: http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=19742 Anyway, looks really cool, Jeff -- congratulations! Call it a non-tank-tour if you like, but I'd love to see that beast in action once you get it delivered and working. Matt

Dude. Holy Crap! Uuuuuuhhhhhh..... Dude. wow. That's just too cool. I'm also interested: what's the first project?

The drain is an up-turned elbow in the right back corner of the tank, and my sleeper goby has a really annoying habit getting too close and riding the drain to the sump. Any recommendation on how to prevent him from reaching the point of no return? I've already got a piece of egg crate grid in the elbow (1.5" dia), but those 1/2" holes are apparently too big to block the little squirt. Thanks. Matt

Mine have similar spots -- always have to some degree, and they seem to come and go as they buddy up to the hammers. Now, if you don't have a hammer coral, then I can't offer anything useful ;-) Matt

It will probably show up one day -- it's pretty persistent stuff. In fact, that's how some people frag the stuff: to let it roll around one the substrate for a bit so that the cut can heal a little bit and attach itself to some sand. It's then easier to glue the sand to a rock, rather than sticking the flesh with a toothpick.

Agreed -- insane. "The skimmer was full of a thick sludge that could not be drained. I ended up having to literally scrape the collection cup because the sludge was so thick! I could not believe that the skimmer could remove a large, decomposing blue carpet anemone, increase my ORP and improve my water quality, all while I was out of town! It is by far the most outstanding piece of reefkeeping equipment I have ever owned"

Seems to be a hot topic this week. Here's a thread on CMAS about nassarius vs. welk: http://cmas-md.org/forums/showthread.php?t=58116 Matt

I have to agree - I'm not sure how this fits in with controller. Probably because I don't have one (yet). Are these switches in line with sensor inputs? Matt

Excellent and very timely thread! Chip -- The little guy is doing great, but overnight found the exact back of the [bottom] rock of the island I placed it. I've been wanting to reposition the powerheads anyway, so we'll see what happens. Matt

http://www.wamas.org/forums/index.php?show...mp;#entry150148

Check out what dchild has to say here about plumbing sizes on 29 July 2007 (post #17). Made a world of difference on mine. Matt

Funny. Yeah, must have been. I thought you looked familiar, and was going to ask if you belonged to CMAS or WAMAS, but I lost the moment. Nice to [belated] meet you :-) You actually gave me a lot to think about, esp. regarding the idea of picking one species from each family -- can you point me to a site/resource that lays it all out for us non-Latin-speaking folk? Matt

No doubt! These little guys all pop up out of the sand within 15 seconds of adding the first bit of food! Very fun -- well, except the part about killing my fireshrimp. Matt

So I go out this past weekend to Sea Save and get 100 of the little buggers at $.25 a piece. I've seen them before and how they just decimate all sorts of nasty stuff, keep the substrate stirred up, yadda yadda. Within a couple hours, I notice one had latched onto the tail of my fire shimp, one of my favorite critters in the tank. Lo and behold, he shakes him off just fine, but it still makes me wonder. Well, an hours after that, he's lying on the bottom, barely moving, with four of those darn snail along his underside and tail, basically suffocating him. Dead. The little buggers. Oh, I was torn between shock ("AAAAHHHHH!!!"), and irritation ("those little rotters"), and bewilderment ("how can you NOT out run a SNAIL?"). Anyone ever seen anything like this? Matt

By this time, we're entering November and took some vacation time including the Curacao Sea Aquarium. I'll post pictures of that separately, but let me off this -- a face that only a mother could love: Moving on, it was finally time to fix the harness for the actinics once and for all. Turns out that the extraction tool for this connector has two flat prongs that straddle either side of the pin -- these then push in the locking tabs that keep the metal pin within the plastic housing. Not wanting to spend the $25 bucks for the tools, I set out to fashion my own for this one-time use. I had a scrap of aluminum gutter in the garage and tried to cut thin strips, but it proved too soft: So then I figured some more stainless-like would be good -- enter this brush (I've got a box of 100 or so for glue-ups: flatten it out and cut two strips: Insert each on either side of the stuck pin: And gentle push the other side of the pin -- voila'. Not a great picture, but you can see where the pin is part-way out of the plastic housing: After that, just a new crimp and a touch of solder, and it went back together just like new :-) While i was at it, I extended the power cord for one of the canopy fans that is on the far side of the tank from the electrical panel: The tank has been running like that, with full working lights and live rock ever since. And two week ago on the 9th, everything from the 55g got moved to the 125g! I don't have pictures of the whole process, but it went quite well. The water in the 125g has been running for a couple of months by then, so I took the time tweak them and make sure the temp and pH were the same between the two tanks. Beyond that, I just treated it like a big water change (thanks again, Jeff -- good advice). I just drained about half of the 125g, then moved water, rocks, and corals over one at a time, and topped off with some freshly mixed DI SW. It's been two weeks since, and no casualties. I also plan to re'scape a little bit. There will be a main island on the right side, some open area in the middle for the hammers and leather, and then a smaller island on the left -- right now, everything is sort of spread out: And just this past weekend, I stood up the kalk stirrer, again from Johan. Giving it a good cleaning, since it's been sitting around the basement and garage for a while: And now in service: Even though I've been dosing Ca ( as I was with the 55g), I think the Ca and Alk are pretty low right now, so I'm hoping the kalk with brings these back in line so I can get some good growth. Yesterday the Ca was at about 370, and the alk was just under 6 dKH. That about sums it all up. It's been really nice sitting in the fish room these past two weeks, just watching what is now a clean, easy to maintain tank. I learned a lot from the 55g, including what NOT to do to make life easier. From water changes that took 1 1/2 hours to 15 minutes (that includes the time to mix up the next batch of SW -- Yow!). Once I get the Ca and alk where they should be, I'll be really happy. Now to finish the darn canopy and doors! Matt

I don't see why you feel the need to be mean, Jeff. After all, I don't go around and point out to others that you're a Dallas fan. ;-) Actually, I got these lights from Johan last summer when he sold off his tank, so I'm not sure how much time the bulbs have been used. The daylights and actinics are on separate circuits, each (60") with an Icecap 660 -- there are now 2 daylights and 3 actinics, although I think I'll try them the other way around when it's time to change them out. Johan had three of each, but the 125 is only wide enough to accommodate 5 bulbs. I think I like it better with 5 anyway, all of the corals seems to be really happy and don't shout "bright light!" Matt Thanks -- I appreciate it. Matt

Next on the list was to straighten out the electrical area. The DJ strips are awesome, but they don't allow for timers very well, and since I don't have a controller (uh, yet), I needed a way to mount them out of the way. It's nice having the walls of the stand be 1 1/2" thick, so I can really mount anything anywhere without worrying about a screw poking through the finished side. These pocket hole screws are perfect for hanging the power strips: making a template does wonders toward lining everything up: Next was the kill switch. With a couple of 4 year olds running around, I wanted some insurance they (or any other kids) didn't flip the switch that supplied either the SW (overflow the sump) or the FW (overflow the top off bucket) from the basement. A DPST switch did the trick, with each side of the switch controlling one supply. Here's the mark on the power cord when I measured it at the tank: Cut, strip, solder, and shrink tube the grounds and neutrals: Add connectors to the hot leads and tie it all up neatly: Repeat for the other supply: Attach the switch and heat shrink the connections: And finally, a way to mount it in the electrical compartment -- bust out the scraps of acrylic again: While I was at it, the Wave Controller was really getting in the way at the bottom of the stand, so one more piece of acrylic later, there's a shelf: Next: repair the Icecap harness that has the broken ground wire.