robe

Comparison between type of light is not straight forward as it is dependent on a lot of factors. 1. Livestock or corals that you're keeping 2. Depth of tank 3. Replacement cycle 4. operating costs 5. Space for the lights over your tank Between using a 400W MH lamp and 10 units of 40w T5s, firstly electrical consumption is similar but here's the differences: YOu get more coverage area out of the T5 but less intensity in any area... You can only adequately light up the first few inches of your tank with the T5 but the MH can still light light it up a few times more intensely at a depth 8-10 times your T5 can support.... Replacement cycle - T5 ~ 6-7 months at most MH 10-12 months now look at your cost..... say T5 at $40/pc x 10 =$400 MH at $200 x 1 = $200 and at approximately 1.7 times the cycle that you need to change your T5 . Summary for every 1 MH bulb you replace you have changed approximately 15 units of T5 lamps... T5 in the long run is a more expensive option in the long run. To match the area covered by the light you can use two 250w MH and still your T5 cannot match the intensity it delivers at 24 inches depth. Heat = Heat given off is still the same.. 400 watts of MH is still 400 watts of T5 . T5 just spreads it out over a large area while MH is concentrated in a small area. Of course the incidental IR rays from MH can penetrate the water deeeper due to the intensity while T5 can penetrate to an inch or so only So which one is better? MH if you're keeping light loving SPS and T5 can do the job on the rest except certain LPS but then only on shallow tanks. If you keep deep tank 24 inches or deeper MH is still the way to go for most LPS. Only softies can go for less intense light.

Hi Coral_clams I suggest you research on the subject of reefkeeping in the net as well as our local library. In the net: www.reefcentral.com - read the forums, articles and follow the links to other sites as well www.reefs.org In the National Library: www.nlb.gov.sg look for books by: Tullock - natural reef aquarium Delbeek & Sprung - Reef Aquarium vols 1 & 2 go to kinokuniya Borneman - Corals If you do not have the interest to pursue knowledge by your own resource and endeavour you will never understand and gain the knowledge that you seek.....

To keep an SPS tank specially acros require patience, interest to learn all about the hobby, experience up their sleeves and most of all must be able to provide and sustain the necessary equipment and operational costs that come with the territory..... $2K is barely enough to start an SPS tank even if you DIY most of your equipment and you can find cheap good second hand stuffs to use. Aside from that you must be ready to set aside money for your electrical bill, additives, light change every 8-12 months depending on what type of lighting you use. And last of all you should ask yourself do you have the passion to sustain your interest in SPS..... If you answer no to any of the above, think twice before you commit don't just jump into the bandwagon just because you think its cool... I only went to SPS after 2 years of keeping softies and LPS ...

Thanks Bawater for the article.... As Craig Bingman has recommended in Aquarium frontiers a few years ago is to limit the addition of acetic acid to your kalkwasser mix. As they say moderate drinking of alcohol is healthy but too much alcohol can make you puke & puke until there's nothing to puke....

H Alvy, Can you post a picture of your chiller? Robe

blue green crocea

my blue tiger striped maxima

my gold rimmed maxima not fully opened ... a bit shy to show it full mantle

JUst make sure you get artificial vinegar to prevent organic compounds from being added into your tank. This is to prevent red slime from forming If you dose too much calcium acetate with little breakdown of it to an assimilable form for the corals your reading for calcium might be skewed into having high calcium level and false confidence that the corals have all the calcium they need. This might slowly decelerate their growth and you'll wonder they stop growing with such high calcium levels.

near Tech link, Kaki Bukit

Hi Alvy, So how is it so far, did it ran all the way to 25 C? Your wattage is similar to the Hailea but your coil seems to be more efficient. 4A is slightly higher than the Hailea which runs on 3.8A but the extra current may come from the condenser fan as split unit fans are bigger. Robe

Hi Alvy, well done!! Now I'm thinking of giving up my Hailea and DIY one with maintainable cooling coils to always have a high efficiency (and pay lower electricity bill). Maybe I can also site my compressor and condenser into another area as well. Hmmmm....

PLease note that you are adding calcium in the form of calcium acetate.... to breakdown calcium acetate you need the help of little bacterias to release the calcium into a form that the corals can use. Corals cannot use calcium acetate directly to build their skeleton. Watch out for unwanted growth as the acetate is broken down into other compounds or use for some other process inside your tank.

I was thinkng of baiting a trap with an opened clam (the variety sold n the market not LFS)..........

The black fencing is for protection of my new clams from my green wrasse.......... I need help on how to erase the wrasse.....any advise? I tried hook and line, tried spearing it when it goes under the sand ut to no avail

same colony 3 months ago....

centre skyblue acro latest shot showing growth tips...

fullview of tank with modified rockscape adding a shallow reef flat near centre sump

same frag back in June...

blue stag with green axial corallites growth pic

blue green polyped humilis from the 1st PR shipment last July

tanzy's tricolor frag after 9 months....

my solitaryensis frag showing growth at last and the purple corallites with green polyps....hopefully it keeps up.

Hi Tanzy, Please do as it seems my upload hanged a while ago and I restarted a new topic. Thanks. Robe

growth of salmon pink millepora after 8 months coming from a single 2 inch frag branch