SubzeroLT

The magnetic glass cleaners with the metal blades are super effective for removing coralline. Must try Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Good plan to get the PM1 & additional PH probe. Did you manage to program the email alert to happen for only when the CO2 is supposed to be on? I'm trying to figure this out. I assume a virtual outlet is needed for this.

PM sent

Amazing colors! Thanks for sharing the dosing regime. Its interesting you are dosing iodine...any particular reason for it?

That's a very nice picture. I have baby brine shrimps & rotifers if you need any.

New addition - male Blue Star Leopard Wrasse. Replaced the return pump & really impressed with the Vectra M1. Its rated at 7500l/hr / 80W. Not surprisingly, it pushes more water than my previous Jebao DC12000 / 85W. The return flow is fantastic now.

Turbo snails are typically around $2-$3 at most LFS

I've had it since March 2015. So that's about 1 year so far. Mine grabs bits of mysis shrimp or market prawns from the anemone as well.

Porcelain crab molting Hermit crab digging deep into the duncan with its claws in search for food

Backup power supply for wave maker And iSocket device - to send an SMS text message when it detects a power failure. Product review here - http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/topic/140104-power-failure-contingency-ecotech-battery-backup-isocket/

I was able to see the pictures this yesterday on both tapatalk & computer. Now not able to see on neither one. Anyway, lovely pics. Enjoyed the thread.

For the test kit, i'd suggest getting better brands such as Nyos or Salifert. Some brands like API is not so good for saltwater (hard to read) For salinity, use an optical refractometer instead of a hydrometer. The hydrometer has too large an error. Uneaten food will decompose & cause nitrate spike. BTW, what are you feeding your gonio? They get most of their energy from light. Feeding it 2x a week is more than sufficient.

I understand that the reactions are quite instantaneous inside the chamber & there isn't a need for long contact time (unlike a UV filter). Hence a relatively high flow rate is OK. The stream 3 is rated for 2500L volumes and i'm using it for a 200L tank. That's way over specified & works well.

That's a very nice set up. Looking forward to more progress pictures.

Lovely tank! Congratulations.

Many have heard of the Ocean Free Hydra Depurator - device that generates Hydroxyl (OH) radicals to purify water. Many are unclear how the technology works despite reading the FAQ & more importantly how it benefits our reef tanks. I’m not affiliated to Qian Hu in any way but would like to share my findings with the reefing community having used this product since Oct 15. Background reading on chemistry & technology behind the product. http://www.yihufish.com/products/product-information/of-hydra-powered-by-hydro-pure-technology/frequently-asked-questions-faq Key summary: Increases ORP (oxidation reduction potential) marginally. This is a good thing Does not reduce nitrates if already present. Other nutrient export method required (eg. bio pellet/skimmer) With prolonged use, the system nitrate level reduces slightly Really does remove toxic ammonia. Great for emergency needs & quarantine tanks (without medication). Able to add livestock within a day.Details: There were several models of the Hydra available catering from nano tanks to medium sized units with built in pumps. I got the largest model Hydra Stream 3 which needed an external pump to supply water through it. These cartridges contain proprietary media (similar to carbon) needs to be inserted 1 by one. Not inserted all at one go like what I tried to do. A very tight fit. I used the angle adapter. Remember to insert the black o-ring as mentioned in the instructions. The white plumbers tape is not necessary. O ring is sufficient. It’s recommended to mount it vertically so that the entire chamber is filled with water. Power consumption of the Hydra stream 3 unit is about 2Watts. Usage: I have an ORP sensor hooked up to the APEX Neptune. For this chart & review, it turned off the Hydra for 1 week. More about ORP : http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-12/rhf/feature/ ORP runs around 250mv to 350mv in the sea. For my tank, ORP runs in the 280+mv range with the Hydra off. It never crosses the 300 mark for the past months. With the Hydra switched on, it increases marginally to the 317+ range within a couple of hours. It will continue upwards towards the 330 range. This shows that the Hydra is indeed increasing the oxidizing potential. Most associate ORP measurement with Ozone. Generally, the higher the ORP number, the cleaner the water. The benefits of ozone are well documented – increases oxidizing potential, converts ammonia to nitrate among other ways of purifying the water. However, ozone needs to be handled carefully as the potential health effects associated is dangerous for an inexperienced reefer. Details here - http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-03/rhf/index.php I got the Hydra because it improves oxidation potential without the risk of Ozone. Over prolonged use, I observe an improvement in water quality & clarity. Googling further, publications that state that hydroxyl radicals react with organic waste until complete mineralization occurs. These are skimmed out easily resulting in improved water clarity. It’s documented that higher oxidation levels can lead to lower nitrates, probably via the above mentioned mechanism. (Refer to the earlier link under the section “Oxidation of Organics by Ozone: Skimming and Nutrients”). While they Hydra does not reduce nitrates directly, at a reef system level, lower nitrates is possible. In my case, I’ve seen nitrates coming down from 5ppm to the 2ppm range (pic taken before water change). Note there are also other factors such as feeding habits & reactor tuning as well. IMO, the effect of the Hydra does not have the punch of an Ozone generator, but in a small way, it does have a small positive impact to water quality. Does it reduce nitrates? I ran a simple experiment to see if nitrates can be reduced. Here is the set up : 40L Zoanthid frag tank without any fishes. Simple biological filtration (biohome & filter wool). Water circulates via an Eheim compact 600 pump. Auto water top up with RODI water. Lights come on 6 hours a day. No fishes => no food was added during the week => no new ammonia source added. Initial nitrate level is 50ppm (25 Oct 2015). Hydra switched on 24hrs a day for a week. Nitrate levels were taken every 2 days. On the 6th day, nitrate levels remained at 50ppm (1st Nov) Results show it does not convert/reduce existing nitrates already in the system. Other observations & notes : · The claims about converting toxic ammonia to less toxic nitrate is true. I’ve put fishes in an uncycled tank with the Hydra without issues. This equipment is just perfect for quarantine tanks or emergency purposes · As the conductive media is made of carbon, it’s not advisable to use it in a hospital or medicated tank. This was also mentioned in the instructions sheet. · Proper mechanical filtration (skimmer) is still required. This continues to help prevent excessive organics be converted to nitrates in the first place. They Hydra does not replace a skimmer. · Nutrient/nitrate export is still required (eg. Water change, biopellet + skimmer) · Did not observe a reduction in skimmate. Still able to get a full cup in 3-5 days. To round it about the Hydra Stream: Increases ORP (oxidation reduction potential) marginally. Improves overall water quality Does not reduce nitrates if already present. Other nutrient export method required (eg biopellet/skimmer) With prolonged use, the system nitrate level reduces slightly Great for quarantine tanks & emergency

Thanks for sharing the light settings. Roughly what's that peak value for the white/UV/Green/Red in the chart?

Green Goblin Underside of starfish SSC Forest Fire Sand Dollar Yuma Yellow Milli

Silly tail spot goby insists on hanging around the wavemaker. Sharing some macro shots taken this afternoon : Forest Fire : Trochus snail : Mushroom surface Purple Valida Dino Monti Green stag Blue Monti Turquoise Birdsnest

Damn nice clams !

Agree with Daveyy. Its probably not a good idea to stop the pump. I'd suggest using less media or using a re-circulating reactor instead. This is my setup & tumbling rate.

I started this thread also to understand what others are doing...kind of looking for best practice. Mine is in a phosban 150 FR. About 2cm thickness of media there.

I've seen fellow reefers filling up half a TLF Phosban 150 reactor with Rowaphos for their 400L tanks in an attempt to reduce phosphates / nuisance algae. Ending up damaging corals due to zero phosphates in the system. From my understanding : Rowaphos is one of the more effective products out there as its made of virgin iron hydroxide media. Quite potent. Ideally fluidized in a reactor (but slow flow) to optimize contact with water Putting too much at one go will reduce phosphates too quickly and keep it too low. Ideal Phosphate level is less than 0.03ppm but it cannot be zero ppm. Salifert can measure a minimum of 0.03ppm. Most folks strive for 'undetectable'. But undetectable can be 0 ppm => too low. A Hanna phosphorous checker is best to measure such low levels. Found this online report about various media. A bit 'cheem' but it states that Rowaphos has the best absorbing capacity among the various brands. http://www.theaquariumsolution.com/files/Test report.pdf Density of rowaphos is 1200g/litre => 10ml = 12g of rowaphos Dosage : From the label, 100ml of Rowaphos with remove 3ppm of PO4 from 400 liters of water => 10ml of Rowaphos with remove 0.3ppm of PO4 from 400 liters of water For my 3ft tank, i put about 20-40ml (not too much) then change it every 1-2 months.

Acrylic is even easier to cut. Do share pics of your final setup once done.

A very common issue is losing the bushing after cleaning your pump or motors. The symptom with the missing bushing will be a stalled propeller. The Jebao RW4 comes with a silicone bushing (held by the tweezer in the photo) that is placed at the tip of the propeller. It drops out very easily. In fact, i just bought this replacement bushing from AquaMarin today ($2). An alternative is to use a hard air tube. Do check if yours is a case of the missing bushing.