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Got a 3155 Osmolator in. Hooked it up, let it top off to the right level and confirmed it was working. 20 mins later the alarm is going off because the sensor failed. Hit up google and there's thousands of people that have seen similar issues with these things. Why are they so highly recommended?
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Dec 25, 2015 16:07
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Got the osmolater figured out. I'm not a fan of the design, but at least I understand it now. What I would fix: - Use a conductivity meter instead of a IR sensor to detect water levels. If you turn on the unit with the sensor submerged it just pumps water. WTF? - Put a siphon break in the pump design - Put a filter on the entire sensor mechanism, fail safe if it's clogged while also triggering an alarm Also I want to share a very proud achievement of mine. Out of all the bad luck I've had on the tank, I've finally tested undetectable nitrates:  This has never happened before in my entire 7 year reefkeeping career. I credit the vodka dosing as I did a water change a week ago and tested higher on wednesday than now. I am way too excited about this and it feels like a huge accomplishment. P04 is pretty low as well, .1/.2ppm depending on how you read the test. Rest of params are looking good: 
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Dec 26, 2015 22:40
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Got a ORA pygmy filefish for my birthday, please ignore my aiptasia problem. There's a peppermint shrimp in there, too, but he's still hiding.
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Dec 28, 2015 04:09
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Nice! How big is he?
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Dec 28, 2015 05:25
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He's probably about 1.5" right now - tiny little thing. Super cute!
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Dec 28, 2015 05:27
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Hood Ornament posted:Got a ORA pygmy filefish for my birthday, please ignore my aiptasia problem. There's a peppermint shrimp in there, too, but he's still hiding. Neat fishy! I'd be worried about all the red stuff though, or is that+aiptasia intentional?
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Dec 28, 2015 07:16
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The red stuff is cottonball algae, that and the aiptasia aren't really intentional but I also don't try very hard to get rid of them. I usually let my algae blooms do whatever they want - though I do need to get more snails eventually.
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Dec 28, 2015 16:39
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I pretty much ignore aiptasia. I think it makes the tank look a little more bio-diverse having it, and it is technically part of my cleanup crew. I don't get the hate for it (aside from being stung but I've never been hit)
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Dec 28, 2015 17:14
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Yeah for the most part I let the tank do whatever it wants to do, I don't often remove anything or scrape the glass except for the front. Some people comment that it looks "dirty" but it's a loving cube of ocean water, it's supposed to look like that.
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Dec 28, 2015 17:43
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Hood Ornament posted:The red stuff is cottonball algae, that and the aiptasia aren't really intentional but I also don't try very hard to get rid of them. I usually let my algae blooms do whatever they want - though I do need to get more snails eventually. Interesting, I would have jumped to cyano if you didn't say that. I'm the same way with aiptasia, just never seen that many haha. Dunno what happened to the ones in my tank, but they just kinda disappeared. It's not often a reefer decides to take the natural route, most folks want that pristine reef look.
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Dec 28, 2015 19:21
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Yeah, I don't run a skimmer or anything, just chaeto and LR filtration. I've had several algae blooms of different species, right now just happens to be cottonball. They get really huge and fluffy and I remove them once they get too big because otherwise they will clog things up. That pristine look is fine and all, but I've never been a fan of it. Most of the enjoyment I get out of the tank is seeing all the micro-life taking things over and cycling in and out. I started out with one aiptasia and now there are dozens, I suck them off the tank walls but usually leave them. They're starting to bug my corals a bit so I'm hoping I happened to get a peppermint shrimp sp. that will eat them. I actually saw a thread on some other reef forum where someone was keeping an aiptasia single-species tank, it was kind of neat.
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Dec 28, 2015 20:53
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Got some new corals last week, so busted out the camera and took some pics. I started cycling around this time last year, and am really happy with where it is now. Still have some aiptasia and green hair algae, but it's not too bad.            
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Dec 29, 2015 05:56
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Man, those zoas/palys whatever they are are nuts!
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Dec 29, 2015 05:58
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So uh.....my alk went from 10 to 12 overnight and I didn't dose alk. How does that happen?
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Dec 29, 2015 13:45
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revmoo posted:So uh.....my alk went from 10 to 12 overnight and I didn't dose alk. How does that happen? Test kit error most likely. What were you testing with?
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Dec 29, 2015 21:01
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Wandering Orange posted:Test kit error most likely. What were you testing with? A salifert kit that I'd checked against reference solution the day before, and then checked twice. The only thing I can think of is that I grabbed the wrong bottle (I've been dosing calcium only as I got a bad batch of RC with low calc. Never buying RC again) In other news, I ran my auto top off line to my basement. Pretty epic. It's no basement sump but it is a good start.
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Dec 30, 2015 00:44
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Added some "dead" rock to my pico tank and did some aquascaping. Not 100% sure this will be the final layout but I like that it gives a variety of heights for placing corals as well as some nooks and crannies for the eventual pair of sexy shrimp.   Also did a big water change since the initial cycle seems to have completed. I'll give it another week of semi-daily water tests before I add a few mushrooms. I saved a bunch of copepods (amphipods?) from the outgoing water too. I must have sucked them up with some of the gunk I siphoned out. They're so cute, like little shrimps.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmEMC8HhYTo
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Jan 4, 2016 05:30
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Those look like mysis shrimp to me but I could be wrong. I really like your scape. I've been thinking of setting up my spec III and doing something similar. Some rics/yumas and mushrooms with sexy shrimp.
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Jan 4, 2016 13:28
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Yeah those look like shrimp. Sexy shrimp are awesome and I'll probably get more eventually.
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Jan 4, 2016 15:25
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I hadn't even considered mysis but yeah you guys are probably right. I figured they were pods since they're so tiny, probably ~5mm. I wonder if they'll set up shop and start breeding? I know nothing about mysis shrimp aside from people raising them as a food source for certain picky eaters.
Anony Mouse fucked around with this message at 19:02 on Jan 4, 2016 |
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Jan 4, 2016 18:58
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Anyone have a recommendation on tds meters? It seems like http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-DM-1-In-Line-Accuracy/dp/B001EHAZGW is a pretty popular one. I got an RODI unit for christmas, and my tap water is lovely enough that I'd like to test it before throwing it in my tank. Related note, any thoughts on using my 1:4 waste water on my freshwater tanks for top offs? (Water changes would still be straight tap water, for convenience reasons). The internet seems fairly split on it, and I'm thinking it's gonna boil down to what my TDS meter says on the waste water.
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Jan 4, 2016 20:21
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Slugworth posted:Anyone have a recommendation on tds meters? It seems like http://www.amazon.com/HM-Digital-DM-1-In-Line-Accuracy/dp/B001EHAZGW is a pretty popular one. I got an RODI unit for christmas, and my tap water is lovely enough that I'd like to test it before throwing it in my tank. I have the triple version of that one on my setup. It's pretty decent and I'm sure you'll be fine with it. You might also want to grab a handheld so you can spot test your incoming water. Since I have inline-only I have no way to check incoming vs ro output to ensure that it's reducing the full amount it should. Not a huge deal since I have a 7-stage behemoth, but something to consider.
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Jan 4, 2016 22:19
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revmoo posted:I have the triple version of that one on my setup. It's pretty decent and I'm sure you'll be fine with it. You might also want to grab a handheld so you can spot test your incoming water. Since I have inline-only I have no way to check incoming vs ro output to ensure that it's reducing the full amount it should. Not a huge deal since I have a 7-stage behemoth, but something to consider. The triple looks perfect for my purposes. I think I'm confused about your setup though - Where are your inlines at, if not at incoming and ro output? Do you have them between canisters? Really hoping my waste is decent enough for limited use in my freshwater tanks. It's obviously not a financial issue, but it feels wasteful as hell to just put it down a drain. I see people using it for lawn care, so that's always an option I suppose.
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Jan 5, 2016 00:45
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Slugworth posted:The triple looks perfect for my purposes. I think I'm confused about your setup though - Where are your inlines at, if not at incoming and ro output? Do you have them between canisters? My RO is: Sediment filter -> 1mil carbon block -> 1mil carbon block -> 75gpd ro -> 75gpd ro -> di ->di2 My TDS monitors ro, di1, and di2, not incoming water.
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Jan 5, 2016 03:15
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Anony Mouse posted:I hadn't even considered mysis but yeah you guys are probably right. I figured they were pods since they're so tiny, probably ~5mm. I wonder if they'll set up shop and start breeding? I know nothing about mysis shrimp aside from people raising them as a food source for certain picky eaters. Oh yeah they're prolific as hell, I love 'em. If they came in on your live rock they're not leaving unless you go hypo on your tank.
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Jan 5, 2016 04:40
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I don't think I'd risk using the waste water for FW tanks. There is a pretty long thread on ReefCentral with suggestions on how to use waste water: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1529001
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Jan 5, 2016 16:00
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Would you guys recommend getting a protein skimmer for a 29g tank? My LFS recommended not getting a protein skimmer for a tank this small. I can't remember exactly why they advised against it. I think it had something to do with the skimmer removing nutrients from the water column or something. They recommended just doing weekly water changes, but sometimes I forget/get busy with work and I forget to change the water. I've developed a slight algae problem, and I can see gunk floating on the surface of the water. Right now all I have is a carbon reactor. I only have two clowns and a couple of corals, I'd like to add some more fish/corals, but I'm afraid the algae problem will get out of hand. This is my tank: 
Bareback Werewolf fucked around with this message at 03:11 on Jan 6, 2016 |
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Jan 6, 2016 03:01
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SweetKarma posted:I've developed a slight algae problem, and I can see gunk floating on the surface of the water. That's a flow issue, not a filtration issue (usually). You have a powerhead? 29g seems borderline for a skimmer as long as you do regular water changes, which you don't. Assuming you have a sump I'd go for it. Vodka and a good skimmer has me at <0.2ppm phosphates and <5ppm nitrate. What are your no3/po4 levels?
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Jan 6, 2016 03:08
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revmoo posted:That's a flow issue, not a filtration issue (usually). You have a powerhead? Yes I have a several powerheads. I just uploaded a picture of my tank above if you want to take a look. Can you explain what you mean by vodka? I don't have a sump. I was thinking about getting a hang on back skimmer.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:12
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Good FOWLR tank, but you're going to bang your head into the wall trying to do coral successfully. Keep fish in it and save up for a reef-ready tank. Don't bother with a skimmer, instead find a way to make water changes easier or more convenient, it'll pay off better. You're really limited without having a drilled tank, so play to your strengths and keep the fish happy as hell, and plan for the next tank.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:20
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My nitrate levels are in the normal range, I don't have any way to measure phosphates though. I suspect that that's the problem, which is kind of why I want to get a protein skimmer. It might remove some of those excess phosphates.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:25
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SweetKarma posted:My nitrate levels are in the normal range, I don't have any way to measure phosphates though. I suspect that that's the problem, which is kind of why I want to get a protein skimmer. It might remove some of those excess phosphates. No it really doesn't. Skimmers maintain the status quo, they don't do a whole lot of active cleaning. The idea is that you reduce the nitrates/phosphates to low levels manually and then use things like skimmers to maintain that level. Regardless, HOB skimmers are universally garbage and it's not worth the trouble when you can just buy WC equipment or save for the next tank.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:27
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revmoo posted:Good FOWLR tank, but you're going to bang your head into the wall trying to do coral successfully. Keep fish in it and save up for a reef-ready tank. Don't bother with a skimmer, instead find a way to make water changes easier or more convenient, it'll pay off better. I've been thinking about upgrading to a 75g with sump and all that, but my LFS has this beautiful 10g nano reef tank without any sump or anything so I think "If they can do it, so can I!" lol
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Jan 6, 2016 03:28
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SweetKarma posted:I've been thinking about upgrading to a 75g with sump and all that, but my LFS has this beautiful 10g nano reef tank without any sump or anything so I think "If they can do it, so can I!" lol Go smaller! I have a 65gal dt with about 75gal total system volume and if I did it all over I'd go smaller. Not tiny, but I think 40g is probably the sweet spot.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:30
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revmoo posted:No it really doesn't. Skimmers maintain the status quo, they don't do a whole lot of active cleaning. The idea is that you reduce the nitrates/phosphates to low levels manually and then use things like skimmers to maintain that level. Regardless, HOB skimmers are universally garbage and it's not worth the trouble when you can just buy WC equipment or save for the next tank. Yeah, I think I'll just do a little more research and save up for the next tank. I'm a newbie and I'm just trying to figure this all out before dumping a bunch of money into a large system.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:30
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revmoo posted:Go smaller! I have a 65gal dt with about 75gal total system volume and if I did it all over I'd go smaller. Not tiny, but I think 40g is probably the sweet spot. 40g is even better! I can actually afford that lol.
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Jan 6, 2016 03:31
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SweetKarma posted:40g is even better! I can actually afford that lol. Petco(s) near me are doing the $1/gallon sale currently. Perfect time to buy a 40 breeder, 20 long sump and a drilling/overflow kit from glassholes.com! I recommend the 700gph with a 1/2" return, it's nice and quiet
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Jan 6, 2016 06:48
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SweetKarma posted:I've been thinking about upgrading to a 75g with sump and all that, but my LFS has this beautiful 10g nano reef tank without any sump or anything so I think "If they can do it, so can I!" lol When looking at wacky LFS setups keep in mind that the staff are paid to do it, the owners have an additional incentive in doing it right so that people will come and spend money, and that they have massive containers of clean water to change to make things even more convenient via scale. Point one of your power heads into the surface, that'll disperse the surface scum and the agitated surface will also somewhat promote air exchange. It'll work wonders on that tank. VAGENDA OF MANOCIDE fucked around with this message at 10:59 on Jan 6, 2016 |
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Jan 6, 2016 10:55
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What kind of clean up crew do you have? I don't see any inverts in that picture.
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Jan 6, 2016 13:52
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SweetKarma, even a hang on back skimmer will most definitely help your tank/algae issues. While it won't pull phosphates out of the tank, it will reduce organic compounds and gunk in the tank that is contributing to the problem. Also, consider getting a Two Little Fishies hang on back media reactor and running RowaPHOS or some other GFO for a while. THAT will reduce your phosphates dramatically. From there, you can reduce the GFO usage (or stick with it) and simply do routine water changes, every month or so if you're really lazy. Also, just wanted to add that hang on back skimmers are absolutely not universally garbage. Reef Octopus, AquaMaxx and Tunze all make really nice HOB skimmers that work great if you dont have the room for a sump or whatever. If those rocks have been really covered with algae and stewing in a phosphate/nutrient rich water for a while though, I would seriously consider pulling the rocks, "cooking" them for a bit outside and kind of starting from scratch. Sometimes its better to just nuke from orbit than to have a long drawn out battle. Those mushrooms look pretty pissed. visuvius fucked around with this message at 21:56 on Jan 6, 2016 |
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Jan 6, 2016 21:52
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