http://www.reefaddicts.com/blog.php/171-Mustang en Fri, 24 May 2013 11:57:33 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.reefaddicts.com/images/misc/rss.jpg http://www.reefaddicts.com/blog.php/171-Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/27799-Decisions-decisions-Controller-first-or-lights-first-and-what-lights Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:48:09 GMT Hey all thought I would enlist some of your thoughts. I have decided on getting a Neptune apex controller my only questions is when? Before new... Hey all thought I would enlist some of your thoughts. I have decided on getting a Neptune apex controller my only questions is when? Before new lights or after. Now as for lights I am going LED’s I was going to go with a DIY build but lately time is lacking and I would like a professional look. So my current 2 thoughts are the new eco tech radion’s or the Kessil 150w 10000k. Now I understand the 2 are in 2 different classes and although I would like the bells and whistles that come with the Radions I don’t find that I would consider them a must for me. My main goal is to get all my hardware in place before I dive into getting a lot of coral. Also my tank is 5’l x 18”d x 24”t so that in mind I think I can get away with 2 radions or 4 kessils but would rather go with 3 radions and 5 kessils. Now that said cost is a factor and in Canada I can get 3 kessils for the price of one radion.

So the main question is after dropping all the bells do I get the same result?


Also what should come first the controller or lights?


OR a third option do I wait for the 350 kessils for come out and hope the cost is not too far outside my budget?

http://www.kessil.com/products/a150_...rium_light.php

http://ecotechmarine.com/products/radion/ ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/27799-Decisions-decisions-Controller-first-or-lights-first-and-what-lights http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1547-What-controller-to-get Mon, 11 Apr 2011 18:12:56 GMT Ok all need some input on controllers and any would be apericated. So far i have looked at Neptune systems and DA reefkeepers' and i am leaning towards the Neptune systems. I am open to used options as well because price will also be a factor so if there is an older model that is worth getting feel free to mention that as well. Here is a list of things i am considering.

1. PH monitor as i do not have one yet and preferably with the option of controlling a reactor down the road.
2. Power Head control so that i can create a more random current
3. Web page/computer interface (not needed but i love the idea of it and i have network access in my fish room)
4. If a webpage interface is possible i may be able to live with out a interface component.
5. lighting control for T5 right now and LED down the road.
6. Simple feeding settings to turn off pumps
7. Temperature control

There are probably more options i can get down the road but these are the things i am most concerned with at this time. Thanks all ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1547-What-controller-to-get http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1530-Mustang-s-Tank-and-Fish-Room-video Thu, 07 Apr 2011 00:45:42 GMT Hey all I have pretty much finished up my set up for a bit and thought i would share a quick video of how things are going. Let me know if you have... Hey all
I have pretty much finished up my set up for a bit and thought i would share a quick video of how things are going. Let me know if you have any questions.
]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1530-Mustang-s-Tank-and-Fish-Room-video http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1314-Bubble-Magus-Nac-6A-review Wed, 30 Mar 2011 01:03:36 GMT Ok so this is my first review of anything but i thought some of you may be interested in this brand of skimmer. As for what led me to this skimmer i... Ok so this is my first review of anything but i thought some of you may be interested in this brand of skimmer. As for what led me to this skimmer i would have to say looks played a part as it reminded me of the Bubble kings (way out of my price range) For some reason the blue and red drew me in. After my initial crush i did some checking and it was getting decent reviews and even being compared to Deltacs not that i can say this is true as again i am new to the hobby and this is my first skimmer. I had also done a lot of my research over a year ago when i was first dreaming of getting into saltwater. So I went and checked to make sure people where still happy with these skimmers and outside a few issue that seemed to be fixed in newer models all looked good. So here is my tale.

So it arrived Feb 1st. As you can see it was packed well.

It had traveled through some -20c and left it in my garage which was about -15c so i unpacked it slowly and carefully to avoid breaking anything because of it being cold.

Here is the full contents of the box spread out.

I then left it to sit for about 1hr so that it could worm up before i put it together just to make sure i did not break anything. Although the build quality looks good to me ( can't say for sure as again this is my first skimmer ) and i am sure it would have been fine but i have rushed things is the past to end up just putting myself behind in the end.

Assembly
1. Took base plate off of the main body.

2. Looked over the pump and removed the impeller to make sure the shaft was not broken and to inspect the mesh wheel. The mesh wheel had some strands that where a bit long so i trimmed these back as i had seen that this has caused some issue for people. After that was done back together it went.

3.Slid pump onto the base plate

4. Now what i should have done was attach the bubble chamber to the pump but instead i attached the main body only to have to take it off to attach the bubble chamber and then put the main body back on.

5. On went the collection cup/lid and air intake. Here it is put together.

The recommend water depth for this skimmer is 9-11 inches and compared to other skimmers i think this is deeper then most others require. When i first set this in the sump it was about 11.5" i also tried it in 10.5 and it currently sits in about 9.5. It seemed to work equally well in each setting and just a matter of an adjustment. Although i did not really give it enough time to prove it self in the deeper conditions and it was also in its break in stage. On Marc's advice i had moved it up to where it is now with the reasoning that it will be less likely to over flow, which it has a few times already because of my constant tinkering. ;)
I think it could be run in shallower waters as i currently have it set at 2.5ish out of 6 so you would still have room if you did not have a deep sump as the slightest adjustment makes a difference in the bubble highth.

At this point the skimmer has been running for about 2 months and i am happy with it. The only thing i could ask for is that it would pull out a dryer skim but again this could just be me now adjusting it correctly. I clean out the collection cup at least every week when i do water changes. Although there have been times that it was cleaned more often when needed. Here is a shot of where it sits today and about 3 days of skim minus about 4x the liquid that is in the cup as i drained it out yesterday.

I had cleaned the glass the same day i cleaned the collection cup and i think that is why i had a bit more skim then normally. Any who that is my skimmer story and if you have comments or questions feel free and hope someone out there found this useful. Thanks all ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1314-Bubble-Magus-Nac-6A-review http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1474-Does-a-smell-in-my-barrel-mean-possible-contaminates Fri, 25 Mar 2011 00:27:42 GMT Hey all quick question. I am prepping my mixing station (very similar to what Drimo did) and although it is not stained I can still smell the soft... Hey all quick question. I am prepping my mixing station (very similar to what Drimo did) and although it is not stained I can still smell the soft drink syrup that was first in the barrel. Does this mean it still has the potential of releasing baddies into my reef tank?



PS i have already rinsed it a few times and also used some vinegar. I plan on getting a big jug of vinegar and rinsing it a few more times also. Thanks all ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1474-Does-a-smell-in-my-barrel-mean-possible-contaminates http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1386-Difference-between-a-reactor-and-a-fluval-canister-filter Fri, 25 Feb 2011 01:56:09 GMT Hey all I am just wondering if the end result for canister filters and reactors are the same? Thanks Hey all I am just wondering if the end result for canister filters and reactors are the same? Thanks ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1386-Difference-between-a-reactor-and-a-fluval-canister-filter http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1354-Please-help-I-am-getting-strange-reading-of-electricity-in-my-Tanks Sun, 13 Feb 2011 23:17:25 GMT Ok so here is where i am :huh::crazy:literally. So about a week ago i tested for electricity in my tank. I had and auto clamp tester with leads and... Ok so here is where i am :huh::crazy:literally.
So about a week ago i tested for electricity in my tank. I had and auto clamp tester with leads and a cheep analog tester. I was getting strange results and consulted RC and then Marc who reminded me of his article he did some time ago. http://www.reefaddicts.com/content.p...ay-Electricity Using his article as my guide i set out to test again and decided to get a tester similar to the one he used to help eliminate human error.
So here are my strange results. I hope someone can make sense of them.:sigh:
1. I do not get a shock from any of my tanks when i work on them. When working on 108gal sump i am usually bare foot on cement floor.
2. Did feel a sting a few times when working in the sump of the 108gal where i had a small cut. Not sure if this was the salt stinging or electricity.
3. 108gal readings

Nothing pluged in 7.5-8.4 volts:huh:
Skimmer 18.8v
return pump 4.6 (:huh::huh::sigh::crazy: because it is less then when i had nothing plugged in)
Heater in middle sump chamber 31.6v
Heater in return section 25.1v
Heater tank 17.5v
Aqua lifter pump 9.5v
lights glo t5 ho suspended not touching tank maybe .5v each x3
Power head 1 18.9
Power head 2 18.7-19.1v

With everything plugged in i get 18.2v:sigh::huh::GRRR::GRRR::GRRR:
Test was done with red lead in sump and black in ground in the outlet.

I have 2 30gal fresh water tanks that have AC 70 and heaters. Here are there results
1. Nothing plugged in i get about 6v
2. Aqua clear 16volts
3. Heater and AC i get about 30v

SW 12gal nano
1. Nothing i get 2.1v
2. heater reads 11.5v
3. Pump reads 11.8
4. Both on i get 13v

So i am under the impression that i do not have a problem but there is something strange going on. When i had first looked on RC this is the thread i found http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1953487 I am Mustang in there and if you skip down near the bottom you will find a theory of induction. This is what i was leaning towards when i contacted Marc but then after reading his article i seconded guessed my self as he seemed to make practical sense. Thus leading to my now confused state. Any help or theories as to what is going on would be appreciated as i think Marc has it right but for some reason i can not duplicate his results. Thanks all

FYI i had to go out before i finished this post and decided to stop by my LFS and after testing 2 SW tanks and 3 FW tanks i found similar results as to what i am findings at home.:GRRR::crazy::sigh:

Here is a pic of my digital testers on my 108gal with everything on.
]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1354-Please-help-I-am-getting-strange-reading-of-electricity-in-my-Tanks http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1309-BM-Nac-6-is-up-and-running-and-i-have-Questions-) Wed, 02 Feb 2011 01:33:03 GMT Ok so just a few quick questions as this is my first skimmer. 1. Are skimmers in general meant to always have the foam at the top of the neck or... Ok so just a few quick questions as this is my first skimmer.

1. Are skimmers in general meant to always have the foam at the top of the neck or just when there is something to skim? For example when you clean green algae off your glass.
2. Does it matter how deep in the water they sit or is it just a matter of adjusting them to your desired skim rate?
3. Is it better to see large/med bubbles coming out or small bubbles like a frothy foam?

Here are some pics i took after installing it and the skim you see is a mix of when i had it in 12" and now 10" of water. At the time of the pic's it had been running for about 3hrs and the majority of the wet skim came from when it was in 12" of water in about 20-30min of running. Hence the reason i moved it to 10" and readjusted it and my questions. Also yes i did just clean the tank i had also ordered a mag-float 350 and had to make sure it worked well;).

Thanks for the input all and i took lots of pics so am going to attempt a review on it so you all can see it. ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1309-BM-Nac-6-is-up-and-running-and-i-have-Questions-) http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1265-What-is-going-on-with-this-coral Sun, 23 Jan 2011 20:15:40 GMT Hey all i came down stairs to feed the fish this morning and this is what i found. Attachment 3918... Hey all i came down stairs to feed the fish this morning and this is what i found.

I am not sure what was going on (i am referring to the strings coming from the center/mouth) so i grabbed the camera to show you guys and ask the question. Then this afternoon i found this.

Almost looked as if it was puking its guts out literally. Moments later it looks like this.

I had forgot to turn off the flash so i am not sure if that is the reason it retracted or just coincidence. Any input would be great thanks all. ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1265-What-is-going-on-with-this-coral http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1250-Just-over-1-month-with-the-tank Thu, 20 Jan 2011 03:46:06 GMT Ok so it’s been a little over a month since my last update so I thought I would post an update on how things are going and to get some suggestions.... Ok so it’s been a little over a month since my last update so I thought I would post an update on how things are going and to get some suggestions. First let’s start with some before and after photos.
Tank early December

Tank now


Pulsing Xenia December

Pulsing Xenia Now

Green Button polyps December

Green Button polyps Now

Open Bring I think December

Open Brian Now

??? December (looked online but could not seem to find it)

Now not sure what happened. It started at the bottom and worked its way over in about 30hrs. I left it in the tank as there are a few feather dusters on it at the base and it the hope that it would come back but I think that is a false hope.



Just noticed this the other day I think they are green sponges.


Fish


Hippo tang
3 Green Chromis (in the future I think I will bring them up to 10 so that I have a nice little group of them)
Yellow Tang
2 False Percula clowns (Love the plan in the Xenia)


About 10 blue knuckle hermit crabs and about 10 assorted snails.

1 Fire ship and 1 peppermint shrimp

As for feeding I give them a bit of flak in the AM and frozen brine shrimp around 5pm.

I also hooked up a UV sterilizer that I received with everything else in the deal and it seems to be helping as I was having some algae issues and still do a bit. Not sure if it is the main cause for the decrease or if my tank is starting to work its way through its cycle. I also had a cyano out break about 2 weeks ago but some chemiclean cleaned it up with some water changes.

As for lighting I am using 3 t5 HO Glow fixtures 2 that came with the deal and 1 that I picked up after. As for blubs from front to back I use 2 power glow (came with the deal) 2 marine Glows (came with the deal) 2 marine glows. Timers are front 11:30am-4:30pm middle 8am- 2:30pm back 12:30-10pm.

On the go I am adding a small 20gal sump just to get my skimmer(Bubble magmas Nac 6 should be here by the 21st or early next week) running and then down the road I will add a bigger sump and get rid of the fluval’s. I will also try to put at least one of the 3 heaters in the sump and the UV sterilizer. My tank is not drilled but I sooooooo wish it was or I had had the time to do it before I got things going so instead I am using an overflow that I built some time back based on Marc’s webpage. It has 2 3/4 drains in it. For a return I will be using a Laguna Power jet 9000 it is rated for 1980 gph and it will have to push the water up about 5ft. The reason I am using it is because I have it just sitting around and I will replace it down the road. If anyone has any major concerns with this pump for saltwater use please let me know.

As for the back of my tank I was thinking of painting it. So first question can I do this where my tank is full or will the fumes hurt the tank? Second what is a good paint to use? I want to go with the bright blue we all see.

So that is where I am and thanks in advance for any input you all have. I will also try to do a post on the Nac 6 and installing the sump. ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1250-Just-over-1-month-with-the-tank http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1224-Thinking-about-a-skimmer Thu, 13 Jan 2011 01:02:47 GMT Hey All I am starting to put together a plan for my next step which will be a sump and skimmer and would appreciate any input you might have. For... Hey All
I am starting to put together a plan for my next step which will be a sump and skimmer and would appreciate any input you might have. For those of you who did not see my other posts i have converted my 108gal fresh water tank to salt water. It is going decent so far and i will try to do a tank update soon.

First off as for a sump i was thinking of building one based off of Marcs' website but when i called about acrylic my local supplier only carried the brands Plexi and Lexan and for a 4 by 8 sheet 1/4 thick of the lexan it was going to to cost me $355.00 plus tax. So first question i have is acrylic that expensive everywhere? Oh and for what i was thinking of doing i would need 2 sheets. :( If i can not build a sump for much less i think i am going to just get a 40gal wide tank and make it into a sump. I wont get what i want but i can't see spending 800+ to build a sump.

Second question is does anyone have any suggestions on a skimmer?
What i am looking hard at right now is this and it seems to of had decent reviews and the price is great from what i have seen for skimmers.
http://www.nuocean.com/skimmers/bubble-magus-nac6.html

Thanks for the advice. ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1224-Thinking-about-a-skimmer http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1127-The-Plunge-Phase-2 Sun, 12 Dec 2010 17:21:17 GMT Ok so a busy busy week and here is how it went down. Tuesday AM went and took down a 77gal system with a friend. It consisted of about 70lbs of... Ok so a busy busy week and here is how it went down.
Tuesday AM went and took down a 77gal system with a friend. It consisted of about 70lbs of rock/ 60lbs of sand some fish and soft corals. The fish and coral where bagged to take to my LFS for safe keeping while I changed over my 108gal tank. The rock was all put into buckets filled and with water to come home with me that I placed in a large tote with my fluval 404 running for circulation/filtering and a 300watt heater. (media from 77gal filter was placed in my 404) The lighting was 2 46” glow fixtures one was placed on the tote for the rock until my tank was ready for it. Went to work and then in the evening fish where moved to new homes. Long day :(:crazy:
Wenesday I was called in to work so little was done but I was able to get the tank cleaned up and ready for water.:whip:
Thursday/Friday the water days. The sand from the 77gal was cleaned then placed in the aquarium along with 40lbs of crushed coral and 60lbs of sand. I added about 25gal of RO/DI water that I had stocked up. Made a few trips to a local supplier of RO water and added about 50gals of RO water. LFS was kind enough to allow me to do some water changes in their tanks so I added the reaming water that way. The theory behind using some of their water was just to help kick start my system.


Saturday I cleaned the live rock I acquired and bought an additional 30lbs of live rock so that I would be up to 100lbs. I placed my rock with 2 things in mind ability to clean all areas of the glass/dead spots and hiding places for inhabitants. I am not wowed by it but it will do for now until I can think of something better and get some epoxy stuff. I was also thinking I may end up getting an additional 80lbs of base rock at some point as I think I have the room for it and will need some for the sump I will someday install.:yahoo:
As far as nitrates I have tested a few times already and got 0 or less than 0.1 anyway.


In summary here is what I am running.
1. About 100lbs of live rock
2. 160lbs of sand and crushed coral 1.5” to 2” of depth
3. 1 Hydro Koralia Evolution 1400 rated for 1400gph a Power Sweep 228 (rotating power head) rated at 270gph
4. 1 Fluval 405 with surface skimmer add on media are sponges, 1 tray of filter spheres, 1 with Seachem Phosphate control, 1 with carbon and 1 with polly wool(only used during set up) used to clear up the water. 1 Fluval 404 running basically the same thing.
5. Lighting is 3 Glow t5 ho fixtures hung 3.5” from surface of the water. One is new and has 2 new marine glow blubs (center) on either side I have the used blubs that are set up 50/50 power glow and marine glow. The center fixture currently comes on at 8am and goes out at 10pm the other 2 come on at 11am and go out at 4pm. I will probably set up a timer for each one but just have not gotten that far yet.

3 300wat heaters 2 standardize ones at each end and one Fluval E series

Today(Sunday) I plan to add my one Chromis but will probably get an additional 2. Stay with the 3 for as long and I can stand it and then add some more of my fish that are at the LFS (2 clowns, 1 yellow tang, 1 Large hippo tang). Once they are all in I will get my corals a green brain (neon green in color) 2 good size colines of button polyps, and a good size Pulsating Xenia.:D


Well that is about it for now. If anyone has any comments or suggestions please feel free as I am relativity new to this so welcome them. Thanks again ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1127-The-Plunge-Phase-2 http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1111-Now-i-take-the-Plunge Tue, 07 Dec 2010 02:25:15 GMT :yahoo:Ok so a little over a month ago I posted on my first saltwater tank a 12gal nano. Since then I have not done too much with it other than... :yahoo:Ok so a little over a month ago I posted on my first saltwater tank a 12gal nano. Since then I have not done too much with it other than replace the pump with a Maxi 900 and the duck bill with http://www.hydor.com/prodotti/show/famprod/16/list/5 . I had also mentioned that I had a 108gal cichlid tank that I planned one day to upgrade to a Marineland 250 DD. Now I am not getting the 250 gal tank but what I am getting is the contents of an 80gal saltwater tank. YAAAAAAAAAAAA:yahoo: WOOOOOOO :yahoo:HOOOOOOO dance dance :D So I am on my way to pick this up in the AM and here is my current plan of attack and if you have suggestions please by all means offer them up.

1. The fish and any coals (FYI not sure what yet) will be kept for me at my LFS until I have time to change my tank over.


2. All the live rock (about 70lbs +) sand and cleanup crew will come home with me in a large rubber tote that I will set up a circulation pump in. I will also get some more live rock from my LFS to get me up to about 100lbs and will also need some additional sand.



3. I will clean the sand and reuse it.


4. I plan to set up a sump ASAP but given that Christmas is almost here I will probably only get to it in mid January. In the mean time I plan to use my 2 filters a 404 and 405 fluval stocked with carbon/Seachem PhosGuard and sponge to catch the large stuff.


5. I think there will be some t5 lighting and a UV sterilizer.



6. I will be using Prime to kick start my cycle.



7. Will also be getting an RO/DI unit of my own in the near future. Probably one of Marc’s as long as I can get it here without duties jacking the price way up.



8. As you can see from the pics my tank is in the wall and I have some room behind it for support equipment.


9. I also have a Koralia Evolution 1400 for additional circulation.


Now some questions.


1. Will I need to keep a light source on the live rock to keep it from dying?


2. When I fill it with RO/DI water can I already have the cleaned sand in place and then when full just add salt? Also how long should the salt mix 24hrs before adding the rock?


3. What is a good sand depth? I know there are theories on deep and shallow sand beads but what would be good for a newb.



4. :crazy:AHHH sooo many more questions I should have right now but can’t think of them. Although once I see for sure what I am getting I will be able to plan out in more detail.

:D

Thanks all for your input in advance.
]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/1111-Now-i-take-the-Plunge http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/961-I-finally-made-the-plunge…-ok-well-maybe-just-a-dip Wed, 27 Oct 2010 03:21:13 GMT Good Day all First let me say a Huge thank you to Marc for the dedication he has given to this hobby as it has inspired me to... Good Day all
First let me say a Huge thank you to Marc for the dedication he has given to this hobby as it has inspired me to finally get to this point. FYI I know full well and I am sure Marc will be one of the first to point out that he is just one of many out there giving back to this hobby. Although for me he seems to have been at the center of saltwater info.
A quick background for me is that I started with a fresh water tank (30gal) for Oscars in 99 and then upgraded in 2002 to a 108gal Hagen tank. Since then I have moved and the Oscars are no more but I kept the tank and have it now built in the wall with a support room behind it about 8x8 it is currently home for about 20 cichlids and a few other fish. See pic below.



Since mid to late 2008 I have been doing research on marine tanks and when I started to learn about sumps is when I found Marc. I quickly became one of the ones eating up his band with reading over everything on his site. Since then I have tagged along with reef-cast and now with reef addicts.
During that time I had planned to basically copy the 30gal build Evan and Marc had done but as most of us do I got impatient and had some money saved up just burning in my pocket and spotted a 12gal Nano-Cube for sale in my area.



It was a fully cycled with one clown but lacked some rock as it only had about 2lbs in it so off I went to my LFS and picked up about 7 more pounds of rock and a box of salt. The green cylinder you see in the corner is a filter that to owner had running so for now I have left it and hooked the internal pump back up in the back to provide more circulation. In the next few months I hope to add the following: 1. about 5lbs more of rock
2. a maix jet 900
3. a hydor flow rotating deflector http://www.hydor.com/prodotti/list/cat/5/list/5
4. a watchman goby and ship
5. some zoo’s and mushrooms
6. maybe a 6line wrasse
In the spring or fall I was hoping to upgrade my current 108 to the Marineland DD 250gal as it is basically the same dimensions of my 108 just deeper and then start saving to change it over to a reef tank, well that’s the dream anyway:D. So here I am now with my preverbal toes in the water just waiting to take the plunge. In the mean time I am planning to get this 12gal running smooth and create some eye candy with it for my wife,;) with the hopes that she will grow to love the hobby too. Any who that’s me and here I am finally. If anyone has suggestions I am open to hear them. ]]> Mustang http://www.reefaddicts.com/entry.php/961-I-finally-made-the-plunge…-ok-well-maybe-just-a-dip