For the past 18 months, the Dallas Fort Worth Marine Aquarium Society has been working towards hosting MACNA (the Marine Aquarium Conference of North America) in 2012. For the past 6 months, contracts have been signed and an incredible amount of planning has gone into making sure this will be an event to be remembered.
The Sheraton in downtown Dallas is where MACNA will be held, during the last weekend of September. The hotel can hold 4000 reef addicts, so make plans now to attend. As many of you know, I'm a guy
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Another new episode so soon? Yep, that's how we roll. There's news that you need to know about, and other stuff we just wanted to share. The show isn't complete without our bloopers, so don't skip the ending.
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The purpose of the calcium reactor is to replace alkalinity and calcium in the water. Based on the current livestock list provided, you don't have anything taking these up much, if at all. You'd have to test the water weekly (at least) to determine the consumption rate. What is your end goal with this tank? Is it going to be fish and soft corals, or is it going to be a reef tank with a variety of stony corals? If the latter, you'll be glad you have a calcium reactor.
This year I set up a new reef that is 400g. It has a lot of tiny frags just starting to grow. By
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At MACNA 2010, I met Dave and his wife Amanda in the NextReef booth showcasing their beautiful reactors. The bright blue body with the white flange pieces that cap each end were very appealing to me. They care about their product line and go to great lengths to make sure each item is perfectly built. Believe it or not, I never got a picture of their booth. I must have really been fascinated, right?
This is Amanda showcasing NextReef products at the Fort Myers, FL event I attended earlier this year.
After talking with Dave about my system and my desire to use biopellets, he recommended the SMR1 XL - Solid Media Reactor 1 XL. This isn't their biggest, but it's a good size for larger reef tank owners. It holds 2 liters of media with a little space at the top, and is rated for up to 400g systems. A smaller version is also available, both for solid media and for the finer stuff like GFO (Granular Ferrix Oxide).
If your local fish store (LFS) offers Red Sea products, you may have noticed this item on display.
When my friend Wes first told me about the kit, he was very excited to explain why. The kit covers the three elements we reef keepers need to test regularly: alkalinity (KH), calcium (CA), and magnesium (Mg). He really liked that it was a one-handed test. When I flew to Connecticut, I found myself in a LFS that had them in stock, and on sale.
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