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fab1971

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Location
new jersey
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Hello Paul. North Jersey over here. Could you put me on the list as well? Are there bad side effects to the tank once this gas is released? In a small 29 gallon tank, what do you think is the limit of zapping per day? Do the little suckers ever come back from this (stem)? thanks, frank.
 

Paul B

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Fab, you are also on the list. I have not found any bad effects on the tank and I test all of them that I make in my tank so I had a lot of zapping going on in there.
I think you could zap all day but I would limit it to about 30 minutes at a time.
I don't think the zapped ones could come back, there is nothing left to come back to.
 

ming

LE Coral Killer
Location
Flushing, NY
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I think mushrooms are more resilient then the majanos. The shrooms I "zapped" simply shrunk and look all wrinkled, but they seem still alive. They're still shriveled even after a few days after zapping. I'm guessing it may require multiple zaps on shrooms to completely get rid of them.
 
Location
Brooklyn, NY
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Have you tried testing this on aiptasia?

Janine, one of Paul's inventions is sitting in the office, you can try it yourself on aiptasia tomorrow :) I think it isn't as ideal for them as the aiptasia have less flesh and are harder to get a good grip on. If you can, they get zapped for sure. I'd also be careful using this in a small volume of water. I tried it in a 12g. nano and while nothing was permanently harmed ( other than a few of the aiptasia) several things weren't happy and closed up for the day. I was told Bromide might be one of the gases released and that can be pretty toxic stuff.
 

Paul B

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Janine, one of Paul's inventions is sitting in the office,
How did one of my Zappers get in the office and why is it there?
If it's one that I lent out, I need it back so I could lend it out again.

I tried it in a 12g. nano

Yes I would be very careful in a tank that small. I tell people to use it for no more than 30 minutes in a larger tank. I test all of them in my 100 gallon tank and have used it for about 40 minutes with no problems.
 

tentacles

cephalopod enthusiast
Rating - 95%
38   2   0
Janine, one of Paul's inventions is sitting in the office, you can try it yourself on aiptasia tomorrow :) I think it isn't as ideal for them as the aiptasia have less flesh and are harder to get a good grip on. If you can, they get zapped for sure. I'd also be careful using this in a small volume of water. I tried it in a 12g. nano and while nothing was permanently harmed ( other than a few of the aiptasia) several things weren't happy and closed up for the day. I was told Bromide might be one of the gases released and that can be pretty toxic stuff.

Hm, maybe I won't try it then since things are still recovering from the heat spike :(. In that case, I think it's filefish time.
 

robbous

REEFERROB
Location
New Hampshire
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Well this is my input on this device i have had majano problems in my tank and what i mean is i had tons of these things, they multiplied in my tank like crazy, i tried joes juice and aiptasis x and tho these did work somewhat the majano would always come back not to mention the mess of the white substance the other products made once i turn my powerheads back on. so i have one of pauls zapping devices and i used it for about 1 1/2 hours and then my girlfriend used it to kill more majanoes for another 4 hours. and lo and behold out of the 500 or so of these pests that were in my tank 3/4 of them are now gone!!!!!! i had no problem with this and of the gases that this device may create and none of my fishes or corals were affected. to me this device is two thumbs up!!!!! all the way. i will continue to use this fabulous device and kill off the rest that i see in my tank. iam so glad i was able to have one of these due to the fact i could not control the dam pests in my tank, but now i wont have to worry cause i have the ZAPPER!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS SOOOOO MUCH PAUL YOUR THE MAN MY FRIEND!!
 
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tosiek

Senior Member
Rating - 100%
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I recently made one for myself to get rid of some mojano's and aptasia. I've run into 2 problems with the unit itself and 1 with the aptasia and i've only been playing with it for about a half hour last night.

For the aptasia they are just too quick and usually stretch out from way inside holes in the rocks. You can get a good zap but you have to be quick. I started stabbing them from the side at their stem, it held them in place long enough to get a descent zap. Im sure all that all the aptasia aside from a few will come back out although i didn't see any last night and this morning. Time will tell.

For the unit there is a white build up on the active end that needs to be cleaned and cleaned often otherwise your losing efficiency. I could go 10 mins before i notice a reduction in bubble production. And it works better in higher flow areas than low flow areas for killing mojano's.

Also, the Graphite breaks up very quickly. I don't know if its due to the softer graphite that i used or thats just the way it is. After about 30 mins my graphite is gone and i have to replace it. But long term and the way the graphite is attached, it doesn't make sense to be dismantling the graphite connection from the goop and stuff to change it out. There has to be a more permanant method using another material. Carbon maybe? I don't know enough about non metallic conductors to be of any help in innovating the dead end.

The only thing i can think of is completely encasing the whole piece of carbon with a small hole at one end to slow down the disintegration. I don't know if surface area on the carbon will affect the outcome.

Also, Paul or anyone with experience and knowledge on the matter, would it be better to run a higher voltage through the unit? Currently running a 12v 300mah adapter and i don't know enough about electronics to know if upping the mah or voltage will produce better results or if its worth it. My adapter has an adjustable voltage but it goes down from 12 so i'll play with that when i get home.
 

Paul B

Advanced Reefer
Vendor
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Rob, have you noticed the graphite disintegrating? I hope not because all of my units use the same graphite.
I know I lent two of them out and I have gotten them back and looking under magnification, the graphite shows almost no wear.
This is a concern to me and I will test one for a long period of time to see if my graphite corrodes. If it does, I will make a new model where the graphite could be easily replaced. That would call for a much more complicated unit but it may need to be done.
The one I use on my tank looks fine and it is the one I lent out, I also lent it to an aquarium store so I know it has killed over 200 mojanos.
If anyone who has one of mine notices any problems with the graphite, please let me know right away.

I also don't notice and white residu on the tip and I am using more current than you are. My power supplies are 12V 500 MA.
You are using DC correct?
 

Paul B

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Ming thats reassuring. Since I read this post I have been doing a test. I have one running now for 15 minutes continousely. I will let it run another 15 minutes to see if I notice anything. I have to let the transformer cool off because I don't think it should be run like this and my workshop smells like Clorox so I have to let that disapate. But I will report back after I do my 30 minute test. If it corrodes, I will design a different model with a changable graphite.
Tosiek, I am using a 1/4" wide graphite electrode. Is that what you are using or is it much smaller?
 

tosiek

Senior Member
Rating - 100%
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I grabbed some 1/8" or so pencil graphite/lead i had in a drawer from an old architectural pencil. I must have grabbed the wrong thing i guess. Another thing i thought was that i had the poles switched and ran the unit for 10-15 seconds before realizing it was bubbling from the wrong end. Maybe that destroyed the graphite. Anyways, i swapped it out for a true piece of graphite so i'll keep you posted. Looks like its from my end anyways since noone is getting this problem.

Im guessing the white build up is dead mojano. Its not much but it coats my needle. Or maybe its due to my poles being switched and i had it running like that. Either or i'll post up later if it was my fault due to the switched polarity or not. The needle is clean now and new graphite so i'll post up when i get home and play with the fixed toy a bit.
 

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