Recent content by jdeets

Actually, 11.8 is not really all that high. That's 4 meq, which is fine for our captive systems. What kind of calcium/alk demand does your tank have? I find it suspect that your alk hasn't dropped without doing anything but water changes. However, if your tank doesn't have a high demand for...

I evaporate anywhere from 4-5 gpd on my 180, which has a 29 gallon sump. That's where auto-top-off comes in. I still have to fill the reservior every day, of course, but the float switch keeps the sump level constant.

Yes, definitely. They can be off by several pH, before calibration.

Well, start by turning off the CO2, and test every day or two, and see what happens. If your alk stays constant while your Ca drops, then you have a bad test kit. It would be impossible for your Ca to drop with constant alk if you're not adding anything to the tank. Your Ca should drop 20 ppm...

I remember your other thread. I don't understand how your alk could go higher and Ca drop when you turned down the reactor--that makes no sense chemically or otherwise. Check the alk again. Make sure your test kit is good. To get your alk down, quit adding the alkalinity component, and...

Yes, the RO/DI was 35 gpd, I think, so with a siphon only, it would have taken days to drop the salinity that much, assuming it was a really slow siphon. He said in the other thread there were salt stains in the street where a French drain empties into the gutter. Someone apparently put the...

Keep your tank covered well. These guys are jumpers and if there is a gap, he will find it. I had a beautiful, bright purple one that jumped to his demise. Good luck with him, they are very interesting fish, the way they move around.

I'd be patient for a day or so. They really don't get stuck, unless it's "intentional," in most cases. Trying to move it manually could tear its foot--which can be fatal. If it doesn't move, you can direct a powerhead at it--it will get irritated and move to a more desirable spot. You pretty...

The Goat Anemone will eat anything in sight, even tin cans... :wink:

Could be PO4 content in your reactor media. Do a PO4 test on the reactor effluent and see what you get.

Definitely Salifert test kits. Calcium and Alkalinity tests should be sufficient at this stage.

He probably said Berlin system. One of many filtration methods. I have a sump; but I don't have anything in there but my skimmer and baffles to keep bubbles out of the return. I use LR/DSB and a skimmer for filtration. There are lots of ways to do it; depends on what you are keeping, etc. I...

With a Ca Rxr, your Ca and alk will move in tandem, because a Ca rxr is a balanced supplementation method. You should really dial in your Ca rxr based on your desired alk level; THEN adjust Ca with CaCl3. After that, you shouldn't need to do much as the Ca rxr should keep everything balanced...

Screw it in all the way. Any difference in light output based on nipple orientation would be miniscule anyway. IMO you are much better off worrying about which reflectors to use than worrying about which way the nipple is pointing.

I would really doubt that a damsel would be able to kill a shrimp. It is possible that the shrimp tried to molt unsuccessfully. Sometimes that causes their untimely demise. Cleaner shrimp, as you know, can move really fast when threatened. I think a hermit would starve before it could catch...