Nope. Haven't even had a chance to sit down and read the new camera's manual yet. I'll be trying to over the next couple of days, though, and I'm sure once the new stuff gets here I'll be snapping more pics one way or the other.
Speaking of, found a new vendor who had some real gems for a fraction of what they normally go for. I'll wait til they get here (also on friday) before saying what or from who or for how much
Speaking of, found a new vendor who had some real gems for a fraction of what they normally go for. I'll wait til they get here (also on friday) before saying what or from who or for how much
Glad I kept mum on that second order, as the dealer screwed up the shipping dates and sent it a day earlier then they were supposed to - when no one was home to accept delivery.
The dealer in question wants to wait to see if anything survived the extra day in shipping when it's redelivered today before deciding what to do next. I am, frankly, not hopeful; the order consisted of an acropora frag, a pink monti capricronis frag, red sea xenia and green clavularia. None of that stuff tolerates shipping delays very well.
Going to wait to see what, if anything, survived. And as well how the dealer in question decides to handle whatever losses there are, considering the fault of the matter.
The dealer in question wants to wait to see if anything survived the extra day in shipping when it's redelivered today before deciding what to do next. I am, frankly, not hopeful; the order consisted of an acropora frag, a pink monti capricronis frag, red sea xenia and green clavularia. None of that stuff tolerates shipping delays very well.
Going to wait to see what, if anything, survived. And as well how the dealer in question decides to handle whatever losses there are, considering the fault of the matter.
I'm still sick, but better then I was. Better enough to write a short update at least - you'll have to wait on photos, maybe thursday if I have time before holiday stuff.
First part, the Reefermadness stuff. I ordered the two items I showed their photos of (pink zoanthids and a torch coral), plus a generic yellow leather. They shipped all three, plus a couple of unasked for "bonus" frags... an acanthastrea, a yellow turbinaria and what I think is a cyphastrea. I actuallly want none of the three freebies, so I'm looking for someone local to give them away to. The pink zoanthids and the torch are absolutely gorgeous, and the photos were very accurate (I mention that as RM is routinely accused of doctoring their photos, but my experience is otherwise).
The delayed order came from a new company, Cyber Reef, who has been very responsive about the entire issue so I have to give them good marks for that. That order consisted of a frag of a pink & blue acropora prostrata for $25, 10 solomon green glove polyps (the real deal) for $20, some pompom xenia for $25 and a frag of pink montipora capricornis that was thrown in for free. The shipping screw up aside, I think everyone will agree these were first-rate offerings for remarkably good prices.
Out of that shipment both the prostrata and the capricornis are doing perfectly fine and came through the delay in delivery none the worse for wear. The green glove polyps didn't fare quite as well, but about half the polyps survived. The only one of the bunch that's still a question mark is the xenia, which hasn't melted away yet at least. I'm hoping with a little time it may rebound yet.
First part, the Reefermadness stuff. I ordered the two items I showed their photos of (pink zoanthids and a torch coral), plus a generic yellow leather. They shipped all three, plus a couple of unasked for "bonus" frags... an acanthastrea, a yellow turbinaria and what I think is a cyphastrea. I actuallly want none of the three freebies, so I'm looking for someone local to give them away to. The pink zoanthids and the torch are absolutely gorgeous, and the photos were very accurate (I mention that as RM is routinely accused of doctoring their photos, but my experience is otherwise).
The delayed order came from a new company, Cyber Reef, who has been very responsive about the entire issue so I have to give them good marks for that. That order consisted of a frag of a pink & blue acropora prostrata for $25, 10 solomon green glove polyps (the real deal) for $20, some pompom xenia for $25 and a frag of pink montipora capricornis that was thrown in for free. The shipping screw up aside, I think everyone will agree these were first-rate offerings for remarkably good prices.
Out of that shipment both the prostrata and the capricornis are doing perfectly fine and came through the delay in delivery none the worse for wear. The green glove polyps didn't fare quite as well, but about half the polyps survived. The only one of the bunch that's still a question mark is the xenia, which hasn't melted away yet at least. I'm hoping with a little time it may rebound yet.
The freebies aren't really worth the effort... the turbinaria is only about a half inch square, the acanthastra not much bigger. You'd be disappointed to pay overnight shipping and just get these for your trouble.
Cyber Reef is http://www.cyber-reef.com/ and they're located in california. I'm in too much of a fog at the moment to remember exactly where in CA, though.
Cyber Reef is http://www.cyber-reef.com/ and they're located in california. I'm in too much of a fog at the moment to remember exactly where in CA, though.
I went ahead and upgraded to a better skimmer. The remora I’ve been using has been muddling along, but really something with a bit more power was called for. I ended up picking up the skimmer I was originally looking at for this tank, the Tunze 9010. I gave a lot of though towards a couple of different deltec models but decided against them in the end. While the deltec 600 hang-on is a great little skimmer I found I just couldn’t justify the nearly $500 price tag for a hang-on, not when I could pick up the 9010 for nearly $200 less. The 9010 also has a reputation for nearly totally silent operation, something that isn’t said of deltecs.
The 9010 is going to go in the rear sump compartment of the tank (it fits, just barely) but I won’t actually be able to set it up for a week or so yet. Due to the extreme fluctuation of the water level in the sump compartment (a gallon’s worth of evaporation drops the water level by about 6 inches) I’m not able to run the 9010 in it’s “in-tank” mode and will need to run it with it’s sump configuration instead. In order to do that, I need to place it on a riser 7” tall – and I need to MacGuyver the riser, as I’ve nothing suitable for the purpose. (For some reason, Tunze DOC skimmers set up for sump use must rest on a solid surface or they will not perform properly)
The 9010 specs say it can handle a 264 gallon tank. I do, of course, take that with the typical grain of salt I use whenever I deal with skimmer tank size claims. I'll let you all know how it performs after it's been in use for a while. I will say I've had beckett skimmers with a smaller collection cup than this!
The 9010 is going to go in the rear sump compartment of the tank (it fits, just barely) but I won’t actually be able to set it up for a week or so yet. Due to the extreme fluctuation of the water level in the sump compartment (a gallon’s worth of evaporation drops the water level by about 6 inches) I’m not able to run the 9010 in it’s “in-tank” mode and will need to run it with it’s sump configuration instead. In order to do that, I need to place it on a riser 7” tall – and I need to MacGuyver the riser, as I’ve nothing suitable for the purpose. (For some reason, Tunze DOC skimmers set up for sump use must rest on a solid surface or they will not perform properly)
The 9010 specs say it can handle a 264 gallon tank. I do, of course, take that with the typical grain of salt I use whenever I deal with skimmer tank size claims. I'll let you all know how it performs after it's been in use for a while. I will say I've had beckett skimmers with a smaller collection cup than this!
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