Revised 155 RR BF Reef Tank Thread

[pauliwalnuts]

Wow... Five years, congrats. I only wish my tank can make it that long (lol). Really loving the new additions btw. :cheers:

 

[Awibrandy]

Wow... Five years, congrats. I only wish my tank can make it that long (lol). Really loving the new additions btw. :cheers:

Thank you Pauli! Me too Pauli, those new additions are great...

Tomorrow is the actual date for the 5 year mark.:spin:

 

[pbjelly]

:hb2: Five years. What a milestone, congratulations! Your tank is looking beautiful and this thread has been a real example to me of dedication to reefing.
This is totally beside the point, but if I haven't mentioned it before, I love your avatar - your puppies are just the sweetest things ever. That picture just makes me want to smoosh them :hug: (no weirdness intended - I've got a pound hound and a total soft spot for pits.)

 

[fishman1069]

Tank looks awesome Awi!!Congrats on the 5 year mark!!

 

[dubs]

i seen that tank yeasterday that thing is a beast i love the animals in it plus the corals look so nice and for only 5 more gallons than my tank it looks so much bigger congratz on the 5 year mark

 

[Awibrandy]

:hb2: Five years. What a milestone, congratulations! Your tank is looking beautiful and this thread has been a real example to me of dedication to reefing.
This is totally beside the point, but if I haven't mentioned it before, I love your avatar - your puppies are just the sweetest things ever. That picture just makes me want to smoosh them :hug: (no weirdness intended - I've got a pound hound and a total soft spot for pits.)

Thank you so much for your kind words, especially those directed to my babies.:hug: Unfortunately I no longer have my big boy (the tan one).:sad2: I lost him a year ago.;(

fishman, thanks a bunch!!

dubs, thank you! And it was great having you over. Truly enjoyed conversing with you..

 

[Awibrandy]

To update post #158 on pg. 16:
I had to start over on the figuring out how much to dose by the 7 day method. So last Monday, February 27, 2012 after water change I ran the following test, below are the results on that day.
Mag 1260 ppm
Alk 8.1 dkh
Cal 425 ppm
Today, 7 days later Monday, March 5, 2012 prior to water change the following are the results of the following.
Mag 1260 ppm
Alk 6.7 dkh
Cal 420 ppm
So now what?lol I am inclined to dose 20 ml mag & alk, and 10 cal daily. I use the BRS products, and yes they have their calculators. But their calculator confuses the heck out of me because of the amount I'm suppose to dose to bring the values up. For example:
To raise the mag from 1260 to 1350 I should dose 1045.1 ml; 35.3 fl oz; 209 tsp this to me seems excessive.
To raise the alk from 6.7 to 8.1 the recommended dose is 143.9 ml; 4.8 fl oz; 28.7 tsp
To raise the cal from 420 to 450 the recommended dose is 442.1 ml; 14.9 fl oz; 88.4 tsp

Would really appreciate any input on the above please!!

 

[pauliwalnuts]

Don't drive yourself mad with those calculators, your parameters seem fine. My recommendation would be to dose twice a week instead of once. Also, always dose alk+cal in the same amount (unless levels were WAY off, imo they seem to level them selfs off anyway with dosing the same amount). Here's how I did it before purchasing a doser. I would only test my alk. If it was low, then I would add the same amount of alk+cal until It reached the desired level. Four days later, I would repeat the same process.

 

[Awibrandy]

Don't drive yourself mad with those calculators, your parameters seem fine. My recommendation would be to dose twice a week instead of once. Also, always dose alk+cal in the same amount (unless levels were WAY off, imo they seem to level them selfs off anyway with dosing the same amount). Here's how I did it before purchasing a doser. I would only test my alk. If it was low, then I would add the same amount of alk+cal until It reached the desired level. Four days later, I would repeat the same process.

Pauli, thanks so much for the above! I missed your post. I just saw it this morning. I'll try it your way seeing how gorgeous your tank looks!!!!!:hug:

 

[MeanGreenEyes]

Gorgeous tank!

 

[Awibrandy]

Gorgeous tank!

Thank you!

 

[Awibrandy]

Sadly, and shamefaced I have to update with "I crashed my tank"..;(

This is just an update to keep my "Tank Thread" as honest as possible that others may learn from my mistake!!!!!!

I started out trying to get all my pars in check. All was going ok, but then I got busy with the outdoors. As most know I get little to no help so I have to do it on my own, or it just doesn't get done. Like most people I like to see my surroundings looking there best. I had a lot of work to do: power washing upper & lower decks, fence, furniture, staining or painting the decks & fences, cleaning the pool (which was not properly closed for the winter) etc......
While doing the above I wore myself out, by the time I would come inside I was way tired, and in horrific pains so the tanks got neglected.
When I saw my corals were not doing well I did some test. Boy had I messed up big time.......
Mag 1140ppm
Alk well over 16 dkh
Cal 120
Of course I immediately started dosing, and doing water change. To late!!

I lost all SPS, some LPS, and things still do not look good.

Plan of action is: 20% water change every other day, and continue dosing calcium & magnesium daily.

 

[pbjelly]

Oh No!

I'm so sorry to hear about the tank. It's so hard to keep up with what needs to get done - especially when you're doing it all yourself. I hope the remaining livestock make it through.

 

[Awibrandy]

Thanks pbjelly! I hope so too, especially my Aussie Elegance....

 

[xxxAngeloxxx]

Thanks pbjelly! I hope so too, especially my Aussie Elegance....

I'm sorry to hear this =( I hope you still stay with the saltwater hobby Awibrady =) but look at it this way now you can be able to improve your tank even better then before. Just stay with your weekly routines.

 

[dubs]

This sucks I love some of the animals u have in that tank and ur tank especially that elegance I hope it make it back and listen if u need some of the corals I got lmk i frag u a bunch of stuff free to help u get that beast back in order and sorry for ur tank crash

 

[Awibrandy]

Thank you guys!!!:grouphug:
Working on it dubs.

Learned a lesson: STOP being so single minded!!!! I'm sort of like a pit bull; I set my mind on something, and I don't stop til it is done./ Not a good thing sometimes.

 

[rkaragozler]

Awi I'm so sorry to hear, If you need anything just call me, i'll be their in a heart beat.

 

[MeanGreenEyes]

Omg...I'm very sorry to hear that this happened to you! It's crazy, because I was wondering what happened to you the other day...since there haven't been any tank updates lately. I wish I had enough growth to frag everything to help. I can frag the sps that I have and will donate it to you...no charge to help you rebuild if you ever happen to come out this way or someone local is coming out to you...just pm me and let me know. I don't have much but I do have some nice pieces! Please don't give up!

 

[Awibrandy]

Thank you Richie! Not much left to do, but to continue with w/c & dosing cal & mag. I thought of re-arranging the rocks now that they are no longer bogged down with sps, but thought best to leave it be. No need to stress whats left any further.

MeenGreenEyes, thank you so much my darling! I could never give up! My screen name on other sites is "Reefer4Life". Don't you worry my tank, and I will be just fine. I started with nothing. May take a little time, but it will be back. You keep growing out your corals to nice colonies. Knowing better now will also help. It is sad looking, but some lps are still hanging on, and the numbers are coming along nicely. I can actually see a little improvement on some of the remaining lps, I'm still waiting on my zoas.

Alk is at 13dkh +/-5% as per salifert
Cal is at 270ppm
Mag is at 1185ppm
PH is at 8.1