Cookiemunster

Bro ervine, I really admire your enthusiasm. Well done. You really have the true DIY spirit. Using totally normal household items to make what you want. Great job. Its easy to spend money to buy some great part but its actually harder to use typical cheap household items to do it. If you need any help feel free to pm me. Cheers

Wah bro, I think you better check with another thermometer cos with the weather these days, achieving 28degrees is fantastic already......and you say 25????? I wouldn't waste the money as its best to let the temp go as low as possible. And using fans, its not going to be able to go very much more than 2 or 3 degrees below ambient temp.

sorry to butt in to comment. ah wa actually it will still be affected by snails etc. Cos as long as its wet, a short circuit will occur turning the pump on and killing/injuring the snail that shorted it. Floating algae or debris trapped between the probe will also still cause it not to work as it becomes shorted. Even when water level drops, the debri if still stuck between the probes will render it useless....meaning water will not top up. Electrolysis of the water will also occur due to electrical current released between the probes. I've also thought of infra red and opto sensors but these are highly unreliable due to salt spray smudging the lenses over time. There is always a reason why I build TUBBY the way it is. Alot of research was put into it. There is also a reason why I chose vertical float switches over horizontal ones. Ah Wa, I would strongly recommend you use float switches as its the most effective and reliable. Hope you don't get offended by my comments.

Sorry to burst your bubble bro but the reason why your skimmer started to foam faster is cos your skimmer neck is alot small than the HnS. It doesn't mean the HnS lost. It also means your skimmer is for smaller tank than the HnS in the photo. Even a weipro will skim faster because the neck is so narrow. Another important feature is whether the skimmate can continue to collect in the collection cup as most times in a design the skimmate collects to the top and stays there. Meaning the skimmer neck height is an important aspect too. If you keep the competition up for a week, you'll know why HnS just has no equal if using same wattage pump. All spray type skimmers will require much higher wattage pumps to run than needlewheels. I have been using HnS with a 18W pump and I've not seen any closer competition other than the much bigger becketts running on 150W pumps.

I think you guys got the wrong idea about sand shifting. There is only 1 reason why sand shifting is good and thats to stir the surface of the sandbed to prevent collection of nutrients and waste causing diatom buildup. Adding gobies and blennys are not really a good idea. What do you think the gobies are doing when they are ###### up the sand and then expelling it out? They are feeding. On what? On the good critters which help to break down the waste and nutrients in the sand. Gobies do not eat the waste or nutrients in the sand. As a result, you will be harming your DSB more than helping it. These gobies eat all the time and require lots of sand critters to eat all the time. In only less than a week, your DSB will be cleaned of all life except brittle stars and fire worms. Some really good sand shifters are black sea cuke, nassirious snails, cerith snails, brittle stars (small ones), certain species of hermits (small ones) and worms.

As barracuda mentioned, T12/T8 and T5 ballasts are not meant for each other. Reason being the rapid start and slow delay feature. This may seem trivial but is supposed to increase the lifespan of your expensive T5. Other than this, the wattage of FL and T5 is totally different. They are also different in length, ie 39W T5 is different in length to a equally rated 39W FL (if any). T5 is High Output which means it runs on much higher voltage and current (power). It is not a energy efficient tube like FL and hence it manages to increase its luminance. Theres also the thing about whether its electronic ballast or magnetic ballast. Theres a whole lot of technical issues related to this and its not so simple to cross use. For heavens sake just use the right ballast for the right tube. It like using a oven toaster to dry your clothes compared with a clothes dryer. Both can do the same job but how well and safe or reliable it is, is the question.

There is a specific formula to follow. And if harvest is too early, nutrients will not be totally absorbed as AT mentioned. Stick to the instructions and it shouldn't be a problem. 1 drop per 100ml of water. And harvest only on the 9th to 10th day onwards. Even then, adding phyto will always mean adding nutrients to your tank. Plant matter whether dead or alive is still nutrient. So wean your tank slowly on it. And if done properly, you can dose up to 1L a day like I do without any serious consequences.

Hi I've got 2 BLVs 10k for sale. Used for 6 months. Asking $60 for both or $35 each. Self collect. PM me your contact if interested. Cheers

Lets not be too sensitive. Anyway I'm using this type of system in my own tank. However I incoporate a sump and refugium without the ceramic rings or bioballs or cotton wools etc.

Fish eggs are the best and most nutritious food for your corals and other fish. They will fatten up very fast if you feed regularly. However becareful of overfeeding to the tank as it also pollutes the water very very fast due to its high protein and oil content....ie cyano and diatom blooms.

Hmmm sorry to hear about this bro. You might want to get a water sensor alarm from me.

You can buy small tubs from Henry of ML and edmund of eaquanature. They are the only 2 I know who carry this. I believe there are others too but I'm not sure. Actually cyclopeeze frozen is many times more concentrated. Just try a bit and you will know what I mean. I only feed 1 quarter a teaspoon into my tank and the whole tank is flooded in red dots of cyclopeeze. Those who use it will know. hahaha. The first time I was smirking at the tiny teaspoon size of cycloopeeze which I threw into my tank and after a few seconds was horrified at how concentrated it was. Fishes had a wild party man!!! Every cm cube was filled with cyclopeeze. 1 slab can last me for more than 1yr of heavy feeding daily.

I bought mine from the last Aquarama at only $28 per slab. This same slab is sold for $100 plus at LFS. And someone at aquarama bought all the 40 plus slabs there at this $28 price so I guess someone out there is making big bucks.

hmm actually I am beginning to loose interest. As I no longer find it much of a challenge as before when I started. Sorry for sounding like a pompous ###### but its true..... I mean I was so filled with enthusiasm and so willing to part with my money to get better equipment etc. But now, I am less keen to buy anything. And no coral catches my eye that easily now. Many times go farm visits and end up buying nothing. I haven't touched my tank for 3 months already. Its in full auto mode. Just feed daily thats all. Never dosed anything, never changed water never cleared my skimmer. Skimmer is almost flooded already hahahha. Parameters still 0 for everything including nitrate and phosphates. But I do admit it was lots of fun reading and finding out what the heck I was doing. Was tempted to give up a few times already cos no more kick.

Have replied in another thread. Cyclopeeze vs DT My hammers and octo only eat whats left of the food I feed my fishes. Phyto definitely benefits them but I believe its a variety rather than strictly just one type of food. My hammer and octo have doubled in size since I bought them 6 months ago. Becareful not to overfeed. Cyclopeeze is power stuff. Diatoms and cyano can catch up very fast.

Bro, cyclopeeze is different from DT. DT is phytoplankton (meaning floating plant). Phytoplankton size range from 5 micron to about 30 microns. Namely nannochloropsis, isochrysis and tetraselmis. Phytoplankton is used mostly for filter feeders which can only feed on very small 'foods' of less than 20 microns. Examples: clams, certain sps, coco worms, feather worms, christmas tree worms, all copepods, amphipods, all dendronephtyas, xenias, jewels, gonios and many other hard and soft corals which do not catch large prey or do not actively catch prey. Cyclopeeze is similar in size to newly hatched brine shrimp which is used to feed baby fish fry as well as many corals which can actively catch prey, such as suncorals, sea fans, brains, pratas, certain sps, hydnophoras. These are considered too large for most corals but are great for smaller fish such as anthias, damsels, gobies and fishes with small mouths. The nutritional value of cyclopeeze is much much higher than brine shrimp and is great in bringing out colours in fish. I use cyclopeeze in all my fish food mix. I strongly recommend it. However, my own good experience is with the frozen version which I believe to be fresher and more healthy and full of juicy goodness. hehehe

Bro, the local one is running on 220Vac. The US is 115Vac. This product is available in PETMART. I think it should not be a problem to use normal powerheads. Except that due to the difference in design and power of each brand and model of ph, the output performance will be very different. Some may not even have strength to push much water or create any waves. The unit has pre-programmed states which similate current flow one way then the other or haphazard flows.

Wow thats as good as free.

Thanks Vinoth bro, yes PACIFIC COO does on site servicing. PM me for more info. Cheers

Just to add in, there was once when my previous chiller malfunctioned and temp of tank went to 32 degrees for 1 day. All my coralline turned white. It can also be caused by raise in temp from the normal range. Overdosing kalk only causes the ph to raise but it doesn't kill coralline.

Cedric I do not understand why you insist that other chiller brands are using piston compressors. Perhaps you are right and the compressor maker's specs are wrong because from what I understand, piston compressors are way too big for normal chiller applications. All small to medium compressors are using rotary compressors.....no big deal. But I am happy for you that you are happy your chiller works for your needs. As I mentioned, its an individual selection and if you can be sure you paid for what you get then, well good for you and your wallet. Cheers

Bro, no offense but I think it isn't fair to compare like this. Cost is one thing. But effectiveness of cooling is the most important point. Of course, it should be at a price thats reasonable and affordable to the individual. But if I really wanted to save money, I wouldn't buy a chiller and instead just use alot of IONA fans. Many people buy chillers with cost and pricing in mind but they often forget why they buy a chiller in the first place.....ie to cool the tank to a required temp. (usually 25 degrees) For small tanks of 3ft and below, a small cheap chiller would be enough but for bigger tanks, I really doubt it. A chiller being able to cool to required temp is also not enough. It has to be a balance of noise level and running time too. (often both are related....imagine something noisy running for so many hrs.) Many would rather pay more than endure such incidents. I feel that something that needs to be modified for it to work as promised is not fulfilling its purpose as a product. Modification should be to improve it to a higher standard but not to just make it work. (thats better known as repair). Having said this, I feel many people buy chillers based on a few points: 1) Cost, 2) Efficiency and effectiveness of cooling 3) Noise level So it needs to be a balance. To me, cost is definitely a concern before I buy anything. Next is whether it will work as promised. Otherwise I wouldn't buy it in the first place no matter how cheap it is. Please do not feel offended by my comments as I am just sharing my views too. By the way, I am not promoting artica chillers. hahaha I am selling pacific coo. Everyone has different needs and should base your choice on your own tank size and budget. Cheers

Cedric why you so blur one. I was the one who said the problem about freezing when pump failed. Go to page 1 and look at my post again. I see you are obsessed with calciumreef. hahahaha Anyway the solution is simple as you mentioned. Wire two in series. But do not set the chiller's own thermostat so near to the set temperature of the tank. When the pump fails, the chiller temp will quickly lower to elss than 20 very fast. So in order for this method to work properly, set the chiller to about 18 or 20. And the thermostat in the tank at 25 or what ever temp you wish. With the large temp difference between the 2 thermostats, errors will be greatly reduced. By the way PACIFIC COO is providing such modifications and servicing for other chillers such as this too. Cheers and feel free to pm me if you need any help.

Thanks for the reply Joe, but I don't agree on some points. It is not hard to control the ph of the affluent without a ph probe and solenoid on the CO2. One just has to measure the ph of the affluent output. In relation to the ph, the respective calc and dkh levels can be recorded. It should come to a point where significant decrease in ph does not result in significant calc and dkh increase...thats where the CO2 has dissolved to max and cannot dissolve the media any more efficiently. The CO2 in the media should be adjusted to where it just manages to dissolve the media and not more than that. Otherwise, it would be pulling the ph too low. In order words, too much unreacted CO2 dissolved in the water. That is why a taller reactor body will produce higher calc and dkh levels than a shorter one. Because higher bubble rate can be used....due to bigger surface area. I wouldn't need a second chamber if I can tune the bubble rate effectively because proper design would maximise the CO2 recirculation at a minimum CO2 usage. However, of course, with a second chamber, it allows me to have room for more mistakes in my adjustment for bubble count, ie help to buffer ph to 7....which theoretically is the point at which the ARM media will no longer dissolve. But it still doesn't solve the problem of too low a ph to the tank. Which can only be solved by proper reduced CO2 count. Which brings us back to square one.....proper tuning and good design of recirculation and getting a taller reactor body if higher calc and dkh is needed instead of increasing bubble count beyond a certain limit. With regard to your question, the ph of the chamber is only one of the factors influencing the output affluent. The design of the reactor, the media used and size are the main factors. AT: it is precisely the points you mentioned that I am doubting the use of a second chamber. Don't misunderstand I am not saying Joe_p is making a lousy second chamber. I am just wondering if its necessary. Because I don't see a double chamber being used by even popular german brands and I think there must be some reason behind it. Cost is certainly not a concern when the prices are already so high for such brands. And its not precipitation I am talking about. Its crystallisation. There are quite subtle differences. Precipitation occurs due to a limit in which the liquid cannot hold or reverses its solubility of another substance. Crystallization is the building of the substance onto a more concentrated structure (media) to attain a bigger crystal structure. Also known as seeding in this case. It would be good if a few people can verify this. ie, are there any significant increase in dkh and calc levels with a second or even third chamber? What are the values before and after? And if yes, what is the effect on the output ph before and after the 2nd or 3rd chambers. Sometimes it seems nice to have this or that but I always like to question real effectiveness and functionality. If it is indeed alot better, then everyone should know about it and all calcium reactors should change their design to include a second chamber. I for one will want to build a second chamber for my own unit too.

edwin, I am wondering. Since media dissolves only at a certain ph, won't the second chamber be useless since the ph is usually above 7ph? (Only ARM media claims its media dissolves in ph 7) The rest, I believe need ph of 6 and below. And if the output ph is below 7ph, then it would simply mean the bubble count is set wrongly....ie too fast. Because it would mean excess CO2 is dissolved. I'm not very sure but I think the second chamber is more of preventing ph affluent below 7. Above that it will not help in anyway because even at ph 7, the media will barely dissolve or not at all depending on media used. The ultimate idea is to prevent ph from being below 7.8 which up till now I do not think any calcium reactor is able to achieve without reducing its output performance. So ultimately, it will still slowly pull the ph of the tank down if the drip rate is too high. Meaning, even the drip rate must be controlled to the point where your tank can handle (buffer) the lowered ph. In fact, by placing a second chamber with a lower ph, crystallization of calcium back to the media will occur. So output should get worse and not better. But then I am theorizing. Cos it seems to make sense. Perhaps the chemist should enlighten us.....TANZY????