kien's 150g Room Divider Mixed Reef & Stuff [Archive] - Page 2

Delphinus

01-15-2010, 04:58 PM

Well, snail is only one potential scenario. There may be others that I just can't dream up right now. :) I have no experience with your model of skimmer but the needlewheels I've played around with before, some have been worse than others for the occasional berserkness that causes them to overflow. The Bubble Magus is for some reason one of the worst this way for me, but I had a CSS65 on a 20g before that was just as bad and had I run that thing as hang-on as it was intended I would have emptied the sump several times. I don't know what the cause is whether it's something in the livestock taking a mondo poop or maybe a snail spawn or who knows, but it's something. But I had other skimmers that didn't do that (ASM) so .. yeah, who knows.

Instead of weighing down the bottle so it sits under the water level, you could just make a little eggcrate or acrylic (or glass) shelf that the bottle could sit on. The bottle needn't sit in the sump per se, it just needs to overflow into the sump.

It's sort of a balancing act though, if you have to tip your bottle sideways to maneuver it out of the sump then you might still be better off having it sit on the outside of the sump on a little shelf and just with a little hose that drains back to the sump.

kien

01-16-2010, 07:34 AM

Instead of weighing down the bottle so it sits under the water level, you could just make a little eggcrate or acrylic (or glass) shelf that the bottle could sit on.

tru dat! I guess that's why we keep you around Tony. You're full of great ideas! :biggrin:

kien

01-20-2010, 05:02 AM

Today Tony was gracious enough to lend me his Nitrate meter so that I may test my nitrates and see how them lentils were doing. They have been running in my Two Little Fishes reactor for a little over two weeks now. Lots of mulm production but so far no clogging. I suspect something is consuming it in the filter or they just eventually dissolve enough to escape the foam filter that's in the reactor. Anyway, two weeks ago prior to running the bio lentils Tony and I did a reading and we got 8 ppm. Here is the reading I got this evening..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6651.jpg?t=1263966918

It appears as though something has reduced my nitrates in half. I have not added anything else to the tank other than the bio pellets. I have not done a water change since installing the bio pellets. I usually do weekly water changes but put off the last one out of curiosity, so it has been two weeks since my last water change.

All other parameters in case you're interested:

Specific Gravity: 1.026
pH: 7.9 to 8.3
Alk: 8.5 dkH
Calc: 420 ppm
Mag: 1400 ppm
Temp: 79-81
Phosphate: tests out to zero

I dose Alk (Baking Soda) and Calcium (from Littlesilvermax in bulk) but nothing else.

I have only been running half of the recommend amount of bio pellets but this weekend will ramp that up to full dosage. Zero nitrates here I come!! :biggrin:

kien

01-20-2010, 05:20 AM

The topic of nitrates might be a good seque into the process of food production and distribution in my reef.

This evening I had to make up a batch of my special Seafood a la Kien and I already had my camera out snapping pics of the nitrate monitor so I figured I'd snap some more photos and document this process in case anyone was curious. I know I'm always curious about what people put into their tanks.

So to start out, I like to buy two or three bags of mixed seafood. Here we have a bag of scallops, shrimp and a seafood medley which consists of octopus and clamy things.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6643.jpg?t=1263967646

I fill up a blending cup with the three parts of frozen sea foods. Let it sit for a bit and thaw..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6644.jpg?t=1263967688

Then grab my trusty hand blender and blend away!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6659.jpg?t=1263967725

The trick here is not to over blend because you don't want to turn it into a V8 cocktail. Rather, you want nice chunky bits that the fish can consume. It takes a bit of practice to get the blending just right. I usually count buzzes. About 5 or 6 buzzes will do the trick.

After blending you get something that looks like this.. [insert mad scientist laughter here]

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6660.jpg?t=1263967814

I then take my trusty reusable coffee filter and strain out what water I can.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6661.jpg?t=1263967920

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6662.jpg?t=1263967940

After that I'm left with a nice mushy fish meal and place it in a bowl. I also like to add PE Mysis to the meal so I'll thaw out a few chunks and rinse it in the coffee filter as well.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6664.jpg?t=1263968024

I then add the two together and inject with a healthy dose of Garlic extract.
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6665.jpg?t=1263968070http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6666.jpg?t=1263968086

Stir the whole concoction and voila! Seafood a la Kien.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6667.jpg?t=1263968114

I like to serve in portions and these handy ice cube trays are the perfect amount.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6669.jpg?t=1263968164

My reef gets a shot of Formula 1&2 flakes every morning at 10:30am via an automatic feeder. I do the evening feed by hand by grabbing a fish cube out of the freezer and thawing it in some tank water. Every other day I strap a sheet of nori to a rod and throw that into the tank as well.

Seafood a la Kien is also great of target feeding LPS :biggrin:

kien

01-20-2010, 05:21 AM

Here's my 2 year old son doing the evening feed.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6653.jpg?t=1263968470

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6658.jpg?t=1263968492

lastlight

01-20-2010, 05:29 AM

Bookmarked for the day I need to make some food thanks for sharing man. Love the fishcubes and the pics of your son lol.

Delphinus

01-20-2010, 07:20 AM

Awesome stuff. Interesting how it seems to be pretty consistent for everyone measuring with the N/P pellets that it seems to half the amount in two weeks (two week half life).

kien

01-20-2010, 07:48 AM

Here are my finned friends that hang out in the reef.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4056/4289511647_624603769b_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4056/4289511647_1722d8b625_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4290256260_245e687998_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4290256260_9921d92941_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4016/4290255744_e253d77036_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4016/4290255744_71520493b6_o.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2779/4289511445_32b55e3590_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2779/4289511445_dfcbab636c_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4289512957_1c0821343e_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4289512957_2cd94009ec_o.jpg)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4011/4290255140_a6e5f2a378_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4011/4290255140_6416cd1959_o.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2698/4289511223_eb794173bc_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2698/4289511223_7685ff77c0_o.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2802/4290255812_8df92ea0d0_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2802/4290255812_89e3d5037c_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4289512609_e02fc719f9_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4289512609_3c863c87b4_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4290255208_6101c2e8aa_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4290255208_8988a18abc_o.jpg)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2694/4289512051_5ec3c8a628_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2750/4290255646_ee5a44bd1e_o.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2732/4289512385_4121b7cef0_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2732/4289512385_cd66434917_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4040/4290256462_49e2f36efe_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4040/4290256462_49e2f36efe.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4057/4290256642_f2b3bf60f4_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4057/4290256642_0a5f400247_o.jpg) http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2768/4290256378_b662e27009_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2768/4290256378_79d3829cbb_o.jpg)

kien

01-20-2010, 07:49 AM

Feeding time!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2682/4289512815_7791a098c7_o.jpg

Delphinus

01-20-2010, 07:55 AM

They look great.

Geez man do you ever sleep!

kien

01-20-2010, 08:10 AM

They look great.

Geez man do you ever sleep!

Sleep? What is that? Does it cost money ? :-)

I'm really excited to watch the lentils run their course. Looking into the reactor it doesn't look like they have depleted much at all. I'm trying to figure out now how to run the rest of the lentils. Either a second reactor, a bigger reactor or just a loose bag in the sump.. hmm..

fooser

01-20-2010, 09:03 AM

Seriously Kien, your tank is looking good. Better and better each time i look here.

fishytime

01-20-2010, 01:58 PM

absolutely fan-freakin-tastic shots of the fish man!!!!

maxxxim

01-21-2010, 03:02 AM

Awesome fish and great pictures as always.

Carmen

01-21-2010, 03:18 AM

UNBELIEVABLE! Gorgeous tank Kien...great picture taking! And love that one of your son...super cute! They love to help don't they?!:wink:

daddy01

01-21-2010, 05:18 AM

Remind me not to ask for Coffee if I visit your tank!!

es355lucille

01-21-2010, 05:26 AM

Very nice Kien. Sorry this is the first time I have caught a look at your set-up. Nice work!

Brad

kien

01-22-2010, 08:17 AM

Thanks everyone :-) Taking pictures of fish is actually pretty hard. Those guys are fast!

So the N/P Bio Pellets have finally caught up with me! The mulm/slough finally clogged up the Two Little Fishes reactor. While I was cleaning the reactors sponges I decided that the sponges in the reactor were actually thicker than they really needed to be. Mod time!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6720.jpg?t=1264151551

So I took one sponge and cut it in half like so.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6722.jpg?t=1264151574

From one sponge you end up with two!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6723.jpg?t=1264151594

I wanted them to be a little thinner still so I shaved off another few millimeters.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6724.jpg?t=1264151640

After the operation I ended up with a very thin sponge, kind of like enkmat mesh.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6725.jpg?t=1264151673

I then reinstalled the sponge top and bottom of the reactor like before except the top sponge I decided to install in the opposite position from where you would have it normally.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6727.jpg?t=1264151746

Flow increase was dramatically increased and hopefully more mulm/slough will be able to escape over time.

kien

01-22-2010, 08:22 AM

Oh, I decided to install the rest of the N/P Bio Pellets this evening as well. I was debating whether or not to get another reactor or a bigger reactor. In the end I just serviced my 'fuge and overflow as reactors. I have a cluster of chaeto in my 'fuge now that hasn't really done anything (but maybe recede) over time. I finally figured out what that static ball of chaeto is good for!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_6734.jpg?t=1264152069

I just dumped a couple of handfuls of NP BioPellets into the 'fuge and they fell into the chaeto net. Instant NP BioPellet Media Net.

I threw a couple of handfuls into my overflow box as well, just for variety sake. :biggrin:

Coleus

01-27-2010, 09:14 PM

Beautiful picts. This is why i don't want to make my tank thread because I feel so bad looking at my tank after looking at your tank :-)

Thanks for keep updating your tank. How is the baby? you just amaze me how you can still manage to have time taking care of your beautiful tank with newborn. My babies are driving me crazy over here :-)

Cheers

kien

01-27-2010, 09:44 PM

Thanks :-)

Babies are easy. All they do is eat-sleep-poop-repeat. :lol: Wait until they turn 2! Now that's a handful. Although, he is turning into quite a reefer. Not only does he roll my salt buckets, feed fish and clean the glass, he now doses my coral snow into the sump for me. :lol:

Leah

01-27-2010, 09:53 PM

Your pictures are incredible :mrgreen:

kien

02-09-2010, 07:25 AM

First of all, thanks Leah :biggrin:

Okay, so this evening marked the 4th (ish) week of the N/P Bio Pellets (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=58523&highlight=bio+pellets). To recap.. I have about 750ml of the pellets running in a Two Little Fishes 150 phosban reactor that is fed by a maxijet 900 daisy chained with another phosban reactor running carbon. I recently did a mod to the sponges to get more flow through the reactor and thus more tumble of the pellets. This has worked out quite well. I also have another 250ml of the pellets hanging out loosly in my refugium and my overflow box (just cuz I couldn't fit all the pellets in the reactor). At first I was a little worried about this but so far there have been not been any adverse effects.

Before I started using the pellets I used an American Marine Pinpoint meter to measure my nitrates and got a reading of 8ppm. Two weeks later I took another reading and got 4ppm. Now into my 4th(ish) week I took another reading and got 0ppm. :cheer2:

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_8013.jpg?t=1265702951

The meter reads "Lo" but according to the manual this means Zero. I wasn't sure I trusted that reading at first so I took two more readings. The second one also came up as zero while the third and final test came up with 1ppm.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_8010.jpg?t=1265703955

So I'm going to call it zero since the probe has an accuracy of +/- 1ppm :biggrin: Once again, just like the week two test, I have not made any changes to my system. It has been static now for over four weeks in fact. I do not run any ULN systems like zeo or ultralith nor do I use any of their additives.

So there we have it. In my application of the N/P Bio pellets there is clearly a positive result and I am sold!! Needless to say I will be stockpiling these bad boys. I have always wanted to use this emoticon and feel it appropriate to do so now..
:bananahuge:

Alright.. carry on.

lastlight

02-09-2010, 04:18 PM

There HAS to be some catch (besides the fact that I had to see that scary banana dancing)! I'll be using these on my new tank without a DOUBT.

Coleus

02-09-2010, 04:21 PM

wow i am sold on this as well. Anyone want to group order?

fooser

02-09-2010, 06:28 PM

Thanks for being the guinea pig Kien, I think I might give them a go as well if they really work, they may help out with my nitrates when i move everything for my upgrade. From what I have been reading, even when people move existing rocks and water, they still seem to have a little bit of new tank syndrome.
Your little experiment has helped out some of us!...or well.. at least me anyways :P

banditpowdercoat

02-09-2010, 06:34 PM

It's not just Kien being the guinea pig :D

globaldesigns

02-09-2010, 06:37 PM

Thanks for the update Kien, and great posts.

As you all know, many of us have been trying the NP BioPellets out, I am one of them. Now I am not as structured as Kien in my testing and presenting results, but can tell you what I am seeing:
1.) Even Cleaner water
2.) Coraline algae and green algae on glass is quickly dissappearing, leaving plain clean glass behind
3.) Cleaner araganite sand
4.) skimmer has gone from producing a green skimmate liquid to a very dark brown. I am thinking that this is indicating a lack of algae in the water column and tank and the skimmer is now just removing other wastes.

I personally haven't been testing my nitrates, but can see by the results above that these pellets do have a positive impact.

I am running 750ml in a deltec fluidizer using a MJ1200 to power/tumble to pellets. I am also using 1.5L of Zeolites.

I would recommend this product and have now ordered another 2L to stockpile.

kien

02-09-2010, 07:12 PM

2.) Coraline algae and green algae on glass is quickly dissappearing, leaving

Aside from the noticeable drop in nitrate readings, this is the other visible change that I have noticed. I used to clean my glass of that green film algae every two to three days. Now I can seem to go 4 or 5 days before I need to do it.

As for corals, well, I didn't have any issues with how they looked before and they still look fine now with colour and growth so it is hard for me to compare the corals then and now. Maybe in a few more months the change will be more noticeable. But again, I don't really have any issues with how things are looking so I don't really know what I'm looking for :-)

In the end, I'm just really happy that I can keep nitrates low with what I feel is a high bio load (4 tangs, and the regal alone almost counts as 2 :lol:). Plus, I don't have to really do anything on a daily or even weekly basis which is my one issue with the other ULN systems. I'll keep checking nitrates (although probably less frequently now) and I'll keep an eye on the pellets to watch them deplete and replace as needed. This to me really is almost set and forget. Obviously this being a relatively new technology I can't be *that* complacent and will continue to monitor things, but in the long run if things continue the way they are going now, these will truly be set and forget (almost).

P.S. It sounds like a lot more people are interested in these now so a Calgary group order would rock :-D Get on that Tai!

ALBERTA REEF

02-09-2010, 07:50 PM

Nice Pic's. If someone is doing a group order of the N/P Bio pellets count me in.

lorenz0

02-09-2010, 07:51 PM

So you would reccomend this over rowa phos any day? I am sick of scraping that crap

might have to try this stuff out

Coleus

02-09-2010, 07:58 PM

Nice Pic's. If someone is doing a group order of the N/P Bio pellets count me in.

I just placed the last batch 2L from Ian 10 mins ago, i can split you some if you need it right away

kien

02-09-2010, 08:20 PM

So you would reccomend this over rowa phos any day? I am sick of scraping that crap

might have to try this stuff out

Yes, 100 times yes! Although, to be quite honest, I don't truly know what the pellets are doing with Phosphate reduction. All that I have to go on is an assumption that phosphates are kept at bay by the bacteria that is keeping the nitrates at bay. Testing for phosphates with the colour matching test kits always reads a colourless result for me. Anyway, I too hate rowaphos. I suppose it did its job but I hated replacing it monthly. It was such a mess and a chore! Dumping that last batch of rowaphos out prior to installing the pellets gave me such a huge sense of liberation :lol:

ALBERTA REEF

02-09-2010, 08:47 PM

I have not tried the Bio pellets yet. If I remember correctly phosphate is some sort of fertilizer that algae thrives on. My thinking is that the bacteria that the Bio pellets product creating mulm does too. Useful Bacteria mulm. Newsagents algae.

mytank90

02-09-2010, 10:21 PM

i have read on other sites people are realy likeing the pellets .surprised no one in calgary carries them yet hopefully soon someone might .i would be in for a group order to

kien

02-16-2010, 06:37 AM

So when nitrates drop to zero.. what's a guy to do?? Buy more fish! :lol:

Borbonius Anthias:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2803/4362015078_e2430a5a69_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2803/4362015078_57f80cc3ac_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4362015408_e88e6ecb1a_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4362015408_c200059181_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4062/4362015882_e9d9019ee7_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4062/4362015882_00dd3c29e1_o.jpg)

Sunburst Anthias:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2750/4361273607_764202b624_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2750/4361273607_756caab22b_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4047/4361273397_0eab0d0073_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4047/4361273397_dd74192989_o.jpg)

Hawaiian Flame Wrasse (female): [I have a male too but have not yet been able to capture a photo of him worth posting. He is fast and skittish!]
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4362015468_6c5c22a648_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4362015468_40ffb21e33_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4361273675_980e828a31_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4055/4361273675_e739d41ddc_o.jpg)

Okay so this guy (the tailspot) isn't new but he wanted in on the photo action. Such a great personality this little guy.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2766/4361274517_3fce5b7f3e_t.jpg (http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2766/4361274517_0e8bb5d467_o.jpg)

For all you fish stocking po-po out there, don't fret! I have re-homed some of my fish to another tank! :-D

1/3 tank shot. Note the not so little Borbon in the bottom right corner :biggrin:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4060/4361273917_54a82c273f_o.jpg

Just realized that the tank has just past the 6 month mark.. maybe I'll write up a full tank update. If I can be bothered.. :lol:

kien

02-16-2010, 06:41 AM

Well, since I'm up mind as well throw up some recent Oceanic grabs.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4361273995_5dc0982836_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2722/4361274199_e78740ba24_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2702/4361274299_ed7b39f5ba_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2523/4362015662_a0906739d5_o.jpg

Kryptic4L

02-16-2010, 06:49 AM

sunset anthias ? from ocean city by chance ?

kien

02-16-2010, 06:52 AM

sunset anthias ? from ocean city by chance ?

Actually no, Elite Aquatics :-) I did see them at Ocean City a couple of weeks ago and wanted them but when I went back for them they were sold :( I then went on a city wide fish hunt for them and finally found them at Elite. They must be in season as I saw one at Golds today too, but he's not there anymore.. :lol:

Kryptic4L

02-16-2010, 06:59 AM

I saw a lonely one at ocean city a couple days back, today nothing. Thought that might of been him. Still back and forth about this, as my tank is smaller and my fish load is getting pretty high . I think the yasha gobys are in high season as well.

kien

02-18-2010, 07:02 AM

So a little while back I performed a mod on my skimmer's collection cup to add a drain so that I could drain the skimmate into an external bottle. Well, someone brought up a good point, what if the outlet of the skimmer blocks? This would cause the skimmer to overflow into the skimmate bottle and pretty much empty the contents of the sump and probably tank onto the floor. I had a hard time imagining the outlet of the skimmer blocking but hey, I am not one to tempt fate! Murphy is a strange yet powerful force.

Anyway, here is my solution to that..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_8357.jpg?t=1266480009

What we have here is essentially an old hang on filter all gutted and plugged up to act as the skimmate collection cup. If it should overflow for whatever reason, it will just dump its contents back into the sump. Yes, disgusting but at least it will keep water inside the tank!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_8358.jpg?t=1266480101

Thanks to blueyota for the donation :-D

Delphinus

02-18-2010, 08:21 AM

:lol: That's awesome..

banditpowdercoat

02-18-2010, 02:03 PM

That's AWESOME because guess what happened to me last night!!! I use a 2l pop bottle for extra collection. Well, skimmer wasnt making much, so I turned it up, then went to go clean out the Biopellet reactor. 10 min later wife screams the skimmers puking!!! Ya about 2g on my new laminate floor. Mostly UNDER the laminate. Floors not level, so it flows to one edge, then under the floor. Great!! that lasted less than a Month!!. searching for NEW cup ideas today!!!

lorenz0

02-18-2010, 03:40 PM

blueyota

02-18-2010, 03:47 PM

Thats brilliant ...I might just have to steal that idea just so happens i have another HOB kicking around:biggrin:

kien

02-18-2010, 03:47 PM

you guys know that the lids ussually are designed so that if something like this happens, it just overflows back into your sump. lol those holes on the lid do have a purpose.

personally its not hard to check everything twice a week or every day while their food is warming up

Yes, and they do a good job of that.. but that won't help if you have the contents of your skimmer cup emptying out into a secondary container outside of your sump :biggrin:

kien

02-18-2010, 03:49 PM

Thats brilliant ...I might just have to steal that idea just so happens i have another HOB kicking around:biggrin:

now you see why I was insistent on getting one that was busted and with as few bits and bobbles as possible :biggrin:

fishytime

02-18-2010, 10:42 PM

That was a great idea Kien....I think Kevin said we got some sunbursts in too.....must have been a special on them at one of the distributors:lol: Gorgeous little fish!

Coleus

02-18-2010, 11:28 PM

That was a great idea Kien....I think Kevin said we got some sunbursts in too.....must have been a special on them at one of the distributors:lol: Gorgeous little fish!

I saw them and they are beautiful.

kien

02-19-2010, 03:08 AM

I saw them and they are beautiful.

You saw them at Red Coral?!?! I need to grab more! I love those little guys. Great colour and they are always so curious.

Coleus

02-19-2010, 03:11 AM

You saw them at Red Coral?!?! I need to grab more! I love those little guys. Great colour and they are always so curious.

Yeah, at 2:00 PM today, i think Kevin still have like 4 of them in the same tank

kien

02-19-2010, 03:14 AM

Yeah, at 2:00 PM today, i think Kevin still have like 4 of them in the same tank

Sweetness! I will be giving him visit tomorrow :-D Thanks! A school of them would be cool.

kien

02-20-2010, 04:51 AM

Although these are not mine, I could not pass up the opportunity to photograph them. They are gorgeous and I had to share :biggrin:

I am babysitting them for a fellow canreefer.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4372299924_de1869ab1c_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4372299924_108d3aac7a_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4372300106_892576524a_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4372300106_3cd7c54ed5_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4371549513_42fdfae63f_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4371549513_cc64244b77_o.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4371549715_90f8324c11_t.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4069/4371549715_8bd090f40a_o.jpg)

lastlight

02-20-2010, 05:01 AM

although these are not mine, i could not pass up the opportunity to photograph them. They are gorgeous and i had to share :biggrin:

I am babysitting them for a fellow canreefer.

http://images.myspace.drewpydraws.com/hot_guys.jpg

wtf?

lastlight

02-20-2010, 05:02 AM

You sneaky bastard...you changed your original post!

Coleus

02-20-2010, 05:03 AM

Lol

kien

02-20-2010, 05:03 AM

Man.. you must have been hanging on to that photo for a long long time waiting for that perfect opportunity to throw it down. :lol::lol::lol: Well played my friend, well played :biggrin:

Carmen

02-20-2010, 05:04 AM

:lol::lol::lol::mrgreen: Hey I'm available for babysitting!!!!!!!:wink:

Coleus

02-20-2010, 05:05 AM

lol

Coleus

02-20-2010, 05:05 AM

:lol::lol::lol::mrgreen: Hey I'm available for babysitting!!!!!!!:wink:

The corals or the boys?

Carmen

02-20-2010, 05:06 AM

The corals or the boys?

BOTH!:mrgreen:

lastlight

02-20-2010, 05:06 AM

Not that I rank my derails...but if I DID...

:mrgreen:

ALBERTA REEF

02-20-2010, 05:07 AM

:lol::lol::lol:

kien

02-20-2010, 05:09 AM

I'm trying to come up with a really witty and completely inappropriate come back but sadly, I can't stop laughing.. Yup, definitely derail of the month. All I can say at this point is.. watch your back man.. watch your back..

but since we're on the subject.. man, I really need to hit the gym again :( Thanks for the reminder.

Leah

02-20-2010, 05:40 AM

wtf?

Much better! :wink:
Why won't it give me the picture........:twised:

lastlight

02-20-2010, 05:44 AM

Rookie move whatever you did. Haha.

superduperwesman

02-20-2010, 05:57 AM

wtf?

ahahah ahah

kien

02-20-2010, 06:29 AM

:lol::lol::lol::mrgreen: Hey I'm available for babysitting!!!!!!!:wink:

BOTH!:mrgreen:

I'm more than willing to share. There's plenty to go around.. apparently :lol:

Leah

02-20-2010, 06:32 AM

You are willing to share the guy's, uh Carmen don't forget your friends :wink:
Kien should we mention the crabs here or no?

kien

02-20-2010, 06:36 AM

Kien should we mention the crabs here or no?

Snap!! Oh no you didn't girl! :nono:

:lol::lol::lol:

kien

02-26-2010, 01:12 AM

Oh how I love this hobby! So 6 plus months of great growth and general SPS coral vitality and now a couple of them have decided to start STN'ing on me... :neutral: So far they aren't beyond saving but I can clearly see blotches developing at the base where they are losing cells.

If I had to guess, and I suppose that's what I'm doing at this point, I would blame it on the bio pellets. I've been using them for about two months now and they have pulled my nitrates down to zero after 4 weeks. I assumed that my fish load would be enough to sustain my SPS but maybe not. Maybe the corals are starving? Looks like I need to look into supplemental feeding.

Nothing else has changed in the tank. All params are in check. :noidea:

Delphinus

02-26-2010, 05:39 AM

Good luck sorting it out .. :(

karazy

02-26-2010, 01:44 PM

you should try dosing rotifers and oyster-feast

Carmen

02-26-2010, 02:32 PM

kien

02-26-2010, 04:19 PM

This can be such a frustrating hobby, can't it Kien? I hope that is it for the stning...save what you can and hope it's just those. Your tank is incredible so you are doing something right...just a little bump in the road.:wink:

Yup, definitely challenging at times. This morning I found my gorg laying on top of my lobo which is a very powerful stinger. Half my gorg is dead :cry:

kien

02-27-2010, 12:40 AM

doh! I just found out that I haven't been running my carbon for a couple of weeks now. Yikes! I guess I unplugged it a couple of weeks ago while rewiring things around and forgot to plug it back in. The carbon is pitch black and it is hard to see under the dark stand so I just assumed it was running. Anyway, hope this was it. Carbon is supposed to help remove unwanted chemicals I think? Like for example the nasty chemicals that corals use during chemical warefare? So maybe without the carbon stripping it out it was building up in my tank and started affecting some of them.

kien

03-01-2010, 05:45 AM

One of my brains decided it wanted to have some lunch today. He usually opens at night but I have never ever seen him open during the day before!

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4397747296_8704d2fdc8_o.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4049/4396992633_faba1e412e_o.jpg

Coleus

03-01-2010, 05:47 AM

crazy nice close up picts

zooz

03-06-2010, 06:54 AM

Awesome tank build Klein. Thanks for updating so often and sharing your experiences with everyone.

Leah

03-06-2010, 12:33 PM

Kien

That brain is gorgeous...great picture. :mrgreen:

kien

03-09-2010, 05:15 AM

Thanks! Those are not my brains though, they are Coleus' :wink: You missing those brains yet?? :lol:

kien

03-09-2010, 05:36 AM

Well, since I did up a little write up about how I made fish food I figure maybe I'll do one up demonstrating how I mix Randy's Two-Part for dosing Baking Soda (Alkalinity) and Calcium (From littlesilvermax).

Alkalinity
----------
1. The first thing I do is go out and buy baking soda of course. Easy enough. You can get 2 kg (4.4lb) box from just about any grocery store for roughly $4.99. That comes out to like $1.13 a pound. Not bad.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9379.jpg?t=1268116003

2. I then spread the baking soda out on a sheet and bake it in the oven at 350(F) for about an hour (or more).

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9397.jpg?t=1268115959

You can't really over bake this stuff. Randy has a couple of recipes. One that calls for baking and one that does not. Obviously I am using the one that requires baking.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9395.jpg?t=1268115852

3. After I've baked a batch (i'll usually do like 6 - 8 kgs at a time), I store it in a huge tub.

4. Okay, so on to the mixing. To make up a gallon (3.78L) of this stuff requires 2 1/4 cups of baked baking soda and 14 1/4 cups of water.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9380.jpg?t=1268116047

I put my water into a pot on the stove and turn the stove on low to warm up the water. This helps with the dissolving

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9382.jpg?t=1268116090

I then pull out my trusty fish blender. This also helps with the mixing A LOT! Trust me! Otherwise you are stirring by hand, very very briskly for a long long long long (did I mention long?) time..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9381.jpg?t=1268116204

Even with the blender you still don't want to poor it all in at once. Instead I tap the cup of baking soda on the edge of the pot to drop in a little bit at a time while blending/mixing/stirring.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9387.jpg?t=1268116301

After a few minutes I'm all done and just poor in into a 2L storage bottle. Easy peasy!

Calcium
-------------
Mixing up calcium additive is more or less the same approach, except there is no baking involved! To make a gallon of additive I mix 2 1/2 cups of calcium (purchased in bulk from littlesilvermax/chemmaster) with 13 1/2 cups of water. I don't even heat up the water when mixing up calcium actually. Just dump both water and calcium together into a container, blend/stir/mix with my hand blender and not long after I'll have 1 gallon of calcium additive ready for dosing.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9398.jpg?t=1268116506

kien

03-09-2010, 05:48 AM

Fish toys, gotta love 'em :-)

Here we have the fancy schmancy Vertex UF-15 Media Reactor. Great for tumbling oh.. say.. some NP bio pellets perhaps? :biggrin:

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9399.jpg?t=1268116939

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9401.jpg?t=1268117015

The inlet and outlets are 3/4" so I needed to get a couple of adapters in order to hook the inlet up to a maxijet 1200 and to get the outlet to bend back into the sump. It is a fairly sizable reactor that can go in or out of the sump.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9402.jpg?t=1268117034

Bye bye phosban reactor, hello new hotness.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9403.jpg?t=1268117099

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9405.jpg?t=1268117138

One mod I did perform was to cut the stock sponges in half. They were really really thick! I shaved them down to about a half a centimeter in thickness. If I had enkamat I probably would have used that, but sadly I do not have any enkamat :(
And here they are tumbling the day away.. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prNQoUlejNM)

Leah

03-09-2010, 11:51 AM

Kien

Is that a little mad scientist going on or exotic chef? :wink:

Coleus

03-10-2010, 08:14 PM

Thanks! Those are not my brains though, they are Coleus' :wink: You missing those brains yet?? :lol:

I missed them dearly, so try to set up the cube tank as fast as I can but for some reason, it seems like the most difficult task for me :-(

kien

03-13-2010, 04:54 AM

Kien

Is that a little mad scientist going on or exotic chef? :wink:

both? Muahahahahha! My wife keeps accusing me of making up meth :neutral:

Well, things are look like they are back on track with the SPS colonies. It was definitely the carbon, or rather the lack of carbon. So ya, I had forgotten to run my carbon for two weeks and that's all it took for the really sensitive colonies to go south. They started to bleach pretty bad. Looks like I caught it in time. Carbon has been back online now for about two weeks and the bleached bits have started to regenerate. Luckily I did not loose any colonies.

Out of this I have gained a new appreciation for carbon and its benefits in an SPS reef. As we all know SPS (and other corals) like to conduct chemical warfare. Our reef tanks are literally filled with chemicals that we can neither see nor test for. How do we keep that in check? In the ocean dilution keeps this in check but we don't have that benefit in our tanks unless we do a lot of water changes. It is my belief that carbon aids us in this department. It helps to trap and clean up those nasty chemicals. Some corals are robust and are able to deal with these chemicals but more sensitive corals are not. I think this is why when these sorts of things occur we'll see some corals react while others are unscathed. I think the quality of the carbon is very important too. I've read a few cases now where bad carbon has been suspected to be the cause of mass SPS decline. I don't necessarily think that this is due to the impurities in the carbon, but perhaps more so the fact that the cheap-o carbon just does not have adequate absorption capabilities. That is, not all carbons are created equal. Some cheap ones may only last a week while it seems the general consensus is to change carbon out once a month.

Anyway, these are my theories based on my recent experience :-)

fishytime

03-13-2010, 05:11 AM

I would have to agree with you more than slightly, brother:wink:

kien

03-13-2010, 05:14 AM

I would have to agree with you more than slightly, brother:wink:

Oh that's too bad .. I was hoping for a good discussion on the matter :lol: :biggrin:

The Grizz

03-27-2010, 06:31 AM

Hey Kien, it was good to meet you tonight your tank is amazing you need to put a FTS that shows that awesome looking stand for all to see.

hillegom

04-03-2010, 11:57 PM

Excellent journal

kien

04-04-2010, 02:24 AM

Hey Kien, it was good to meet you tonight your tank is amazing you need to put a FTS that shows that awesome looking stand for all to see.

Great to meet you too! Hope those bulbs work out for ya! There are lots of FTS with the stand in this thread, somewhere (I think if you go back to August).. :biggrin:

Excellent journal

Thanks! There are some big changes in store for this system..

fishytime

04-09-2010, 02:24 AM

Thanks! There are some big changes in store for this system..

Oh do tell!:biggrin:........congrats btw on the TOTM my brutha:wink:

Skimmerking

04-09-2010, 02:37 AM

the alk and cal mixes how long does that last for Kien, of what you made.
what is the strenght the ALK and CAL per bottle

lorenz0

04-09-2010, 05:52 AM

this thread needs less talk and more picture updates!!!

Delphinus

04-09-2010, 05:55 AM

my brutha:wink:

You're channeling Desmond Hume?

kien

04-09-2010, 11:28 AM

Oh do tell!:biggrin:........congrats btw on the TOTM my brutha:wink:

this thread needs less talk and more picture updates!!!

patience my friends, patience.. :biggrin:

the alk and cal mixes how long does that last for Kien, of what you made.
what is the strenght the ALK and CAL per bottle

My 2L bottle of alk seems to last me two weeks and, the calcium about a week and a half. I'm following Randy's two part formula (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php#2) and he states that it is about 1,900 meq/L of alkalinity (5,300 dKH) and 37,000 ppm calcium.

Skimmerking

04-09-2010, 11:40 AM

thanks Kien how much are you using per day for your dosing

kien

04-09-2010, 11:40 AM

Before I get started I thought it would be fun to see a before and after. Here's a shot of the tank in its infancy, pretty much day one (August 2009), and the second shot is what it looks like today (April 2010).

August 2009:
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0790.jpg?t=1270812953

April 2010:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4002/4505221352_c6b97b639d_b.jpg

kien

04-09-2010, 11:47 AM

thanks Kien how much are you using per day for your dosing

In a 24hour period I dose 234ml of Alk and 264 ml of calcium. I just did the math and it looks like I'm exhausting them quicker than I thought. Doesn't seem that quick but I guess I get just a little over 8 days out of the alk and a little less than 8 out of the calcium (from 2L bottles). I guess I could go with 4L bottles but topping up every 7-8 days isn't much of a chore.

lorenz0

04-09-2010, 03:12 PM

ha i totally didn't see you were TOTM. congrats bud

Red Coral Aquariums

04-09-2010, 05:56 PM

ha i totally didn't see you were TOTM. congrats bud

Ya Kien I also didn't see that till yesterday. Wow when I was at your place and saw your tank in person I was blown away. Next time I come I will spend some time and add some nose prints to the outside of the glass.
Kevin

mseepman

04-09-2010, 06:17 PM

Love the pics of before and now. Kien, your tank is a real beauty.

andestang

04-09-2010, 06:25 PM

Great before and after shots ! What difference. Been awhile since I read through the build but is that RBTA on the right side ? Be interesting to see what you have for change coming up.

fooser

04-09-2010, 07:07 PM

My 2L bottle of alk seems to last me two weeks and, the calcium about a week and a half. I'm following Randy's two part formula (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/rhf/index.php#2) and he states that it is about 1,900 meq/L of alkalinity (5,300 dKH) and 37,000 ppm calcium.

Holy crap Kien! How come yours is using so little? It looks liek you have a pretty big sps load, I would think it would use more? I use the same recipe as you and I go through my 1 gallon bottles in less than 3 weeks... what are you doing right that I am not? :P

kien

04-10-2010, 03:22 PM

Love the pics of before and now. Kien, your tank is a real beauty.

Thanks :-)

Great before and after shots ! What difference. Been awhile since I read through the build but is that RBTA on the right side ? Be interesting to see what you have for change coming up.

Yup,

Holy crap Kien! How come yours is using so little? It looks liek you have a pretty big sps load, I would think it would use more? I use the same recipe as you and I go through my 1 gallon bottles in less than 3 weeks... what are you doing right that I am not? :P

Hmm I don't know. I did redo the math and it seems that I am depleting quicker than first guessed but doesn't sound like your rates still. You have way more SPS than I do though. I don't think I have that many sps given my 150 volume.

kien

04-14-2010, 08:00 AM

So if you've been following along you'll know that I run a Profilux II to control my various aquarium equipment. Well, the Profilux 3 came out not too long ago and I jumped on the upgrade bandwagon pretty much right away. Got a smoking deal on it from my favourite LFS (Red Coral Aquariums - thanks Kevin!!). Haven't had a chance to install the it until now though..

Ever wonder what the guts of a Profilux looks like?

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0040.jpg?t=1271231544

The hardware upgrade itself was pretty easy once I found the instructions (online). One complaint I do have though is the fact that every set of instructions I found said in step 1 to remove the top of the controller, but none of them said how to do that! It took me a little while to figure it out. Those blue tabs just click in and out of place, then the top and bottom halves slide apart. No screws involved.

Anyway, here is the reassembled controller with the Profilux 3 upgrade installed.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0041.jpg?t=1271231722

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0043.jpg?t=1271231773

The hardest part about the whole thing was actually reapplying all the settings as the upgrade pretty much wipes them all out. Good thing I wrote down everything.

And here we are back online!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0084.jpg?t=1271231848

kien

04-14-2010, 08:59 AM

Earlier this year I started thinking about setting up a FOWLR tank. At first I wanted that tank to be separate from the main 150g mixed reef, but after playing around with my 104.72g lagoon for a while I decided that a separate tank of that size just isn't going to work for me. If I'm going to add another tank it HAS to be plumped into the 150 some how so that I can leverage one sump, which means one water change, one dosing location, one heating location, etc..

So speaking of sumps, that's where we begin. I took this opportunity to modify the existing sump while adding two additional sump tanks, one to be used as a connector sump to the main sump and one as a water change tank (more on this later). The 3 sump system looks some thing like this.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/supersump.jpg?t=1271233998

Both tanks will have their own return pumps. I found that this is easier to control the herbies in each tank, rather than having one massive return pump with a splitter or manifold. Plus now I can electronically cut supply to each tank individually which is handy.

The sump tanks are fairly small in comparison to the 104.72g lagoon tank that I built so again I decided to build the sump tanks myself.

First up is the primary sump. Here it is held together with just the corner brace to dry fit it.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9986.jpg?t=1271234380

Once I'm happy with the fit I drop down one of the side panels and apply a bead of silicone to the bottom of the pane.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0006.jpg?t=1271234478

Lift that pane of glass back up, hold it in place with the corner braces, and lightly push the bottom in but NOT too hard as to squish ALL the silicone out. You never want glass on glass because that's just a weak point that will likely fail!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0007.jpg?t=1271234548

Repeat for the other side panel. Now we drop down the back panel and apply silicone on 3 sides and push that panel into place.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9994.jpg?t=1271234708

Once that panel is in place secure with a piece of nylon tape on the top and bottom.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9995.jpg?t=1271234740

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9996.jpg?t=1271234820

Repeat for the front panel. Now we apply a bead of silicon in all the corners and crevasses and squish in with a finger.

The other two tanks pretty much went the same way. I decided that since these were sumps and I was in a bit of a time crunch I skipped the taping and masking on these tanks. It makes for very ugly siliconing but the sumps are going to get ugly anyway. Here's the trio.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0013.jpg?t=1271234861

Here's the new Primary Sump back in place.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0036.jpg?t=1271235084

Here's my new ghetto sensor array.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0081.jpg?t=1271235170

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0114.jpg?t=1271235212

Return section with the two pumps.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0083.jpg?t=1271235252

Full Sump Shot.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0080.jpg?t=1271235128

kien

04-14-2010, 09:11 AM

The new tank is a 131g that I had built by Red Coral Aquariums. Kevin even delivered it to my house, thanks Kevin! It was nice because that option wasn't available with my 150g tank which kinda sucked..

The dimensions are 60Lx18Wx28T. It houses two one inch drain pipes (herbie style) in an overflow box at the back right corner. Only one front pane is viewable so the other three (sides and back) are covered with black vinyl. Eurobraced and polished beveled edges on the front panel and eurobrace. I have to say, I'm quite happy with the tank. It even came with the foam pad underneath so I didn't have to supply my own and the price was quite reasonable in my opinion.

Here she is.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0015.jpg?t=1271236160

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0016.jpg?t=1271236184

The stand is just a typical wooden stand built out of 2x4s. Pretty much the same stand plans that everyone else uses I think.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/148629DIY_Stand_Template.jpg?t=1271236630

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0014.jpg?t=1271236201

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0021-1.jpg?t=1271236227

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0026.jpg?t=1271236245

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0030.jpg?t=1271236273

kien

04-14-2010, 09:35 AM

Here's what the Secondary and Water Change tanks look like.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0031.jpg?t=1271236837

The plumbing connecting the Water Change tank to the Secondary Sump that you see there has actually changed. I had to drill a third 1" hole to support the flow and so it now looks like this actually.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9818.jpg?t=1271236925

Basically, water drains out of the 131g display into the Water Change sump. As that tank fills/overflows it flows into the Secondary sump. The emergency overflow is plumbed directly to the Secondary Sump. The Secondary Sump is connected to the Primary Sump with a 1 1/2" line.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0033.jpg?t=1271237034

Water is drawn through and out of the sumps via the return section of the Primary Sump which house two MagDrive pumps. Here's the line (3/4") going to the 131g.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0034.jpg?t=1271237128

One of the reasons for this whole exercise is to finally realize my dream of automatic water changes. Here's how it will go down.

1. Feed to the 131g tank is cut (via the controller).
2. Two float switches and one pump will reside in the water change tank. Water is pumped out of this tank until the lower float switch is activated. This pump is plumbed to a drain in the basement. (I cut a hole in the floor to support this).
3. Once the first (lower) float switch is activited that pump-out pump is shut down and the pump-in pump is triggered which pumps in newly mixed salt water from the basement reservoir. This salt water is pumped in until a second float switch at the top of the water change tank is triggered.
4. Once the water change tank is refilled the return pump to the 131g tank is turned back on which pushes the new water through the system.

Still missing a few parts to finish this bit up so stay tuned for a demo once it is all in place.

kien

04-14-2010, 09:54 AM

For lighting I decided to go with an ATI fixture. I originally wanted a Sunpower but my LFS informed me that the supplier was out of those and it would be a few weeks before we could get one in. Instead, he offered a Powermodule at an unbelievable deal so I jumped on that.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0027.jpg?t=1271238136

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0028.jpg?t=1271238241

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0029.jpg?t=1271238259

Here's my hanging rig. Nothing fancy, just a strip of wood run accross the ceiling so that I could anchor it to 3 beams in the ceiling, and punched a couple of holes in the strip to drop down the hanging wires.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0017-1.jpg?t=1271238639
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0019-1.jpg?t=1271238591

Lights are:

KZ Coral Light New Gen (14K)
KZ Superblue (22K)
KZ Coral Light (10K)
KZ Fuji Purple
Hamilton Tech Actinic (460nm)
KZ Coral Light New Gen (14K)

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9820.jpg?t=1271238296

kien

04-14-2010, 10:17 AM

When I knew that I was going to set up a FOWLR back in January the first thing I did was run out and buy some live rock so that I could start to cook and cure it. Here's my cooking and curing setup.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0088.jpg?t=1271238999

By the time I was ready to use the rocks (3 months later) they were nice and clean :-)

Other than the live rock, here's what else I needed to aquascape.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0063.jpg?t=1271239143

If you've followed this thread from the beginning you may remember that I used acrylic rods and zip ties for my 150g aquascaping. Well, I pretty much did the exact same thing. I had a fairly dynamic structure that I wanted to build so I added the use of epoxy, lots of epoxy..

Here's the main base structure which supports mostly all of the weight. A very very heavy piece of travertine rock anchors the whole thing. A single 3/8" rod rods through the centre of all the rocks to hold them in place.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0064.jpg?t=1271239351

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0065.jpg?t=1271239528

Additional structures are similarly held in place by slightly smaller rods and zip ties.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0066.jpg?t=1271239557

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0072.jpg?t=1271239693

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0070.jpg?t=1271239719

Then finally I added this arm structure to the base structure to get something like this.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0068.jpg?t=1271239754

Nothing is secured at this point because I actually have to assemble the whole thing inside the tank as the entire structure is way too heavy to lift. There are 3 sections that just hang loose on their joining rods. Once assembled in the tank the they will be secured and joints filled with epoxy..

Here I am assembling the structure in the tank. Photo courtesy of the wifey :biggrin:

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/photo-1.jpg?t=1271240052

Here's what the final structure looks like. Epoxy is also used to cover up all the zip ties.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9789.jpg?t=1271240229

kien

04-14-2010, 10:24 AM

Time to fill the tank. It took quite a while to make up enough water but I did use water from the cooking and curing bins as they tested out to be quite good by the time the rocks were ready.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0091.jpg?t=1271240489

What better way to wait than to surf canreef on this..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9796.jpg?t=1271240593

I have to say, canreef is great on the iPhone but it is damn sexy on the iPad. :biggrin:

kien

04-14-2010, 10:27 AM

There's more, but let's take a little break and see what Mr. Blue Starfish is up to these days.

Oh look, he seems to have taken up liverock climbing.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9798.jpg?t=1271240746

and after a climbing session he likes to crash and chill out on his zoa couch.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9800.jpg?t=1271240796

TJSlayer

04-14-2010, 01:55 PM

Looks amazing kien, love the way everything is setup, can't wait to see it in action, looks very cool.

TJ

lorenz0

04-14-2010, 03:12 PM

So hold the phone.... you got a power module for a fowler????

love the set up man, its going to look killer once everything is done

freezetyle

04-14-2010, 06:00 PM

Kien... we need to talk.... You gotta stop setting up reef tanks so the rest of us can have a chance for TOTM. Seriously, Its getting out of hand...

Love the scape, gonna be a beauty for sure:mrgreen:

superduperwesman

04-15-2010, 05:17 AM

burtonboy

04-15-2010, 05:47 AM

WOW!!! Looks really good kien!! Cant wait to see this tank full of fish, Do u know what kind of fish your going to put in there yet?

I like how the water change sump/container turned out! Ill be putting mine together this week i hope it works out, seeing how u had to put in a third hole in the water change container do think putting 1 or 2 2" holes would work? How many gallons/hour is going through your tank?

Thanks!

Daniel

Coleus

04-15-2010, 05:56 AM

Hopefully, I will get a chance to see this setup in person. Really like the black looks of the tank

kien

04-15-2010, 03:04 PM

Why not just have the tanks separate? You have 2 return pumps anyway. Isn't the fowlr just going to increase your nutrients and make it harder to maintain you the levels in your mixed reef? I'm assuming it's mainly to ease you water changes b/c your tank is in the middle of your main floor but why not just implement your sump with water change section on both tanks? I guess you'd also need another skimmer but don't or didn't you already have one?

Don't get me wrong. Love the tank! And you're far better reefer than I'll ever be but just a few things that came to mind

My goal is to reduce duplication of maintenance and equipment. One skimmer to clean, one tank to dose and test, one tank to heat, one controller to monitor the temp, pH, salinity, etc.. I wouldn't say that it will be harder to maintain levels in the mixed reef and I wouldn't say nutrient levels are necessarily going to go up. What I have effectively done is increase my entire water volume by 150g taking my total water volume to the 300+ mark. Plus I have a new skimmer coming that's rated for 400ish gallons and will be dumping in another liter of NP BioPellets :-D In the end I think of this as one 300g system rather than two systems. Just like with everything else in this hobby there are pros and cons and there typically isn't a right or wrong answer, just different answers. So by no means would I consider my setup the RIGHT way of doing things.. just the way that I'd like to do it :biggrin:

WOW!!! Looks really good kien!! Cant wait to see this tank full of fish, Do u know what kind of fish your going to put in there yet?

I like how the water change sump/container turned out! Ill be putting mine together this week i hope it works out, seeing how u had to put in a third hole in the water change container do think putting 1 or 2 2" holes would work? How many gallons/hour is going through your tank?

Thanks!

Daniel

Thanks! I'm not much of a plumber but it depends on the size of the pipe that you're feeding the water change tank with. In my example I have one 1" drain pipe feeding this tank from the 131g tank and discovered that two 1" outlets from the water change tank could just barely keep up with that! (like both 1" outlets were totally submerged). That kind of had me scratching my head but whatever.. I just drilled a third 1" drain and that solved that. I'd imagine a 2" hole would flow more than enough. The reason I went with 1" outlets is because I wanted to maximize the water in the water change tank as much as possible. 1" holes allows those holes to be higher up on that tank, and when the feed water is cut off I only loose an inch or so of water when it drains to the bottom of those bulkheads. A 2" hole will be much bigger, so you'll lose a bit more volume in the water change tank.

As for stocking, I'm thinking this will be an "Angels & Demons" sort of tank. Angelfish and Triggers :)

kien

04-15-2010, 03:06 PM

So hold the phone.... you got a power module for a fowler????

love the set up man, its going to look killer once everything is done

The phone is off the hook! :lol: I know that I am going to throw some corals in this tank, probably SPS :-) (hence the "reef" in FOWLR reef :lol:).

Kien... we need to talk.... You gotta stop setting up reef tanks so the rest of us can have a chance for TOTM. Seriously, Its getting out of hand...

Love the scape, gonna be a beauty for sure:mrgreen:

word ! I seriously need to stop setting up tanks.. no seriously ! :lol: Although I am in the process of installing a separate power circuit on the main floor with its own dual 20amp breaker so I think I might be good for at least another couple of tanks? :drinking: Really what I should have done is just enclosed my entire dining room with 1" acrylic and turned that whole space into a tank.

lastlight

04-15-2010, 08:05 PM

kien

04-15-2010, 08:14 PM

Love how you document all the little details Kien. Looks like a really nice tank you had made there I'm looking forward to seeing more. My only concern is those 3 pipes tying those tanks together. You added one more pipe to keep up with the flow...so you have enough plus a tiny bit? I'm sure you'll make sure they never get plugged...but there isn't a great margin of safety there from what I understand...

Thanks :-) Ya, those three pipes going out of the water change tank flow more than enough now. Two of those pipes was actually enough to just barely keep up with the overflow of the 131g's 1" drainpipe WIDE OPEN. I just didn't like how close I was cutting it with just the two pipes as they were totally submerged when running in that mode (but still keeping up). Adding the third is what's giving me that margin for error, plus the herbie is not typically run with the main drain pipe wide open so there's a margin for error there as well. On top of that, if the main herbie drain plugs up the WIDE OPEN emergency bypasses the water change tank entirely and goes straight to the secondary tank which is a total non issue. Trust me, I fear floods like I fear root canals :biggrin:

lastlight

04-15-2010, 08:26 PM

Got it just wanted to make sure =) I know you're no noob AND you're on hardwood lol. What controller are you using to manage water changes? I missed that detail.

kien

04-15-2010, 08:29 PM

Got it just wanted to make sure =) I know you're no noob AND you're on hardwood lol. What controller are you using to manage water changes? I missed that detail.

no worries, thanks for keeping me on my toes! it is appreciated :biggrin:

I run a profilux controller, but I'm pretty sure all the controllers out there have level sensor inputs? I don't know for sure as I've never seen any other one in person, but I would assume that they do?

My profilux actually has 3 level inputs. I use one for a fresh water auto-top-off, and the other two are being used for the automatic water change tank.

andestang

04-15-2010, 09:21 PM

kien

04-15-2010, 09:32 PM

Wow lots to catch up here ! Looking great by the way. I'm waiting for my Profilux III update kit. How is your main display? I've read about some complaints that display is really dim or parts of it. Also did you get warranty with yours, with all the self installs and problems with the way people are doing them I've been told that self install are not warrantied. I've wrote to them with this concern and all they did was respond back with the "how to install update manual" :confused:.

I do find the main display dimmer than the previous one, but I rarely use the main display. Instead I have the ProfiluxView II that I use for all displays. Very hand because the controller is tucked under the stand.

I did not get warranty with mine, I doubt that that's even possible? To be honest, if I was them i would not warranty self installs either as A LOT can go wrong, horribly wrong. I think people should only attempt self installs at their own risk. Aqua-Digital (Canadian supplier) actually provides an upgrade install service if you ship him your unit he'll install it for you and that *may* be warranty, I don't know. Again, I certainly would not recommend to anyone to do the install by themselves if they are at all hesitant. The instructions are pretty good but there are little gotchas like 1. they don't actually spell out how to remove the top cover. 2. There are screws that need to be removed from the PCB but they are not standard screws so you need to run out and buy a screwdriver for it but they don't tell you what types of screws they are! (I was lucky and just happened to have that screwdriver around from when I took apart my cell phone :lol:). There were other little things that weren't documented that I stumbled on and had scour the internet to find answers too :neutral:

andestang

04-15-2010, 09:49 PM

kien

04-15-2010, 10:02 PM

Ya I heard about the free install from Aqua-Digital, but I'll tackle my own. Thanks for the heads up on the few unnoted details. Forgot to ask, what epoxy are you using for you rock work - Aquascape Milliput Epoxy ?

while you've got that bad boy open, make note of what USB chipset you have on there. It is the chip on the USB controller/port. If you want to install the windows usb driver you'll need the chipset, there are two different ones. I had to open up my box a second when I found out I needed this info. If you need to flash your firmware with the flasher program (like I did), you'll also need to know which microcontroller you've got in there. The flasher program lists a crap load of them and I had to do some searching to figure out which one I had.. I could not for the life of me get the box to flash via USB or ethernet, had to use the serial port and a USB to Serial convert because I have no computers in the house with a serial port. I also had troubles connecting to the P3 upgrade with the latest ProfiluxControl software. I had to flash the firmware to the latest in order to use ProfiluxControl.

I use Tailor Aquatics Epoxy. Seems to be the only kind LFS in calgary (at least the ones I visit) seem to carry.

Red Coral Aquariums

04-15-2010, 10:08 PM

I use Tailor Aquatics Epoxy. Seems to be the only kind LFS in calgary (at least the ones I visit) seem to carry.
We also carry the D+D Aquascape Epoxy.
Out of 10 Epoxy sales 6 are D+D and 4 are TA.
Kevin

kien

04-15-2010, 10:13 PM

We also carry the D+D Aquascape Epoxy.
Out of 10 Epoxy sales 6 are D+D and 4 are TA.
Kevin

Hmm, I guess I just haven't been looking hard enough. I seem to only notice the Tailor Aquatics stuff I guess :biggrin: They work well enough and come in two colours (although the other guys probably have two colours too). Maybe I'll try the other stuff some time to compare. I seem to go through a lot of epoxy..

Red Coral Aquariums

04-15-2010, 10:18 PM

I found the D+D sticks better but takes 3 x longer to dry. I usually leave it out for for 5 min.

The Grizz

04-15-2010, 11:29 PM

WOW very very impressive Kien. I have now got it into my head that I will never win TOTM with set up's like this out there. Nice work :thumb:

Skimmerking

04-15-2010, 11:50 PM

No shortage of money in MR reefer's house

kien

04-17-2010, 04:29 AM

WOW very very impressive Kien.

thanks :-)

No shortage of money in MR reefer's house

Check it! :biggrin:

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9844.jpg?t=1271478066

So this is what I'll be using to handle the extra bio load. What we have here is a Bubble Magus 220CS. Thanks Kevin! (@Red Coral Aquariums). Above is how it came, unassembled.

Equipped with the EHEIM 1260 pump.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9846.jpg?t=1271478186

The skimmer cup is massive !

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9847.jpg?t=1271478229

And here she is fully assembled. The instructions were interesting to say the least. I think my broken-english reading skills have gotten quite good now.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9850.jpg?t=1271478255

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9852.jpg?t=1271478349

I will definitely be using this outlet to feed my ghetto external-hang-on skimmer collection cup.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9854.jpg?t=1271478366

And a very handy adjustment dial with markings!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9853.jpg?t=1271478419

And everyone loves a top-down shot right?

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9855.jpg?t=1271478454

mseepman

04-17-2010, 06:16 AM

Looking good! Nice skimmer! Are you going to run this with your other skimmer or all by itself?

kien

04-17-2010, 06:35 AM

Looking good! Nice skimmer! Are you going to run this with your other skimmer or all by itself?

All by itself. It is rated for 315-450g so I should be good to go :-)

kien

04-17-2010, 06:51 AM

So after all that, here's what I ended up with.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9857.jpg?t=1271486809

I'm having a bit of a conflict with the low rock pile to the right. I really want to turf it but its the only cave structure I have for fish to hide and I think that's pretty important in the long run, so I may have to keep it. And yes, those are SPS pieces that I kept from the 104.72 lagoon. They were crowding the 150g reef so I threw them into the FOWLR.

Here are a few of the inhabitants.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9858.jpg?t=1271486915

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9862.jpg?t=1271486932

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9838.jpg?t=1271486951

There are a few others but I'll save them for later :biggrin:

This weekend I hope to skin the stand and set up the automatic water change.

Argentiner

04-17-2010, 08:32 AM

Setup looks great Kien. Great pics and explanations of everything too. Both tanks are amazing. Looks like you are wearing scrubs in the one pic. Work at a hospital?

andestang

04-18-2010, 01:33 AM

He he, thats what I was going to ask as my wife is an RN :)

Setup looks great Kien. Great pics and explanations of everything too. Both tanks are amazing. Looks like you are wearing scrubs in the one pic. Work at a hospital?

Carmen

04-18-2010, 03:46 AM

Looking Incredible Kien!:mrgreen: I think the rockscape is very neat! A stellar build, as if we would expect anything but from you!

lorenz0

04-18-2010, 05:46 AM

tank looks awesome. love it

kien

04-19-2010, 08:38 AM

Thanks everyone! And yes, those are hospital scrubs I'm wearing :-)

So this evening I finally got around to plugging in the Bubble Magus. I had assembled it on Friday but didn't have a chance to actually start using it until today. Luckily I have plenty of room in the sump to wrestle that beast in. Here he is busy skimming away.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9893.jpg?t=1271665764

So when I plugged the Magus in I decided to clean out and replace my carbon. This process took about 20 minutes plus another 10 minutes of cleaning up. After I reinstalled the carbon reactors I took a peek at Mr. Magus to see what he was up to. I was quite shocked at what I saw. This is 30 minutes worth of skimming..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9892.jpg?t=1271666038

Fish poop on the walls of my brand new shiny skimmer cup!

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9888.jpg?t=1271665984

I am officially a Bubble Magus fan boy! :lol:

Mmmm.. seafoam..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9894.jpg?t=1271666094

Coleus

04-19-2010, 03:40 PM

I am officially a Bubble Magus fan boy! :lol:

Mmmm.. seafoam..

Wait until BM breaking in and you will be more impressed.

Great picts and description as always

kien

04-23-2010, 09:16 PM

Today I decided to top up my NP BioPellets and while I was at it, I figured I'd re-plumb the reactor. The reactor, although performs beautifully, is kind of awkward to plumb. Currently I have a crap load of hose adapters to go from my MaxiJet 1200 into the Vertex with hose snaking through the sump. Not a very clean setup but got the job done.

Instead of flex hose all over the place I decided to use rigid 1/2" PVC and cemented all the pieces together. I also wanted to minimize the footprint of the whole rig so it took a little playing around with. I also wanted to increase the input so I threw a bigger pump at it.

Utilizing this cheap-o 500gph pump from Odyssea.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9910.jpg?t=1272056830

Here's what I ended up with..

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9902.jpg?t=1272056874 http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9903.jpg?t=1272056901

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9904.jpg?t=1272056926 http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9905.jpg?t=1272056948

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9906.jpg?t=1272056967

here she is in the sump.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9908.jpg?t=1272057059

Even with all of those 90 degree bends I still have to throttle back (about 1/4 turn) the input or the pellets get blasted through the outlet. Also, as you can see here the outlet drops right in front of the inlet to the skimmer.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9921.jpg?t=1272057110

and here is my new full sump shot.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9912.jpg?t=1272057137

kien

04-23-2010, 09:18 PM

Wait until BM breaking in and you will be more impressed.

Great picts and description as always

i am impressed! Here is what the Bubble Magus pulls out of my system.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_9924.jpg?t=1272057482

yummy!

Delphinus

04-23-2010, 09:27 PM

What's the blue stuff wrapped around the pump? I see you have it in the water as well.

Coleus

04-23-2010, 09:28 PM

What's the blue stuff wrapped around the pump? I see you have it in the water as well.

was going to ask that as well the yellow and blue sponges that you have in tank. What are those for?

kien

04-23-2010, 09:38 PM

What's the blue stuff wrapped around the pump? I see you have it in the water as well.

A few layers of foam to dampen the vibration from the pump. The pump comes with a foot that has suction cups but I found it a little annoying how it suctioned to the bottom of the sump. Plus, the foot added a little bit of width to the whole thing which I wanted to reduce :-)

was going to ask that as well the yellow and blue sponges that you have in tank. What are those for?

The sponges are dish sponges that are quite porous and I used to use them for bacteria culture when I migrated everything from my previous 90g to the new 150g. I was going to take them out but discovered that copepods love to use them as breeding grounds so I leave them in there now. They are so porous that they don't seem to gunk up as I've never had to rinse them out in the entire year that I've had them. It might also be because they float. I'm thinking of throwing a few more in there to use as bacterial seeds for my quarantine tank. That is, whenever I need to set up a quarantine, just grab some of these sponges and throw them into the QT tank. If things get bad and I have to treat the QT with say, copper, I can throw out the sponges and buy new ones with little impact to my wallet. :)

kien

04-23-2010, 09:44 PM

And here's a video of the reactor with the new plumbing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEyPg8tatDo

Delphinus

04-23-2010, 09:55 PM

kien

04-23-2010, 10:04 PM

Wait, what, no HD video? Get with it man, I expect more from you. If they can film an entire episode of House on your camera then you can film pellets in HD. :p

Seriously, looks like a keen little setup for them pellets. Pun only semi intentional (noticed it after I typed it in, but think I'm gonna leave it in. :mrgreen:)

Actually I did film it 1080p HD :-) However, it takes YouTube a while to process it before you can access the HD version. In the meantime you're left with just the standard def conversion.

edit: the 1080p version is available now :-)

Coleus

04-23-2010, 10:07 PM

it is great to get half Friday off huh?

Delphinus

04-23-2010, 10:08 PM

... oh.

Um .. could you pretend that there's something that's not ridiculously perfect? Mostly I'm just trying to avoid myself from spiralling headfirst into full blown depression. Lie if you have to.

christyf5

04-24-2010, 12:43 AM

Delphinus

04-24-2010, 03:57 PM

So .. um .. wow, that's a lot of carbon. How often do you replace it? How come so much?

kien

04-24-2010, 04:27 PM

I typically only run a cup if rox 8 in one reactor that I change once a month. I'm just trying out a new system where I run half that amount (1/2 cup) in each reactor and replace one every 30 days. So, reactor 1 gets swapped out on the 15th if every month while reactor 2 gets swapped out on the 30th. The goal being a better transition from spent to new carbon. Just something to do I guess :lol:

mseepman

04-24-2010, 05:14 PM

As always...it's no wonder your reef is such a success!

Zoaelite

04-24-2010, 05:46 PM

kien

04-25-2010, 01:22 AM

Kien how are you liking the new skimmer? If you don't mind me asking what price range are the magus, I'm considering one to upgrade my old Euroreef 135?

Tanks looking amazing man! We need some more FTS!

I'm loving it. So far I have not found one single thing that I would change with this skimmer. Out of all four skimmers that I have used to date this one is by far my favourite.

You can find the distribution retail prices here -> http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=481187&postcount=15

Thanks for the comp! Um.. today's FTS will look exactly like my FTOTM FTS :-)

Zoaelite

04-25-2010, 01:52 AM

I'm loving it. So far I have not found one single thing that I would change with this skimmer. Out of all four skimmers that I have used to date this one is by far my favourite.

You can find the distribution retail prices here -> http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=481187&postcount=15

Thanks for the comp! Um.. today's FTS will look exactly like my FTOTM FTS :-)

:morning: lol

kien

04-25-2010, 02:54 AM

Last friday one of my favourite SPS pieces of all time arrived in the mail via Canada Post. A frag of the Superman Digi. I've been wanting this SPS since I got into SPS corals a year ago.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4037/4549905724_96885fd425_o.jpg

Big thanks to Dez for the frag :biggrin:

Here are a few other corals I snagged recently.

A pinkish lemonadey SPS from Red Coral.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4549267781_18a08a7220_o.jpg http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4549905968_5c1211a6ee_o.jpg

An unknown.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4041/4549906112_342ae57af6_o.jpg

A couple of deep waters.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4549906184_844d28e78f_o.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4027/4549905804_9884c839e6_o.jpg

And last but not least, an Elegance Coral.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4052/4549906314_aa39f7b739_o.jpg

no_bs

04-25-2010, 04:01 AM

Please explain why your out put of your vertex is pointed at your skimmer input? Does that not defeat the purpose of the food being created?

kien

04-25-2010, 04:06 AM

Please explain why your out put of your vertex is pointed at your skimmer input? Does that not defeat the purpose of the food being created?

Referring to their guidelines, third paragraph down :biggrin:

http://www.npbiopellets.com/index.php/product-guidelines

wisesam

04-25-2010, 07:42 AM

That superman digi is gorgeous. I so want a frag of it too.

andestang

04-25-2010, 08:48 AM

I can see why this is a fav, me also want :) Good old Dez. As for the unknown I'll take a stab at it possibly being a Acropora Parilis or Exquisita and the deep water being a Loripes or a Granulosa. Very nice Kien.

Last friday one of my favourite SPS pieces of all time arrived in the mail via Canada Post. A frag of the Superman Digi. I've been wanting this SPS since I got into SPS corals a year ago.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4037/4549905724_96885fd425_o.jpg

no_bs

04-26-2010, 04:07 AM

Referring to their guidelines, third paragraph down :biggrin:

http://www.npbiopellets.com/index.php/product-guidelines

Thanks for the link. Starting to make more sense with how they work.

dynamite

04-30-2010, 05:19 AM

Kien, how do you like your powermodule? :lol:

Do you like it better than your MH's?

Thanks in advance!

kien

05-01-2010, 04:24 AM

Kien, how do you like your powermodule? :lol:

Do you like it better than your MH's?

Thanks in advance!

I like the powermodule. It is a slick fixture and puts out a lot of light. To be honest though I am a halide fan as I do tend to miss the shimmer from it.. But then all I have to do is turn my head to the 150 reef. It is neat seeing them literally side by side because they both produce a completely different look. The halides are a sharp penetrating light while the T5s are more of a soft enveloping light. Well, that's how I see it anyway :) In the end it just boils down to which one you prefer.

dynamite

05-01-2010, 09:40 PM

Thanks Kien!

Trocar61

05-02-2010, 04:19 PM

Hey Kien, Thanks for all the input yesterday...was nice meeting you. also you have a great system....keep them pics rolling. :biggrin:

kien

05-03-2010, 02:33 AM

More pics? Okay, here they come!

So this is what the finished 131g FOWLR add-on tank looks like.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0117.jpg?t=1272853531

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0133.jpg?t=1272853553

Just like with the 150g stand, this one is simply skinned with cabinet door panels from Ikea and held in place with magnets.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0121.jpg?t=1272853572

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0120.jpg?t=1272853625

Here I'm using an espresso finish to match the decor of the dining room.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0134.jpg?t=1272853668

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0127.jpg?t=1272853721

Here is the final aquascaping.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0115.jpg?t=1272853742

And lastly, here's what the twin-tanks look like in the space.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0113-1.jpg?t=1272853849

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0139.jpg?t=1272853890

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0140.jpg?t=1272853906

There are still a few minor things left to finish up like the plumbing for the water change tank and some detailing to hide the plumbing that connects the two tanks. What I'm also noticing is that the Maristar light fixture that's on the 150g tank now looks a little out of place (colour wise). I've decided to take it out back and spray paint it silver to match the silver ATI fixture :-)

Leah

05-03-2010, 02:37 AM

Is it just me or is that FOWLR tank full of corals???? :redface:

Leah

05-03-2010, 02:38 AM

Tank is amazing by the way! :biggrin:

dynamite

05-03-2010, 02:39 AM

Is it just me or is that FOWLR tank full of corals???? :redface:

LOOL that's what I thought :mrgreen:

Anyways it looks great! and I want your aquascape!!! :twised:

kien

05-03-2010, 02:52 AM

Umm.. Ya.. Please don't confuse a typical FOWLR (Fish Only With Live Rock) with my use of the acronym where mine is actually Full Of Wonderful Live Rock'n'stuff. :lol:

Leah

05-03-2010, 02:56 AM

So you mean it is a FOWLRS tank, I get it. :biggrin: Is that how you got it in the front door. :wink:

hillegom

05-03-2010, 02:57 AM

Love your aquascaping

zum14

05-03-2010, 02:58 AM

Awesome acronym. Its nice to have a tank with "wonderful live rock'n'stuff" with a trigger and such. Looks amazing, very jelous.

lastlight

05-03-2010, 04:31 AM

That rock overhang is so badass. Gravity wants to make you it's b...boyfriend.

Room looks awesome man. I'd eat at the table more often if it was flanked by all that sweetness.

kien

05-05-2010, 12:58 AM

That rock overhang is so badass. Gravity wants to make you it's b...boyfriend.

Room looks awesome man. I'd eat at the table more often if it was flanked by all that sweetness.

Thanks Brett. I am definitely playing with fire (and gravity).. I fully expect that overhang to one day just fall off and crash to the bottom of my tank :lol:

If you don't mind eating under the glow of blue lights, sure :-) I discovered the other day that having the two tanks on the main floor has completely overloaded that main floor circuit. It isn't apparent until you turn on the dining room light.. (breaker trips!) :redface: We had to refrain from using that light for the past couple of weeks and I had to spread the load between the dining room circuit and a circuit in the kitchen just in case someone did accidentally turn that light on. A couple of ugly orange extension cords strewn about. Well, had enough of that so finally got around to getting a couple of new circuits installed right next to the tanks. Yes, TWO new circuits, each rated for 20 amps.

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af144/muzanji/IMG_0054.jpg?t=1273020486

So I guess we're good to go for fine dining underneath ugly incandescent lights once again :-)

My starfish was having one of those days were he was feeling very insecure in his own skin I guess..

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4011/4579465997_4c8cda880f_o.jpg

Personally I think the mushrooms make him look fat, but whatever.

lastlight

05-05-2010, 01:30 AM

That's a vibrant mother of a photo man. How long have you had the star? I thought I had read stars generally don't live too long in our tanks?

dynamite

05-05-2010, 01:54 AM

Kien, I cant stop telling you how much I love your aquascape :twised: If you ever... decide to sell your tank.. I'm on top of the list :mrgreen:

kien

05-06-2010, 03:34 AM

How long have you had the star? I thought I had read stars generally don't live too long in our tanks?

Funny you should mention that Brett.. Last year I had a smaller blue linckia that lasted about 3 months. After that he decided to break apart all of his limbs. I was sure he was a goner. I know that starfish will do this to reproduce sometimes but never actually seen or heard of any first hand accounts of this. Anyway, after a while I started to notice his limbs crawling about, some in the sand some crammed into crevasses. I didn't think much of it as I figured they would just die off and get eaten by crabs and shrimp. Well, a few weeks ago I noticed a couple of the free roaming limbs started to develop nubbins! I wasn't able to capture a photograph until now.

Here's what a couple of the limbs look like now.

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4021/4582638723_c0e98c7abf_o.jpg

Baby Blue Linckia!!

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4583267132_52b1d73c11_o.jpg

As for the large Blue Linckia in the mushroom photo I've had him for about a year now. I also have a purple (4 months) and orange one for about 8 months now.

kien

05-06-2010, 03:37 AM

Love your aquascaping

Awesome acronym. Its nice to have a tank with "wonderful live rock'n'stuff" with a trigger and such. Looks amazing, very jelous.

Kien, I cant stop telling you how much I love your aquascape :twised: If you ever... decide to sell your tank.. I'm on top of the list :mrgreen:

thanks guys :-)

andestang

05-06-2010, 03:46 AM

Ok that is just awesome! Keeping one alive is a great feat, but that is even better. Great pic - also love the one with the mushrooms :)

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4035/4583267132_52b1d73c11_o.jpg

fishytime

05-06-2010, 04:35 AM

Holy crap man!...beautiful home...kick-arse systems, with killer scaping in both...TOTM....POTM...starfish reproducing...you da main mang bye reef addicted brutha!:hail:

fishytime

05-06-2010, 04:38 AM

and I forgot to mention the photography!:lol:

Argentiner

05-06-2010, 06:48 AM

wow, amazing pics and tanks. Top of my list of tanks to see in Calgary for sure Kien.

kien

05-06-2010, 07:17 AM

Holy crap man!...beautiful home...kick-arse systems, with killer scaping in both...TOTM....POTM...starfish reproducing...you da main mang bye reef addicted brutha!:hail:

Thanks Doug :-) That reminds me, what is your schedule like this week? PM me! Ya.. this is me inviting myself over to see YOUR tank! :biggrin:

Ok that is just awesome! Keeping one alive is a great feat, but that is even better. Great pic - also love the one with the mushrooms

Thanks! Ya, I thought that little baby blue linckia was kinda cool to find. Almost as if I managed to some how captive breed them, but really it was just pure fluke.:lol: Still cool to have a captive born and hopefully raised little linckia though!

wow, amazing pics and tanks. Top of my list of tanks to see in Calgary for sure Kien.

Thanks! Definitely want to see yours too so I'll show you mine if you show me yours! :lol:

kien

05-10-2010, 02:32 AM

Picked up a few things over the past week (ya, I know, surprise surprise!) :lol:

Anyway, managed to finally get in on one of Red Coral's clam orders after missing the last couple of Grade A/Ultra Grade shipments.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1024/4594218950_d781d80fe7_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1171/4594218604_5befa138e3_o.jpg

Also picked up this pink/teal blasto not too long ago.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1202/4594219760_ec582432ee_o.jpg

Hmm.. looks like that bit of glass needs some cleaning..

And since I was in there snapping picks I figured I'd take a shot of my favourite clam of the bunch, the squamosa (not from the ultra maxima order).

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4025/4593601093_0b39e6cee2_o.jpg

zum14

05-10-2010, 02:52 AM

Those are amazing! I am hoping to get a clam here soon. How are they with the starfishes??? Ive heard they dont go well together?

Lance

05-10-2010, 02:55 AM

Excellent! Top-Notch! A-1! Gorgeous! Beautiful! (I can't come up with just one adjective that befits your tanks.) :biggrin:

kien

05-10-2010, 03:07 AM

How are they with the starfishes??? Ive heard they dont go well together?

Really? I didn't know that. I have 3 croceas, 2 maximas and a squamosa with 4 and 1/4 starfish roaming around and I can't say that I've Noticed any altercations.

Excellent! Top-Notch! A-1! Gorgeous! Beautiful! (I can't come up with just one adjective that befits your tanks.) :biggrin:

thanks lance :-). I have a couple more you can add.. expensive & tedious! :lol:

Lance

05-10-2010, 03:58 AM

thanks lance :-). I have a couple more you can add.. expensive & tedious! :lol:

No. That would be my tanks you're talking about now. :mrgreen:

zum14

05-10-2010, 04:13 AM

Really? I didn't know that. I have 3 croceas, 2 maximas and a squamosa with 4 and 1/4 starfish roaming around and I can't say that I've Noticed any altercations.

well this is interesting, I will have to do more research.

lastlight

05-10-2010, 04:56 AM

Love the blues in that second clam.

Do you do any saturation adjustments?

lobsterboy

05-10-2010, 06:32 AM

I heard about that clam in the first pic, and yup it lives up to it. very nice.

kien

05-10-2010, 06:48 AM

Love the blues in that second clam.

Do you do any saturation adjustments?

if I am shooting under T5s (the starfish in orange shrooms) then no. I usually have to drop the saturation for those ones. All other photos then yes, part of my photo processing script will kick the saturation up a notch or two. I've found that the combination of my halides and SLR sensor tends to wash out watery photos. I don't seem to have this problem when photographing under T5 lights tho.

I heard about that clam in the first pic, and yup it lives up to it. very nice.

Thanks! Ya.. That clam was starting to develop a reputation of its own :lol:

lobsterboy

05-10-2010, 06:57 AM

so is the strainer.

fishytime

05-10-2010, 03:06 PM

great clam shots brutha.....I dont see any scounts on that last clam.....are you sure its a squam and not a derasa?:wink:

Delphinus

05-10-2010, 03:27 PM

derasa

+1

kien

05-10-2010, 03:41 PM

It was sold to me by one of my favourite LFS as a Squamosa.. :-) But after doing some research just now I would agree that it is more likely a Derasa.

kien

05-16-2010, 06:24 AM

????????

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3051/4610475987_663114d206_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1029/4610476507_f240c0273c_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3301/4610476645_21a155fbaa_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1152/4611085592_dd870d761d_o.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1090/4611085762_97e1be9c3f_o.jpg

Delphinus

05-16-2010, 06:27 AM

Looks like it's flipping someone the bird.

muck

05-16-2010, 06:29 AM

lol... great shots but it looks like the star if giving you the bird. :lol:

kien

05-16-2010, 06:31 AM

hmm.. well, I was trying to capture how cool it was that he was doing some funky one leg acrobatics but ya.. now I see that he was giving me a big 'ol, F-YOU! :lol:

lastlight

05-16-2010, 08:34 AM

May have been dropping a t-bag on the coral below?

I probably play too much Halo though.

mseepman

05-16-2010, 04:36 PM

How is it that you get such amazing shots...you can't tell that they are through water...do you have to do a lot of editing afterwards? What camera and lens combo do you use?

kien

05-17-2010, 10:22 PM

How is it that you get such amazing shots...you can't tell that they are through water...do you have to do a lot of editing afterwards? What camera and lens combo do you use?

I don't do tonnes of editing no. I have found the trick to be..

1. Shoot through the glass as perpendicular to the glass as possible.
2. Make sure glass is wicked clean on both sides.
3. Turn off powerheads to limit motion of polyps and debris (unless you have a camera that can shoot at 1/500th of a second)
4. I sometimes use a tripod (unless you can shoot at 1/500th of a second).

I use a Canon 5D Mark II or Canon 40D or Olympus Tough 6000 (underwater camera). My lens of choice for photographing just about anything in the tank is a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lens (very sharp lens).

Editing consists of all or a subset of the following tasks.

1. Sharpening (if needed)
2. Desaturate image (if needed due to actinics)
3. Saturate image (if needed, due to halides washing out colours).
4. Adjust white balance if needed

lastlight

05-17-2010, 10:40 PM

I found the same thing when I was playing with the macro. Even a slight angle can make focusing/getting a sharp shot tough. More so with a horizonta angle I thought...

kien

05-17-2010, 11:01 PM

ya, poor positioning of the lens/camera/subject is the source of many a blurry photo. If the camera is placed at an angle to the glass, the glass will distort the light, resulting in a distorted image. Compounded with that distortion, Automatic Focus sensors often can't properly focus when taking pictures on an angle to the glass. This is also where a tripod really comes in handy.

Coleus

05-18-2010, 03:28 PM

Kien, i think your photography company is just an excuse to your wife to get all toys right :-)

andestang

05-18-2010, 05:42 PM

Thanks now I have cereal & milk all over my key board. Great pics once again Kien.

May have been dropping a t-bag on the coral below?

I probably play too much Halo though.

fishytime

05-18-2010, 06:27 PM

Lets not forget an eye for good composition helps:wink:

kien

06-07-2010, 07:24 PM

Speaking of composition.. how about some new photos from in and around The Reef?

Set 1 of 3 _____
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4678395160_89776d39c9_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4678395160_89776d39c9_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678395366_94f01051a8_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678395366_94f01051a8_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4067/4677766449_d2b4f93aed_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4067/4677766449_d2b4f93aed_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4054/4677766867_c0f9d74ab6_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4054/4677766867_c0f9d74ab6_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1297/4678396180_1d8c82713a_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1297/4678396180_1d8c82713a_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/4677767299_3c9d7a77ab_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/4677767299_3c9d7a77ab_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4677767459_91d2dbb0b9_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4677767459_91d2dbb0b9_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4001/4677767823_1c621f8ac1_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4001/4677767823_1c621f8ac1_b.jpg)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4046/4677768033_c4947745aa_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4046/4677768033_c4947745aa_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1281/4678397338_1825998ebe_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1281/4678397338_1825998ebe_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4072/4678397934_58aa246681_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4072/4678397934_58aa246681_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4677768957_ea5e36cb1e_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4677768957_ea5e36cb1e_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4033/4678398346_a693b86af9_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4033/4678398346_a693b86af9_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4677769555_42e2d5e5f3_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4677769555_42e2d5e5f3_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1307/4678399026_44a9a49b98_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1307/4678399026_44a9a49b98_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678399210_3e0e61334c_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678399210_3e0e61334c_b.jpg)

lorenz0

06-07-2010, 07:32 PM

oooh very nice. really digging that first milli

kien

06-07-2010, 07:33 PM

Set 2 of 3 _____
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4677770169_8c3bdba497_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4042/4677770169_8c3bdba497_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4677770291_0280f24c1b_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4677770291_0280f24c1b_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4041/4678399666_d437a0d2dd_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678403946_4dbf349949_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4677770809_f0c971165f_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4032/4677770809_f0c971165f_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4056/4678400194_32afb039f5_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4056/4678400194_32afb039f5_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4678400486_5e35979194_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4048/4678400486_5e35979194_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1284/4678400664_c932896746_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1284/4678400664_c932896746_b.jpg)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4677771711_133f13a650_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4677771711_133f13a650_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4677771899_580ddb5e34_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4677771899_580ddb5e34_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4677772079_c0940e6e3d_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4677772079_c0940e6e3d_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4677772227_8b08eb4781_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4677772227_8b08eb4781_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4012/4677772375_68aea1c4ec_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4012/4677772375_68aea1c4ec_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4677772587_155f7090ae_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4677772587_155f7090ae_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1281/4677772729_33522678d2_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1281/4677772729_33522678d2_b.jpg)

kien

06-07-2010, 07:39 PM

Set 3 of 3 _____
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4040/4678402008_53e4d06c35_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4040/4678402008_53e4d06c35_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1267/4678402244_f7f284bc11_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1267/4678402244_f7f284bc11_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4010/4677773257_0e919a143c_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4010/4677773257_0e919a143c_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1306/4677773373_1e6a59f231_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1306/4677773373_1e6a59f231_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4015/4678402852_9c500366aa_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4015/4678402852_9c500366aa_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4050/4678403008_a6f07cfae6_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4050/4678403008_a6f07cfae6_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1265/4677774015_33a9a307a9_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1265/4677774015_33a9a307a9_b.jpg)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4044/4678403350_356f69bc2b_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4044/4678403350_356f69bc2b_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678403806_a45e4678c7_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4678403806_a45e4678c7_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4024/4677774901_6f6b797620_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4024/4677774901_6f6b797620_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/4678404214_63f2e89544_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4026/4678404214_63f2e89544_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4038/4677775233_f01d8d696d_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4038/4677775233_f01d8d696d_b.jpg) http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1269/4678404530_9a1922e9ec_s.jpg (http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1269/4678404530_9a1922e9ec_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4030/4677775555_9d8e93a421_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4030/4677775555_9d8e93a421_b.jpg) http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4023/4678406618_4b4b7eb82c_s.jpg (http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4023/4678406618_4b4b7eb82c_b.jpg)

Parker

06-07-2010, 07:55 PM

Beautiful tank...

fishytime

06-07-2010, 11:19 PM

Dude!.........great pics!

Could you please put me down for a frag of those zoas on the far right in set 1?....... my gorsh man they are sweet.....

the clams are looking great too!

hillegom

06-08-2010, 12:09 AM

amazing corals as well as pictures

Dez

06-08-2010, 12:51 AM

Kien, we should do some trades sometime....nice stuff man! I especially love set 2 second picture :)

kien

06-08-2010, 03:28 AM

Dude!.........great pics!

Could you please put me down for a frag of those zoas on the far right in set 1?....... my gorsh man they are sweet.....

the clams are looking great too!

Thanks :-) I believe those would be my candy apple palythoas, or some such thing anyway. Slow growers but definitely striking.

Kien, we should do some trades sometime....nice stuff man! I especially love set 2 second picture :)

I like trades :biggrin: But sorry, that one (in set 2, pic 2) is off limits! :lol:

kien

06-08-2010, 03:36 AM

Some underwater reefscape.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1294/4677776345_14ae91c133_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4030/4678405720_be62a3fd23_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4057/4678406072_cf4419b543_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4004/4678407134_7670cc494d_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4002/4677778311_a057e798c3_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4025/4677778537_cee88f39f2_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4005/4677778693_5277065872_b.jpg

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1285/4678408354_20181e0112_b.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4009/4678408522_c729d61eab_b.jpg

Dez

06-08-2010, 04:33 AM

Awesome pictures as usual Kien. Any chance of a FTS of both tanks?

mseepman

06-08-2010, 04:48 AM

Kien...as always....amazing pictures. I have to say that your tank makes me so anxious to get going on my new tank. Really love your setup!

kien

06-09-2010, 07:09 AM

Any chance of a FTS of both tanks?

I don't think I've ever taken any pure 22K shots of the tank so I played around with that. I guess here's something a little different.

150g North Face

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4053/4684714312_c9b9547f07_b.jpg

131g

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4684082257_a14d47790a_b.jpg

hillegom

06-09-2010, 07:12 AM

awesome

Zoaelite

06-09-2010, 07:15 AM

Kien...

150g room divider + 131g FOWLR dual reef system

Needs a little amendment :lol:.

kien

06-09-2010, 07:16 AM

how about some fish?

Picasso Trigger
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4684713550_c41b0bbe9b.jpg

Copper Banded Butterfly
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4684713334_db630ee824.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4072/4684713208_28b6d9489e.jpg

Melanarus Wrasse
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4044/4684713690_5a4a54560f.jpg

Five Strip/Pink Face/Rainbow Wrasse (aka, fish with the most names ever!)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4070/4684081949_beded0aaa8.jpg

Parrot Fish with Cleaner Wrasse
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/4684082021_4ffd3531fb.jpg

Tiny Clown Trigger (he ain't bullying anybody anytime soon)
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1272/4684714074_fb682d4884.jpg

Clown Tang
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4071/4684081539_e664df01a8.jpg