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Mr. Microscope's JBJ Picotope


Mr. Microscope

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I was looking for the white balance yesterday while shooting, but couldn't find it. I'll try too find it in the manual tonight. Thanks!

 

yeah start out with the setting for "Shade" and see how it does. It's probably only about halfway there, unfortunately. I don't think most P&S cameras will correct for over 10k

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Mr. Microscope

FTS 2010.04.19

FTS_20100419.jpg

 

My light is now pointing to the left and is aimed right at the rack.

 

I've discovered a new setting on my camera specifically made for underwater shots. It makes the images almost true to life and eliminates most of the excess blues. I should be able to get some better shots now. I moved the rack up on top of the rocks until I can get some magnets for it. Also, I think photo-acclimation is done. I moved up the birdsnest too. You can see my porcelain in this FTS. She is to the right at the bottom between the rock with the green zoas and the one to the right of it.

 

I sold that rock with the brown mushrooms on them. I'm going to strive for a simpler look and didn't really have room for it in the tank. Also, I ordered a Koralia Nano. So, that is going to take up a bunch of space too. I'm hoping to have it by the middle of the week.

 

I also decided to tie a safety line to the end of my lamp in case the hinge decides to give out. That way my LEDs won't crash into the tank.

Securityline.jpg

 

Also, just for fun, here's a nice shot of my toadstool.

Toadstool-2.jpg

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yeeeaaaahhhh!!! i havent been on in awhile, see you finally got it. the light looks awesome man. as far as the damsel, i have one in my pico. they do eat alot so lots of waste, and are pretty agressive. but i love my damsel, it def makes the tank come alive with its swimming. if i were to do it again i would get a clown goby or something like that. but the damsels are pretty sweet. the frags are coming along nicely too.

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Mr. Microscope
yeeeaaaahhhh!!! i havent been on in awhile, see you finally got it. the light looks awesome man. as far as the damsel, i have one in my pico. they do eat alot so lots of waste, and are pretty agressive. but i love my damsel, it def makes the tank come alive with its swimming. if i were to do it again i would get a clown goby or something like that. but the damsels are pretty sweet. the frags are coming along nicely too.

 

Thanks! The light is working out well.

 

I've heard from quite a few people that the damsels are aggressive. I'm thinking about doing the goby now, if anything. I'm a little more excited about getting a nassarius snail than the goby. They are crazy looking. I read a story about two nassarius' ganging up on a peppermint shrimp and eating it alive! If I get the goby, I'll get the nassarius.

 

The frags are coming along, but very slowly. The most exciting frag I have going on right now is my papaya clove. When I first got it, it was just a small round thing. Then it started shooting out branches that eventually attached themselves to the rock. I was baffled. Finally, a month after getting it, it started putting out a clove. Now, two weeks later it's about the size of a very small zoa and there are two more coming up at the ends of the branches. I can't wait to see how this looks in colony form.

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Mr. Microscope

Thanks. They're starting to color up better with the new lights. I can't wait to see how they look in a month or so. The skirts are supposed to get pink stripes.

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great pics. looks like the light is doing wonders for your tank. i can't wait to get some leds. do you find they are better with evaporation than pcs or t5s?

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Mr. Microscope
great pics. looks like the light is doing wonders for your tank. i can't wait to get some leds. do you find they are better with evaporation than pcs or t5s?

 

Thanks! I think I'm getting less evaporation. It is summer though and I have less evaporation in general during summer. My tank is in a very stable environment temp wise, so I only have to worry about relative humidity. Winter is a killer for evap. Also, I just got my koralia nano in the mail. We'll see how that effects it too. I'm guessing more movement equals more evap.

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Mr. Microscope

This weekend my shipment from Drs. Foster and Smith came. I got the Koralia Nano and a Coralife digital thermometer. The Koralia requited a bit of fiddling to stop it from creating a sandstorm, but I think I've got it in a good spot now. The flow is very powerful. I noticed some algae buildup on the glass today. So, hopefully this will prevent any more from forming. I also hope all the life in there likes the increased flow. We'll see.

post-47492-1272288638_thumb.jpgpost-47492-1272288631_thumb.jpg

Additionally, I ordered a Coralife digital thermometer. I'm not sure about it's accuracy though. It reads 25.4/77.7 while the regular thermometer read 27/80.6. The instructions say the it is accurate +- 1.5 degrees F, but this is a 3 degree difference. Unless my other thermometer is also off 1.5 degrees, I consider that to be too much of a jump. Does anyone have any experience with this product?

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Did you feel it needed more flow with just using the AC70, or was it a personal preference thing?

 

I'm only using the AC50, so my flow is already a little decreased, just curious if you think I should add a powerhead for a little extra movement. I don't have any dead spots that I have noticed, but then again, I have no livestock yet.

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Mr. Microscope

I used to have a MiniJet 404, but it died. I had my AC70 on stronger to compensate for the loss, but the idea behind the AC70 fuge mod is to keep a reduced flow in there to promote the growth of pods and such. Even with the AC70 on stronger, I had a small amount of algae on the glass about three or four days after a WC. I'm hoping the Koralina will be better for everything overall.

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Mr. Microscope

Thanks DPM,

 

I was never really interested in toadstools because I heard they can grow out a pico tank fast. But, I got it in a trade and couldn't be happier with it. It's one of my favorites now. The little individual polyps grab stuff to eat which is fun to watch.

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This weekend my shipment from Drs. Foster and Smith came. I got the Koralia Nano and a Coralife digital thermometer. The Koralia requited a bit of fiddling to stop it from creating a sandstorm, but I think I've got it in a good spot now. The flow is very powerful. I noticed some algae buildup on the glass today. So, hopefully this will prevent any more from forming. I also hope all the life in there likes the increased flow. We'll see.

post-47492-1272288638_thumb.jpgpost-47492-1272288631_thumb.jpg

Additionally, I ordered a Coralife digital thermometer. I'm not sure about it's accuracy though. It reads 25.4/77.7 while the regular thermometer read 27/80.6. The instructions say the it is accurate +- 1.5 degrees F, but this is a 3 degree difference. Unless my other thermometer is also off 1.5 degrees, I consider that to be too much of a jump. Does anyone have any experience with this product?

 

those thermometers are crap, i had 2 and put them on teh same tank and one read 82.3f and the other read 76.8f . i replaced the batteries just to be sure they were 100% , and then one read 84.6f and the other read 72.4f..... but my regular glass thermo never left the 80f mark. but that is just my exp. maybe others have had better luck.

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Mr. Microscope
those thermometers are crap, i had 2 and put them on teh same tank and one read 82.3f and the other read 76.8f . i replaced the batteries just to be sure they were 100% , and then one read 84.6f and the other read 72.4f..... but my regular glass thermo never left the 80f mark. but that is just my exp. maybe others have had better luck.

 

Yeah, it reads different from my glass one too. Thanks for the review. I'll be testing it.

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Mr. Microscope
those pink and golds are killer!!!

Thanks! It's funny. The two in the middle are speckled yellow in the middle. The one on the left is solid orange/yellow in the middle and the three new ones have no color yet. They've been interesting to watch.

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I'm glad you find pleasure in the Sarcophyton. I've always had one. The long tentacled ones are coolest, even clowns will host them. My "holy grail" of Sarco's is the fluorescent green long tentacled one, but I haven't been able to lay hands on one as of yet.

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Mr. Microscope
I'm glad you find pleasure in the Sarcophyton. I've always had one. The long tentacled ones are coolest, even clowns will host them. My "holy grail" of Sarco's is the fluorescent green long tentacled one, but I haven't been able to lay hands on one as of yet.

Yes, I'm down with that! I've only seen the long tentacle ones in pictures. They look amazing waving in the current. And yes, the greeeeeeen! One day. Though the frags are even harder to come across than the big guys that cost a mint. I know where I can get red or purple hornets, but the long tentacle green toady? I have no idea. Perhaps I'll start looking. I'll let you know if I find a source. And good luck finding your holy grail. ;)

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Mr. Microscope

Finally, some coral that moves a little aside from my GSP. Say hello to my new Anthelia frag. I'm amazed at how tough it is. It doesn't seem to care or retract when being moved around or handled. It's not very photogenic as it limps without the pumps on. So, I took a movie of it in the current. I like how it moves and it has a nice purple-blue color to it.

th_IMG_1032.jpg

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meganistkrieg
Finally, some coral that moves a little aside from my GSP. Say hello to my new Anthelia frag. I'm amazed at how tough it is. It doesn't seem to care or retract when being moved around or handled. It's not very photogenic as it limps without the pumps on. So, I took a movie of it in the current. I like how it moves and it has a nice purple-blue color to it.

 

Hey, I know that frag! :lol: It's definitely pretty tough stuff, not particularly phased by anything from what I've seen, and the motion of it is what appealed to me about it as well. Very soothing to watch. That frag looks like it's right at home! :happy:

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Mr. Microscope

Update 2010.05.04

I just past the 6 month mark on the 1st!!! :D

I want to send out a special big THANKS to Nano-Reef.com and everyone whose left comments and/or viewed my thread. I cannot begin to say what an incredible wealth of knowledge is contained in this community. It's been a crazy six months, but you've all helped to bring about a little sanity, humor, and entertainment to my life. I've met a lot of people and made a lot of friends. Now, before I get all mushy here's the good stuff.

 

To start out, here's a new FTS:

FTS_20100504.jpg

I'm still having some photo issues here.

 

I've changed quite a few things around and made a few changes. The PAR38 is now about 6 inches from the waterline, on the right side of my tank, aimed at the fragrack and slightly to the left; there is now a nice gradient so that I can experiment with lower light corals. I found that some are reacting better at a slight distance. The Koralia Nano is now angled towards the back wall of the tank. Now nothing is getting blasted. I've also established that the Coralife digital thermometer is complete crap! After testing it against a few other thermometers, I've established that it is at least 3 degrees low, possibly as much as 6! I won't be using this anymore. I accidentally turned up the heat in my tank too high because of it. Luckily, no losses.

 

I was getting frustrated with the frag rack taking up space in my tank. So, I finally got around to figuring out a way to mount it. To start, I cut it in half. There are now only 6 wells for plugs instead of 12. I got some cheap magnets from a second hand store. They were selling sets of 5 for a $1. This rack only required one. In order to avoid putting any metal into the tank, I coated one side of the magnet with some epoxy resin left over from an experiment. I put one side of the magnet in a small petri and added the resin. After it cured in the oven over the weekend, I trimmed two sides with a jewler's saw and super-glued it to the rack. Then, I took some stiff grey crafting felt and super-glued it to all six sides of the other half of the magnet set to go on the outside. I figured the felt would prevent any damage in case the magnet somehow slammed into or collided with the glass. Check it out:

magneticrack01.jpg

 

magneticrack02.jpg

I have the other half of the rack and have started to coat another magnet.

 

Also, you can see that I changed the position of the birdsnest from sticking out of the top of a rock to the side of it. I took a branch like piece of LR and stood it up. I figured this would be a good perching place of a possible yellow clown goby. After some consideration, I mounted my AOGs to the top edge of them. Also, the watermellons are really starting to glow!

NewmountAOGs.jpg

 

Finally, I moved the Anthelia (which has about DOUBLED IN SIZE since I got it last week BTW!) to the top of a rock on the left. It's really moving well in the current of the Koralia Nano.

Hypno-Dancing

th_Anthelia.jpg

Sorry, I know I already posted a video of this, but the movement in this video is much better. They are opened up a little better. It's one of my favorite things to watch.

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