Moving to San Diego "Established by the the Germans in 1904, they called it "San DiAgo", which is German for "A Whale's .....". Sorry, had to throw in an Anchorman quote

Congrats on getting the Vortech. Just be careful, once you drop one in the tank, you're never going to want to use another type of powerhead...seriously. I know there are some that say that Tunze are better, I being one for a while, but IMO the Vortech really can't be matched. You're corals will love you for it too

Any plans on fragging up any more Acans? My "Garden" consists of only the ones I got from you so it needs some new additions. Just let me know.

-Adam

Haha, funny. I'll have to remember that one.

Yeah, I'll be taking ScottyReef's extra MP10 off of his hands. I think it should perform a little better than my two Koralias. But I plan on keeping the Koralia nano to add flow to the rear of the tank. Looking forward to seeing how the little MP10 improves the overall movement in my display.

You know I was thinking of fragging just a few. If you want em, I'll hold em for you, Adam. You've gotta check out this new frag I got from Nanosapiens: "Fireworks Over the City" acan from ReefKoi. I'll upload a pic in a bit...

***
Passed by the NCRC swap yesterday. Very very cool and hospitable group of people there. Junkitu, fishes4alivin, Kraylen, great to meet you guys! Picked up some NICE stuff, but I'll wait for some pieces to color up slightly before I snap pics. Enjoy your weekend y'all.

Again, here's another color combination that my camera cannot capture. ReefKoi's "Fireworks Over the City" Acan. The light blue colors show a metallic blue in real life.


I uploaded a better picture taken from the retail site from where it was bought. Thanks Ralph!

No problem, Randy. My hat's off to ReefKoi's photography because this is one really tough Acan to photograph!

I don't have the 'touch' this morning, but here's a pic of your very nice Rainbow (thanks!) and the Fireworks Over the City Acans taken under 10K plus Actinic:



50 attempts and its still blurry, but at least the metallic texture is somewhat visible.

WOW....that's a really nice one Randy. Nice snag for sure.

I responded back to your PM.

-Adam

BIG DAY in the hobby. New tank arriving. Shipping out corals. Receiving corals. Trading corals. I should be in the business. hehe

Ummm....Purp.




you ARE in the business,

Randy which new tank? Ive been lost!

-D

Did you set it up yet?

looks nice randy.

NICE.

Take some pics of my frags when they open up, your camera is way better then mine

And I can't believe you didn't post a pic of the piece you got yesterday, come on!!

Why you slacking Purp?

Whooa what is that? I recently bought an ADA. I don't think its possible to set up a different brand of tank after you own one of those.

you tease u didnt even show the whole thing

Hahaha. Don't wanna steal your thunder, Josh! Trust me, they look gooood

LE Event Horizon Favia


The mother


Bowerbanki Acan Courtesy of Kylebeano

Yayyyyyyyyyy

That favia also looks similar to the PPE Favia/Chalice that I have...

I believe it is the SAME. The guy I bought it from renamed it, but it is from the same source as the one obtained by Juicy Corals. They call it "JC Prism chalice AKA PPE Chalice."

Either way...nice grab. I think you need to upgrade the upgrade tank already with all the new additions.

Allow me to introduce my simple tank upgrade: A 24X17X18" 32G Mr. Aqua Tank. Measurements are estimates in inches, taken from the inside. I opted for this tank due to its extremely low price tag and its similarities to my 25G ADA cube. This tank could be broken down as quickly as it goes up, since I may be moving as early as Jan of 2010. But at least my corals will have more space to grow for the next 3-4mos!















Leak check passed

And no, I won't be using the cardboard underneath this tank. lol

No sand: BB. I have pre-cut black starboard - although it's 1" too short bc I originally intended to buy an ADA tank. I'll need to cut an additional 1" filler with the excess they sent me. I also have a nice black neoprene mat to rest the tank. Setup could be delayed by 2 or so weeks, until I get another leg reinforcement for my glass table. Glass table is .75" thick btw. Also, I don't think I should drill the tank until after the move. In the meantime, I'll be using my "fool proof" siphon overflow.

*I think I prefer to keep this thread running, since all else is the same except for the tank! And, maybe I'll edit the title

where did you put your printers randy, Did that stuff come like right after i left yesterday, also that bleeding hike we went on killed my calfs LOL. theres a junk sawp at aqualife hosted by MARS on saturday are you thinking of going?

HA! Good question. Printers are on the floor. lol

Junk swap? Meaning you bring junk and get LEs or not such a good swap? Hehe. Maybe I'll stop by. I've been wanting to see the store.

nice tank purp.....



those frags are doin' well....grape is po'd like u said it would be.

INFO Yo
When: Saturday October 17th
Set up starts at 10am and space will be given on a first come first serve basis. Sales start at 11am
Where: Aqua Life Aquarium 4235 Pacific Street Suite B. Rocklin, CA 95677

As a store we will be selling used equipment as well as having in a sale on every item in the store! 20% off all live stock (and we stocked heavily for this event!), 20% off PE Mysis Shrimp, and 15% off all other dry goods! We invite any person with aquarium related items to accompany us and sell their used equipment (that we all know is cluttering our garages!). Also if your frag racks are full feel free to bring specimens to sell and trade as well! Space in the parking lot is limited so it will be given out on a first come first serve basis. This will be an amazing opportunity for people to acquire equipment and corals at phenomenal prices. MARS will be providing Hot Dogs and Hamburgers for people to munch on while they scavenge around for great deals! Last but defiantly not least, a special guest will be making it out to the sale. Bob Fenner, author of The Conscientious Marine Aquarist, and contributer to many other aquarium periodicals will be attending from around 11am-1pm


I'll be bringng some hardware that is hauled up in my storage unit. hope tou see other NR members there too

Thanks, Pismo! Yeah, the grape will stay purple under the right lighting conditions. Didn't do well for me under a 250W 20K spectrum or 150W 14K. 250W 14K seems to do the trick though

By the time you're ready to set this guy up in 2 weeks or so, you'll need to upgrade again already. Can you tell the difference between the new tank and your ADA in quality and what not? Give us a brief review.

You know my situation all too well. As soon as I set it up, it will be fully stocked. And so, I'll begin working on the 25G ADA frag tank immediately thereafter.

Comparisons? There are more likenesses to an ADA than differences. Beveled glass is EXACTLY the same. Clarity is the same. Precision of cut glass is the same. Alignment of glass is the same. Mr. Aqua uses 5mm glass for this tank vs 4mm for my 25G ADA, but the larger ADA tanks might use 5mm too. *ADA has options for "high clarity" glass though. And the silicone work is slightly different. ADA is slightly cleaner, where they trim the excess edges down to .75mm. In comparison, Mr. Aqua's silicone thickness is between 1-1.25mm I think. But the glue lines are very clean and straight, just like an ADA. There were minor glue smudges at the top corners of the Mr. Aqua, but this was easily cleaned up with a blade. Overall, this tank is a much cheaper alternative to an ADA, so long as you are happy with the limited dimensions that Mr. Aqua presently offers.

When I first opened the box, I was prepared to be unsatisfied with the craftsmanship. But I was shocked at what I saw when I lifted the styro lid from the top. In appearance, I give it a 7.5 (maybe 8) out of 10, versus a 10 of 10 for ADA. As far as strength and durability, it's too early to tell, but it's been filled with tap water for 2 days now with no leaks.

Would you be able to tell the difference if you had them both side by side (not considering the dimensions of course)? I'm just anal about cosmetics...and is considering all options for future upgrades...hence my noisy questions.

Np, ask away. ADA owners would see the difference in silicone work, but if I slapped an ADA sticker on the front, no one would question it. LOL

It's clean enough that if you stuck an ADA sticker on the front that no one would notice the difference huh? Hmm...interesting...you've got my attention now on these tanks.

By the way, the Luman Bright 3 DE pendant is bright as heck...it doubles as my diningroom light now. Haha! I might still end up buying a Lumentek ballast though...the IceCap isn't burning my Phoenix bulb blue enough.

Still too early say that I'd be comfortable recommending these tanks, but they could be worth looking into.

What makes you think the Lumatek would burn your bulb brighter than the IceCap?

Not looking for brighter but bluer...I like the blue tint it put off during the burn-in stage but once the bulb got past that, it's been burning whiter than I'd like it to. Heard that the Galaxy ballast burns the Phoenix bulbs bluer than the IceCaps too...how's your Lumentek ballast with the Phoenix bulb?

My 250/14 is burning a crisp bluish white, which is definitely more on the whiter side compared to a 150W 14K. But to you it could look more blue. LOL. I definitely like the color temp it puts out, but it may be too early to tell if I like the color it's getting out of my SPS. Some are definitely more vibrant in color after the switch, but others are not as vibrant. There was that 1.5 to 2wk period I ran my tank under an inadequate Phoenix 150W/14K though, while waiting for this new replacement bulb to arrive. I'd be curious to hear your opinion if you decide to get a Lumatek.

I've decided to drill the new tank. Bought a simple overflow box from glass-holes.com. Nice thing about this product is not having to glue it to the glass.

Is the tank drillable (sp?)?

Wow Randy. Just getting back in town and getting a chance to catch up on my favs.

The new favia and bowerbanki look amazing....looking forward to seeing a wide angle shot of the bowerbanki for sure.

The Mr. Aqua tank looks fantastic. Just from the pictures, and your description, it sounds like the craftmanship and care to detail is pretty top-notch. I have been looking at these tanks and wondered about the overall build quality. I think I would have had the same feelings opening the box wondering if I would be disappointed...glad to hear you weren't.

I'm interested to hear and see how the glass-holes overflow works. I'll definitely be going with a sump on my next tank as not having one really limits how clean the display can be and what sort of skimmer/equipment you can add.

Keep up the good work....looking forward to seeing how the tank looks with the black starboard.

-Adam

Thanks for the encouragement, Adam! Hopefully, the upgrade goes smoothly. In the meantime, here are the LAST pics you'll see of the ADA...


In case you were wondering what happened to the chalices, well, they're in the BACK! Not for long though, they'll soon be front row center

Amazing as always Randy. Your up-and-coming tank is going to be fantastic!!!

I know I said the last shots would be the last, but I was feeling a little sentimental about upgrading the ADA . So I snapped a few pics for the memories...

Nice pics...nice corals (as always)

Good luck with the new tank!

Youre next set up will be a blast, cant wait to see how everything turns out, and best of luck with transferring everything! I really wouldnt want to see anything lost, its all so very beautiful. Those are the nicest acros I have ever seen, itll be tough for you to grow them out lol.

SO UPSET. Woke up to disgusting mush floating in the water. Overnight, a turbo snail knocked the Flying Saucer Chalice onto the nearby Victoria's Secret Chalice. The Flying Saucer lost the battle and Victoria's Secret came out unscathed. More than half of the chalice will be lost for sure. It grew out beautifully to 7 eyes. Needless to say, it ain't beautiful no more. I'm SO PISSED

Great tank, sorry to hear about the loss! I guess it only encourages you to get moving on the upgrade

Oh crap, that sucks. Looking on the bright side at least the Flying Saucer isn't completely lost. Hopefully, its one of the faster growers

Noooo Randy, thats terrible! I hate turbo snails >:(

It is really cool that you were able to save it though, +1 to insentive for the upgrade!

Thanks for the condolences. lol. Looks like I was able to get it to stop spewing out flesh, and hopefully this begins the healing process. DAMN!@#! This was without a doubt, my absolute favorite chalice. SO PISSED! I was 2 seconds from throwing the Victoria's Secret into the toilet, before my wife stopped me in the act. She's such a person of good nature, and I love her for it (while I am more of the vengeful type).

As always with my thread, I document the good AND THE BAD.

1 hour after the battle was lost. Not the prettiest sight, but only 1 hour earlier it was nothing but slimy mush.


Today, it appears that it's already begun fleshing over the exposed skeleton. Looks like the 2 eyes towards the front *might* also make it through alive.

dang randy, sorry to hear about that bro. looks like your piece has plenty of flesh to make the recovery.