Zer0 Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Hey guys i finished testing my dissolved oxygen levels without the skimmer running. Dissolved oxygen levels with skimmer running=8.6-8.7 Dissolved oxygen levels without skimmer running(last 4 days)=8.2-8.3 Based on these results my worries about oxygenation without the skimmer are totally discredited. While oxygen levels are slightly lower without the skimmer running they never even fall below 8ppm! So in short the skimmer is staying offline and the chamber will be dedicated to more macroalgae. I also decided to run a mini algae scrubber using an AC30. All credit goes to this guy that gave me the idea. Ive used an algae scrubber in the past but it was taking too much space in my sump....this ones dimensions are perfect. Im just waiting for the algae to grow in...should probably take another week or so. That's pretty interesting. So basically what you are saying is that your water chemistry doesn't change significantly if you run a skimmer or not? As long as you run a refugium? Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 That's pretty interesting. So basically what you are saying is that your water chemistry doesn't change significantly if you run a skimmer or not? As long as you run a refugium? Well between the oxygen released from the macroalgae and gas exhange at the surface seems to provide more than enough oxygenation for the entire system. The skimmer does add some but not as much as i initially thought...in fact not even close. At this point running a skimmer would be more for aesthetics than for functionality. Link to comment
Zer0 Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Well between the oxygen released from the macroalgae and gas exhange at the surface seems to provide more than enough oxygenation for the entire system. The skimmer does add some but not as much as i initially thought...in fact not even close. At this point running a skimmer would be more for aesthetics than for functionality. Very interesting. Kind of makes me contemplate removing my skimmer right now and throwing in more rocks into the skimmer chamber. My fuge has grown out of control and on the API test kits I don't test nitrates or phosphates at all. I'm sure they aren't pinpoint accurate, but they should give me an idea of how low my levels are. I run the skimmer pretty dry as well and it usually doesn't pull out much. I only have the two clowns so I don't have to really feed them too much. What do you think? Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 Very interesting. Kind of makes me contemplate removing my skimmer right now and throwing in more rocks into the skimmer chamber. My fuge has grown out of control and on the API test kits I don't test nitrates or phosphates at all. I'm sure they aren't pinpoint accurate, but they should give me an idea of how low my levels are. I run the skimmer pretty dry as well and it usually doesn't pull out much. I only have the two clowns so I don't have to really feed them too much. What do you think? You have such a low bioload i dont see any reason why you cant take it offline....As long as the macroalgae is doing its job. I think we become way too dependent on skimmers in this hobby. Not to say they dont do an excellent job but think about it skimmers remove the organics but they're indiscriminate(removing both good and bad) many of the good organics can be utilized by our corals as food but they're stripped immediately from the water column And even though they remove these organics they are unable to remove the undesirables such as phosphates and nitrates from our aquarium. While macroalgae on the other hand add oxygen,removes excess organics(while leaving some for our corals) and effectively export both nitrates and phosphates. Theres really no good reason why we shouldn't utilize natural filtration. My skimmer is staying offline until i go buy another floodlight and then its coming out to make room for more algae. Link to comment
Zer0 Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 You have such a low bioload i dont see any reason why you cant take it offline....As long as the macroalgae is doing its job. I think we become way too dependent on skimmers in this hobby. Not to say they dont do an excellent job but think about it skimmers remove the organics but they're indiscriminate(removing both good and bad) many of the good organics can be utilized by our corals as food but they're stripped immediately from the water column And even though they remove these organics they are unable to remove the undesirables such as phosphates and nitrates from our aquarium. While macroalgae on the other hand add oxygen,removes excess organics(while leaving some for our corals) and effectively export both nitrates and phosphates. Theres really no good reason why we shouldn't utilize natural filtration. My skimmer is staying offline until i go buy another floodlight and then its coming out to make room for more algae. That's a very good point to be honest. I feel that maybe the larger tanks with much more livestock may need efficient skimmers to remove dissolved organic compounds which in a larger tank would be at a much higher quantity, but the smaller tanks with much smaller fish and tiny bioloads might not even benefit from having a protein skimmer. Well, that's what I can gather from not just your experience but other resources as well anyways lol. Idk.. the skimmer does not gather much skimmate right now, no matter how wet or dry I run it because my bioload is so little, and it's pretty loud comparing it to everything else in aquarium. Not sure what I want to do but you certainly do bring up some excellent points. Aaaaaanyways, looking forward to some new pictures. Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 That's a very good point to be honest. I feel that maybe the larger tanks with much more livestock may need efficient skimmers to remove dissolved organic compounds which in a larger tank would be at a much higher quantity, but the smaller tanks with much smaller fish and tiny bioloads might not even benefit from having a protein skimmer. Well, that's what I can gather from not just your experience but other resources as well anyways lol. Idk.. the skimmer does not gather much skimmate right now, no matter how wet or dry I run it because my bioload is so little, and it's pretty loud comparing it to everything else in aquarium. Not sure what I want to do but you certainly do bring up some excellent points. Aaaaaanyways, looking forward to some new pictures. Well give it some thought I went back and forth with it for a few weeks but oddly enough my skimmer pump got clogged and i didnt feel like cleaning it so its been offline ever since... Ive went skimmerless in the past without any negative results but i was a bit ignorant to the advantages/disadvantages at the time,now i have a bit more understanding of water chemistry and feel alot more comfortable with my decision. Anyway on to the battle for sps island.. Link to comment
Zer0 Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Well give it some thought I went back and forth with it for a few weeks but oddly enough my skimmer pump got clogged and i didnt feel like cleaning it so its been offline ever since... Ive went skimmerless in the past without any negative results but i was a bit ignorant to the advantages/disadvantages at the time,now i have a bit more understanding of water chemistry and feel alot more comfortable with my decision. Anyway on to the battle for sps island.. I'll definitely give it some thought. thanks for all that information though. SPS Island looks incredible! Is that a garf bonsai or purple plasma? Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 I'll definitely give it some thought. thanks for all that information though. SPS Island looks incredible! Is that a garf bonsai or purple plasma? Np bud. Thanks man it's a garf bonsai. Link to comment
d'Espresso Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Amazing color on the SPS island but we gonna need a FTS for Easter Sunday! Happy Easter Hype! Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 Amazing color on the SPS island but we gonna need a FTS for Easter Sunday! Happy Easter Hype! Thanks D! i posted a few on pg 182 Link to comment
d'Espresso Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 i saw them couple days ago.. Do you know it's hard to catchup on your updates because of all these post about your beautiful tank and corals??? Your page post jumps like 2-5 page each day! lol mang, but love the recent picture you took! question: what did you not like about Giesemann Infiniti, Leds, and back to T5. i have a 40breeder and i have the hardest time figuring out what light i would like to have over it. What type of lights do you have now and do you have a link to it, Or can you PM the infos and we can discuss it over there. Thanks for your help! Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 i saw them couple days ago.. Do you know it's hard to catchup on your updates because of all these post about your beautiful tank and corals??? Your page post jumps like 2-5 page each day! lol mang, but love the recent picture you took! question: what did you not like about Giesemann Infiniti, Leds, and back to T5. i have a 40breeder and i have the hardest time figuring out what light i would like to have over it. What type of lights do you have now and do you have a link to it, Or can you PM the infos and we can discuss it over there. Thanks for your help! Thanks D i appreciate it. We've been having some good discussions in here lately which led to the surge in posts. Well i inititially went back to LED's mainly out of curiosity...variety in colors,smaller footprint and less energy were all good reasons to give it another go. But one of my main issues with my particular fixture was less than ideal spread. Most of my coral looked good but i wasnt overly impressed. I just felt like something was missing. ..so i went back to T5's and havent looked back. My overall coral coloration is the better than its ever been and growth has been great.I also just love how good the tanks colors look to my eyes. The pictures are almost identical to how it looks in real life....Its a very balanced spectrum that makes all the colors pop not just ones with fluorescent pigments. Whats probably the most impressive is how quickly some of my coral colored up and began encrusting... Im running a 6 bulb dimmable ATI sunpower with (2) Reefbrite XHO for supplementation. My vote is going to go to T5's with a tank with those dimensions. Link to comment
dlogfx Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Well give it some thought I went back and forth with it for a few weeks but oddly enough my skimmer pump got clogged and i didnt feel like cleaning it so its been offline ever since... Ive went skimmerless in the past without any negative results but i was a bit ignorant to the advantages/disadvantages at the time,now i have a bit more understanding of water chemistry and feel alot more comfortable with my decision. Anyway on to the battle for sps island.. SPS island looks amazing. So much color Link to comment
d'Espresso Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 Thanks D i appreciate it. We've been having some good discussions in here lately which led to the surge in posts. Well i inititially went back to LED's mainly out of curiosity...variety in colors,smaller footprint and less energy were all good reasons to give it another go. But one of my main issues with my particular fixture was less than ideal spread. Most of my coral looked good but i wasnt overly impressed. I just felt like something was missing. ..so i went back to T5's and havent looked back. My overall coral coloration is the better than its ever been and growth has been great.I also just love how good the tanks colors look to my eyes. The pictures are almost identical to how it looks in real life....Its a very balanced spectrum that makes all the colors pop not just ones with fluorescent pigments. Whats probably the most impressive is how quickly some of my coral colored up and began encrusting... Im running a 6 bulb dimmable ATI sunpower with (2) Reefbrite XHO for supplementation. My vote is going to go to T5's with a tank with those dimensions. Mr. Hype, Would you recommend the Dimmable version or just get the sunpower version? is it neccessary! Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 8, 2012 Author Share Posted April 8, 2012 SPS island looks amazing. So much color Thanks alot dlog Mr. Hype,Would you recommend the Dimmable version or just get the sunpower version? is it neccessary! The dimmable version isnt a necessity but then again neither are dimmable LEDs. It just gives you some flexibility for dawn/dusk lighting schedules and to imitate the intensities found in nature. It also gives you the ability to adjust your intensity when acclimating coral. I personally just enjoy how the tank changes(visually) throughout the day. Link to comment
MedRed Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 This is an elite tank. You should make a high def video of your tank. Link to comment
Zer0 Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 This is an elite tank. You should make a high def video of your tank. Yes. This. Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share Posted April 9, 2012 This is an elite tank. You should make a high def video of your tank. Thanks man....not until you do one first Yes. This. I've wanted to do an updated vid....maybe in my next tank update. Link to comment
Zer0 Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 I've wanted to do an updated vid....maybe in my next tank update. Nice! Can't wait! Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share Posted April 9, 2012 Nice! Can't wait! Im going to have to step my game up...i suck at video editing. Link to comment
JoelRHale Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Im going to have to step my game up...i suck at video editing. 1080p of anything in your tank would distract anyone from any gaps in your video editing skills. Link to comment
JR! Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 1080p of anything in your tank would distract anyone from any gaps in your video editing skills. his photos are better then most peoples videos lol Link to comment
Rehype Posted April 9, 2012 Author Share Posted April 9, 2012 1080p of anything in your tank would distract anyone from any gaps in your video editing skills. I hope thats true.. HD reef pr0n is HD. I agree if its done properly. his photos are better then most peoples videos lol Thanks man. Link to comment
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