My New 50G! Long Cadlight's Artisan!

[twan]

I sent an email to Marco today asking if it was in stock and have not heard back yet.

[LouDog3]

I sent an email to Marco today asking if it was in stock and have not heard back yet.

 

Thx

[tokendog]

Current FTS as of 9am this morning...

 

 

Some of my Maxi Mini collection:

 

 

My Super Red Zoas and Green Hairy Mushrooms that are making a nice recovery. They were all but dead and now are coming back:

 

 

The Blue Thorny Mushroom who is competing with a bright red mushroom for this perch on the rock. They switch spots throughout the day.

 

 

My Red Coco Worm. He's been in the tank for about two months now:

 

 

[twan]

Very nice, did those Maxi Mini's come from http://www.bluezooaquatics.com/ as well?

[tokendog]

Very nice, did those Maxi Mini's come from http://www.bluezooaquatics.com/ as well?

 

No, actually they came from Ebay. I've found ebay to be a good source of corals as long as you research the seller and make sure they have a good history (ie the rating on ebay as well as google searching for them on forums).

 

The prices are not that bad either.

[Aqua fire/medic]

Those zoas look like my clementines..... Can we get a shot with less actinic of them?

[tokendog]

Those zoas look like my clementines..... Can we get a shot with less actinic of them?

 

Yeah, I'm in the process of swapping over lights but I will get some new pics up this weekend.

 

I'm hoping to get a lot done from the To Do list this weekend.

[twan]

Nice, cheers to productive tank weekends!

[tokendog]

Working on cleaning up the room right now, and thinking about adding a Melanurus Wrasse, but unfortunately Liveaquaria does not have one available. Bluezooaquatics has one but I'm not sure if I feel comfortable ordering a fish from them. I've only really heard good things about fish coming from Diver's Den...

 

I've read the Melanurus is a good predator of flatworms and while I have not seen a single one in my DT, I do see them in the sump, and I do not want to use Flatworm Exit unless necessary because I hear it destroys your pod population.

 

I'm also about to get ready to order some Harlequin shrimp for my nano so I might just order all of it directly from BZA.

 

In the meantime, here's a couple of pictures for you guys...hope you enjoy them!

 

First, here's the photo with less blue that was requested earlier:

 

 

then back to the original lighting:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love this guy...He is carrying half of my CUC around with him at the moment, but he rotates them out and most of them are empty shells...some of them aren't...I still love the guy though. He strips the rock down to nothing. Eats through all kinds of algae.

 

 

The right side of the tank...I'm having a small diatom outbreak but that's because I didn't change filter socks like I'm supposed to...problem fixed and I ordered 10 more filter socks so I can get better on rotating them out.

 

The Umbrella Leather is pissed off because a hermit decided to stroll across him and check out the landscape. He is recovering nicely from being cut off of his old rock and permanently placed on his new home. He was looking pretty rough but is bouncing back nicely.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I want to get a few more in different colors. I love these corals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Lubbocki (spelled right?) Fairy Wrasse:

 

 

My clown pairs' favorite spot nowdays...There's a perfectly good Rose Anemone above them and they ignore it and prefer the rockwork....crazy clowns.

 

 

 

and another FTS:

 

 

Thanks for looking! Please let me know what you think!

[twan]

Really like your coco worm, nice!

[jnicita]

Hey, quick question. how LOUD is your system (OR any of you cadlights type rimless). I was all bent out of hell on designing a durso or HGB, but am waiting on supplies, meanwhile, I decided to plumb and leak test everything in the garage. ITS loud, and not the over flow. Its the pump I have running it, but Im not sure if I introduced the noise myself so I am asking, dont want to derail your thread, but thought I would ask. (also, your pushing the recommended 500gph?, I bought my tank used, no pump, thats why I ask, 50gC not 50g Long)

[tokendog]

Hey, quick question. how LOUD is your system (OR any of you cadlights type rimless). I was all bent out of hell on designing a durso or HGB, but am waiting on supplies, meanwhile, I decided to plumb and leak test everything in the garage. ITS loud, and not the over flow. Its the pump I have running it, but Im not sure if I introduced the noise myself so I am asking, dont want to derail your thread, but thought I would ask. (also, your pushing the recommended 500gph?, I bought my tank used, no pump, thats why I ask, 50gC not 50g Long)

 

It's not loud at all. I went with the stock return plumbing but used PVC to do my drain. I used their provided durso, but went from a 1 1/2 sized pipe to a 1 inch drain in to the sump. At the moment, it's not using a 90 degree elbow so it kind of drops, hits a L connector, then goes straight, then down.

 

I know it slows the rate of flow from the DT and I intend to redo the drain using elbows so that the water is hardly slowed in its descent.

 

But to answer your question specifically: The tank is in my computer room and its enclosed on all sides except for the entrance. The room itself is around 8x8 and I barely hear any water falling. I only hear the hum of the pumps and even that isn't that loud and could be easily fixed with properly placed dampening material...and this is with the doors to the cabinet open. I close the doors and the sound of the aquarium basically disappears.

 

And now on to some new photos...I plan on getting a nice macro lens soon and hope that will help improve the quality of the pictures.

 

Two heads and no signs of a new head, but I've started target feeding them more regularly and hope to see this Duncan grow like crazy. I love them and want as many of them as I can bare to have. He was a bit pissed with the new lighting and I have had to move him a few times to find the right location, but now he stays open almost all day and seems very happy.

 

 

These mushrooms looked like crap when I got them but they are some of the most beautiful ones I have in my tank now. I love them and wouldn't mind seeing a few of them spread around the tank.

 

 

 

I love Xenia, despite how rapidly I know they can spread, I still love them opening / closing motion that they do and I love things that put a lot of motion in to the tank. I'll just have to keep them trimmed as they spread. They have multiplied a great deal since I have gotten them but are still contained to this frag plug.

 

 

Love Hammer corals and want to add a few different varieties of them...and maybe a torch or two. Again, lots of motion here, and I really like that.

 

 

One of my Maxi-Minis...I might have to frag these guys soon. One of them is about 4 inches across.

 

 

My new Fiji Yellow Leather. He's still adjusting, I think. I see some polpy extension.

 

 

My new Melanurus Wrasse. I got him to help with my flatworm problem which hasn't spread to the main tank, but he eats practically everything. Not shy at all and is getting along with all of my other fish. He likes to hang out with my Lubbock Wrasse. The only fish I have that has shown signs of being a bully is amazingly enough my Pajama Cardinal...the one I was told would be the most docile...go figure.

 

 

Full tank shot as of today at 1pm. Yes, that's an acro at the bottom in the sand. I need to get my dremel and cut the plug off so I can put him at the top. He has polpy extension and is becoming colored under the new lights. Quite a few of my corals are still on the plugs because I'm not 100% sure on placement yet. I'm securing more and more of them though as I see them thriving in the new locations.

 

 

Thanks for looking!

[Criley7]

I love the scape

[tokendog]

I love the scape

 

Thanks

[Paigee]

I like the new pics That wrasse is beautiful too!

[twan]

Duncans - awesome.

Yellow Figi Leather - more awesome!

 

Pics of new light fixture!?!?!?!?!?

[tokendog]

Duncans - awesome.

Yellow Figi Leather - more awesome!

 

Pics of new light fixture!?!?!?!?!?

 

It has been an interesting couple of weeks.

 

I sold my AI Sols to Twan, who was great to deal with, and very briefly, owned an ATI Sunpower unit.

 

The ATI Sunpower unit is a great looking unit and is well-built. It is definitely worth the money, but I believe having started with LEDs I was used to the shimmer and the customization that was provided with that technology. As a result, while I was happy with the colors provided, what I was lacking in terms of tweaking capabilities and shimmer was always nagging me. It did not take me long to realize that I would never be 100% satisfied with T5s in their current state.

 

While we were at the LFS returning the ATI units, my wife brings me over to a new display that had been set up. The Ecotech Radions. She knew I wanted them, but also knew the price tag. It was cool to be able to see them in the store, in person, but I did not figure them to be an option at all nor did I want to try and convince her that I wanted to try them out and therefore she should let me buy them. However, it wasn’t necessary. She gave me a nod and said, “Get them. I know you want them, and if it will make you happy, you should get them.” Have I mentioned how much I love my wife? Seriously, she’s great. She had already decided, if I like it, that I could get another one in a couple of months if necessary.

 

So this past Wednesday I came home with the Ecotech Radion and got it connected to my setup. It actually went straight on to the existing AI rails, which I thought was great because the LFS did not have the hanging kit, nor did I want to change the mounting location in my ceiling. I was happy to see that I could simply use the previous setup that I had for the AI Sols.

 

I’ve played with them quite extensively and must say that I agree 100% that the AI Sols are the best bang for the buck in the LED market right now.

 

However, the Ecotech Radions absolutely bring more to the table. The spectrum is better, the customization and options are better, and the spread is much better. A single AI Sol was no where near up to the task of providing enough light for my tank (which is mostly LPS and softies) and had a major spotlight problem. The Ecotech Radion, on the other hand, does not have the spot light effect and my corals have not shown a negative reaction to the change at all. I can definitely see that they would be happier overall with another unit, but I am in no way depriving them of light at the moment.

 

I will continue to update with my impression of the Ecotech Radion as I get more time with them, but Ecotech has already released another update (this week) that overhauled the UI interface and fixed a lot of bugs, so I am happy with the rate that they seem to be releasing updates (Every 3 months so far).

 

Anyways, here is a shot of the tank with the Ecotech Radion. I also got rid of the ugly egg crate that I was using to keep jumpers inside of the tank and built a clear screen lid for it using the clear mesh from BRS and a window screen kit from Home Depot. They did not have the black screen kit in stock so I went with white, but I will be redoing it with the black kit in the future so that it looks better…but the screen lid, although white, is 100x better looking than the egg crate and the clear mesh allows a lot of light through.

 

This is a single Ecotech Radion at 40% intensity. The only coral having a negative reaction is my Umbrella leather, but he has always been moody and I believe his issue is flow. He did this under the AI Sols as well.

[tokendog]

Here are some more shots...still learning how to use the DSLR but getting better. I need to learn photo editing as well. I apologize for the slight glare in the center of the picture...

 

Thanks for looking! Also if any one has a better image host than Flickr, please let me know.

 

 

 

 

[Spencer7]

GO RADIONS!

[tokendog]

GO RADIONS!

 

Thanks! I'm very happy with it. I do plan on getting another one in the future but my next major purchase is going to be a nice macro lens for the camera so I can take better shots.

 

While feeding silversides to my Maxi Minis, I noticed that my Rose Anemone has split and now there are two of them.

 

The little one is awesome. He's the size of a quarter and the mother is the size of a half dollar now. I've had it for about 3 months now.

 

I will get some pictures tomorrow when it's daylight again for the tank.

[twan]

I like the way the screen top turned out. I ordered a kit myself from BRS and plan to paint it white, the exact opposite of you, hahahahahah.

 

I am also shocked at how much spread you are getting from 1 Radion. I wanted to go that way but I knew long term I would want a 2nd and could not justify the price of 2. So for the 1st round I will rock your AI's and when the next generation of LED fixtures hit the market in a year or so from now I will re-evaluate.

 

Tank is looking great, very jealous!

 

p.s. how many inches AWL did you have the Sol's and now the Radion mounted?

[tokendog]

I like the way the screen top turned out. I ordered a kit myself from BRS and plan to paint it white, the exact opposite of you, hahahahahah.

 

I am also shocked at how much spread you are getting from 1 Radion. I wanted to go that way but I knew long term I would want a 2nd and could not justify the price of 2. So for the 1st round I will rock your AI's and when the next generation of LED fixtures hit the market in a year or so from now I will re-evaluate.

 

Tank is looking great, very jealous!

 

p.s. how many inches AWL did you have the Sol's and now the Radion mounted?

 

Yeah, I love the screen. Visually it was a huge upgrade and it did improve the amount of light getting in to the water. The white is growing on me but I will try both and see which one I like more. I think the black screen would help maintain the rimless look a little more than the white.

 

As far as the spread goes for the Radion, I am very impressed. I had the same line of thought as you about rocking the AI Sols until the new generation of LEDs came out, but my wife said I could get it, so I took the chance while I had it. Hopefully the Radion maintains resale value pretty well.

 

Thanks for the compliment. I want to organize the corals some. At the moment every thing is kind of scattered and as I see other member threads, it seems like theirs are so planned out and organized.

 

Here are a few more shots, this time from above, and it includes my newly split Rose Anemone:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[tokendog]

I've been running a single BRS Deluxe reactor for a few weeks now, and because of how much I like the unit itself, I placed an order for another one. I will use this one to run carbon in order to achieve better water clarity.

 

I also dose with Coral Snow which in my eyes does make a significant difference in how clear the water it is. I do not see any other benefits of it but it definitely does improve the clarity of the water after the cloudiness dissipates. I've also been dosing Sponge Power but do not see any difference any where in the tank due to that. I assume it's doing something, but what, I do not know. I'll keep using it and see if it helps my filter feeders, but I'm not sure it's something that can have it's benefits observed easily.

 

Another product I use from Zeovit is Coral Vitalizer, which does help. I notice increased polpy extension from my brain, hammer, coco worm, and leathers immediately after dosing and for a good while after wards.

 

In hopes of increasing the quality of the pictures I am taking, I placed an order for a nice macro lens this morning and it will be here tomorrow. It's the Tamron 90mm lens. I'm excited to see the difference going from a kit lens to a prime macro lens. It has outstanding reviews and some of the top things mentioned are IQ, sharpness, color accuracy, and the closeness to the target. I'm excited to get it and try it out.

[tokendog]

The new lens came in. It's a Tamron 90mm Di. I am also going to soon be trying out the Sony 100mm.

 

I apologize for my novice photo skills but I am practicing a lot more and researching how to improve my photography skills... Here are some quick snaps that I took with the new lens. Hope you like them!

 

 

My Bumble Bee Snails. These guys are in a separate tank, one of my nanos:

 

 

One of two Conch snails that are in the 50G Cadlights:

 

My Melanurus Wrasse. As long as you keep him fed, he's a good guy to have around. Otherwise he tends to get a little grumpy:

 

 

My Red Coco Worm:

 

 

My Blue Tuxedo Urchin...Those poor snails. He rotates them out nightly...most of them are empty shells though. Other than that, he hasn't picked up any of my frags:

 

A red mushroom that was added recently...still looking for its new spot in the tank:

 

And a macro of one of my Ricordeas:

 

Thanks for looking!

[twan]

Nice new pics, very nice.

If your still looking for an image host I use http://imgur.com/