Becact's Zeovit SPS Cadlights 39g Sig

[becact]

Oh yeah, I totally agree the corals are getting more light in this tank than they were in the last one, even though it is only 100w of T5 vs 500w of halides. The halides were in somewhat crappy reflectors (compared to lumenarcs and such). These T5s are in premium reflectors and much closer to the corals. I really hate it when people tell newbies they must have halides to grow SPS or clams; it's simply not true any more. I'm a T5 convert

 

But as for the pink birdsnest, it was doing fine until this TN started up a few days ago, so I don't think it's the light. I also lowered the light over several days to acclimate. I really don't know what to do besides let it be. The other corals are doing great, so I don't really want to make any tank-wide changes.

[becact]

Anyone seen the new 50g cube from Cad yet? Starphire glass on 3 sides, 24x24x20" tall. I so would have bought that tank if it had been out when I got this one! But I still like having the ATO reservoir and equipment in the stand.

[Rehype]

Anyone seen the new 50g cube from Cad yet? Starphire glass on 3 sides, 24x24x20" tall. I so would have bought that tank if it had been out when I got this one! But I still like having the ATO reservoir and equipment in the stand.

 

 

Yea i saw it a few weeks ago. Ill probably upgrade to that model when i move in the spring. But i agree with you B i like being able to keep alot of stuff inside the cabinet.

[becact]

I was thinking about the 57g Oceanic Illuminata for an upgrade, but just can't justify the upgrade when this tank is brand new! Since that tank is 36", You could keep a 24" sump for a nice in water cone skimmer and return compartment and still have enough room for a large ATO reservoir.

[Rehype]

I like that tank alot as well but the only drawbacks was it isnt starphire and i prefer the black silicone. Not to mention i would have to spend extra cash on buying led modules and a new sump. The only other tank i would consider in that category would be the elos 50 gallon

[becact]

Wouldn't you only need one more LED module? The lack of starphire does suck. I wish glasscages could be trusted because they have good prices.

 

I think this tank should last me a good year before the SPS are too big, though, lol.

[Rehype]

Yea your right but that with the added cost of a decent sump. It would cost more than the new cadlight.

[BlakeL]

Is the reason you can use such a low power 4 bulb fixture because they have superior reflectors or is it the bulbs? I am planning a 40g Breeder tank for next year after I graduate. Ideally I would like to get a T5 fixture that will give me enough lighting for SPS but without killing my monthly bill. I have been looking the ATI and Tek 4 bulb fixtures at reef geek and with bulbs they are $340 and $440.

[scubasteve2580]

Is the reason you can use such a low power 4 bulb fixture because they have superior reflectors or is it the bulbs? I am planning a 40g Breeder tank for next year after I graduate. Ideally I would like to get a T5 fixture that will give me enough lighting for SPS but without killing my monthly bill. I have been looking the ATI and Tek 4 bulb fixtures at reef geek and with bulbs they are $340 and $440.

alot of both.. its not always about the quantity. the quality matters more in my opinion

[1337TANKHAX]

Oh noes! Tissue Necrosis!

 

 

It's not tn, it's H1N1!

[becact]

Is the reason you can use such a low power 4 bulb fixture because they have superior reflectors or is it the bulbs? I am planning a 40g Breeder tank for next year after I graduate. Ideally I would like to get a T5 fixture that will give me enough lighting for SPS but without killing my monthly bill. I have been looking the ATI and Tek 4 bulb fixtures at reef geek and with bulbs they are $340 and $440.

 

I can highly recommend the ATI. The main difference between the Tek and ATI is that the ATI has active cooling, which means to blows air directly onto the bulb bases. This increases the output of the bulbs and extends their life as well. Also, I think the ATI reflectors are superior. Bulbs are also important; ATI, UV lighting, and Geissman (sp?) all make good bulbs, and there are a few by different companies commonly used as well. Stay away from no names, Current, and the like. Another advantage of T5 is it heats your tank much less.

 

Well, the birdsnest is looking even worse this morning, I think it may be too late. I am going to remove the frogspawn and place it on the sand, though, just in case that gives the birdsnest a chance. I think I should stay away from such fast growing and aggressive LPS in this tank, and just stick with chalices and acans.

[BlakeL]

Thanks for the input on the ATI fixture. I have also been looking at the Giesemann Reflexx fixture at Marine Depot since its only $319 and comes with Giesemann bulbs. I cannot find any reviews on it though.

[becact]

Doesn't look like it has individual parabolic reflectors, but instead a single stamped piece. I'd stay away for that reason. Reflectors are everything with T5s.

[scubasteve2580]

Doesn't look like it has individual parabolic reflectors, but instead a single stamped piece. I'd stay away for that reason. Reflectors are everything with T5s.

hey i hate to put it like this, but if the birdnest doesnt look like its going to do a turn around then you have nothing to lose. put it in a low light area with good flow. when my cap got rtn i had a scroll on the same rock. it caught it too. i put it in low light and gave the scroll a chance tpo recover.. its still alive and doing good now. from the looks of it there was no part of the birdnest to frag that wasnt affected by the TN. TN is so mysterious that no one has had the ability to correct it and since it moves so fast through a colony they havent had much lith finding the cause, etc.. might also try a dip..

[becact]

Can we have a moment of silence please... after about 80% of the tissue was lost I chucked the colony. Didn't want to take a risk of it somehow spreading, or the death polluting the tank any more. I can tell you the coral did stink when taking it out. This is my first experience with RTN, I really hope it doesn't happen to any more corals. From the limited research I've done, it seems no one really knows what causes it, but it's probably related to stress. My tank had a big alk spike when first starting as I overdosed 2 part while foolishly not testing daily, but now things are back in line. Also, the pink birdsnest was one of the most moved corals in my tank since setting up. The frogspawn is delegated to the sandbed for the moment. Not sure if I will get rid of it and go strictly SPS on the rocks, or if the frogspawn is even the reason for the RTN (not likely, to be honest).

 

I changed the carbon and will be doing a 15% water change tomorrow to be safe (did one two days ago already). I might even do another just in case. They are cheap enough.

 

Anyway, here's the frag when I first got it about 6 and a half months ago:

 

 

And here it is when it was healthy a week ago:

 

[becact]

On a lighter and unrelated note, my ATO reservoir lasts more than 2 weeks I'm pretty happy about that.

[scubasteve2580]

ahhh man that bites... once it starts though its almost always over with bfore you can stop it. my hats off.. that was an awsome piece. you know, you could always get a green b-nest to replace it..

[imcosmokramer]

sorry dude. That sucks.

 

2 weeks' worth of ATO!!! I'm so jealous.

[becact]

I've made some changes to the tank. Firstly, my bulbs are now 2 ATI blue plus, one Gmann Actinic+ (almost the exact same as the ATI Blue plus), and an ATI aquablue special. Grim over on RC (the T5 god) says I can keep SPS down to 20" with my fixture and these bulbs, which is great since my tank is only 17" deep

 

Secondly, I added two new frags today! I went to WWC to get my bulb, which was a mistake (not really), because I always walk out of there with a new frag or two I got a Paletta Blue Millepora, which is simply beautiful. The one in their show tank is baby blue, both the base and polyps. Both the Palmer's blue (which was right next to the Paletta in their show tank) and ORA blue (which I have) pale in comparison to this one. I also got an unnamed red/pink milli which is really furry.

 

I did a little bit of minor aquascaping since the birdsnest died to fill the tank out. Also, I had my bubblegum monster in half shade, and noticed the half that was in light was getting better color, so I put the frag on the sand so it could get even light. My clam on the sandbed just doesn't seem happy, so I'm trying a new spot on the rock. Moved the ORA blue milli colony up from the back too.

 

I did an extra water change and changed the carbon after the RTN incident.

 

Also, I found out I was doing resizing in photoshop all wrong. Something about reducing the size but not the data. Anyway, the pics should load a lot faster now!

 

I took a ton of pics and chose some of the best ones. Hopefully you all can see that color is improving by the week!

 

Here's the new frags:

 

 

 

Not sure what this one is but I've had it forever. Got it when it was brown, and it hasn't changed much until I started this new tank. It's now light purple with green polyps, and white tips:

 

 

ORA tricolor valida. This one is really putting on some nice color:

 

 

Grape watermelon chalice. It grew a new eye recently:

 

 

The color in this photo is washed out but this is my green milli colony:

 

 

WWC four color chalice is doing well:

 

 

I got these two from a $5 frag bin, and they were both tan/brown. They stayed that way in the 90, but are finally taking on some color! Anyone know what that favia looking thing is next to the chalice? Not sure if it's a favia or not:

 

 

Zoa corner:

 

 

ORA blue milli. Compare the color on these to the Paletta above! I still like them though

 

 

ORA red planet:

 

]

 

For you softie lovers:

 

 

Pink Milli. This one colored down at first, but you can see it finally starting to turn pink again right on top of that front branch:

 

 

An attempt at getting a nice pic of my mandarin. Not quite in focus (I am forced to use a super low aperture of 2.7 to let in enough light, even with a slow shutter of 1/20 or so):

 

 

Please let me know what you think!

[Rehype]

Great pics B. I love the rics...

[bird]

Sweet tank. Can't wait to see it when it grows out.

[levitationDrew]

That Ricordia combo is amazing. Your Mandarin looks really good too. Did you special order your bulbs from WWC? I have been looking for some ATI bulbs in town. They really make your colors pop better. I have been running all Geissman bulbs. I don't want to ship new ATI bulbs in if I can get them from the LFS.

[becact]

No one stocks ATI in town, unfortunately. I had to get them from the internet. The only reason I have the Geissman in there is because I wanted a blue plus, but no one had one locally. Not worth shipping one bulb, IMHO.

 

The Gman Actinic+ is the exact same spectrum as a blue plus, and only slightly less par. It won't make that big of a difference for me. If you have a whole fixture to fill up, definitely order the ATI bulbs, though.

 

Thanks for the comments as always guys! One of the good things about living in FL is it is ricordea central here (hence their name, ricordea florida). If you can find a wholesaler you can get them for about $6 a polyp. Sure beats the $25 most LFS want! I think you only need a fishing license to go collect them yourself, which I just might do one of these days. The ones I have are splitting pretty quickly, though. Hopefully before too long I'll have that little cave behind them filled with rics Can they live in the shade?

[BlakeL]

The tank looks great. Once I get mine setup next year, ill need to head down to WWC. Their prices seem a lot better than Ocean Direct and Fishy Business that are within walking distance of my house.

[becact]

The tank looks great. Once I get mine setup next year, ill need to head down to WWC. Their prices seem a lot better than Ocean Direct and Fishy Business that are within walking distance of my house.

 

The prices get a lot better if you come in person, and develop a relationship with the store Vic (one of the owners) is willing to give very good deals on everything but the most limited stuff.