THE OFFICIAL ASK ALBERT THIEL THREAD

[albertthiel]

Morning all well afternoon in the UK.

I have a certain reputation around here for picking up bargains and I did so again a couple of days ago. I was in a local charity shop (not sure if you have them or what you call them in the US etc) I came across the following item for all of £5 thats about $8 to you in the US.

 

If you look carefully you will see it is made by a company called Eschenbach a German company. They make excellent optical devices and are not cheap to buy.I checked them out on the net after getting them home and although £5 is quite expensive for a charity shop item it is a great bargain. The magnifying heads are £30 and £27 each respectively not to mention the holder complete with batteries and light to illuminate whatever you wish to magnify. The magnifying heads are 6x and 10x magnification.

 

Well not sure about your reputation, but there is nothing wrong with hunting for bargains at all IMO, I think a lot of us do so ... but that is a great buy indeed ... and it looks like a nice piece of equipment to own indeed Les ...

 

So what are you going to use it for ? Are you getting into ID'ing small organisms you find in your tank .. I have a few magnifying glasses of various strengths but I think the highest magnification is about 15x and that is sometimes not enough to really see a lot of detail of what I want to look at.

 

I had something caught in my mech filter the other day and it was like a small creamy colored organism but even under my strongest magnifying loupe I could not really make out what it was ... I guess I need something stronger, like what you found, or a microscope of some sorts. Used to have one a long time ago but I have not idea what happened to it as I cannot find it anymore in the boxes with aquarium stuff I have in my garage ... pity but nothing I can do about it now.

 

Albert

[zhuangcg]

Please don't put an urchin in your 28g tank unless it looks like this all the time:If you don't want the hermits to kill your CUC, then the hermits have to go. Snails are an integral part of a CUC, far better than hermits.

 

I know that the preferred solution is to get rid of the crabs but I can't. They are a family favorite. I don't get to unilaterally add or remove organisms from the tank. the perils of democracy are manifest. So, I'm looking for an alternate solution. The vender claims that their nano urchins are appropriate for small tanks; they show said urchin next to paper clip to indicate it's diminutive stature. So, it is certainly plausible that such a small creature could find enough to eat in my aquarium; especially since I feed a frozen marine algae blend five times a week to supplement my cuc's diet. My concern is that the vender isn't correct about the urchin for whatever reason.

 

[rick12]

Hello Everyone,

I find myself in need of a new algae eater for my 28 gallon reef tank. We're having issues with our beloved hermit crabs ganging up and killing snails that wander into the crabs territories. Since the crabs are so well-loved, getting rid of them is not an option. The easiest solution would be to just buy a handful of snails every few months to keep their numbers up in the face of predation. However, I would prefer not to buy creatures that I know will be killed by their tankmates. Given the above constraints, I have been considering purchasing a small sea urchin. I have been reading about different types and I am finding a lot of contradictory information about them.

Here is a link to one that I have been considering,

http://sealifeinc.net/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=38&products_id=197

Do you think this would be a helpful addition to my tank? Would it be able to resist the attentions of our two blue legged hermit crabs and the other two red legged hermit crabs? Is there something better?

Thanks.

I keep tuxedo and long spine black urchins. They do eat algae.

The pencil urchin is not reef safe. I did have one and it eats algae but it also eats anything it can including coral and other urchins. The pencil urchin ate the spines off one of my tuxedo.

Rick

[atoll]

I will use it for all sorts of things including stuff in my tank but also some of the lettering on packaging requires more than perfect eyesight I often find so it will also come in handy for such things. I also have a microscope up in my loft(roofspace)and one day I might just get up there and get it out along with some of my old magazines and my log book of one of my old tanks in which I experimented with Oxydator's.

 

Taking of which an Oxydator is very useful for when you have a power outage which I believe is quite often in some parts of the USA. We had a down fall of snow yesterday and we currently have 8" of snow outside so I am going nowhere today that's for sure.

 

My peri pump and ATU is working well so I am pleased about that along with thew Kalk stirrer.

 

Well not sure about your reputation, but there is nothing wrong with hunting for bargains at all IMO, I think a lot of us do so ... but that is a great buy indeed ... and it looks like a nice piece of equipment to own indeed Les ...

 

So what are you going to use it for ? Are you getting into ID'ing small organisms you find in your tank .. I have a few magnifying glasses of various strengths but I think the highest magnification is about 15x and that is sometimes not enough to really see a lot of detail of what I want to look at.

 

I had something caught in my mech filter the other day and it was like a small creamy colored organism but even under my strongest magnifying loupe I could not really make out what it was ... I guess I need something stronger, like what you found, or a microscope of some sorts. Used to have one a long time ago but I have not idea what happened to it as I cannot find it anymore in the boxes with aquarium stuff I have in my garage ... pity but nothing I can do about it now.

 

Albert

[zhuangcg]

That looks like an awfully small Urchin but not sure how large it gets ... I emailed the seller and asked a few more questions and if I get an answer I'll post it here.

 

But yes Ben ... they need a constant supply of algae and after a few days there may not be any left in the tank for it to consume, and not sure whether that Urchin will eat seaweed in sheet form that can be added to the tank.

 

And I guess you have seen my comments on Hermits .. I think they are very unpredictable, and often become opportunistic feeders as opposed to algae eaters. It is not the first time I see posts about Hermits eradicating snails in a tank, and even more than that, and picking on Zoas and whatever else they decide to take a fancy to. I do not trust them as reef-safe. Some may never do anything else but eat algae, but is it worth the risk since so many do feed on whatever they take fancy to.

 

Good point on removing them and adding more snails of various types. Nerite, Cerite and Dwarf Cerite, Nassarius and Astrea (although those can get fairly large). Reefcleaners.org has a large selection of tank cleaners for zhuangcg as you know and I am sure have seen.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

Albert

We have two blue-legged hermits and two scarlet hermits.

 

http://www.reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&product_id=52&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=58

 

http://www.reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&product_id=331&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=58

 

We have three Astraea snails, a few large nerite snails and a bunch of small cerith snails currently. The blue-legged crabs gang up on the snails and kill them. I have never seen the scarlet crabs do this but they are much larger than the blues so they certainly could.

I've also seen our Mithrax crab rescue snails from the blues, she'll walk over and smack the blues away with her claws. The blues are actually smaller than our Astraea snails so they aren't very large.

 

 

 

[rick12]

I know that the preferred solution is to get rid of the crabs but I can't. They are a family favorite. I don't get to unilaterally add or remove organisms from the tank. the perils of democracy are manifest. So, I'm looking for an alternate solution. The vender claims that their nano urchins are appropriate for small tanks; they show said urchin next to paper clip to indicate it's diminutive stature. So, it is certainly plausible that such a small creature could find enough to eat in my aquarium; especially since I feed a frozen marine algae blend five times a week to supplement my cuc's diet. My concern is that the vender isn't correct about the urchin for whatever reason.

IMO, that urchin will triple in size within months in a well fed tank.

R.

[albertthiel]

I know that the preferred solution is to get rid of the crabs but I can't. They are a family favorite. I don't get to unilaterally add or remove organisms from the tank. the perils of democracy are manifest. So, I'm looking for an alternate solution. The vender claims that their nano urchins are appropriate for small tanks; they show said urchin next to paper clip to indicate it's diminutive stature. So, it is certainly plausible that such a small creature could find enough to eat in my aquarium; especially since I feed a frozen marine algae blend five times a week to supplement my cuc's diet. My concern is that the vender isn't correct about the urchin for whatever reason.

 

I understand what you are saying and sent the vendor an email asking for more details and possibly a species name so we can do some more research on that Urchin.

 

I saw the pic with the paper clip but more info would be needed still to determine how large it really gets as I have not come across that small a pencil urchin ... but as I said I will see what I can find out and if anything I'll post it here.

 

What Hermits do you have and how many are in that tank if I may ask?

 

And maybe you need to find something to keep them feeding on algae and other foods and not on your snails if you do not want to remove the Hermits ...

 

Let's wait and see what the vendor comes back with too ... and if you have pics of the Hermits do post them please

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

I keep tuxedo and long spine black urchins. They do eat algae.

The pencil urchin is not reef safe. I did have one and it eats algae but it also eats anything it can including coral and other urchins. The pencil urchin ate the spines off one of my tuxedo.

Rick

 

Yes, based on what I know, and on many posts, Pencil urchins are not reef safe indeed. They are not reliable and are unpredictable in what they will feed on, and will go for just about anything they can including some corals and indeed other urchins as well. Not a good choice for our reefs.

 

Thanks Rick for confirming it

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

We have two blue-legged hermits and two scarlet hermits. http://www.reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&product_id=52&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=58 http://www.reefcleaners.org/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_new.tpl&product_id=331&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=58 We have three Astraea snails, a few large nerite snails and a bunch of small cerith snails currently. The blue-legged crabs gang up on the snails and kill them. I have never seen the scarlet crabs do this but they are much larger than the blues so they certainly could. I've also seen our Mithrax crab rescue snails from the blues, she'll walk over and smack the blues away with her claws. The blues are actually smaller than our Astraea snails so they aren't very large.

 

If you read what reefcleaners has to say about your Hermits it clearly states that they will go for your snails ... so I guess if you want to keep them you are going to have to keep adding snails and they will eventually become food for those Hermits, as has been happening.

 

What you do if of course your decision but I think you have not only seen it happen, and those who replied to your posts do confirm that they will attack and kill your snails.

 

And on the Urchin ... we'll have to wait and see how large it gets and whether your tank can sustain them food wise. Note that the Hermits may harass the Urchin to the point where it drops his spines and that will lead to infections in those areas where the spines were lost and you will lose your Urchin as well ...

 

So ... I guess you'll have to make some decisions on what you really need to do ... add snails that become food ... or risk the Urchin and possibly lose that one too, that is if you want to keep those Hermits which it seems what is what you want to do.

 

Keep us posted.

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

IMO, that urchin will triple in size within months in a well fed tank. R.

 

I would not be surprised that it does indeed ... mini pencil urchins is not something I have come across (yet) so let's see if the vendor comes back with any info on them ... I did a quick search but could not find anything on those mini pencils so far, but maybe with a little more searching I may ... If I do I'll post the info.

 

Albert

[rick12]

The big bad pencil urchin...returned to the LFS

This guy was killed by the pencil urchin

Here is the long spine, smaller than a mushroom

Then months later size of my hand

Rick

[albertthiel]

I will use it for all sorts of things including stuff in my tank but also some of the lettering on packaging requires more than perfect eyesight I often find so it will also come in handy for such things. I also have a microscope up in my loft(roofspace)and one day I might just get up there and get it out along with some of my old magazines and my log book of one of my old tanks in which I experimented with Oxydator's.

 

Taking of which an Oxydator is very useful for when you have a power outage which I believe is quite often in some parts of the USA. We had a down fall of snow yesterday and we currently have 8" of snow outside so I am going nowhere today that's for sure.

 

My peri pump and ATU is working well so I am pleased about that along with thew Kalk stirrer.

 

 

I am all with you on using a magnifying one for reading instructions on some of the products we buy. The text can be so small that I wonder if anyone can actually read it :-) and of course at our age with our reduced vision reading it is just about impossible.

 

Looking at those old logs should be interesting indeed if they go back to a tank you had a long time ago ... when all of the equipment that is around nowadays was not and when we had to sometimes do a lot of trial and error methods and figure out what worked and what did not.

 

And glad to read your new equipment (the peri pump and the KW stirrer is working well.

 

+1 on the Oxydator when there are power failures as it does indeed keep the water oxygenated when nothing else will ... good point indeed Les.

 

Gotta run as I have a Dr's follow up appointment and I have to be there in less than 30 min ... be back later.

 

Albert

[kwellens]

Hi. I have a question for you regarding stocking a tank as there seems to be so much differing advice out there. I have a 30 gallon Innovative Marine Nuvo tank that measures 19 x 19.5 x 19. I run the Innovative Marine skimmer and have about 30 pounds give or take of live rock and sand. I am using the stock filters at the moment but plan on upgrading and using a refugium in the near future. The tank has cycled and I have a cleanup crew at the moment. I have changed my stocking list several times and I can't seem to make up my mind. I know I definitely want a tailspot blenny or an Emblemaria pandionis (leaning more towards the tailspot). Here are some other fish that I like. Obviously I can't have all of them in a tank this size but can you give me some recommendations on combinations that would work long term in my tank with either of the blennies? I do not want to overstock.

 

I had thought of various combinations of the following:

Pair of ocellaris clownfish - some say they will be too territorial in a tank this size while others say it shouldn't be a problem.

purple firefish

pink-streaked wrasse - would I ever see it?

shrimp/goby pair though I don't know if a candy striped pistol shrimp would be harmful to my snails and fish.

Pearly jawfish

barnacle blennies

Perhaps a cleaner shrimp

Atlantic cherub pygmy angelfish

yellow assessor

chalk bass

 

Obviously as I said I can't have anywhere near all of these in my tank size but what combination do you think would likely be most successful long term with a tailspot blenny and what order would you recommend adding the fish? If you have any recommendations not listed I am open to other suggestions also. I am planning on also stocking the tank with soft corals, mushrooms and other beginner corals as this is my first saltwater tank. Thanks.

[albertthiel]

image.jpg

The big bad pencil urchin...returned to the LFS

image.jpg

This guy was killed by the pencil urchin

image.jpg

Here is the long spine, smaller than a mushroom

Then months later size of my hand

image.jpg

Rick

 

They can indeed grow at an alarming rate sometimes and I guess in your case that is what happened (not just the Long Spine but most of them IME).

 

Thanks for posting those timeline pics Rick

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

Hi. I have a question for you regarding stocking a tank as there seems to be so much differing advice out there. I have a 30 gallon Innovative Marine Nuvo tank that measures 19 x 19.5 x 19. I run the Innovative Marine skimmer and have about 30 pounds give or take of live rock and sand. I am using the stock filters at the moment but plan on upgrading and using a refugium in the near future. The tank has cycled and I have a cleanup crew at the moment. I have changed my stocking list several times and I can't seem to make up my mind. I know I definitely want a tailspot blenny or an Emblemaria pandionis (leaning more towards the tailspot). Here are some other fish that I like. Obviously I can't have all of them in a tank this size but can you give me some recommendations on combinations that would work long term in my tank with either of the blennies? I do not want to overstock.

 

I had thought of various combinations of the following:

Pair of ocellaris clownfish - some say they will be too territorial in a tank this size while others say it shouldn't be a problem.

purple firefish

pink-streaked wrasse - would I ever see it?

shrimp/goby pair though I don't know if a candy striped pistol shrimp would be harmful to my snails and fish.

Pearly jawfish

barnacle blennies

Perhaps a cleaner shrimp

Atlantic cherub pygmy angelfish

yellow assessor

chalk bass

 

Obviously as I said I can't have anywhere near all of these in my tank size but what combination do you think would likely be most successful long term with a tailspot blenny and what order would you recommend adding the fish? If you have any recommendations not listed I am open to other suggestions also. I am planning on also stocking the tank with soft corals, mushrooms and other beginner corals as this is my first saltwater tank. Thanks.

 

Thanks for the question and you are right you would not be able to put all of those in that size tank but here is a suggstion that you may want to consider that includes some of the ones you list and others. This is based on a 30 gal tank, with skimmer and good mechanical and chemical filtration so you can maintain high water quality levels :

 

- I would not go with the Sailfin Blenny as they get large (6 cm so ± 3.5 inches which may be a bit large at it makes it more difficult to add other smaller fish)

- I would stay away from Clownfish as they are indeed very territorial and that may make it difficult to add other fish as well

- The Pink Streaked Wrasse is nice for a reef but yes you are right, it will be very shy for some time and hide but as it gets used to its environment it will be out in the open, as long as the tank does not have any fish in it that bully it

- A shrimp Goby pair would be nice indeed and you could go with that pistol shrimp but be aware that it may eat your snails unless it is kept well fed with meaty foods

- The Pearl Jawfish would be fine IMO but make sure you have a cover as both the Jawfish and many Wrasse tend to be jumpers especially if harassed.

- The Barnacle Blenny would be ok but that is one that spends most of its time in a crevice or little cave waiting for a meal to appear and all you may see most of the time is the head. Better IMO would be a Bicolor Blenny as they will swim around far more in the open and do have a nice color. Likes a barnacle shell to get into, moving in and out of it and swimming around

- Another fish you may want to consider is a Citron Goby because they are out in the open most of the time and are always a lot of fun to watch

- Chalk Bass are peaceful and you need to be careful that you do not put any aggressive or semi-aggressive with them. It's a peaceful basslet but again a carnivore so it will need enough meaty foods

- I would stay away from Pigmy Angels as they can be semi aggressive to aggressive and if you have some of the more peaceful fish mentioned then that may not be a good choice although I agree that it is a nice and interesting fish.

- The yellow assessor is a great small reef fish that hangs out so to speak and is non-aggressive but cannot be kept with bullies as this is a fish that jumps out of the tank too if chased around e.g. by clowns or other fish.

- A small Clown goby would be another choice and perhaps another kind of Jawfish

 

So you do have quite a few choices and if you select the types that are the passive types you should be ok with 4 to 5 fishes in that tank.

 

Another one to consider is a Banggai Cardinal, or even two, as they are calm and passive fish too and do not bother other fish but again this is a carnivore so meaty foods are needed.

 

None of the ones mentioned are incompatible with each other but because some are more of the bully type you should stay away from them and that would be mainly the Clowns and that Pigmy Angel. The others are ok IMO.

 

The Tailspot Blenny would of course be fine with the more peaceful ones above but that too is a jumper. A Tanaka Wrasse is another choice but needs also to be kept with non bully fish ... in fact none of the ones mentioned should be kept with any territorial ones as that will cause problems.

 

Why don't you narrow your choice down, and send me that list and maybe I can give you some more advice.

 

You could go with some of the smaller Gobies as well but depending on what else is in the tank you may not see them all that often. I have a Yellow Rose Goby and it is most of the time in its hiding spot under a rock in a burrow and so I do not see too much of it.

 

And on the corals, yes Zoas and Ricordea and other mushrooms would make nice additions to the tank. Other beginner corals would be a Duncan and for instance a Candy Cane.

 

Hope this helps but if you have more questions do not hesitate to ask

 

Albert

[zhuangcg]

They can indeed grow at an alarming rate sometimes and I guess in your case that is what happened (not just the Long Spine but most of them IME).

 

Thanks for posting those timeline pics Rick

 

Albert

 

It pretty much confirms what I've read about them. Alas, my family remains committed to their crabs; they are more popular than the fish due to their comic antics. I may try one of the tuxedo urchins as their proclivity to wearing hats and such sounds highly amusing. Thanks for your input.

[albertthiel]

It pretty much confirms what I've read about them. Alas, my family remains committed to their crabs; they are more popular than the fish due to their comic antics. I may try one of the tuxedo urchins as their proclivity to wearing hats and such sounds highly amusing. Thanks for your input.

 

Well to every one what they like best ... and let us know how it all works out for you ... Makes sure you have enough food for the Urchin and also make sure that all your rocks are firmly held in place so it cannot knock them over and make them fall on a coral or on some other lifeforms you have. Happy reefkeeping.

 

Albert

[gena]

Hi. I have a question for you regarding stocking a tank as there seems to be so much differing advice out there. I have a 30 gallon Innovative Marine Nuvo tank that measures 19 x 19.5 x 19. I run the Innovative Marine skimmer and have about 30 pounds give or take of live rock and sand. I am using the stock filters at the moment but plan on upgrading and using a refugium in the near future. The tank has cycled and I have a cleanup crew at the moment. I have changed my stocking list several times and I can't seem to make up my mind. I know I definitely want a tailspot blenny or an Emblemaria pandionis (leaning more towards the tailspot). Here are some other fish that I like. Obviously I can't have all of them in a tank this size but can you give me some recommendations on combinations that would work long term in my tank with either of the blennies? I do not want to overstock.

 

I had thought of various combinations of the following:

Pair of ocellaris clownfish - some say they will be too territorial in a tank this size while others say it shouldn't be a problem.

purple firefish

pink-streaked wrasse - would I ever see it?

shrimp/goby pair though I don't know if a candy striped pistol shrimp would be harmful to my snails and fish.

Pearly jawfish

barnacle blennies

Perhaps a cleaner shrimp

Atlantic cherub pygmy angelfish

yellow assessor

chalk bass

 

Obviously as I said I can't have anywhere near all of these in my tank size but what combination do you think would likely be most successful long term with a tailspot blenny and what order would you recommend adding the fish? If you have any recommendations not listed I am open to other suggestions also. I am planning on also stocking the tank with soft corals, mushrooms and other beginner corals as this is my first saltwater tank. Thanks.

I have to comment on the pink streaked wrasse. I have one and he's one of the best fish I've ever owned. Yes they are a little shy. But he is mostly out and about. The only time he gets timid is when I bring out a camera

 

They are very curious little fish, so he'll peek around corners when I'm taking photos. They are not as aggressive as a sixline. I think you'd be very happy having one. I've never heard a bad thing about them. If you can get one, I say go for it

[albertthiel]

Need a better understanding on Calcareous Algae ? Great site

 

First posted by eitallent

.

 

Link : http://www2.fiu.edu/~goldberg/coralreefs/CalcareousAlgae.htm

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

I have to comment on the pink streaked wrasse. I have one and he's one of the best fish I've ever owned. Yes they are a little shy. But he is mostly out and about. The only time he gets timid is when I bring out a camera

 

They are very curious little fish, so he'll peek around corners when I'm taking photos. They are not as aggressive as a sixline. I think you'd be very happy having one. I've never heard a bad thing about them. If you can get one, I say go for it

 

Thanks Gena and you are right they are cute and very interesting to watch as their behavior is amusing at times. That is why I like the Citron Gobies as they too have those funny behaviors. Of course they are not the only ones ..

 

Albert

[kwellens]

Thanks so much. That definitely helps a lot. I am taking a trip to the fish store today (it is about an hour away). I do have a glass top on the tank with a couple of holes in it so I will put screening on those for these fish. How does this sound:

 

Tailspot blenny or perhaps a harptail blenny (one of the meiacanthus blennies)

pink-streaked wrasse

firefish or goby/shrimp pair or citron goby (depending on which catches my eye basically at the fish store)

1 cardinalfish or cardinalfish pair

 

What would you take out or keep in? As I said I'd rather understock than overstock. Thanks.

 

Karen

[albertthiel]

Thanks so much. That definitely helps a lot. I am taking a trip to the fish store today (it is about an hour away). I do have a glass top on the tank with a couple of holes in it so I will put screening on those for these fish. How does this sound:

 

Tailspot blenny or perhaps a harptail blenny (one of the meiacanthus blennies)

pink-streaked wrasse

firefish or goby/shrimp pair or citron goby (depending on which catches my eye basically at the fish store)

1 cardinalfish or cardinalfish pair

 

What would you take out or keep in? As I said I'd rather understock than overstock. Thanks.

 

Karen

 

That sounds good ... on the Cardinals .. you can get two and put them in at the same time and you can go with the Blue Eye ones or the Banggai or even the Pyjama ones. All that should be fine IMO. Yes and plug the holes with some screening material as fish that want out will find the holes somehow ..

 

Harptails are fine but feeding them several times a day if you can is best and meaty food of course or they may decide that your crustaceans look like good food ... so keep it well fed so that does not happen

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

 

Hey Albert,

I asked the guys at my LFS where the NSW comes from and it's source is from Half Moon Bay, CA. They didn't know much else so I will have to go back when the owners get back to the store. What I have noticed is that their water is very cloudy when introduced to my tank. I did not clean the rocks with a turkey baster this time around. The water was crystal clear before the change and after, it was cloudy even 8 hours after the WC. I'm thinking about switching over to ESV's B-ionic Seawater system. Do you have any comment on that particular salt or recommend any specific salts?

 

Additionally, can I get your comment on my current sump setup? Should I change anything or do you see any blaring flaws in the design? Thanks.

 

*Note that the sponges are in the baffles due to the copious/annoying amount of microbubbles my Tunze 9004 is creating. I'm hoping on obtaining a new skimmer soon due to the hardships I've been through with my current one.

DIY 10G Sump by NMB.Photography, on Flickr

 

I took another good look at the sump and other than the suggestions made I have no other ones except make sure that the sponge you have in there is kept clean in case it traps detritus as well besides the bubbles.

 

Albert

[atoll]

Hi Albert and all,

I thought I would do a little update on how I have rigged my kalk stirrer up to my tank.

 

I have the stirrer up to a Reefloat ATU with an old AM peri pump that I had. I just had to change the worn out rollers in the peri pump. All is working great and if it keeps my calcium and PH in the desired bands which I hope it will I won't connect up my TMC 600 calcium reactor.

 

My AM KS 1000 Kalk stirrer.

 

 

My AM Peri pump.

 

My Reefloat ATU top up reservoir made out of a food grade plastic cereal saver box.

 

The top up water lasts about 2 days with the evaporation water loss I have to replace.

 

Les.

 

 

Les.

[albertthiel]

Hi Albert and all,

I thought I would do a little update on how I have rigged my kalk stirrer up to my tank.

 

I have the stirrer up to a Reefloat ATU with an old AM peri pump that I had. I just had to change the worn out rollers in the peri pump. All is working great and if it keeps my calcium and PH in the desired bands which I hope it will I won't connect up my TMC 600 calcium reactor.

My AM KS 1000 Kalk stirrer.

My AM Peri pump.

My Reefloat ATU top up reservoir made out of a food grade plastic cereal saver box.

The top up water lasts about 2 days with the evaporation water loss I have to replace.

Les.

 

Nice Les ... I like it a lot ... looks good and professional and I think using that food grade container for the top-off water was a good idea indeed. Inexpensive and safe.

 

Thanks for the posting and the pictures.

 

Albert