gena Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 Possibly. The sand is just so nasty - if I touch it, it clouds the tank. I rinsed it for a couple of hours, too. The rock, I'm not sure. I kind of like my two little islands, but I'm wondering if one chunk in the middle would be better for this tank? Rockscaping is always something I'm unsure of, and I'm not thrilled with the rock I've got - but maybe once I have coral I'll feel differently? My wife probably will not want me changing rocks. Specore has some extra Tropical Eden Flake sand that he said I could buy from him for whatever shipping cost, so probably 10-15 bucks. Swapping out the sand might just be what I need to do to make myself happy here. I just bought my filtration media - 2 bags of purigen for swapping out, a 6.5 chemi-pure elite, and a 500ml phosguard bottle with a media bag. Should get here at the same time as the AC70 and impeller. I expect the light will get here Wednesday or Thursday. I knew the sand was giving you trouble but was surprised about the rock. I'm sure once it's covered with coral, you'll feel differently about it . Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 11, 2014 Author Share Posted January 11, 2014 I knew the sand was giving you trouble but was surprised about the rock. I'm sure once it's covered with coral, you'll feel differently about it . Not changing the rock will be cheaper, for sure, lol. I'll put that money towards an RO/DI unit. I HAVE to get one of those. I'm thinking the BRS value 4 stage 75 gpd unit. That or a refurb spectrapure. That's a couple of months away, though. For now I'll have to use LFS/DI water from the grocery store. Link to comment
gena Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 Not changing the rock will be cheaper, for sure, lol. I'll put that money towards an RO/DI unit. I HAVE to get one of those. I'm thinking the BRS value 4 stage 75 gpd unit. That or a refurb spectrapure. That's a couple of months away, though. For now I'll have to use LFS/DI water from the grocery store.That's the unit I have, from BRS. Works GREAT!!!! I'd be very cautious about LFS water, if you don't have a TDS meter to evaluate it. Definitely go with the DI from the grocery store, if you can swing it. Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 11, 2014 Author Share Posted January 11, 2014 That's the unit I have, from BRS. Works GREAT!!!! I'd be very cautious about LFS water, if you don't have a TDS meter to evaluate it. Definitely go with the DI from the grocery store, if you can swing it. The value unit does look nice, but a refurb spectrapure is actually the same price! I'll take a look later when I need to actually buy the unit. For the LFS - yeah, I've heard that. I'll just get the DI water that's already at the store. It'll save me money too as the LFS is ~30 minutes away and the grocery store is .25 miles! Link to comment
gena Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 The value unit does look nice, but a refurb spectrapure is actually the same price! I'll take a look later when I need to actually buy the unit. For the LFS - yeah, I've heard that. I'll just get the DI water that's already at the store. It'll save me money too as the LFS is ~30 minutes away and the grocery store is .25 miles! I'm not familiar with the spectrapure but I'm sure it's a great unit too. If you can get your hands on a TDS meter, it could save you some money in the long run. I used to buy water from those water machines outside the grocery store. The TDS was only 3, not bad for .25 cents a gallon. Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 11, 2014 Author Share Posted January 11, 2014 I'm not familiar with the spectrapure but I'm sure it's a great unit too. If you can get your hands on a TDS meter, it could save you some money in the long run. I used to buy water from those water machines outside the grocery store. The TDS was only 3, not bad for .25 cents a gallon. I have to buy the pre-bottled water here. I haven't found a grocery store that has one of the fill-your-own things around here (I've checked at 4). For now, this will work. Is it tuesday yet???? I want my tank stuff!! Random question - any thoughts on a small moonlight? I'd really like an actinic kind of light to make stuff pop at night. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 I'm not familiar with the spectrapure but I'm sure it's a great unit too. If you can get your hands on a TDS meter, it could save you some money in the long run. I used to buy water from those water machines outside the grocery store. The TDS was only 3, not bad for .25 cents a gallon. It's strange to admit, but I had less problems using 11TDS water from an RO dispenser than now that I have my own fancy RO/Di system lol Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 11, 2014 Author Share Posted January 11, 2014 I had pretty bad trouble with the ultrapure water at the Univ. of Iowa, but the waterline leading into that system was horrible. The ultrapure system worked, but I think there was phosphates leeching from my rock or sand. Hopefully I won't have THAT much trouble with this little tank. I think I'm going to get these moonlights when the time comes: http://www.marinedepot.com/R2_Solutions_Extreme_LED_Moonlights_Moon_Light_Fixtures_for_Aquariums-R2_Solutions-RM1111-FILTFIML-vi.html On another note, I've been thinking of painting the back of my tank black? It would hide some of the stuff a bit better, I think. Any ideas? Link to comment
el_ote Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 I painted my 10 black and then kinda regretted it. without the black, the fish look like theyre floating in air. never realized until I painted it. im keeping unpainted from now on. reflective backgrounds look nice also tho... think I remember a 12gallon here with backgrounds he swapped out for either black white or none. Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 11, 2014 Author Share Posted January 11, 2014 I painted my 10 black and then kinda regretted it. without the black, the fish look like theyre floating in air. never realized until I painted it. im keeping unpainted from now on. reflective backgrounds look nice also tho... think I remember a 12gallon here with backgrounds he swapped out for either black white or none. Hmmm, good point. I'm probably too lazy to paint it now anyways, lol. I'll keep it as is. I've seen some small skimmer "boxes" that a few people have in their tanks where the inline from the AC70 sits. Anyone know where to get those? Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted January 12, 2014 Share Posted January 12, 2014 I'm painting the back of my 80g, but the paint will just be opaque so you can still kinda see through it. Looks great on tanks, especially if you add a very dim light behind it, makes for a great effect. Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 I'm painting the back of my 80g, but the paint will just be opaque so you can still kinda see through it. Looks great on tanks, especially if you add a very dim light behind it, makes for a great effect. Hmmm, that could work, though I'm not sure I have enough space for a light behind the tank and with the tank so small, the AC70 takes up most of the back of it. I can't wait to see yours, though!!!! I has a question (surprise, right?) - there is some black foam-like stuff that people use as mats for their tanks and I was thinking maybe it would be good for me to have that for this thing? A guy at the LFS said he gets his at the hardware store. A.) Should I grab some of this? B.) What is it actually called? Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 Hmmm, that could work, though I'm not sure I have enough space for a light behind the tank and with the tank so small, the AC70 takes up most of the back of it. I can't wait to see yours, though!!!! I has a question (surprise, right?) - there is some black foam-like stuff that people use as mats for their tanks and I was thinking maybe it would be good for me to have that for this thing? A guy at the LFS said he gets his at the hardware store. A.) Should I grab some of this? B.) What is it actually called? The only foam I can think of would be something like weather stripping. I'm going to be using a 1/4" yoga mat under my tank to make up for the very slight difference in height where the boards on my stand meet, it'll flatten out just a little and be perfect. Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 The only foam I can think of would be something like weather stripping. I'm going to be using a 1/4" yoga mat under my tank to make up for the very slight difference in height where the boards on my stand meet, it'll flatten out just a little and be perfect. Yeah, I have no idea. I looked at weather stripping and it's not what they have. What they had is almost more like that soft black foam stuff used for packing/shipping? I don't know. The yoga mat is a good idea Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 Just got shipping confirmation on my CC bulb and gooseneck, as well as from Amazon for everything else. This tank may actually come together! Link to comment
Lamilvelo Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 Congrats! I saw you talking about Homebrew in Chupas thread and I remembered you had some mead going.. did it ever turn out? Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 Congrats! I saw you talking about Homebrew in Chupas thread and I remembered you had some mead going.. did it ever turn out? Thanks! Yep - it's finally almost done. It took about 3 months, but the mead has settled and is crystal clear. I purchased 3 1L brown bottles with the grolsch-style swing-top caps for ease and I am sterilizing them and bottling the mead tonight. It'll probably need to bottle age a bit more before it's truly ready, but I'm going to taste it tonight as I'll only be using 3L of the gallon I made. I'll put up pictures as I do it. Link to comment
Lamilvelo Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 Nice, I just brewed up 5gal's of a porter this weekend. I definitely want to try a mead sometime Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 Yum! Porters are delicious. I had a flying dog Gonzo imperial porter yesterday on nitrogen tap while watching the Panthers/49ers. Honestly, one of the best beers I've had in a very long time. In tank stuff - any thoughts on which direction my koralia 240 should go? I had it originally against the rear glass on the left side of the tank pointing towards the front. Should I keep it there or turn it to face the right side of the tank? I'm wondering if I'm really even going to need it? The AC70 with the AC30 impeller on full might be enough flow? I'm just trying to figure out my space situation in such a small tank. Link to comment
evanski Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 On tap in the fridge in the garage... - Double Bock, ~9% ABV, 6 months old - Honey Nut Brown Ale, ~5.5% ABV, 4 months old Just sayin'... Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 On tap in the fridge in the garage... - Double Bock, ~9% ABV, 6 months old - Honey Nut Brown Ale, ~5.5% ABV, 4 months old Just sayin'... Nice! I have no space for it right now. My labmate apparently has a nice basement, though, and wants to get into brewing but doesn't know how. I have the experience and much of the equipment but no space... this could work out really well Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 <---- Contemplating a trip to Tahoe Link to comment
evanski Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 <---- Contemplating a trip to Tahoe Bring frags! Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 <---- Contemplating a trip to Tahoe Hahahaha, good call Anyone have a reason for coralRX vs Coral Revive? Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 I've used them both at one time or another. I saw no major diff between them. If memory serves, RX has a slight edge judging by the ingredients. Link to comment
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