Mirya's Floridian Flower Garden - All kinds of new things!

[vlangel]

Wow, that is amazing and good planning on your part. Good job. Now enjoy a well deserved rest!

[metrokat]

You rock! Advanced planning was awesome.

[Mirya]

Thanks guys and gals!

 

Today was pretty low key. A lot of sleep. A massage. Then worked on the tank a bit. Programmed the Kessils and have them on acclimation mode since a lot of the corals had low lighting the past few days. Managed to get the bulkheads to stop leaking, so I was able to fill the tank back up. Dropped the protein skimmer (JNS/Aquamaxx ConeS CO-1) and media reactor (Avast Marine's new Spyglass Reactor) into the partition I made for them. Honestly not quite sure how to tune either of those devices. For now I just have the media reactor running, waiting for it to get a slime coat. Once that is broken in, I'll plug in the protein skimmer. Finally, dropped a Gyre in for flow.

 

Stevie the Jawfish actually ate tonight. The other fish weren't too interested. Stevie is kinda pouty still. He still is refusing his rubble rock bed I gave him and is hiding under rocks. Tomorrow I want to set up the Nuvo8 for pistol shrimp. I'm also thinking of putting Stevie in there so he can have a sand bed again. Between Pistol and Stevie I'm sure I won't be able to have anything on the sandbed in the 8, but it will only be for a few months. I also want to get the Apex set-up. Oh, and I need to get a chloramine add-on for my RODI, since that is used in the water here, but wasn't in Columbus.

 

Reading what you had to do was inspirational for me. With my delay it will allow me to bring over one of my 2 Brutes like yours on Saturday and fill it, heat it and circulate it. I could probably throw in rock only that has been in the tanks but has no coral on it to get the bacteria going throughout the water. Seeing it takes like 8 hrs to fill that thing I can make the drop off, connect & go back to the cleaning here at the apt on Sat & check it later. Thank God I have one more 25g Brute which I need to clean. Glad you both made it safely. Congrats!!!

 

My fingers are crossed for your move! I can't believe how &*^&*^( your move-in date has gotten with all the loan/insurance BS. Having preheated/circulated water on hand will help a ton. Even though I'm a lot closer to you now, I wish I was even closer so I could help you out this weekend!

 

Also, thanks for posting the Legendary packing video. I just started shipping frags a month or two ago according to a post I found here on N-R. I really like the idea of making multiple pockets out of one bag - it never occured to me to use the heat sealer on the wet part of the bag - for some reason I assumed you could only use it above the water line. My coral shipping life is about to get a lot easier

 

Glad I could help out with the LC video Teeny! I had no idea it would work through the water either 'til I saw the video. It really made packing the corals so easy!

[FlowerMama]

You know what I just realized???? This is huge!!! When I was a kid I wanted a 3 ring hole puncher. You know what the reefing equivalent is? That HEAT SEALER in the video.

[teenyreef]

You know what I just realized???? This is huge!!! When I was a kid I wanted a 3 ring hole puncher. You know what the reefing equivalent is? That HEAT SEALER in the video.

YOU ARE SO RIGHT!!!!

 

I knew there was a reason I find that hear sealer so much fun

[HarryPotter]

I have that heat sealer, works awesomely. I ship like that LC video except without the small containers

[FlowerMama]

YOU ARE SO RIGHT!!!!

 

I knew there was a reason I find that hear sealer so much fun

 

I kept looking at it, looking at it, and it hit me. And to this day I still have a 3 ring hole puncher for no use at all!!! But I still love it.

[teenyreef]

 

I kept looking at it, looking at it, and it hit me. And to this day I still have a 3 ring hole puncher for no use at all!!! But I still love it.

I have the heavy duty kind

[Mirya]

You know what I just realized???? This is huge!!! When I was a kid I wanted a 3 ring hole puncher. You know what the reefing equivalent is? That HEAT SEALER in the video.

 

So true! What would have made it perfect is if I could have sniffed fresh ditto copied sheets while I heat sealed!

 

(I realize that Harry or anyone else under 30 reading this thread is all "WTF?!?" right now. )

 

I think I got the media reactor dialed in. The skimmer is still giving me problems though. I had assembled it the last night, placed it in saltwater, plugged it in, and made lots of bubbles. I unplugged it for the night as I wanted to be able to keep an eye on it while it ran for its first few hours in case it overflowed.

This morning I plugged it back in and nothing. I can hear a slight hum from the motor, but the impeller isn't moving. I've disassembled the pump, checked the impeller for any obstructions, didn't find anything. Reassembled pump, it still isn't blowing bubbles when plugged in.

Any advice for further troubleshooting other than contact the manufacturer?

[FlowerMama]

I had a return pump go bad when this little rubber O-ring came off. Is there anything like that inside? I have no clue.

 

Wait, Scratch N' Sniff Skimmate stickers!!! But yeah, ditto paper!!!! DITTO!!!!! And the ruler on the side of the desk...BOOOOIINNG! Well, were't we easily entertained???! And we're better for it.

[vlangel]

So true! What would have made it perfect is if I could have sniffed fresh ditto copied sheets while I heat sealed!

 

(I realize that Harry or anyone else under 30 reading this thread is all "WTF?!?" right now. )

 

I think I got the media reactor dialed in. The skimmer is still giving me problems though. I had assembled it the last night, placed it in saltwater, plugged it in, and made lots of bubbles. I unplugged it for the night as I wanted to be able to keep an eye on it while it ran for its first few hours in case it overflowed.[/size]

 

This morning I plugged it back in and nothing. I can hear a slight hum from the motor, but the impeller isn't moving. I've disassembled the pump, checked the impeller for any obstructions, didn't find anything. Reassembled pump, it still isn't blowing bubbles when plugged in.

 

Any advice for further troubleshooting other than contact the manufacturer?

That happened with my SCA 302 and it wasn't very old. I never did get it going so I had to bite the bullet and order a new one from them. Now I have my sump hooked up so when I turn off most of the sump power to do a water change that the skimmer and light stay on. I read SCA skimmers work great but the pumps are hit or miss. What kind is yours?

[RIP Sebastian]

I'm glad the move went well, Karen! I can't wait to see the 8 gallon set up again! It's also nice to know Stevie is improving. I currently have the Universal Plus BRS RO/DI system, and it's awesome you'll love it!

 

Nick

[Mirya]

Wait, Scratch N' Sniff Skimmate stickers!!! But yeah, ditto paper!!!! DITTO!!!!! And the ruler on the side of the desk...BOOOOIINNG! Well, were't we easily entertained???! And we're better for it.

 

No, just no to Scratch n' sniff Skimmate stickers... however can't you just smell the ditto ink looking at this picture?

 

That happened with my SCA 302 and it wasn't very old. I never did get it going so I had to bite the bullet and order a new one from them. Now I have my sump hooked up so when I turn off most of the sump power to do a water change that the skimmer and light stay on. I read SCA skimmers work great but the pumps are hit or miss. What kind is yours?

 

It is a JNS skimmer. They are branded AquaMaxx in the US. I did find one YouTube video of someone complaining that his brand new AquaMaxx didn't work when he plugged it in. In the comments to the video he said Marine Depot told him to disassemble it, then reassemble it. Then it worked for him. Another commenter said the same thing. So I took it apart again. Blew in the impeller chamber with some compressed air in case there was something in there I couldn't see, and wouldntcha know it is now working. /shrug Since the skimmer is sitting in my tank instead of in a sump, it is blowing some microbubbles into the tank, but I expected that.

[vlangel]

Hey, good for you! I am glad that you got the skimmer going.

[teenyreef]

Mmmmmm, dittos Smells from my childhood

Glad the skimmer is working again!

[Mirya]

So, I had my first casualty from the move...

 

Stevie.

 

He never used the sand bed I provided him in the big frag tank. He had taken to living under the various pieces of live rock. My plan had been to move him to the Nuvo8 with Pistol shrimp, so the two of them could play in a sand bed to their heart's content. I just had to re-epoxy the rockwork in the 8 since it broke apart in the move. I wanted to be sure it would be stable before I put Stevie in their with all his exuberant digging, so was giving it a little more time to cure.

 

I hadn't seen Stevie in two days. The last I had seen him he looked great. He was eating well and definitely more and more visual than he had been. He had gotten to the point that he could see food float off the pipette and target it out of the water column. (Whereas a few months ago you had to have a piece of food suctioned on the end of the pipette, bonk him on the nose with the food, then squirt it into his mouth when he gaped.) Tonight I looked under all the rocks in the tank and didn't find him. Looked around the tank and didn't find him. Looked under the cabinet of the 8 and found his fish jerky body. I suspect he swam into the skimmer/reactor area of the tank and managed to jump out from that corner. There is no screen top there. I think I'm going to try to plug the areas around the skimmer and reactor with some filter floss to prevent my other fish from following suit.

[teenyreef]

Oh no, I'm so sorry. I hate losing jumpers because I always feel guilty, but sometimes they're just determined to find a way out

[metrokat]

[vlangel]

O that is so sad. I hate it when you go to pains to prevent such things and they find a way anyhow. Especially after you nursed him back to health. Well, he lived a good life and passed with his foot (I mean fin) on the gas!

[kimberbee]

So sorry about Stevie.

[RIP Sebastian]

I'm sorry to hear about Stevie. He was such a sweetie.

[Weetabix7]

[ReefWeeds]

 

No, just no to Scratch n' sniff Skimmate stickers... however can't you just smell the ditto ink looking at this picture?

 

 

It is a JNS skimmer. They are branded AquaMaxx in the US. I did find one YouTube video of someone complaining that his brand new AquaMaxx didn't work when he plugged it in. In the comments to the video he said Marine Depot told him to disassemble it, then reassemble it. Then it worked for him. Another commenter said the same thing. So I took it apart again. Blew in the impeller chamber with some compressed air in case there was something in there I couldn't see, and wouldntcha know it is now working. /shrug Since the skimmer is sitting in my tank instead of in a sump, it is blowing some microbubbles into the tank, but I expected that.

 

ditto ink

Oh Mirya. I am so sorry about Stevie

[gena]

Here is my ghetto fabulous disaster as it currently stands. Everything is in the tank except my candy pistol shrimp who is still in the Homer bucket, since I worry he'd get lost in the big tank. I'll get the 8 gallon set up for him in a day or so.

I really love how that stand turned out and how that whole setup will look when you are settled .

 

So sorry for the loss.

[Mirya]

OK, for some good news...

 

Tomorrow is going to be a freakin' bonanza. I have 3, yes THREE, coral shipments coming.

 

First, I have the coral pack I won from LC's last Live Sale (in December) arriving. LC very nicely held the pack a month for me to move and get the tanks resettled. I did have them add a frag of their new blue encrusting Stylo, but otherwise the contents of the pack is a surprise!

 

Then, I saw that really cool Blasto update that PEA released last week. I've been on a Blasto kick lately anyways. (I visited some of my new LFS over the weekend and bought a Blasto as a matter of fact...) I figured since I was getting the LC order, what would be another coral shipment. So there is a Blasto, a Favia, a Ric, and a surprise mushie in that package.

 

Finally, I made the mistake of looking at AquaSD's sale over the weekend. They had mini button Scolies which pushed me over the edge into placing an order. Grabbed one of the aforementioned buttons, an RFA, a Favia, an Acan, and... a Trachy. Yup, a pretty big coral, but I've always liked Trachies. Besides I have the space in this big frag tank. My big Indophyllia can get a buddy. This was their picture:

 

So yeah, tomorrow morning should be pretty fun!