Spencer7 Posted September 17, 2020 Author Share Posted September 17, 2020 Acro looks happy. Tank is clear. Seems like week 3 was the week. 2 Quote Link to comment
SaltyTanks Posted September 18, 2020 Share Posted September 18, 2020 Love this centered branch scape look so much. Great choices on the pieces and composing them. Set yourself up nice with this one! Very curious to see what you start placing in there, especially how high you plan to go up top. 2 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 18, 2020 Author Share Posted September 18, 2020 5 minutes ago, SaltyTanks said: Love this centered branch scape look so much. Great choices on the pieces and composing them. Set yourself up nice with this one! Very curious to see what you start placing in there, especially how high you plan to go up top. Thank you!! ❤️ Yes, the way the rock is oriented I can plant coral virtually anywhere! If I'm sucessful, I think the tank will look most similar to that top right inspiration pic. I like tables so I'm especially excited to grow some in. Also, I'm going to do my best to keep the sand/negative space open. No plans to junk it up. Maybe next week I'll order supplements and a frag pack from BattleCorals 3 Quote Link to comment
afcajax73 Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 this looks awesome 🙂 good work! It's nice to see some good (and different) scape ideas 1 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 20, 2020 Share Posted September 20, 2020 I think this will be a project with a fabulous result ... I am gonna follow to see it.... Succes.... !!!! 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 10 hours ago, afcajax73 said: this looks awesome 🙂 good work! It's nice to see some good (and different) scape ideas 7 hours ago, Manfred said: I think this will be a project with a fabulous result ... I am gonna follow to see it.... Succes.... !!!! Hey thanks guys! Feel free to ask questions or just follow along 🙂 I ordered a frag pack from Battlecorals AND ordered dosing and RO/DI supplies from BRS. Lot of goodies coming at the end of the week. Going to start with dosing BRS two part + KZ trace elements (and Red Sea salt). 2 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 5 hours ago, Spencer7 said: Hey thanks guys! Feel free to ask questions or just follow along 🙂 I ordered a frag pack from Battlecorals AND ordered dosing and RO/DI supplies from BRS. Lot of goodies coming at the end of the week. Going to start with dosing BRS two part + KZ trace elements (and Red Sea salt). Hehe always nice those goodies... not so nice for your wallet 😁 I am starting to dose reef elixer soon... its all you need to dose in one bottle and the amount you have to dose is based on your alkalinity its recently developed here in the Netherlands and I here good result from other reefers. 1 Quote Link to comment
afcajax73 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 1 minute ago, Manfred said: Hehe always nice those goodies... not so nice for your wallet 😁 I am starting to dose reef elixer soon... its all you need to dose in one bottle and the amount you have to dose is based on your alkalinity its recently developed here in the Netherlands and I here good result from other reefers. sounds good! keep us posted 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 11 hours ago, Manfred said: Hehe always nice those goodies... not so nice for your wallet 😁 I am starting to dose reef elixer soon... its all you need to dose in one bottle and the amount you have to dose is based on your alkalinity its recently developed here in the Netherlands and I here good result from other reefers. Ehhh, not that expensive. I got the starter pack which represents... $40 for one gallon of Ca and KH and 1/2gal Mg One gallon = 3785mL ~> Dosing 20mL /day ~> 190 days (certainly won't be 20mL /day for at least another 4-8 weeks) I was intrigued by the Fauna Marin "All-for-Reef" solution after seeing it in videos and on BRS' cost breakdown of dosing options. Pic below (BRS is far right). I think these solutions are great for beginners or nano tanks (e.g. non-SPS dominant <35g) but maybe not as practical or effective* for full-acro tanks 35g + I look forward to being able to have a calcium reactor with a large tank one day! *effective = I haven't seen crazy TOTM 100g+ tanks built from these all-in-one additives Quote Link to comment
A.m.P Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 DIY All-For-Reef cuts the cost-per-month by about 33% or so if you don't add their trace elements. Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 1 hour ago, Amphrites said: DIY All-For-Reef cuts the cost-per-month by about 33% or so if you don't add their trace elements. I would like to dose trace elements and cutting by a 1/3rd (unless I'm misinterpreting something) would still not get the cost below BRS two-part, no? Quote Link to comment
A.m.P Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 22 minutes ago, Spencer7 said: I would like to dose trace elements and cutting by a 1/3rd (unless I'm misinterpreting something) would still not get the cost below BRS two-part, no? No, it comes close, but it's still more expensive long-term. It has the benefits of acting as a bit of carbon dosing and of convenience (single dose, no precipitation or tube-cleaning/irrigating), but it also has a pitfall in that it cannot raise alkalinity quickly if you need it to (because it's bacteria breaking things down to provide alkalinity indirectly it kind of provides a gradual increase of ALK rather than a straight-dose). 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 22, 2020 Author Share Posted September 22, 2020 2 hours ago, Amphrites said: No, it comes close, but it's still more expensive long-term. It has the benefits of acting as a bit of carbon dosing and of convenience (single dose, no precipitation or tube-cleaning/irrigating), but it also has a pitfall in that it cannot raise alkalinity quickly if you need it to (because it's bacteria breaking things down to provide alkalinity indirectly it kind of provides a gradual increase of ALK rather than a straight-dose). The single dose part doesn't mean too much if you're already set with a four channel doser. And you're accepting some extra risk/inconvenience with mixing it yourself imo. The bacteria involvement was interesting and something I learned recently. If you grow a budget acro tank with a mix of your own that rivals some Zeovit systems, let me know! Haha 2 Quote Link to comment
Reefkid88 Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 You know,this is going to be nothing short of amazing but man.. As much as I love sps. They just complicate things for me lol. Hence why I got so many Z/P's over the past 2 weeks lol. Doesn't help I will be out of town for work until at least Feb of 2021if not longer and can only come home once every 3 weeks. 2 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 On 9/21/2020 at 10:16 PM, Spencer7 said: Ehhh, not that expensive. I got the starter pack which represents... $40 for one gallon of Ca and KH and 1/2gal Mg One gallon = 3785mL ~> Dosing 20mL /day ~> 190 days (certainly won't be 20mL /day for at least another 4-8 weeks) I was intrigued by the Fauna Marin "All-for-Reef" solution after seeing it in videos and on BRS' cost breakdown of dosing options. Pic below (BRS is far right). I think these solutions are great for beginners or nano tanks (e.g. non-SPS dominant <35g) but maybe not as practical or effective* for full-acro tanks 35g + I look forward to being able to have a calcium reactor with a large tank one day! *effective = I haven't seen crazy TOTM 100g+ tanks built from these all-in-one additives On 9/21/2020 at 10:16 PM, Spencer7 said: Ehhh, not that expensive. I got the starter pack which represents... $40 for one gallon of Ca and KH and 1/2gal Mg One gallon = 3785mL ~> Dosing 20mL /day ~> 190 days (certainly won't be 20mL /day for at least another 4-8 weeks) I was intrigued by the Fauna Marin "All-for-Reef" solution after seeing it in videos and on BRS' cost breakdown of dosing options. Pic below (BRS is far right). I think these solutions are great for beginners or nano tanks (e.g. non-SPS dominant <35g) but maybe not as practical or effective* for full-acro tanks 35g + I look forward to being able to have a calcium reactor with a large tank one day! *effective = I haven't seen crazy TOTM 100g+ tanks built from these all-in-one additives Thats not expensive ... but what if you have to submit other than these three? Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 22, 2020 Author Share Posted September 22, 2020 2 hours ago, Manfred said: Thats not expensive ... but what if you have to submit other than these three? I got KZ's Trace Elements solution, which should last about 7-8 months as well. ($30 for 500mL) I have Acropower if I want to dose amino's. Probably will dose some iodine (Lugol's) later. I don't think your elixir covers those anyway. In general, I'm not trying to dose the cheapest possible supplements haha. This is *not* an attempt at a budget tank (although, I've been able to afford everything as an engineer now in grad school). In fact, I've kept track of every cent spent on the tank and will send the file to those interested in the future. At around the 3 month mark, I'll try my first ICP test. Main thing I'll be curious about is lead from Pittsburgh tap water (didn't use RODI to fill tank). 6 hours ago, Reefkid88 said: You know,this is going to be nothing short of amazing but man.. As much as I love sps. They just complicate things for me lol. Hence why I got so many Z/P's over the past 2 weeks lol. Doesn't help I will be out of town for work until at least Feb of 2021if not longer and can only come home once every 3 weeks. Thank you! ❤️❤️❤️ Meanwhile, of my two cheap frags, it was the LPS one that withered away haha. Acro is happy! I'll be home for winter break (~month)...will have to come up with a plan. Probably have a 15gal reservoir. The cardinals aren't eating dry food soooo 😅 they might go bye-bye... Next summer I may be gone for 2+ months! Roommates will have to do some maintenance. 1 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 22, 2020 Share Posted September 22, 2020 7 minutes ago, Spencer7 said: I got KZ's Trace Elements solution, which should last about 7-8 months as well. ($30 for 500mL) I have Acropower if I want to dose amino's. Probably will dose some iodine (Lugol's) later. I don't think your elixir covers those anyway. Actually it does and many more. 😀 In general, I'm not trying to dose the cheapest possible supplements haha. This is *not* an attempt at a budget tank (although, I've been able to afford everything as an engineer now in grad school). In fact, I've kept track of every cent spent on the tank and will send the file to those interested in the future. Me neither but sometimes I am amazed what things can cost in this hobby ..🙃 At around the 3 month mark, I'll try my first ICP test. Main thing I'll be curious about is lead from Pittsburgh tap water (didn't use RODI to fill tank). I topped my tank of for a while whit Bar le Duc 😊 Thank you! ❤️❤️❤️ Meanwhile, of my two cheap frags, it was the LPS one that withered away haha. Acro is happy! 🤨 I'll be home for winter break (~month)...will have to come up with a plan. Probably have a 15gal reservoir. The cardinals aren't eating dry food soooo 😅 they might go by-by... Next summer I may be gone for 2+ months! Roommates will have to do some maintenance. I hope they are interested in doing such otherwise it will be a .... task for them 😂 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 24, 2020 Author Share Posted September 24, 2020 Battlepack has arrived! Happy one month anniversary! Left to right: Miss Scarlet, Frankenberry, Glo Stick, BC Peril Betty, Ultimate Table, Hyperberry, North Star Clathrata, Heroberry Colors in pic are accurate. Hyperberry and Glo Stick are the brightest, Peril Berry has a nice Pearlberry-esque texture. NSC almost looks like a red planet. Look forward to planting these pieces this weekend! Really hope everything acclimates well and starts growing in a few weeks! 5 3 Quote Link to comment
Reefkid88 Posted September 25, 2020 Share Posted September 25, 2020 Yassss !!! Don't kill them please 🤭 1 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 25, 2020 Author Share Posted September 25, 2020 29 minutes ago, Reefkid88 said: Yassss !!! Don't kill them please 🤭 I'll try - they've been in the trade for a while so should be reasonably hardy. Quote Link to comment
debbeach13 Posted September 25, 2020 Share Posted September 25, 2020 Nice additions! 1 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 25, 2020 Share Posted September 25, 2020 Could one say corals are cute? 1 Quote Link to comment
Spencer7 Posted September 26, 2020 Author Share Posted September 26, 2020 23 hours ago, Manfred said: Could one say corals are cute? Of course, very cute! 😍 Can you guys help me find a shelf/cabinet solution for the space next to the tank?? Dimensions (LxWxH): 18-24" x 12-18" x 36-48" 3-4 shelves, able to support a 15g ATO reservoir on the 2nd shelf (to gravity feed sump) 1. Half of one of these would be great. 2. Dimension-wise, this in black would work well. BUT I would need to remove the third shelf and it can't hold the weight. Almost need this but anodized aluminum or stainless steel. 3. ...Sort of like this. Weighted to 100lbs per shelf. Idk if I'm just grabbing bricks to add support...18x18" footprint is nice. 4. Probably best option...(link) Space I'm filling... Recent BRS order... 1 Quote Link to comment
Manfred Posted September 26, 2020 Share Posted September 26, 2020 I think Ikea will have someting suitable! ....which test sets do you use ... I have a Hanna tester for Po4 ... I will get for the other test also HaHanna testers... 2 Quote Link to comment
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