more help for 150 reef  10/22/09 Many thanks to date however your generosity is rewarded with more work. Thanks in advance. <Welcome> 150 Gallon 10 weeks PH 8.2 Nitrate/Nitrite/Phosphate 0 Salinity 1.024 Calcium 270-300 I know I know. Magnesium 1200 <I'd reduce in 3:1 proportionality with [Ca]> Alk 4 Add Iodine and strontium once a week, turn off skimmer for 2 hours. 175 pounds live rock on top of 50 pounds coral skeletons. Wife had all over her old apartment, I know a sin. <Mmm, no... not by my or known Judaeo-Christian standard> I bleached, rinsed, left in sun for summer. Substrate less than 1 inch of crush coral/sand. Not the very fine stuff. <Well-put> Cleaning crew includes dozen blue legged hermits, another dozen huge turbo snails. Love hermit hate Turbos. They should rename them bulldozer snails. Very little algae although just notice some red hair or diatom on substrate. They do nice job. <As your photos attest> Remora Pro HOB skimmer, good filtrate still slightly watery Top off evaporation with RO water, gallon per week. Water change 10% every 2 weeks. NOVA Supreme 72" T5 12 bulb lighting 8 x 10k 12 hours, 4 actinic 14 hours AquaClear 3000 empty other than ball of Chaeto. Not sure if it does anything but its growing. Throw carbon bag in once every 2 weeks for 3 days. Eheim 1040 canister because I have it, used for flow, filled with ceramic bio pieces, no mechanical trap in place. Tunze Nanostream 6025 I bought 2 but once has Xenia blowing over and mushroom lifting up. My original plan was to only use the middle 4 foot upper portion of the 150. Not the best tank depth and also wanted to keep costs down. It was to include a tank of mushroom, soft corals and a handful 4-5 reef safe fish. Well, I blew that. I have added large colony of pipe coral, star polyps, Montipora, small toadstools, many red and blue mushrooms, Xenia everywhere, tree coral and a piece of what I think is torch coral because of long sweeper tentacles. I sent a few pictures. I was given 90% of these pieces from people I hardly knew. Nice story really but for another time. <<redrodact.jpg>> <<right half tank.jpg>> <<left tank.jpg>> Questions? Do I have enough flow? <Yes> I can add another nano but it will be blowing pretty hard on star polyps and colliding with flow from other nano on other side creating very high flow in middle of tank. I'm shock by how much water these little Nano's move, I'm glad I went with small ones. Left to right I have nano- skimmer output-Eheim 1040 spray bar -Aquaclear output. I'm using the Montipora as a "fence" between some corals. I see some damage however it is growing and fits the "vision" I have. Is that cruel or stupid to set it that way? <Neither... and this colony will suit itself in time/space at any length (or orientation)> Xenia is really growing fast. Will this be an issue for the leathers or mushrooms? Can it be toxic or aggressive to them? <Can be on both counts... do keep it (the Xeniids) trimmed back, away... sell extra, give away...> Is my photoperiod sound? <Yes> The mushrooms haven't opened as large as they were in previous tank. Mystery? Too much flow, little, lighting? Do you recommend feeding? <Perhaps, likely, a bit of allelopathy... Read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/shroomfdgfaqs.htm and the linked file above re Corallimorph Compatibility> I cannot get my Calcium up. I'm throwing in 70ml of B-Ionic per day. Even picked up some Blackwell CaCl. I'm stunned that the tank absorbs this much Calcium per day. Is it due to tank being new? <This and the metabolism of the Cnidarians, other biomineralizing life present> Coralline algae is plating on original live rock. Purple everywhere, Montipora looks like its growing quickly already? I am shopping for ca reactor. Think I'll get Korallin 1502. Suggestions? <I am a bigger fan of other makes, models... particularly re their operation/maintenance... Please see WWM re...: http://wetwebmedia.com/calcreacsel.htm and the linked files above> Fish to be added 4-5 of these: Small angel, flame or lemon peel; Coris wrasse, royal gramma or Pseudochromis, yellow tang, chevron tang, Hippo, or pair clown fish. Suggestions? <Reading on WWM> All in all I'm pretty happy other than snails knocking things down, and Calcium which I think will stabilize with Reactor. <Ah, yes> Also need more patience than I thought I would. <A useful expedient and lesson w/ this/our hobby interest for sure> Be well Mike <And you Mike. Bob Fenner>

Transitioning tanks: 20 Gallon to 90 Gallon... reef op. f'  4/27/2009
Dear WWM crew,
<Hello Tim>
First of all, huge thanks for sharing your knowledge across the web, and making your lights available to the aquarist masses. My question is already partially answered in your columns, but thank you in advance for looking into the question again and addressing the specifics of my situation.
<Thank you for the kind words, and it is my pleasure.>
I want to transition my current 30g nano set-up to a 125g full size system and would like to walk through the various steps to minimize risk to the livestock with you.
<Certainly>
Current set-up:
20 US gallon with 20kg live rock, 10 US gallon weir (miracle mud, 5 mangroves, Caulerpa, liverock rubble, lots of critters), AquaMedic Turboflotor 1000 skimmer with ozone injection, 1 litre of Siporax (splintered glass tubes) and a sponge in a dark filter compartment, activated carbon and RowaPhos, 550 gph water movement, 48W of 10,000k VHO and a few 7000k and actinic LEDs.
Livestock:
- 15kg of liverock;
- Various Montipora digitata, foliosa and orientalis, Seriatopora hystrix and guttatus, Merulina ampliata (sold to me as a Monti by my dear LFS, but is doing very well - even though he gets his feelers in broad
daylight to have a go at the neighbouring hystrix - result is some tissue blanching on the hystrix and filamentous algae - but this is very limited and the rest of the Hystrix is fine - I guess I will have to separate
these two further apart),
<Most definitely>
Euphyllia ancora , Zoanthids, Discosomas, Rhodactis, Clavularia, Xenia plus a green coral looking like Euphyllia jardinei, about 20 heads, all less than 1/2inch in diameter growing closely together with short grey tentacles (1/4inch long) around a green mouth (can it be - sorry, I failed to do my research on that one) all growing beautifully;
- 20 adult snails (mainly Turbo and Astrea, reproducing at steady rates);
- 2 Peppermint shrimps (do they have a real utility in a reef set-up? I might want to BBQ these);
<I would not put Peppermint shrimp in a reef tank>
- 3 Mithrax and 10 hermits (blue, red and Mexican);
<I would watch the Mithrax crabs very closely.>
- Couple of Perculas;
- Berghia colony that has obliterated existing Aiptasia problem;
Water parameters are all fine: pH: 8.3; Salinity: 35.5ppt; Nh4, NO2, NO4, P: all 0/ not detected (P is with D+D hi-res test - is it good to have P that low?); Ca: > 400ppm; Alk: 9dKH; ORP: 300 - 400mV;
<There is some phosphate in the tank, it is just being used up by what is in there. As long as everything is thriving, I would not be too concerned.>
New set-up will be:
90 US gallon with 35 US gallon sump. I plan to transition all of the livestock and want to start keeping Acroporas (previous system not large enough and insufficient light) and carry-over most of the equipment from one system to the next with a few exceptions:
Sump return pump: I plan 800gph - is it enough (keeping in mind that for circulation, there will be a Vortech PM40 -3200 gph max flow);
<Should be fine.>
Light: I plan 2 x 150W MH plus 48W T5 actinic - is it enough?
<This should be enough for a tank of this size>
Is it better to have 1 x 250W?
<No, two 150W is better>
What is the best bulb in your mind for PAR/efficiency, keeping in mind that the blue light will come from actinic;
<Aqualine bulbs in my opinion>
How much more liverock should I add
<Approximately 0.5kg\3.8l of water>
How should I set up the sump? I would like to set-up a DSB / liverock rubble refugium system to have a constant supply of plankton to the main tank. Is it best to leave the sump in the dark, or transfer the mangroves, light the sump and allow the critters to benefit from the root system.
<Lighted is best - you can light the refugium when the tank lights are off to minimize pH shift.>
As stated previously, my big question is how to minimize risks while transitioning all the livestock from 1 system to the other. First question is: can I just transfer all the liverock/livestock/water from the old system to the new, add some cured liverock, sand and complete water with fresh salted RODI water)? The dilution factor may be a bit too strong for the livestock? However, my actual plan is as follows, but as I have no
experience in this matter at all, please let me know.
1/ set up the new tank with RODI water, heat and then salt to 35.5ppt;
2/ check all parameters to see if they are compatible to the old tank;
3/ after one day, recheck parameters and if acceptable results, add new cured liverock to the main tank, DSB (with "new live sand" - is this really working or should I buy normal fine aragonite?) and liverock rubble (from LFS);
<I would give the new tank an additional day or two before adding any live rock (Let the water settle for two to three days) The quality of store bought live sand varies greatly I would add 30% store bought live sand, 70% fine aragonite.>
4/ next day, check and if all is ok, set up both old and new tank in series, so that water circulates between both tanks continuously at a slow rate (10-50gph);
<I would wait 1 - 2 days after adding new live rock to ensure that there will not be any die off\ammonia spikes before connecting the new tank to your old tank.>
5/ wait 2 days;
6/ transfer all old tank liverock (with all coral growth) and critters to new tank and add 1inch of new aragonite sand. Transfer content of old weir to new sump and transfer the skimmer from the old tank to the new sump;
<I would add all the new sand in the beginning, though you can start transferring the sand from your old system to the new at this point.>
7/ next day: check if parameters ok (even though it is of no real use, as both tanks will be operating as one system for 3 days). Transfer fish and dismantle old tank;
8/ Do I need to run RowaPhos in the new tank straight away, or should I wait for P to become measurable?
<I would wait until you get some measurable phosphate.>
Does this sound like a plan?
<Other than extending the time and allowing the new system to settle a few days more, and diligently testing for ammonia and nitrite, yes.>
Thank you and
Best regards,
<My Pleasure>
Tim
<Mike>

Caribbean Biotope, stocking, new tank media replacement and substrate for Jaw Fish 4/25/09
Hello all,
<Hello, sorry for the slow response here.>
Thanks in advance for answering my questions and for being (at least for me) one of the best online sources of information.
<Welcome!>
My question is this I read you FAQ on Caribbean Biotope and I wanted to start my own but with some slight differences. I was going to add LR to both sides and leave the center open or maybe just on one side and leave the rest an open area would the latter be better for everybody?
<Either can work fine, tis more of a personal aquascaping choice.>
I have 3 fish now a Royal Gramma, a Lawnmower Blenny, and a Yellow Clown Goby and 2 Peppermint Shrimp that I want to add to my new system.
My new system is a Red Sea Max 65 Gallon all in one and because it is a new system I will leave it fallow for 2-3 months or more so it can get established or my wife makes me.
<LOL! NO reason to wait so long unless you are curing new rock...even then you can accomplish the swap once it is "cured". See: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_2/cav2i3/Live_Rock/live_rock.htm>
For stocking I was going to add some more fish but I don’t know what else to put in there and my wife want to put fish that are seen and not hidden and I don’t want to push my bio load because I want to make a reef safe tank with some species of coral that will go with my lighting.
<Okay, again a very personal choice of taste. Research re suitability and compatibility will show you the way.>
My next question is should I replace my foam media with a different type of foam? Also should I replace my ceramic pieces for LR rubble?
<What, where? Do you have LR in the main system?>
My last question is the substrate for the Jaw Fish, I read your FAQ on Jaw Fish systems and I want to make sure that I have my “ducks in a row” before I start. Can I add 30lbs of Aragonite Aragamax sugar sand, (1st layer) 40lbs of Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand (2nd layer) and 10lbs of Florida Crushed Coral sand (3rd layer) or would I have to add more to make my new Jaw Fish happy?
<This will put you at about the bare minimum IMO. I would include some more CC or even some larger shell type pieces.>
Thank You,
Ramon and Sons
<Welcome, Scott V.>

Re: Caribbean Biotope, stocking, new tank media replacement and substrate for Jaw Fish 4/26/09
Thank you for answering my question,
<My pleasure.>
The tank has been set-up for about a week and it has some base rock and a piece of LR, I will be transferring some of my LR from my 29 Gallon that is already running but I have BGA on the rocks and I'm in the process of trying to get rid of it via a 10 gallon tank with a skimmer and water changes.
<Ah, good, steady with the battle.>
The tank it self has a compartment in the back of the tank that has a foam block (black) that keep air bubbles from going into the pump and back into the tank, it also has and area that houses 1 bags of ceramic media( rings) and a platform that holds 2 bags of carbon.
<Okay.>
I was thinking about changing the carbon for a bag Chem-Pure Elite and adding a bag of Purigen while removing the foam because of the build up it might cause but I wanted to know should I do it during the cycle process?
<You can leave it be, but be sure to rinse it frequently. The other medias are fine, but of little value over just carbon in most cases.>
My other half wanted the water changes to be at least once a month so I don't know what I should do to keep her happy and not put me in the outs with he as far as spending all the money.
<Well, no way around it, smaller more frequent water changes are just better.>
She also said that I can have a Refugium but no more DIY's.
<Dang! DIY is fun!>
I also will be adding another 20 lbs of substrate to the tank, it is by RedSea (Reef Base) would this be good to add or another type.
<Sure, sounds good, Scott V.>

Re: New Year, New Reef... now op.  1/10/09
Thanks a lot for your advice. You guys are truly appreciated.
<You're welcome.>
I started the tank and ran into two problems that were unusual for me.
The first is this. I set up my tank, put in live sand and base rock that I seeded with my friend's clean, healthy tank "grunge". I set everything up. It looked great and everything. But when I tested for the first time- I was pretty stunned by the relatively high calcium levels in my tank. The first time I tested, the test said my calcium levels were over 600 ppm which I attributed to a problem with the test kit. I got the water tested by my LFS, and they say it is 500. Given that I use RO water, that seems a little excessive, don't you think?
<Yes. If your live sand is crushed coral, that would elevate the calcium level some, but I wouldn't think by that much.>
Any advice on how I can lower the calcium? My water is at 8.2 and buffered at 10 dKH so that can't be the problem, can it? (My base rock is previously dead live rock from my old tank, not limestone or anything that might be leaching calcium into the water)
<Where I would start is to naturally let the dKH level fall to around 7-8dKH and keep it there. Test for magnesium, the level should be 1200-1300ppm. Maintaining the magnesium level at this range allows all the calcium to be available for calcium loving inverts. If this is allowed to fall, the available calcium will also fall even though you may read proper levels on the test. When this is maintained, you will see calcium levels gradually fall indicating the corals are absorbing the calcium.>
Visibly, it seems okay, my coralline algae took off like nobody's business. In two weeks almost all my previously barren rocks are showing crusting. But still 500 from R/O water? Weird, isn't it? (I will retest for calcium and test for magnesium as you advised, but my new test kit is still being shipped)
<Do read here and related articles/FAQ's. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/calcalkmar.htm>
The second thing I struggled with and this is the first time this has happened to me in fresh and salt water aquarium keeping and I have been keeping both for 10 years- I am not seeing an ammonia spike. A week after my tank was set up, I first tried fishless cycling (pure ammonia)- no spike. I tested morning and evening. But unless I tested IMMEDIATELY after I added ammonia- I could not detect any ammonia in the tank. I am not running any ammonia removing chemicals in tank or in filter. I don't add any chlorine removing products since my RO water does that (additional paraphernalia).
<I'm guessing your "seeded" sand is providing the necessary denitrifying bacteria.>
I then added fish food to see if that would help kick start anything- no spike.
My water tests daily at 0 ammonia, 0 nitrates AND 0 nitrites (I have a DSB in my main tank- 5-6 inches). I have nothing visibly alive in my tank as in no fish, no clean up crew- nothing. I change 10% every week, but even during that week I have no detectable parameters. Once I added an entire tsp of fish food after the ammonia and watched as the food decayed at the bottom of the tank (I siphoned it off after a week) and NO AMMONIA SPIKE. I have used two test kits, and I get the same results. (Both new test kits) And even my LFS' tests show the same results.
<Test kits don't lie.>
What is going on with my tank I wonder? Please tell me my tank is not a freak tank!!
<No, I'm thinking well seeded with denitrifying bacteria.>
Brief synopsis of the set up so that you don't have to go through the entire exchange- 29 gallon with 5-6 inch DSB- intended only for soft corals, zoanthids and shrimp. 30 pounds of live rock, 65X 2 PC lights (1 daylight, 1x 50:50). Kept at 79 degrees. Salt water mix- Oceanic Reef Crystals. Rena XP2 canister filter- run only with physical filtration media- no carbon. I have an Aqua C Remora skimmer but I have not attached it to the tank yet. Powerheads for circulation.
Salinity: 1.024, Ph- 8.2, Hardness- 10 dKH, calcium approx 500 (as my problem dictates)- nitrates, nitrites and ammonia = 0.
< I now see your inhabitants are not strong users of calcium so it may take some time for the calcium level to drop naturally, the coralline will absorb some. The 500ppm calcium level isn't dangerous but I would suggest using a standard non-reef salt mix such as Instant Ocean where calcium levels are much lower. You can then bring the calcium level down by way of dilution during water changes. Once the dKH, calcium, and magnesium levels are in equilibrium with each other, a high calcium level should not be present.>
James (Salty Dog)>

T5HO Lighting confusion... I really need some help. 10/19/08
Hey guys,
<Ivan.>
I have exhausted every search term I could think of trying to find the answer to T5 lighting. I’ve found a lot of information and I’ve learned a lot, but I’ve also in the process found a lot of conflicting information. It seems that no matter how many people you talk to or how many LFSs you go to everyone has something different to say based on their experiences.
<As with every other aspect of aquariums…and life. >
What I need help with is this. I have an 80gal “reef” aquarium. (I put reef in quotes because I can’t seem to get it to even resemble a reef in the slightest) I installed a Current USA Nova Extreme 48” T5 retro @ 54Watts x 4 using 1(6700K), 1(18000K), 1(420nm) and 1(460nm)
Water param.s:
Tank life = 1 year old
Temp = 78 – 79
PH = 8.4
Ammonia = 0
Nitrite = 0
Nitrate = 0
Specific Gravity = 1.026
I use Tropic Marin mix that I buy from my LFS for 10% weekly water changes, 30gal sump with 2 x Mag Drive 1200 pumping up to 4 returns and using a Hydor to create extra circulation in the tank. Also have a Coral-life Protein Skimmer in the sump. Livestock (1 blue tang, 1 Sailfin tang, 1 Tomini tang, 2 Percs, 1 Mono, 2 Cleaner shrimp, 1 coral banded shrimp, 1 Crocea Clam, 1 green BTA, 1 ribbon eel in the sump because he ate all my original Percs( a whole nother story)
<This is severely overstocked, incompatible..>
My problem is I can’t keep any kind of coral alive. Pagoda (comes out more with less light), Xenia(never grows and melts after a few months), Zoas, Leathers(wilt), Colt coral(Wilt), frogspawn(dissolve), hammer(dissolve), star polyps(diminished on the top of their rock and started growing on the underside away from light).
Now when I try talking to my LFSs, one said that my 6700K bulb is not a good spectrum and too bright for corals.
<It is good, perhaps the best bar aesthetics.>
But when I search online I find people saying that 6700K is ok. Others I find say it’s better to have 6700K to 10000K versus the 18000K that I have because the 18K is too close to the blue spectrum and does not produce enough usable light along with the 2 actinics that I have.
<True, the 6500 to 10000K is better from a coral heath POV.>
Is there any validity to either of these theories?
<Yes.>
One of my LFSs says all my equipment is perfectly fine and that maybe I have traces of copper or something else toxic to corals. I never use copper for anything so I doubt that is the culprit.
<Have you tested for this? Unless you have used copper, I doubt this. Some copper is always around, it takes an artificially raised level to cause issues. Buy a test kit or have one of them test for you.>
He also said I could try turning off my skimmer as it may be removing a lot of the elements needed for coral growth.
<Some corals appreciate “dirty” water, but I do not think it is the case here.>
I don’t know what to do anymore. I’ve spent so much money and so much time and I really want to make this work, but I’m getting to the end of my rope. Any thoughts or advice or ANYTHING!!! J Please help. I hope I’ve given you enough information to at least give me something. Thank you in advance for any assistance.
<You do not have enough light, these bulbs do need to be replaced with a lower K spectrum bulb to give your photosynthetic livestock what they need….your Crocea and BTA will follow suit in time. Also, your corals have likely been affected by allelopathy with the mix listed. Research on the needs and compatibility of what you have and add in the future is strongly advised.>
Ivan
<Scott V.>

Re: Tunze reef excel salt mix  10/6/08
Mr. Fenner,
<Matt>
Thanks for your expert advice, I love your site and read it everyday. The reason I was asking about reef excel is that I am getting a little older
<Heeee! I'm getting a lot older!>
and do not like the ideal of having to clean the glass on a daily base due to the green film algae that I seem to always have with the Tropic Marin salt. I just want to set back and enjoy all my hard work that has gone into my reef set-ups. So if you or know of a good salt mix that compares to Tropic Marin but does not have the film algae issues please let me know.
<Don't think it/this is the salt here... likely "just" "recycled" nutrients from foods. I'd take other avenues... bioaccumulation, transport... maybe assiduous use of chemical filtrant/s>
I have used IO and s few other salt mixes but seem to always go back to Tropic Marin.
<Is a mighty fine, consistent product>
I currently have a 90 gallon soft and mushroom coral set up. My other set-up is a 125 gallon LPS/SPS with two Tridacna clams. The 90 gallon unit has two Sunlight Tek T5 (HO) light fixtures each with 4 x 54 watt Giesemann T5 (HO) lamps. The 125 gallon has two Giesemann Reflexx light fixtures, each with 4 x 54 watt lamps. I use Giesemann Powerchrome "Aquablue, midday and one pure actinic lamp in each set-up.
<Good fixtures>
With this set up I have had orange tube coral (Tubastrea aurea) reproduce into separate colonies in my LPS/SPS set up. I do a 25% water change every Sunday in both set-ups and do not add any additives to the tanks.
<Good for you>
In fact my corals grow so fast in both set-ups that I have to sell frags back to my LFS. There is so much stuff on the internet these days, some of it true and some of it so very untrue, that one really should seek the advice of a true expert like yourself or the WWM crew before they just decide one day that they want to have a marine set-up and go out and jump into the hobby. By the way in my 125 gallon set up which I have had up and running for five years now, I Have the following list of fish:
One (1) Copperband butterfly (I have had it for 3 years)
One (1) Blue and Yellow Hippo Tang (I have had it for 2 years)
One (1) Sailfin Tang Desjardini (I have had it for 3 years)
One (1) Yellowstripe Maroon Clownfish (I have had it for 4-1/2 years)
One (1) Court Jester Goby (I have had it for 2 years)
One (1) Green Mandarin (I have had it for 4 years)
One (1) Flameback (African) Angelfish (I have had it for 3-1/2 years)
One (1) Ruby Head Fairy Wrasse (I have had it for 4-1/2 years)
One (1) Scott's Fairy Wrasse (I have had for 1 year)
In the 90 gallon set-up I have the following fish:
One (1) Purple tank (I have it for 1 year)
One (1) Spotted Mandarin (I have had it for 1-1/2 years)
One (1) Clarkii Clownfish (I have had it for 1 year)
One (1) McCosker's Flasher Wrasse (I have had it for 2 years)
My feed all my fish the following:
H20 life frozen fish food, H20 life Aquarium Seaweed, New life Spectrum pellet fish food, Ocean Nutrition pellet fish food and Nutramar or reef nutrition live Copepods.
Thanks For all your hard work.
Matt
<Ahh, thank you for sharing input re your success. Bob Fenner>

Re: No Idea What Else To Try...Please Help! (Just how much rock can you stack in a 180g tank!?) – 10/06/08
Thanks, Eric.
<<Quite welcome>>
I inherited this tank 4 years ago, and was told by the former owner that the total amount of rock was 400#-500#.
<<Oh...okay>>
I have not purchased any rock since taking over the tank, and have never really weighed stuff out. I just assumed that the number he gave me was accurate, but it is not unlikely that the previous owner might have embellished (a very good possibility with his personality) or overestimated the amount of rock, as it is not overwhelming for the size of the tank.
<<Ah, I see…then maybe this issue is a bit simpler to resolve than originally thought>>
There is a substantial amount of swimming room for everyone, so I am guessing that it is an inaccurate number.
<<Very good… How about water movement…strong vigorous flow?>>
I will switch back to the previous skimmer configuration for now, and see what happens. I will back water changes off a bit and go after the detritus a bit more aggressively and see what happens.
<<Sounds good…you should also consider some means of chemical filtration if not using such already (carbon and/or Poly-Filter)>>
Thanks for your input!
Susan
<<Happy to assist…if things don’t begin to improve with these simple changes, feel free to come back and we can examine this further. EricR>>

R1: No Idea What Else To Try...Please Help! (Just how much rock can you stack in a 180g tank!?) – 10/07/08
Hello again, Eric.
<<Hiya Susan!>>
Water movement in the tank is good....
<<Ah good>>
I have two power heads in the tank, each turns over 740-750 GPH. Turnover from the tank through the sump/fuge is 900-960 GPH. I have polyester filters over the sponges in the overflow boxes (changed every morning) and an 8"x4" poly filter in the sump that I change every 3-4 weeks.
<<Okay>>
No carbon at this point; took it out 2 years ago when I got rid of the wet/dry set up. Do you think I should throw a sack of carbon into the fuge?
<<Wouldn’t hurt in my opinion, I always like to keep a bit of Poly-Filter and carbon going in my own system>>
Also, do you have any suggestions on a different brand of skimmer?
<<I do!>>
There are many out there, and it always helps to have recommendations when shopping.
<<Indeed… My current fave is the offerings from Euro-Reef but AquaC also produces a very good product. Other choices would include H&S, Tunze, and Deltec skimmers. I would prefer to see you save up for one of these top-of-the-line skimmers, but if money is truly an issue, then perhaps a skimmer from ASM or Octopus will be a good choice. As for sizing the skimmer, you can go with manufacturer recommendations (especially with the Euro-Reef or AquaC lines), but I like to suggest getting “the next larger size” when budget and space allows as I believe many of the manufacturers tend to overate their product (as is the case with your current skimmer)>>
Thanks again for the input!!
Susan
<<My pleasure to assist. Eric Russell>>
P.S. Going back to your reply to my first email....you mentioned the uncommon nature and typically high price of the Bariene Tang.....he happens to be the best bargain in my tank!
<<Oh?>>
Occasionally I stop into the local Mom & Pop fish store here in Podunk (just to see what they have), but rarely buy anything, as I try to buy livestock from the same source.
<<A good practice, as this gives you opportunity to develop a relationship and get to know your provider and their supplier>>
I stopped about 3 years ago and found this fish, then about 4" long, priced at $27.
<<Wow! A $150.00 fish for $27.00…not bad…and perhaps some insight to the markup on this “very common” uncommon find>>
It took only seconds to make the decision on that one!
<<Indeed>>
Thanks again for your help and input!!!
<<You know where to find me. EricR>>

Microbubbles and no skimmate... Mmm, skimmer op. f'  10/1/08
Good Afternoon,
<Hi there>
First and foremost, I would like to thank you, Mr. Fenner, and the WWM Crew for taking the time to answer all of the questions and for building such an informative site. I will apologize for the length of this letter beforehand. I have a couple problems. First, my skimmer is producing nothing other than a green tea colored liquid;
<Mmm... either needs adjustment or is "just" not a very efficient make/model>
secondly, I have a large amount of microbubbles or microparticles that are making the tank cloudy.
<No fun>
I have a 125-gallon tank that I started in January of this year. I added 175 pounds of live rock and a ½-inch of fine aragonite sand. This is where I made the first of several mistakes. I knew the rock needed to cure and had planned to do so in the tank. I placed the rock in the tank with a CPR Bak-Pak 2 Skimmer, three powerheads and an Emperor 400 BIO-Wheel. I obviously did not understand the difference between curing and cycling.
<Yikes! What a mess>
I failed to do water changes and the ammonia level climbed off the charts. At the highest possible placement of the collection cup, the skimmer failed to produce anything other than the tea colored liquid. I am sure you can imagine what happened, no living creatures on the live rock from the ammonia. The live rock had a lot of coralline (which bleached), but I never experienced the foul odor during curing that I have read about here.
<You're fortunate t/here>
The tank completed its cycle in about three weeks. I had all the undesirable effects, such as the diatom bloom. I had initially used tap water to fill the tank, which I now realize was another mistake. I eventually developed the dreaded Cyanobacteria. I added an RO system, and it had little effect on the Cyanobacteria. I had my water tested by a water quality firm and found that the tap water contained 600 ppm of total dissolve solids.
<We actually have more here in most of San Diego... and call our source water "liquid rock">
The RO water contained 30 ppm
<Mmmm>
so I added a DI filter to the system and lowered the TDS to 0. The CPR skimmer has never made much skimmate and as earlier mentioned, it was nothing other than a tea color. I finally defeated the Cyanobacteria problem with a great deal of water changes.
<You must be getting the ahms of AhnoldS!>
I had also read that dripping Kalkwasser with an IV would precipitate the phosphates, which I believe that I have, but have always tested zero. I believed the skimmer was producing the microbubbles, so I upgraded to an AquaC Remora Pro with a bubble trap,
<Ah! Very good>
but I continue to have little skimmate production. I have even talked with Steve at AquaC; he suggested that maybe the bioload was too light.
<A possibility>
I have now had another outbreak with Cyanobacteria. I know there is a lot of organic matter in the water,
<But... "something" missing>
since the Emperor filter cartridges become extremely dirty in a short amount of time. I have also dripped Kalkwasser over several days to raise the pH to 8.6 to precipitate the phosphates. I have now added a poly filter along with Chemi-Pure.
<Worth trying>
The Cyanobacteria is still present and I siphon it out every few days. I will disappear within an hour of "lights-out" and come back vigorously within an hour of "lights on." I know this is not light dependant and is a result of high organics in the water. I also have a green algae that grows on the back glass (not sure if it is also related to the Cyanobacteria or not) but its texture appears to be more slime-like. The coralline grows well on the rocks but when it forms on the glass, it grows to the size of a dime, then develops a small hole in the middle, and completely disappears within a few days.
The microbubbles are not only very aesthetically displeasing but as you are quite aware can be dangerous to the livestock. I have tested the equipment that I have by have shutting everything off for 12 hours, but there continues to be microbubbles or microparticles in the water column, they never settle out or rise to the top. Sometimes it almost appears that they are coming from the substrate and appear to get worse the longer the lights are on.
<Yes... I know of the sort of thing you are experiencing... and a safe, easy "cure">
Again, I apologize for the length but I am out of things to try. I also placed a HOB magnum with a micro cartridge and ran this for a month to make sure it was not just particulate matter and it appeared that this made no difference either. Not sure if this matters or not but in the beginning I had to add massive amounts of calcium because it kept dropping into the 250 range, I was also adding Purple up.
<Mmmm>
After reading on your site, I stopped all the supplements other than Kent Super Buffer for my water. The calcium has remained steady in the 400 range with no additives for several months now. I am just wondering are these microbubbles the bi-product of the Cyanobacteria or some other type of bacterial infection. Up until about two weeks ago, my pH fluctuated to the extremes 8.1 to 8.6 it was as if the BGA was controlling this to its own satisfaction.
<Good guess>
Calcium and DKH remained at acceptable levels and pH would be 8.1 one day and 8.6 the next with no additives. I first thought it was the pH meter, which is a pinpoint, but after having it checked and calibrated there was no problem with the equipment.
125-gallon aquarium (not drilled)
pH 8.1 to 8.3
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 20
DKH 11
Calcium 400
Temperature 79 (very stable)
Phosphates 0 (tank and RO water)
Lights PC (4) 96 watt (on for 12 hrs)
(3) Powerheads
AquaC Skimmer (Rio 1400)
UV (used for 1 month with no results so I removed)
Emperor BIO-Wheel (change filters weekly)
I have added phosphate remover and ChemiPure in the last month
I use no additives other than Kent Superbuffer for make-up water
I have done 10-gallon water changes weekly. I also only feed Ocean Nutrition flakes and seaweed for the Tangs. I am positive I am not overfeeding.
Livestock
(1) Yellow Hawaiian Tang
(1) Flame Hawkfish
(2) True Percula Clowns
(3) Green Chromis
(1) Watchman Goby
(1) Sailfin Blenny
(1) Foxface
(1) Kole Tang
(2) Brittle Stars
(3) Firefish Gobies
(2) Cleaner Shrimp
(1) Flame Scallop (came with cleaner crew)
Pulsating Xenia (grown to three separate large colonies)
(1) Frogspawn (3 heads)
Several mushrooms
Several button polyps
(1) White Pom Pom Xenia
Cleaner crew mixed snails and hermits
Thanks for all your assistance,
Roger
<Now... I am going to try my best at an effort of sleight of hand here... suggesting actions w/o much (or any really) explanation of causative mechanisms. IF you will try adding a bit (abundance of a lacking essential nutrient) of carbon here... in the form of ethanol (Vodka will do) or "simple" sugar (pentoses, hexoses), you will very likely find a "miraculous" turning about of your system... Either a half ounce of the C2H5OH... OR a couple grams of the sugar (dissolved in some water), every other day for three, four treatments... And please do write me back in a week or so and we'll chat re... Not to be or appear disingenuous, I don't want/intend to encourage others carte blanche to try this. Your situation however... is apropos. Bob Fenner>