Recent content by Merritt

Sounds like Brightwell changing water as part of cleaning the gravel. That's different, and may not be necessary. The reason for water changes often cited on this board is to dilute nutrients. That Brightwell discounts that completely and I think his calculations should be verifiable. These...

We could cite opinions on this subject for ever. Nilsen and Fossa say: "In our aquariums we exchange only about 10 percent of water per year." (p. 264, vol 1, MCRA) At least the article mentioned above seems to provde a scientific argument. Could a chemist weigh in on it?

I found this essay posted on this site illuminating regarding water changes. http://www.reefs.org/library/article/t_ ... ll_wc.html

I have the skimmer. Couple of points to make it run at max. Change the bio balls every six months or so. Frequently clean the elbow to the collection cup. If it's clogged at all, that will restrict the powerful air flow through the cup. Finally, clean the air intakes every few months. Same...

Put a three-foot length of plastic hose on the air intake. That should solve the problem.

Sorry, but I'm pretty ignorant about electricity. If an extension cord style GFI is plugged into a properly grounded outlet, will it work on powerheads that are two-prong? In other words, if the two-prong powerhead shorts out, will the GFI trip? Thanks.