Undergravel Filter...

[Domboski]

Really cool Paul!! I love collecting from the sound and bay! I used to have a squid I caught in the sound for quite some time about 10 years ago (of course quite some time was almost a year). I appreciate the sea robins, toadfish, naked gobies, puffers, pipefish and all of the other cool long island fish.

I currently have a few toadfish (I love them for some reason :scratchch ).

Have you tried keeping the orange sponge in your tank? If so, how did it do?

 

[Psycho graphic]

Great work Paul, I started my 1st SW tank in the '80's and I remember having to use UG's for a short while. I ran mine reverse flow, but never thought to use a filter on it, and would have never thought to run it at such a low GPH as you. I applaud you on your work with the Idols. Thanks for sharing with us.

Now get off your butt and work on keeping a Pinnatus Bat for that long:p !

 

[bmb527]

I am commenting on posts from the 1st page or two here,
I agree with Wingo that an u.g. filter MUST be set up properly to begin with. I do not think that many of us that have used them ever set them up properly in the first place.
Daisy,
Sorry, but I have to say that I would not even place 1/2 the blame on your old FW system crashing on your U.G. filter. There was something else involved.
Up until '99 I had 4 separate 135g tanks, all set up with U.G. filters, they were set up as 1 angel breeding, 2 discus breeding and an African Cichlid tank. I had HEAVY bio loads on all tanks, I used to clean them each 1 time a month, 1 tank a week. I had begun setting these tanks up in 5th grade, set up the last in 8th grade. That was 1981, and I went on family vacations for weeks at a time, and I never had a problem with an undergravel filter.
However, I would not use them in a reef tank, mainly because I was taught differently on how to set up a reef tank. I would still use them in a fish only setup though. JMO
Bill

 

[Paul B]

Domboski, I have tried keeping the encrusting sponge I find in the Sound and it starts to die within hours. I just freeze it as soon as I get it home.
Those soft corals all over the Sound will not live either but there are huge mantis shrimp about 7" long that adapt very well and you can always eat them. :lol:
I think I have kept just about everything from the Sound at one time or another. I have been diving there since the early seventees.
I have a tank of crabs, snails and shrimp that I have been keeping since before I can remember.
I set up my reef with a RUGF because that was all there was and it never gave me a problem so I keep it. I plan to retire in a year and move out to the east end, If I do and get a larger tank it will still have a RUGF and dolomite if I can get it. I don't like to mess with success.
Take care.
Paul

 

[Domboski]

Thanks Paul! I didn't know Mantis shrimp were in the sound. I used this link (since I am not a diver) to get an idea what is out there: http://www.newsday.com/other/specia...nefishes,0,7575144.story?coll=ny-nw-searchbox.

I guess they could have done a better job listing the inverts: http://www.newsday.com/other/specia...eachlist,0,6877249.story?coll=ny-nw-searchbox

 

[scarf_ace1981]

dom i gotta meet up w/ you some time in LI. i've never been fishing in the states. that sounds like a fun/easy thing to do.

i'd probably throw everything back or set up a couple more tanks.:wink1:

 

[Domboski]

dom i gotta meet up w/ you some time in LI. i've never been fishing in the states. that sounds like a fun/easy thing to do.

i'd probably throw everything back or set up a couple more tanks.:wink1:

I usually get night parking rights. Enjoy the breeze and a brew and catch nothing LOL.

 

[Paul B]

Domboski I think that list of animals around long Island is stretching it a little. Manta Rays, I doubt it. Maybe around Montauk on the Gulf stream. Most of those sharks are common on the south shore but I have only seen a few sand sharks in the Sound and they were small. I am sure there are some big ones but I have not seen them. We do have a lot of turtles though, diamond back terripins.
I usually just collect amphiopods, seaweed, snails and some crabs now. I used to keep flounders, blowfish, eels, sea robins etc but I don't have the time anymore. I know where there are baby horseshoe crabs by the thousands and seahorses. Like I said my boat is on the Sound and thats where I usually am in the summer.
Paul

 

[Domboski]

I have been dying to find seahorses. Literally years! My buddy takes his son out on his boat and he tells me all these stories about seahorses. I try to find them, I catch nothing.

Your going to have to pass your knowledge on to me

I am curious if you have run into the lionfish when diving. It seems to be creating a buzz on LI. I can't imagine they make it through the winter but what do I know.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I have a tank of crabs, snails and shrimp that I have been keeping since before I can remember.

I would love to see your inverts tank and know what kind of system you are running in this tank. Can you share some history of this tank?

 

[Paul B]

I personally have never seen a lionfish around Long Island, I just hear the rumors. WingoAgency, my invert tank is just a 5 gallon tank with a small powerhead. No lights or filters. It has some rock in it but it is not aquascaped. I just keep it for when I find something interesting and I have some place to put it. It has been running since the sixtees but there has been times when it was empty like when I was in the Army.
Now there are just snails, shrimp and crabs in there. I like to check things out with a microscope and it offers me an opportunity to look at things that I may not find in my reef.
Domboski, there are lots of seahorses where the Oak Beach Inn was.
I collected a few once and bred them. I raised the fry to adulthood.
There is a lot of things in my reef that I collected while diving :givebeer:

 

[jhale]

Hi Paul, great to see you on Manhattan Reefs.

the attention you give the morish idol is impressive!

I see your really keeping the look of the LI sound authentic :lol:
I would not have the guts to put a beer can in my reef

 

[Domboski]

I can't believe you tried pitting the mud from the bay in your tank. No ones skimmate can smell as bad as that mud!! Thanks for the spot for the seahorses and congrats on rearing the fry! One last question and I'll leave you be , are you a member of LIRA? I have been thinking about joining. I PM'd someone a while back who was a member and I got no response. I went to Dowling and took part in a pretty cool ecology and ocean environment class (although I majored in baseball) and noticed they are a pretty big sponsor of lira.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

I personally have never seen a lionfish around Long Island, I just hear the rumors. WingoAgency, my invert tank is just a 5 gallon tank with a small powerhead. No lights or filters. It has some rock in it but it is not aquascaped. I just keep it for when I find something interesting and I have some place to put it. It has been running since the sixtees but there has been times when it was empty like when I was in the Army.
Now there are just snails, shrimp and crabs in there. I like to check things out with a microscope and it offers me an opportunity to look at things that I may not find in my reef.
Domboski, there are lots of seahorses where the Oak Beach Inn was.
I collected a few once and bred them. I raised the fry to adulthood.
There is a lot of things in my reef that I collected while diving :givebeer:

I have a DD coffee cup in one of my tank :biglaugh: AHHAHAHA:biglaugh:
I definately would like to trade some seahorses from you if you still have them when we meet up.

 

[Paul B]

Domboski, CB747 on here is a member of LIRA, I am not a member of anything except the human race

Here is an article I wrote about the seahorses.
http://www.breedersregistry.org/Articles/v4_i3_paul_b/paul_b.htm

Actually it's mostly about a feeder I invented for feeding them. I am not selling them anymore so this is not a selling post.

I don't keep seahorses anymore, too time consuming.
Anyway I think this thread was if a UG filter was any good. I can say they will keep a reef running at least 36 years if you do it correctly.
As for putting stuff in my tank from ther Sound, besides the beer can it is full of bottles. There is some rusty chain in there also. I like to re-cycle :biglaugh:

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

so much for the rusty screws of the mag that screw up a tank.

well, lives find their way of adapting.

looks like i have to go diving to see the local species of seahorse then

 

[scarf_ace1981]

paul

i'm guessing you don't keep sps. i think those metal objects will kill an sps dominated tank

 

[Paul B]

Scarf those metal objects in my tank are coated with fiberglass resin but even if the iron chain was not, Iron will have no effect on corals, it is probably good for the symbiotic algae in them, I am not sure about aluminum so I coated it. My reef is almost all LPS and soft corals. I just like the look better.
If you ever dove on a iron shipwreck you will see more coral growing on the iron than in the surrounding rock.

Wingo you don't have to go diving to see seahorses, just bring a scene net to where the Oak Beach inn was. In all my years of diving in the Sound I only saw one seahorse there and one on the south shore. The rest I saw in grass flats in shallow water.
Have a great day.
Paul

 

[scarf_ace1981]

thanks for the 411 paul, thought metal objects in the tank were odd, didn't want some newbie to start putting it in their tank thinking it was ok.

 

[Paul B]

Scarf newbees should not put any metal in their tank no matter what they do to it. My tank is very old and it is an experiment. I put a lot of things in there that people should not do. I forgot this is a newbee thread.
Have a great day.
Paul