2Sunny

Junior Member
Location
Pound Ridge, NY
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Sweet...
I'm still trying to make it all out. Lol.
Do you use kalkwasser ? What exactly is the tank behind the sump for ? Also, do you use any type of mud/sand and macro-algea refugium ? I'm such a pain (Lol), and very curious on how such a healthy invironment is maintained.
Btw, thanks for the pics.



Hey Pauli,

The small reactor in the back right of the picture is my kalkwasser stirrer, the plastic squares in the way back are media trays where I put in carbon or phosphate remover as needed, and the hanging drip gizmos are how I add B-Ionic slowly when needed. Lately I found I was adding more than usual alkalinity supplement and at first I thought it might be "abiotic precipitation", but then Randy Holmes-Farley suggested I check my calcium reactor to make sure it was still running at the correct pH and sure enough it wasn't so we'll see if that makes a difference.

As to why the system seems so healthy, I've thought a lot about that myself in recent months. I'm no scientist, nor do I have conclusive proof, but I think my system has two enormous benefits going for it both a direct result of the large size: stability and available surface area. In terms of stability, I really work hard to lock my salinity at 35 ppt and my pH at 8.1. I find that locking in the pH generally implies a locked in alkalinity and calcium level. After that I keep an eye on magnesium as well. Bad things seem to happen when I let it fall below 1250 and the system seems happy with a slightly elevated level above 1400 ppm. In addition to the size making it easier to maintain stable mineral levels, I also think I have an unusually large amount of surface area available for bacteria to culture on. My sump has 200 lbs of LR which I rinse periodically to keep them in tip top shape. All that water (700 gallons or more) plus the added rock help support a large bioload which in turn feeds the coral. Since my nitrates and phosphates are always zero, the system obviously is able to keep up with waste removal, of course the skimmer and water changes play a role as well, but really I think the size is key to allowing the extreme density of life in the display, and no no refugium or macro algae other than the nuisance algae that grow in my frag tank :headache:






TyreePurpleMonster.jpg






BigK.jpg








Lokani.jpg
 
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2Sunny

Junior Member
Location
Pound Ridge, NY
Rating - 100%
3   0   0
wow great lookin tank love your pics i see you are a natural with snappin shots.


Ya know what . . . I really appreciate that comment! Thank-you!

And, yes I promise to make the next frag swap for sure.i


Very interesting changes goin' on in my tank right now as I added and removed a few corals on the right side to try for some dramatic changes. At the moment it looks kinda ugly (or so I think) but I promise to share some pics next week so you guys can vote on the changes and tell me if I'm going off in a wrong direction or not.

Actually, I think I'll start a separate thread right now to judge the sentiment :confused:




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2Sunny

Junior Member
Location
Pound Ridge, NY
Rating - 100%
3   0   0
Umm, that is a week from Sunday. See you then :)



Ahhhhhhh! I figured I had a month or two before that would happen. Sadly, I'm scheduled to be in Moscow on that day so it'll be the NEXT swap FOR SURE!

Oh well all sadness aside look who's surviving in my tank! 4 weeks old now . . .


BabyCardinal5.jpg



and here's how he looked 4 weeks ago . . .



BabyCardinal2.jpg
 

2Sunny

Junior Member
Location
Pound Ridge, NY
Rating - 100%
3   0   0
Beautiful tank and gorgeous pics!


Thanks!



But guess what . . .


. . . They're a family. It's not 1 baby cardinal, but 3 and all have made it to one month old! I'm thinking I may net them out and put together a grow tank for them. Seems a shame to let them go. Crazy! This plus the 2 adults that grew up in my sump and are still living makes 5 so far! Must be tricky little guys to survive in such tight quarters.





BabyCardinals1.jpg
 

NYreefNoob

Skimmer Freak
Location
poughquag, ny
Rating - 100%
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sunny i didnt realize u dont live that far from me. not that my tank compare's to yours but if you ever want to stop by and see what t5's look like on a sps tank lmk
 

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