Nate213

I am maintaining high Mg to rid my 150 of bryopsis. I used magnesium from BRS and mixed up a solution. Then I used the BRS calculator to calculate the dosing amount to raise levels over 1500. I used my doser to add the amount over several days. I have been holding this level for several weeks and it is working great. Bryopsis is dying and no adverse effect on corals.

I want to make it clear that I'm not trying to steer you away from LEDs, because I do feel they will be the lighting of the future but just trying to point out that you can do both.

MH are cheap. You could get everything up and running with MH and then switch to LEDs at a later date. That way you would get the system all dialed in and know you have everything right before you play with lighting. The biggest disadvantage of LEDs (in my opinion) is the inconsistency. Some people have great luck and others terrible. There are lots of sale threads with new high end LED fixtures that didn't work. It makes me a little worried about the ones I bought, but I am up for a challenge and know the rest of my system is solid. If my corals start to suffer it will be a good probability that it is the lighting. With a brand new build it may be harder to determine the problem.

No problem. I've already researched most of this stuff for my own build, so I have a lot bookmarked. Where are the progress pictures? I know you have some stuff.

I almost choked on my coffee when I read this! So true.

^ you really only need the two pumps. I have the four pump model but one isn't being used. I do dose magnesium but at a very low rate, and only because I have the extra pumps to do so. I also have a separate top off system. I personally wouldn't use a dosing pump for top off, but I suppose you could.

I have manually dosed, upgraded to a reactor and then upgraded to an auto doser. Both the reactor and auto doser are worlds better than manually dosing. My issues with the reactor were the constant maintenance and refilling of the media. As the media breaks down the reactor gets restricted and the flow changes. It seems like I was always cleaning it out or adjusting the flow. I had to take it offline every 3-5 months to completely clean and replace the media. I was always worried about excess CO2 and constantly monitored my bubble counter and flow. I also had to monitor and clean the feed pump. Average PH was slightly low while running the reactor. I upgraded to a Profilux doser and am very happy. Once I got it dialed in, it is very little maintenance. I refill the solutions (2-part plus mag) about every four months or so as needed and do bi weekly checks to see if the settings need to be adjusted. So far this setup is easier and less stress for me. PH is very stable and swings between a low of 8.1 to a high of 8.3. I still have my reactor, but I don't see myself going back anytime in the future.

I saw a build thread where the guy put down a very thin layer of sand and put down resin or some clear coating over it. It looked like the tank had a sand bed, but was essentially BB. I can't seem to find the thread again. I believe it was on RC. I like the cleanness of BB tanks, but not how the bottom looks after it gets all coated with coralline algae. If the appearance thing could be fixed, I would also consider going that route.

Looks like it is just under 22" tall; http://www.aquariumspecialty.com/protein-skimmers/internal-skimmers/rlss/reef-life-support-systems-r10-i-protein-skimmer

I ran across this skimmer the other day. Not sure if it would work for you but it is pretty slick how it comes apart. http://reefbuilders.com/2012/09/17/rlss-db10i-skimmer-saves-space-contact-time-integrated-volute/

My cleaner has never caused any problems with my LPS, but I had some peppermints that were very fond of them. Once they rid my tank of aptasia they developed a taste for acans and Duncans.

Do you have any peppermint shrimp?

Thanks Garrett. Collecting brass is another hobby.

Oh and you cant have guns without ammo. Here is my last visit to the gun show.

My other hobbies include motorcycles, mountain bikes, home brewing beer, fishing, hunting and of course guns:

Pros to MH: lower cost, proven to grow corals, standard in hobby, easy to setup. Cons to MH: heat, energy consumption, changing bulbs yearly. Pros to LED: lower energy consumption, lower heat, no yearly bulb changes, dimming capability, customizable spectrum. Cons to LED: not proven, new to hobby so people have mixed results, high initial cost, more difficult to setup properly.

There are lots of aquascaping threads on reefcentral and even a couple of 300DD threads. I got many ideas from looking at those.

I'm also interested in what you have in mind.

Garrett we need a group buy on MP40s. You need to get Ecotech to give you a pass on the MAP policy. That way Jenna can get hers and I can get four more.

Some update frag pictures. Got out the good camera, but I cant get the lens to take sharp photos. Time for an upgrade I guess.

I was thinking 2 MP60s and 2 MP40s.

They have one: Here are some screenshots from mine

Here is some info on the two most popular: http://www.neptunesys.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=43&Itemid=40 http://www.digitalaquatics.com/saltwater/