Rick

If the 20k is too blue then I would switch to 14k or 15k since you will get better growth. Alternatively or additionally you can change the color using the VHO supplementation but I think you will be happier changing the MH first.

Old laptop bricks work great for running PC fans. Some old phone chargers work also but you need to check the voltage first.

The screen isn't a very big deal to me. It's nice to be able to flip it backwards to keep it clean but otherwise I seldom use the screen while I'm taking pictures other than occasionally checking the histogram. The big selling points for me were the weather sealing, continuous shooting speed, and wireless flash transmitter.

Maroonicus Photoshopicus, I love it.

How do you like the 60D? I just picked one up a month or so ago so I would have a second camera (Still have my T2i also). If it helps any I can hand deliver this lens. Some time next week we plan to go to Newport and your not that far out of the way.

Have ammonia and nitrite dropped to zero yet?

Sold Up for sale is my Canon EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 USM Zoom Lens w/Hood which will make a great everyday lens for someone that wants something better than the kit lenses. This version is made in Japan with a seven blade aperture (Better bokeh/background blur). It is not the early 5 blade aperture version or the Mark II of which most were made in Tiawan. (The made in Japan Mark II is more rare however it is optically identical to this one) AF is fast and accurate, its built very well, and optically I have found it to be superior to the kit lenses and almost as good as my L lenses (Which is what I've replaced it with now). I have to look very close (pixel peep) to even see any difference. I'll probably kick myself for selling this. (It's been my general purpose lens for the last year) As can be seen in the pictures this lens has been very well taken care of and is in excellent shape. (Many of you here know my camera equipment is well cared for) Note: I have this lens listed on Craigslist for $180 which is a firm price however I will include 2 close-up diopter lenses (+2 & +3) for close up/macro photos for anyone from this forum that purchases it. (The photo of the Blue Face Angel below was taken using the +2 diopter) New they would cost around $50. I may also consider working out a trade of some sort on a newer 10" to 12" Netbook (Preferably dual core). Here are some sample photos taken with this lens.

Cool, At 156 gallons a minute I could do a full water change in about 70 seconds.

You want to get rid of it?

Sweet, we were planning to go some time next week so this will save us $30 or so.

From what I can tell (with a bit of research) this is actually a yellow tang without it's yellow pigment. They are not certain what the cause is however it appears that they start out with white spots and then as they get older the spots increase in size until the entire tang is white. One of the articles mentioned that it may actually be caused by a disease of some sort.

Psammacora?

Yes, it is possible to run skimmerless. Doing so does require an alternate method of exporting nitrates though which is usually accomplished by increasing the frequency of water changes. (Figure 3 or 4 times as often) Someone also mentioned the oxygen exchange which is also a benefit provided by the skimmer. Chances are with a sump in place and/or plenty of surface agitation though this will not be an issue.

What alternate method will you be using for exporting nitrates? Frequent water changes? Something else? Be sure you have a plan in place. If your skimmer is pulling a lot then you probably would not be discussing shutting it down. Assuming it isn't then chances are you can just take it offline without a huge impact other than increasing the frequency of water changes.

1/2". Most of the stores sell them. I don't recall offhand which store I got them from. Probably Seahorse. You don't need very big ones for this because it needs to be low flow to let the RDSB work.

Welcome. Do you have any pics of your setup?

Here are a few pics of the RDSB that several people have mentioned. This one has changed slightly from the picture. Originally I used a Mag 2 pump to feed it however I changed it a week or two after it was in so it is gravity fed from a tee in the tank drain. Probably about 150 gph of flow going through it.

Nice, I'm surprised it isn't staying there for you. If anyone's considering Jesse's LTA then you should go for it. I saw it last week and it really is a nice speciman.

Do you have a picture? I have mine pretty well figured out. It likes to anchor it's foot under the sand but it has to be up against rocks. (I figured this out when I moved a rock and it crawled further back until it was up against them again) I actually coaxed it towards the front of the tank by putting rocks behind it. The presence of the Clarkii might also have something to do with it staying in one place though.

I don't even use a pump for mine (I did originally). I changed mine and put a tee with a valve in the drain and give it a slow gravity feed from it instead.

Are you getting this Jesse? If not I might. Need to think about it for bit first since I already have a big carpet and a huge RBTA.

How long has your current tank been set up? If it's less than a year or so then you can probably use the old sand. If it's been a long time then I would just use new sand. (Keep 10 or 20 lbs. of the old sand off the top to seed the new sand and add it first) Other than that just use all of your old water and treat it like a huge water change. Your still going to have a cycle however it should be a fairly light one and chances are good that most of it will come through fine. Expect a few losses though. (I lost 3 or 4 corals after I did my last tank swap) I transfered all of my fish right away but kept the corals in totes for a couple of days until the tank cleared enough to rearrange the rockwork and so I could see where I was putting them. Sorry about your Dad.

I don't think so but I don't recall what he said it was. (It is completely submerged)