Blue Z Reef

Sheesh, I’ve had my used Hydra 52 going on 3 years now, no issues at all...sucks those 26s are acting up so fast!

Nice write up SuncrestReef! What did you guys pay for those Norwesco containers? My new build needs a more solid station like that...55 gal RO barrel is ok but that setup is slick!

I’ve heard of people using an ice cube on the foot to get them to release. Haven’t done it myself but probably worth a try! have you held them upside down outside of the tank? I drained my tank once and they stretched out really far, would have been easy to remove at that point. Good luck!

Guess I’ll leave them unless I get to a water change before then 🤐

Hey all, Most people go into panic mode about raising clowns when this happens. I have no intention of doing that. I was caught off guard when my clowns spawned recently. One of them is 11+ years old and the other is around 8 years old. Geriatric clown parents to say the least LOL! This is the first time they ever have, breaking the 8 year dry spell (yikes!). Should I remove the eggs to avoid any nutrient spikes from the inevitable die off? I have several RBTA, will they eat the fry when they hatch? I’ve heard clown parents will even eat them...just wondering if anyone has had any issues leaving them or if they should be removed. My tank is a 45 cube, if it was my future 210 gal tank I would be less concerned about any water quality impact from the die off.

Looking for someone to spray my stand/hood. I have the paint, it’s mostly prepped but will require some more minor prep and primer. Just looking for someone to use a paint sprayer so it has the smooth cabinet look (painting to match my house cabinets/trim). It’s a 6’x2’ marineland stand and hood. Anyone have ave any recommendations?

As nice as RODI inside my house sounds...it’s staying in the garage. Late night panic runs to the garage are always fun! 🏃‍♂️💨

Sweet, I like that green torch on the LHS! Nice stuff all around.

I’d do 1 sediment and 2 carbons (maybe do like a 5 mic and a 1 micron carbon filters) The resin probably doesn’t have any significant amount of life left if its completely color changed. What membrane did you get? If you are getting the semi standard 98% rejection you should be outputting 1 or 0 (undetectable by meter <1). Do you have a pressure gauge? Possibly low pressure or not installed pressure restrictor/fast flush on your waste line?

Back from the dead! Amazing pics as usual. Any new FTS?

I feel bad as I advised you to do this but was meaning that you redo the plumbing so the 3rd chamber that currently has your DI resin comes after the membrane. Sorry if that wasn’t clear. My unit has JG fittings and tubing between the 3 chambers, is yours all directly attached with male/male threaded adapters? If so, it will probably take some fittings to re-route everything properly. Mine would be more of a tubing switcharoo instead of taking it apart and refitting it.

*violently scratches lightning maroon clown off of future stocking list* 🙁

I used to melt like 3 cubes together with some reef frenzy and feed over the course of a few days. Never lost a fish doing it, but always wondered if it was good or bad. Right now I just have 2 clowns, but one of them is 9+ years old...so I guess the food is ok? Sometimes I think people overthink these things, it’s just thawed seafood, I would assume it should keep the same in the fridge.

I’ve redone several black boxes. I would be willing to bet the one with the whole blue channel probably has 1 or two bad diodes (totally out) and the driver is likely fine. You’ll need a multimeter to find which one is bad. The one I use (Fluke...forgetting model), will actually illuminate the LEDs individually so you can check if the diode is still good. Only hard part about replicating a layout is gathering all the different wavelength diodes you want. Is this already a full spectrum black box? You may just want to start swapping a few out here and there and play with it till you like it. Also, my advise on ordering 3w leds from China (off eBay or elsewhere) is to get more then you need. Every batch has a dud usually, some may not last as long due to QC, etc. also, I’ve bought some and the seller is gone and even though many will say they have the same wavelength, they won’t be exact so always good to have extras (from the same batch). Good luck and if you get stuck and want a hand, you can bring them by and I’ll take a look.

I’ve seen people use this stuff to diffuse light fixtures before: https://www.homedepot.com/p/OPTIX-Acrylic-Micro-Prism-Glaze-2-ft-x-4-ft-Lay-in-Ceiling-Light-Panel-1A90001A/207054944 also, I wonder if you took the Prime apart if the lenses could be removed (appears to be all once piece).

The little frozen cube domes are from thingiverse. I had 4 of them printed but still experimenting with magnets as the ones I bought want to slip down. CrabbyCrabs if you want one I have an extra but you’ll need to source a magnet.

Is your bypass just a T off with valve? If so, just put it after your membrane and before the DI section you are rerouting to.

hard to say from the pic, how old is the system? Is your only filtration a cartridge filter? At a minimum I’d hit it with a water change and do some testing. Can’t help much without knowing if something is off.

I would get this membrane, pretty much known as the best: https://www.aquacave.com/spectrapure-spectraselect-plus-99-percent-rejection-90-gpd-ro-membrane-mem-sp-0090.html You could just do this kit also: https://www.aquacave.com/replacement-cartridge-set-for-spectrapure-maxpure-ro-di-systems.html what you would do is use 2 of the vertical chambers for pre filters, remove your old DI, and reroute your piping through the final filter housing to become your new DI chamber. You’d essentially be turning your 4 stage into a 3 stage. Honestly, with 24 TDS you’ll be just fine doing this. you could do a kit from BrS as well but I’d stick with the spectrapure membrane at a minimum. Shop around, might be cheaper elsewhere, just using that for reference.

5 years...yikes lol! so carbon blocks should be replaced every 6-9 months. Your DI section doesn’t appear to be one that opens and is replaceable, so you’ll likely have to replace with an inline sealed one like you have or buy a DI add on chamber (similar to the 3 vertical filters) that has a refillable cartridge. I would check on Bulk Reef Supply, they do “kits” that come with 3 filters and also sell DI add on kits too. Sounds like you’ve been kinda skating by with low tap TDS for all these years but really should swap it all out. I would assume your membrane is doing all the work at this point aside from some sediment filtration the pre filters are doing. also, if you want a good membrane, look at a spectrapure 99% rejection rate membrane (I believe they are 90gpd usually). Most reefers swap membranes every 1-2 years but some use them longer.

Yikes, they sending new parts or refund? If it was just the pinwheel it wouldn’t have been as big a deal...sheesh! Little more bubble wrap next time lol

Holy crap dude, how bad was the RLSS messed up? They refund you? I feel bad for the recommendation, mine just came in it’s OEM box and was fine in shipping. Glad you got the BubbleMag going though!

That looks incredibly easy to make, I bet you could DIY it with plastic from TAP. They can even cut to size if you need.

Looking good! How do you like the new 350 gyres? I’m debating flow for my new tank and they are in the running 😁