Higher Thinking

Great to see some teachers jump on this!

I've been there!

Hope this helps: http://www.pnwmas.org/index.php?/topic/33184-Having-trouble-posting-photos? Also, using Photobucket correctly will not make them go to your page. It will simply insert the picture into your thread.

Well it looks like I've officially allowed the POTM thread to fall away. I am happy to announce that our own president, Pledosophy, has won the contest with entry number ten. Congrats Mr. Prez., we'll adjust the Facebook page. I wonder if I might solicit a member to take over this task. I would be more than happy to explain how to set everything up if someone was willing. Honestly, between work, personal, and other forum duties, this is just one extra thing I don't have time for. It's a really exciting component of this club so I'm hoping I can get a willing participant.

Milk.....Haha haha.

I live by these links.

I have the same issue with the male in my tank. I've found that when I remove my wedding ring, he goes after my hand much less frequently. I think the glare and shimmer freaks him out because the ring is what he always hits when he lunges.

I could help facilitate a transfer if needed. I'm always cruising through that region.

Hey now! Green plants are cool too!

Unfortunately, I don't much about those animals. Hopefully someone will come in with more information.

Welcome welcome! Look forward to meeting you at one of the meetings.

My overall advice is to stop chasing pH. 7.8 is completely acceptable. Don't worry about adding that buffer. All that will do is start jerking your pH around. As everyone else has mentioned, it's best not to add anything you can't test for. Lastly, don't be worried about people thinking "you shouldn't have this tank." I don't think anyone is thinking that because every reefer here has made impulsive, regrettable, and otherwise detrimental accidents during their tenure in this hobby. It's just how it goes: learn some things, move forward, learn some things, move back, learn some things, and move forward some more. Stay motivated and just keep learning!

Water from a water change is hardly going to cycle anything. Just get a piece of live rock. You'll have much more success that way, as the majority of beneficial bacteria are not free floating.

Hey there! I'm Andrew. I was with that group in there on Sunday who encouraged you to join the forum. Glad to see you got connected. Welcome to the club!

One of our sponsors, Barrier Reef!

Just to make it official, PNWMAS would like to thank the following sponsors for their contributions at this meeting: Upscales: Pair of frag racks and gift certificates. TPA: Gift certificates TECO: Gift certificates Barrier Reef: Refractometers and isolation box. Reef Star: Par 56 LED light Critter Cabana: Huge box of frags (where's my rainbow milli?) Cuttlefish and Corals: Gift certificates In addition, thank you to the other sponsors who have made contributions that have been funneled elsewhere. Always shop our sponsors first! If I've forgotten anything/anyone, my apologies, I will update asap.

And I know a reefer or two who usually bring a couple frags for any beginners that might show up. If you're not totally attached to your corals this is a good way to frag up the "lower end" corals that maybe no one is buying. But I'm not at all saying there wouldn't be a buyer, just no guarantees until you get there and talk with people if you didn't set up something in advance.

I'd second TPA for some acans. They got some sick Aussie frags/colonies with all kinds of color.

Yup! I just stopped by there yesterday, myself. It looks really nice in there. Great selection. If you wanna ball hard, they got some nice colonies!

Haha, great find! I'm pretty sure I've seen a Squatch or two in those areas. Looking forward to hanging with ya tomorrow friend. Meeting is going to be great!

I was dealing with some legitimate bubble algae in the 75 and a pair of them straight knocked it out. Something I didn't anticipate was that they also ate dictyota algae. I have been dealing with that stuff growing in various patches around my tank. I was getting quite frustrated with it because it spreads so easily. It was even growing around some acans and choking a couple out. Well I was watching them a couple weeks ago and this crab was straight eating handfuls of it. I was really surprised because I had read that not many things eat it. So now I'm stoked!

Check the meeting and events section. We are flying in a reef expert to give a presentation, then doing some raffling of awesome prizes, and of course some great frag swapping.

Moved to classifieds

Yes, Bob will be starting by 1230. Probably around 1225 to make sure we have time for events afterwards. Please do everything you can to arrive early and not interrupt the presentation with a late arrival. Remember, there is much to do at the venue! Show up early!

Here's some info from a quick online search from someone named "UrchinHead." (Seems credible, right? ): If an urchin's spines fall off they are most likely dying and there isn't much that can be done to save them. While it is possible to attempt rehabilitation via a hospital tank coupled with offering allot of food like nori usually by the time the spines are falling off it is too late and humane euthanization such as via freezing is more appropriate. It is important to remove the urchin from the tank as soon as spine loss is observed as delay could cause the urchin to expire in a location difficult to access or see which would cause a spike in the tank. As with all invertebrates copper based medications are fatal to urchins. Urchins are also sensitive to rapid shifts in salinity and can get salinity shock which can be fatal. Urchins do not tolerate high nitrates. If there are high nitrates in the tank an urchin will shed its spines.