pdxmonkeyboy

I think the key to long term stability and ease is switching back to freshwater fish

I feel like if you are able to never test and have good results, then you are not adding anything to your tank or no SPS are growing strong? My calcium and alk needs have changed ALOT since i didn't have any sps or clam in the tank. It is totally feasible that I am missing something?

well there you go. He was hungry

are you using tapatalk? if not, i would highly suggest it Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I'm beginning to think that reef keeping should actually just be called saltwater testing. Hey man, you have any hobbies? yeah, i like to test saltwater and when I'm done I tell myself, you better test that water again just to make sure the numbers are correct. [emoji1] Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

dibs on Rasta rocks. yes Sean, I'll frag you some:) Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

tenius #3 please. shoot me a text and I'll come fetch it. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

.. ahhh there was a link. it didn't show up on my screen so I was like...wth? I guess his daughter and new husband run the store now. nothing fancy for sure, but I'll take good deals over fancy any day Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

yeah Sean, you should head over. he said he was going to put then all on sale this weekend. I think he said $99 for the 4" and 79 for the smaller ones? I need to stay away from fish stores.. "yeah let just go and look"... 30 minutes later.. "ok, your total is $298" Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

ummmm, must be an inside joke. I did manage to stop by there. tiny store but he had some really nice acro colonies at very reasonable prices. he also just got a big shipment of clams in Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

you can speed things up by getting cycled live rock. I got mine from upscales. beautiful purple rock. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

All you really need to know about skimmers. They remove organic matter from your water before it can be turned into ammonia http://www.reefedition.com/what-is-a-protein-skimmer-and-how-does-it-work/ Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

thereby stealing it's soul. nice one Sean. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

it's a good thing you feel obsessed as their is a ton of reading and learning involved with reef tanks. I have seen coral beauties in tanks with mostly soft coral, i have heard they can nip at harder corals. I want to get a mandarin as well but even though I have had LFS owners tell me "oh yeah, they can eat pellets" everything I have ever read says that most starve to death if you don't have a mature tank with lots of copapods. since I don't have that yet, i bought a t-shirt with a mandarin on it instead what kind of skimmer do you have? Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I've seen a fish like that when I was in college. I'm not sure if it is the exact same one however as I was on acid Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

my only observation is that the red sea mag test is very very finicky if you don't follow the instructions EXACTLY!! shake for a full 15 seconds after each DROP of solution A and shake a full 60 seconds after adding the 5 drops of B. Then titrate. I'm willing to bet you will come in lower on your mag reading. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

my system is pretty durable. I use this.. https://www.google.com/search?q=temperature+controller&client=ms-android-verizon&sa=X&biw=360&bih=560&tbs=vw:l,ss:44&tbm=shop&prmd=sivn&srpd=466882350852107576&prds=epd:699564730045312934,cdl:1,cid:1072488906883695803&ved=0ahUKEwj86ZfTocDTAhVH22MKHWN2DvEQgTYIwAU and two finnex titanium heater elements.. the ones with no thermostats. I calibrated the controller with a glass thermometer. that controller looks cheesy but you can set temp and deadband at .1 degree increments... something you cant do with the inkbirds. and it has an audible alarm...something the inkbird doesn't have. lastly, in case the controller breaks I have an old heater set a couple degrees lower than normal plugged into a separate outlet. It will only run if the controller breaks and temp falls. I'm a big fan of the metal heaters, i have broke glass ones.. my fault, but still. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I'll use whichever one becomes available first Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

phase 1 complete, 4,396 phases to go Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Delete

Accidentally purchased two rolls. It's 6 or 7 feet by 3 feet. I figure a beer or two is fair price. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

You can place him on a sheet of nori and see if that helps. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Huh, i wasn't aware of surfactants that could kill plants. Makes sense though given the broad definition of surfactant. Our go to surfactant is Dr bronners Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Nice looking tank! In wall fo sure on the next house. Probably a couple of them actually. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

I'm going to have to disagree here. While round up (glyphosate) has a surfactant in it to increase foliar coverage, its actual mode of action is the interruption of synthesis of amino acids. This disrupts the movement of molecules through the plant, a build up of a certain compound that I don't remember, and the ultimate death of the plant. Soap doesn't kill plants at all. In fact we use soap as a surfactant on many beneficial spray mixtures. I don't mean to diss, but at least now you know. Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk