SuncrestReef

Have any of you reefers written up a detailed operations manual for your aquarium system? My Reefer XL 425 is relatively new, only running now for five months, so I'm still learning the ropes. But for the past several months of setting up my system, going through the cycling process, testing water parameters, and fine-tuning my Apex programming, I've learned a lot about how the system works and what to watch out for if anything looks like it might be going wrong.

But now that there's life in the aquarium, I've started to wonder what would happen if I needed someone else to take care of the system for me, or (heaven forbid) if something happened to me, how would my wife know what to do to keep things alive and running smoothly? There are just so many components to the system. Even the basics of how to log into Apex Fusion and what all the sensors & outputs are used for seems daunting to explain to someone who wasn't deeply involved in designing and setting it up.

So, I'm starting to think about writing a comprehensive Operations Manual for my aquarium system. Everything from how to turn on the RO/DI system to fill my mixing station tanks, mixing up new salt water, testing water parameters, feeding, cleaning/replacing filters, emptying & cleaning the skimmer, replacing reactor media, maintaining the UV sterilizer, cleaning the refugium, and monitoring and controlling the Apex. There's just so much to document, it seems daunting to think about.

So, have any of you written up such detailed documentation for your family in case of emergency?  Once I have mine completed, I intend to publish it as a template so others can take and modify it for their systems.

So many reefing topics he could bust rhymes on:

"Here to rap to y'all about Aiptasia...don't let your infestation faze ya..."  🤣

@badxgillen For those of us newbies who don't yet have much to trade, will any frags be for sale, or is this a trade-only event?  I'd be interested in your Twilight Dragon, Super Blue Stag, and Rainbow Tort.

1 hour ago, Chief said:

I can only give you info on the club as far back as I know.   The club was around for quite a while before I came around.  Members like Jmanrow and krux have been around longer.  I started to go to the monthly meetings in late 2005.  It was an exciting time.  The club wanted to become a non profit so we could accept donations from large corporations, charge for premium membership, bring in speakers, etc.  so we developed our articles of incorporation in Feb of 2006, voted in our officers and board of directors and started our first charter membership.  I was the secretary during our initial charter membership.  We didn’t have our own website.  We had a sub forum on The Reef Tank forum.  It’s still there and we would use it from time to time when this site would go down.   That hasn’t happened for a while now.  This site is very stable.  I was President for 3 or 4 years and admin as soon as we started our own website and have been ever since (except for a brief period after a very bad crash).  

Unfortunately, this hobby will chew you up and spit you out.  I myself have started over after 2 tank crashes.  Many of our original members have come and gone.  Some come back after some time off.  There was a charter member book that we all signed, but I do not know if it is still around.  

There are a lot of great people here.   Welcome to the PNWMAS.  

Thanks for the background info.  I've really enjoyed the forums so far and looking forward to meeting more members at future meetings.

Since I'm still relatively new here, I don't know the history of this group.  When was PNWMAS founded, who were the founders, are they still active in the group, and who currently runs the organization?  As a techie, I'm also curious where this forum is hosted, how much storage is needed for the platform, who maintains it, and what are the average monthly hits?  Just curious, that's all.

Great write up!  I’ll have to look into a few of these products.  Thanks!  👍

38 minutes ago, youcallmenny said:

Pink Lemonade?

No idea.  Jeff wasn't there today, but maybe he can tell us?  @CuttleFishandCoral

It seems I can't go more than one day without adding another coral...

Here's the latest from @CuttleFishandCoral:

@Lovesalt can you remember the name of these mushrooms?  Maybe Jeff @CuttleFishandCoral can tell me?

7 minutes ago, youcallmenny said:

 Those are really nice. Take care with placement, they spread quick! 

Thanks!  Yes, I placed them on a small island rock so they can't go far.

@Lovesalt, thanks for the beautiful mushrooms.  I think they'll be happy in their new home:

Good luck with your freshwater tanks!

Nevermind, I figured out it's a Scypha (pineapple) sponge.

Any idea what this white hairy thing is on my rocks? It's really small (about 2mm across) but I got good close-up photos with my macro lens:

So, were there any standout new products revealed at MACNA?

8 hours ago, Flash21 said:

The hack for the Refug is nice.  

I saw they have filter cups for the Sump which thh is once thing I’ll be after.  

Need to think of a Top for the tank. 

I started using the filter cups last month, but I'm not yet convinced if I like them better than filter socks.  My Reefer shipped with the 225 micron mesh socks which are very easy to clean because they're very thin, but they build up detritus both inside and outside the mesh fabric, so if you don't swap them frequently all the exterior detritus falls off into your sump when you remove them. Next I tried the felt filter socks. These definitely trap all the detritus inside, but cleaning them is a major pain.  So I bought a couple media filter cups and stuffed them with some Acurel filter fiber.  I've found I can go about 4 days before they start to overflow, then I dump out the old filter fiber and stuff a new handful in.  It's hard to say whether they trap more or less detritus than the socks, but they definitely are easier to clean/swap.

For a lid I bought the Red Sea DIY kit.  It's a bit flimsy, but it gets the job done.  It also took a lot more time and work building it than I anticipated.  Since you need to measure and cut the aluminum rails, I ended up using a metal cutting jigsaw with a guide fence to get clean cuts.  I don't think a plain hacksaw would be very clean or precise.  If I had to do it again, I'd probably order an acrylic lid.

2 hours ago, Flash21 said:

Used. 

I guess a lot of what I wrote doesn't apply since the cabinet is already assembled.  Sorry for the long-winded response.

Is this a new tank in the crate, or a used tank already assembled?

1 hour ago, shaywood said:

If your use to normal plumbing, DON'T over-tighten the Red Sea pipes. 

SuncrestReef, which model random flow did you buy? I'm assuming it's the same for the 450. Did you have to buy any adapters? 

 

I got the VCA Y-splitter 1/2" locline with two nozzles:  https://vividcreativeaquatics.com/shop/red-sea-reefer-ultimate-return-line-upgrade-25mm-to-12in-rfg/

If I were to do it again I'd get the 3/4" version because the 1/2" really restricts return flow.

There are no adapters needed.  You just pull off the Red Sea nozzle and attach the VCA parts.  They make these specifically for Red Sea Reefers.

3 minutes ago, pdxmonkeyboy said:

my advice.. never bring a receipt home from the fish store..


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I can't remember where I saw it, but they had a sign posted saying for an extra $10 they'll print a receipt that lists the amount you told your spouse...🤣

Nice choice.  I have the Reefer XL 425.  Here are a few thoughts that come to mind:

1. My Reefer shipped with one extra cabinet board.  I ordered the black cabinet, but I found one white base board and I worried they screwed up my order.  But it turns out that extra piece was just a filler piece during shipping.  I'm not sure if they do that on all models of Reefers, but don't be surprised if you end up with one unused cabinet piece.

2. Use a power screwdriver during assembly if you have one, otherwise your wrist is going to be very tired.  Just be careful not to over-tighten.

3. Be sure to mount the door hinges before you place the sump in the cabinet, otherwise you won't be able to get a screwdriver in there.

4. The door hinges can be a little finicky to get the doors level and evenly spaced.  There are two adjustment screws on each hinge, but the instructions aren't clear on how to adjust them.  Trial and error will eventually pay off.

5. Are you going to use hard plumbing?  If so, keep in mind the Red Sea plumbing is metric so you won't be able to easily find a threaded PVC adapter.  Most people end up using a 3/4" threaded fitting and wrap it with about 14 layers of teflon tape.  Worked fine for me.

6. Many people have converted the stock ATO reservoir into a refugium. It worked well.  I feed my ATO from a large RO/DI storage tank, so I had no need for the small 3 gallon ATO.  Not sure if your sump will be the v3 that has a refugium divider option.

7. Adjusting the overflow valve can be a pain, but eventually you will get it dialed in and silent.  Just make very, very small adjustments to the valve and wait about 2 minutes before making further adjustments.  You can watch the water level in the overflow slowly rise or fall.  Once you get the valve set just right the overflow level will stay constant.

8. I replaced the stock return nozzle with dual random flow nozzles from VCA and really like them.  https://vividcreativeaquatics.com/product-spotlight/random-flow-generator/

That's all I can think of right now, but there are probably a lot of other details I'm overlooking.  I wrote up a very detailed account of my whole build process in my R2R build thread (including converting the ATO to refugium) if you want to look at it for other ideas:  https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/suncrestreefs-red-sea-reefer-xl-425-build.358990/

Good luck!

Glad to see that resolved the problem.

I put the $50 gift certificate from All Things Aquarium @ATA Wilsonville that I won at the meeting raffle to good use:

41 minutes ago, Sharklover said:

The discussion begins.


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If you really loved us you would be live streaming this...😥

This photo gives you an idea of the scale:

I might need a bigger tank for one of these:

(and I thought my pistol shrimp was obsessive about moving sand around...)