SuncrestReef

That chart definitely explains why I had such high phosphates the first several months after I started my tank since I did not use any bleach or acid. I managed to reduce phosphates over time with GFO and eventually with just basic skimming and water changes.

I've also heard a lot of people mention a muriatic acid bath for rock. Just curious what people's opinions are on this vs. bleach or vinegar?

That was my first thought. Or perhaps a grinder.

UPDATE: I found the Tapatalk feature was set to Disabled. I just changed it to Enabled and now I'm able to log in. @Bicyclebill can you give it another try?

The PNWMAS website was upgraded last night, and in the past this has sometimes broken the Tapatalk integration. @TheClark can you take a look, or point me to where the Tapatalk components are linked?

@Gil&Fin Holly, great to see you today, and thank you for the beautiful corals! Here are some pics in their new home:

The contests are now open in the Grow Outs, Group Buys, and Competitions forum:

This coming week we are running some photo contests open to both paid PNWMAS Supporting Members as well as free PNWMAS users. There will be 4 contests in all, with two for smartphone photos and two for DSLR cameras, in the following themes: Smartphone photo categories: - Most likely to be a scene in a Pixar movie - So ugly it's cute DSLR photo categories: - Most detailed coral photo - Best home version of a SCUBA dive scene (since COVID has limited most vacations, imagine you're shooting a photo in Fiji or somewhere exotic) Rules: 1. Each of these 4 contests will be posted in separate threads tomorrow morning (Sunday, 8/30/20). You may submit only one photo per contest. 2. Along with the photo, post the model of smartphone or model of DSLR camera and lens used. 3. Photos must be taken by you. 4. Deadline for entry is 11:59:59 pm Sunday 9/6/20. 5. Winners will be determined based on voting poll results after the submission deadline. There will be one winner per contest. Voting polls will be open Monday morning 9/7/20 with polls closing 11:59:59 pm Sunday 9/13/20. 6. Winners will be announced Monday 9/14/20. Prizes: For paid PNWMAS Supporting Members, a $25 gift certificate to the PNWMAS sponsor local fish store of your choice. For non-supporting members, a free one year Individual Membership to PNWMAS. This membership provides access to all club benefits including a free raffle ticket for all club events, PAR meter use, group buys, grow out competitions, and more. Clean your tank glass, dust off your camera, and get your creative juices flowing! Good luck to all.

Thanks Holly! Great selection, and excellent sale execution. Well done.

Pack #1 sold. Paid.

Link to this post I pinned in the Forum FAQ section: http://www.pnwmas.org/forums/topic/48002-how-to-become-a-paid-supporting-member/

Here is the current process to become a paying member or to renew your PNWMAS membership: 1. Click your username at the upper right, then click Manage Subscriptions: 2. Click the Subscribe Now button below Individual or Family: 3. Fill out the payment info screen and follow the instructions. PNWMAS Supporting Member benefits include: One free raffle ticket at all club events (two tickets for Family memberships) Member only raffles Member only Classified ads Access to loaner PAR meter Group buys Limited Grow Out competitions Access to Officer/Board nominations and voting Larger profile picture Larger message inbox capacity

Did it include any battery system to continue supplying power at night or in emergency situations?

Plus you can walk next door to ABV for a couple growlers and maybe a pizza to go!

I definitely have some. Now to just figure out how to capture them. They're too small to see with the naked eye, and they really cling to the corals, so I guess I could try using a syringe to draw up some water right at the coral surface and just hope some get captured.

I get most of my products from BulkReefSupply.com, and harder to find plumbing parts at AquariumSpecialty.com and PVCFittingsOnline.com.

Congrats on all your progress so far! FYI, if you ever need any Apex assistance or programming tips, let me know. If you're not aware, I'm the local Apex guru and wrote a whole series of Apex programming tutorials originally here on PNWMAS, and then republished on Reef2Reef.

Glad you liked my build thread. You wouldn't be the first to steal my mixing station design. Take a look at this thread from our fellow PNWMAS member @obrien.david.j who took my design to the next level with some awesome LED back lighting: http://www.pnwmas.org/forums/topic/46664-fishroom-remodel-has-begun/?do=findComment&comment=462232 I don't have any personal experience with the hardware list you posted, but those look like quality products. I'm sure others here may be able to chime in.

Welcome back to the hobby, and welcome to PNWMAS! I own a Red Sea Reefer XL 425. I like it, but there are a few things about Red Sea that annoy me. The worst thing about it is the overflow valve which needs constant adjustment to keep the overflow quiet. It's a diaphragm valve which is very sensitive, so only 1/8 of a rotation is sometimes too much adjustment. The second annoying thing is that the plumbing is brittle plastic rather than typical PVC, so you need to be very careful not to overtighten any fittings to avoid cracking them. Lastly, the plumbing is metric, so connecting it to standard PVC fittings is a challenge. I've heard a lot of good feedback about WaterBox, and also recently I learned of Neptunian Cube. Both offer complete systems like Red Sea, so I'd recommend considering them before you buy. I'm not a structural engineer, but from what I've heard a tank of the size you're considering should be fine without extra floor support as long as it's against a wall. Of course you should get second opinions on that. You can see my detailed Reefer XL 425 build thread here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/suncrestreefs-red-sea-reefer-xl-425-build.358990/ Good luck!

Will do.

Too bad, I just threw out a big chunk of chaeto that had quite a few aiptasia in it. Luckily my peppermint shrimp are keeping it under control in my display tank.

I have the one I got from you over a year ago. It was doing really well and grew several new branches, but over the past month it's been losing tissue starting in the middle and working its way up several branches. The same thing has happened to a few other of my SPS recently, and I still don't know what's causing it. If you like, I could frag off a couple branches that still appear healthy for you to keep in your tank. In the future once I sort out the issue, maybe I can get one back from you?

While this isn't local, I just wanted to mention that I've been really happy with the pods I've ordered from Aquarium Depot. The pods I've ordered in the past from AlgaeBarn were very tiny, and most were too small to see with the naked eye. I looked at a drop of water from the pod jar under my microscope and confirmed there were many live pods, but without the microscope it just looked like dust in the jar. The pods I've ordered from Aquarium Depot are much larger, some up to 1/4” long, so they are a more substantial meal. In fact a couple of them bit my hand and I really felt it! See https://aquariumdepot.com/live-food

Here you go:

It's been a very long time since I've done a photo shoot in my tank. Here are some shots from my Nikon D610 DSLR with 200mm macro lens: