Jiddy's 220g MASTERPIECE!

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Here are some "filler" picture, the new shelves i put in, for the Mag's, the manifold from the tank view and this little red thing that came on my LFS LR, they are crappy pics, but thats all the better i can get
 
Time for my nightly ramble is it? lol

I guess I can recommend not boiling Damsels; they don't seem to like it much. I'm full of ideas, just not sure what kind of ideas you're looking for. That "red thing" you were talking about could be some red coralline algae. Some forms of it branch out and don't look much like traditional coralline.

I'm leery of getting into this nitrate discussion anymore than I already have. Opinions have varied on this subject since people had the bright idea to throw fish in glass tanks. I have a couple of other points I'd like to make though. The important thing to remember is stability; and this pertains to more than nitrates. Fish and inverts alike will not tolerate sudden changes. If you take a fish, any fish; and move it from zero nitrates to 20ppm it's quite likely the fish will get shocked. It might not kill it, but it certainly isn't good for it. A fish that has lived in a tank that has developed a steady level of 20ppm stands a good chance at not getting shocked. Many times high nitrate levels are indicative of bad water quality, which is perhaps one of the reasons so many tanks with nitrates also have health problems. It's not always nitrates that cause the problems; it can be a number of things present in a tank that hasn't been well maintained. There is very little, if any, evidence that show low nitrates cause any symptoms at all when present in good water. The reason nitrates exist in good water is because not all aquariums are full of live rock; and some that are have extremely dense rock that doesn't grow much anaerobic bacteria. FO systems with no rock often have some nitrates due to this limited amount of de-nitrification. Should a reef with lots of porous rock have nitrates? No it shouldn't; if it does something is likely wrong with the setup. To state that fish cannot live in the presence of nitrates though is not true. Okay, I guess I'm done with this topic, lol

Clayton
 
Just got down watch'n the movie "hide & seek" wow crazy endin, anyways, yea i tested my Nit and Nat today, and my Nit was .5 and my Nat was only 5. Still no Amm present, that Sali can detect. Pretty much after Nit and Nat are zero the tank is cycled thou right?
 
If there's a bio-load in the tank and your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels are zero; then you're ready to start adding more load. It means the initial cycle is done. When that happens add a bunch of cleaner critters like snails and hermits to eat algae and detritus. You probably have some other stuff like pods and bristle worms that came on your live rock; even if you haven't seen them yet. Those will help some too. It's an amazing sight watching a big bristle worm taking down the poop of something else. It sounds strange to talk about it until you've actually seen it, lol. I can't recommend telling your friends about it though.

After the snails and other stuff have been in there a couple of weeks, and your levels are still good, and you don't have an algae problem, then you can add the more interesting things. Different people have different opinions on whether to add fish or corals first. A lot of people add coral first, but I'm just the opposite. My theory is that by adding fish first you allow the biological system to adjust to the biggest impact first, which is the fish. If corals are present when that impact occurs they don't always fair all that well. This is all moot though, since you jumped the gun and went straight to fish without even cycling, lol. I know, I know, the circumstances called for it. By the sounds of it you may have saved those fish anyway.

Clayton
 
Thanks Clayton, and you couldnt be more right when sayin "i dont rec. tellin your friends about it" my friends aren't domesticated yet and could care less about reef life, thou they do admire my hard work and hate when they get the phone call to help me with somthin' heavy for the tank! lol.
So the Nat will go up and down when i add a new critter, and i know its balanced when it goes down again after addin a critter? And yes i did save those fish and very happy i "had" to keep them, its nice to have a tank bein cycled with fish and know its not your stupidity that is the reason they are in their. Even thou once my tank is completly cycled that Zebra Damsel and Wrasse are gettin traded for a nice pair of Clown's. I think i will be addin zoo's next, once im down with cyclin', not really big on fish yet, havent done teh research.
By the time my tank is all ready for me to put stuff in it ill have to goto Guam. Thats in Jan, and ill be gone for four months, so wont that just be thrill... all this work for little rewards.
 
If the nitrates go up when you add something you've added too much; they should stay at zero. It's not just the nitrates that fish add to the load, it's the overall impact from their waste, from both ends I might add. Most of the ammonia excreted by fish comes from their gills (which has nothing to do with anything, but I felt compelled to say it). Fish are often fed more food as well, which obviously adds to the load. Basically when livestock is added slowly your nitrogen levels should stay the same.

Guam, huh? That's a bummer. Not that I don't see the significance of having people over there, but does it have to be people with newly setup reefs? What has the world come to? Anyway, I'd strongly recommend being nice to your wife between now and then if she's going to be taking care of your tank.

Clayton
 
Jiddy - the reason you don't have any ammonia is because there is a sufficient bacterial population of that strain to reduce it to nitrites. You are detecting nitrites because the bacteria, which reduce the nitrites to nitrates, haven't grown to a sufficient size yet. Once your nitrites are zero, you can do a water change and start adding more cleaner crew - the nitrates will come down with water changes, and hopefully your skimmer will aid in getting out more organics when you get it. Based on the cost of your snails, I would look into ordering snails online....it might be cheaper that way. Go slow, especially since you don't have a skimmer to help you out yet. Keep the updates coming!
 
Thanks Clay and Nikki for the help! And yea Nikki i think the next snails will be comin from onLine! lol. The skimmer should be comin here on Mon and STeve is flyin in to hook it up, so i will be all set! Right Steve! LoL

Hopefully this weekend i will hook up my flow, is there any reason why i cant hook up the manifold to the pump usin' clear tubin? instead of PVC?
 
Clear tubing is not as safe. It is more likely to leak at the connection. It is more likely to kink. It is more likely to get punctured. The hose barb fittings required with vinyl tubing reduce inside pipe diameter and also reduce flow. Clear tubing will get algae build up in it over time, which will also reduce flow. If you feel you must use tubing instead of PVC use spa flex. If you feel you must use clear vinyl even over spa flex be sure to use metal hose clams and tighten them really good at the connections.
 
Thanks Travis, unfortunatly i think with this house and this setup im goin to have to use some sort of hose, i see they have spaFlex where i was lookin so hopefully i can get that then, thanks bud! As always!
 
I agree with Travis, hard pipes should always be used if possible. Since your pump has a threaded input and output I don't see why you can't use PVC. Believe me; in the long run it's far easier and less worry. If you have a system that has some of each you can be assured the leak will be at the hose. Even new, plastic hose doesn't seal very well; but over time it will breakdown and become brittle. In freshwater this will happen too, in saltwater it just happens a lot faster. The other worry about plastic hose is its remarkable ability to kink. They have hoses that are kink-resistant, but that's true only to a point. PVC doesn't kink, in fact anything at or above Sch40 hardly even breaks.

Clayton
 
Use the regular PVC fittings with the spa flex, not the hose barb fittings. Spa flex does seem to keep a good seal when heated and placed on a hose barb fitting but you will get less flow restriction with PVC fittings.
 
First of, thank you Travis and Clayton for the amt of time, patience and knowledge you have given me. I didnt listen to anythin you guys told me and went with the clear tubin, i know i know, and dont think im ignorant, but this time and case I felt it was the best, please dont stop given me your valued opinions. I went with the clear tubin for a few reasons, the first is this tank is pretty much doomed as far as gettin moved with the next 9months, either my base will get closed down and ill have to transfer (its on the closure list) or the base will stay open and ill buy a house and have a fish room! That was my reasonin with not goin with PVC, ill be keepin the manifold and builden the rest with PVC once its in its final destination. So that left me with SpaFlex or Clear tubin, pretty much. I was obviosly goin to go with SpaFlex, but once i got it and felt it in my hands, i started to worry that not only would it not bend the way i need it to, but i dont think i could of clamp'd down on it very hard because it was so stiff. I went with the clear tubin and its all hooked up, i havent ran it yet, but thank you both for your help, and i will be goin with PVC later.

Next, i got the CL's down, i just havent turned the puppies on yet. So that is done unless i blow a leak *knock knock* Also, my ballast has returned from ICECAP so im up and runnin with all 4 VHO's now and also the SKimmer *ASM G3* came into today! So all i am left with pretty much is the leaks in the sump design and then the skimmer can go in.

Still waitin for my 500 REEF fish book, but thats on the way too!

My question now is, i added some purple up and coralline is growin EVERYWHERE, should i wait a few weeks or days to add some more, i dont have a Calcium test kit, i do have a ALK kit, but dont know what it is, lol! Thanks for listenin to my ramble, if anyone does listen *cry* -jk-

-Leroy AKA JidZilla

PS I had a BBQ this weekend and got to show off my monster for the first time, wow that is an amazin feelin! I think im offically in the SW club now!
 
Jiddy, I've heard about the Ellsworth AFB possibly closing down. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you and the rest of the people that work there that it won't get closed down.

Spa flex can be shaped by heating it to get it to bend the way you want it. You don't need to worry about clamping it as you should use it with regular PVC fittings and solvent to get the best results. You can use hose barb fittings but you have to put the end of the spa flex tubing into boiling water to soften it up before putting it over the fitting. Then when it cools it is pretty much permanently on there and you don't need to clamp it, although it is always better to play it safe and clamp it anyways.

I don't know what purple up is so I can't tell you what to do there. I am guessing it is just a calcium and bicarbonate (alkalinity) additive so you should be sure to test your levels before adding too much. You do need to get yourself an alkalinity test kit. It is one of the only test kits I use religiously because having a stable alkalinity level is very important when you start keeping corals. In fact, I rarely even test for calcium because I know that when my alkalinity is dialed in my calcium will stay dialed in with it.
 
Of course Nikki! I just setUp my pinPoint PH monitor and have a PH of 7.96, is that acceptable? what should it ideally be

Nevermind that links explains it all
 
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