J.Mcpeak
Aquarium Advice Addict
I had the salt in with the water for 2 days and it still hasnt dissolved, i hate IO
I can't see any flow? Agitate the water. Airline or filter. It will be done by morning.
I had the salt in with the water for 2 days and it still hasnt dissolved, i hate IO
I had the salt in with the water for 2 days and it still hasnt dissolved, i hate IO
Should i turn on the filter? It will suck up alot of salt if i do though
I had to paint the back and bottom of my quarantine tank again.
Suggestions: don't use spray paint, you will be left with unpainted sections no matter how much you apply
Suggestion #2: Don't use spray paint in below freezing temperatures, it will bubble up on you! Haha, good thing only my quarantine bottom and back.
Lol doesnt work well below freezing.
I used the Krylon fusion plasticoat paint on mine it worked great! Just an idea for you on future paint jobs on tanks. Not sure if color makes a differance in coverage or not mine is black.
Thanks for the suggestion. Is this roll on or spray? If spray, did you really get all the nooks and crannies and leave no "streaks" of no paint?
you may like the "KENT MARINE SALT" it's about the same price as IO
I swear by it now you should try it , I used to use IO REEF SALT always had issues salt not dissolving , low calcium levels , cloudy water , could never keep stable levels on ph
you can just don't use any filter media
power heads will help also lots of circulation
I use tropic Marin. Full flavour, I thought I'd have real salt creatures by now so all the correct coral trace elements, kent marine gets good rating in the UK too. I think it's possibly the No.1 brand over here.
@fishman yes my friend, fit something to stir up the water, fit it low in the tank, if it doesn't blow right across the bottom use an airline at the other end or another blower.
I am going out to get a powerhead right now, my favorites are hydor koralias for the reason you can divert the flow in any way you want, gonna get a koralia nano or 425 for this tank. Salinity is at 1.018 right now, my brains and LR are dieing to get into the tank! They are sitting in a bucket with the light over it.
View attachment 210409
Moon lights-
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Normal actinic blues-
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Don't take this the wrong way, I'm scared to get a reef system, you got buckets of stuff dotted all around the place. Maybe I worry too much! It's cool though.
You should get some digital scales to weigh the salt, it makes making water very simple. I've used this method for as long as I've kept brackish. Just make a 1 litre test solution, add 1 gram at a time, mix it up and measure it. Once you find your level it is simple maths every time based on volume to be made. Saves a lot of trial and error. I think 1.024=36 gram per litre, that was my tested result maybe 7 years ago (may have memory fade)
I hope the power head works out ok. Useful bit of spare kit in any case.
Checked my reference seems I've been misquoting for a while!
1.022=36gpl at 24C
1.020=32gpl
1.016=24gpl
These figures may help you equate the amount of salt to bring "her" up to level.
Sorry it's not more that's 3 of 4 tests.
Something like 6gpl should see you right. Hope this helps speed you along.
Reefs must be extra cool if you packed in the freshwater completely! Not sure if I could do that! We will see. . .
It shows how much salt mix to put in for a salinity of 1.023, its just IO is crude or atleast the normal IO, this sucks because i bought 560g worth of it at the lfs last weekend. I will try that out thanks, and reefs arent that hard, just takes some time and lots and i mean lots of money!!! (thousands on even a small system, not a nano or pico but somthing larger,30+ that is if you want the good stuff.) this 20 is not gonna have any more corals except for the 2 brains shown in my last post and some mushrooms.
Money is a killer, I've got the tank! The shelf/stand (nearly finished), a refugium (to be made) pumps and plumbing next. Once I know it's watertight and flows I can consider the big money bits, skimmer/lights etc.
I made a mistake and finally got some hill stream loach. This will delay the reef. I'm off this Thursday to collect some tanks from a guy up north, 3 tanks £35 only. One is 24x26x18" (LxDxH) and two are 36x15x18" that's cheaper than the glass alone! One of these tanks I will convert to keep the loach properly. 2 spare tanks! He is breaking down a fish house and runs a fish shop/breeding etc. The spares will be my qt for reef stuff. Maybe I can get some stock during the reef build, the fish in the "local" shop are in brackish water so adjustment time will be necessary. The square one should make a good coral qt. I think £2000 will be enough to get started, at least for my paper plan anyway!
That's why I worry £2000 is a lot of money to me, to see it fail would be a killer. The fish house build only cost a little bit more than that. DIY extreme!
I don't plan to skimp on equipment, the "life support machine" must be first class. I'm lucky I don't need to lay out any money for the tank. It will be 50-60 imperial gal all in, that's around 250-280 litres.
Hopefully I can get one or two corals and trade frags, just build it up nice and slowly.
Seems like enough to get you up and going, i know what you mean with the money, but after that theres really just the upkeep which isnt much.
Phew! I'm glad you said that!
Think of the money you'll eventually make selling coral frags and reef fish fry.
Anyhow. Scratched my tank a bit today. I started cleaning with my magnetic scrubber which had picked up a stone
I also did a 50% water change i usually do on Sunday or Mondays.
How much did your corals set you back Fishman.