Recent content by andysam

Guess I offended the advice gurus. As a industrial electrician for 30 years I thought I knew what I was talking about but it seems that I was wrong. When I mentioned ballast manufacturers I was not referring to companies that re manufacture components for specific markets such as fish keeping...

I am not sure what the prices are in the USA but in Canada male blue chin triggers are around 70 dollars the 6" crosshatch male that I picked up cost me 495 it was the only one I came across in the last 3 years so macaroni and cheese for a month it had to be.To put it in prospective a yellow...

Ballast manufacturers do not install any connectors to their products.The end that you show was installed by the firm that assembled the light.Unless you can find out who that firm is and get the matching ballast your only choice is to get a generic ballast.The 3 prongs on the connector are...

I have kept blue chin and crosshatch triggers in reef tanks with a lot of success.The only and rare problem seems to be that they forget and eat an occasional shrimp. As mentioned above some people say they rearrange furniture, this by luck or design has not happened to me yet.

You are right that in essence we agree.What I was trying to convey to this member is that a good starting point is to bring the water chemistry to as close to perfection as possible.I like you question the use of a "cheat" chemical to cycle the tank.Most of this stuff comes from China[where...

I fully agree about keeping the salinity in the natural range of 32-35. The natural PH of seawater is 8.2, it goes down as the water becomes more acidic as you stated ,however it becomes more acidic because of the buildup of dissolved organic compounds. Many people including myself consider the...

At this stage I would not go straight to the ich explanation however ich first attacks the gills, by the time you see white spots its been there for a while. The color fading could be due to stress

Sorry I thought the water tests were 2 days old. The PH is on the low end of the scale. I find that if the number falls below 8.2 that is a good indicator that pollutants are present in the water, do you use a skimmer? also in a fully cycled tank you should not have any nitrites. What is your...

Also how did you add the buffer into the sump or directly into the tank?

Melosu asked for water tests to see what is happening in your tank at the present time that in my opinion is the place to start. Can you post water SG temp ammo nitrite nitrate levels etc

Im with austinsdad no need for all the additives, they can cause more harm then good. Looking at your clown that does not look like ich to me.

Hi Miss Very sorry to hear about your situation. What Im am about to say wont help you in the present situation but it might in the future. In my experience the worst place to go for advice is a lfs,for two reasons, one the stores interest is vastly different then yours.They want to sell you...

Hi melosu, they were eating for 5-6 months but it seems that they get something in nature that is lacking in our tanks. Just wondering if anyone had one live for more then a year or so and what they are doing that Im not

Thank you for the reply. The two were in a very well established 220 gal reef with only a kole and a convict tang, they never touched aiptesia or any invertebrates [ate all fan worms]. Stress or lack of food was not the problem

In the last 3 years I lost 2 CBs , both after about 5-6 months.Everything is fine then I find them wedged under a rock dead.Doing a lot of reading I am not convinced that a CB is a fish that can be kept alive long term. I am very comfortable with tangs and triggers, but could someone with a LOT...