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Welcome to AA. Most people here would say that using tap water is a no-no. Long term using RO water is the best because tap water has impurities that build up over time and could cause a crash after a certain period of time (this timeframe is not exact given different water parameters in...

Hello all, My heater accidentally got unplugged yesterday when I did my water change. Just plugged it back in and am starting to heat tank back up. Been consistently at 79-80 degrees for almost nine months. Temp dropped to 73.3 degrees from approximately 5pm yesterday until 5 pm today (don't...

Ok. It took a little while but I made the jump into what I will call the micro...micro in tank sump using chaeto in my protein skimmers bubble diffuser. All it took was $5 and a little guts. See attached photo, I moved the light over so I could take the picture, it sits right over the micro...

I know small, right. I'm going to give it a shot in mid December. Can't find a lfs with cheato so I have to order it on line and won't be in country for a few weeks to ensue it all gets handled appropriately. Was hoping someone would say. Oh yeah I did that and it worked out great...I guess I'll...

What do you think about converting my bubble diffuser for my coralife super skimmer 65g to a mini fuge instead of getting the trickle filter, ect? The diffuser is approx 3"in length by 2" wide by 3" deep.

Are high quality lights needed for a fowlr system running the Berlin method? I am proposing getting rid of my canister and creating a small fuge for cheato nitrate reduction, which is I guess not the Berlin method anymore? Never done a fuge but have been reading up and thought a trickle filter...

Okay so I want to see if an idea I have will work. My protein skimmer has a bubble diffuser area in the tank (it is a coralife super skimmer 65g). I have the single bright marineland led lights that sit above that diffuser...could I take out diffuser materials and replace with cheato? My...

Thanks. Have a great Thanksgiving. I might do my black Friday shopping at petco now...

Are they safe? I have read too much I think of the purists view points that want you to have a fuge...ect.

It is crazy how dirty the water is when I clean out the canister. Part of the reason to get rid of it. Going to try and clean it more regularly but my goal is not to have to do maintenance weekly! I know...I know...if you want a good setup maintenance is key but it does wear on me when I know it...

Thanks beengirl. experience is better than conjecture. I think I need to clean my filters more often too. I like the idea of using cheato as well, I think it will make a big difference as well!

Thanks Nikki! Unfortunately I think I am doing the things you suggest except feeding. I get my RO water from grocery store. I am over feeding and that must be the cause! I need to buck up and get an RODI though too. I did get a protein skimmer which I should have done before getting the...

How do you keep your nitrates low? I have had high nitrates from day 45....(10 days after I did a 90% water change after the tank cycled). Not sure what I am doing wrong as I have done regular water changes!

Beengirl is this setup on your 30g? How are your nitrates after you put the cheato in the filter? Did they come down?

Thanks for pics! Looks great! Working myself up to next level!

I believe it was Fiji base rock. It is not very porous though which is disappointing as I would like it to be more porous if I go with Berlin filtration as I understand that the porous nature helps with the natural filtration. I bought the rock twelve years ago when I set up my 250 gallon so...

So the cheato doesn't need much light then. Seriously considering it. Anyway you could share a picture of the setup? I am like a five year old...I do better with pictures than words. ;)

That is a good idea. My space is very limited I'll look into the AC, my edges are only like 11-12 inches long. I have read up some on the cheato but I think I need lights for that don't I? How is yours setup? Sounds like it could be loud to? I want to get rid of my canister but reluctant as I...

Thanks mr. Crabs. The rock work took a while to get right...still worried of a collapse but I think it is pretty stable. Skimmer has been running a full week now. Should have bought it when I started the tank! Water looks a lot better and my nitrates have reduced. Think my canister is a...

Good tips. I will clean it more often. Still debating on going to the Berlin method...

I have been reading up on my skimmer (coralife super skimmer 65g) and it seems as though it is a decent skimmer and is rated double the size of my tank (29 gallons). My tank is only 4 months old... Should I wait until it is more mature before ditching my canister filter entirely?

Thanks Beengirl. it took forever to get it put together...if anyone has advice it would be appreciated.

I recently lost my fire shrimp and decided my tank needed a protein skimmer as my nitrates were too high for my liking, anywhere from 40 to 80 ppm with 20% water changes every two weeks or so. Believe my salinity might have been too low too at 1.021 but had good calcium readings of 500 and...

Water change would be answer for high nitrates, don't think it would do much but maybe lengthen your cycle time if ur nitrates are not extremely high.