My new addiction

[mwollak]

Hey everyone! My name is Matthew and I just joined the club in time to miss the first meeting. I am a student at Purdue initially from Minnesota. I am in the Army ROTC program and have a confession to make. In January, I found a tank that was within my price range so I decided to head to the LFS and see what I could make of it. After being talked into trying a SW FOWLR I became addicted! I can't stop! I have since then upgraded my tank twice and switched to a reef tank. I still consider myself a novice though I have had decent luck thus far. I was hoping to find a local club to pick up pointers and share my new pastime with others while possibly getting some inexpensive frags. seems not too many college students have time or money for the hobby...prioritization issues, I guess. Anyhow I just wanted to say hello and that I am hoping to find time to make it all the way up to your part of the state for a meeting or two. Until then, I will periodically post on the forum. Thanks guys!

Matthew

[mojo~]

Nice to have you along with us. Its just nice to learn from everyone elses mistakes and to get some nice cheap frags. Its about enjoying what we have. Not how much we have to spend to get it . Right? lol

[Fireworm]

Welcome to the FWMAS. Have you checked out the website
www.fwmas.info
We hope that you can find time to make it to a meeting or two. I know a kid in the ROTC as well. Chris Gerber. He is a freshman. He is from Ft. Wayne, I work with his dad. Maybe a carpool would work to share on gas. Just a suggestion, the money you saved to go to a new fish or coral. LOL

[Gondore]

Welcome Matthew! Hope to see you at one of our meetings! What is your current setup?

[mwollak]

The first tank I ever set up was a 12 gal nanocube. I have since then purchased a 30 gal. bowfront and use a CPR overflow running down into a hole I cut in the lid of my cube so that the overflow goes directly into one of the media chambers in the back of the "cube sump". The sponge on the CPR overflow is the only mechanical filter I use because I have taken out all the chemical and mechanical filter media and replaced it with LR rubble and Seachem Matrix.

The sump is really like a refugium too because I have a deep sand bed, LOTS of LR, and a cleaning crew. I have my heater, UV sterilizer and skimmer down there now and use a Rio 2100 as my return pump.

The show tank is lit with the Hagen GLO lighting kit (2*24W HO T5) during the day and single 24W Florescent bulb for morning and evening. I have 3 LEDs for nighttime. Everything is plugged into a timer.

I utilize 2 powerheads at the moment until I can afford a wavemaker. Currently have a nano and K2 Koralia.

Water levels are all ideal. Though I did have a problem with a power surge that resulted in a strong current traveling through the tank (i have since then grounded the water) that killed all my bacteria. After the surge, ALL my levels spiked: Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, and my PH dropped to 7.8.

Everything started looking really sick...There was nothing I could really do about though. I just purchased some Biospira and some TLC and let the cycling process start all over. It took about 3 weeks intil I started doing daily WC of 10% to get the nitrates back down. Now my water is looking ok.


Live stock Includes:

Fish:
1 Ocellaris Clown
1 Green Reef Chromis
1 Bicolor blenny
1 Royal Gramma Basslet

Inverts:
1 skunk cleaner shrimp
1 peppermint cleaner shirmp
1 blood cleaner shrimp
1 cocoa worm
1 reg. bulb tip anenome
1 rose bulb tip anenome

(cleaners)
1 turbo snail
12 Astrea snail
18 Nessarius snail
6 Cerinth snail
8 Blue leg hermit crabs
5 Red Scarlet crabs
1 emerald green crab

coral:
red plate motipora
tan encrusting gorgonia
yellow fiji leather
button polyp colony
elephant mushroom
branching hammer coral
neon green zooanthid colony
pink daisy polyp colony
green pagoda cup


:( :(

[Fireworm]

You ought to post some pics

[LornaS]

Welcome Matthew.....ahh we have all had those days where we think our tanks are doomed. You may want to explore other options on that return pump as rios are notorious for shorting or leaking oil into your tank....just and fyi.....

Please post some pics we would love to see your set up.

Looking forward to seeing you at a meeting....

[mwollak]

I will gladly post some pics in the next few days. I was already considering getting a different return pump with a little more power...my return line has a bit of a travel to get back to the tank...

How deadly/dangerous is that oil leakage and how will I know?
How will it affect my tank?
Will skimming get rid of it?


What type of return pump would you suggest? I have been considering a magdrive.

thanks everyone

[Gondore]

I use a Eheim and really like it.

[mojo~]

Eheim, are really good. Also expensive. MAg drives, Quiet one, and ocean runner are all good as well. The mag drives are alittle better with back presure over the quiet ones. But I am using a quiet one 3000 as a return pump and it works just fine. Just my 2 cents. I have owned all the mention pumps including Eheim.

[LornaS]

I can second the mag drive....what is your overflow rated at? you probably need a mag 5 or 7 at least.

[LornaS]

I don't know how bad the oil leakage is, just heard it somewhere, also that rio pumps are notorious for not restarting after power outages etc....better safe than sorry I say

[k'ville_reefer]

I also had a bad experience with a rio. Not with the oil, but I will keep that in mind. I had a pretty strong electrical current in my tank that narrowed down to a Rio pump on my skimmer. New pump equals no tingle feeling when I put my hand in the water.

[Fireworm]

Whats wrong with a little tingle. LOL