!!!25G Mixed Reef!!!

I personally do 15% weekly. But more frequently is possible as well. If you have high or low anything that needs fixed, water changes are wonderful. Anthony Calfo says "The solution to pollution is dilution" and I agree with him.

Choise of ALK or nitrates? I don't understand. A water change could help lower both! What is your CA level? (And what brand test kits are you using)
 
$200 for a skimmer is way too much for me. I am just a high school student with a minimum wage job. I want a good skimmer for ~$100. Is there such a thing?

Naperville Reef gave me this link, http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/nov2002/chem.htm , and it seemed very informative on alkalinity issues. My alkalinity is 6.25 meq/L or about 17.5 dkh with the test kit I bought, and only a little lower with Naperville Reef's Salifert test kit. Because my calcium is 400ppm and my alkalinity is way high, that would place me in section 3 (shown below).

figure4.gif


The advice that it has is "I would advise correcting this problem by adding a calcium chloride supplement until you have moved into the target zone" and "move into zone 1, and then just let it drop on its own". I am still doing regular water changes, but he never said that extra changes would help.
BTW- thanks for helping me out with all of this
 
buy an aqua C remora then you can get one for like 120

you need a skimmer for those sps and the anenome, they need prestine water condition.

listen to the advice you get, theyre not trying to get you to waste youre money, theyre trying to save you from spending money on corals and having them die.

go back and read your posts. youre asking why stuff is dying and why there is algae... people are telling you how to fix the problems and youre dodging their answers and wanting to add additives.

just what i noticed anyways, wasnt trying to flame you
 
Exactly. I 100% agree with gfk.

And adding calcium is a redicuous way to get the ALK down. It's been weeks and weeks and it hasn't gone down. In fact, 17.5 is deadly high. Sounds like the store is giving you poor advice!

If $200 is too much for a good skimmer for you, then you chose the wrong hobby. If you're not able or willing to spend what is necessary for the health and wellbeing of your animals then you're just asking for trouble. I'm willing to bet you have spend WAY more than that on rock and livestock alone already. There is no such thing as a good $100 skimmer. You can get a used Aqua C for around $125, but a $200 ER is 5 times better.
 
Did you read the article? Alkalinity and calcium are related in many ways, and often when you deal with one, you may also affect the other. 17.5 DKH is the reading that my test kit read, but ~16 DKH is the reading Naperville Reef (a member on this board, not a store) gave me with his salifert test kit. I trust him (since he gave me free chaeto and xenia :) ), and he doesn't seem like a LFS manager. FYI, I don't trust ANY lfs around me. I mainly trust people on this board.

I will attempt to get a used EuroReef or ASM skimmer from someone in my club. I have been very wise with my money so far, and have gotten good deals on great stuff, so hopefully my tactics with work with the skimmer as well.

I tested my Nitrates last night, and I got around 7ppm, so my thoughts are that the chaeto helped.

gfk + Peabody - I am taking your advice. Sorry if I sound very disagreeable, but it is hard to tell with just words.
 
Yes, CA and ALK are extremely closely related, but raising one is not a way of lowering another. Water changes are your best bet. Good luck!
 
I am in the process of a water change, and I see how raising one won't help, but I need to get my CA up anyways. I also got some new corals (sorry for not taking your advice). They are really small, so they shouldn't add to the bioload too much. Pics will be up later.
 
As pointed out earlier, a skimmer is a must. SPS and organics dont mix well.

We run a cpr bacpac2 with a modified impeller on our 20g bb sps tank and it works great. In fact nutrients are too low, we have to overfeed or the color in our corals get too pale.

Post on the CMAS board if anyone has a used skimmer for sale. Just dont skimp... ASM & EuroReef are good choices. Dont buy a skimmer for how cheap it is, get a good quality one. Ask the board before making your decision.

And you think you're broke now? LOL wait till college ;)

BTW We also got some of Jose's corals, it's pretty cool to see the same stuff in your tank as we have in ours.

eric&flint
 
Sounds like the store is giving you poor advice!
Click to expand...

Peabody.... i simply gave Peter the link to the article on Advanced Aquarist about Ca and Alk. i think you misread Peter's post. I did not give him the advise to just add Ca to lower the Alk, that was taken from the article itself.

Peter.... start doing some water changes. i would do a few 25% water changes a week and constantly test the Alk. your Ca at 400 is fine. just add enough to maintain that level.

and before you add anything else to the tank definately buy a skimmer. for a 25 gallon tank you do not need to buy a $200 skimmer. i have an Advanced Aquarium Excaliber SV 100 with modified Maxi-Jet 1200 that was recomended to me by Rod's Reef. it works quite well. i think i paid around $125.

also, i'm guessing your phosphates are rather high so buy some Phosguard (or other phosphate remover) and place some in your sump so that it gets some water flow. try to pick out that Caulerpa in the display tank. the more it grows the more difficult it will be to control.

finally, be careful where you place that xenia. it will spread like crazy and end up in spots where you don't want it. i would place it on a rock in the sandbed so that it is isolated.
 
2 other comments.......

1. the article i gave you states "If this problem is extreme (i.e., you are far from the line at the right hand edge of zone 3), then water changes may be the best way to correct to the problem." this certainly applies to your Alk issues.

2. once you do get you Ca and Alk in check then use a 2 part system like ESV's B-Ionic
 
....I also got some new corals (sorry for not taking your advice).
Click to expand...
Why in the world would you do that if you have chemistry problems and algea/nutrient problems? :rolleyes:
Best of luck...I'm out of this thread....
 
SKIMMER

SKIMMER

I just got a skimmer! :) It is a AquaC Remora skimmer with a Mag 3 and surface skimming attatchment. It is sooo cool, but still has a few kinks to work out. :rollface:
 
Hey man, made it over to the thread, everything is looking great... keep up the good work. I see you also a student, how old are you?
 
haha good stuff.. aqua c remora is a good choice... but with your corals dieing.. did you acclimate it correctly? and i liked your first aquascaping you had.. it had a nice grotto... :)

but keep it up.

btw... nice house, looks like the house on Home Alone.. haha
 
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