75g Lurking danger and Leafy Seadragons

[vlangel]

A small fan can shave a few degrees if you need room.

Yes, and if I were adding fish when its warm outside and I need the tank cooled off a couple degrees, that is the plan. It means making a screened top for the tank however because I have glass tops. I would need to take one of the glass tops off for a fan to work.

 

[Uncle99]

Yes, and if I were adding fish when its warm outside and I need the tank cooled off a couple degrees, that is the plan. It means making a screened top for the tank however because I have glass tops. I would need to take one of the glass tops off for a fan to work.

Yup, with glass, the fan would do nothing.
Mine runs with a 1 degree variance forever.
It’s the smallest variance I could achieve.

 

[griss]

Yes, and if I were adding fish when its warm outside and I need the tank cooled off a couple degrees, that is the plan. It means making a screened top for the tank however because I have glass tops. I would need to take one of the glass tops off for a fan to work.

Ah, the glass top would also be holding heat in.

 

[vlangel]

Ah, the glass top would also be holding heat in.

Yes, there is that too. My main reason was to drastically slow evaporation so I didn't need an ATO since I have seen too many of those fail. Unfortunately, there are trade offs with everything. My tank was set up with so little equipment, heat wasn't an issue until I chose to buy a monster UV, LOL.

 

[griss]

Gotcha. The most reliable ATO I’ve ever used was a float valve in my sump on gravity feed from a Rubbermaid Brute trashcan full of RODI lol.

 

[vlangel]

Gotcha. The most reliable ATO I’ve ever used was a float valve in my sump on gravity feed from a Rubbermaid Brute trashcan full of RODI lol.

I agree George, the float valve type are definitely more reliable than the sensor type. I have a float valve ATO for when we go on a trip for more than a long weekend and it has worked pretty well except the cheap little pump that comes with it. I have had to replace it already.

 

[Uncle99]

Good ATO’s come with 3 separate redundancies making failures (overflows) virtually impossible.
It’s unlikely that 2 different sensors and a timer would fail simultaneously.

Some of the best use infrared with mechanical safety and a multi timer.
Hard to beat.

 

[vlangel]

Good ATO’s come with 3 separate redundancies making failures (overflows) virtually impossible.
It’s unlikely that 2 different sensors and a timer would fail simultaneously.

Some of the best use infrared with mechanical safety and a multi timer.
Hard to beat.

I probably never spent enough to buy a really good ATO. I am sure none of mine had that many redundancies built in. Like everything else, I guess you get what you pay for.

 

[vlangel]

I see no symptoms of ich/disease in any of the fish so the UV bulb is off and I am back to using the heater plugged into the inkbird for temperature stability.

Friday water change day, except I tested NO3 and PO4 first. Nitrates might have been 2 as there was some color but very little. Phosphates were probably .5 like they usually are. I decided not to do a water change and I didn't even clean the pre-filter in the canister since flow is good. I am dosing some ESV B-ionic nitrate daily to see if I can increase the nitrates a bit. I'd feel more comfortable with them at least at 10. I probably should not feed any more as I dont want phosphates to go any higher.

I added 2 Sea Lab #28 cubes today since I am alternating between using Sea Lab and AFR. Finally I finished off with dosing CheatoGro for trace elements for the macros but also the coral seem to respond well to it.

Everything looks great except the dirty sandbed. I read a post from an aquarist who cleaned up his sandbed by pouring straight Instant Ocean salt through a funnel and tube right onto the sandbed with the pumps off. He was careful not to get any salt on anything else and he let it dissolve. He also removed tank water ahead of time and let his ATO replenish it so the salinity would remain stable. Have any of you tried this? It seems better for the tank than chemiclean if it works.

 

[griss]

Everything looks great except the dirty sandbed. I read a post from an aquarist who cleaned up his sandbed by pouring straight Instant Ocean salt through a funnel and tube right onto the sandbed with the pumps off. He was careful not to get any salt on anything else and he let it dissolve. He also removed tank water ahead of time and let his ATO replenish it so the salinity would remain stable. Have any of you tried this? It seems better for the tank than chemiclean if it works.

Do you have a link to that post? I'd be curious to read it.

 

[vlangel]

Do you have a link to that post? I'd be curious to read it.

I will try to find it. Its in Humble.fish under the algae topic in case the link doesn't work.

Using Salt to Treat Cyanobacteria

For the past few days, I have been treating the cyano in my tank by applying salt directly to it. I put salt in a length tube and sprinkle it directly on the cyano, using my finger over the end to control the application. I do this with the pumps off and allow it to sit for a period of time (30...

humble.fish

 

[griss]

I will try to find it. Its in Humble.fish under the algae topic in case the link doesn't work.

Using Salt to Treat Cyanobacteria

For the past few days, I have been treating the cyano in my tank by applying salt directly to it. I put salt in a length tube and sprinkle it directly on the cyano, using my finger over the end to control the application. I do this with the pumps off and allow it to sit for a period of time (30...

humble.fish

Interesting.