As I move more into the hobby....

[Engloid]

Jake, from CR came by today to pick up a tank he's using for a sump, and he did the alkalinity test. As it turns out I was doing something wrong. I don't know why, but the directions in these test kits don't seem to be very clear sometimes. Are they written by 8yr olds or something?

Either way, I'm still high on alkalinity, but not as high as I thought. I'll get a good reading and post it up sometime.

 

[GPhiAce]

high as in over 11???? or high as in not what you want?

 

[macclellan]

the directions in these test kits don't seem to be very clear sometimes. Are they written by 8yr olds or something?

germans!

 

[Engloid]

If I remember right it was about 10.25-11.00. The tank looks very healthy, and coralline algae is doing great. It's got a lot of color to the rock... but my corals just aren't growing well. I'm about to rule out all options other than that I need new bulbs.

The bulbs I have were in the fixture, and they say "current" on them, so they are probably the originals. Just how bad do t5's get? I mean, do they get to the point that they will sutatin life, but not really allow it to grow? I think that's where these are at. Soon as I get back to working, I plan to buy some new bulbs... but I go for an MRI wednesday on my knee, and surgery after that wouldn't surprise me. I guess unemployment is better than nothing, but it doesn't pay all the bills.

 

[Engloid]

germans!

...and 8yr old germans at that. :fun2:


I had similar problems with my calcium kit. I even took it to the store I bought it at and asked 2 guys to read the directions and interpret them...and they both read them to mean the same as I did. We compared results to the test they have and determined that the directions, although unclear, were still misleading. More germans, probably. :hmm6:

 

[Engloid]

BTW, if anybody has some bacup (old) 4ft t5's that they could part with cheap, they may get me through till I can part with more money. ..or does anybody have a PAR meter that would allow me to see how bad my lights are?

One day I plan to go with halides, but have to get a handle on my temperature (and the job thing) first.

 

[reeflover101]

the club as a par meter i think dave has is

 

[Engloid]

the club as a par meter i think dave has is

I thought so, but I wasn't sure. Dave, can you give me a shout sometime when you'll be around west knox, OR Hwy area/Cedar Bluff? ...that is IF you're done with it.

I checked some stuff and have some results:

pH- 8.0 I think it should be a little higher, but I can keep 8.0 with no effort at all for some reason. I'm thinking that's ok as long as it's consistent. Correct?

Kh- 9.6
Alk- 3.43
Ca- 320

Ammonia is at 0
Nitrite and nitrate are at or VERY near it. I mean so close it's between that and the next number up. These three parameters stay pretty consistent in this tank, ever since I set it up.

 

[glextank]

Well the Cal and Alk sound good. You should check Mag too when possible, but it sounds ok for now. I think the pH is supposed to be 8.3, and having it a little low might be rough on sps, but stable is definetly a good thing. And current does make bulbs that are readily available and cheap, so they aren't necessarily super old. But yeah, they probably aren't great, and should get new ones anyway. Especially if you have sps.

 

[Engloid]

Well the Cal and Alk sound good. You should check Mag too when possible, but it sounds ok for now. I think the pH is supposed to be 8.3, and having it a little low might be rough on sps, but stable is definetly a good thing.

I have very little SPS...about 4-5 frags. I thought calcium should be about 420? did somebody say 420??!!

Damn those drug tests!! :hammer:

And current does make bulbs that are readily available and cheap, so they aren't necessarily super old. But yeah, they probably aren't great, and should get new ones anyway. Especially if you have sps.

I bought the fixture used, so I'm suspecting that they're the original bulbs when somebody bought it new...but I guess it is possible that they went back to Current for replacements.

BTW, Dave... you probably check your lights daily with the PAR meter, (I did NOT say anything about being anal ) so I'd be more than happy if you wanted to just swing by the house sometime and check my lights, then you can take it back. Although the house is a mess sometimes, I think it would be nice to have others come check out the tank to give suggestions or criticism.

 

[cee]

I gave the PAR meter to Scott (Runner) at the swap. I was not able to check my lights with it so I still have no idea how much PAR the corals are receiving.

pH will often run low when the house is closed up. Get some plants to help take up the excessive CO2 from the house mammals.

 

[Engloid]

pH will often run low when the house is closed up. Get some plants to help take up the excessive CO2 from the house mammals.

That's a new one to me. I have never thought about that. I only have one plant in the house, and it isn't doing so well. I've had it here for about a year and a half. For some reason, the last 10 years, I can't hardly keep a plant alive. I like plants, but hate watching them die.

 

[reeflover101]

CO2 lowers the ph