jt48
Member
6 month update
6 month update
Today, January 7, 2013 is the six month birthday of my tank being in operation. I would like to share with everyone the lessons I have learned, many of which I have already shared, but to recap in a more condensed version. Condensed, not shorter lol.
First off, selection of Miracles in Glass in Canada as the chosen custom tank manufacturer has very mixed emotions. Customer service, namely Derek was outstanding. Very informative in some aspects at least, friendly, and patient. He helped me decide on my 96x36x23 three sided starphire rimless with black background and two trapezoid internal overflows each containing two 1.5 inch drains and 1.0 inch return. I was limited to the 23" height with or without the corner braces if I wanted rimless. The corner braces were added protection; namely if I ever wanted wave action. In hindsight, I believe the four 1.5 inch drains are overkill based on the fact that only a fraction of its capacity is being utilized. But, I believe this may be a reason why the tank is super quiet. It also allows for a much stronger return pump if needed in the future. Miracles was also very reasonably priced, and even after shipping was a fraction of other manufacturers pricing without shipping. Prior to my decision and after alot of reviews read, I did not come across any negative info regarding Miracles. At the time of ordering the tank with Miracles I learned they do not accept credit cards. No problem at the time as paypal was accepted. However, I experienced a problem with Paypal. They believed the purchase was a result of fraudulent activity and reversed the payment to Miracles. I had to wait five days until Paypal received the money from my bank before I was able to then reorder the tank. So LESSON LEARNED-Be aware that Miracles does not accept credit cards as this was not on their website and never mentioned. Also be aware that you may need to have the sufficient balance with Paypal. The problems that I experieced upon tank delivery is well documented in my thread. LESSON LEARNED-ensure that the movers use the glass suction cups. I dont believe the movers caused the scratches on the exterior surfaces but even if they did-it would have been impossible for the movers to cause scratches on the interior bottom pane. Do scratches there matter-no but there is no reason for it either-this was a new purchase costing thousands of dollars. Another testiment to Miracles excellent customer service-I was never questioned that it may have been the movers responsibility. Also, I believe its outstanding that Miracles sent two employees from Canada to Pennsylvania to fix the scratches-And they did, but there efforts were not able to correct the trapped gas dot at the surface and in fact they made its appearance worse by applying too much friction and heat and causing slight distortion. So, I was still left with the trapped gas dot and gained some glass distortion. LESSON LEARNED-Although trapped gas dots do occur in thicker glass, be aware of their existence and request that the tank be thoroughly inspected for any at the surface. (If they are at the surgface, they are visible from ten feet away). In the end, a settlement was reached with Miracles. Another LESSON LEARNED-Miracles recommends the construction foam between tank and stand. I had always thought that stuff was only needed under acrylic tanks. Again I believe Miracles should have provided this info. Its not even on their tank installation sheet. Anyway, 5 guys, four 10" suction cups, beer and pizza later corrected the problem and the plywood and foam was installed.
Now down to the DIY sump using a 125 gallon tank. My thread documents the wave action I was getting. LESSON LEARNED-The height of the baffles at drain side must be higher than the return side. Huh?, since when? Never heard that before. But for me, it corrected the problem.
Now to some equipment reviews-Dolphin Ampmaster 4750-Very Quiet and low heat but disaapointed in return flow at 9 feet head. According to charts provided on Marine Depot site, the 6250 provides much more flow at 9 feet (if I recall correctly the 4750 gives 30 gpm and 6250 gives 85 gpm) but the 6250 uses much much more power. Aquamaxx Cone 3 skimmer-I love this skimmer, best skimmer I ever used and very reasonably priced. Vertx Illumina SR260 led-I love this light but I find having to use the wireless thingy right next to the light a pia. You literally need to be standing next to the fixture with the laptop for it to receive a good signal. This aint me just complaining-it is recommended in the manual. I have not had any failures but have been reading alot of bad reviews on this product. Alot of customer support complaints also. I hope this was not an expensive mistake of a purchase, second choice would have been radions. Vortech MP40's-Just incredible, love them, worth the price. The battery back up was still working on hour #38 when I hooked up the generator. Miracle Mud-I am currently only using 30 pounds in an area of 24x17" which is under the recommended amount. I believe this is difficult to review. Is my caulerpa and chaeto growing-yes. Would they be with sand? I dont know. Has the miracle mud reduced the need for water changes? I dont know. My viewpooint is the benefits of using miracle mud is debateable but do not know of any disadvantages. So even though it is expensive, it is worth it for my system. Bulk Reef Supply Pukani Rock- This stuff is incredibly light. Love it. The BRS branching rock is very heavy with unique shapes. Empoeror Aquatics Smart HO UV Sterillizer 80 watt- This was just recently hooked up this week, too early for review. Flow is for parasites, not algae. I know many dont believe in its use. BRS Jumbo Reactors-one for carbon and one for GFO. I like quality of the reactors, the improvement of water clarity from the carbon and reduced phosphates from the GFO. I will certainly continue its use. Generac 8000 watt generator-On October 22, 2012 Hurricane Sandy knocked out power to my residence and the tank went without power (all except vortech battery back up) for 38 hours. I hooked up generator during hour #38 and it worked perfectly for several more days until power was restored. Although I have the generator now and I did not lose any livestock, I am still upset with myself that I did not have the generator since tank was born. LESSON LEARNED-Get generator for your tank.
Now onto my current stock-
Fish:34
Occelaris Clownfish, Black Occelaris(rescued), #3 Fancy Occelaris, #2 Six Line Wrasse(one rescued), Royal Gramma, #2 Blue Green Chromis, Lawnmower Bleny, Diamond Goby, Yellow Watchman Goby, Flame Hawkfish, #3 Yellow Tangs, Powder Blue Tang, Hippo Tang, #9 Bartletts Anthias, Male Blue Throat Triggerfish, Female Blue Throat Triggerfish, Desjardini Sailfin Tang(rescued), #2 Pajama Cardinalfish(rescued), Bicolor Bleny(rescued).
That makes 34 fish total. Others on my wish list include Pearly or Blue Spot Jawfish, Mandarin Goby (when tank is more mature) and possibly a Flame Angelfish (love this fish, they have such a bad reputation yet I see so many in reef tanks). I believe I am done with anymore large fish, maybe one more, i dont know. I think a Magnificent Foxface would be a nice adition.
Fish that died: 5
One Blue Green Chromis two days after purchase. Another Blue Green Chromis two days after purchase. Cleaner Wrasse two days after purchase. These were all separate events. Clown Tang 11 days after purchase(refunded by liveaquaria). One Bartletts Anthias went into hiding immediately upon addition and was never seen again. (refunded by liveaquaria).
CORALS: include War Coral, Favia, Gastrea, zoathids, pulsing zenia, gsp, green mushroom(rescued), Toadstool Leather(rescued), Finger Leather(rescued), Torch Coral, Anthilia (rescued),purple montipora, Lime Acro. Gonipora.
CLAMS
eresa(rescued).
INVERTS:Cleaner Shrimp, Nasauris snails, Turbo Snails, Queen Conch, Bristle Starfish(rescued).
Rescued means that they were obtained for free from a much neglected tank being broken down.
MY PLANS WITH CORALS: Keep in mind I love the way my rocks look and want to maintain the overall shape. The shape would be lost if filled with branching sps. Also, I love lps both encrusting and waving/branching. Also love zoanthids. So I plan on eventually covering my large rock structures on the left and the right with encrusting lps(war coral, lord acans) and zoanthids. This way, the shape of the rock will be maintained. I really like branching lps such as torch, frogspawn, hammer due to their movement and plan on having these in other areas.
FUTURE PLANS- I will soon be removing the miracle mud refugium from the 125 gallon sump and utilize this space for pure water volume and equipment. I will be connecting two 40 gallon breeder tanks to the 125. One of the 40's will be a LR refugium and one will be dedictated as the miracle mud refugium with an additional 10-20 pounds mud. This will make my miracle mud area 50% larger. I need to organize my fish room, and tidy up my elecrical cords. I need to invest in better testing equipment, either with higher end chemical reagents or digital. I am expecting my refractometer in the mail soon after I was shocked to learn my hydrometer was off by .05 Also looking to upgrade my photography equipment and skills; seriously considering the Nikon 1 V2.
MISCELLANEOUS-My tank recently had an outbreak of red cyano. This may very well have been a result of high phosphates due to being past due on changing my gfo. It may also have been a result of overfeeding (on purpose) as it was my understanding that Anthias require frequent feedings, especially in the beginning. It may also have been the result of a rather rapid increase in bioload back in November/December. I was orginally going to wait till today to get all my larger fish but the combination of great holiday sales and finding that gorgeous BT Trigger pair got the best of me. I used a combination of 72 hours of lights out in conjunction with a 48 hour treatment of Chemiclean. I am very happy with the results and I have my pink coralline covered rocks back. I followed up with a 20% water change but my skimmer is still not useable (extreme wet skim). I will need to follow up with another rinsing of the skimmer and another water change.
THANKYOU FOR READING. ANY ADVICE IS MUCH APPRECIATED.
HAPPY NEW YEAR. BE SAFE.
6 month update
Today, January 7, 2013 is the six month birthday of my tank being in operation. I would like to share with everyone the lessons I have learned, many of which I have already shared, but to recap in a more condensed version. Condensed, not shorter lol.
First off, selection of Miracles in Glass in Canada as the chosen custom tank manufacturer has very mixed emotions. Customer service, namely Derek was outstanding. Very informative in some aspects at least, friendly, and patient. He helped me decide on my 96x36x23 three sided starphire rimless with black background and two trapezoid internal overflows each containing two 1.5 inch drains and 1.0 inch return. I was limited to the 23" height with or without the corner braces if I wanted rimless. The corner braces were added protection; namely if I ever wanted wave action. In hindsight, I believe the four 1.5 inch drains are overkill based on the fact that only a fraction of its capacity is being utilized. But, I believe this may be a reason why the tank is super quiet. It also allows for a much stronger return pump if needed in the future. Miracles was also very reasonably priced, and even after shipping was a fraction of other manufacturers pricing without shipping. Prior to my decision and after alot of reviews read, I did not come across any negative info regarding Miracles. At the time of ordering the tank with Miracles I learned they do not accept credit cards. No problem at the time as paypal was accepted. However, I experienced a problem with Paypal. They believed the purchase was a result of fraudulent activity and reversed the payment to Miracles. I had to wait five days until Paypal received the money from my bank before I was able to then reorder the tank. So LESSON LEARNED-Be aware that Miracles does not accept credit cards as this was not on their website and never mentioned. Also be aware that you may need to have the sufficient balance with Paypal. The problems that I experieced upon tank delivery is well documented in my thread. LESSON LEARNED-ensure that the movers use the glass suction cups. I dont believe the movers caused the scratches on the exterior surfaces but even if they did-it would have been impossible for the movers to cause scratches on the interior bottom pane. Do scratches there matter-no but there is no reason for it either-this was a new purchase costing thousands of dollars. Another testiment to Miracles excellent customer service-I was never questioned that it may have been the movers responsibility. Also, I believe its outstanding that Miracles sent two employees from Canada to Pennsylvania to fix the scratches-And they did, but there efforts were not able to correct the trapped gas dot at the surface and in fact they made its appearance worse by applying too much friction and heat and causing slight distortion. So, I was still left with the trapped gas dot and gained some glass distortion. LESSON LEARNED-Although trapped gas dots do occur in thicker glass, be aware of their existence and request that the tank be thoroughly inspected for any at the surface. (If they are at the surgface, they are visible from ten feet away). In the end, a settlement was reached with Miracles. Another LESSON LEARNED-Miracles recommends the construction foam between tank and stand. I had always thought that stuff was only needed under acrylic tanks. Again I believe Miracles should have provided this info. Its not even on their tank installation sheet. Anyway, 5 guys, four 10" suction cups, beer and pizza later corrected the problem and the plywood and foam was installed.
Now down to the DIY sump using a 125 gallon tank. My thread documents the wave action I was getting. LESSON LEARNED-The height of the baffles at drain side must be higher than the return side. Huh?, since when? Never heard that before. But for me, it corrected the problem.
Now to some equipment reviews-Dolphin Ampmaster 4750-Very Quiet and low heat but disaapointed in return flow at 9 feet head. According to charts provided on Marine Depot site, the 6250 provides much more flow at 9 feet (if I recall correctly the 4750 gives 30 gpm and 6250 gives 85 gpm) but the 6250 uses much much more power. Aquamaxx Cone 3 skimmer-I love this skimmer, best skimmer I ever used and very reasonably priced. Vertx Illumina SR260 led-I love this light but I find having to use the wireless thingy right next to the light a pia. You literally need to be standing next to the fixture with the laptop for it to receive a good signal. This aint me just complaining-it is recommended in the manual. I have not had any failures but have been reading alot of bad reviews on this product. Alot of customer support complaints also. I hope this was not an expensive mistake of a purchase, second choice would have been radions. Vortech MP40's-Just incredible, love them, worth the price. The battery back up was still working on hour #38 when I hooked up the generator. Miracle Mud-I am currently only using 30 pounds in an area of 24x17" which is under the recommended amount. I believe this is difficult to review. Is my caulerpa and chaeto growing-yes. Would they be with sand? I dont know. Has the miracle mud reduced the need for water changes? I dont know. My viewpooint is the benefits of using miracle mud is debateable but do not know of any disadvantages. So even though it is expensive, it is worth it for my system. Bulk Reef Supply Pukani Rock- This stuff is incredibly light. Love it. The BRS branching rock is very heavy with unique shapes. Empoeror Aquatics Smart HO UV Sterillizer 80 watt- This was just recently hooked up this week, too early for review. Flow is for parasites, not algae. I know many dont believe in its use. BRS Jumbo Reactors-one for carbon and one for GFO. I like quality of the reactors, the improvement of water clarity from the carbon and reduced phosphates from the GFO. I will certainly continue its use. Generac 8000 watt generator-On October 22, 2012 Hurricane Sandy knocked out power to my residence and the tank went without power (all except vortech battery back up) for 38 hours. I hooked up generator during hour #38 and it worked perfectly for several more days until power was restored. Although I have the generator now and I did not lose any livestock, I am still upset with myself that I did not have the generator since tank was born. LESSON LEARNED-Get generator for your tank.
Now onto my current stock-
Fish:34
Occelaris Clownfish, Black Occelaris(rescued), #3 Fancy Occelaris, #2 Six Line Wrasse(one rescued), Royal Gramma, #2 Blue Green Chromis, Lawnmower Bleny, Diamond Goby, Yellow Watchman Goby, Flame Hawkfish, #3 Yellow Tangs, Powder Blue Tang, Hippo Tang, #9 Bartletts Anthias, Male Blue Throat Triggerfish, Female Blue Throat Triggerfish, Desjardini Sailfin Tang(rescued), #2 Pajama Cardinalfish(rescued), Bicolor Bleny(rescued).
That makes 34 fish total. Others on my wish list include Pearly or Blue Spot Jawfish, Mandarin Goby (when tank is more mature) and possibly a Flame Angelfish (love this fish, they have such a bad reputation yet I see so many in reef tanks). I believe I am done with anymore large fish, maybe one more, i dont know. I think a Magnificent Foxface would be a nice adition.
Fish that died: 5
One Blue Green Chromis two days after purchase. Another Blue Green Chromis two days after purchase. Cleaner Wrasse two days after purchase. These were all separate events. Clown Tang 11 days after purchase(refunded by liveaquaria). One Bartletts Anthias went into hiding immediately upon addition and was never seen again. (refunded by liveaquaria).
CORALS: include War Coral, Favia, Gastrea, zoathids, pulsing zenia, gsp, green mushroom(rescued), Toadstool Leather(rescued), Finger Leather(rescued), Torch Coral, Anthilia (rescued),purple montipora, Lime Acro. Gonipora.
CLAMS
eresa(rescued).INVERTS:Cleaner Shrimp, Nasauris snails, Turbo Snails, Queen Conch, Bristle Starfish(rescued).
Rescued means that they were obtained for free from a much neglected tank being broken down.
MY PLANS WITH CORALS: Keep in mind I love the way my rocks look and want to maintain the overall shape. The shape would be lost if filled with branching sps. Also, I love lps both encrusting and waving/branching. Also love zoanthids. So I plan on eventually covering my large rock structures on the left and the right with encrusting lps(war coral, lord acans) and zoanthids. This way, the shape of the rock will be maintained. I really like branching lps such as torch, frogspawn, hammer due to their movement and plan on having these in other areas.
FUTURE PLANS- I will soon be removing the miracle mud refugium from the 125 gallon sump and utilize this space for pure water volume and equipment. I will be connecting two 40 gallon breeder tanks to the 125. One of the 40's will be a LR refugium and one will be dedictated as the miracle mud refugium with an additional 10-20 pounds mud. This will make my miracle mud area 50% larger. I need to organize my fish room, and tidy up my elecrical cords. I need to invest in better testing equipment, either with higher end chemical reagents or digital. I am expecting my refractometer in the mail soon after I was shocked to learn my hydrometer was off by .05 Also looking to upgrade my photography equipment and skills; seriously considering the Nikon 1 V2.
MISCELLANEOUS-My tank recently had an outbreak of red cyano. This may very well have been a result of high phosphates due to being past due on changing my gfo. It may also have been a result of overfeeding (on purpose) as it was my understanding that Anthias require frequent feedings, especially in the beginning. It may also have been the result of a rather rapid increase in bioload back in November/December. I was orginally going to wait till today to get all my larger fish but the combination of great holiday sales and finding that gorgeous BT Trigger pair got the best of me. I used a combination of 72 hours of lights out in conjunction with a 48 hour treatment of Chemiclean. I am very happy with the results and I have my pink coralline covered rocks back. I followed up with a 20% water change but my skimmer is still not useable (extreme wet skim). I will need to follow up with another rinsing of the skimmer and another water change.
THANKYOU FOR READING. ANY ADVICE IS MUCH APPRECIATED.
HAPPY NEW YEAR. BE SAFE.
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