JBJ 28 Gallon Nano Owners Club

[acroholicreefer]

I have an idea but can someone explain what dosing pumps are and what they do? How do you use them? etc....
I understand kalk, supplement additions, etc...but are dosing pumps a way to add supplementals with your top off? I guess I just don't understand. I thought everything just came from a bottle when you need something. Please help.

Thanks

Dosing pumps allow for you to have consistent parameters without the need to manually dose. These are rated to dose less than ATO pumps. I have used BRS dosing pumps and a Liter Meter 3 in the past. IMO, the LM3 was much better quality but you pay for it. These should be used on a timer to prevent overdosing. I also use a ph monitor when dosing alk to just to take extra precaution.

ATO pump
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-top-off-doser-50-ml-per-minute.html

Dosing Pump
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-2-part-doser-1-1-ml-per-minute.html

 

[Gagonzalez]

OK........So it's bottle dosing at a very slow pace? And connected to a timer, you control how much gets dosed? Is this correct? Would this be an every day timer, every few days, once a week or you pretty much get the timer you need to do the job in the time span you want?

Does this mean you can get a controller to do this for you as well like a Reefkeeper Lite?

Thanks

 

[Gagonzalez]

So now that I am reading about Phosban and the recommended dose is 1 tablespoon per every 10g, is 4 tablespoons too much in the reactor? Should I be using 2 or 3 Tablespoons maybe? I do have chaeto as well so it's also sucking up Phosphates. I was basing my dosage on the BRS Calculator for GFO at 7 Tablespoons but maybe Phosban is more like GFO HC and should be around 2-3 Tablespoons?

 

[ange062]

Thanks! Are you using BRS dosing pumps? I have two of them left over from my other system and I am might need them down the road. There are some mechanical things that I am not crazy about with the TLF Kalk reactor. My other worry is that the kalk reactor isn't going to be able to keep up the Ca/Alk since the evaporation rate is low on the nano cube and the reactor is hooked up to the ATO. Only time will tell though.

Nope, I've got the Bubble Magus 3-way doser.

OK........So it's bottle dosing at a very slow pace? And connected to a timer, you control how much gets dosed? Is this correct? Would this be an every day timer, every few days, once a week or you pretty much get the timer you need to do the job in the time span you want?

Does this mean you can get a controller to do this for you as well like a Reefkeeper Lite?

Thanks

Depends on which type of dosing pump you use. Some are more "manually" controlled via a timer for set intervals (like the BRS pumps). Some are microcontroller based that allow you to dose set amounts in set intervals throughout the day. Ideally, the more frequent the better since it keeps the tank more stable. My pump doses 12x per day in small amounts.

So now that I am reading about Phosban and the recommended dose is 1 tablespoon per every 10g, is 4 tablespoons too much in the reactor? Should I be using 2 or 3 Tablespoons maybe? I do have chaeto as well so it's also sucking up Phosphates. I was basing my dosage on the BRS Calculator for GFO at 7 Tablespoons but maybe Phosban is more like GFO HC and should be around 2-3 Tablespoons?

Start small and ramp up. Rushing things is only going to hurt, so try starting with 2x and moving up. I've seen pretty well stocked tanks crash due to rushing their GFO or carbon dosing. Low flow is fine, you just want a slight tumbe on the surface of the media.

 

[Gagonzalez]

Ange,

My Reactor has replaced Chemi-Pure Elite and Purigen so there was a decent amount of Carbon and GFO already from that. I think the Carbon will be fine but I'm just worried about too much Phosban.

Is Phosban similar to GFO or GFO High Capacity?

Would it be ok to leave it for a few weeks and then I'll drop the Phosban down to 2 Tablespoons or should I do it now?

The only coral I have is an Alveopora so I think Coral wise I'll be fine.

Thanks

Ps - Is 20gph a good flow or should I increase?

 

[ange062]

Ange,

My Reactor has replaced Chemi-Pure Elite and Purigen so there was a decent amount of Carbon and GFO already from that. I think the Carbon will be fine but I'm just worried about too much Phosban.

Is Phosban similar to GFO or GFO High Capacity?

Would it be ok to leave it for a few weeks and then I'll drop the Phosban down to 2 Tablespoons or should I do it now?

The only coral I have is an Alveopora so I think Coral wise I'll be fine.

Thanks

Ps - Is 20gph a good flow or should I increase?

I replaced Purigen and Chemipure Elite when switching to the reactors and still bleached all my corals. Just start slow, trust me. That being said, if you don't have corals, then it probably doesn't matter.

Phosban is very similar to GFO, though a slightly different compound. Only difference between GFO and HC GFO from BRS is how fine the particles are.

No clue on actual flow rate since I don't use a gauge. You want the surface of the media to be slightly tumbling in the reactor. If it's rising up in the reactor or has a strong tumble, you are going to grind your media to dust that will get into your tank. Just a slight tumble is all you need.

I'd say go read up a little bit bud, plenty of info out there on the BRS website (videos to watch even) and reefkeeping . com has a ton of good articles on GFO, dosing, etc etc.

 

[Gagonzalez]

Thanks. I think I got it now. The flow looks like it is REALLY slow and I'm just not used to anything running that slow in this hobby but I got a slight tumble when not compacted and following BRS suggestions on mixed Carbon and GFO, packed tightly with the foam as suggested.

Thanks

 

[chrisryherd]

just got my AquaMaxx HOB-1 up and running. can any one tell me what the little O-ring is for. this thing is skimming faster than i can dump the cup. i have the cup almost all the way to the top. any suggestions. thanks in advanced ange062

 

[ange062]

just got my AquaMaxx HOB-1 up and running. can any one tell me what the little O-ring is for. this thing is skimming faster than i can dump the cup. i have the cup almost all the way to the top. any suggestions. thanks in advanced ange062

The oring contols the cup height, lower cup height = wetter skim, higher = drier. Since you have your cup high already, there is likely something funky in your tank. Set it all the way high, let it skim, then adjust once it stabilizes. Epoxy and all kinds of other junk are known to drive a skimmer crazy, it will settle down though.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2027481

 

[chrisryherd]

OK i know the bigger o-ring is for the cup height, but i have another one about the size of a quarter. also is there any thing/reason that you shut your skimmer of for, like feeding or dosing. Does it matter which tube i plug the silencer into, i have seen it both ways.

 

[WickedBlue28]

I had a hard time with the directions and trying to figure that out to. I believe it goes on that clear tube that connects the inlet pipe. I put mine just inside the blue plastic on the inside.

 

[chrisryherd]

Also I'm using the coralife 150 pro light, so i have an open top. for 35-50 dollars i can have a glass top made. Besides evaporation being insane, fish jumping, etc. can any one say rather i should have the top made or not. At this time i use evaporation cooling with fans. If i put a glass top on would it get to hot. ange062 are you still topless.

 

[justgeorge]

I've got the LED Intermediate hood and I want to add a little more light with 2 Stunner strips. There are so many colors available, is it just personal preference or do the different colors affect the coral growth?

 

[ange062]

OK i know the bigger o-ring is for the cup height, but i have another one about the size of a quarter. also is there any thing/reason that you shut your skimmer of for, like feeding or dosing. Does it matter which tube i plug the silencer into, i have seen it both ways.

I'm not honestly sure what the small oring is for, I don't use it on mine. I shut my skimmer off for an hour or so each day for broadcast dosing of AA's. I find that the silencer works better (i.e. is quieter) if the tube is connected to the shorter pipe.

Also I'm using the coralife 150 pro light, so i have an open top. for 35-50 dollars i can have a glass top made. Besides evaporation being insane, fish jumping, etc. can any one say rather i should have the top made or not. At this time i use evaporation cooling with fans. If i put a glass top on would it get to hot. ange062 are you still topless.

Yes, I run topless. I looked into making a glass lid, but there were a lot of drawbacks to doing so (condensation, bowing, etc). I've had a couple of fish jump though.

I've got the LED Intermediate hood and I want to add a little more light with 2 Stunner strips. There are so many colors available, is it just personal preference or do the different colors affect the coral growth?

I've seen some articles saying that the color of the light can affect the color pigments in the corals, but it's minimal. Spectrum typically comes down to personal preference IMO.

 

[limpert]

This is how i currently have my 28g NC pro rear chambers setup:

I'm wondering if anyone can offer advice.. I bought this setup used and I'm considering removing the black foam that i've marked green and replacing it with eggcrate or something that will hold back the macro algae and yet not trap detritus. How do other's filter their AIOs?

I'm keeping LPS corals. Other considerations i've made are removing the skimmer and just running the fuge in the back - the skimmer is relatively loud and bulky... Plus its a pain having to keep the water level constant for the skimmer and topping off with some amount of salt to keep my salinity stable

 

[Jackd1987]

just got my AquaMaxx HOB-1 up and running. can any one tell me what the little O-ring is for. this thing is skimming faster than i can dump the cup. i have the cup almost all the way to the top. any suggestions. thanks in advanced ange062

This is why mine did when new too.

I did a few decent water changes and made sure I kept some fresh carbon in and it calmed down after about 2 weeks.

During this time I only ran it when I was home to monitor it and make sure it wasn't spilling into the floor. I also put a tube from the elbow back into the skimmer because I gave up trying to empty it.


The only place I could guess to put the smaller ring was on the input tube to keep that from moving too much.

 

[Gagonzalez]

I think Jackd1987 is correct that the small o-ring is on the input tube. I believe it goes on the inside tubing so that it doesn't rattle against the plexi. When installed, you'll notice that the tubing on the outside doesn't touch the plexi because it is about 1/16" or so pushed away.

 

[xunknownx]

i finally got the tank going and cycling. thanks to everyone who helped me answer questions. i just put live rocks in there last night and everything is clearing up. salinity is at 1.025, have not tested anything else yet.

about 28 pounds of live rock, some bali alor, some tonga, some figi, and some man made rocks.

 

[xunknownx]

just tested my water
looks to me like a PH of 8.1? mt RKL says 7.85
ammonia appears to be between 0.5 to 1.0
Nitrite at 5.0
Nitrate appears to be at 80 PPM

i just added live rocks last night but i had live sand in there for 2 weeks now. this is the first time i've tested my water. i'm guessing i shouldnt worry too much about it right now?

 

[chad p]

Nope. Sounds like you're in the middle of a cycle. Did you calibrate the pH probe on the RKL? If so I'd definitely trust that over your test kit. Although I wouldn't even bother testing pH at this stage anyways. An RKL package is definitely going to be on my Christmas list this year for my next build.

Do you have a power head in there for circulation?

Also, anyone think that sandbed might be thick enough to cause problems down the road? I honestly don't know but it looks fairly deep.