Kevan's 34g cube (Picture heavy)
- Thread starter kevantheman35
- Start date
kevantheman35
Member
thanks a lot! Stand took me quite a long time to build the way I wanted it
kevantheman35
Member
Impressions of the mp10 so far
Pros:
1. Its awesome to have multiple settings to play with. I played with making waves on short pulse mode before finally settling on lagoon mode at about 100%. What settings does everyone like to use?
2. It has much more sex appeal than my tunze pumps haha.
3. It is much less noticeable in the aquarium than other pumps and takes up a lot less room.
Cons:
1. It is way louder than any pump I have ever used when set anywhere near full power. I would rather g with an mp20 or 40 and set the power real low to minimize sound.
2. The dry side gets very hot and I am constantly messing with it afraid that the two sides are not perfectly aligned and the pump will overheat or break.
3. You have no choice but to have an ugly cord going across your tank as it is impossible to hide if you have the pump on the side of the tank.
Overall I like it a lot so far. I got a very good deal on the mp10, trading a tunze 6025 and a little cash for it, so I am not out too much if it does break on me. Plus I always have a tunze 6045 sitting around if I change my mind.
Pros:
1. Its awesome to have multiple settings to play with. I played with making waves on short pulse mode before finally settling on lagoon mode at about 100%. What settings does everyone like to use?
2. It has much more sex appeal than my tunze pumps haha.
3. It is much less noticeable in the aquarium than other pumps and takes up a lot less room.
Cons:
1. It is way louder than any pump I have ever used when set anywhere near full power. I would rather g with an mp20 or 40 and set the power real low to minimize sound.
2. The dry side gets very hot and I am constantly messing with it afraid that the two sides are not perfectly aligned and the pump will overheat or break.
3. You have no choice but to have an ugly cord going across your tank as it is impossible to hide if you have the pump on the side of the tank.
Overall I like it a lot so far. I got a very good deal on the mp10, trading a tunze 6025 and a little cash for it, so I am not out too much if it does break on me. Plus I always have a tunze 6045 sitting around if I change my mind.
kevantheman35
Member
Time for an update!
Since my last post I have installed brs dosing pumps for my 2 part which has been great. I am
still fighting hair algae problems, still barely feeding and using ridiculous amounts of GFO. I think I may finally be getting a handle on it and am planning on running bio pellets starting this week. I just replaced my bulb to make sure that wasn't the issue so bio pellets are my last resort. Other than that the Darwin clowns continue to grow and are getting along great, and I have added some new livestock.
New Livestock:
Tuxedo Urchin-This guy is the only invert I have ever owned that has actually destroyed algae. I am very happy with his performance and he looks awesome.
Lettuce Nudibranch- Enjoyed him for a few days before he disappeared into the rock, haven't spotted him in a few weeks.
New corals:
These guys are waiting to find a spot in my tank, The rasta frag went from a single polyp to 7 polyps in 2 weeks so I am extremely happy with it.
I've never seen a mushroom quite like this one I picked up from a local who was taking down his tank, it's extremely bright and pretty large.
FTS
Since my last post I have installed brs dosing pumps for my 2 part which has been great. I am
still fighting hair algae problems, still barely feeding and using ridiculous amounts of GFO. I think I may finally be getting a handle on it and am planning on running bio pellets starting this week. I just replaced my bulb to make sure that wasn't the issue so bio pellets are my last resort. Other than that the Darwin clowns continue to grow and are getting along great, and I have added some new livestock.
New Livestock:
Tuxedo Urchin-This guy is the only invert I have ever owned that has actually destroyed algae. I am very happy with his performance and he looks awesome.
Lettuce Nudibranch- Enjoyed him for a few days before he disappeared into the rock, haven't spotted him in a few weeks.
New corals:
These guys are waiting to find a spot in my tank, The rasta frag went from a single polyp to 7 polyps in 2 weeks so I am extremely happy with it.
I've never seen a mushroom quite like this one I picked up from a local who was taking down his tank, it's extremely bright and pretty large.
FTS
kevantheman35
Member
Alright time to kick some algae *** lol. Hooking everything up tonight, will keep updates on the progress.
kevantheman35
Member
Here's some other products I got in this week.
The Lifeguard thermometer is actually waterproof and suctions from the inside of the tank instead of having some kind of probe, Its real bright and easy to read. I'm a big fan except for the short power chord it has.
I am really enjoying the Hikari marine S pellet food so far. It is a really nice balanced food to supplement between frozen feedings and I feel like less food ends up going to waste like when I feed flakes.
The Dr. F&S cleaner spray claims that it is completely safe if it accidentally gets it the tank, which is reassuring, although it seems like it is a lot harder to buff out then the household window cleaners I have used in the past.
The Lifeguard thermometer is actually waterproof and suctions from the inside of the tank instead of having some kind of probe, Its real bright and easy to read. I'm a big fan except for the short power chord it has.
I am really enjoying the Hikari marine S pellet food so far. It is a really nice balanced food to supplement between frozen feedings and I feel like less food ends up going to waste like when I feed flakes.
The Dr. F&S cleaner spray claims that it is completely safe if it accidentally gets it the tank, which is reassuring, although it seems like it is a lot harder to buff out then the household window cleaners I have used in the past.
kevantheman35
Member
I feel like the solana is set up in a way that is extremely hard to keep algae away. I am still battling the algae and started my biopellet reactor last night, however the maxijet1200 was way under powered and barely moving the pellets so I have to figure something out. I like my skimmer and have tried many on this tank (stock, sapphire aquatics, Eshopps HOB). The only problem is that you have to keep the rear chamber extremely full for the intake to be underwater enough, and the level of the water changing just a little effects its performance. Thanks for the compliment if you have a build thread post the link, I would love to check it out!
calistyle
Active member
Sweet tank bro!
I'm having issues with algae as well. I've recently starting messing with peroxide (H202). It's not a solution to the problem, but rather a visual fix while I get it under control.
For me, I find 0 Nitrate or Phosphate, so something is consuming it like crazy...I added Mexican Turbos and 2 emerald crabs to help out w/ the CUC.
I'm having issues with algae as well. I've recently starting messing with peroxide (H202). It's not a solution to the problem, but rather a visual fix while I get it under control.
For me, I find 0 Nitrate or Phosphate, so something is consuming it like crazy...I added Mexican Turbos and 2 emerald crabs to help out w/ the CUC.
kevantheman35
Member
I get the same readings. I just figure there must be phosphates bound to my rock that aren't showing in my readings. So far the best cleaner I have found is my tuxedo urchin for the algae and my sea cucumber for the sand. I did a peroxide dip on a few large live rock pieces recently which seemed to help temporarily
kevantheman35
Member
Got some new sps in, pics coming!
kevantheman35
Member
Thanks guys, I will get a finished pic of it on here I realize I never posted one. I'm actually in the middle of creating a stained glass window pane for the front door.
kevantheman35
Member
Update
I purchased this green milli the other day from a lfs after noticing that an acro crab was calling it home. I wish I had a macro lense so I could snap a good pic, but he's pretty amazing to watch. I rescaped a little to fit this guy in, creating an island on the right side of the tank, and a few pillers going upward on the left to hold sps.
I also started my biopellets, as well as dosing mb7 this week and am waiting for them to start kicking in.
New product
I purchased a nice Hanna phosphate colorimeter this week off of craigslist (model HI 93713). I got a great deal and it came with 85 reagents, although expired haha. The first reading I got was .04 mq/l which was much lower then I had expected due to my hair algae problems I've been having.
FTS
I purchased this green milli the other day from a lfs after noticing that an acro crab was calling it home. I wish I had a macro lense so I could snap a good pic, but he's pretty amazing to watch. I rescaped a little to fit this guy in, creating an island on the right side of the tank, and a few pillers going upward on the left to hold sps.
I also started my biopellets, as well as dosing mb7 this week and am waiting for them to start kicking in.
New product
I purchased a nice Hanna phosphate colorimeter this week off of craigslist (model HI 93713). I got a great deal and it came with 85 reagents, although expired haha. The first reading I got was .04 mq/l which was much lower then I had expected due to my hair algae problems I've been having.
FTS
kevantheman35
Member
Thanks guys, I appreciate it
kevantheman35
Member
So I've never mentioned before that I work and am a member of the dive team at the Fort Wayne Children's zoo. Our zoo is rated in the top 10 in the country and were pretty proud of it. Here's a few crappy pictures of the 20,000g reef tank and 50,000g shark tank where I dive, clean, and do underwater question answer sessions.
kevantheman35
Member
Tested tonight and parameters show 0 nitrates and .04 Phos. I may finally be getting this algae thing under control!
