New reefer !!!

[northbay-reefer]

That bulb combination is going to give you very nice blue spectrum for your sps, and the fluorescent colors will also pop.

Now lets talk about your flow, what return pump are you using and which power head do you use for inside the tank and how many?

 

[marylee]

i am excited to get the lighting. hoping it with brighten up the tank and give the corals better color like you said .
i don't have a sump set up just the skimmer.
i had a friend that had a few salt water tanks and he recommended that i not set the sump up until i have saved up a bunch of $ to do it right . he told me it is really hard to get a set-up that actually WORKS in a conducive, quiet manner... w/o large or small spills, drips, salt-creep, or constantly doing repairs. I will be able to do that really soon in like 12 weeks

 

[shaneh]

haha i know the feeling of counting the paychecks till you can get this or that for the fish tank.....it's an addiction. You can always buy the bigger better in this hobby.

 

[northbay-reefer]

Sounds like you are well on your way.

 

[marylee]

i am excited my bulbs showed up

 

[northbay-reefer]

Yayyy me too, The color will be bluer than what you had but brighter, also if you got a bulb of the fiji purple, anything red will show up nicely too.

 

[marylee]

WOW ... IT LOOKS AMAZING !!!! WOW THANK YOU i feel like a deer in headlights in front of my tank ... cant look away! cant wait to get more corals

 

[northbay-reefer]

You are welcome, I am glad to see it works out for you. The tank is mesmerizing isn't it? ...LOL love to see pictures when you have them.

Before adding corals you will need to measure the parameter such as alk,cal, and mag ... make sure alk is about 7-8, cal 400-420, and mag about 1350 and have on hand something like a two part mix to add when the levels need adjusting. I would start with something easy like a montipora or a green slimmer if you want to keep sps. I am sure someone in the club would love to give you a piece to try out.

Now that you will be adding a lot of corals to your tank, please make sure to have a corals dipping routine so you don't end up with corals pests that can decimate your tank. Personally, I use povidone, interceptor, seachem dip, and/or melafix depending on the corals.

 

[marylee]

okay... so this is what my levels are at

ph-8.3 ammonia-0 nitrite-0 nitrate-0 temp-78 calcium-420
iodine-.06 phosphate-0 specific gravity- 1.024

i have not tested the alkalinity yet . i need to still get the alkalinity and magnesium test.
everything in the tank is stable. i have been doing water changes every 2 weeks and checking the levels 1x week. The few corals i have are doing good , they like the better lighting- for sure!!

 

[treesmoker]

ive got a couple nice starter sps corals for ya. green slimer (acro yongei) and montipora spongeodes. i'll bring em to the meeting next week.

 

[northbay-reefer]

okay... so this is what my levels are at

ph-8.3 ammonia-0 nitrite-0 nitrate-0 temp-78 calcium-420
iodine-.06 phosphate-0 specific gravity- 1.024

i have not tested the alkalinity yet . i need to still get the alkalinity and magnesium test.
everything in the tank is stable. i have been doing water changes every 2 weeks and checking the levels 1x week. The few corals i have are doing good , they like the better lighting- for sure!!

Your parameter looks good, once you get a good alk tester it will allow you to monitor your balance better. API and lamotte makes really good alk test kit.

 

[marylee]

thankyou- i look forward to the next meeting . i really enjoyed the first meeting i went to at jofish!