Pete's 280 log
- Thread starter psteeleb
- Start date
- Status
psteeleb
Team RC
I may try the same mix next week and see if I get the same result. It was the first time I ever saw the Cyphastrea Decadia do that, and I had no idea it could until it did. The other coral does that occasionally as do others. I'm thinking it may have been reacting to Coralvite but I dosed about 5 things once a week at the same times so it could be any of them or some combination of.
thanks I like the green purple shade it has and I'm serious when I say I think it likes Tang poop
and sorry I spelt that wrong it's a Pocillopora
Last edited:
psteeleb
Team RC
ARRRG - for those wondering why I was killing Rics; something bulldozed my new Oregon Blue tort frag out of it's place and it rolled over on to one of the last two Ric’s on that rock. It was stung and died on about 1/3 of its body. Fortunately, it does not appear to be STN/RTN. I’ll post some pictures later
psteeleb
Team RC
I fired up the new Lumateks this morning; visually they are a little brighter and whiter then the older Hamiltons.
I took a couple pictures to get a comparison but after loading them on my pc I noticed I the pictures have a lot of glare, so they are not the best. In order to get a good side-by-side comparison I think I would need to retake this picture at night with a backdrop behind the tank. Regardless; this is all I have for now.
The top picture has the Hamilton left and Lumatek Right, and the lower picture is reversed with the Hamilton in on the right, Lumatek on the left
I took a couple pictures to get a comparison but after loading them on my pc I noticed I the pictures have a lot of glare, so they are not the best. In order to get a good side-by-side comparison I think I would need to retake this picture at night with a backdrop behind the tank. Regardless; this is all I have for now.
The top picture has the Hamilton left and Lumatek Right, and the lower picture is reversed with the Hamilton in on the right, Lumatek on the left
macreefster
New member
great thread... awesome tank! thanks for all the idea's and inspiration. you sure have my mind spinning with ideas for my new tank. thanks again for sharing.
psteeleb
Team RC
Thanks - it nice to hear that. I have learned so much from members here and at DFWMAS, mostly just by reading threads and some asking of questions. I like looking at people’s ideas or concepts and then working them into my setup. Especially things that fix a specific problem but also the things that improve the habitat for the fish and corals or make the life easier on the wallet or time spent during maintenance.
Granted, it’s always nice to show off or look at some of the great looking stuff we can keep in tanks, and I probably spend 75% of my time on the forums doing just that. But I really appreciate the items that people post that create ‘ideas’.
psteeleb
Team RC
Thanks Chris - I want to get a better set of pictures (without the background light) to show the full effect, but I’m not sure when I can get to do it. In the meantime, I’m glad you are able to detect the difference between the ballasts. The other ballasts are at least three years old and probably older. I picked them up used a local fish store so I really don’t have the history on them. I do like the blue that the Hamiltons put out but I would think that this whiter / brighter light has to be better for the corals. That aside, the real reason I changed these out is to try and cut back on some electrical usage. If I can get hold of one of those kill-o-watts, I’ll do some comparisons and post the results. I’d really like to get PAR readings as well so people can see the electrical usage and light output comparisons, but pictures may have to suffice.
psteeleb
Team RC
Marc (melev) brought his Kill-o-watt over last night so I could get some readings on my new and old ballasts. he also gave me some good suggestions for coral layout and some mechanical improvements.
The older model Hamilton ran steady after 5 minutes of warm up at 307 watts. The Lumatek ran at 272 watts, so just about a 10% less energy use. I was a little disapointed as I was hoping for something aroun 20-25%. But they run much cooler and I sure that adds to costs savings someplace.
So to sum up the ballasts change out
Hamiltons
Pros
- nice blue light using the reflux 12k bulb
Cons
- tend to hum on start up and hum sum while runnign but not as much.
- higher wattage use at 307
- light not as bright to the eye (not tested)
- run hot to the touch
Lumatek
Pros
- quiet, no noticable sound
- brigher & whiter light using the Reflux 12ks (visual, not tested)
- run a lot cooler
- smaller and lighter weight
- priced very competitive
- 272 watts -about 10% lower wattage then the Hammiltons
Cons-
- lost some blue
- not as much energy savings as advertised or expected
The older model Hamilton ran steady after 5 minutes of warm up at 307 watts. The Lumatek ran at 272 watts, so just about a 10% less energy use. I was a little disapointed as I was hoping for something aroun 20-25%. But they run much cooler and I sure that adds to costs savings someplace.
So to sum up the ballasts change out
Hamiltons
Pros
- nice blue light using the reflux 12k bulb
Cons
- tend to hum on start up and hum sum while runnign but not as much.
- higher wattage use at 307
- light not as bright to the eye (not tested)
- run hot to the touch
Lumatek
Pros
- quiet, no noticable sound
- brigher & whiter light using the Reflux 12ks (visual, not tested)
- run a lot cooler
- smaller and lighter weight
- priced very competitive
- 272 watts -about 10% lower wattage then the Hammiltons
Cons-
- lost some blue
- not as much energy savings as advertised or expected
psteeleb
Team RC
Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2008 7:18 am Post subject:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I should add I also tested the chiller, ouch, 950+/- watts.
I picked up some 'tubs blue zoas' last night at the DFWMAS monthly meeting from another member (WeMa) and floated the bag in my 29g. Doing the test and going over a bunch of stuff with Marc I totally forgot about them until about 12:30 when I was about to go to bed. They were temperature acclimated but nothing else so I did a quick water mix and released them into the tank about 30 minutes later in hopes they would be okay the next day (or later that day)
Booom flash 3:15, the house or something near by gets hit by lightning, power is out. It was like fireworks outside. The first waking moment I thought something blew up in the bedroom and would find broken glass all over the floor, so it had to be real close. I get up, no power, but the neighbors across the street has his lights on, hmm. I head to the garage and the breakers are all on. So I hook up my battery powered air pumps and go back to bed.
Morning comes, still now power. I hooked up a inverter to my truck and plug in the 4 koralias for some circulation. We called the power company and they are there and have power back on around 11:00. The fusable link above the step down transformer blew. The service technician said the lightning probably hit the poll and blew the fuse. He replaced it and powers back on but I'm thinnking I need to get my backup systems automated and in place as I've been putting it off for some time now.
I get back inside and check some of the higher end electronics and find my PC, the Cable modem and the main power supply unit for the Verison (cable, phone internet) are all fried. My wife's and sons' PC's are both fine as are the TV ond other electronics. Looks like I get a new PC
We also lost some shingles off the roof and had a tree blow over onto our fence and the yards a mess. Looks like I'll be busy this weekend. The good news is everyone is fine (family fish, corals, dogs etc)
I check on the Tubs as I'm heading out the door to work, they looked fine and started to open some
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I should add I also tested the chiller, ouch, 950+/- watts.
I picked up some 'tubs blue zoas' last night at the DFWMAS monthly meeting from another member (WeMa) and floated the bag in my 29g. Doing the test and going over a bunch of stuff with Marc I totally forgot about them until about 12:30 when I was about to go to bed. They were temperature acclimated but nothing else so I did a quick water mix and released them into the tank about 30 minutes later in hopes they would be okay the next day (or later that day)
Booom flash 3:15, the house or something near by gets hit by lightning, power is out. It was like fireworks outside. The first waking moment I thought something blew up in the bedroom and would find broken glass all over the floor, so it had to be real close. I get up, no power, but the neighbors across the street has his lights on, hmm. I head to the garage and the breakers are all on. So I hook up my battery powered air pumps and go back to bed.
Morning comes, still now power. I hooked up a inverter to my truck and plug in the 4 koralias for some circulation. We called the power company and they are there and have power back on around 11:00. The fusable link above the step down transformer blew. The service technician said the lightning probably hit the poll and blew the fuse. He replaced it and powers back on but I'm thinnking I need to get my backup systems automated and in place as I've been putting it off for some time now.
I get back inside and check some of the higher end electronics and find my PC, the Cable modem and the main power supply unit for the Verison (cable, phone internet) are all fried. My wife's and sons' PC's are both fine as are the TV ond other electronics. Looks like I get a new PC
We also lost some shingles off the roof and had a tree blow over onto our fence and the yards a mess. Looks like I'll be busy this weekend. The good news is everyone is fine (family fish, corals, dogs etc)
I check on the Tubs as I'm heading out the door to work, they looked fine and started to open some
- Status
