Putting together my "future" 75 AGA RR (progress)

That's great! You're doing wonderful and off to a better start than almost everyone here on Reef Central ever got to do. The only fall back is the skimmer. it should be producing skimmate like crazy during the cycle.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9591330#post9591330 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Travis L. Stevens
That's great! You're doing wonderful and off to a better start than almost everyone here on Reef Central ever got to do. The only fall back is the skimmer. it should be producing skimmate like crazy during the cycle.
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Hi Travis, and thank you. :)
You should see me sitting by the tank (almost non-stop) all day (and night). I don't know how long the break-in period is for the Octopus. I did run it through vinegar water twice, hoping to cut that period shorter. I've been reading through endless pages of the Octopus thread. It takes a few days for some people, and some weeks for others. :eek:

Every day the skimmer seems to be pushing the "gunky" stuff closer and closer to the collection cup. I have the level raised as high as it can go, too.

I know, I know - I MUST be patient. :)

---
Wendy
 
Just as a few pointers, make sure that the inlet to the pump of the skimmer is as close to the exit of your drain line as possible. If you can plumb your drain line directly in your skimmer, do so. Keep your hands out of the tank as much as possible, and watch what you feed and any additives that you might put in. These can cause bubble production to stop. Make sure that you leave the skimmer alone so it can buildup the bacteria and sludge on the inside to get the skimmate up and over in the collection cup. I've never heard of running your skimmer through vinegar water to "break it in". In fact, that does the opposite. Vinegar water will clean it out, and then you'll have to let the natural processes take place all over again. Hope this helps some. For a lot more information on skimmers, check here:

Protein Skimmer Production/Improvements
Skimming Principles
Skimming vs. macro algae harvesting?
 
:sad2: Oh boy. I swear I read to run it through vinegar to get rid of manufacturer's residues. :(

I can get the outlet of where the water enters the sump closer to the pump of the skimmer if that will help. Right now the pump and the outlet are about 4" away from each other.

Now I'm bummed. :(

---
Wendy
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9591661#post9591661 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JerseyWendy
:sad2: Oh boy. I swear I read to run it through vinegar to get rid of manufacturer's residues. :(
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Well, that's good with any equipment, but it doesn't break it in ;)

I can get the outlet of where the water enters the sump closer to the pump of the skimmer if that will help. Right now the pump and the outlet are about 4" away from each other.
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That would help you out a lot more in the long run.

Now I'm bummed. :(
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Don't be bummed. You live and you learn. It could still be a few more days before it really cranks into gear anyways. Since you're cycling, just sit back and look for critters. Keeping your hands out of your tank will work wonders. Plus there really isn't much you can do with your hands in your tank that will really benefit you at the moment ;)
 
Looking awesome, Wendy. Don't worry about the skimmer, I have a NW150 on a 75, and it took almost a month before it started pulling dark skimmate. If you haven't already, do the gate valve mod, it makes it SO much easier to adjust the level of the bubbles.
 
Travis, thank again. For everything! I will keep my hands out of the water from now on - I like the arrangement of the rock, so no need to play with anything in there.

Please keep your fingers crossed that I find some kind of life.

Electic Force, thank you so much. I haven't done the gate valve mod yet, but now I'm considering it. Thanks for the heads up. :)

---
Wendy
 
I'm sure that you will get some kind of life. So.... Who wants to take bets on the first thing she will notice? Copepods? Amphipods? Isopods? Stomatella Snails? Aiptasia?
 
Don't feel bad. When I first skim over it, I think Electric or Eccentric :) I have to do a double take sometimes to make sure it is who I think it is.
 
Ah - it's one of those days, Travis. When I started dropping things this morning I should have known to be careful for the rest of the day. :)

You are so encouraging! Thank you for that, I needed that. You know, ever since adding the sand we find it completely rearranged the next morning. I mean all day long I look, gaze, watch, observe, search for things, and nothing really moves out of place. Then the next morning I'm puzzled to find the sandbed shifted quite a bit - and in a strange arrangement, too. :eek2:

Please don't laugh, I even use a magnifying glass and flashlight to peek at things. :rolleye1:

---
Wendy
 
The sand movement is most likely from the Koralias. I was looking at your pictures earlier for just that, actually. :lmao: Don't worry about sitting with a magnifying glass and a flashlight. Most reefers do that too. Want to know what will make it worse? If you really get bit by the reef bug, be ready to spend $750+ for a rockin' DSLR camera, and if you are truly hopelessly addicted (like me), you'll be ready to drop another $250+ for a Dissection Microscope ;)
 
wendy. The tank looks great. Aquascaping is very nice. Geez. How much will it cost to bring you over to my place in Az? Everything looks awsome. How hard was it to lay down the sand all around the rock? (especially the back)
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9593642#post9593642 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sgallagher7
wendy. The tank looks great. Aquascaping is very nice. Geez. How much will it cost to bring you over to my place in Az? Everything looks awsome. How hard was it to lay down the sand all around the rock? (especially the back)
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Thanks a bunch, sgallagher. :) Believe it or not, I would LOVE to come to AZ just to go spider/tarantula hunting. :D

Laying the sand around the rock actually wasn't too bad. I used a medium-sized plastic bowl which I slowly dipped into the water until it had filled up with water. Then I turned it upside down. Of course sand still went everywhere, but once it had settled I used the powerheads to blow the excess off the rocks.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9594315#post9594315 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by barngeatbayman
Wendy beautiful tank!!!! Did you get your live rock locally? I live in Howell as well.
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Hi barngeatbayman, and thank you. :) I got the rock in Medford from Seatrademarine. It's only 1 hour away and definitely worth the trip. Unbelievable prices and incredible pieces. If you need more info please feel free to PM me. :)

Here is a picture of the setup with the canopy on. I figured once I pop the canopy on, it'll be really hard to unnecessarily put my hands in the water. :D

BackgroundCanopy2.jpg


BackgroundCanopy1.jpg


---
Wendy
 
Wendy,

Everything really is looking good - congrats. I've been following your progress from the beginning. And it's so nice to hear somebody else admit to doing the things I did. But I didn't have the guts to tell everybody. I thought I had all these big dark secret mistakes that I did. It's nice to hear that I'm just a normal reefer like everybody else. I've only been doing this for a little over a year now and I still sit by my tank and look for hours on end. My little critters are still coming out - the ones that I didn't know that I had. It's amazing to me how they get in there and stay hidden for soooo long. Anyway your doing great, keep up the work and the learning curve will shorten. The patience is the hardest part for me still.

SaltyNovice
 
Thank you SaltyNovice and Tom. :)

I spent many hours last night in front of the setup, with a flashlight and a magnifying glass. Didn't see anything crawl, but I was still mesmerized.

Tom, I'm actually shocked how much it cleared up. And....my skimmer has collected some gunk. :D

The readings from this morning were:
Temp: 79
Salinity: 1.025
Ammonia: still off chart
Nitrite: 1.0
Nitrate: 20
Alkalinity: 150ppm

Should I do another water change or leave it be for a few days? :confused:

---
Wendy
 
Wow. I am truely amazed by how good things look, so quickly. Thanks for the sand tip. BTW, june through sept. is great scorpion, tarantula hunting time.
 
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