rigleautomotive's Tank Pics Thread

REEF SMAC said:
That is really awesome and really is some recognition so well deserved. Congrats! :thumbsup:
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Thanks man,I really was a bit numb to all the attention after the RC TOTM in Dec 2010 and then again with another forum ROTM a few months back but seeing it in real print in a magazine really go me stoked.Thanks for the comments.Many of you have been inspiration to me as well
 
Congrats on getting recognized on such a popular reef keeping magazine. What really caught my attention was the fact that once a year you remove everything to clean up behind the rocks and such. Post pics next time you do this, please. Congrats on an awesome job. You bring a new meaning to the word obsessed. A big thanks for sharing.
 
Thanks for the kind comments
The yearly clean out gets done in three weekly water changes with a 1/3 portion of the rock being removed each week.A 50 gallon water change is done at this time.1/3 of the bottom gets cleaned to the glass each week until the whole bottom is done.I remove pest corals(zoos etc) and invasive corals from the colonies and areas and frag any corals that have overgrown there space at this time also.
 
Congrats Dan, great write up! It sounds like you have a coral quarantine set-up that is very similiar to your DT. Do you have same lighting - water change schedule, etc on the quarantine system?
 
Fantastic article for sure! Congrats! Can I ask you what vho bulbs your burning? Time for me to replace mine and I never liked the purple color they give off.

BTW.....I used to live in Selinsgrove, Pa until several years ago.
 
veloboy said:
Congrats Dan, great write up! It sounds like you have a coral quarantine set-up that is very similiar to your DT. Do you have same lighting - water change schedule, etc on the quarantine system?
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Thanks.Yes the Q tank in the basement has Radiums but no actinics and it also uses a ETSS skimmer,and basically the same regimen I follow in the DT

chrislPa said:
Fantastic article for sure! Congrats! Can I ask you what vho bulbs your burning? Time for me to replace mine and I never liked the purple color they give off.

BTW.....I used to live in Selinsgrove, Pa until several years ago.
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Thank you.Yes Selinsgrove is a beautiful part of the state and about 1 hour by car from me.I use UVL VHO Super Actinics driven by a Ice cap Ballast.IMO,nothing provides this type of actinic supplementation and spectrum.T 5 lamps come close with a few of there attempts at actinic lamps but my corals color best with the old school super actinics made by UVL
 
Dan. Congrats on the write up. My frags that I got from u are doing awesome. Had a little issue this summer and my tank temp shot up to 85 to 87 for a few days. I have it now running 75 to 78. What temp do u run your tank at? I have read that high temps do not affect coral that much but I beg to differ. I lost color and pe on most of my sps.
Thanks mark
 
Congratulations on your success. You and your tank are a great inspiration. Thanks for sharing, It helps to see what CAN be achieved when I'm still TRYING to achieve.
 
tripdad said:
Congratulations on your success. You and your tank are a great inspiration. Thanks for sharing, It helps to see what CAN be achieved when I'm still TRYING to achieve.
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Thank you

Mark 75g said:
Dan. Congrats on the write up. My frags that I got from u are doing awesome. Had a little issue this summer and my tank temp shot up to 85 to 87 for a few days. I have it now running 75 to 78. What temp do u run your tank at? I have read that high temps do not affect coral that much but I beg to differ. I lost color and pe on most of my sps.
Thanks mark
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Temps that swing more then 2 to 3 degrees in one day or numbers below 77 or above 81 seem to have negative effects on stoney corals kept in captivity.Temps are always reported to have great impact on coral reefs in the science world as this is one of the major causes of coral mortality and disease in the natural environment.This being said,I believe the temp should be kept very stable and as close to 79 as possible.
 
Hi

I was reading the article on the last page and it says you keep your phosphate around .05-0.8, I was just wondering what level you keep your nitrate at?

Ive personally been keeping phos and nitrate both at 0 the last couple of years but recently raised them both slightly and am seeing much more robust healthier sps.
 
Acronic said:
great article Dan, you must be so proud! keep it up and reef on :)
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Thanks bud.I am proud,not so much with getting my story in print,but getting my mission out there for more to see.I live for trying to prevent wild corals from being over harvested.I have tried to help people with propagation and the idea of buying only captive grown animals for years and the recognition is a nice push for this.Thank you

maestro said:
Hi

I was reading the article on the last page and it says you keep your phosphate around .05-0.8, I was just wondering what level you keep your nitrate at?

Ive personally been keeping phos and nitrate both at 0 the last couple of years but recently raised them both slightly and am seeing much more robust healthier sps.
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Yes,zero PO4 is not what I aim for.I can easily achieve zero with all the products now available for nutrient removal but have found out the hard way that corals need measurable PO4 and NO3 to grow and look there best.If you are accurately measuring this low range parameter and you are experiencing pastel colors and slow growth,the PO4 and NO3 may be the limiting factor.I measure PO4 with a color meter and I am satisfied my unit is accurate(as I have verified the readings with a independent lab) so I can fine tune the PO4 to the .05 ppm range as this is where my corals look the best and grow the fastest with natural formation and skeletal strength.Faster growth can be realized with a slightly higher PO4 but the skeleton of the stoney corals will be weak and break easily when higher PO4 numbers are kept long term.Chris Jury was doing a study on this a while back but I do not know if it is published as of yet.His findings were similar IMO to what I see and measure in my case.

NO3 is usually less then .5 ppm but I never measure this.The lab I use occasionally for verification reports these #s on average
 
many thanks for the reply, appreciate it

I read this study recently which also shows your findings you have to ignore the title of the study(no idea why they chose that title), what it actually shows if you read it is that low phosphate levels induce bleaching.

http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate1661.html

They raised phosphate levels to 0.04 (from memory) as well 0.4 nitrate and bleaching didnt occur as it did under lower nutrient levels
 
Just finished this whole thread! Absolutly an inspiration. I have been keeping a few sps for a while with decent luck so far. After reading all of this you have giving me so much new knowledge for keeping these beautiful sticks. And reasured me I'm actualy doing some things right. I hope my small tank can thrive as your has. Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge with others so we can hope to be half as successful as you are.
 
Dan what do you use to raise phosphate? I see some dicussion but no ones says what they are using. Your tank and frags are amazing.
Mike
 
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