Tank of the Month - April '06

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7263101#post7263101 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by E-A-G-L-E-S
thats so cool he hasn't eaten any sps!
i tried an emporer and he started eating a couple of mine within a week so he had to go....but now that i've set up my new 210g i want try another angel?

what type calcium reactor?

MRC Ca reactor, Matt.
Sorry for the delayed reply!

 

[dendro982]

Great job! Just wondering: the tank is with corals at the top, how are doing water changes - are corals exposed to the air? Thanks.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7400746#post7400746 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dendro982
Great job! Just wondering: the tank is with corals at the top, how are doing water changes - are corals exposed to the air? Thanks.

Thanks... and great question!
My water changes are done downstairs in the sump area. My sump is a 75 gallon aquarium that I keep half full, so there's roughly 35 gallons in it while the system is up and running.
To do a water change I run my skimmer extremely "wet". The water level in the sump drops as I skim out old water and the water level in the main display aquarium remains the same. (This is an often overlooked reason to attach a sump to an aquarium.)
To make disposing of skimmate easier I plumbed a drain line from the skimmer collection cup to the washbasin in the basement of our home. Skimmate automatically gets directed into the washbasin 24/7.

Corals in my aquarium are rarely (if ever) exposed to the air.
If I shut my pumps off and let the system drain the water level in the main display aquarium drops less than 2".
IME Acropora experiencing a (brief) exposure to air are stressed but not fatally harmed.

 

[Skipper]

Hey dendro. Corals being exposed to air is not a bad thing. In fact, it occurs regularly in the wild among corals located close to shore. Take a look at this article, beginning with the third paragraph downward:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-11/eb/index.php

 

[dendro982]

Thanks for the information, most helpful! In all my readings this function of the sump wasn't mentioned. Very interesting.

 

[OrionN]

A little late, but great tank Gary. Congratulation

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Thanks and good morning, Minh.
It means a lot coming from you.

 

[Ray Decareau]

Thorite & cinder blocks

Thorite & cinder blocks

First of all your tank is tight, very very nice!!
I had a question about the Thorite and Cinder blocks, I want to re-aquascape my reef using them, is it ok to use on an existing year old system ?

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

Thanks for the compliment. I definitely would not recommend placing dirty cinder blocks or uncured Thorite in an established system full of sensitive fishes and invertebrates.
I suppose that if you rinse the cinder block thouroughly and let the Thorite fully cure before placing any of it in your system you might be alright.
The ideal thing to do is set the block in place and use the Thorite to aquascape rock over it before adding water, fishes and inverts. Good luck with your project, Ray.

 

[taflaw]

I am late with the congratulations as well...Very nice reef!!! Question: Do your mimic (Acanthurus pyroferus) and convict (Acanthurus sandvicensis) tangs get along well or is this not a good match to mix these types of Acanthurus tangs together in the same system? Your mimic and convict tangs look great. I have a mimic tang and would like to add a convict tang as well but was concerned they might not be compatible. They would be placed in a 180 gallon reef w/ 125 gallon sump.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

My A. pyroferus was added after the Convict and was an immature fish upon introduction. Neither ever had issues with the other. You might have problems introducing a Convict into an aquarium with an established Chocolate Mimic Tang- Convicts are passive and should be added first.

 

[taflaw]

Thanks for the information, Gary. I currently have the mimic tang in a 90 gallon system, and this fish is still small, but is the most aggressive fish in the system. I recently upgraded to a 180g system, but have not moved everything over yet. I am thinking now is the time to add a convict tang to the 180g first, then move my mimic tang over a few days later. Finding a local fish shop that has convict tangs in stock is another matter (IE, I never see them offerd for sale locally). Thanks for the tips. Your convict tang looks great!!! I was able to take some really nice pictures of convicts tangs in the wild from a snorkel & dive trip to Hawaii. I attached a picture for you below. Again congratulations on Tank of the Months honors and thanks for taking the time to answer my questions.

 

[mikey3165]

hey i just wanted to kno where you lived in NY cuz i am from new york also.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9797816#post9797816 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikey3165
hey i just wanted to kno where you lived in NY cuz i am from new york also.

Hi, Mikey.
I live on the "north coast of NY state"- up by Lake Ontario near the city of Rochester.