zoo tank updates

Tank seemed to have a fair amount of xenia as well. Would be nice to get some other zoanthid colonies going there as well for some color for the bottom of the tank.
 
We've been getting some reef tank overflows such that water occasionally flows out of the top of the tank until the water empties sufficient to break the siphon. I'm not sure why this is happening but possibly crabs or snails are clogging one of the dursos. If that is the case one possible fix is to place some eggcrate over the overflows. I will not have any time until Friday. Doies anyone have any time to quickly cut up a couple of small pieces of eggcrate to fit on the overflows. I have some eggcrate floating around if needed.

Saturday is the frag swap. If anyone can meet Sunday morning, it would be good to see if we can pull off the dursos and see if they need cleaning. At some point soon, we should dissasemble all the plumbing for a good vinegar soak since there has no doubt being quite a bit of calcification.
 
I'm sorry, Sunday is the frag swap. So perhaps some folks could meet Saturday at the zoo. I can be available any time that is convenient to folks.
 
We have been seeing symptoms of this problem for a while now... water level fluctuating and getting high. I'm not sure what the real problem is, IE clogging etc of the overflows, but on one of my last visits, I had dialed the return back a bit and that seemed to steady the water level. If that has been re-opened fully, that is probably partially the reason for the recent overflows. Also, I think our overflows need to be lowered, so that the air intake is below the tank rim. Then when the water level gets too high, the air intake will get filled with water and creates a siphon, stopping potential overflows. Neither of the above are fixes for the root problem however.
In any case, overflowing water cant be good, as it's removing salt and we are replacing it with kalk, which can also cause more issues. I think the return should get dialed back furhter if necessary until we can address the issue.
 
Also, I have found that when dripping kalk for topoff, you still need to add carbonate. Although kalk is balanced in it's composition, the usage is not balanced, and I need to add carbonate everytime I refill my top-off.
 
Great input Adam. Any chance you can come to the zoo Frideay afternoon or some time Saturday? Nate and Vince, your input will be critical as well. We'll need to pull the dursos and see whats happening.

I instructed the zoo to stop kalk input as soon as the problem is identified which happened again last night. They are making up more saltwater and will refill the sump and I instructed them to only run the sump during the day while they can keep an eye on it. For whatever reason, all the ovgerflows are occuring at night, perhaps because thats when inverts are most active. Who knows.
 
In my experiences intermittent floods over the rim of the tank are always caused by a snail or crab in the stand pipe. None of the fittings in the overflow are cemented so it should be relatively easy to pull the plumbing for the drain out of the overflow and inspect it for critters. To keep them out in the future I would recommend using some light diffuser. Or if you want to be really slick you could try to rig up one of these…

http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merc...een=PROD&Product_Code=BH15-STR&Category_Code=
 
Nate, I and I think Adam once tried to pull the standpipes off and couldn't. I was scared to force it too much for fear of breaking a bulkhead so I will need your legendary forearm strength (I won't ask how you acvhieved that:)) I will order bulkhead strainers at my next order but for now I'll bring in some eggcrate light diffuser. Please let me know when you can meet me at the zoo or call me this evening if you can.
 
Nate: Is that the 1.5" bulkhead strainer? I will order that if correct. I will also try Boyds chemi-clean as a non antibiotic red slime remedy. Howevger to use that we need an air pump and preferrably a wood airstone. Does any have one to spare for a bit? Or I can order one.
 
I think I have an airstone and a pump. I'll check when I get home...I am pretty sure I have a good air pump (Tom Aqua) and the wood airstones (I also have the airline).
 
Nate and I went to the zoo today to correct the overflow problem. As we suspected, a large turbo snail had been wedged inside one of the standpipes. After removing him, Nate fashioned nice overflow screens out of eggcrate. This should prevent future recurrences. After removing the standpipes, we neglected to check the bulkheads and the zoo called us informing us of a leak. Nate was kind enough to head back to the zoo to batten down the hatches so a big thanks to Nate.
While at the zoo, we discovered a couple of unplugged items, a dead t-5 lamp, and one of the ice cap digital timers was malfunctioning. It is therefore possible that the lights were not functioning properly for some time without being noticed or we were not informed. These and other issues could have been helping maintain the cyano issues. Ipropose that we create some training meetings with the keepers to help them better undertsand additional aspects of reef care and to improve coordination/communication to make for better tank maintenance and fewer problems.
On a more positive note, I placed in some more sps and the ones already there look fairly good for the most part. The zoo was extremely crowded and it is very apparent that our displays are a major attraction.
I will be at the zoo tomorrow morning to place a low tech timer and to work on the seahorse tank. I anticipate being there about 9:30.
Frank dropped off a pump, airstone and tubing so when I get the Chemi-clean I can treat the zoo tank for cyano without resorting to antibiotics. I will also utilize Pnhosbuster Pro to eradicate phosphates. I can't wait to eradicate the cyano!! Of course the trick will be to keep it from returning.
 
nice, i was up in New york city a while ago, and of course had to go to the new york aquarium. there was another aquarium other people were telling me about that was better, but only had time for this one. was nice but not as great as i thought it would be, just looked like maintenance issues that they should of kept up with. would love to have more places like that to visit when i get up there again. yeah keep the pics coming!! good job guys!!
 
Back
Top