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Skipper
08/05/2003, 08:08 PM
This month we are featuring MUCHO REEF'S beautiful and meticulously maintained 9 year old soft coral tank:

<center>http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/totm/images/fullSM.jpg (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/totm/index.htm)</center>

More details can be found here (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/totm/index.htm) or by clicking on the picture above.

Congratulations, MUCHO REEF!

TippyToeX
08/05/2003, 08:50 PM
The colors in that tank is just outstanding. http://**********************/cwm/cwm/rain.gif

Congratulations and a well deserved TOTM!!

JB NY
08/05/2003, 08:55 PM
Beautiful tank! Congratulations :celeb1:

jersey
08/05/2003, 09:04 PM
Wow. Great looking tank.

aprincex2
08/05/2003, 09:13 PM
Congratulations!!! A spectacular tank! The colors are amazing.

Paul-sn
08/05/2003, 09:32 PM
Simply stunning!
Definitely one of my personal favorites. Not only is it beautiful, but it's unique. Different from the norm/SPS dominated tank!
Awesome!

rbaker
08/05/2003, 09:53 PM
Congratulations! You have a very beautiful tank!! A very well deserved TOTM...

Regards,

Ryan

Scotsman
08/05/2003, 10:29 PM
What a tank. I can't believe you only feed the fish once per week. So much for "this fish must be fed 2 or 3 times per day"!!!!!:lol:
How do you keep the sand so clean, especially against the glass in the front?

Makes you wanna have a "Coke and a smile" huh:spin3:

frustrated
08/05/2003, 10:50 PM
WOW. I think this may be my dream tank.

Mako
08/05/2003, 10:51 PM
:thumbsup: Sweet!

Project Reef
08/05/2003, 11:03 PM
You know I was looking for a picture of this tank to add to the Best of the Best reef tank thread but couldn't find it. This is a very great tank and easy on the electricity bill as well. Great job Mucho.

Skipper
08/05/2003, 11:05 PM
PR: try this one.... :D

<img src="http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/totm/images/Dsc03248.jpg">

usagolf
08/06/2003, 06:20 AM
Great Job Mucho! I told you that you could win. I have seen this tank in person and I can say that this tank looks ten times better in real life, if you can believe it. This couldn't have happened to a nicer reefer.

JPerkins
08/06/2003, 08:33 AM
That's what I want my tank to look like when it grows up. :p

Nice job Mucho.

dc
08/06/2003, 08:52 AM
Absolutely beautiful!! :)

boogs
08/06/2003, 09:25 AM
One of the most attractive tanks i have ever seen...great job!!!

Scott

cdgrover
08/06/2003, 10:52 AM
Great looking tank! Most people like myself switch over to a SPS dominated tank for more color. Well you have defied everyone by having mucho colors in your mucho reef. That tank is spectacular. I would love to see it in person, even the pictures are relaxing!
Long way of saying. . . BEAUTIFUL TANK!!!

Typhon
08/06/2003, 10:55 AM
That is awsome looking tank!!!!!!!!!!:eek2: :eek1:

Well deserved!!! MUCHO!!!!

I am going to Reefkeeping.com to view the details now!!!!

Bayliner
08/06/2003, 11:09 AM
Absolutely stunning....
Congratulations...you deserve it....

Cam

bkwudzjeep
08/06/2003, 11:39 AM
All I can say is WOW!! It looks great!! I just keep thinkin, "One day".
And thats all I can say......

.....for now.:)

jimmy007
08/06/2003, 11:48 AM
Congratulations.... well deserve. Love the coloration of the tank.

Jimmy

D5HP
08/06/2003, 11:51 AM
HOLY CRAP!

dodofish
08/06/2003, 12:20 PM
Great looking reef with wild colors. Congrats!

fish_taste_good
08/06/2003, 12:48 PM
Great tank mang!

penguin87
08/06/2003, 01:33 PM
you have stopped my wish to be able to afford and wire metal halides, i can't believe how beutiful those zoos and rics are!

Leviathan
08/06/2003, 01:37 PM
Outstanding,

A nice change of pace, and a well deserved TOTM.

gaydec
08/06/2003, 01:46 PM
AWESOME

tag007
08/06/2003, 01:57 PM
230 watts of Compact Flourescent Light, 10% water change every 2 weeks, barely any skimming. Excellent...

JonK
08/06/2003, 02:42 PM
SWEET!! Great job. :thumbsup:

SawCJack00
08/06/2003, 02:48 PM
Awesome, incredible, simply amazing! I love your tank. Congrats!!!

toddflash
08/06/2003, 02:55 PM
Very nice tank! :D

invincible569
08/06/2003, 03:05 PM
Look at the beautiful colors!! oh man that is nice! Very clean too! I love clean and organized tanks! You did a great job! Whats next??

Deb Colella
08/06/2003, 03:23 PM
This is, by far, one of the most beautiful tanks that I've seen posted since I've been coming here.

Congrats on TOTM. You deserve it! You are an inspiration to the rest of us that keep softies!!!!!

smiller
08/06/2003, 03:46 PM
:eek2: FANTASTIC!:eek1:

Xanareef
08/06/2003, 03:56 PM
All I can say is Wow.

When my tank grows up I want it to be just like Mucho's.

Wow again.

Alexis

Lil' Reefette
08/06/2003, 03:57 PM
WOW! Great tank. I love the colors.

The Aquarist
08/06/2003, 04:21 PM
That's one serious piece of amazing! Very impressive!

TWO thumbs up! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

Elmo18
08/06/2003, 04:52 PM
ooooo AHHH oooooohhh supah schnazzzy tank!!

Awesome colors !

- Elmo :)

rmendis
08/06/2003, 06:08 PM
That is one awesome looking tank!! :eek2:
Why is it so hard to find zoos like that at an LFS?

The Aquarist
08/06/2003, 06:10 PM
I just went to the website and followed through the specifics. Very interesting techniques and there's no denying the results. That's a phenomenal looking and very successful reef tank.

If I could recommend one small piece of advice that (In my personal opinion) would be the only way to make any kind of improvement on this tank .... please feed that Hippo Tang. I can't get a sense of how thin the Clownfish is, but there is one pic of the Hippo that shows a very thin fish.

He's looking very emaciated from what I can see. It saddens me to see a fish that thin. I can see the outline of the internal organs! That isn't thriving, that's barely staying alive.

Even a small amount of thawed frozen spinach (Tangs need vegetation) daily would help to put some meat on it's bones and wouldn't load the tank with proteins. 5 or 6 Mysis shrimp at least every other day would be nice too. That is a large fish by nature and denying its growth contradicts what reef/aquarium keeping is all about.

Otherwise, trading it in for a Blue Damsel would be good.

Sorry to be the only one with less than a totally impressed comment, but besides that, I'm very seriously impressed.

Uran
08/06/2003, 06:45 PM
Simply stunning, a kalidascope of colour. You should be very happy with what you have made there man.
:D

MUCHO REEF
08/06/2003, 06:56 PM
Just wanted to say hello and thank you for all of the kind words on the tank. I wasn't going to respond for a week or so because I didn't want to come off as vain or something. I don't know, that's just me. But I had to respond right away regarding the comment on my STARVING my Blue Tang. Wow..............hey, I just wanted to share my tank with everyone, that's all. (The Aquarist), I don't think we have met before or spoken online here at Reef Central, but any and everyone who knows me will tell you that no one is more informed on what they have in their reef and no one is more caring of what they have in their reef than me. I thank you for the previous comments, but the later one was off base. In my 9 years as a reefer, I would never do something as immoral or unethical as starving anything. The Blue Tang is 3 inches long or so. I've had it for about 4 months now. This fish is as fat as my index finger. He eats the Cyclop-EEz and Spraydried Marine PhytoPlankton mixers when I feed the corals, he is feed the flake foods, Mysis, brine and 4 other rotations of Algae based foods. And finally he grazes on pieces of algae on the reef all day long. If you are referring to the picture just below the Squamosa clam, what you are seeing is the light from above reflecting off of its body. That fish is as healthy as I am. If he had been starved after 4 months, he would be dead by now. To say that I have allowed the fish to become "emaciated", well, that was a mean dagger. It's the worst thing anyone has ever said to me regarding my reefkeeping in all of my years. An email to me asking about it would have been more appropriate.

No harm done though. Maybe it was just a misunderstanding that could have been handled differently. Thanks again everyone and my apologies for the long response with my thank you.

Safe reefing everyone.

Sylock
08/06/2003, 07:02 PM
Mucho
I've seen your zoo's at frag swaps and thought they were great, but I tell you the pictures there are just ... dang :). There's a few specific zoo's there I'll have to message you about for the next swap :lol:

All,
Mucho is as nice as his tank looks. There's no way he'd 'starve' any critter that he takes care of.

MUCHO REEF
08/06/2003, 07:04 PM
Thanks Sy.

ReefBum
08/06/2003, 07:22 PM
Outstanding!!!! Job well done:eek1: :eek2:

Visit my website.....http://www.reefbum.com
http://mysite.verizon.net/berkell/jan1503pic15RB_small.jpg

JazzMan
08/06/2003, 07:26 PM
Now thats a Tank!!!!!!! :eek: :eek: :D

Joey French
08/06/2003, 07:39 PM
Your tank is a serious inspiration, very refreshing.
Congratulations, very well deserved.
Joey

BruceP
08/06/2003, 07:49 PM
Originally posted by Scotsman
What a tank. I can't believe you only feed the fish once per week. So much for "this fish must be fed 2 or 3 times per day"!!!!!:lol:
How do you keep the sand so clean, especially against the glass in the front?

Makes you wanna have a "Coke and a smile" huh:spin3:

Mucho,

I would like to know your secret as well for keeping the sand soooo clean against the front glass. I am so disappointed in the way my tank looks because of the crud on the sand against the glass. Thanks.

MUCHO REEF
08/06/2003, 07:59 PM
Hi Abbey, on Saturday mornings just after the water test, I run a dull butter knife along the glass and the sand. It loosens the crud on the glass. The Nassurias snails also help when they turn over some sand in spots. The power heads also help move a few grains of sand during the day. What isn't turned, I use my butter knife on those Saturday mornings just to move the sand ever so slightly as to not disturb the sand bed.


Mooch

coralite
08/06/2003, 08:08 PM
Hallelujiah!!! Wow, that is a super nice arrangement of softies. An inspiration of extended intensive collecting for special corals.

I am not worthy :jester:
I am not worthy :jester:

The Aquarist
08/06/2003, 10:13 PM
Originally posted by MUCHO REEF
But I had to respond right away regarding the comment on my STARVING my Blue Tang. Wow..............hey, I just wanted to share my tank with everyone, that's all. (The Aquarist), I don't think we have met before or spoken online here at Reef Central, but any and everyone who knows me will tell you that no one is more informed on what they have in their reef and no one is more caring of what they have in their reef than me. I thank you for the previous comments, but the later one was off base. In my 9 years as a reefer, I would never do something as immoral or unethical as starving anything. The Blue Tang is 3 inches long or so. I've had it for about 4 months now. This fish is as fat as my index finger. He eats the Cyclop-EEz and Spraydried Marine PhytoPlankton mixers when I feed the corals, he is feed the flake foods, Mysis, brine and 4 other rotations of Algae based foods. And finally he grazes on pieces of algae on the reef all day long. If you are referring to the picture just below the Squamosa clam, what you are seeing is the light from above reflecting off of its body. That fish is as healthy as I am. If he had been starved after 4 months, he would be dead by now. To say that I have allowed the fish to become "emaciated", well, that was a mean dagger. It's the worst thing anyone has ever said to me regarding my reefkeeping in all of my years. An email to me asking about it would have been more appropriate.

No harm done though. Maybe it was just a misunderstanding that could have been handled differently. Thanks again everyone and my apologies for the long response with my thank you.

Safe reefing everyone.

Mucho Reef!

I am definitely sorry for the comments if that fish is full bodied. You clearly maintain the tank and coral extremely well. That aquarium is an excellent example of what can be accomplished.

As I stated, I was going by my impression of what I read and saw on your website, which really is no substitute for seeing it for real and getting an accurate impression of how full bodied that fish really is. All I had to go by is how it looks in that one photo with what must be light reflecting off it and from the light feeding amounts you list on your website.

I have stood in front of amazing reef tanks with very emaciated Hippo Tangs before and I was always told "They find their own food! I hardly put any food in!" and I could clearly see that the fish was starving, had no chance of growing or living its full lifespan. It's always a Hippo or Yellow Tang for some reason too. That's a misguided way to keep nutrient levels down, In My Opinion and I get a little stressed when I see that (Or think I see that!).

After having seen that in person a few times, I always question the light feeding plan of anyone with a super thin fish and many Tangs are pretty thin to begin with. So that's what happened here. I thought I was seeing something I wasn't.

The purpose of Reef Central is to help other aquarists and their tank inhabitants and learn from them as well. I thought I was trying to help a hungry fish get fed! I'll always try, but my help was not needed here!

If the light is what I am seeing and you tell me the fish is healthy and full bodied then I have to believe you and again, I'm sorry for bringing down well deserved complimentary theme of your thread. I just go for it if I have something to offer someone else, .... obviously ..... even if they don't need my help! Congratulations on Tank of the month! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

gooberz
08/06/2003, 10:56 PM
Congrats man!! Your tank is beautiful and you deserve it! Your hard work is certainly paying off!!

Henry

:celeb1: :celeb1: :celeb1: :celeb1: :celeb1:

IrishStout
08/07/2003, 12:17 AM
Absoltutely Stunning!!! I am in the midst of setting a tank with the same array of corals and all I want to know is.... Where can I get some frags :)

matt_rogers
08/07/2003, 12:53 AM
Less than 4 watts per gallon and a Skilter!

Brains over brawn - MUCHO REEF YOU RULE!!!!

Thanks RC, this is my favorite Tank Of The Month BY FAR!!!!

:cool: :cool: :cool:

Zepplin
08/07/2003, 01:23 AM
Congratulations Mucho (Jerome)!

Dan and I were pleasantly surprised to see you're beautiful tank featured as Tank of the Month. I'm glad you broke the "tank stuffed full of SPS" trend that been going on in the tank of the month spot for awhile now.

Dan and I had the privilege of meeting Mucho at a recent Michigan swap, and he is very knowledgeable; not to mention nice.

By the way Mucho, the zoos we acquired from you are stunning (especially those pinks)! Dan and I were very giddy when we spotted a certain brain on the bottom right of your full tank shot.

Congratulations Mucho, you deserve it!

:celeb2: :celeb2: :celeb2: :celeb2: :celeb2:

-Meg and Dan :)

melev
08/07/2003, 01:50 AM
Congratulations on TOTM! :thumbsup:

I have a question for you about the zoos. Do you worry about them spreading too much on your rockwork? I ask because I have four different strains at this point, and keep them on the substrate for now so that #1) I can frag them to others, and #2) so they don't take over the tank.

You know how GSP, mushrooms, and Xenia can be called weeds by many because they are so hard to control? Well, I was worried I might unleash a zoo-fever in my tank and it end up harming other corals like my Colt or get into a chemical war with my SPS.

Do they firmly plant themselves on rock where it is impossible to remove them?

Your tank is absolutely gorgeous, and your photography skills are excellent. I enjoyed all the pictures featured in the TOTM article. It seemed like more photos than usual and it was worth it.

I remember a TOTM a few months ago where Zoos were encrusted over an entire powerhead and I wondered how it could ever be cleaned to keep it running... so I've been cautious with the ones I have. What do you suggest?

sps si
08/07/2003, 04:04 AM
fantastic tank - well deserved. :thumbsup:

really nice colours..

Chris19sa
08/07/2003, 05:10 AM
NICE TANK!!:eek: :eek:

scubadude
08/07/2003, 09:04 AM
Gorgeous tank Mucho....great pick for TOTM Skipp!

wayne_sreef
08/07/2003, 09:56 AM
:celeb3: Congratulation Mucho, you are the man. :thumbsup:
I thought I have bought all the zoo frags you had. Man was I wrong. Looks like better save more money for the next swap. See you in two weeks.

drdrew
08/07/2003, 10:56 AM
wow. i agree with everyone. .. one of the nicest by far!

Grouper Dog
08/07/2003, 11:56 AM
Certainly one of the nicest and unique reef tanks that I have seen, keep up the good work.

blackjacks_mom
08/07/2003, 12:12 PM
Wow, beautiful ricordeas. Great looking tank. Congratulations on TOTM! Very well deserving.

I vote for it to be Tank of the YEAR!

Amphiprionclarkii
08/07/2003, 12:24 PM
WOW! Your tank is simply amazing! I'm definitely going to convert my tank into a soft coral tank after seeing yours. Your tank is an inspiration to me, especially the fact that you use a Skilter just like me!

Thank you for maintaining such a beautiful tank and sharing it with us, and congrats on TOTM.

3_high_low
08/07/2003, 01:12 PM
Very nice Muchoreef! I hope you keep it going, it would be a shame to take it down in favor of an SPS tank.:thumbsup:

john76
08/07/2003, 04:04 PM
Stunning tank.....

What brand of PC's are you using?

Thanks, John

Steve175
08/07/2003, 04:38 PM
Simply AWESOME!!! My only complaint is that my wife may see this and use it as proof that I HAVE been spending too much money on equipment!! Thanks for sharing your secrets with us. Steve.

MUCHO REEF
08/07/2003, 05:12 PM
Wow, .....I mean, .......I don't know what else to say but,...... thanks you guys. I hope I can find a wife as a result of all this, LOL, LOL.

I must say, this tank needs more light. It has just gotten out of hand with growth. I have to move some pieces around from time to time to give some of the corals more light. The new tank is coming in a few month or so. I want to upgrade to a 120 gallon or a 180 Starphire tank ASAP.

JOHN76 , I use 2 - 65 watt super blue PC's , you can get them at www.petsupplyliquidators.com . They are stunningly blue.

Melev, I'll send you an email with an answer to your questions. It is rather long and I didn't want to clog up this thread with it.

I will say this, the PC's affords this system a good color spray. It does however limited the amount of growth, which is good for me. I don't want this system to get out of hand with an over growth of zoos. Even with the PC's some of my zoos are still growing faster than I want them to in this system. This is why I go over the entire tank every Saturday morning and do some pruning if I have to, but not always. I then secure those pieces to rock s as frags. I had some long stem pinks in there last year and I had to remove everyone of them. I went from 20 pink polyps to over 100 in about 6 weeks. They grew like crazy and I could not control the over growth.

Good luck my friend.

melev
08/07/2003, 05:45 PM
Thank you in advance for the email. I've got a couple of frags I mounted on Tonga Branch that I hoped would spread to look like a bridge at one point. My green ones are what I would consider quick growers in my PC lit tank, but slower in my VHO tank.

It really is a beautiful tank, and your photography of the inhabitants is excellent. Do you turn off circulation for shots? Are you using a tripod?

Starfire can only make it better! :D

MUCHO REEF
08/07/2003, 06:54 PM
Thanks Mel, yes I turned off the circulation for the top down shots. The front shots I left everything going. I used a tripod for the full tank shots and I pressed the lens against the glass for the others.

coyoteseven
08/07/2003, 08:54 PM
:inlove: One word... ... ... BEAUTIFUL!!! :inlove:

coyoteseven
08/07/2003, 09:00 PM
Sitting here looking at my 45g, with a 4" DSB and three cocktail shrimp, I can only dream that my tank will be half as beautiful as yours someday.

Great job and a well deserved award! :thumbsup:

MUCHO REEF
08/07/2003, 09:13 PM
CORRECTION that is www.petsupplyliquidator.com , there is no ( S ) at the end, my mistake.

MtnDewMan
08/07/2003, 09:52 PM
This is a beautiful tank. Well Done and well deserved !!!!




------------------
MDM
http://www.thepsas.org/images/7-26-03_psas_banner.jpg (http://www.thepsas.org/phpbb2/)

cvye
08/08/2003, 09:35 AM
it's soooo relaxing to look at

Alberio
08/08/2003, 11:24 AM
1. It's nice to see a non-SPS tank win once in a while.

2. Mucho is one of the nicest guys you'll ever want to meet. Great job MUCHO, you deserve it.

3. My Zoos used to live in a RC tank of the month!

Mmaggicc2
08/08/2003, 12:26 PM
As someone who recently upgraded to PC lighting I am truly inspired ! Thanks MUCHO, great job !

Canter292
08/08/2003, 01:22 PM
Beautiful tank!

Dev Goddess
08/08/2003, 05:36 PM
Oh, the colors! The rock! The aquascaping!

I'm so jealous!!! :lolspin:

cnz
08/08/2003, 10:18 PM
Awesome job. It's nice to see someone suceed without the lastest greatest toys. Just keeping it simple and clean. I hop you don't mind I stole a pic of your tank to use as wallpaper onmy desktop;)

pepsiDX20
08/09/2003, 12:05 AM
That is one beautiful tank. Very nice job.
How much live rock would you say you have in there?

My tank has kinda been neglected since we moved into our new house. But dam, seeing yours makes me want to jump right back in there. Right now its just live rock n some fish, since the couple mushrooms n so died after the move.

Once again great tank!:D

RNagil
08/09/2003, 11:03 AM
I am in total amazement on your accomplishments. Your TOTM award is well deserved. Especially with the setup you are running. Keep up the good work and I look forward to you winning again with the new tank. :thumbsup:

big bubba
08/09/2003, 01:01 PM
oh yeah! thats it.

wingsfan
08/09/2003, 09:06 PM
mucho is a very good friend of ours at http://www.michiganreefers.com/forum/sitenews.asp
you don't have to be from michigan to enjoy our site, feel free to browse and offer you comments and questions, we are always looking for new people to visit and offer their advice, welcome everybody.

The Aquarist
08/09/2003, 09:26 PM
Originally posted by wingsfan
mucho is a very good friend of ours at http://www.michiganreefers.com/forum/sitenews.asp
you don't have to be from michigan to enjoy our site, feel free to browse and offer you comments and questions, we are always looking for new people to visit and offer their advice,

Oh yeah! that worked out really well last time!:D :eek2:

Mucho deserves the compliments though.:thumbsup:

grallster
08/10/2003, 01:10 AM
Where in Michigan do you guys swap frags at?

bigtank
08/10/2003, 05:30 AM
What an outstanding tank! Living proof that huge halides and megaskimmers aren't the only way to do business. The lighting scheme looks beautiful, will have to remember that company.
:beer:

wingsfan
08/10/2003, 09:36 PM
we have swaps at differant places, usually at someone home, the last one was in Belleville I believe, then there is gonna be another one in September, check out the site, it tells about the swaps there, there is usully alot of frags and alot of other things also. If yu are close enough, i think it would be worth the trip.

grallster
08/11/2003, 01:00 AM
Thanks, I live in Northern Indiana so it might be possible

::PixelFish::
08/11/2003, 11:16 AM
This is one of the most beautiful tanks I've ever seen. Congrats Mucho! Just goes to show you can keep things simple and relatively inexspensive(as far as equipment and lighting goes) and still have a great looking, thriving reef.

JonF
08/11/2003, 03:17 PM
Hi Mucho - Great tank. Congrats. Just wondering what is that red stuff on the left hand side of the "V" in your tank towards the bottom (eg where the two rock formations come together)? Looks like a sponge or mushrooms or something. Nice color.

Thanks,

Jon

musicsmaker
08/11/2003, 08:41 PM
Mucho, I think this is a well deserved TOTM. I'm also glad to see a tank that is not SPS dominated win this. We share a love my friend. We share a love of zoa's. I have been interested in zoanthids since before I owned any corals at all. Congrats once again.

reef120
08/12/2003, 11:19 PM
How or what is the process that is taken to choose the tank of the month. There are thousands of members who and how are these tanks choosen????

melev
08/12/2003, 11:48 PM
Originally posted by reef120
How or what is the process that is taken to choose the tank of the month. There are thousands of members who and how are these tanks choosen????

Usually it is determined by the hottest avatar. You should be pulling to the head of the list, with every jiggle n bounce! :lol:

CrystalAZ
08/15/2003, 08:15 PM
WOW!

This is what *I* want!

To have a tank like yours is my goal.

Congrats on being chosen as TOTM.

Crystal

clamrade
08/16/2003, 02:19 PM
CONGRATULATIONS! That is an awesome collection. Keep up the good work!

Dz99ls
08/16/2003, 03:07 PM
congrats awsome tank!:D

jayinc
08/17/2003, 10:27 PM
What an incredible tank Mucho, congratulations! Like everyone else has said, it really is so great to see a tank full of softies get some real recogition. I hope someday my tank can be as beautiful as yours.

Jay

ps--your equipment (or lack there of) and routine of turning out all the lights for the day were both inspiring and amusing. Thanks again for sharing!

Capt.Dave
08/18/2003, 12:57 PM
I enjoyed reading your tank description and methods. Your exacting regiment stands out throughout your description. Being extremely disciplined as you seem to be about maintenance, must be one the keys to your great success.

Amazing work!

Dave

Kingofthejungle
08/18/2003, 02:28 PM
Very nice!

ILove2Ride
08/18/2003, 03:35 PM
WoW! That is an amazing tank, congrats!

Anemonebuff
08/19/2003, 12:15 AM
Great tank, I love the BTA.

JAYDEE
08/19/2003, 12:02 PM
:eek1: ...WOW! Nice tank!

stereomandan
08/19/2003, 01:09 PM
Way to go!! Sorry I've been away from the board for a while, but wanted to say this couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy.

Absolutely stunning!

Dan

charliebetta
08/19/2003, 02:26 PM
Muchoreef,

I was kind of depressed when I started getting into this hobby, knowing that I would never be able to afford the kind of lighting and equipment it took to grow "nice" corals....

My friend told me that with my current tank and lighting, I'd be able to do shrooms and some ricorida. I thought "well, that will be cool, I *guess*, it's better than nothing..."

How PSYCHED was I to see your tank of softies! I will *never* desire to own an SPS tank now, your tank is a true inspiration to all newbies (and judging from the comments, to all experts too).

Thanks so much for sharing it with everyone! :D

posjr
08/19/2003, 02:28 PM
congrats!!!!!!

djfrankie
08/20/2003, 10:46 PM
Congrats on your tank!

It seems you have found "the balance"

djfrankie

hock51
08/20/2003, 11:03 PM
I am a softie lover myself, what an incredible diplay of colors.

pete_ra
08/21/2003, 01:40 PM
how do u keep your sand so clean, i always have hermits, algae and fallen roock on mine.

Capt.Dave
08/21/2003, 02:33 PM
To expand on Pete's question a little bit, is at the same sand bed you've used for nine years? Or if you could give us a little history on your substrate. Also, the grain size of the sand in your pictures looks to be on the course side, something larger then sugar sized grains and smaller than crushed coral could tell you exactly what product was used.

Thanks in advance,
-Dave

MUCHO REEF
08/21/2003, 06:14 PM
Thank you all once again for the kind words. My apologies for not responding sooner.

PepsiDX20, there is about 125 lb or so of live rock in this system. I use to keep track of it but I have taken away and added so many pieces that I simply lost track.

John F, those are Flame Red Discosoma Mushrooms. I'll try and shot a pic and show you. They are electric in color. I consider them common and readily available on line or at your LPS. The problem with getting them is that they get snatched up real quick before most people get to see them.

Pete_re, I do all of my testing on Saturday mornings and I clean the glass and kinda move any sand back into place that has been distrubed too much. I just try to keep it natural looking. I use a butter knife to get down between the front glass and the sand to just clean the glass below the sand level. I also use the knife to slightly turn over a 1/4 " of the sand to make it look fresh and white when it becomes disclored as all tanks do. The wavemaker that drives the powerheads kinda creates the wave affect across the front glass.

Capt. Dave, same sand bed, just added an inch or two more at the beginning of this year. It is larger than sugar size, about the size of BB's.

Hey thanks again everyone, take care.

Mooch

malx
08/22/2003, 01:30 AM
All I have to say is.. wow!

Mucho where do you live I want to see this thing in person!

Capt.Dave
08/22/2003, 11:34 AM
Thanks for the info Mucho.

or . . .

Mucho Thanks.:rolleyes:

Dave

Gus
08/22/2003, 10:34 PM
Gotta love those zoos, well done mate! :thumbsup:

pr4mncplus
08/28/2003, 06:34 AM
Wow. It's something we can only aspire to achieve SOME day. Unfortunately, with my other distractions in life (job, boat, classic car, 2 kids, 2 dogs, golf, kids braces,etc. - oh yeah - wife too) I don't think I'll ever find the time to put that much attention into my reef hobby...

debbieraptors
08/31/2003, 05:25 PM
Dear Zoo Guru:
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful photos.....you are
very inspiring. I still dream of having a setup like yours.
Keep up the good work.
Debbie