OK! Enough chat...Starting a 1000g+ Reef

[Bax]

I like the intern idea. And raisins and Gatorade are pretty cheep compared to many aspects of reefing!

Jonathan, I think your QT will rebound better than you think in the darkness of your wet humid fish room right now. Yours is set up much like mine, some LR some chato. I was paying absolutely no attention to it except that I have a small skimmer aerating it , a PH to turn flow over and a separate ATO so it stays generally in balance.

I recently discovered a random bivalve growing on the glass that I collected and placed in my fuge. I have, through neglect and or stupidity, "killed" this QT several times, yet sponges pods and other inverts rebound every time.

You're getting your SG and other params back to balance slowly, it'll be OK, the size of your system is on your side. If you have or can barrow OZ, I'd consider running it very low to bring the ORP back up slowly but a bit swifter than skimming and aeration can do alone.

Keep smiling, hope it works out

[jnarowe]

I have been contemplating O3 for some time now, but have not pulled the trigger.

ORP in the display is rising again..the issue for me is I have all these safe-guards, and yet I seem to find a way to foil them!

And Chuck, I have a timer in my tank room...I just never remember to use it, and most of the time the problem is that I walk away. Had the stupid water sensor actually been on the floor, this flood would not have happened.

I have been contemplating getting an add-on for the ACIII Pro to monitor the QT, but it just seems like a lot of money...I guess it would be cheaper than killing corals though.

[steveweast]

Jonathan....don't feel too bad....I've left the RO on too long a few times myself (although never to that extreme). I, long ago, bought one of those cheap programmable Home Depot timers and set it up to switch "off" every two hours. That way....when I turned it "on" to manually put some water in.....the most that it could run was 2 hours. I could always turn it on again for another two hours if necessary....but that cheap timer prevented me from getting distracted and forgetting that I left the water going....it's a cheap and easy solution/fail safe.

You should also consider having an overflow pipe from your sumps to some drain or the outside to prevent accidental floods.

[jnarowe]

Hey Steve, good to hear from you. This was my QT/Grow-out tank so it is it's own sump. Good idea on the overflow to the drain, but in theory, I might never notice it if it went to a drain. What should happen is that my water sensor on the floor should alert me to the condition before it turns into a real problem. Unfortunately, Last time I had a spill, I placed the sensor up on a board so it could dry out, and forgot to put it back on the floor.

And the RO/DI was being pumped in by my LiterMeter in the "ON" mode, as I needed to bump up the water level. That was my big mistake. Just leaving it on, when I should have turned it off before leaving the tank room.

Currently, because there is no flooring in the basement, there is no real issue of damage, but I hope that I can get my head straight and make sure it doesn't happen after I install flooring. hmmmm...stained concrete anyone?

[steveweast]

Originally posted by jnarowe


And the RO/DI was being pumped in by my LiterMeter in the "ON" mode, as I needed to bump up the water level. That was my big mistake. Just leaving it on, when I should have turned it off before leaving the tank room.

I see....you were using your LMIII......I use my RO unit directly....hence it is easy for me to employ a timer safeguard. I still think that you need to utilize some sort of automatic turn off when you're overriding your LMIII for topoff. It's just too easy to get distracted and forget that it's running. Without some sort of safeguard, this will happen again. I left my water running several times before I employed a safeguard system.....which was basically admitting to myself that I was incapable of remembering one minute from the next.

[mrcrab]

I agree with Steve. I have a pretty ghetto topoff system like Melev's, no offense Marc. My RO water is in a 50 gal drum. To topoff the Melev system I have a hose attached to a PH at the bottom of the 50 gal and I put the hose in the TO reservoir and plug in the PH while I work on other things. I've lost count of the amount of times either my wife or I have come home or gone outside to see a nice little brook flowing out of the garage. 30 gallons of RO down the sewer.

The nice thing is, the way mine's setup it won't throw the tank off, just clean the concrete.

[jnarowe]

Well guys, I appreciate the advice. Since I have had an issue with trying to use the LiterMeter to top-off two different systems, perhaps I can re-configure it some other way. I used to just use gravity and a float valve for the QT, which worked OK until the level in the RO/DI reservoir got too low, and then the siphon was broken.

Since I have a much better level controller on the RO/DI now, maybe I can go back to using gravity, and solve this problem in a simple way.

[mrcrab]

Originally posted by jnarowe
I used to just use gravity and a float valve for the QT, which worked OK until the level in the RO/DI reservoir got too low, and then the siphon was broken.

Since I have a much better level controller on the RO/DI now, maybe I can go back to using gravity, and solve this problem in a simple way.

That's what I use for my RO tank, not gravity but a float valve. I'm a big proponent of the KISS principal.

[steveweast]

Originally posted by jnarowe
Well guys, I appreciate the advice. Since I have had an issue with trying to use the LiterMeter to top-off two different systems, perhaps I can re-configure it some other way. I used to just use gravity and a float valve for the QT, which worked OK until the level in the RO/DI reservoir got too low, and then the siphon was broken.

Since I have a much better level controller on the RO/DI now, maybe I can go back to using gravity, and solve this problem in a simple way.

Why aren't you using the auxillary pumps from Spectrpure ? I used one LMIII ......but, topped off two tanks. Those auxillary pumps are pretty cheap and just plug into the LMIII.

[jnarowe]

I have one Steve, only since I have to control the LiterMeter to keep it from topping off when my kalk stirrer is running and IF/When the pH gets too high, so often the power is cut to it. So what happens is, occassionally there is not enough water being sent to the QT, and then I turn the remote pump manually ON. I know, more complicated than it needs to be, but if I don't control the LiterMeter I can run into issues with the display. Better to nuke the QT than the display right??

[melev]

How about a better isolation system? That tank can have its own top off container. It already has its own sump and skimmer. And attach an extra floor sensor to that area so that it wails when it gets wet.

[jnarowe]

I am not sure how a separate top-off container would help. I would still have to automate topping off the top-off container so I think I would be essentially in the same position. Maybe you have an idea how to do it?

My current water sensor is at the point where any water going on the floor goes to it, but I just have to keep it in place. And the issue with it is that the contact points rust, so I occassionally clran it down and when it gets wet, I let it dry out. I am probably just being stupid abou that, and I should clean and dry it by hand, and then place it back on the floor. Usually there is water on the floor and it is not completely dry.

And another question: Why am I so damn lazy?

PS...and I am now getting an alarm from the display every half hour, but there is no data to show a problem. WHen I check on th etank, everything is fine...

[melev]

Your tank simply misses you.

Dry the sensor by hand, and dry the spot on the floor with a heat gun or hair dryer I guess. Then it can stay primed and ready.

[jnarowe]

seems simple doesn't it!

[dhnguyen]

What about some cheap float switches to control the LiterMeter?

One to turn on the pump when the level in the QT dropped below the switch level and off when the water level reaches the level of the switch. Then one more switch just above that one as a failsafe backup should the first one failed to close for some reason.

[jnarowe]

The problem with that is my main use for the LiterMeter is kalk top-off for the display. If I have the QT controlling it, then that would really mess things up.

[dhnguyen]

Ok then get yourself a cheap Aqualifter for topoff of the QT and control that with the float switches

[jnarowe]

That's not a bad idea.

So Sherman and I were doing a a little fragging a couple of nights ago, and while I was laying on top of the tank, I discovered what i believe is probably a cause of my recent tank problems. There is about a 2.5' square area of the tank bottom that is not readliy visisble from the sides, and what I saw was a large pile of detritus.

On further investigation, I found that my center flow pipe has been nearly completely clogged with coraline algae. The same goes for the spray bar I have under the rockwork along the back of the tank. What this means is that a decent size area of the tank was not getting flow and building up nutrients.

I was unable to clear the clog by hand so I have to get back in there and yank the DIY "head" off.

I would like some input on how to create a better head. Currently the feed is a 1" pipe under the rocks terminating in an elbow and about 6" stand pipe. I had then capped it with a cap I cut slots into to provide downward flow in the center of the tank. For a long time this kept the center of the tank very clean, but clearly it has an achilles heel.

[Bax]

Maybe just soak that head in vinegar like you would a PH every six months or so. It has certainly been in service that long or longer by now, no?

Wish had a tank big enough to make a 2.5 sq ft dead spot!

[jnarowe]

Well I suppose you are right. It's been in service for at least 18 months! Maybe I should widen the slots too.

[Bax]

I'd try that at least as an interim measure while you kick it around. After all, it worked well for a while, right?

[jnarowe]

Yup...tank looks a world better today. Much less like a volcano fallout zone.

[dhnguyen]

Tank definitely looking much better than when I saw it last J.

Thanks for the frags again.

[jnarowe]

good news to report. it looks like I have the upper hand on my tank now and with only a few losses. I still have several large colonies alive and decent frags of everything else.

I cleaned the center port out an it is operating well, as well as did anther vacuum procedure on that center area. My method is working well, but only removes a small amount at a time.

All parameters are good and ORP has been averaging higher each day. I still have a lot more work to do, but I am re-energized when I view the tank so that is a big plus. I also have put a one hour "nap" into the mid-day light cycle.

I believe I have whittled down the possible causes to lack of flow and not enough mechanical filtration. I also have plans for each issue but it will take some time to make the corrections. The great thing is that the water is looking so much better, there are no dinos, and the livestock is perking up. I do think I may have lost my cleaner shrimp as I haven't seen them in a while.

Not sure if that is due to the dinos, overall water quality, or perhaps even predation...I have yet to see the CBS I put in there over a month ago!

[dhnguyen]

Good thing to know J.

Now all you have to do is scrape the front of the tank clean of coralline