Let's Plan a 120g Upgrade - Page 6

msn711 · #**126** 10/11/2007, 08:47 PM

More good news: I left the stand doors open all day, and the temps are down to a respectable 77*F.

The bad news is that I'll have to back track on my defense of using glass tops. There's a 2" gap in the back, in case you have any HOB equipment. I never thought a fish would make its way through that gap, but I was wrong...and lost my pylei wrasse as a result.

MarineGirl411 · #**127** 10/11/2007, 10:53 PM

Sorry girl. =( There's got to be another way to keep those guys in. And make sure they stay in. I might start a topic and ask for you. That would make me very upset. I'm lucky I was home when my Anthias jumped out. Also lucky my cat didn't notice.

msn711 · #**128** 10/17/2007, 02:43 PM

Slightly off topic note, but I just found out today that I passed the bar exam!

Back to the tank itself, I need to upload pictures of the new frags I just got, but they are super tiny!

msn711 · #**129** 10/17/2007, 07:30 PM

I'm going to take back what I said about fraggle reef. After comparing their prices to others, along with the size descriptions on the websites, I think they're pretty fair and reasonable. I just need to pay more attention to the size description instead of just looking at the picture.

MASSIVE PICTURE POST!!!!!

These are the pictures I took tonight and yesterday that I really like:

Encrusting Hydnophora:

Rainbow Montipora:

Tubinaria:

Tubinaria under actinics:

Orange Chalice (it's gotten lighter so I moved it down):

msn711 · #**130** 10/17/2007, 07:32 PM

Clove polyps...

...And what looks like a cyphastrea frag next to them:

Open Brain:

Shrooms and Zoos:

Acan lord and GSM:

Acan Lord under actinics:

msn711 · #**131** 10/17/2007, 07:36 PM

Chronic Chalice

Niger Trigger

Monti Cap under actinics:

Platygyra frag under actinics:

And the AC Jr:

msn711 · #**132** 10/25/2007, 03:47 PM

I thought things had gotten a little quiet around here. Where'd everybody go?

I just got confirmation that the frag next to the clove polyps is a cyphastrea...meteor shower to be exact!

I wanted to get a FTS up, but I'm having a bit of an algae outbreak. I had been pretty lucky with all my previous set ups, but I guess it's caught up with me. Time to order that skimmer and some more phosban.

I also need to change the MH bulbs. That yellow color is really starting to bother me. Any suggestions? Or should I just go back to the Pheonix 14k?

kawicivic · #**133** 10/25/2007, 08:29 PM

all of your new frags look good... I especially like the platygyra. Never heard of that one before... does it have a common name?

msn711 · #**134** 10/25/2007, 09:37 PM

No common names that I know of. It's an LPS, pretty similar to favias/maze brains/those types.

balmiesgirl · #**135** 10/25/2007, 11:19 PM

Whew, quite a long thread.....maybe it the 3rs tom collins....any way....
GREAT Thread.....Fantastic to find some fellow reefer chicks too....
The progress has been fun to watch.
I have a 110 Tall and am really interesed in your lighting choices ...budget made mine a crappy coralife HQI 150- I am upgrading the bulbs to XM's tomorrow.....but definitely see something different in my future. Also what would you use in a tiny sump for a decent skimmer. Nothing fancy, just practical.

MarineGirl411 · #**136** 10/26/2007, 02:03 PM

You can try to find a used skimmer on RC here. I really like my BM150. Their might be a couple of used ones around. I've heard people like Orca's and the Octopus skimmers. I have no experience. You have a pretty big load of fish. Do you have corals as well or is it just a fwlr? It would really be best to combine you WC with a good skimmer. =)

MSN-Did you get the Platygyra frag from FraggleReef? It's really pretty. I'm battling some algae myself. I think it's because I let my filters get too old in my RO DI. It said they last 12 months, but mine lasted a little less than 10. TDS meter said everything was fine. I think it might have been off. Need to do a WC. With your new light, you might still like the Phoenix bulbs. Were they too blue for you? Looking good.

msn711 · #**137** 10/31/2007, 03:04 PM

balmiesgirl: I hate coralife products. They're low-budget, entry level products that simply don't last very long or work very well. For a skimmer in a small sump, I'm looking at the tunze skimmers. You might try one of those. Let me know how those XM's work out.

marinegirl: The platygyra is from fragglereef. I'm not sure I would blame your algae problems on the ro filters. I've always read that they last anywhere from 18 months to 2 years and that only the DI needs to be replaced automatically when the tds starts to climb. I liked the phoenix lights. They were perfect. I'm just not sure that I need something that blue with 4x54 t5 actinics. Maybe something more 12k? Or a true 14k? The phoenix bulbs are always compared to what a 20k should look like.

balmiesgirl · #**138** 11/01/2007, 05:25 AM

msn711-
I've had the XM bulbs in for a couple of days. They are working great. It is alot "bluer" than before because these XM's are 15,000K and the coralifes were 10,000K. But I think I am going to like it.

msn711 · #**139** 11/01/2007, 10:47 AM

Well today, the AC Jr suddenly decided that it wasn't going to turn off the t5 lights even though the display and program says the lights are off. I've got a post in neptune system's forum to try to figure out what the problem is, but I'm pretty ticked off that this thing was working just fine, and has already malfunctioned in only the short time I've had it.

Other than that, I finally ordered the tunze 9010 for a skimmer, along with some phosban, and nls pellets to split with the frozen food. I was out of town all weekend, and the algae is getting worse. I'll try to clean the front glass and get a picture, but a water change is definitely in order this weekend.