View RSS Feed

doomicon

Redo for the Average Reefer

Rate this Entry
2 Comments
by
doomicon
, 01-06-2010 at 03:24 PM (1001 Views)
Heyoh, Rob in St. Pete. Your average reefer... NOT an addict. What is an Average Reefer? Me.. the guy that really enjoys Salt Water Aquariums, but has a "bleh" reef tank in his/her living room. I visit reefcentral, melev's site for years (Mark's 27G is what inspired me to take the plunge), thou I drool over TOTM, and invested alot of time in effort in "starting" my tank... I've never maintained it to get over the hump to uberness, I've been slack on water testing, water changes, had a sweet SPS frag that fell behind some rockwork, and didn't notice for at least a month. So.. I'm gonna "Redo" myself into an one of those Addict's that I have long admired.

First and foremost, what I have to "Redo".

My currrent setup, 90 Gal RR tank with one overflow. Have a custom 20+ Gallon sump, ITECH cone skimmer. Lighting is provided by the OLD Nova Extreme 8xT5HO with the single reflector. I did invest in RODI, and use it for all topoffs and water changes.

Where I want to be... Emster's Jan 09' TOTM (http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2009-01/totm/index.php). Emmett lives in my area, I've met him once in passing at the local store most Tampabay Reefers goto FAOIS http://www.ichthythings.com/ (or maybe it was a meeting).

Gonna start my quest for a nicer, healthier tank. It's not so much the "uberness" that I'm going for, thou that would be nice.. but just to provide a healthly environment for the life that lives in this 90G glass box.

Submit "Redo for the Average Reefer" to Digg Submit "Redo for the Average Reefer" to del.icio.us Submit "Redo for the Average Reefer" to StumbleUpon Submit "Redo for the Average Reefer" to Google

Categories
‎ Uncategorized

Comments

  1. melev's Avatar
    The difference between an average hobbyist and an addict are the first three letters: A.D.D. You need a little bit of this over-the-top attention to your system for it to give you those TOTM-desired results. If you are lackadaisical in your husbandry, it's going to be a rough ride for a reef tank. Daily scans of how things are operating is key, just double-checking that all is working properly. Don't delay on fixing little things before they become major obstacles. Learn better habits, sticking to a schedule. With my little 29g that you liked, I tested water every Saturday like clockwork. This allowed me to stay on top of water parameters and my tank did well. Find a system you can stick to, and stick to that system.
  2. Blown76mav's Avatar
    I have to agree with Marc, once I got on a schedule that I could work with my tank started improving by leaps and bounds. Its not TOTM material yet but the improvements can be seen almost on a weekly basis. I have learned that if its not broke don't fix it. I once made a change is salt mixes because I could get a "deal" in a group buy. Well that "deal" almost wiped out my SPS and luckily I had a buddy that could babysit them while I got thing under control. That's when I learned that not all salt mixes are the same and I should test each batch of new saltwater. Now I use the same salt, mix it the same way and ALWAYS test it for ALK, CA and SG before it goes in the tank. I spend at least 1-2 hours a day just looking for things that may not be right, most of the time its just the enjoyment of watching the underwater world before me but sometimes a coral will show signs of not being happy, then its time to check and double check things.

    Good luck in your quest and let us know if you need any help or advice.