si_sphinx

I will eventually but for now I am just growing my corals out a bit. Just let me know if you want anything and I will let you know if I can make a frag or not.

Very quiet as long as it isn't touching the glass or anything else. Only reason I originally changed to the Eheim was for more flow but I ended up wanting more silence than flow so went back to the Aquaone. I got more flow by adding a WP-10 wavemaker instead.

I switched out the stock pump for an Eheim but ended up going back to using the stock aquaone because it was a LOT quieter. And yes the coral box LEDs work good, they are what I'm using at the moment and I have good sps growth.

That will make for some good live rock.

Aroganite sand would be the best to use but I didn't have any available. Oh and forgot to say, all of this can be made for less than $100. And I still have enough materials to make a couple more batches of rock.

Yes what Ira said. I would have used some coarser rock salt but could only find smaller normal grade.

Have a look at the photos in the first post of the salt in my hand. It is only small. I would have liked to use bigger stuff but don't know where to find it.

And this weekend I attempted making some tonga branches. Some of them cracked because they were still quite soft, after 48hrs in the sand, when I pulled them out. So I will just patch them up with more cement where I can or use some aqua knead-it.

I also made a heap more rock after this + a bunch of frag discs and zoa discs.

I thought I would share my attempt at DIY coral rock. The Ingredients: I have made the rock molds in by pressing a real rock into damp sand to get the look of the real rock. In a bucket, I half filled it with oyster grit & sand and rinsed it 3-4 times to remove all the dust and dirty particles. Then I added 3-4 scoops of the cement and mixed. No water was needed because the rinsed oyster grit still held a lot of water. When Mixed together I had a few scoops of rock salt and mixed. I then took handfuls of the mixture and crumble it through my fingers and let it drop into the moulds. Patting it into the molds would have removed all the air and gaps in the mixture making it just look like a bit of concrete. So dropping it in loosely gave it a more random and natural look. Then I waited overnight before removing the rocks from the sand and rinsing them. They are still very soft so I had to be carefull not to break the thinner small rocks. After they sat for a week to cure hard, I soaked them in water for a few months to dissolve the rock salt. This made the rock more porous and soaked out any chemicals that leach from the concrete. Here is the first rock in my tank, covered in Green Star Polyps

Yes you need to keep it running or it will die and start to smell bad

Some Good Polyp Extension this afternoon...

You won't use Nitrite much so that could be one you buy only if you need it. But all others you will need, including phosphate.

:oops: sorry guys. Next time I'll make it.

Just wanted to show some of the new Montipora Corals I have added recently. Enjoy! And a new Porite frag.

Looking good so far. I look forward to seeing it get wet. I am in Nelson too so if you ever need any help with anything, Just let me know :thup:

DI resin will not last 1-2 years unless you are not using it regularly. I was using a minimum of 20ltrs a week of RODI water. I changed my DI resin every 6 months when the TDS got to 5 coming out of the RODI unit. And i have a dual stage DI unit. It all depends on how much water you are making and how much TDS the water is that you are putting into it. Colour changing DI resin helps. starting at blue when fresh and changing to brown when depleted. My TDS going in was 120-130 depending on the time of the year. Coming out of the RO unit was anywhere between 0-30TDS, (again, depending on the time of the year). Invercargill tap water gets a silty taste in summer when the reservoirs get low and the TDS becomes even higher. Also RO membranes only last 2-3 years when you look after them with regular back flushing. I back flush mine for 2mins after every use and 5mins before I make any water. It can make a huge difference in how long you can use it.

Adding corals isn't adding bio load. Just fish, snails, crabs etc will affect your bio load. You should be fine without a skimmer for a week. You only have tiny fish.mif you are worried about it then halve the feedings.

Thanks guys. Yes, a lot of money sitting in there. By now I could have spent that money on a bigger house and able to have a big tank, But then I wouldn't of had any of this. :facepalm: I use Archicad for my job (self employed designer) so didn't take much to draw up :thup:

As big as possible.

Some new photos today.

Invercargill water was 136ppm when I last tested it. It would come out of my RO filter 0ppm and DI for back up. Nelson water is between 40-60ppm. huge difference. My filters will last a lot longer now. Remember you also need RO water for evaporation top up too. Not just for making salt water. I have only ever used Tap water once and it was a last resort to running out of pure dew top up water. I doesn't effect your fish as much as adds phosphates and causes algae problems. It would only effect your fish and corals if your water was really bad and full of chemicals/metals etc. Yes rain water is still bad. RO or NO :thup:

I havent pitched this idea to the mrs yet :digH: Yes, They need the room to grow since I have too much in there. I have updated my plans tonight...

What size tank is the skimmer rated for? You will need some saltwater testing kits, RODI unit for top off water to name a few things.

And planned upgrade, 2x 200ltr frag tanks