lduncan

Nope, Ron Shimek the invert zoologist. He's not a marine biologist. Well more the conclusions. I could try using Ron's own writings to bring up some interesting questions one the relevance of that article to our tanks. I'll look through Ron's writings and post something tonight. But here's a question to think about. Isn't the sand bed actually competing with corals for food? Layton Layton

Cookie, that article reeks of Dr Ron Shimek. While there are occasional glimpses of reality and truth in it, there are also many other question which have to be asked about the relevance of the article. Layton

some creative logic there Fay

What do most animals use their mouths for most of the time? How much tissue mass do SPS (stoney, mostly autotrophic corals) corals have? How much food do they need to sustain this tissue mass, and what sources are there for it? Just some more things to ponder. Layton

Whose to say polyps primary function is as a mouth for catching food? Why is there such a difference in polyp size amongst different corals? It they were all used primarily for catching food, why did smaller polyps evolve? And why do larger polyps still exist? Just something to think about. Layton

How so? What proportion of BB to sand tanks are there? 1:100 1:200 ? TOTM isn't voted for. It's up to the editor of RK to chose it. Did you see the algae there too? If you know what sand beds do in nature, then it comes as no surprise why people have success, but other have problems. Also it's more than just a "tank meltdown" reason behind not having sand.

There is plenty of stuff in that muck which would be considered food for many corals. Having said that there are other sources for these nutrients. Pretty much, but there is a spectrum of requirements, even within genus. Having said that, its not the only source these corals have for these nutrients. Borneman is a big promoter of plankton based foods, but at the same time mentions that they can get these nutrients from other sources, including dissolved inorganic nutrients, something which is not lacking in tanks. But he never really focus on that part, jut the live food part. Layton

Does the HRV system incorporate a heat pump into the ceiling unit, or is it like a fan heater, or is it just plain moving air around?

Your fish look very healthy. Just need a better camera

There is a reason for that. It's not a particularly simple thing to test for, especially in the typical concentrations found in tanks. You'd be lucky to find another brand test kit for strontium. Seachem may do one, but some of their test kits can be pretty average. Merck may do one though? Layton

agree again puttputt Cracker, what you think of goodies, I call crap. I'm keeping corals, not critters ;-) The coral I keep don't need to feed on those bugs, they can get nitrogen from other sources, which are much more available in every tank. Layton

I agree puttputt.

Yeah they make thicker low iron stuff, up to 19mm, but availability in NZ is a problem above about 6 or 10mm

Was that for starfire front in 12mm? Who stocks the 12mm?

not really, i'd have to change my flow so it didn't disturb it, and i'd have to vacuum it. To much work. Layton

Glass could be a problem. Even standard glass is expensive for a tank that size now. If you went with low iron, you'd either have to get two thinner bits laminated, or buy in some thicker sheets from overseas.

I'm just looking to reduce maintenance really. Putting sand back in would just increase the maintenance. :lol: Plus, i never really aquascaped after I moved the tank a year ago. Just sort of plonked everything back in. So it needs to be done. Layton

Same. Funny how that tank completely polarises people though. Layton

Full siphon will help, as you won't have the air in the overflow which the durso introduces. Another thing you can try if you're not to keen on reworking the stand pipe is putting a U at the bottom of the overflow where it enters the sump, it will direct the water and air bubbles to the surface where they can dissipate faster. Layton

Physics is physics, you can't make a durso as quite as a full siphon because the durso design intentionally introduces air into the overflow. Layton

exactly

Don't worry, I think KP understands what's going on and how it works better than most. The difference in safety margin is negligible, and as far as on-going adjustments I haven't had to other than for major changes to the return system. When set-up properly, they adjust themselves.

But that's the way a full siphon works. The pipe should be irrelevant in the matter. Run the water level higher, to minimise noise. Run it lower if you want more auto adjusting margin.

You know what, I've had a ball valve running on a full siphon overflow for 4 or 5 years, never cleaned it, it's never clogged. I doubt there is much of anything growing on it. It's in a dark tube with a lot of flow. Just scraping the bottom of the barrel to find something wrong with a full siphon.