lduncan

They are actually very different. The radial coralites appear to be regular in size (hard to tell with all the new axials forming), tortuosa are irregular, also in hoeks they are more nariform in shape than torts, and are linear down the skeleton. It's hard to tell what it is from the frag, but I would be confident in saying it's not a tort. Either way, it's a nice coral. Layton

Unfortunately it's no tort. Looks similar to a hoeksemai to me. Some nice colours there Craker. Layton

Low alk generally shows up as tissue thinning, leading to patches of slow recession, starting anywhere on the coral. If left, RTN can result, but corals usually don't RTN straight away due to low alk, unless something else is wrong. Low calcium can be less of a problem than alk, growth is retarded below about 350 for many corals, I guess lower than this will cause similar problems to low alk? Layton

It's pretty funny. I always thought that the first iBooks looked like a toilet seat.

Sure the security flaws are there, I wouldn't say they plague the mac though, that sort of implies that they are an everyday problem, at the moment for home users they are something which can virtually be ignored. I'm 22, I was about 6 or 7 when I the family got their first computer, hand me down from Dad's business startup at the time. Yeah, Steve Jobs is an "unusual" one. He's got an interesting view on life. Layton

Don't worry Pies. I'm not saying it's not possible. Just that it doesn't happen, (or hasn't happened yet). I've had not one virus since '89, neither have I come across any in my work. Mac's don't have the problems Windows does. Again there are zero viruses in the wild targeting Macs. Layton

No. I mean Macs are obscure, in that there are not a lot of them, so they are not seen as a high priority "target". But that's only a small part of why there are zero virus' doing the rounds. Look at what those bugs, (none of them exploited in the wild) actually are, how many are remotely exploitable, or how many are actually exploitable at all, then compare that to the 10,866 virus and variants created and spread in the first 6 months of 2005 for Windows. In terms of home users, Macs are a lot more secure, there are absolutely no exploits in the wild for them. Ask any mac user if their computer has been affected by a virus or spyware, you won't find any. Plug a Windows machine into the internet, and the average infection time is under 15 minutes. I'm not going to go there. Those who own them know it's true. Companies which have switched know it's true. Windows keeps a whole industry of IT people employed ;-). Well with ZERO virus spyware and exploits in the wild. I'd agree with that... for now.

Ha, linux is not an alternative for "normal" people by any means. I've used Apple my whole life. Less expensive, generally better quality, plus great design. It's a more secure platform, both by design, with a touch of security by obscurity thrown in. Layton

I'm lucky I don't have to put up with Windows and associated ... Layton

yeah... with rose tinted glasses...

It's more than likely that it won't have enough cooling capacity to get the job done properly. Even with Ti coils. Layton

I'm all in favour of pumps to do the work for you, keep everything in the water so it can get to the skimmer. Of-course the problem is cost, and if you have sand, blowing it all over the tank. I've often thought of making a little roaming bot, (similar to the pool cleaner ones) which roam around the bottom cleaning sand, for my tank upgrade (whenever that happens). It would be cool to just plonk it in at night and have it roaming around removing all the detritus which gets trapped in the sand, so you don't have to do manual vacuuming of the sand. But a pump and a hose with a micron sock on the end fed into the sump should do quite nicely. Layton

Durso is not a great idea in my opinion. You're trying to control the amount and flow of air down the overflow to try and counter something which is cause by air in the first place. Intermittent siphon is where you get the really loud gargling, that the durso attempts to fix. A full siphon is silent, as it has no air flowing in the tube. In my opinion that is what you want. It is virtually self adjusting. You don't get anywhere near the amount of bubbles entering the sump. Of course you need some sort of backup if it blocks, but a Durso can block just as easily and cause just as much mess. Layton

Why not just go with sand. A 1 inch layer, and vacuum it regularly to keep it clean. Layton

The supporting "skeleton" in the centre of it is black.

I'm not in a hole at all. If only you have have kept searching you would see that. But obviously that's a little too much to expect from you. You're quite happy to comment on things when you have no idea what you're talking about. Layton

Quoted out of context yet again. Funny how you have to resort to making things up...

Really? How could you claim that? What about intermediate hosts. Copepods etc? Parasites with longer life cycles? So what's the point in a withholding period if collected water is expected to be low in parasites anyway? That's fine, store the water, don't store the water, it doesn't bother me. All I'm disputing is that three weeks is going to significantly reduce parasite numbers. Layton

5 pages later and you still don't get it. You're a hoot. :lol:

Which ones? Can they host on the species found in our tanks? Is 3 weeks going to make a significant difference in their numbers to make a withholding period effective or worthwhile at all? Layton

It's more than adequate. Running it through DI would probably contaminate it :lol: Layton

Lab water distillation machines are usually glass from the ones i've seen anyway, so it shouldn't be a problem. Layton

Soft corals are probably a better first inhabitants for a new tank than fish. They are not as hefty load on the establishing bacterial processes and can help "cycle" the tank, and are relatively hardy, relative to other animals. Layton

Why even have a withholding period at all? That's what i've been getting at. Layton