JoeBlog

What does that have to do with prices offered in shops? There could be all kinds of strategies behind simply throwing out a number like this. The only thing that matters is the quote offered to you by your shop, i.e. the price you have to pay. Unfortunately in this particular case, you paid more for the unit than you had to. Not only that, but the shop lost the sale/support and we ALL lost the positive externality.

This statement doesn't really mean much as a simple comparison of exchange rates is a terrible indicator of price in one's own country. It has also been shown in economic experiments that Purchasing Power Parity does not hold.

I just checked my LFS and the full retail price offered there is $419.90. Maybe you North Island guys might want to try contacting my LFS for top of the line hardware, e.g. Tunze, Deltec, etc... The funny thing is that it appears as though he can beat the Auckland prices even after including shipping costs both ways! :-? BTW, this is also the FULL RETAIL price that he offers. If you are a "regular" customer and buying a few more "bits and pieces" the price would even be better. I guess this is an instance where supporting your LFS not only supports the hobby, but ALSO provides the reefer a better deal.

The point is... Did he check?

Is that cheaper than one of the LFS in town could offer it to you?

I don't know if this means anything either, but since I put on my UV's I haven't had any outbreaks of white spot. Prior to this, I used to get it ALL the time (damn tangs). In fact, I lost 90% of my stock in one go.

Not really well. I used to have to pound on it from time to time to get it to go. I just thought that there was calcium build up and too lazy to soak in vinegar. When I finally decided that I was tired of the pounding, that is what I found. :oops: From what I gather, I was having the same as Chimera, i.e. almost all SPS STN or in some cases RTN. The only ones that weren't affected were the millis. They must be tough little b@$t@rd$! I took most of them out before they completely died (or at least a frag) and they all recovered shortly after being placed in my mates tank. I did ~50% water change, kept everything else as stable as possible and just waited. It's been quite a while, but I think I've just started to turn the corner, i.e. no more new tissue loss on the remaining corals for quite a few days. This pump wasn't my only problem. I also had P04 OFF THE CHARTS due to a bad test kit. The bad pump followed shortly after. The combination may have just been too much for the little guys.

This is what I pulled out of my tank. Do you think this could have caused an overdose of iron?! This is the pump sitting in vinegar. All that rust, etc... would have gone into my tank as well. I presume that wouldn't have been good. This could be why things (SPS coral only) were dying in my tank.

I brought this up about 10 pages back. I was then told not to worry about it. So, is it a worry or not?!

I used flexible pipe with mine and will do it that way again when I shift the 4-way over to the bigger tank. For me, it was just easier to work with.

Don't feed him for a day or so. He should catch them just fine for you! Mine would!!

Hi Wasp- I used the Salifert stuff in a canister filter. It was quite surprising how fast it removed the p04. I was just reminded by my mate that it actually only took a matter of hours for a new clear test.

Hi Feelers- Thanks heaps for the offer. It was just a small eheim 1250 that I was using for top up. I've already borrowed a replacement impeller from a mate and got the rusty mess out of there. Thanks again! Steve

Sweet. Thanks. I just added the recommended dosage and it cleaned it up quite quickly. Maybe that was actually a bad thing. :oops:

Hi Chimera- I’ve been experiencing basically the same situation as you, i.e. corals dropping dead left and right. :evil: One factor that I think started it all (in my situation) was a bad P04 kit (old Salifert kit) showed clear no matter what. I got a new kit and the first granule that hit the test water turned it dark blue. YIKES!! I immediately dumped some P04 remover in there and cleared that up by the next day or so (new Salifert’s readings were now clear on double dose). Good! At this stage, only a few corals were looking worse for wear and no deaths yet. Well, maybe one or two, but I thought that was pretty lucky given the P04 reading. Even though the water parameters were now all good, I was still stressed enough to have some of the pieces moved over to a friend’s tank. Turned out to be a lucky move!! Unfortunately about the same time (maybe shortly after), my topup Eheim pump impeller cracked, so I temporarily replaced it with a damn King 3 that I bought a few years ago while I wait for the replacement to arrive. Since about that time, the deaths have been fast and furious. In some corals, I could watch the tissue peel off in front of my eyes, some others were a bit slower and died over the course of a week, while others (millis and stags) have been the last to be affected (just now having the tips appear damaged, i.e. the first step towards death). :evil: During my regular tank maintenance today, I took the pump out for a clean and the inside was full of DARK red, rusted water. I presume that this is not good. I did as big of a water change as I could, ~25%, and luckily had already been running some Purigen. My buddy and I started using the Purigen about the same time and I thought it was strange that mine already needed to be recharged while his was still pretty much white/new. At any rate, just thought I would share my experience since the outcome is similar to yours, i.e. MANY CORAL (SPS) DEATHS. I don’t know if this is the reason (partial or completely) for my (or your) unfortunate situation, but it may be worth while to check your pumps as well. Cheers, Steve

There are larger "pond" UV systems available locally (not exactly cheap either $$$ ). If they have a quartz sleeve and relatively high wattage (40+), would that be alright? I think I read/heard somewhere that there is also a difference in the space between the bulb and water (or something like that) between pond and marine UV's. Does this ring any bells or is this not a factor?

Nice! 8)

$42 That must have been the lightest pump EVER. I just did a quick check on MD shipping costs and they don't even quote a price that low. For 5 lbs, the economy rate is $71US. I've dealt with them MANY times and never got a shipping price that cheap no matter how much it weighed. From MD site for international shipping (use column J): http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_marine_depot_help_international_shipping_h-l.asp?CartId= To calculate specific rates: http://www.fedex.com/ratefinder/standalone?method=originCountryChange I'm not saying that you a lying or anything, but very curious as to how your shipping was that cheap so that I (and others) can take advantage in the future. Did you get some sort of deal, e.g. promotional, make up for their previous mistake, etc...? Whatever the reason, excellent score!! I just had a package sent over 7-10 USPS Economy and it still cost me over $50US for ~10lbs. (So about half that of FedEx, but that does not include the inconvenience of friends and/or family to further on the shipment to me.) On a second note, it's not only a good option for those items not available in NZ. In many instances, it is cheaper to buy from MD (or other internet sale firms) abroad even taking into account the additional shipping, customs, GST, etc... than purchasing domestically. This is not a dig on importers either, simply a desciption of the market as it stands, e.g. small market, higher prices for quicker consumption times, etc...

just wait till it gets a little bigger. Those chromis won't be swimming as freely/openly as they are now!!

I was thinking of getting one myself until I read this since they are absolutely beautiful. I was doing research all over the web and can't remember the site, sorry. Might have been WWM, RC, or some other.

My blue throat has not even looked twice at my cleaner shrimp, but the chromis and anthia are/were running scared. So far, he has consumed four chromis and one anthia. This basically happend in the first 48 hours and I hadn't noticed the other fish missing right away. The half eaten anthia is what gave me my first clue. :oops: The remaining small sized fish have wised up to his presence and are quick to run for cover! I don't expect to have any more losses.

Haven't they been known to eat their hosted clowns as well??

I've purchased quite a few products from Paul at Oceansmotion. He has the best service that I have come across in the hobby and excellent products to match. To put in Pies' ranking format: 10/10!

Nice. Did they provide the correct voltage pump or are you running a stepdown transformer with it?

Nice skimmer. Which model is it? I'm looking forward to seeing that thing in action after it has had a chance to break in. May I ask where you purchased it from? Cheers, Steve