for the algae/cyano problems it shure looks like calgary tap water to me,have you tested your tds in the last while
i dont know squat about sps but is the pump oil filled? because if it was leaking what was it leaking into your water, the insides of that pump didnt look reefsafe to me.
i wouldnt look into dosing a million different things to solve something untill you knew what the problem was forshure.

Actually the algae problem has been solved. I tested the TDS when we first got here in November, and I've borrowed a meter randomly on and off since then. Everything coming out of the RO/DI is in line. I've never tested going into the RO/DI though.

What part of the pump do you see as not being reefsafe? The pump I'm using is supposedly designed for reef/saltwater usage.

I'm not interested in doing any dosing. I don't have the time, and I think it would kill my patience and love for the hobby. I don't want reefkeeping to become a chore.

just the insides of the old pump looked a little grungie but i dont know if those parts even touch water anyway, it seems strange to me that the pump would burn out. if those pumps have any oil in them either for cooling or lube i would assume thier is a chance that something from the pump was leakin in the water since the pump was leaking water almost from the start and then al of a sudden it fries on you.

i didnt really look but i assume you have been keeping an eye on the temperature

most pumps for my understanding ( vortech, tunzes) both use vaseline to test there products with. i believe it was randy on reefcentral stated that vaseline is very inert in saltwater and will not react with the water. Unless its other forms of oil, the oils you find inside your powerheads are very inert. I even add vaseline to my pumps and have no SPS casualties.

Thats a very interesting fact. I never knew that. I always just kind of assumed something inert like silicone lubricant was used. Thanks for sharing!

A bit of a photo update. I apologize for the quality of the photos, I'm not used to the P&S camera I've borrowed. Today I changed out my luminarc reflector back to my batwing. The theory is that my reflector is causing my MH to burn the SPS I have in the system.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020572.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020573.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020575.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020580.jpg

The SPS I'm trying not to kill
http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020581.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020582.jpg

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b2...a/P1020583.jpg

After this MH reflector test my next step is picking up another ORP monitor (one that isn't broken), and then after that a ozonier.

Well this final SPS experiment has failed. I was away last night when I cam back this afternoon everything looks horrible. I do not expect anything to last until Wednesday.

digi: some polyp extension, all flesh below has come off
acro: flesh is gone, its a white skeleton with a few pieces of skin
cap: white and dead
stag; some flesh, doesn't appeared to have changed in two days.

Next step is ORP & Ozone. After that this tank will be shut down when my 180g goes online in a month or so.

This tank is officially down. I needs to be cleaned, and disassembled, but its out for the count. I feel very relieved to know that I don't have to fight with it anymore, and that I can stop stressing about what the next issue will be.

I will post the tank up for sale, assuming someone who has already called dibs does not want it.

On the account that I have had no less the 8, yes 8, buyers back out on the purchase of this system let me clarify why this system couldn't keep sps.

1) The rock seemed to have lost one of its essential bacteria populations. Adding in new live rock solved the issue at the end.
2) The flow was too much with a 3600gph Reeflo Dart pump for young SPS frags.

If you look at my new 180g system, all the same rock is now in that system, and keeping SPS alive with no problems.