Filling her up
 

Well, after my tank water LOVES to evaporate, i am forced to top it off each and everyu night (loose about 3 gallons in the day). I don't have the $$$ to buy a pump and auto-top off system, nor do i have the means to keep a RO system going right now (can't set one up in the apartment).

As it stands, i have been adding dechlorinated water (using seachem prime) and it has been working fine. Does anyone foresee any isses using dechlorinated water? I honestly can't think there is any harm as i have already noticed that my fuzzy mushroom coral and borwn polyps are growing quite well and extremely happy. Also, as of tonight, i have also noticed that there is 3 purple mushrooms growning on the LR that i got. I didn't even know that there was any around this rock. I just looked today and there was 3 mushrooms, one is the size of a dime right now and have some bright neon green spots on it (looks healthy).

Any ideas in Calgary on where to get a small auto top off system? Thanks

You are correct. You're SUPPOSED to use dechlorinated water anyway.

You are losing 3 gallons out of 50g in a single day???

My open, 300g system with over 1000 watts of lighting, and close to 500 watts of internal pumps loses 4-5 gallons per day.......

But anyhow, RODI or distilled water from the grocery store in 5g jugs would be better, but lugging 1 of those almost every day would suck.

Use the dechlorinated water for now obviously, but long term save up for an RODI and top off system.

My 40G evaps close to 5G a day when its this hot. :sad:

I picked up an Auto-Top-Off off of AB Aquatics. It works great and best of all its only $50 tax in. Add an old powerhead and a small length of tubing (everyone has these lying around) and an empty 5G salt pail and you are good to go. You still have to top off the bucket everyday but the tank level and params are more stable this way.

http://www.abaquatics.com/

Wow! Maybe I am just "lucky". I don't need any fans blowing across my water, maybe that helps reduce evaporation.

1. Your tank is in the basement.
2. The fans are the biggest contributor to evap.

:wink:

Yeah probably with my big surface area of water because of my big sump, I don't need the fans for cooling. And yes it is in the basement.

I had a 110 and 50 with no sumps in a second story apartment during the summer and don't remember high evaporation though, but again, no fans across the water at all, my lighting was seperated from the tank so there was little/no heat transfer.

The salinity swings without auto-top off of 10% evaporation per day must be pretty significant?

This is what I expected when I first got into Marine aquarium keeping, without an auto top-off, 1 1/2 years ago. But, IME, 10% evaporation caused an increase of only about 0.001 - 0.002 SG.

Cheers:smile:,

Thats not too bad at all.

I get about a 0.01 - 0.015 swing with SG it seems.

If i can get these lights hung from the ceiling (or raised higher with wood or something) then i THINK i will be ok ... i am thinking maybe another 4" or so.

anyways, i will look into that top off system. Gonna Need something but at least it will be a help!