Tips and Tricks 101

[albert_dao]

I'll play.

- Microfibre cloths are a cheap and effective way to get a streak free clean up on your glass. Just make sure to prewipe with a damp rag. No detergents are necessary.

- 8" personal fans move a lot more air than computer fans and can be nearly just as quiet if you get the right one. They're also prewired and have a built in setting dial.

- When planning out a rock scape, draw it out first. Then figure out how you can support your aquascape with PVC. This pretty much eliminates the need for "base rock" and creates a much more open reef structure.

- Soak crushed coral in RO/DI water for three weeks with a complete water change each week. Make sure it's aerated. Ever see that fancy and expensive reactor media for the Schuran reactors? Well congrats, you just made a bunch of it cheap.

I'll put more later on as I remember.

[kwirky]

here are some of my tips:

keep important building materials on hand at all times. IE: 1/4" glass, acrylic, silicone, PVC piping & elbos, egg crate, etc. You never know when inspiration might hit

Oh, and PVC piping can do neat things if you cut it lengthwise to make original things. I made a "reflector" for a cold cathode moonlight by cutting a piece of 3/4" PVC down the length in half, then supergluing a piece of aluminum foil to the inside. Saw somone use this idea for making a metal halide hood, actually (out of 2 foot PVC)

When starting up a reef, don't be daunted by the cost of larger tanks. Doller per gallon, larger tanks are cheaper than smaller tanks. Just get the biggest tank you can for your space, because equipment for larger tanks is not much more than smaller tanks. A metal halide ballast is usually the same price, whether it's 150W or 250W, the heaters are only 10% more for the larger versions, and the pumps are almost the exact same price. The only scaling cost is the tank the liverock, and possibly the skimmer, which isn't much really.

Oh, and don't turn your tank into a fruitstand. Being an artist myself, I visually despise people who buy 1.8 lbs of liverock per gallon, and pile it against the back of their aquarium, and then display their corals rising up their rock structure laid out like a fruitstand selling goods. It's not aesthetic, doesn't look like the real reef (there's NEVER that much assortment in a 4 foot area), and it's bad for flow.

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by kwirky

Oh, and don't turn your tank into a fruitstand. Being an artist myself, I visually despise people who buy 1.8 lbs of liverock per gallon, and pile it against the back of their aquarium, and then display their corals rising up their rock structure laid out like a fruitstand selling goods. It's not aesthetic, doesn't look like the real reef (there's NEVER that much assortment in a 4 foot area), and it's bad for flow.

then being an artist you should know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and what you might find bad others might find beautiful and what you might like others might find ugly.. I don't think you really have the right to tell people how to arrange their tanks.

Steve

[SuperFudge]

Originally Posted by kwirky

and it's bad for flow.

A very important point, and one often overlooked i think.

If you look at the largest Aquascaping threads on many of the larger boards, many have stated what they find distracting, and i dont think Sean or anyone on those topics meant to slam anyone.

these threads include many saying simple things like take the damn magnet off there, or clean up the cords, or hide the plumbing....it is all opinion and personal taste here.
But if i could be honest, i too find things like that distracting.

Not to mention even taking the time to Design a structure in the first place.
I have a hard time myself dumping piles of money and time into it, and not paying close attention to the backdrop of the whole scene,wether its practical or aesthetics in mind.

Ive dumped enouph money into this system to build a hotrod or a bike, so if i did, i certainly wouldnt have completed the project and left original white walls on.

Cmon, Pick that brain of yours Steve and add something you think others may use on their system...

Keep em comin, i dont care if they are bad or good according to the next, let the readers decide what to disregard.

[trilinearmipmap]

OK here is my tip.

Make a feeding device for feeding corals and anemones. Take a 30 cc syringe and some rigid clear plastic tubing about 1/4" diameter. Crazy glue the syringe to one end of the tubing. Heat the other end of the tubing and put a bend in it like a hockey stick. It works just like a turkey baster only longer.

My other tip is be nice to people and you will get free frags.

[StirCrazy]

Originally Posted by Fudge

Cmon, Pick that brain of yours Steve and add something you think others may use on their system...

Ok here is a simple one and a different way of doing something you said at he beginning.. if you want to bend PVC of any size and can't find a spring or don't want to buy one, fill it with sand tightly and cap the ends, then bend with heat slowly and let cool. cut off the amount of the bend you need and save the sand for the next one.

Steve

[Skimmerking]

Originally Posted by kwirky

Oh, and don't turn your tank into a fruitstand. Being an artist myself, I visually despise people who buy 1.8 lbs of liverock per gallon, and pile it against the back of their aquarium, and then display their corals rising up their rock structure laid out like a fruitstand selling goods. It's not aesthetic, doesn't look like the real reef (there's NEVER that much assortment in a 4 foot area), and it's bad for flow.

So this looks like a fruitstand I take It. You should pick your words before typing them out they might come out in a wrong sense that people might take offense too. In other words voicing your opinion is ok to a certain point, But stating a fact about opther people's hobbies or anything pertaining to them can be rude/..

[Skimmerking]

For Bare bottom tanks
If you are prolonging your water changes and want to suck out the crud in your tank siphoning out the crap and have a filter sock in the buck to catch the crap and when your done take out the sock and pour the water back into the sump.

[kwirky]

Originally Posted by asmodeus

So this looks like a fruitstand I take It.

*sigh* sorry if i offended somone. in art school, EVERYONE gets very emotional about their own views on what's aesthetic, and I figured we're all adults here and can take a little opinion. Opinion isn't fact, and ideas DO clash.

and i don't think your's looks like a fruitstand. not even close. Thanks for posting the pic, aesmodeus. I was meaning there's a few images lieing out there on the net where the tank looks SO packed, and there's SO many corals lieing so close to each other, touching each other. Where people just seemed to dump their liverock like dumptrucks filling in a swamp.houses. But then again, that's what the ocean looks like where our liverock is collected.

Aesthetics is such a touchy subjet

Maybe I should say that I appreciate it when somone puts the work in, and makes something with a great rock structure, or a nice ratio of corals. Or somone who forgoes the "aesthetics" and decided to work hard at a tank containing species of coral/fish from a certain region/ecosystem.

I'm not saying my idea of aesthetics is better than everyone else's. I was just saying i get dissapointed in seeing the odd tank where coral health is forgone to display as many species as possible of coral in a single glass box.

sorry if i upset anyone, now let's here some more great ideas!

[Skimmerking]

Sean that was well said. I hate those people out there that don't give a crap about things they buy for in this hobby. These species are taken out of their world and to what. To be sold to some one that who doesnt give a dam about what they buy. Like having 5-7 tangs in a 90 gal then the guy says hey look they have nice color there not fighting. Wrong!!!!!!!

With the adults thing I think its worst then kids some times. people take thing to heart to much or get offened really easy..... enough about that .....

but on another note. With me if I have a snail that dies I get bummed out call me weird, If a coral doenst look right i move it may be tha is the problem with us in this hobby were to busy making it look right for our eyes.... but i dear say there are many more people like me out there of even on this board. Lots of people love this board for many reasons to "Vent , bitch, complain, and to chat with totally different strangers and then to turn around to buy some thing from one of them unseen. and only going on there word. OPPS gettng off topic here.

Its ok to voice opinions on here, However is needs to be put out in the open that is the problem with boards people don't use the little faces in the right context. any ways not bitching at ya just was letting ya know on how or what is easier on voicing comments. SOm times they can get out of hand,

any ways I need a tea now later .


mike