ZEOvit/200G Build Journal - 34G Solana - Page 24

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**231** 02-16-2009, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wisesam

Hey Justin,
Where did you get the poles for the lights? I need something like that for my 45G cube.

Home Depot. Should be in the electrical section. Just ask for conduit piping and fittings. Make sur eyou get a pipe cutter too

Or you can borrow mine if you like. I think they are only about $12.

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**232** 02-16-2009, 10:55 PM

I have decided to try an HQI ballast with my 400 watt 20K's instead of the regular ballast I have been using. Should burn the bulbs a bit whiter.

So I picked up the same ballast today (PFO dual 400 watts) but the HQI version. I will see if I am able to get good pictues of the difference when I get home.

Anyone else running 20K SE bulbs on an HQI ballast? I am curious to know what you think.

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**233** 02-19-2009, 04:14 AM

Haven't hooked up the new ballast yet to check the color difference but I have started the transfer

Just took the sump off line from the old tank and got it under the new stand. Then I was able to put in the vertical center support of the stand and start to fill the tank up. For now I have about 30G from the sump in the new tank and about 20G of new water. I also have added the "new" LR that I had been cycling for the past month. Tomorrow I am going to go ahead and move everything else over and hopefully get the sump hooked up. Might be Friday though before everything is running properly...I have a lot of work to catch up on

One thing I wasn't sure what to do with was the ZEO reactor. So I have it in a rubbermaid of tank water and a bit of LR. Its just turned on for now. Is this a good or bad idea? I figured I should keep it going to preserve the bacteria colonies in the rocks until I get it hooked back up in the new sump.

I won't be able to take pics for a few days except with my Camera Phone since my fiance is down in LA for work again and took the camera

On a side note though, she is doing the make up for a Calvin Klein shoot! I am very proud of her

Its kind of the first real big time freelance job she has had outside of working on TV shows or movies.

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**234** 02-19-2009, 04:36 AM

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**235** 02-19-2009, 04:53 AM

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**236** 02-19-2009, 04:55 AM

Anyone know why the XM 20K bulbs are getting such LOW PAR ratings on Sanjays charts??? I was told they are one of the better 20K bulbs all around. Well them and the Radiums but after checking what they are putting out with my ballast (or any ballast on the list), I am finding them to be incredibly low. The Radiums would have been a much better choice

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**237** 02-24-2009, 05:13 PM

Some room and tank shots from this morning. Lights don't come on until 3pm though

The blue light is just temporary for the pics, so you could see something at least. Everything is done including sump and plumbing but I still don't quite have enough water made to run the sump yet

I was able to test the system and had no problems but the sump still needs about 30 more gallons or so. Otherwise its loud and filled with micro bubbles. I will take some pics of the sump later today.

Thats Home Depot you see across the street. The windows you can see in the home depot building are about 20' up and people are not able to look right into our place

I was looking at this last picture and though it looks like we have a building across from us that look directly in...that would SUCK. Its just windows to bring light into Home Depot. Actually I think maybe those windows are for Home Sense or Winners...Hmmmm...either way people don't use them

Rbacchiega · #**238** 02-24-2009, 05:22 PM

Looking good! I LOVE your pad and furniture (that's right, I called it a pad). I might have missed it, but are you runnig zeo right from the get-go on this one?

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**239** 02-24-2009, 05:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rbacchiega

Looking good! I LOVE your pad and furniture (that's right, I called it a pad). I might have missed it, but are you runnig zeo right from the get-go on this one?

Thanks!

Yes I am. But I guess since everything is already transfered over, I am still not starting from the beginning with ZEO. I would love to do a ZEO tank one day where I start from the cycle with it. It would be interesting to see how that would go.

I have ZERO cyano now (will take some shots soon as the lights come on) and will dose coral snow and lots of BAK right away this time. I am going to do my best to make sure I don't get cyano this time.

I have been reading on the ZEO forum about how NOT to get cyano and it seems that starting with the snow right away and going really easy on the ZEOstart works. Because I have also noticed that for most people running ZEO, its not easy to rid the tank of cyano after its started. I was able to do it a few weeks back with the old tank but I don't know if I would get that lucky again. One of the things that I think helped was that I stopped feeding greasy foods like mysis (which is apparently just like candy to the fish anyways). I just feed fresh clams, prawns, mussels, squid all blended together, as well as pellets and nori.

I do have to feed some mysis again though because I picked up a new copperband from a Canreef member that is eating mysis. I also have a new Orange spotted goby that only seems interested in mysis.

GreenSpottedPuffer · #**240** 02-24-2009, 05:59 PM

Not that much to see under the stand. Its a real mess of cords right now but here we go:

The doors slide on drawer sliders like I said earlier. Thanks Lastlight for this idea!

The right side. Plumbing, skimmer, ZEO reactor...thats it.

The left side. Ballast with fans, ATO can and my controller will be somewhere in that mess.

The nicest thing about ZEO so far has been the lack of equipment

I have only run ZEO a few months but its the best thing I have done for my tanks. Obviously it has helped the nutrient levels in the tank and colored up the corals nicely but as an added bonus, it eliminated so much equipment from my sump! Its nice not to have to worry about much.