lastlight's 404

[lastlight]

Originally Posted by Skimmer King

Hey buddy your tank is stellar man the colors are so friggin cool and that pink milli WOW!!!!!!!!!!

Well done brett

That's actually my red planet lol. Looks a lot like a hot pink prostrata for some reason which is fine with me!

[Dez]

Tank is looking fantastic Brett!

[muck]

Tank sure is looking good these days Brett... keep farming out those fuzzy sticks.

[Lance]

Filling in very nicely Brett. I forget what you're running for lighting; but it's a good choice: The colours really pop.

[lastlight]

Thanks guys. I do plan to add a few more fish but mostly small ones. I lost my neon goby without a trace and would like a pair someday. He may have succumbed to the ich that's in my tank I'm not sure. Only in the last month has my Kole been purple again (was a ghostly white) and my maculiceps looking this good. He also recently started eating nori (sheet a day) which probably helps. I'm going a full year without adding any new livestock to lt the ich run their course and then I'll qt all new livestock.

Originally Posted by Lance

Filling in very nicely Brett. I forget what you're running for lighting; but it's a good choice: The colours really pop.

Still rockin' 4 250W radiums Lance along with a row of 20k and 14k bulbs front and back. I think they're ATIs but I can't even remember now LOL.

[gregzz4]

You may think the growth is slow but it still looks great in there. What a difference a few months makes. I'm glad to see the HA under control - big improvement on the whole experience from here !
Great pics

[lastlight]

So I finally did some tests last night:

Ca - 350
Alk - 10.5
Mg - 1500!

I haven't dosed Mg in ages so Reef Crystals must be high or I need a new kit. Since RC is for sure high in Ca the reduced water changes seems to have lead to a lowered Ca level which I think (I'm not a chemistry guy) means that the corals can't use Alk so the previously acceptable dose was more than needed.

I'm actually sorta stoked with these findings... maybe once I get them back in line growth will return to where it was before.

Originally Posted by gregzz4

I'm glad to see the HA under control - big improvement on the whole experience from here !

Nothing more unsightly than HA. I've gone through it before and I've finally learned to calm down, be patient and do what you can.

[Delphinus]

Originally Posted by lastlight

So I finally did some tests last night:

Ca - 350
Alk - 10.5
Mg - 1500!

I haven't dosed Mg in ages so Reef Crystals must be high or I need a new kit. Since RC is for sure high in Ca the reduced water changes seems to have lead to a lowered Ca level which I think (I'm not a chemistry guy) means that the corals can't use Alk so the previously acceptable dose was more than needed.

Weird. I don't get that kind of Mg reading my Reef Crystals, I get more like 1150. (I have to add a fair bit to get my w/c water to 1500, which nicely keeps up with Mg consumption to leave the tank at around 1400). I wonder if your kit is off.

IMO, nothing hugely wrong with Mg at 1500. Higher than ocean readings but some things seem to really appreciate Mg around there (I can tell by looking at my anemones if my Mg drops down to 1100 or lower).

Alk is a *little* high and Ca maybe a *little* low but quite within tolerances. I'd adjust my Alk dosing downwards and my Ca upwards by a tiny bit and see how things go from there.

[freezetyle]

Originally Posted by lastlight

Nothing more unsightly than HA. I've gone through it before and I've finally learned to calm down, be patient and do what you can.

Great advice, this is something need to learn.

Tanks looking great, I really like how everything pops against the new background