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FarmerTy's 215 build


FarmerTy

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Ty , I just got my Hanna alk meter and compared against a brand new Red Sea kit (see http://www.austinreefclub.com/topic/32866-hanna-alk-versus-red-sea-pro/?hl=%2Bhanna+%2Bversus+%2Bred+%2Bsea).

I would be happy to trade a red sea alk test of your water for a calibration run of my alk meter using your standard ..., I had been wanting to use your phosphate standard on my meter someday too ...

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Houston, we have phosphate! I don't know why the city of Houston needed to know that but I told it anyways.

I just tested and got a good solid reading of 0.06 ppm of phosphate. Looks like it's time to put some GFO back online. It actually makes me feel good to see phosphate levels slowly increasing in my system again. Makes me feel like there's nothing wrong with it now since I don't have a disappearing phosphate problem.

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In other news, finally got around to installing that autofeeder I bought a year ago. Since it was just dropping the food on the surface where it immediately floated into my overflows, I put together a nifty little contraption made of the top of a water bottle, a seaweed clip, and generous amounts of super glue. The Mcguyver skills are strong with this one. I couldn't figure out a way to get a paperclip in there or duct tape but he'd be proud of the final product either way.

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You can see the pellets sitting there at the surface and soaking up the water first and then sinking so that the fish can feed.

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Fish population approved!

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I put in a mix of AlgaeMax pellets, NLS pellets, and Hikari seaweed extreme pellets for their feasting. The feeder turns on at 5pm, 8pm, and 11pm and does two rotations during each interval. I've just officially put myself out of a job... but at least I can still earn some keep cleaning the glass and emptying the skimmer cup. [emoji16]

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I figured he's got so much to nip at that if he ever did start, it wouldn't do so much damage since he's going to be spreading the wealth amongst a lot of sps frags and colonies.

It's the same mentality I have on tangs. Blitz them with too many options to attack that no fish gets singled out.

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Autofeeder Mcguyver skills fail!

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Some water must have gotten into it... otherwise, there's no way the pellets should have stuck there. I'll chalk it up to a fluke, clean it up, and let it be.

Got a decent shot of the clownfish eggs... you can see their eyes and egg yolk.

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Interesting observation, I've been seeing my male urchins releasing gametes into the water for some time now the last couple of months. It just basically looks like they are smoking. What I have never witnessed though was a female releasing eggs. Then the other day, I saw one urchin perch really high and grab on to an sps branch and the live rock (like a spider in the middle of its web) and start pulsing all its tentacles towards the center and then back out... over and over. It was amazingly coordinated... all in the center, and then push out. It was almost hypnotic. I wish I had recorded it but my phone was dead. While trying to figure out what it was doing, I started seeing little tiny eggs coming out by the hundreds. Then I observed all my sps release their mesenterial filaments... a basic feeding response. Very interesting to catch in action. It's exciting to have my own urchin SPS autofeeder system.

Btw, I'm enamored by the flame angel I added. The first two days he was entirely covered in ich... I mean on the fins, flesh, everywhere! By day 3 he was completely clear. This is where I tend to stick to my thought that ich is temporary if all conditions are in-line in your tank and there are no additional stressors such as an aggressive tankmate. Just leave them be, feed lots, and it'll be alright. After getting him, I had the realization that all my fish tend to just swim, swim, and swim... looking for food... grazing here and there. He's the only fish I have that fills the niche of cruising the rocks all day and picking at the algae and pods. The mandarins are similar but are on the less exciting side and more the beautiful delicate side. The flame angel is just shooting about always looking for a snack... cruising in and out of crevices... his activity level is hypnotizing. Great buy!

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