cracker
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Hey Paul , You've been busy ! Nice "big" room. Folks You see all the electric receptacles & power supply he's got in there ? That's a lot of work . Glad to hear things are progressing for Ya !
Moving 47 year old reef 60 miles. OMG
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Crabby48, I know about broken legs and I feel for you. Many years ago on a different planet I broke my leg in 3 places while skiing just after the ski lift was turned off for the night so the ski patrol, (after they found me probably from my screaming) had to ski me down the mountain on a sled. They brought me to the aid station and my wife was so hysterical that they had to give her a shot. I said, whats wrong with this picture? I broke my leg and you are giving her a shot. I was out of work for 7 months but I loved it (after the pain subsided)
A few weeks before I was working on a job on Roosevelt Island in Manhattan. We were building high rise concrete apartment buildings and our lay out man made a huge mistake and laid out the ceiling light box for the kitchens to be in the center of the room. But he forgot to allow two feet for the cabinets so these 4" X 6" boxes had to be chopped out of the concrete along with the pipes.
There were 14 of these on a floor and the building was 26 floors. My boss was going nuts because it was a huge mistake and each one would take a day to do.
My boss was a really sweet old guy, one of the best men I ever met. As a matter of fact, he was Jewish but looked like an Italian Gangster so his hobby was appearing in gangster films as a bad guy. He didn't have any talking parts because he sounded like a Jew.
Anyway, I asked him for some time to build something. I was an apprentice at the time. I built a concrete, ceiling chopping machine in a couple of hours. The thing cost nothing because I used tools and things we had on the job. It took less than an hour to chop out each box and pipe so when I broke my leg, he paid me off the books for 7 months. Now that's a boss. I know I saved him a few hundred thousand dollars, but he didn't have to do anything.
A guy from a commercial chopping company heard about the machine and came to the job to see it and take pictures.
I used the same machine years later when I installed the fire alarm system on 102 floors of the Empire State building.
Cracker I put over 22 receptacles in my workshop so far and it isn't enough. The fish tank takes up many of those. I hardly started on my garage workshop yet and I already added 7 there .
A few weeks before I was working on a job on Roosevelt Island in Manhattan. We were building high rise concrete apartment buildings and our lay out man made a huge mistake and laid out the ceiling light box for the kitchens to be in the center of the room. But he forgot to allow two feet for the cabinets so these 4" X 6" boxes had to be chopped out of the concrete along with the pipes.
There were 14 of these on a floor and the building was 26 floors. My boss was going nuts because it was a huge mistake and each one would take a day to do.
My boss was a really sweet old guy, one of the best men I ever met. As a matter of fact, he was Jewish but looked like an Italian Gangster so his hobby was appearing in gangster films as a bad guy. He didn't have any talking parts because he sounded like a Jew.
Anyway, I asked him for some time to build something. I was an apprentice at the time. I built a concrete, ceiling chopping machine in a couple of hours. The thing cost nothing because I used tools and things we had on the job. It took less than an hour to chop out each box and pipe so when I broke my leg, he paid me off the books for 7 months. Now that's a boss. I know I saved him a few hundred thousand dollars, but he didn't have to do anything.
A guy from a commercial chopping company heard about the machine and came to the job to see it and take pictures.
I used the same machine years later when I installed the fire alarm system on 102 floors of the Empire State building.
Cracker I put over 22 receptacles in my workshop so far and it isn't enough. The fish tank takes up many of those. I hardly started on my garage workshop yet and I already added 7 there .
Crabby48
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Paul B don’t feel for me. The hard part is sitting around and not working for the first time in my life. The bad part is this time I don’t have a cool story.
You did a lot of stuff in the short time you been alive but how did you become so knowledgeable in the aquarium side of things?
Was it from being a hobby or did you work in the marine field?
You did a lot of stuff in the short time you been alive but how did you become so knowledgeable in the aquarium side of things?
Was it from being a hobby or did you work in the marine field?
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Crabby My Dad had a seafood market so i grew up surrounded by crabs, clams lobsters etc. I used to put my army soldiers on the tiles surrounded by sawdust that in those days was dumped on the floor to keep the fish slime off. It's illegal now because of lawyers.
Anyway, The crabs would run over my soldiers and I would shoot them with my little cannon. Crabs hate that. I would go to the Fulton Fish Market with my Dad and play with the fish and giant live turtles that were on the sidewalk waiting to become soup. The fishing boats would dump the fish on the sidewalk from the ships. Some times I would find a small fish or crab that was still alive and I would bring it home and put it in a bucket.
I have always had a tank of some kind. I had frogs, turtles, newts and always fish. It's in my blood. Now with the internet it is much harder because there is so much information, most of it wrong.
Learning the hard way is so much better. Today there are so many problems with algae, ich, cyano and those things are so much of a non issue that I rarely go on those types of threads because of the information I feel is wrong. I guess I am living in my own little world, but it is a world devoid of any fishy problems or diseases. I find it so easy but people seem to want to make it complicated.
I don't know if I have an interesting story tonight as I told so many and forget which forum I told it on.
When I had my broken leg and was out for 7 months I loved it. I made miniature houses. People brought me pictures of their summer home or log cabin, beach house or something like that and I would reproduce the inside exactly like the picture. Furniture, Christmas tree and all. I sold them all and business was booming. I loved building them.
Now I am making steampunk stuff and they are all also sold. I love doing this stuff even without a broken leg. I am getting a new knee in Dec so i will again have fun doing sitting down stuff.
In a few weeks I will be speaking at the Library here about Viet Nam. I also spoke a few times in aquarium clubs in DC and California. I will speak about anything because I am not shy. Bald, irritating, controversial and stubborn but not shy.
Here I am at a function for Veterans with some Steampunk stuff.
Anyway, The crabs would run over my soldiers and I would shoot them with my little cannon. Crabs hate that. I would go to the Fulton Fish Market with my Dad and play with the fish and giant live turtles that were on the sidewalk waiting to become soup. The fishing boats would dump the fish on the sidewalk from the ships. Some times I would find a small fish or crab that was still alive and I would bring it home and put it in a bucket.
I have always had a tank of some kind. I had frogs, turtles, newts and always fish. It's in my blood. Now with the internet it is much harder because there is so much information, most of it wrong.
Learning the hard way is so much better. Today there are so many problems with algae, ich, cyano and those things are so much of a non issue that I rarely go on those types of threads because of the information I feel is wrong. I guess I am living in my own little world, but it is a world devoid of any fishy problems or diseases. I find it so easy but people seem to want to make it complicated.
I don't know if I have an interesting story tonight as I told so many and forget which forum I told it on.
When I had my broken leg and was out for 7 months I loved it. I made miniature houses. People brought me pictures of their summer home or log cabin, beach house or something like that and I would reproduce the inside exactly like the picture. Furniture, Christmas tree and all. I sold them all and business was booming. I loved building them.
Now I am making steampunk stuff and they are all also sold. I love doing this stuff even without a broken leg. I am getting a new knee in Dec so i will again have fun doing sitting down stuff.
In a few weeks I will be speaking at the Library here about Viet Nam. I also spoke a few times in aquarium clubs in DC and California. I will speak about anything because I am not shy. Bald, irritating, controversial and stubborn but not shy.
Here I am at a function for Veterans with some Steampunk stuff.
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Love the steam punk lights Paul.. thank you for sharing
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Paul B
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Thank you, I love building them and love it better when someone else likes them.
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Very cool stuff there!
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Thanks, I appreciate it.
All of that stuff sold in a gallery in Manhattan and Lenox mass. I kept one of the fish and a steamship blimp and porcupine fish for myself.
All of that stuff sold in a gallery in Manhattan and Lenox mass. I kept one of the fish and a steamship blimp and porcupine fish for myself.
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It's been about 4 months and it's time for an update. I think this tank move was a success and it was the second tank move for this tank and it is the third glass it is in. It started in 1971 in a 40 gallon tank, then in about 1979 I moved from our tiny apartment and upgraded and moved everything into a 100 gallon tank . Then 4 months ago I again moved and put it all in the 125 gallon tank as the old 100 gallon was to scratched and I couldn't get it out of the wall in the old house. The gravel, water and everything else was always moved with me to the new location. Some of the gravel has been in there since the 60s and probably there are things in there from the 50s.
Once in a while I will find a marble, a piece from a plastic soldier or Lionel train.
I didn't lose any livestock during the move although some of the corals got buried and lost some of their tips. I also can't find one of my anemone crabs but he may be in there someplace. I see two of them but I had more.
Since this tank is larger I needed to add more corals and a good friend of mine gave me a bunch of pulsing Zinia and other very cool stuff that has been thriving beyond my wildest dreams. Well, not the wildest ones as they involve a flounder, bowling pin and a bottle of Rogaine.
My bluestripe pipefish, (which are new) are pregnant and probably gave birth last night. My old pair which I had before the move had problems. My Janss pipefish which is 3 times the size of the bluestripes bit the male bluestripe almost in half and he only lived a few weeks after that and the female died of old age as they only live a few years and she was well past her lifespan. I have two teenager bluestripes now and so far the Janss leaves them alone.
My male mandarin is a little overweight and I have not had time to hatch a single brine shrimp since I have been here. I think he gets "Take Out" besides the white worms and other stuff he finds. He is also kind of old. I forget how old, but old.
The tank went through the normal algae cycle which ended and now some of it is growing again. I don't think of this as a bad thing, just a normal, natural thing as I want a short growth of algae and sponges to cover the rocks as is happening. The new algae is now growing only on the glass rocks and sides and not on the corals. Healthy corals can convince algae to grow someplace else and most of it grows on my algae scrubber.
I haven't changed any water since I set up the tank but I will try to collect some soon, it is very windy today so I can't collect it unless I want to go swimming. I put my boat on dry dock yesterday and this year I didn't hardly collect mud which I like to add but I can probably still get some of that from the shore here. I also didn't hardly get any wild amphipods this year. I am in a new location and can't find any yet. But I will.
I am volunteering at the Long Island Aquarium here and see if I can get any mud or amphipods there or at the back of the place which is where I keep my boat.
The tank is still very natural and extremely easy and cheap to maintain. I throw in some calcium and alk occasionally and clean the glass, that's about all my maintenance. I feed almost every day with some clam or LRS food and live white worms as I can't get blackworms here.
For the anthius, and pipefish I use Cyclopeze which they go nuts for and those fish are all fat and have beautiful colors and fins.
I still use my skimmer and now installed a much smaller ozonizer than I like, but I made a mistake when I bought it. I thought it put out 200mg/hr but it only puts out 50. It should be enough to at least discourage some growth of worms inside the skimmer because I built the thing and I can't really chop them out of there.
My above the tank algae scrubber grows algae almost an inch thick every two weeks which is perfect but I only have a trickle of water going into my reverse undergravel filter and I would like a little more flow. I need to re think my plumbing to make that happen.
All the corals, including the SPS and sponges are growing very well and I doubt they could grow faster. I do almost nothing to the tank because I am constantly building and re designing our new home although it is a brand new building. I don't like they way people do things so I am changing almost everything around, including walls.
In short, I am happy with everything
Once in a while I will find a marble, a piece from a plastic soldier or Lionel train.
I didn't lose any livestock during the move although some of the corals got buried and lost some of their tips. I also can't find one of my anemone crabs but he may be in there someplace. I see two of them but I had more.
Since this tank is larger I needed to add more corals and a good friend of mine gave me a bunch of pulsing Zinia and other very cool stuff that has been thriving beyond my wildest dreams. Well, not the wildest ones as they involve a flounder, bowling pin and a bottle of Rogaine.
My bluestripe pipefish, (which are new) are pregnant and probably gave birth last night. My old pair which I had before the move had problems. My Janss pipefish which is 3 times the size of the bluestripes bit the male bluestripe almost in half and he only lived a few weeks after that and the female died of old age as they only live a few years and she was well past her lifespan. I have two teenager bluestripes now and so far the Janss leaves them alone.
My male mandarin is a little overweight and I have not had time to hatch a single brine shrimp since I have been here. I think he gets "Take Out" besides the white worms and other stuff he finds. He is also kind of old. I forget how old, but old.
The tank went through the normal algae cycle which ended and now some of it is growing again. I don't think of this as a bad thing, just a normal, natural thing as I want a short growth of algae and sponges to cover the rocks as is happening. The new algae is now growing only on the glass rocks and sides and not on the corals. Healthy corals can convince algae to grow someplace else and most of it grows on my algae scrubber.
I haven't changed any water since I set up the tank but I will try to collect some soon, it is very windy today so I can't collect it unless I want to go swimming. I put my boat on dry dock yesterday and this year I didn't hardly collect mud which I like to add but I can probably still get some of that from the shore here. I also didn't hardly get any wild amphipods this year. I am in a new location and can't find any yet. But I will.
I am volunteering at the Long Island Aquarium here and see if I can get any mud or amphipods there or at the back of the place which is where I keep my boat.
The tank is still very natural and extremely easy and cheap to maintain. I throw in some calcium and alk occasionally and clean the glass, that's about all my maintenance. I feed almost every day with some clam or LRS food and live white worms as I can't get blackworms here.
For the anthius, and pipefish I use Cyclopeze which they go nuts for and those fish are all fat and have beautiful colors and fins.
I still use my skimmer and now installed a much smaller ozonizer than I like, but I made a mistake when I bought it. I thought it put out 200mg/hr but it only puts out 50. It should be enough to at least discourage some growth of worms inside the skimmer because I built the thing and I can't really chop them out of there.
My above the tank algae scrubber grows algae almost an inch thick every two weeks which is perfect but I only have a trickle of water going into my reverse undergravel filter and I would like a little more flow. I need to re think my plumbing to make that happen.
All the corals, including the SPS and sponges are growing very well and I doubt they could grow faster. I do almost nothing to the tank because I am constantly building and re designing our new home although it is a brand new building. I don't like they way people do things so I am changing almost everything around, including walls.
In short, I am happy with everything
Tank looks great!
Love the blue background!
Love the blue background!
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I didn't talk yet. I think it is in a couple of weeks just before my knee replacement. If you read that book, I was the Commo Chief for the 1/77th artillery.
Here is Illingworth from a helicopter.
Here is Illingworth from a helicopter.
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Looks like everything settled in well!!
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Thanks, I just took a video. The mandarin is only in the beginning for a few seconds and you can't see the bluestripe pipefish as they are giving birth and stay hidden when they do that. You also can't see the possum wrasse and two Gecko gobies that never come out. But they are there as well as a huge urchin, decorator crab, anemone crab and numerous other crabs.
sam.veilleux30
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Thanks for the video, i hope i'm still in the hobby when i get your age
Careful with the pulsing xenia, they tend to take the whole tank eventually, the look of it is nice but when it's not what you want...
Does your clown nip your fingers? She seem to have some "pep" in the video, maybe she dont like to be filmed.
Careful with the pulsing xenia, they tend to take the whole tank eventually, the look of it is nice but when it's not what you want...
Does your clown nip your fingers? She seem to have some "pep" in the video, maybe she dont like to be filmed.
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