Ash's 400 Gallon Reef

[fishface NJ]

@Ashish Patel my power just came back on. How about yours?

 

[Ashish Patel]

@Ashish Patel my power just came back on. How about yours?

Sorry just seen your msg. I got power back Sunday night so about 60 hours without power. The generator saved my tank. I am so happy I purchased it before the big snow storm in February. I know for a fact if I didnt have it I would've lost all my fish by hour 12. They where pretty much cooked the tank was smelling. All sorts of bacteria issues were happening. I actually have to add a new sub panel to my house for electric car charger so since I already have to add a new sub panel I asked the electrician to run the first floor power and fish tank to the sub panel and add a switch to a generator port outside. This way I dont have to use extensions cords. I was waiting on my cousin to help me do it but I want to get permits and do it right. Ive become increasingly worried about a house fire lately and having claims issues bc I didnt get permits for my tank. I did hire a license electrician though but want to get it all on record correctly for the unexpected

How is your tank doing? You lost power for alot longer it seems.

 

[Ashish Patel]

Sitting without power as well. Had to buy another generator because the big one I recently bought to power the house (50A) kept tripping no matter which outlets we used (thankfully it'll be warrantied). Tested everything to realize it's definitely the generator. Had to use 30A adapter so the fridge wouldn't keep tripping the 20A GFCI circuits. Tank is running with return pump and a tunze 6255 and a small moon light to try and reduce respiration. Hoping for power restoration by tonight.

Update: got power back and everything doing well. Lesson: testing the generator (multiple times) doesn't always mean it will work when you actually need it to work. D'oh! Thankfully the backup carried us through.

Glad it worked out. Still stressful in this heat and knowing your generator can stop at anytime. I am going to turn my generator on every 1-2 months for 5 minutes it in working order and just to test it. This is my first new gas engine purchase so im determined to take care of it. I want to build a small generator shed and have it hardwired

 

[fishface NJ]

Sorry just seen your msg. I got power back Sunday night so about 60 hours without power. The generator saved my tank. I am so happy I purchased it before the big snow storm in February. I know for a fact if I didnt have it I would've lost all my fish by hour 12. They where pretty much cooked the tank was smelling. All sorts of bacteria issues were happening. I actually have to add a new sub panel to my house for electric car charger so since I already have to add a new sub panel I asked the electrician to run the first floor power and fish tank to the sub panel and add a switch to a generator port outside. This way I dont have to use extensions cords. I was waiting on my cousin to help me do it but I want to get permits and do it right. Ive become increasingly worried about a house fire lately and having claims issues bc I didnt get permits for my tank. I did hire a license electrician though but want to get it all on record correctly for the unexpected

How is your tank doing? You lost power for alot longer it seems.

Fishes were okay but the acros died.

 

[Ashish Patel]

Fishes were okay but the acros died.

Sorry to hear. Text me and I will share some acropora and monti. 267 761 1848. I have to prune frequently and I much rather share my gains with you

 

[Ashish Patel]

 

[fishface NJ]

That is so sweet of you! I'll meet up with you after school season starts. I'm leaving for University of Florida in a week to move my older daughter into her apartment. Then my youngest attends Florida State University and I again fly on Aug 14th and move her in on the 17th.

 

[Ashish Patel]

That is so sweet of you! I'll meet up with you after school season starts. I'm leaving for University of Florida in a week to move my older daughter into her apartment. Then my youngest attends Florida State University and I again fly on Aug 14th and move her in on the 17th.

Ok sounds like a plan..all the best with moving your kiddos. Are you still back and forth to Cape coral?

 

[fishface NJ]

I spend 95% of my time in NJ.

 

[Ashish Patel]

Quick update since I haven’t posted in a while.
Last month I went to Alaska, and a few days before I left I tested my alk. It was down to 4.3. I hadn’t tested it in probably 6–7 weeks. I brought it back up to 6.7 before I left and figured I’d keep an eye on it when I got back.
One thing I was concerned about was increasing my kalk dosing since I had pretty much reached the equilibrium with my evaporation rate.

Well, I tested the tank today and alk is back down to 4.4. So clearly I need to figure something out. I’m probably going to have to start dosing something else, I just don’t really want to add another doser to the system. It didnt help the kalk container ran dry when I left for vacation and yesterday. I think a few days of no alk probably is dropping it 1dkh or more per day.

On a more positive note, my Bleeding Tree Acro has been encrusting for FOUR YEARS. And I finally see three actual growth tips starting to form. So I’m pretty happy about that. Hopefully this is the beginning of it finally taking off.
Anyway, this is what the tank is looking like right now. No new corals for 3 years.. I wish I had the energy to get in the tank and move things around, find new frag trading partners.. but i feel sites make it impossible for trading so if you know anyone who wants to trade in central NJ. Hit me up 267 761 1848

 

[Ashish Patel]

Also I just added 200ml of soda ash and mixed new kalk while leaving the dosing pump on. Created a pretty noticeable haze.

 

[Ashish Patel]

I kind of like this short so figured id share

 

[fishface NJ]

How is the tank doing?

 

[That Crusso Kid]

I kind of like this short so figured id share

Looks great!

 

[Ashish Patel]

Good growth on alot of corals but cant seem to grow tenius and zoas. Most of the corals I really want to grow seem to not like my tank. I dont spend that much time on maintenance.. hardly anytime so happy things are even growing

 

[Ashish Patel]

Current tank shots. I need some new acros and lps to fill in the lower light areas...its just expensive replacing corals after losing probably 50 or so over the years

 

[Ashish Patel]

Anyone in central NJ who has corals to trade pls let me know.

 

[McPuff]

It still looks pretty full! And you have some really nice big colonies. But I know what you mean... I have a ton of rock showing in my tank right now due to losing a lot of sps last year. Just remember that actual reef coverage in nature (~30%) is generally not as high as in many reef tanks. So you can say that you're going for a natural look.

 

[Ashish Patel]

It still looks pretty full! And you have some really nice big colonies. But I know what you mean... I have a ton of rock showing in my tank right now due to losing a lot of sps last year. Just remember that actual reef coverage in nature (~30%) is generally not as high as in many reef tanks. So you can say that you're going for a natural look.

Thanks. I also cant seem to grow millies. I have one that was growing and then got broken of and just barely getting by. I've never gotten my nitrate below 40ppm even with my best effort. It was at 300ppm at one point. I have to dose phosphates. Its a weird situation If I bump up the vodka it creates alot of problems with slime. I think if I could get the nitrates it would be better

 

[McPuff]

A year ago my nitrates were over 200 and after adding a nitrate destroyer reactor I've been able to get it down to 30 or so (I need to test to make sure it's not much lower!). Actually 40ppm isn't a bad value at all. I have the opposite problem with phosphates so I continue to use GFO to reduce them (also need to test again!).

I have typically had the same issue not being able to keep millepora... although I currently have 2 and they have been doing really well for a couple of months. Staying colorful and fuzzy! I really don't know why though. But I'm at the point where I will just keep whatever is doing well and not sweat the rest of it. I like the look of a smaller number of big colonies so whatever corals give me that reef will stay in my tank.