Looking for ongoing advice.

ReefingRelic · May 23, 2023

tidepoolinkansas

I have benefited for years from the information at Reef2Reef but I never became a member. Now I need more personalized help. The wealth of information available here is overwhelming. In an effort to simplify things for myself I am in search of a few mentors. Like most newbies I need a few “been there, done that” guys/gals to consult with before making key decisions. I’m currently in the final stages of planning and accumulating equipment so soon it will be time to actually start the building process.

So, if you or someone you know wouldn’t mind sharing your reefing thoughts and experiences with a relative newbie please reach out to me. I don’t have any specific questions at the moment but would like to establish contacts with few fellow reefers before I do.

I am especially interested in finding a mentor in the Kansas City area, I’m in Topeka.

Goal: 180 gallon LPS dominated Reef Tank

Experience: 8 years in reefing then 10 years out and then back into reefing 3 years ago

Current Tank(s): 30 year old 70 gallon Oceanic tank in the process of being replaced by a “newer” 70 gallon Oceanic. This will become a FOWLR.

Primary Equipment: Varios 8 (circulation), Varios 8 (closed loop), Varios 6 (UV), Hybrid Lighting with 4 AI Primes, 2 - 6125 Tunze powerheads, 40 gallon sump, DC skimmer, roller mat, 20 gallon refugium, 40 watt UV, 40 gallon ATO and 20 gallon kalkwasser (switch?), and a 180 gallon, dual overflow, acrylic tank

Timfish · May 23, 2023

Welcome!

(You already got a partial list of my links

)

ReefingRelic · May 24, 2023

Hello!
Borneman is so very correct. But, I have to disagree with Moe. Considering reef tanks as captive ecosystems has been used by scientific researchers for many years and it works - and works well. Reef tanks are a form of ecosystem. Despite this there has been very little hard core science based research regarding reef tank ecosystems. However, more than 50 years of research about natural marine reef ecosystems is available to assist reefers in making decisions about our reef tanks. As more research data accumulates on reef tank ecosystems and natural coral reef ecosystems, the more we may draw on the data of researchers, divers, and natural historians to help explain what happens in our reef tanks.

I can’t quote anything from my college instructors but they were both key figures in coral reef biology. But you may have read their work too. They were both regular speakers at ICRS (International Coral Reef Symposium)

Daphne Fautin: University of Kansas Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Ph.D. and her husband Robert W. Buddemeier; coral reef researcher from University of Kansas and the University of Hawaii. I spent 2 weeks with then doing research near Key Largo at John Pennekamp coral reef way back in 2000. They were reef geeks.