Mo’s Reef 2

[lubeck]

Any updates. perhaps a current fts

 

[Mo.]

It’s doing great.

I’ll get these build photos cropped and loaded soon.

Meanwhile here’s how it looks with a few small sps starting to go in….

 

[Mo.]

The trouble with big tanks is getting nutrients into it at the start, without fuelling pest algae and cyano. It’s a fine balance. The ceramic rocks can leach silicates for a long time.

Last tank, the brown rocks were there for ages, because they leach silicates.

So here’s the thing!!….

I know that ceramics leach silicates and you get silicate algae. In my last tank, it was on and off for a couple of years!!

My commercial RO unit always worked well and this time I have an even better double membrane one.

Ok. So I’ve been doing a few icp’s.
Fauna Marin total and Oceamo ICP-MS are the best I’ve found so far.

They also offer RO water testing.


My RO water out of the pipe is Zero everything- pristine!

Just like with my last tank, I have an open top glass Ro tank- about 500L. I fill it almost every weekend.

If I send a RO sample from the RO tank (I’ve only sent it at half full level) it measures high silicone/ silicates!!
I’m wondering, can the ro absorb silicate from the Silicone, or glass or anywhere else? It’s definitely there in the RO tank and not direct from the ro unit. There is no tin etc in the ro samples, all else is clear.

I’m wondering if that is why my silicate algae lasted ages in my old system. RO water is very good at absorbing “stuff” which salt water etc doesn’t do……

I’m wondering if I should get a closed water tank instead?

What do you all do for RO storage?

 

[Mo.]

 

[lubeck]

The trouble with big tanks is getting nutrients into it at the start, without fuelling pest algae and cyano. It’s a fine balance. The ceramic rocks can leach silicates for a long time.

Last tank, the brown rocks were there for ages, because they leach silicates.

So here’s the thing!!….

I know that ceramics leach silicates and you get silicate algae. In my last tank, it was on and off for a couple of years!!

My commercial RO unit always worked well and this time I have an even better double membrane one.

Ok. So I’ve been doing a few icp’s.
Fauna Marin total and Oceamo ICP-MS are the best I’ve found so far.

They also offer RO water testing.


My RO water out of the pipe is Zero everything- pristine!

Just like with my last tank, I have an open top glass Ro tank- about 500L. I fill it almost every weekend.

If I send a RO sample from the RO tank (I’ve only sent it at half full level) it measures high silicone/ silicates!!
I’m wondering, can the ro absorb silicate from the Silicone, or glass or anywhere else? It’s definitely there in the RO tank and not direct from the ro unit. There is no tin etc in the ro samples, all else is clear.

I’m wondering if that is why my silicate algae lasted ages in my old system. RO water is very good at absorbing “stuff” which salt water etc doesn’t do……

I’m wondering if I should get a closed water tank instead?

What do you all do for RO storage

i use a 35 brute garbage can for storage with a lid so it’s cot completely sealed. but Would use a sealed water container if I had a bigger tank.

tank is looking good. Glad to see corals have been added

 

[lubeck]

Is that a Panta rhei I see ? how many Are you using To move the water.

 

[Mo.]

Is that a Panta rhei I see ? how many Are you using To move the water.

No- I had 2 Panta Rheis and 1 Abyzz cannon.

I took the Panta Rhei’s out and put another cannon in. I have 2 Abyzz Cannons for flow now. Much better built pumps!

 

[Sassafras]

The trouble with big tanks is getting nutrients into it at the start, without fuelling pest algae and cyano. It’s a fine balance. The ceramic rocks can leach silicates for a long time.

Last tank, the brown rocks were there for ages, because they leach silicates.

So here’s the thing!!….

I know that ceramics leach silicates and you get silicate algae. In my last tank, it was on and off for a couple of years!!

My commercial RO unit always worked well and this time I have an even better double membrane one.

Ok. So I’ve been doing a few icp’s.
Fauna Marin total and Oceamo ICP-MS are the best I’ve found so far.

They also offer RO water testing.


My RO water out of the pipe is Zero everything- pristine!

Just like with my last tank, I have an open top glass Ro tank- about 500L. I fill it almost every weekend.

If I send a RO sample from the RO tank (I’ve only sent it at half full level) it measures high silicone/ silicates!!
I’m wondering, can the ro absorb silicate from the Silicone, or glass or anywhere else? It’s definitely there in the RO tank and not direct from the ro unit. There is no tin etc in the ro samples, all else is clear.

I’m wondering if that is why my silicate algae lasted ages in my old system. RO water is very good at absorbing “stuff” which salt water etc doesn’t do……

I’m wondering if I should get a closed water tank instead?

What do you all do for RO storage?

Aqueous alteration of silicate glass
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41529-021-00190-5 (same link)

Water = The Universal Solvent

 

[Mo.]

 

[lubeck]

Are you happy you went with bare bottom? Any plans to cover it with something other than coraline

 

[Mo.]

Yes!

There are pros and cons.

It takes longer to cycle the tank without sand.

Detritus management is much better without sand and you can mess around with flow. Having large pumps like mine with sand would be a problem.

With sand I would have used 8 MP60’’s across the back.

I have 2 Abyzz Canons and a central mp60 now. They’re not really noticeable when the tank fills in. I can run the cannons at around 50%. And the mp60 too. Any higher and it’s too
Much for even sps.

If I lower the flow, then indirect return flow at the back of the tank probably isn’t enough, which I why I added the central mp60.

 

[lubeck]

How’s the tank going