najer

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So I have played with my lighting over time and after reviewing some of my old pictures I realized that I had dialed up my blues a little to much. I dialed them back and turned up my whites to balance colors out. tank looks better, getting better pictures and @najer might get off my back ;)

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I’m constantly changing up food, kinda whatever I have on hand but Reef Roids is always a component of the mix. Recently I have been just using a chunk of frozen LRS, a scoop of Roids and a little water to make a thick paste.. my scoly and the new lobo go nuts for it!

I also hate the new look, like windows in safe mode?

I'm glad I didn't hold my breathe whilst that one sank in! ;)

Love this, why do more people not have loads of food to hand, mix things up a bit?! :)
 
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It is pretty drastic. Definitely. Personally, I am having less issues and that is most important to me.

(and I would miss you and your tank)
I love the response that the new site has :)


Not getting rid of me that easy :) the improvements they have made since yesterday morning have helped a lot, the stark white screen, grey text and lack of navigation links was horrible. I’m also glad they went back to the old banners.. I do like the new format for pictures and a few other new things.
 
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I also hate the new look, like windows in safe mode?

I'm glad I didn't hold my breathe whilst that one sank in! ;)

Love this, why do more people not have loads of food to hand, mix things up a bit?! :)

I have been trying to get better with tank nutrition.. feeding lots more frozen these days but I still use 4 different dry foods.. flakes, pellets and freeze dried mystis. Tank gets approximately 2 cubes of frozen and a pinch or two of some kind of dry food daily. I feed the tank every couple hours throughout the day instead of dropping big portions in all at once.
 
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If anyone is interested in my feeding routine.. I drop a variety of frozen foods in small Dixie cup, a pinch Reef Roids and a few drops of selcon, I then add a little RO water. After food has melted I stir thoroughly and just pour small amounts in tank throughout the day mixing it up with dry foods. If I’m making food for corals I use a small amount of tank water instead of RO.. this seems to meet the needs for my 5 small fish and other inhabitants in the 40

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You can't bail now! You just got that orange plate and that obnoxiously vibrant bouncy thing!

It is rather obnoxious isn’t it.. lol

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Moved frogspawn up onto my rock work off the sand bed and it seems a lot happier.. even though it’s higher it’s probably a decrease of about 50 PAR from where it was on the bottom right underneath my LED. I still need to break it off frag plug and glue it to rock.. notice the green hitchhiker coral sprouting from my rock on the left side =)

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Love frog and octospawn. So many different variations and colors. Hang in there man, pretty soon all the improvements to the site will become 2nd nature.

That little frag was out of my LFS bargain bin =) the site is dramatically better since launch, feels more like a refreshed version of the old site now instead of something completely alien.
 
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really nice set up you have ,i will be following along :)

Thank you and thanks for stopping by my build thread.. I was just checking out your journal, beautiful tank and custom glass work!
 

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Well maybe not so big... :D

My goal is to set up the best reef possible for the least amount of money and effort, I want something that will be easy to maintain and that checks all my boxes while staying within my budget, I’ll be sourcing the cheapest possible equipment while simultaneously not completely sacrificing quality or functionality and I will also try to incorporate some of the newer technologies where possible and I’ll also be doing a few DIY components as well..


I have been planning this build for over a year and have considered every possible tank, stand, filtration system, lighting and other potential equipment choices, their cost and how everything would work together.. because of limited budget and room I decided on a tank somewhere around 50 gallons and after much thought I’m going with a 40 breeder because of its perfect dimensions and super low cost, for lighting I’m Going with a t5 / LED hybrid, I have been very happy with my nano box LED’s on my current tanks but I miss my old t5’s so I decided this tank will have the best of both worlds in lighting and for filtration I’m going with a simple Berlin style sump, skimmer ..


Some of my methods or outdated equipment choices may raise some eye brows but for the most part my choices will revolve around cost, ease of set up and maintenance or because it’s just what I have become comfortable with over the last 35 years of reefing..


One of the great benefits of extended planning is that I’ve been catching sales and discounts on equipment and in some cases I have been able to substantially upgrade from my original plans, so far just about everything I have purchased has been on sale or discounted, some of it ridiculously!


Tank 40 gallon breeder < petco sale $50

Steel im Stand < sale price $49

eshopps rs-75 sump < sale price $138

eshopps pf-300 overflow < sale price $48

Coral Box d300 dc skimmer < sale price $135 + they sent me the new upgraded $250 plus model :)

aquatic life 36” t5 fixture with Coral Box LED supplement < sale price of everything including bulbs $480

Power strip < $20

wave makers 2 Jebao ow-25’s < discounted price $110

AUQA Gadget MightyJet 538 gph DC Return pump < $99

ATO.. Hydrofill Ti < sale price $48 = $21 off $69 retail!

150W ehiem heater $27

Used Reef Keeper Lite controller < $200 total with new probes, float switch’s and mounting system.

DIY 12v dc cooling fan < $6

DIY ATO container < $8

Black Paint for back wall of tank and black silicon for sealing stand. < $10

Substrate < $15

Plumbing supplies < sale price $20

Dosing container < sale price $45

DIY Control center components < $25


APPROXIMATE TOTAL COST (not including livestock) $1,523

**** current tank photo July 2019 ****

This thread has helped me SO very much, my hat is off to you!
 

A worm with high fashion and practical utility: Have you ever kept feather dusters in your reef aquarium?

  • I currently have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 68 37.8%
  • Not currently, but I have had feather dusters in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 59 32.8%
  • I have not had feather dusters, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 25 13.9%
  • I have no plans to have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 28 15.6%
  • Other.

    Votes: 0 0.0%
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