- Joined
- Jul 27, 2016
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So, yesterday morning I went downstairs to check on my tanks and noticed my power was totally off one two of them. It was raining out, so I figured it might be a popped breaker or something. Was basically right, my GFCI had tripped, fortunately it had only been 20-30 minutes earlier, not even enough time for my Apex to text me about it.
In my investigation, I found that my Avast Vibe had sprung a major leak, dumping about 1 gallon of water into the small washbasin that it sits in. When the motor switched on it was submerged and popped the GFCI. I found a pretty large crack near the upper edge of the reactor cylinder. Maybe I over tightened it?? Not the end of the world, but definitely out of commission. Drying the motor to see if it still works, but probably toast ($50 to replace), may try to reseal the crack in the reactor (they recommend Loctite Epoxy), if that doesn't work, then perhaps I buy a new reactor body for $100ish.
I love Avast's products and I don't blame them at all. However, I am kind of sick of having a big reactor sitting on my living room floor (won't fit in my stand with CA-Rx and Chiller) and spending hundreds of dollars on KZ's mystery elements. KZ has worked pretty well for me on my SPS dominant nano, but I feel like I can get better results using a different method.
I tried Triton Method before, I love the science behind it and it makes a ton of sense, but... My Red Sea Reefer 450 (92g display) has no space for an adequately sized fuge and I can't produce the type of turnover required after head pressure (using a RO Varios-6 at 100%). When I went full Triton my nutrient levels were too high (I prefer NO3 <10 and PO4 < 0.1) and my ICP results always had some contaminant that required 6x WC. I believe that no water change is possible, but I think it takes a very mature system and adequate nutrient export. I am also disillusioned with their 4 part dosing, especially after all the packaging issues they had.
Long story, still long... Under the assumption that my Vibe is dead, I bought a ARID N18 and will put that in my sump plumbed into the lines that were hooked up to my Vibe. I will leave my GFO running until my PO4 is sitting below 0.06, after which I will pull it and see if I can maintain 0.1 or lower without. I am still dosing the KZ additives but will likely stop with the ZeoStart3 once the ARID is installed. I plan to continue to do 10% weekly water changes until my tank doesn't really need them, in which case I can maybe do biweekly or monthly and dose trace elements.
Right now I use Red Sea Salt (blue bucket), Kalk (BRS Pharma Grade) and have a Vertex CA-Rx installed but not running CO2 to it yet, since Kalk and water changes have kept up with my chemistry demands. Once my Alk and CA needs exceed with Kalk will provide I will start feeding CO2 to the calcium reactor (system is about six months old after doing a full reboot).
Any suggestions on switching from Zeo to ARID for nutrient export? My bioload is on the high side but my Nitrates are at 8 and Phosphates 0.06. I figure I will continue to use some of the KZ supplements and just discontinue the carbon dosing aspects. Is it worthwhile to try to plumb my Calcium Reactor into my ARID? Currently pushing water into my CA-Rx with a Kamoer continuous dosing pump and getting a very steady drip rate.
In my investigation, I found that my Avast Vibe had sprung a major leak, dumping about 1 gallon of water into the small washbasin that it sits in. When the motor switched on it was submerged and popped the GFCI. I found a pretty large crack near the upper edge of the reactor cylinder. Maybe I over tightened it?? Not the end of the world, but definitely out of commission. Drying the motor to see if it still works, but probably toast ($50 to replace), may try to reseal the crack in the reactor (they recommend Loctite Epoxy), if that doesn't work, then perhaps I buy a new reactor body for $100ish.
I love Avast's products and I don't blame them at all. However, I am kind of sick of having a big reactor sitting on my living room floor (won't fit in my stand with CA-Rx and Chiller) and spending hundreds of dollars on KZ's mystery elements. KZ has worked pretty well for me on my SPS dominant nano, but I feel like I can get better results using a different method.
I tried Triton Method before, I love the science behind it and it makes a ton of sense, but... My Red Sea Reefer 450 (92g display) has no space for an adequately sized fuge and I can't produce the type of turnover required after head pressure (using a RO Varios-6 at 100%). When I went full Triton my nutrient levels were too high (I prefer NO3 <10 and PO4 < 0.1) and my ICP results always had some contaminant that required 6x WC. I believe that no water change is possible, but I think it takes a very mature system and adequate nutrient export. I am also disillusioned with their 4 part dosing, especially after all the packaging issues they had.
Long story, still long... Under the assumption that my Vibe is dead, I bought a ARID N18 and will put that in my sump plumbed into the lines that were hooked up to my Vibe. I will leave my GFO running until my PO4 is sitting below 0.06, after which I will pull it and see if I can maintain 0.1 or lower without. I am still dosing the KZ additives but will likely stop with the ZeoStart3 once the ARID is installed. I plan to continue to do 10% weekly water changes until my tank doesn't really need them, in which case I can maybe do biweekly or monthly and dose trace elements.
Right now I use Red Sea Salt (blue bucket), Kalk (BRS Pharma Grade) and have a Vertex CA-Rx installed but not running CO2 to it yet, since Kalk and water changes have kept up with my chemistry demands. Once my Alk and CA needs exceed with Kalk will provide I will start feeding CO2 to the calcium reactor (system is about six months old after doing a full reboot).
Any suggestions on switching from Zeo to ARID for nutrient export? My bioload is on the high side but my Nitrates are at 8 and Phosphates 0.06. I figure I will continue to use some of the KZ supplements and just discontinue the carbon dosing aspects. Is it worthwhile to try to plumb my Calcium Reactor into my ARID? Currently pushing water into my CA-Rx with a Kamoer continuous dosing pump and getting a very steady drip rate.
