Tank birthday, 47+ years

[Paul B]

Anyway, to me a hobby isn't rewarding without some stress.

This is true and the reason I like it when something (small) goes wrong. My fish never get sick, spots, marks, curs, bruises or diseases that I can't pronounce but I do very rarely have a leak when a plumbing part cracks or a light shorts out. Then I get all excited because I hardly have any maintenance to do. I know most people spend 26 hours a day tweeking things and had to install an ATM machine next to their tank to pay for stuff but I have no idea what they are doing or what they are spending money on.
I would imagine I could take a wad of twenty dollar bills, roll it up with a rubber band and throw it in my tank, but it would just grow pods.
I haven't bought a heater since I sold my 1962 Pontiac Bonneville and am still using my diatom filters Circa 1960s so where do people spend money?

I have been going to LFSs with a pocket full of money and can't even find a coral I like so I can't even spend money when I try.
I do buy some food every few months but that isn't a big deal.

 

[Paul B]

Today my reef is 48 years old.

 

[NY_Caveman]

Happy Birthday, Tank! I was one when it was born. And no undergravel filter.

 

[GBRsouth]

I was 3 then, so just old enough to have memories from when your tank started Paul! Congrats, it is a wonderful achievement!

 

[count krunk]

i was uhh, about as negative age as i am old now

 

[radsdad]

HBD Reef Tank.
Will toast you tonight with a cup of skim sauce.

 

[Rybren]

Happy ReefDay!

 

[minus9]

Congrats and happy birthday reef tank!

 

[Chasmodes]

Happy Birthday to your tank! I was 10 when you set it up.

I love your new steampunk lamp. That is fascinating, nice work!

Sorry that I haven't been around in a while...took me a while to catch up, hence the many "likes".

 

[norfolkgarden]

Happy reef day!

Sound like you should celebrate with some clams!

 

[Paul B]

I had linguini with clams last night. My fish ate cake.

 

[Paul B]

So I went away for 2 days and last night after I came home I found my male Mandarin dead. This is very unusual because I never find a dead fish and my fish don't get sick. I "think" I saw him eating a few days ago but I didn't notice anything weird with him as he was full bodied and smiled a lot.
I did notice that he hasn't paid any attention to the really good looking female mandarin in a few months.
I also have not used my Mandarin feeder since I moved here 8 months ago because I just have not had time to set up my brine shrimp hatchery. But he was not thin at all so I don't think I needed it and there are bluestripe pipefish and a scooter bleeny that are also fat and fine after a few years.

I am not sure how long Mandarins live and I don't remember when I got this one so it could have been ten years or more ago. He outlived two females, one died from being egg bound and I think the other one jumped out. Maybe he broke her heart. I do have a lousy memory and have not kept a log book in decades. He was dead to long to do a necropsy but I am sure it would not show anything.

Normally when other fish die of old age, they stop eating for a few days and hide a lot. He was not eaten by bristle worms but Mandarins have a thick slime that keeps other fish from eating them and maybe bristle worms don't find them tasty. I have bristle worms that could finish off a halibut in a few hours.

 

[Fudsey]

Bummer @Paul B

 

[saintsreturn]

Bummer on the mandarin... side note.. my birthday and you tank's birthday are close... that said, i just turned 34 today... sooooooo... yeah your tank has been around longer than i have been alive LOL

 

[54Dutchman]

Congrats and happy belated birthday reef tank!

 

[Victoria M]

Happy Birthday Paul's tank!

 

[Paul B]

I have been feeding an awful lot since I moved and now my nitrates creeped up to about 20, which is fine. Before I moved here I built a Sulphur denitrator just for an experiment but I never used it. It is a cool looking thing and I think, if I get time I will fire it up as an experiment.
I love to experiment. I live near the sea and can easily change as much water as I like especially now when the sea is full of ice bergs.

I built this thing out of some sort of reactor, calcium I think. I couldn't install it sooner because my tank had no measurable nitrates. Now I have been feeding this stuff (I forget what it is) but it is red and mushy. I use it for my pipefish and anthius that don't eat larger food. The corals also seem to eat it. But it makes a mess and just this week I started rinsing off the "juices" from the stuff.

I think it is the cause of my fast nitrate spike. The nitrates are good because now, I can try to lower them with this thing. Or, of course, it may crash my tank and I will have to dump out all my dead fish and use the tank for duck billed platypuses.

 

[Rybren]

Paul,

I think I read somewhere in the kajillion posts on your various threads that you replaced your DIY water-cooled LEDs with a store bought fixture. What lights did you end up getting and are you happy with them?

How is Mrs B?

Jerry

 

[Paul B]

Yes Jerry, I got some Garbage RoHs, Chinese lights. My water cooled LEDs were much cooler. Unfortunately, this place when I moved in was so damp that they shorted out in too many places to fix right away so I bought the first lights I found on Amazon. They light and seem fine. Maybe if I find some American lights I will throw these out.
The screws on them are getting rusty but I wouldn't expect more from something made in China. If I get time (I doubt it) I will change the screws for stainless.
I think I remedied the dampness but I won't know until the summer. The place is brand new and the cement was still wet. I am also 100 yards from the sea.

I had to rush my wife to a Dr. yesterday because we went to an optomoligist to get her eyes checked because with MS you need to monitor that. Her blood pressure was 173 over something very high and they said to get her to a Dr. right away so we went.
She is fine and all they had to do was tweek her meds.
Thanks for asking.
How are you and your kids making out?

 

[Rybren]

Good to hear that the Blood Pressure issue wasn't serious. I hope that her MS isn't causing too many other issues and that her quality of life is still relatively decent.

The boys and I aren't too bad. It's been a little more than 3 1/2 years since we lost Suzie; some days are still really tough, others are better. We're all anxious for spring - the snow banks at the front of the house are over 7 feet high!

I hope that you've got the dampness issue sorted out and the lights continue to run. I need to get some new ones myself.