Tank birthday, 55+ years

[ying yang]

Sponges are sensitive to air getting into internals.

Hi and hello.yeah i knew about sponges but had something in back off my mind about reading a few times about gorgonians but couldnt remember why

https://www.nano-reef.com/forums/topic/358769-gorgonian/
https://www.eurocorals.com/new-arrival-acclimation-guide/
Sponges, clams, scallops, and gorgonians should never be directly exposed to air. Follow the acclimation procedure, but instead of taking the specimen out of the shipping bag, submerge the bag underwater in the aquarium and remove the marine life from the bag. Seal off the shipping bag underwater by twisting the opening, and remove it from the aquarium. Discard both the shipping bag and the enclosed water. A tiny amount of the diluted shipping water will escape into the aquarium. Don’t be alarmed; this will have no adverse affect on the tank inhabitants.

Little extract from bottom article ^^^^^

 

[ggNoRe]

Thanks for posting this. It is a great inspiration.

 

[Paul B]

Excuse my ignorance paul but in video above are them creamish looking fluffy things gorgonians? If so are they all started from same colony / frag ?

Ying Yang, yes those are gorgonians and all of them are from one tiny specimen. I think all my gorgs and corals are from one specimen.

There was also one hammer coral that I fragged 5 or 6 times in there which is why they are all small except for one piece. I remove them from the water all the time to frag them. They just think it tickles. ;Meh

Last week I lost some large pieces of some SPS corals but it was stupidly my fault. I caught the problem before I lost everything. Only one type lost some branches which took many years to grow.

But thats life and better that coral then me. :p

My tank does have a lot of flow, more than most tanks I think. But if you dive, you will see that many fish thrive in fast moving water.
In some places the water splashes on the lights as it sucks in surface air. The fish love it.

WE read a lot of weird things on these forums but with millions of people there are a lot of opinions. If you want to know about a particular fish, spend some time with it underwater but first, take your cell phone out of your Speedo. :oops:

 

[Paul B]

I just got back from my morning walk and while I am waiting for my muffins to bake I got a minute to post.
My walk this morning took me through a grave yard and it is very old. I mean VERY old.

Here are some of the tomb stones.

The round one in the back I think it is the oldest and it was hard to make out the inscription but it reads something like this:

RIP
Here Lies Orgg. (no last name)

"He was a fine Neanderthal who could take down a full grown Mastodon using his breath alone"

He will be missed. +

 

[ying yang]

Thanks paul for reply.yeah i think im getting to grips with this flow thing and as you say so many different opinions from so many different people.
Im just trying to find that nice happy place for all inhabatants of my tanks.if corals reaching for light move higher.
If shrinking in on selves move lower or adjust flow or whatever needed. I wont bore everyone with saying how i think a coral is happy or annoyed at me as im known to waffle on alot.( even bore myself sometimes)
Shame about losing a colony which took yeats to grow but some positive you saved a bit of it so not total disaster and much worse things in life than this.

 

[James_O]

Tank looks wonderful! I love all the history you bring. :)

 

[Paul B]

Thanks James....I'm Old. :)

 

[Paul B]

Weird, I just noticed a Possum wrasse in my tank that I have not seen in many months. I have 2 of them. That is the second fish I found. My tank may have a time portal that transports fish to another dimension becaus this is happening way to much now for this to be conicidence.

I haven't seen my blue striped pipefish and gecko gobi in many months but I know they will show up eventually. :D

 

[James_O]

Weird, I just noticed a Possum wrasse in my tank that I have not seen in many months. I have 2 of them. That is the second fish I found. My tank may have a time portal that transports fish to another dimension becaus this is happening way to much now for this to be conicidence.

I haven't seen my blue striped pipefish and gecko gobi in many months but I know they will show up eventually. :D

This is when you know your tank is too big, and you have too many fish… :p;Hilarious;Facepalm

 

[Subsea]

Hi and hello.yeah i knew about sponges but had something in back off my mind about reading a few times about gorgonians but couldnt remember why

https://www.nano-reef.com/forums/topic/358769-gorgonian/
https://www.eurocorals.com/new-arrival-acclimation-guide/
Sponges, clams, scallops, and gorgonians should never be directly exposed to air. Follow the acclimation procedure, but instead of taking the specimen out of the shipping bag, submerge the bag underwater in the aquarium and remove the marine life from the bag. Seal off the shipping bag underwater by twisting the opening, and remove it from the aquarium. Discard both the shipping bag and the enclosed water. A tiny amount of the diluted shipping water will escape into the aquarium. Don’t be alarmed; this will have no adverse affect on the tank inhabitants.

Little extract from bottom article ^^^^^

As I read both links, I realized one was a 2G pico and the other link was a vendor.

AsI read the caution on air for shellfish, I chuckled somewhat, because as a youth, 60 yrs ago, I scurried over oyster reefs at low tide. I also chuckled because I can buy live clams & oysters that are high & dry at HEB seafood display. Several on this hobby forum have put live oyster & clams removed from water for several days into their reef tanks as biological & particulate filtration. Scallops on live rock also survive for 12 hours out of water.

 

[minerman]

Whoa! 50 years, that's amazing. Is there any way to download your reef knowledge into my brain? I'm starting my first reef (previously have done freshwater several times and once saltwater FOWLR and had to tear them down due to moving across country). I hope mine lasts 50+ years as well! Very beautiful video!

 

[Zarabyte]

What Chinese lights? Not quarantining and cheap lights o my!

I do the same use Chinese lights and I used to quarantine:D maybe 30 years back

 

[Zarabyte]

can you use window screen to build a plenum?

Those were the days my first skimmer was Berlin and the size of your air pump was king

 

[Paul B]

Is there any way to download your reef knowledge into my brain?

Yes, of course. It's all in my book under this post. But a lot of it is controversial to many posts on many forums. 100% of the profits go to MS research in my wife's name. :)

 

[NoahLikesFish]

Yes, of course. It's all in my book under this post. But a lot of it is controversial to many posts on many forums. 100% of the profits go to MS research in my wife's name. :)

is the book like how to aquarium or is it like specific techniques or is it like aquarium stories? or does it talk about like specific fish and tank size and things? i want to buy it but i want to know what its about

 

[Paul B]

No specific techniques, no specific fish, no tank size but there are fish stories. I think you should go to the Amazon site and read the reviews or maybe ask someone on here who has read it. :cool:

 

[Rybren]

I hope that you and Dale are managing to stay high and dry Paul.

 

[Paul B]

Rybren, we are thanks. But our Daughter has both her houses flooded with either rain water, mud or sewage. Her new home on the Hudson River, all the toilets in the neighborhood backed up over the rim. You can imagine what that does so all the flooring and some lower walls need to be replaced.

She just got the place and decorated.
Her Manhattan home, the roof caved in causing extensive flooding.

The home she owns in Vermont, much of it burned down this year and is almost finished being re-built so she has problems.

Of course if you have 3 homes you have 3 times the problems. :rolleyes:

 

[Paul B]

This post is only for gearheads that know something about engines. If that is not you, read something else. Perhaps Huckelberry Finn.

I finally fixed my boat with the help of our marina mechanic. We, and the rep from Merc Cruiser who built the engines were baffled for quite a while and it was the simplest and stupidest issue.

It started when my exhaust manifold rotted through so I replaced all 4 of them.
This is one part of one of them.



Then I went out and all was well for an hour until one engine cut out. No problem as I have two engines.

The other engine cut out so I had to get towed.

After much testing It was the coils which is ridiculous because those two coils sat in that engine a couple of feet from each other for 20 years and they both croaked minutes apart and the weird part is that the both coils worked. They just didn't work hard enough which I have never seen and I am a pretty good mechanic as is the boat mechanic.

I replaced the coils and spark plugs, wires and went out. After a little while the starboard engine slowed down and sounded like a machine gun and trust me, I know what a machine gun sounds like.

Back at the dock I took a compression test which was good. I figured a lifter was hanging up so I removed the exhaust manifold (again) so I could remove the intake manifold and the lifter, which looked perfect so I put it back together.

Same noise so I found out a valve spring was broken near the bottom so I couldn't see it.

I replaced the spring and went out. Now that big noise is gone but over 3,000 RPM the engine slows down and makes popping noises.

We swapped from one engine to the other the coil, distributor, carburetor, "computer" and fuel pump. Took it out, still no power in starboard engine.

Swapped spark plugs from one engine to the other. AAAhhhha

The other engine, which was fine no longer started.

"Spark Plugs" should not cause that especially spark plugs with less than an hour on them.

Put in new plugs and took it out. Wide open throttle for 20 minutes and it ran perfect.

I am freekin thrilled. The mechanic took it out because I was busy but now I want to take it out to see for myself.

Now all I want to do, besides go out to dinner on it, is to remove one carburetor because the lower butterfly is severly sticking . Easy fix (I hope)

 

[Paul B]

My closest friend Tommy died last year of Covid and I go to his house all the time to do some maintenance for his wife Sue who I know longer than I know my wife and I am married for about 48 years.
Yesterday I was there and there is this light bulb over her counter that was installed 21 years ago and burned out a few years ago.

Sue said to me, Tommy would be so happy I keep helping her and the bulb over my head came on.

She posted this on Facebook

Susan Hurley is with Paul Baldassano.​

2tS3hptoncsormegd ·

When TOMMY’S brother from another mother comes to check on me… and fixes his work that I can’t do!!!
How do I thank him???
But I didn’t have to as soon as he sat in Tommys chair…. Expressing what a hole he has in his heart, missing him!!!
Tommy appears through the 21 years burnt out kitchen light!!!
No words buddy,,, just love how your always here for me !!!

I also put her flag pole back up after it broke in half from the last storm.