Why I like a Reverse Undergravel Filter

[Freenow54]

Thats the key, never give up, never empty the tank and again, never give up.
My tank now is loaded with a weird macro algae that I have never seen before. It could have come from the Sound behind my house or entered the tank through osmosis. I don't know but it is growing on everything. Not as bad as the invasive sponge I had a couple of years ago, but almiost.

It's nice looking and doesn't cover the corals like the sponge did but it does get long, about an inch and shades corals.

Due to my wife's health, I don't have the time to work on my tank much but I do occasionally get in there and pull it out in clumps. The last time I removed a pound of the stuff. Hopefully it is a cycle and will abate on it's own. I don't know but these little things don't bother me. At 55 years old I consider the tank a success and everything that happens I feel are just an interesting and learning part of the hobby. (I am much older than that)

The worst thing that could happen is it crashes and I dump it out and use the tank for turtles.

Of course, these large seaweeds I collected.


In this next picture you can see that short, green invasive stuff.

Would make a joke but would not be cool. I thought my back problems are hard to put up with. I already know that you don't have to look far to find people with bigger problems than you. Your wife is a strong woman

 

[Daniel@R2R Verified Admin]

This thread is such a great read!!

 

[Louis Z]

that rogue macro is not that bad to look at . At least it’s not hair algae

 

[Paul B]

If, after spending untold years studying and spending vast sums, we cannot get all people to live healthy lives well into their 90's, its not surprising that something like a reef tank may suffer a similar decline as the years go by.

I think with maintenance most of us would also live into our 90s and still be healthy. I'm sure a lot of it has to do with genetics, but at 77 years old, I seem to be getting healthier. But I take care of myself like most people do not.

Every morning, rain, shine, tsunami or blizzard, I walk up and down 17 flights of very steep stairs (to the beach) and walk 2 miles. That's about 600 miles a year, give or take. I am the same weight I was when I get married 52 years ago. My brother is overweight and had a heart attack at 50.

We don't eat anything deep fried and only eat a Mediterranean diet with a lot of saltwater fish and real vegetables. No fast food or weird stuff. Anything with white flour in my house does not come from the US where virtually all the wheat is doused in Rogain weed killer which can't be sold in Europe, so our flour comes from Italy.

We use a lot of olive oil and 80% of the olive oil in the US is fake so we make sure to get real olive oil and we test it. We even drink a couple of tablespoons of it at night.

I had a stress test a few months ago and the doctor was amazed and told me I have the heart of a 16 year old. Last week I went to a Pulmonologist because I am loaded with asbestos and Agent Orange but he said my lungs are perfect.
Except for those poisons.

My blood pressure is 120/75

I think this is all due to maintenance and I do it to my reef so it lasts forever.

FWIW, my daughter with a small reef tank is trying to promote her aiptasia by feeding it. :)

When the hobby first started, we tried to keep aiptasia and mojanos alive and we had a hard time doing it.

Those were the first inverts we could get, even though they were free, But we tried to buy them.

 

[Freenow54]

I found this chart on olive oil

 

[Paul B]

Here is a "Short" on olive oil. You can get a much more intensive video on YouTube which shows which are the real olive oils. Most are fake. Not the ones I buy.

 

[Paul B]

I am still having problems getting on R2R. I have to shut off my computer, then disconnect my ethernet cable and log into my neighbors WiFi and his password. Then it runs very slow.

 

[Freenow54]

Here is a "Short" on olive oil. You can get a much more intensive video on YouTube which shows which are the real olive oils. Most are fake. Not the ones I buy.

that list is from you tube he explains the smell taste everything what its best use is ect

 

[winxp_man]

I am still having problems getting on R2R. I have to shut off my computer, then disconnect my ethernet cable and log into my neighbors WiFi and his password. Then it runs very slow.

Good! No one wants you here!!!!










Kidding, kidding!

Paul try resetting your browser cookies for R2R, or using a whole different browser and see if that works. Report back, I’m curious if that will work.

 

[Freenow54]

Good! No one wants you here!!!!










Kidding, kidding!

Paul try resetting your browser cookies for R2R, or using a whole different browser and see if that works. Report back, I’m curious if that will work.

He probably made is own ethernet cable out of radio wire . Try the flux capacitor

 

[Paul B]

Paul try resetting your browser cookies for R2R, or using a whole different browser and see if that works. Report back, I’m curious if that will work.

Yep, did that. It only works on my neighbors intrernet connection.

 

[Freenow54]

Yep, did that. It only works on my neighbors intrernet connection.

Don't you have Wi FI ?

 

[Paul B]

Yes, I have WiFi. I also live in a house that is not heated with coal.

that list is from you tube he explains the smell taste everything what its best use is ect

My wife and I have a couple of tablespoons of real olive oil every night and it hurts the back of your throat.

In Italy, when they open a bottle of oilve oil, you can smell it all over the house or restaurant. Here in the states, the oil is mostly dead so you have to be careful about buying it.

Costco brand, "Kirkland" oddly enough is one of the best. Here are some of the best.



They ain't cheap

 

[Euphylliaphyle]

Plenum under UG is a cryptic refugium.

So, it's like a canister filter that you never clean, with all the same benefits!

 

[Besieged]

I tried a plenum with my first tank in 2007.

We had all sorts of issues with that tank, and while there were certainly a variety of causes, I never had any way to be sure whether the plenum (as we implemented it) was helpful, harmful or neutral.

But, given that, I didn't even consider trying it in my current tank.

I've known about R/UGF's for ages. I have one freshwater tank that I do kind of regret not doing it with when I moved and had to rebuild it, but, I'd just spent a ton of money on a new house and moving and had a lot to do, and it just didn't occur to me, especially since that tank had been pretty pain- (and maintenance-) free for the prior 10 years without losses or issues.

It just didn't occur to me to try it with my reef tank, especially as its an AIO - perhaps I should have, but it's also WAY too late now: I can't see a way to remove all my rock, all my livestock, and a 2" deep bed of basaltic black gravel from my display (much less my remote refugium) without creating unnecessary risk to the entire ecosystem and everything in it.

That said, I WILL keep this in mind to revisit when it comes time to stand up my 220g.

 

[Freenow54]

Just a little confused but No matter. Paul was talking about a Reverse filter , as the ones for fresh water flow opposite and will contaminate a salt water tank. If I am off base please ignore

 

[Subsea]

Just a little confused but No matter. Paul was talking about a Reverse filter , as the ones for fresh water flow opposite and will contaminate a salt water tank. If I am off base please ignore

Please explain what gets contaminated with RFUG.

Both of my display tanks at 75G & 120G have been set up for 15 years with RFUG.

 

[DmitryB]

When I scroll and see this thread title, each time I read it as "Why I like a perverse undergravel filter."

 

[Paul B]

as the ones for fresh water flow opposite and will contaminate a salt water tank.

Nothing gets contaminated. If you run it `the normal way in a salt tank, it will crash in about a year. I tried it a few times and I am not sure why.

 

[Freenow54]

Nothing gets contaminated. If you run it `the normal way in a salt tank, it will crash in about a year. I tried it a few times and I am not sure why.

Maybe it makes Sulphur dioxide ?