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Post by bikeguy33 on Jun 9, 2010 23:23:31 GMT -5
Good evening everyone. Just wanted to show a few pics of my latest tank. it is a 29 gallon oceonic biocube. i have 30 pounds of live rock in as well. i have had it up and running for 3 days and unbelievably enough the rock is teaming with life already, anenomies, feather dusters, bubble corals, barnicles, and spaghetti worms. quite unbelievable considering how new it is. i should be ready for fish in 3 or 4 weeks at this rate. thinking of possibly an octopuss if i can houdini proof the tank. i gave up on the lion fish and frog fish because i think i came to my senses. I don`t want to risk my sons safety...even with a lock on the tank. aswell....we started my son a 3 gallon alien tank that i will add pics of soon. this salt water has become a real family affair. makes me happy... file:///C:/Users/Bill%20Burton/Downloads/newtank-pic1.jpg file:///C:/Users/Bill%20Burton/Downloads/newtank-pic2.jpg
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jun 9, 2010 23:27:13 GMT -5
will try to add more as i add to this tank
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Post by goldenpuon on Jun 10, 2010 9:10:31 GMT -5
Nice tank Bill. I imagine it'll be really colorful once the live rock settles down and you add fish and other creatures.  |
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Post by Carl on Jun 10, 2010 10:34:18 GMT -5
Looking good Bill! ;D I think it is cool that in this high tech world (video games, etc to divert attention) that your whole family is interested!  Good luck as your tank progresses. Carl |
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 5, 2010 17:19:10 GMT -5
added a couple more fish today. first took 2 of the 3 snails back to the store and couldnt leave without a new aquisition. i bought another green chromis bringing the count to 3. not quite a school yet....but at least a country school house. also i bought a new dwarf angel called a coral beauty. beautiful critter and is getting on well with the valentine puffer. i will add pics as he becomes more comfortable in his new aqua home.
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Post by Carl on Jul 5, 2010 20:13:00 GMT -5
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 5, 2010 21:59:35 GMT -5
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Post by goldenpuon on Jul 6, 2010 8:56:44 GMT -5
Beautiful pics! The fish in there remind me a bit of my uncles fish. He also keeps saltwater.
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 11, 2010 11:39:57 GMT -5
Just an update....We are having a heat wave here in vancouver. it has been sitting at around 100 degrees and warmer in the house. during all this to maintain a cool enough temp for the fish to survive we have had to do a constant vigil on the marine tank floating frozen bottles to keep the temp down but it was a losing battle. the water went to 96 degrees no matter how many frozen bottles we floated and i ended up losing the coral beauty.
after this happened i thought and thought and thought about a more effective way to cool the tank...then it dawned on me...the quickest way to cool water is through evaporation so i lifted the lid and ran a fan over the surface. i am going through 2 gallons of water a day but i am able to hold steady at 82 degrees. hope that is the last of the fatalities in the tank.
on that note as well....we lost 2 neon tetras to the heat in my 5 year old sons 3 gallon tank. the gold algae eater and the 3 head and tail tetras seem to be hoding strong in there tho...
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Post by Carl on Jul 11, 2010 12:24:57 GMT -5
Sorry about your loss Bill of the Coral Beauty. I note a few ideas in my Freshwater Basics ArticleOne I mention that works well for me is a wet towel with a fan aimed at the tank. Another I do not mention is to place an air pump in a nearby refrigerator then run the air line to the tank and aerate with this cool air. Both of these methods have worked well for me in the rather hot So. California climate, with 0 heat related losses. Carl |
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 11, 2010 12:33:28 GMT -5
i did think of the make shift chiller idea and found a plan on line. it was very similar to your idea except it was a cooler full of ice with coiled tubing running through it. wish i could have come up with these ideas sooner. the evaporation has cooled my tank 14 degrees and it is maintaining well....so fingers crossed.
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 11, 2010 12:35:03 GMT -5
BTW....do you sell a chiller small enough for a 29 gallon nano carl? i think that may be my next investment even tho i was going to buy a sterilizer. guess the sterilizer will wait for now.
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Post by Carl on Jul 11, 2010 12:59:00 GMT -5
Unfortunately I do not.
The model I have thought of selling (for reasonable price) has had too many issues as per tests via some of my maintenance friends, so I do not like to sell something I would not use myself or would not recommend.
The air pump in the refrigerator or ice box has worked very well for me over the years, the only hitch was loss of cool in the air line to the tank, so either insulating and/or keep the air pump in the refrigerator/ice box as close as possible to the tank is important for this success.
Your idea seems to be working well (I have used this method too), my only problem with the open tank is that I could not count on clients adding water for evaporation, which often became a serious problem
Carl
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Post by Carl on Jul 11, 2010 13:17:55 GMT -5
One more thought, please make sure to use RO water for copious amounts of evaporation. I have found not too much issue in using tap water for very minimal evaporation, however when tap water is used for heavy evaporation, the amounts of Nitrates in the tap water (no matter how small) can add up in a hurry, bringing your nitrates to rather high levels.
Carl
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Post by bikeguy33 on Jul 11, 2010 13:43:21 GMT -5
thanx carl....we have a well here with a treatment plant. there is nothing added into our water but near everything taken out. and to top it all...the water comes out at 8.0-8.1 ph. the water here is near perfect for marine....
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