Rebuild and recovery of a dead tank

[jason2459]

Adjusted the timing from above for the Vinegar dosing because I can't subtract but it's all lined up perfectly with the feeding times and occurs 10 times a day.

Vinegar dosing programming
Fallback OFF
Set OFF
OSC 051:41/008:19/000:00 Then ON
If Time 21:00 to 11:00 Then OFF
If DT_pH < 7.79 Then OFF


Red is the Vinegar dosing pump turning on and the blue line dips for the return pump outlet turning off.

[jason2459]

So, I calibrated my pH probe the other day and now its do I trust the Apex reading which has been around 7.90 or the reef keeper which has been around 8.0. Now there is the difference that the Apex probe is in the back external overflow right by the full siphon. The reef keeper pH probe is in the return section of the sump. I wouldn't think it would mater that much.

Eventually I'll have another module down there to plug in a breakout box for the float switch's and will have a pH probe and conductivity probe down there too plugged into that module. Then I guess I'll find out the answer. I'm not worried about it though but if it is 7.9 I would like it slightly higher though 7.9 is OK especially with a higher alk which I run around 9-11. If I ran lower than that then I would be more concerned.

Though I think I do have a bad orp prob. It read 410 when I first plugged it in and then quickly ( over a 6 hour period) climbed back up to 921 and has flat lined there which is what it reads when it has no probe plugged in. I got it from BRS and they are RMAing it. When I get the new one then I guess I'll find out if it's the apex base unit or the probe was bad.

I haven't posted pictures of the ATS the past couple days as I can't see nothing at all right now with the amount of moisture in it. I do plan to pull it Friday night to do the X and # pattern cleaning. Will get before and after pictures then.

[jason2459]

My zoas are actually starting to look better. Still don't look good but better then they were.




Just liked this picture so adding it.

[jason2459]

So it look like the Apex pH readings are just normalizing or something as the reading since after I posted last night has climbed up to the upper 7.9's

[jason2459]

Apex is now reading 8.01 but the reef keeper is reading 8.22 pH...

[jason2459]

Day 5

Didn't know exactly what to do with the new light green growth. So, just removed it and left the rest.

Front just pulled out


Back



And the after....umm. Not sure what happened to them. I'm sure I took them but can't find them. So, you'll have to imagine the above pictures with out the light green.

[Floyd R Turbo]

Next cleaning, I would scrape. Then take the orange brush and make sure the top 1" of the screen is clear of any growth.

[jason2459]

Thanks. Strangely enough I've been looking forward to doing a scraping.

[jason2459]

So, I need to make sure to add to my morning spot check list to check for a red glow coming from the ATS. I was up late last night playing around with stuff and noticed the lack of a faint red glow coming from the ATS. I look at the time and it's past the time it's supposed to be turned on. I wiggle the plug that both sides are plugged into because I was short of outlets and voila they lit up. I'm assuming the lights been off since I cleaned it on the 17th!! Wooops.... Morning spot check would catch that as my nightly spot check is normally before those lights come on.


edit: maybe even before and why it had that light growth and lack of dark green growth?

[Floyd R Turbo]

Yeah that might have been why you had that light greenish/brown growth.

It's no problem to tie both of the drivers to the same plug. You should make sure that both neutrals are tied to the wide blade of the plug though. IIRC that's the blue wire (the one labelled "ACN" on the driver = AC Neutral). Also you should make sure you are using a plug that is rated for multiple wires to each nut. The ones that come with the drivers are really only for one wire per nut. A bigger one is just a few bucks at the hardware store. Or you can wirenut 2 drivers together and pigtail off of that to bring one set of wires to the plug, but then you have the wirenut which is more exposed.

[jason2459]

This is what I'm using.




Is that not good? I have a feeling I have another reefkeeper strip going bad and will be swapping it over to the Apex EB8 tonight. Wiggling it to get it to work isn't good.

[Floyd R Turbo]

Yeah that's a much easier solution I thought you had rewired both drivers to the same actual plug

[jason2459]

Headwall moments are contagious in this thread...

[jason2459]

Just programmed the outlet on the basement EB8 which I LOVE being able to do from anywhere... Very basic but reversed logic for the timing as I would rather the outlet get stuck on then off for the LEDs. I also never turn off the ATS when just about everything else in the sump turns off during feedings so nothing to do there. So basically it's always on unless it's told to turn off.

ATSLED_5_1
Fallback ON
Set ON
If Time 11:30 to 23:30 Then OFF

[jason2459]

I got the LEDs and Pump switched over to the Apex basement EB outlets. Since neither are dependant on anything or controlled by anything other then a timer for the lights I don't need to wait for any other modules.

While I was down there doing that I pulled the screen to get a clear picture and it looks much better after just one night of having the lights back on it. I'm really wondering if the lights have been off for quite a while.

Front


Back


I didn't do anything to it tonight. Maybe Sunday pull it and scrape it.

[jason2459]

What I was doing last night was playing around with making a CO2 scrubber. Only because I can and I'm an experimental phase right now may as well take advantage of it.

I have a phosphate/carbon reactor I haven't used for quite some time and put some soda lime in it. Then ran the T for the air line I have going to the ozone generator to the CO2 "scrubber" in between.


The left hose turned forward for the picture (will be turned down for operation) pulls air in and has a tube shoved it that runs up to the ozone generator. The right side that's turned up has a hose shoved in it that goes to a T for the skimmer air in take. The other side of the T goes to the skimmer cup and shuts down the skimmers production ability if it attempts to over flows.



The T



It's been running since last night and has effectively raised my pH average from around 7.9 over the last 3 days with nothing higher then 8.09 up to averaging above 8.10 and for the past several hours hanging around 8.20+

Pretty cool, easy, and relatively cheap. I got a 5 gallon pail from medvet for $87. Have no idea how long it will last but should be a while.

[jason2459]

Here's a screen shot I grabbed earlier today from reeftronics

Shows the immediate before and after effects of the CO2 Scrubber. The big spike up in the middle is when I went ahead and calibrated my pH probe one more time last night before bringing the CO2 scrubber online just to make sure what it's reading is accurate and tested back against the solutions which matched up well.





Edit: oh and the basement reefkeeper pH probe says 8.36 so it also went up.

[jason2459]

pH has maintained over 8.2 all day and hit a peak of 8.31. All the display tank lights are now off so I don't expect it to go much if any higher. Basement sump probe shows 8.56. It's been staying around .2 higher.

On another note my single RBTA that quickly became a twin and eventually some triplets are now quadruplets. It looks like I just caught the tail end of it. Wish I could have seen the whole thing. Had 3 a few hours ago and had to work on some stuff and came back to the largest one split in two.

Can barely see the previously split off one with one tentacle visible from a crack in the rocks above the big cave above the cleaner shrimp hanging upside down.



Looks to be about equal sizes. The two lowest on the right.



Last little bit remaining tying the two together. Really hard to get zoomed in digitally and with just the blue leds on but its right in the middle of the picture between the two splitting apart.

[jason2459]

My now 5 BTA's



So, I've been told my rose bubble tip anemones are called many different things. From rainbow to sunburst BTA. No idea other then I like them.

[jason2459]

CO2 scrubber has been doing great the past few days. Display pH has been in the high 8.2's to peaking around 8.31 and hasn't been below 8.20 since breaking that barrier. The basement pH probe has been following the trend as well and is still consistently around .2 higher. Got some pictures of the displays of both controllers tonight.

Basement pH


After cleaning out my skimmer cup and doing a couple other things I got up to my display unit and here it is


Here's the soda lime I got from medvet online


And I think it's been 3 days and the fist 1.5 cups is not quite half way changed colors. Maybe get about a week or so before changing it out. We'll see in a few more days where its at.

[jason2459]

This one spot was pretty thin when I got it and looking pretty healthy now.


Maybe to healthy. I should stop feeding so much...

This guy is giving me the evil eye just thinking about doing that

[jason2459]

Watching a new series on PBS called Life on the Reef. Great show.

[jason2459]

So it looks like my tank is 6 years old today. At least the core of it is that got transfered over from my old 55g.

[jason2459]

Have to add fish on an anniversary. Been a while but here's a few additions. I miss having my lyretails anthias and added in male and two female Indian ocean lyretails. Then also one of my favorite dwarf angels that I was wanting along with the flame before the coral beauty caught my eye. A bi-color and hoping the others don't pick on it but has been ignored all day. I've also ramped up my feeding from 3 to 4 times per day (12, 3, 6, and 9) along with the 1-2x daily of meaty foods and the algae sheet.

Some pictures of the new additions.

The male is gorgeous and has some very nice colors and markings all over even the fins.

[jason2459]

Love the bold colors of the bicolor angel. Pictures do no justice.