Red Sea Max S 500 Build

Rctreece · May 25, 2018

Thanks. I did the Red Sea Mature program which told me to use the NOPOX. I will do as you suggest. I only have three fish in right now and three more in QT but I will feed more often. Thanks

Stigigemla · May 26, 2018

If you are using the red sea stat up program - use it. The reason they use nopox is to establish bacteria quicker.
You could have started with another program but now you have began with Red Seas.
Never mix 2 startup methods. It will only get you into problems.

Rctreece · May 26, 2018

Stigigemla said:
If you are using the red sea stat up program - use it. The reason they use nopox is to establish bacteria quicker.
You could have started with another program but now you have began with Red Seas.
Never mix 2 startup methods. It will only get you into problems.

Yea that’s why I am using the Red Sea stuff

Rctreece · May 27, 2018

Well tonight’s testing went well except for the Red Sea syringes because all the dang numbers have worn off. My nitrate went from 0 to 1 to 2. I guess I will start back with a little nopox. I also am getting the dosing close on cal and alk as they are getting closer and closer to the Red Sea numbers. I just keep tweeking the dos a little. I have gone back to my full lighting schedule and temp placed all 11 new corals. I am excited to see them all looking good and opened every morning when the lights come on. I was worried when I first put them in as I have never messed with corals before but I changed out their plugs and dipped them in bayer. It seems all is well. I couldn’t wait to buy more so I bought a few LPS today. I can’t wait to see the coral start growing. I think I will buy some pods from algae barn as I want to get a pod population going. My tank is 125 gal including a 19 gal sump so I guess two bags and the food would get it going? Do I just add them to my sump with everything off? I have some macro algae in the fuge

SPR1968 · May 28, 2018

Have you decided what levels you are targeting under their current ‘recipes’ etc?

Rctreece · May 28, 2018

SPR1968 said:
Have you decided what levels you are targeting under their current ‘recipes’ etc?

Mixed reef

Rctreece · May 31, 2018

Added some new additions today. Love these drags from tidal gardens. They provide some good size at a decent price. I did find my first hitch hiker. A long worm. Don’t know if it was good or not I just disposed of it. I also started dosing trace colors but only at half the recommended volume. Pics are actual and what they should look like. They did all open up so I guess my dip didn’t kill them

Rctreece · May 31, 2018

any suggestions for the filters to make tank pics look better? I heard there is some filter you can clip on.

Vivid Creative Aquatics · May 31, 2018

Rctreece said:
any suggestions for the filters to make tank pics look better? I heard there is some filter you can clip on.

Ive never used it myself, but there this app you can try - it color corrects your photos as you take them
http://aquariumcameraapp.com/

if you are using a DSL camera, you can usually set the white balance level (Kelvin). Ive had good luck using a white balance setting of 10,0000K, which is the highest my our camera will go.

Rctreece · May 31, 2018

I have that app. I only use my IPhone or Ipad.

SPR1968 · Jun 1, 2018

Rctreece said:
Added some new additions today. Love these drags from tidal gardens. They provide some good size at a decent price. I did find my first hitch hiker. A long worm. Don’t know if it was good or not I just disposed of it. I also started dosing trace colors but only at half the recommended volume. Pics are actual and what they should look like. They did all open up so I guess my dip didn’t kill them

Very nice.

I think the first picture is pulsing Xenia? If it is it’s very invasive and if your not careful will spread rapidly.

It’s a very beautiful coral and moves in the current but I would put it on it’s own rock so you can control it’s spread. I didn’t! Lol

Rctreece · Jun 1, 2018

It is. Thanks for the heads up

GoVols · Jun 2, 2018

Looking good...;Woot ;Woot, and tagging along!!

Rctreece · Jun 2, 2018

Go Vols!

GoVols · Jun 2, 2018

Rctreece said:
Go Vols!

Rctreece · Jun 3, 2018

So I got a few updates. I left my tank for the weekend and low and behold it survived! Ato did it’s job. Apex afs did its job and all was well. I know it was only a few days but it was the first test. I have a week long trip coming up camping in God’s country, Tennessee. Smoky Mountains to be exact.

Also when I was doing my water change I saw a huge monster. Well actually it was one of three emerald craps but this guy is on roids. He is two or three times the size of the other two. I don’t see any of them ver often but I saw two tonight. No idea why he grew so fast.

Also got to try out my Hannah checkers. I have a calcium and a dkh. The calcium was about 40 points higher than my Red Sea titration tester and the Hannah dkh was .5 lower. I am still ticked at Red Sea over the dang syringes and the numbers wearing off I will go with Hannah from now on. On a positive note, my magnesium has finally dropped. From over 1600 to 1450. Been waiting on that. Also my no3 when back to zero. I started dosing nopox again but only alittle and it wiped it out so I turned that dos off again.

I am looking at roller mat filters now and wondering if it would help take the little stuff floating around out of my tank. I also could replaced the filter socks with cup to hold my carbon and that might make a better spot to grow my Chaeto. I have been trying to grow this stuff but with my low no3 it isn’t doing much under my grow light. Any suggestions on either? He is a pic of that crab

SPR1968 · Jun 4, 2018

I think you will struggle growing cheato until your nutrient levels are high enough to support it, and then you will be trying to keep them down. It’s like a vicious cycle! Lol

At this stage I would just monitor the situation as you probably don’t need NoPox or cheato at the moment and I would say certainly not both.

If you want your nutrients higher get some more livestock and the feeding etc will increase everything naturally and the the nutrient reduction cycle/battle will begin.

Monster crab by the way. Make sure your feet are strapped to something when your working inside the tank!

Rctreece · Jun 4, 2018

SPR1968 said:
I think you will struggle growing cheato until your nutrient levels are high enough to support it, and then you will be trying to keep them down. It’s like a viscous cycle! Lol

At this stage I would just monitor the situation as you probably don’t need NoPox or cheato at the moment and I would say certainly not both.

If you want your nutrients higher get some more livestock and the feeding etc will increase everything naturally and the the nutrient reduction cycle/battle will begin.

Monster crab by the way. Make sure your feet are strapped to something when your working inside the tank!

Yeah, I had my nitrate up to 5 when I started the NOPOX. I will just leave that off for awhile. One reason I want the cheato is to start a pod population. My wife really wants a mandarin and I want to make sure I can support it. We have more livestock but they are still in qt till this Friday. I hate having to wait but don't want to screw up my DT. Thanks for the feedback.