AndyL

Mr roth has me beat for pictures, but I did snap a new pic last night of the nanoreef. Picture still sucks, but the tanks looking good! Andy

Mr Roth... Damn you take good pictures Want to come over and photograph my 2.75?

Of course everything is relative. pushing 3.2v 20mA though a 5000mcd LED isn't going to create much heat, But these new 20,000mcd LEDs running at their rated 3.2v and 30mA definitely puts out some heat. No real way to measure it - but I'm willing to guess the 300 of them will put out heat on par with a couple NO flourescent bulbs. Keeping them cool just helps prolong their life (And the good 20,000mcd white's aren't cheap usually running at least 0.50us$ each) The blue 10,000mcd units I've got are even cooler running (3.2v 20mA) Andy

Compared to other lighting options, they are low heat - but they are definitely not "no heat". Andy

The LEDs themselves. They put out quite a bit of heat, and excessive heat causes them to bun out long before their rated life is used up. Andy

LED lighting array for the new 5g reef. The acrylic holds heat in too well (LEDs burn out quickly under excessive heat), and with 300 of them, I'd rather not run the risk. Andy

Hey all, Spent the day drilling plexi like mad... Finally managed to get exactly what I wanted - and realized I was using the wrong matierial (8 sheets of plexi destroyed... over 2400 holes marked and most drilled by hand... (Did I mention my hands hurt?) and the damn things not going to work right) Anywho... rant over with... I need a 10x16 ish hunk of preferably finned aluminum, or heatsink material. Anyone know a good (think cheap) source? I found a few local, but I'm not going to pay 300+$ for a hunk of metal. Andy

Basically it means you don't loose any space - done properly you wont see any equipment (all will be contained within the sump) Good luck making one as nice as Chads that one took some serious work/planning. Andy

Deformed fry come from a variety of causes... Inbreeding is only one of the many. In reality, we tend to think of inbreeding as more of a problem than it is. Most of the best lines of fish are created through line breeding, which often invovles crossing an offspring back to its parent (or grandparent, or great grandparent). But yes there is a limit as to how much one can inbreed before problems start occuring - usually it starts appearing in the 4th-5th generation of line bred. Which is why most breeders outcross in the 3rd/4th generation to get back some "fresh" genes. With few exceptions, slow fry growth poor health and size can be a sign of poor husbandry, rather than poor genetics. Andy

I think external overflow boxes are the only way to go (notch the top of the tank, install a box on the back). Easy enough to DIY. When you build it (or buy the pieces) get holes for 2 1" bulkheads - then you can run a setup similar to chad's (fish on canreef), the primary drain is throttled down via a ball valve to what the pump returns. Results in a 100% quiet return. the second bulkhead, gets a standpipe (3-4") so that it's acting as a backup - if somehow the pump kicks it up a notch etc - the water will still end up in the sump, not on the floor. On my new 65g I'm using a UGJ type setup, so I can avoid 3-4 setups, and just rely on the return pump from the sump. There's a picture in the SW forum. Wasn't too bad to build - bit of a challenge melting the pvc into a nozzle shape without causing burning down the house. Auto topoff is relatively simple. There are dozens of DIY electrical diagrams around - for a tank like my 2.5 I can get away with a air driven unit (just a battery air pump + float switch), most larger tanks however require a bit more of a system. For your system, you'll probably want to run with a powerhead driven unit, will require a powerhead, relay, float switch & 12/24v transformer (will depend on what relay). Float switch mounts on the return pump side of the sump - any time water drops below a set level, powers fed to the powerhead, which pumps water (or water / kalk mix) into the sump.

If you check out www.nano-reef.com you'll get plenty of ideas as far as lighting - there are many owners of 3/5/7g minibows on there. Lighting could range from a single 20w 50/50 screw in compact flourescent - all the way up to metal halide it depends what you want to keep. 5g isn't too small for fish - there are a variety of fish suitable to such a tank. Auto top off, is a device that adds fresh water to the aquarium to keep a constant level. Avoiding fluctuations caused by evap, a top helps, but doesn't solve the problem. Andy

I was reading somewhere it was actually a change of laws in germany - They were no longer allowed to export "Submersible" electrical equipment. I know on TAF2 there was a discussion about the new ebos (in america) no longer saying submersible. But the quality in ebo's has changed radically over the last 5 years. Used to be they were the best of the best - now I'm not so sure. The new seal at the dial is prone to weeping - and I've lost one tank of fish to a "stuck on" heater condition on the newer model. Andy

Most wont agree with me... But I'd go for something in the 2.5g range if moneys tight and you want to keep it relatively cheap. The razzle dazzle is a bit too small, and is somewhat iffy for actual long term survival of residents (I've yet to find one that's been run 6-8 months without major overhauls). But going small also adds some complexity, I wouldn't recommend anything below a 5g without some sort of auto top-off. My tank goes through 2L of top off water every 5 days - keeping conditions stable is your biggest priority - and with that small a quantity of water, it's even more important Andy

Had to do with a change in regulations... They are still fully submersible - they're just no longer allowed to say so. Andy

And this is what will be his new home...

Here's the new bada$$ in my 20g - territorial dispute (I think) resulted in a missing wrasse and disemboweled lion Hmmm I like this picture... I need an avatar

I heard some rumblings at the auction And a few salty like purchases! Andy

I love my wee tank - I'm having a hard time deciding - does the new 5g go to work, or does the 2.75 go to work... LOL, I want the bigger tank on my desk - but I like this tank as is where is! Andy

And yes... Yes I do have a wee bit of cyano going and I'd kill for some flatworm exit Andy

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No, sorry no new digital camera - but I did manage to get my ancient (yes it is older than dirt) digital camera a new card reader and some batteries Sorry for the crummy pictures - but what do you expect from a 94 vintage digital camera

C'mon you know you have a million questions... Start posting - we'll start answering as best we can Andy

I think there's probably 2 variants out there, because I've seen red rams on aquabid before - that were closer to a 'blue ram'. But the ones currently found in calgary seem to be a bolivian based strain. Blue rams got a bad wrap over the past few years because of poor breeding methods (too much inbreeding). GOOD ones are among the hardiest dwarf cichlids. Too bad it's rare to get good ones these days. If you ever spot some F0 Blue rams, they're definitely worth picking up - they put the "German blue rams" to shame. Andy