Recent content by fmelindy

I still think it's just a daughter colony. They look like a dimpled ball when they're retracted. It should be obvious whether there's a stony skeleton when the tentacles/polyps are retracted.

just as another possible idea I had one of those grow off the base of my toadstool coral and once it got big enough, I relaized it was just a daughter colony. It looked just like that. Just a thought. If that thing doesn't have a hard skeleton, that's another possible explanation.

If one has a ballast and socket kit for straight pin power compacts but has some old square pin bulbs lying around, is there any kind of adaptor one could get ot use the square pin bulbs in the straight pin sockets?

Well, the problem is I can't see the bit or the crew - they've fallen down among the rockwork. SO if I can't see them, then I can't use the magnet on them...

Tonight while working on my canopy, I dropped a steel screw and screwdriver bit into my tank and it has been lost in the rock structure. Did I mess up big time? Will this affect my fish or corals in any way? I realize that the screw and bit will corrode and release iron into the water - will...

Really? The new instruction manual posted on the midwest aquatic website is actually quite good now as far as setup goes. But the recirculating pump has been the culprit for most people with similar problems, as I understand it.

is it possible that your pump is not recirculating? I've seen posts on midwests forums and elsewhere by people who werent getting the expected results and it was that their pump was not recirculating properly and there was no indication that it wasn't functioning properly. Oh, yeah, the...

oh..... that's definitely enough sulfur granules

I can't really see it all that well, what media is that I see in your unit? It dosn't look like sulfur granules....

Today my nitrate reading was 2.5 by the salifert test kit. The denitrator has been running maintenance-free for almost a month now.

My modified sulfur denitrator has been up for just about a week now and my nitrates have fallen to between 10 and 25 according to the salifert test kit. Looks like its working!

Originally Posted by tony detroit Try using some more ARM in the chamber, on top of the sulphur beads. This should bring your pH back up. Another vote for Sulphur Denitrators. My H & S works very well on my 175gal. Never test for nitrates anymore. I'll try that next time I have to open it...

Originally Posted by Nolan_Nike The PH of my effluent has been around 7.5 Midwest Aquatics is sending me some new calcium media to test that should produce a higher PH. He also suggested that I go with 1/4 sulfur 3/4 calcium in the reactor because of the size of the XL denitrifier in relation...

Too fiddly for stable operation. Needs a very precise drip rate to maintain anoxic conditions and it is very hard to achieve. I used one for 6 months and it was so difficult to adjust that it never reliably made a dent in my nitrate readings the whole time I used it.

Effluent nitrate reading now at 0 and nitrate in tank at 25. All measurements by salifert test kits. Noticed that the ph of the effluent is now up to 7.8. Everything is doing fine in the display tank.