Recent content by masterreef

What lighting is in the canopy?

5mm is "standard" LED size, will probably cost less per mcd of light . . . I use 6 - 5mm and have nice moonlight (478 nm).

I have 2 HUGE CBS (mated pair) in my 55 along with some peppermints and small fish and have never had a problem, however these guys (in general)are very inconsistant in behavior and I know some others have had problems. It helps if you introduce the CBS last as they have less tendancy to be...

I run 2x250W MH 20,000K with 130W 50/50 PC and it seems to work well . . .

85 mcd is not very bright but you can add multiples in parallel for more light if needed. There are blue LED's available up into the 1000's of mcd per LED.

No top . . . I need the evaporation in hopes of avoiding a chiller purchase. So far so good . . .

Post when you get a vac and let us know how you made out . . .

The battery vac is not powerful enough to suck up even a small fish but the siphon vac could. Hard to do if you're careful as the fish will avoid the area you're cleaning. And no, you do not need to remove the fish. I always ran a power filter along with the ug though, you may consider adding one.

I never liked the battery powered ones, a good siphon vac will work well. Tumble sections of the gravel in it as you do water changes. You won't believe all the gunk that's accumulated down there. As far as cleaning your tubes, I kept a second set - took out the dirty one and immediately put in...

We have a long spinned urchin in our 55 reef. Despite nearly everyone's assertion that the are not reef safe, this guy has never caused a problem. We still keep a close eye on him but you have to realize that these individual creatures have personalities and there are no absolutes in this hobby...

If you exceed the power (wattage) rating of the fixture you'll burn up the ballast. There is no really cheap way to get good lights except to shop for sales and consider used gear. JMO

Actually GFI's are current protection devices and required just about everywhere in the US for use when water is present. They measure the current delivered to a circuit and the current being returned through the neutral line which must be identical. If there is a difference, the device trips...

Attach the ground wire (green insulation) from your power cord tightly to the metal case of the ballast.

I prefer the rubbermaid storage bins to trash cans, but - to each his own. One for fish, corals, and two or so for live rock. Good Luck!

We have a mated pair of true perculas hosted by a large sebae anemone. The male will often hang out in our large leather as if it was his host. We attribute it to the fish version of "sleeping on the couch".