29 gallon clown and anemone tank

[hobogato]

we were fortunate to trade a biocube 29 for two of the clowns that we had to evacuate out of the main tank. the reason this is such a good thing is not only so we can bump back up to three tanks. instead, it will allow us to keep christy's favorite picasso clown instead of having to rehome it.

the plan is to set up a simple clown and anemone tank with a rbta and a pair of clowns. of course christy will also add any micromussa that she comes across since she likes them as well.

first, i pulled out all of the guts of the biocube as we will be running this tank with a dsb and liverock with twice a week small water changes (just like the big tank).

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09920.jpg

unfortunately when i filled the tank with vinegar water to clean the glass, it became apparent that the back was cracked.

so, i spent the rest of the afternoon removing that panel so i can replace it on monday

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09919.jpg

i even got all of the old silicone removed from the seam area so it is ready to reassemble on monday once i get a piece of glass

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09921.jpg

tomorrow i will be building the stand, more build pics to follow :)

[Texreefer]

Ace, If you are having trouble coming up with new Projects, I have a tank full of bryopsis that you can spend all the time you want working on

[hobogato]

darnit mike, the tech m isnt working?

got the stand mostly built this morning before it got too hot. hopefully i can get the building done this evening and do the finish work in the morning so it will be ready by the time the tank is ready on tuesday. also planning to build a small led light for it, more details on that later :)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09922.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09923.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09924.jpg

if it looks familiar, that is because i am building it to match our other tanks and furniture.

[hobogato]

almost finished with the construction - just have to add decorative molding onto the door, but we arent sure if it needs it

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09926.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09927.jpg

[reefreak]

this is looking great ace!

[Mr Cob]

that looks amazing Ace

[Scutterborn]

Spiffy!


-Ben-

[350gt]

Very nice...

[Texreefer]

Looks nice Ace.. have not tried the Tech M yet.. dont have the money to buy what I need

[hobogato]

got the led fixture wired - all 3W emitters:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09934.jpg

3 blue on one driver

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09933.jpg

1 red, 8 white, and 9 blue on the other (yep, i broke one installing, so i will have to pick up a replacement)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09930.jpg

also picked up a replacement glass pane and reassembled the tank

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09935.jpg

[Mr Cob]

great job on the LED

[Bill S]

Ace I would be sure to ventilate those LEDs. We found some failures with ones that aren't well ventilated, as even with a sink, they heat up too much.

[hobogato]

thanks bill, do you think i will need to add a small fan even tho that box is going to stay totally open and will hover above the tank - should get plenty of air flow

[wolff809]

Looks great Ace! You always have to be doing something new don't you? Haha

[hobogato]

yep :)

done with my least favorite part of any build - staining and finishing the cabinet

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09938.jpg

[reefreak]

Ace there is one thing I love about your builds because there is always lots of pictures! Looking good

[hobogato]

thanks jeremy.

got everything moved into the house where it will sit.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09940.jpg

after cleaning up the silicone on the tank tomorrow, i will water test it until wednesday. in the mean time tomorrow, i will hopefully get the led box suspended over the tank. might see salt water on wednesday if all goes well...

[Mr Cob]

dude you are so fast, looks nice Ace, I feel like I say that all the time lol

[RayAllen]

Looks killer Ace. One lucky clown fish.

[hobogato]

thanks ray and rob, i am looking forward to seeing the light on the tank with water in it - these leds are bright!

[hobogato]

got the light fixture done, just need to wire it up - all wiring is hidden in the wall and the drivers are down in the cabinet.

holes drilled for mounting screws and wiring

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09942.jpg

mounting blocks attached

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09943.jpg

light box attached

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09945.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09946.jpg

and for easy access to the tank, it is mounted using hinges

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09944.jpg

[reefreak]

wow love the way you mounted it

[ErikH]

I don't know how I missed this, but I did. I try to make my life's motto "use your time wisely" and I feel like I do, then I discover threads like this and I get bummed out. LOL

Great job man. How much did the light cost? Every time I see these things built, it makes me want to build one of my own!

[BSJF]

cool concept!

[hobogato]

thanks for the comments all :)

erik, i got everything needed from reefs2u for $150

pics with lights - hard to tell the difference in the pics tho

three blue emitters only

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09948.jpg

all 21 emitters on

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09949.jpg

[grouch]

Ace, when do you sleep !!! I have never seen anyone as fast as you setting up a tank !

[hobogato]

hehe

yet another update:

after a few hours of running with vinegar water, i am pretty confident that the back pane isnt going to leak. we went ahead and drained the vinegar water and rinsed the tank. then, we added live sand and live rock that i have had cooking in a tub of salt water with circulation, and we did a big water change on the 250 so we could fill this one up with cycled tank water. if it is cleared up by tomorrow, we will move the clowns and anemone in.

blues only

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09955.jpg

all lights

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09959.jpg

christy did a great job on the rock - she is already planning spaces where she can put in frags from the big tank :lauging:

front

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09963.jpg

left side

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09966.jpg

right side

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09965.jpg

side note, are hydor koralia nanos supposed to be noisy? this pump is louder than both of our other tanks! edit: nevermind, figured it out

[Mr Cob]

looks great. HA I knew you guys couldn't keep it just anem and clowns! lol

No, hydor koralias are not supposed to be loud when running continuously. Try taking the fan cover off and flicking the fan with your finger...lol, works on mine.

[hobogato]

thanks rob, when i took it off the back of the tank, i noticed the buzzing stopped, so i looked behind the tank. the dry side magnet had fallen off. now that it is back in place, it is silent.

[hobogato]

the water has cleared up considerably this morning, but i decided to help it along. i put in my handy dandy water clearer upper (just a powerhead attached to a plastic container with filter pad in it)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09969.jpg

[allan]

Nice build, Ace.

I think I'm going to have to try that handy dandy water cleaner upper concept.

[alton]

What no fish yet? You need to watch Tanked, Brent would had fish in there

[hobogato]

:ph34r:

[hobogato]

alright, just so everyone knows...

this tank was set up using live sand and rock from very stable system (several years old). the sand and rock was never out of water, and the sand was rinsed thoroughly with discard salt water from water changes. the water used to set up this tank is discard water from a large water change on the 250. there should be minimal (if any) cycle on this tank.

now that that is clear, anemone and clowns are settling in nicely

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09975.jpg

rbta from bernie and christy's favorite picasso from the 250

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09978.jpg

baby platinum is still intimidated by the nem, but was swimming around with the other clown for a few minutes before the anemone was added

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09980.jpg

[reefreak]

looking great ace

[polarbear]

What % do you have the lights at? or is that full power?

[hobogato]

these are not dimmable drivers, so they are at full power. it is actually quite a bit brighter that the pictures make it seem

[polarbear]

I thought it might just be the picture. I saw them in the other ones you posted the other day and they looked a lot brighter. Good build and hope everything goes well.

[hobogato]

this pic gives a better representation of how bright they are. although, the color is off.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC09986.jpg

[RayAllen]

WOW! It came together nicely. Love the modern look.

[alton]

Looks great Ace, I knew that comment would get a fish in there. It is nice having a larger or established system to pull from to get a tank going almost immediately.

[hobogato]

i decided that a carbon reactor would benefit this tank (as it does the 250), so i modified a magnum 350 to function as one - thanks again for the canister filter jeremy!

here is how i redid it. i switched the intake and output ports and plumbed the new intake port over to the center directly to the pump. the water now flows upward from the pump, thru the two acrylic baffles and out the top thru the exit port back to the tank.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00131.jpg

here is the intake in the tank

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00133.jpg

and the effluent

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00134.jpg

the plumbing is all painted black and runs over the back edge of the tank but under the wooden frame on the top of the tank

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00135.jpg

here it is running in the stand. i plumbed it with the ball valve unions for ease of removal to change carbon and filter pad.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00137.jpg

[reefreak]

looking great ace!

[allan]

Sure does.

Maybe I should set that other one up like that. Help with the filtration.

[hobogato]

well, it runs great, but has a slight leak. the o-ring at the top has some cracks, so i will need to replace it. anyone know off hand if any of the local shops carry the replacement o-ring?

[Gseclipse02]

try texas tropical they love canister filters

[Scutterborn]

I know your trying to source it local but, if you don't have any luck...

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=10048


- Ben -

[hobogato]

thanks for the suggestions.

i called every lfs that was open by 10 and nobody had it in stock. then christy suggested a hydraulics store, and on a tip from ben i was able to find it at hydraulics supply on iota dr. it is running again now with no leaks.

[Flyride95]

You have got to love how you can make things work with home depot, lowes ect ect...

[Scutterborn]

De nada, mi amigo!

Glad it's working.

- Ben -

[hobogato]

yep, i dont care where the parts come from, as long as they work :) although, i do try to use the local fish stores first ;)


You have got to love how you can make things work with home depot, lowes ect ect...

upon looking at those last pics, that electrical outlet made me a little nervous. i decided to make a cover to keep it dry in the case of spills or leaks. i feel much better now :)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00138.jpg

[hobogato]

btw, the tank is chugging along nicely. the diatom bloom is on the decline - they barely clouding the glass now. there is a bacterial bloom in the water, making it a bit cloudy. this is the same thing that happened in the big tank at the beginning, so hopefully it will only last a little longer.

you can really see the cloudiness in the fts

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00142.jpg

the anemone and clowns seem to be doing really well - this pic does not do the anemone justice as it has green base and yellowish with pink tip tentacles

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00149.jpg

duplicate acan from the big tank

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00148.jpg

duplicate chalice from the big tank - front edge was completely eaten away in the big tank before it was moved, but it has pretty much recovered in here

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00150.jpg

sweet non indo acan from rob

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00147.jpg

yes ben, we are stealing your gsp backdrop idea, but the frag on the left side of the pic keeps falling off of the glass

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00151.jpg

[allan]

I've placed them on the bottom, they seem to find the wall all on their own.

[hobogato]

thanks, i will try that if they fall off again


I've placed them on the bottom, they seem to find the wall all on their own.

[Scutterborn]

Im sure I didn't come up with that on my own! Lol. Looking really good. To make mine stick, I wasn't shy with the glue!! It took off and never looked back. I did make the mistake of letting grow into the overflow teeth... Never again. That was a real pita to trim back.


- Ben -

[hobogato]

well, the tank is all cleared up and everything seems really well settled in now. the algae is also starting to disappear off of the sand.

even tho it isnt so obvious when you look at the tank, you can really see the effect of the single red led in the pics - including the red shimmer spots on the rock

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00171.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00170.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00169.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00168.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00167.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00172.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00166.jpg

[Mr Cob]

looking nice Ace, whatcha got down below?

[hobogato]

just the carbon reactor. this tank is set up like the big tank with no sump or skimmer.

[hobogato]

picked up a few nice things from fishtomorrow in fort worth and the dome in austin on our way home yesterday.

Moselaya latistellata

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00226.jpg

Acanthastrea bowerbanki - the two colonies look more different to the naked eye

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00232.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00233.jpg

[Mr Cob]

killer bowers ACE! One of my favorite acans aside from the non-indos.

[hobogato]

thanks rob

i decided to rework the 250 a bit and move some corals over to this tank. christy really likes acans and micromussa, so i moved all of those colonies and frags over to this tank - 30 acans, 4 micromussa, and a couple of other miscellaneous frags that christy wanted.

the water has mostly cleared up, so i snapped some pics - only blue lights on this time of day

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00250.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00251.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00252.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00253.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00254.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00255.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00256.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00257.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00258.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00259.jpg

[hobogato]

took some pics with all of the lights on today - it is proving difficult to get good pics with this led lighting. even tho it isnt obvious in the moving shimmer to the naked eye, the spots of shimmer from the one red emitter really show up in the pics

left side view

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00269.jpg

right side view

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00272.jpg

front view

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00268.jpg

[reefreak]

hey ace looking great what are those what acans are those orange ones?

[Louis-210]

Looks Great!!:applause:

[hobogato]

the big ones down on the sand are A. bowerbanki. all of the acans on the rocks are A. lordhowensis. sorry, dont know any designer names (if there are any)


hey ace looking great what are those what acans are those orange ones?

[Mr Cob]

dang that's sick...those bowers are making me want to keep my tank going lol

[Scutterborn]

I love it! Just awesome. I'm not kidding. This tank is just great.


-Ben-

[hobogato]

thanks guys

thought i would share the anemone's daily feeding response to the addition of live brine - the clownfish doesnt appreciate it at all (yes, those red lines are the shimmer from the one red emmitter - really shows up in pics. may have to find a way to dim it out)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00289.jpg

[Mr Cob]

OMG those colors are killing me!

[hobogato]

decided to switch the one red emitter out with another white - the tank looks much better now.

left side

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00332.jpg

right side

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00334.jpg

front view

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00331.jpg

it is amazing that one led can make that much difference!

[Mr Cob]

...and even more amazing that the gold torch has already opened up for you! Tank looks great. I like the color spectrum of the lighting.

[chunkymonkey]

what an amazing tank......Makes me want another 29.....lol

[itsbobbyz]

looks amazaing ace
awesome work with the stand and tank!
my tanks coming along pretty well
thanks for all the help

[hobogato]

thanks guys, it seems to have finished with all of the algal blooms now as well. i need to get some now pics soon.

chad, look forward to seeing what you put together when you are back in the game

bobby, glad your tank is doing well.

[hobogato]

the tank has been running just shy of 3 months. all of the algal blooms seem to be finished. we lost a few polyps of the big bower colony because of some kind of pest algae and an infection. after cleaning it up and dipping in lugol's it seems to have stabilized. everything else is doing great.

here is an actinic only fts
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00709.jpg

[350gt]

Lots of eye candy......


looks good ace.

[Mr Cob]

so much color, looks amazing

[hobogato]

thanks guys

[ElChicano]

Love this.. def something to work towards. The colors are amazing to say the least.

[hobogato]

thanks hugo.

here is a video update - just over four months running

EQpKQq5GM4c

[Third Coast Tropical]

looks great!

[hobogato]

thanks lindsay. i still have that outlet plumbing piece sitting in the table for you.

doing water change this morning and thought i would snap a pic to show the difference between the bright blue and the royal blue leds. when the tank is low and the wooden rim is off of the tank, the lights make a neat pattern on the wall and door. the door is gloss white, so this is a pretty good representation of the color. this is the pattern with the dawn/dusk leds on - three 3w emitters, one uv, one bright blue, and one royal blue. the two blues are creating this light spillover in the pic.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC007671024x768_zps52bd3c26.jpg

before adding the uv and the royal blue (sued to have only cool white and bright blue), all of the reds were starting to fade a bit and look the same color. since switching out some of the bright blues for royal blue and uv, the reds have darkened back up and more diverse colors are showing up all over the tank. the current config is 2 uv, 4 rb, 7 bb, and 8 cw.

[gjuarez]

Awesome tank Ace. I just setup a nuvo 38 this week so I am officially back. Ill be subscribing to this

[hobogato]

great to see you back jerry!

just a quick fts

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC008081024x768_zps8a4841d2.jpg

[Louis-210]

WOW looks great ace..im thinking about setting up a 20 long :)

[hobogato]

thanks louis.

had to move the orange torch into the big tank to try to save it. darn clownfish refused to leave it alone and live in its anemone. hopefully it will recover.

[Scutterborn]

I hope so. That torch is one of the best I've seen!


-Ben-

[hobogato]

nope, it didnt pull thru.

on a more positive note, we added a companion for ms. creamsicle yesterday. after swimming away from each other until lights out last night, this is how they have been like this all day today. christy has yet to name the little fella.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00918_zps2807ac9e.jpghttp://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00914_zpsbce3a016.jpghttp://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00910_zps42592901.jpg

[hobogato]

coolest find in a long time today:

captive bred marine beta from pollys pets

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00958_zps22fe870a.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00957_zps6217d7b9.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00959_zps544223f8.jpg

[slm222]

Awesome tank build. Im subscribing to this thread! I'm new to the hobby but enjoying it so much we are letting go of our freshwater tanks.

Stephen

[hobogato]

thanks, welcome to maast!

[Scutterborn]

Awesome tank build. Im subscribing to this thread! I'm new to the hobby but enjoying it.

Stephen

Welcome to MAAST! Aces tank are some of the finest I've seen.

[Louis-210]

Welcome to MAAST! Aces tank are some of the finest I've seen.


+1

[hobogato]

thanks guys, but this one is christy's tank :)

so the cheapo driver on the leds quit. the tank has been under blues only for a couple of days. thankfully i talked with a few guys (robert, shane, tuan) and will be using a better driver to get it lit up again. luckily the new driver will be dimable, so i can start off with lower intensity since the tank will have been without the main part of the lights for a few days.

[hobogato]

ok, so thanks to tuan for the great deal - i am now going to run 24 emitters (3W - brightwell) on a dim4 controller and meanwell driver. they will be set up as follows:

dim4 ch1 -3 royal blue + cooling fan on relay
dim4 ch2 - 3 bright blue
dim4 ch3 - meanwell driver w/ 15 emiitters (6 cool white, 3 10K, 3 bright blue, 3 royal blue) + relay to cut power (later)
dim4 ch4 - 3 uv

the meanwell will be set up with 3 parallel groups of 5 emitters in series since it produces 2.3A and the emitters only pull 700 mA. i will also run resistors in each group to keep better control over loosing remaining emitters caused by a surge if one fails.

will be wiring things up when i get home from work today if christy was able to find the resistors i need. wish me luck, this is much more complicated than the simple circuits i set up the first time...

[Scutterborn]

I'm sure it'll all be worth it. Especially if you don't have to keep spending money on ibuprofen to keep the headache in check! :)


-Ben-

[hobogato]

no kidding ben.

success! all emitters re-soldered and all electronics work as they should.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00982_zpsde223d12.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00979_zpsb3559842.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00981_zps7ed1fe4f.jpg

i am going to try to run the new wires thru the wall and re-hang the fixture tomorrow morning before work. i plan on running the lights at about 50% for a day, then 70% for a day and then bring them up to about 85% after that.

also, the fan is now powered and controlled by the dim4 as well.

[BBQHILLBILLY]

very nice. each LED gets their own heatsink. sweet:bigsmile:

[hobogato]

yeah, with the small fan, they stay nice and cool


well, tank is back in business, all fixed up

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00983_zpsdf9e8031.jpg

made a small acrylic box to hold the dim4 controller

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00988_zps933bd3f8.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00989_zps76275248.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00990_zps65f2850f.jpg

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00991_zpsbf8ca4a3.jpg

and the tank with all emitters at about 50% - everything is a little ticked off after being in the dark for a few days...

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC00985_zps9d056f61.jpg

[Scutterborn]

Über sweet!


-Ben-

[rrasco]

Awesome!

What emitters are on the strips? UV?

[hobogato]

thanks guys.

robert, those are the moonlights.

[OrionN]

Very nice, great looking tank.
I got a 29 g Biocube also. I need to get the "gut out of it" also. Did you just use razor blades and patiently strips all the silicon off of it?

[hobogato]

most of the silicone had started to separate on this one minh, so yes, i just carefully cut it the rest of the way loose and then scraped it off of the glass with single sided razors. the plastic on the outside that covers the view to the back chamber was a little more challenging to remove, but i was able to carefully cut it loose with a box knife.

[rrasco]

thanks guys.

robert, those are the moonlights.

Ah, gotcha. Now that you have dimming capabilites, you can just use the blues and dim them low...that's what I do with mine. I leave close to 42 royal blues + 4 pinks on overnight on my tank, at 0.39%, or 1/255.

[hobogato]

yep, if these moonlight strips ever quit on me, that is what i will do as well.

[rrasco]

I was curious cuz I need to add some UV to my 100 gallon. I have 2 UV on my frag tank and I think that is what I am missing on the big tank. I don't want to swap out emitters or change the string, so I was thinking about strips of some sort.

[hobogato]

yeah, when i switched out a couple of blue emitters for uv, the colors began to change dramatically. all of the reds and oranges were starting to look the same prior to adding the uv, but now they all look different again. i am not even sure they are true uv, but they dont get very bright to the eye and they show up almost purple in photos. regardless, they have made a difference.

[hobogato]

well, everything seems to have recovered from the few days of darkness. here is a mid-day pic when all the emitters are on

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/29/DSC01001.jpg

the clowns will swim together a bit, but she will not allow him into the anemone yet.

[allan]

You know what Ace? Your wife's tank is amazing. Ordinarily most indicate that you've got to see the tank in person, but this picture does seem to capture everything... although you've got to see this tank in person. :)

Remember that acan that I had asked you about? the more flat one? Used to be red, but under the LEDs it seems to have taken on an orange hue. In fact all of my Acans are looking much better under the LED than they ever did under MH. I was wondering what the frag is looking like in here.

[hobogato]

i think that one is a micromussa allan. it really hasnt changed in appearance yet as far as i can tell.