75 Gal Rebuild Thread

[schneijt]

Matt, today when I went down to the tank, I said to myself: "wow, the water looks unusually clear!" I know that they said that the MB7 was supposed to have it's most noticeable effects within something like 30min after you first add it... But for me, today was the day when I looked at the tank and really noticed a big difference...??!!

I've got another six days of the "high nutrient" dosing, per the instructions. Then I'm going to ween my tank down to the "low nutrient" dosing. I know Brightwell says to just switch right to the lower dose, but I'm going to lower it over the course of a few days, just 'cause...

Here's a pic of the Naso:

[schneijt]

Also, I'm going to hold off on the dosing of Vodka or VSV (I'm still not sure which I'm going to dose, but I'm leaning toward VSV) until my cyano is gone. I've got it in my fuge and in a few spots in the tank, and since cyano is bacteria, I don't want to risk fueling it with the carbon source... If the cyano isn't gone within the next two weeks, I'll just really slowly start the VSV or vodka and see if it ends up fueling the cyano or not.

-Joe

[hansmatt]

That makes sense...I'm still waiting on mine...backordered
I thought about doing the prodibio version, but more $

[schneijt]

Yeah, it's hard to really choose what to do, since there are so many carbon/bacteria dosing products out there. I chose to do MB7 because lots of people on Reef Central were using it and have amazing tanks. I may after a while choose to occasionally dose Prodibio BioDigest, just to add some bacterial diversity. But, it sounds like people are having great long-term success with just MB7 and vodka. My thoughts about VSV are that having more carbon sources should help me avoid having just one strain of bacteria thrive. Also, VSV is more "potent" than just dosing vodka, so a little bit will go further--not a big deal, really, but why dose a few millileters when a fraction of one will get the job done?

Anyway, MB7 is definitely cheaper than the Prodibio, which is nice. And since everyone else is having success with it, I figure I should as well, hopefully!

-Joe

[schneijt]

***Sorry in advance for LARKers reading this and seeing duplicates of information between multiple posts, but I figure I've gotta keep the build thread updated with the same info as other threads, since some people might be reading this who don't read the rest of the stuff posted on the LARK forum...***

Well, after the Naso died, I decided it was time to try a new type of tang in the tank. Just happened to stop in Petco and found this great-looking Blue Hippo Tang. He became mine. Now, let's just hope that whatever was killing off Nasos in my tank doesn't take this cute little guy out...! (crosses his fingers)



-Joe

[Timmy]

Did the third Naso die?

Nevermind I read the other thread. That sucks man.

[schneijt]

Here's a brief video of the tank I just took from my iPhone:

[schneijt]

FYI, if clicking on the "Play" symbol in the upper left doesn't work, try clicking on the play symbol at the bottom left. That's the only way the video will play for me on my Macbook Pro... Could just be my computer or something, but a heads up just in case it's doing that for anyone else...

-Joe

[schneijt]

(If you're wondering why the water isn't very clear, it's because I just scraped my front glass after neglecting it for a few days...) On a side note, since I'm dosing the MB7 now, it seems like the algae growth on the glass has significantly slowed, which is nice!

[schneijt]

Got home tonight and my Osmolator pump (top-off system) had died. They usually last 2-3 years, so mine died right around two years, maybe two and a half... For weeks I've been telling myself to order a replacement, since it was making a bit of a grinding noise and I figured it might slowly be dying. Did I buy a new one, though??? OF COURSE NOT!!!

Wanna guess how much it costs to overnight a $22 replacement Osmolator pump from Indiana (Premium Aquatics) to Wisconsin??? lol FORTY-FIVE DOLLARS!!! To be fair, I also ordered a couple more bottles of MB7 and another bottle of Zoe, but still..... But, it'll arrive on Friday and then I'll have the tank's ATO system running automatically again. Topping off by hand sucks. I don't know how I ever did that without killing myself during my pre-Osmolator reef keeping...

Let this be a lesson: When a replacement pump only costs $22 and you know you'll need it eventually and it's a VITAL part of your system, BUY THE D@MN THING BEFORE YOUR CURRENT PUMP DIES!

Oh, and to think...I had money in my bank account. I knew it wouldn't last. Haha. The good news, though, is that my tank isn't topping off that much at the moment, so I can just overfill it a bit before work, and then again after work, and all is well. Thank goodness for that!

-Joe

[tangmang23]

yeah joe, i hear you there, I do not have an ATO system, due to not having room in the stand for it. Besides, id fill the top off tank just as much as i would the actual tank. IDK i save money and for me its just easier.

[hansmatt]

Joe,
How is the tank looking with the addition of the MB7? Are you still noticing the clearer water? Any difference in the skimmate produced? I'm sure that it's too early to notice any coloration difference, are you starting your VSV dosing?

[schneijt]

Water is still looking super clear. I haven't started vodka yet, but might start it very slowly this weekend and also slowly reduce the MB7 down to a smaller maintenance dose. Since my tank doesn't have a nutrient problem or anything, I shouldn't need much vodka or MB7 to maintain super low nutrients in the tank. And if corals start to lighten up, I'll feed more and/or dose amino acids to bring the colors back up there.

-Joe

[schneijt]

Oh, and I think the skimmate is getting darker and slightly more in quantity, but that's definitely not scientific or anything... lol

[schneijt]

Got the Osmolator back up and running. Also got a veritable ****-ton of MB7, so that I won't have to order any more for a while. I also raised the water level in the sump about 1/4", to improve the air pull on the Sicce pump on my skimmer a bit. It's now running in about 9" of water, so I'll see how upping the sump depth to 9" works out with the performance of the skimmer. I've heard that the Sicce on a cone works best in around 10" of water, but I don't have the tallest of sumps, so I think 9" is about as much water as I want to put in there just in case the power goes out. Come to think of it, it's been a while since I've unplugged everything and done a flood test. So, I should do that to make sure 9" leaves enough room for all the water to backflow into the sump...

-Joe