Thanks Brassaxe and Madwealz.
QUOTE:
Yes, as often as you possibly can. Usually when you clean your tank.
I finally cleaned out the sump and removed all the LS and seaweed that was in it. The guy that sold it to me left a little surprise. Some rusted dikes...lol
My sump looks so NICE and clean that I'm thinking of adding fish...lol:banana:
JK
QUOTE:
Nope. Unless the snails carry the detritus out of the sump and into the garbage. You want to get the phosphates and everything else out of your tank. Snails are just a really slow middle man that reprocesses it.. No snails.. Just vacuum.[/QUOTE]
Yea I heard they can get stuck in the tubing as well. One guy at the LFS told me it was okay without hesitation. He also told me not to vacuum the LS. That it was only for FW aquariums.
QUOTE:
TDS Meter.. Anything below 1 or 2 is usually acceptable, after that you ned to replace your filters. [/QUOTE]
I have an HM AP1, and it works great.
http://www.tdsmeter.com/products/ap1.html
Thanks for the recommending the meter.
QUOTE:
Every few days to once a week at least. Its not hard to clean, so the more often the better. [/QUOTE]
I have four socks so I usually change them every 3-5 days.
QUOTE:
Don't worry about it.. If it grows, fine.. If not, fine.. You want balanced live rock. If your getting one thing specifically to grow, something else is loosing real estate and suffering. Eventually degrading water quality. [/QUOTE]
Thanks for the advice.
QUOTE:
Only if your dosing something. [/QUOTE]
:funny: I read somewhere that I should check for alkalinity too. Is that for reef only?
QUOTE:
I do 25% once a week. If my Nitrate hits 10ppm then its 50%.. As long as its under 10 for a fowlr I know my tank is really nice and clean.. Daily I check my ATO.. This is all subject to personal experience, tank requirements, and other things.. You'll get a feel for it after a while. [/QUOTE]
My parameters have been great I think. My nitrates stay at 20-40. The LFS says that as long as its under 40 I am golden. My fish seem to be thriving. Especially now that I removed two of the four powerheads and plced them in the sump. My clowns were struggling to swim, so that is why I took them out.
QUOTE:Carbon is most effective for about 12-48 hours. They still work on a lesser level up to 4-6 weeks if its good quality. I change mine weekly. I use about a cup for my 75. If I changed it monthly I would do 2-3 cups. If its a "carbon pad" with no real carbon it probably only works for a few days and you're wasting your money. If its a carbon filter with actual carbon pieces inside then you replace it the same as regular carbon. If its a carbon filter cartridge you'd be better buying a new filter type. [/QUOTE]
I have a carbon filter like the rodi units. So I guess I'll start changing it evry month or so. Not to brag, but I feel like a semi-pro bc my parameters are within the guidelines...I know that there's a lot more to learn. Thanks again TRT and all members that have given input.
Hey Brassaxe,how do you do that quote thing...lol
Hey Madwealz,
What is chateu/ I currently have like 10 snails and like 7 hermits as my cleanup crew. I am gonna look into the cucumbers. I also have likwe 5-10 lbs of LR in my sump.
I just thought I'd add a new concern that I noticed this morning about hair algae. Will bigger water changes kill it? It just started on on my LR. So I wanna stop it ASAP. It's not green either. But the LR is starting to get green algae. It's not that noticeable. Thanks!