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Bryce 
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 Posted: January 26 2015 at 6:52pm |
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My post said I DO recommend gfo, I run it all the time. My comment was that those phosphate levels are fine, I have over 40 different sps that have amazing color and growth and my phosphates are usually .03 to .07 with a hanna checker even with running gfo so my comment is if you are not running gfo im all for it but dont expect the levels you have to really cause much issues.
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65g Reef
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Bryce
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Posted: January 26 2015 at 6:58pm |
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Also a skimmer needs 3 months to really build up a nice slime and that will help with some of the issues you guys are having with your skimmers, a skimmer is usually affected by any chemical change, new saltwater, hands in tank, feeding tank, dosing tank, gfo or carbon change, pretty much anything, in my opinion these issues get better once the entire skimmer has a nice bio film/slime on its parts (not to be confused with gunk that should be cleaned)
Edited by Bryce - January 26 2015 at 6:59pm
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65g Reef
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relethg
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 7:27am |
Bryce, I miss read your post and apologize, I thought it odd
you would not like GFO.
On the skimmer: In my opinion this skimmer is a POS. The
bubble plate holes are too small and are always getting clogged with crap. It is
hard to clean because of this and has required bubble plate cleaning weekly because
of this. I don’t run a sock all the
time. It doesn’t stay adjusted and is hard to adjust unless you reach in and
hold the base. I do have very limited experience with skimmers and that is why
I have not replaced it yet. I will give it some more time. The thing is weird though.
I can understand a skimmer changing when you add water or stick your hand in
the tank. This thing will flood with none of that. My experience is when you do
one of those things the skimmer will not have bubbles rising as high not
flooding. The skimmer sits in a chamber that doesn’t change water level. I have
been working with deferent water heights to see if that makes a difference and
so far I don’t see much change.
Anyway I am not concerned with phosphate or any of my
numbers at this point. I do want either a dual GAC/GFO or separate GAC/GFO
reactor(s) for this setup. I believe this will help maintain good levels down
the road. I don’t have much room in the
sump and don’t think media in bags is as efficient as reactors. Do you have an
opinion on this?
Thanks for your input!
Glenn
Edited by relethg - January 27 2015 at 8:51am
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210 G Filled 18 Mar 15
120 G Filled 11 Jun 16
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 8:13am |
I have a couple of comments. If the holes in the bubble plate are too small why not use a drill and make them bigger to help solve the problem? I'm not familiar with that specific skimmer but the HOB skimmer on my cube used to overflow all the time but I have gotten it dialed in now so that it doesn't do that anymore. I will still have days when the cup will fill up in a single day, instead of the 2-3 days it normally takes, but it doesn't over flow the cup. Putting your hand in the tank normally reduces the bubbles inside the skimmer, feeding will normally increase the foam (and may overflow the cup). Changing water normally reduces the foam as well (you are removing a portion of the water column and replacing it with clean water after all). Changing gac and gfo will reduce foam as well. No if my wife puts her hand in the tank, without washing them thoroughly first, then the bubbles go nuts from the lotions and gunk the the ladies put on.  In a 45 you should be able to run plenty of mixed gac/gfo in a single reactor for the load on that system. Just make sure you mix it 2/3 gac and 1/3 gfo to prevent the gfo from caking. You will have to change it a little more often with a mixed media as the gfo will deplete before the gac does. Other than that it works great running them together and you don't have to worry about tumbling the gfo to much and grinding it into a power that then dusts all your corals in the tank (very bad things happen after this occurs). Hope that helps. Krazie 
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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Bryce
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 9:59am |
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I run two separate reactors simply because I change the media at different frequencies. My experience is different than Krazie's as my GFO will last a month or two where as my Carbon will last a month tops. Its really a preference if you run two or one, BRS had a great video discussing pros and cons of each which basically came down to cost and maintenance. I am not a fan of the all in one dual reactors as the carbon media should have a little different flow than GFO and Carbon clogs up over time so you change up the flow adjuster to benefit your carbon and then your gfo is tumbling out of control, if you change your GFO or carbon they need to be flushed with a few gallons and if you change the media at different times you have the "fines" or dust from either running through the other, not a huge deal but just a consideration. On the pro's of an all in one dual reactor you have a single pump, one inlet hose, one outlet hose. On a tank your size I would consider two of those brs mini reactors or even one and mix the media as Krazie suggested. I did that before I added a second reactor.
Edited by Bryce - January 27 2015 at 10:02am
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65g Reef
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:10am |
I like the dual reactor but I don't run it in-line like BRS sets them up. On my larger tanks I turn the canisters and add a few more fittings so that I can run them individually but still on the same bracket. That way I can control the flow through each one separately as well as replace media without affecting the other one. I also run a manifold off of my main return pump so that I don't have to run additional pumps in the sump. I run the single canister with mixed media on my smaller tanks. The only reason Bryce's times are different than mine is because he is probably running almost equal amounts of gac and gfo in separate canisters. when running the 2/3 to 1/3 mix (that BRS recommends) you obviously have much less gfo than gac and so the gfo becomes saturated before the gac. Lots of different ways of accomplishing the same task and outcome. They all work. Krazie
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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relethg
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:33am |
Krazie and Bryce thank you both for your comments. I like the idea of separate reactors and think I will buy two of the BRS mini reactors for this tank. I will make a manifold and run one separate pump for both. What do you guys like for media?
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:37am |
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for gac I like the BRS ROX 0.8 and for gfo I like the brs regular gfo (not the HD or HP or whatever the other one is). I'm sure there are cheaper ones that will work but I just order about twice a year from BRS (to get the free shipping) and I order enough that it will last until the next order.
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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Bryce
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:43am |
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I agree with Krazie, BRS bulk media, any work, the premium carbon is worth it, the high capacity GFO vs. the normal GFO is nice but not needed.
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65g Reef
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relethg
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:46am |
Another question. This tank and the 210 are mixed reef. I have fish, and all different kinds of corals. What should my target phosphate and N03 ranges be (looking for good compromise). I was thinking; phosphate .02-.08 PPM and N03 1-5 PPM. What to optimize for coral growth and will have SPS in the tank.
Glenn
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 10:57am |
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I like to keep phosphates as low as possible. I don't mind having my N03 get a little high (even 10 ppm). As long as you keep your phosphates in check then you should see good growth, decent color and little algae. YMMV but that's what works for me.
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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Bryce
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 11:21am |
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I would pay most attention to Alk (followed by Calcium) after your tank matures, to me they are more of the "invisible" problem childs of a tank as they usually only manifest themselves in your corals and can do so very fast (particularly Alk problems) vs. phosphates and nitrate that manifest themselves with algea and can take a while to evidence themselves. Every tank is different and your corals will actually adjust to parameters that are within a range rather well. Phosphate is recommended at < 0.03 ppm but some tanks can do fine at 0.08 or higher (like mine) and some will have algae/coral color problems so you will have to wait till your tank matures to figure out what is ideal for yours. For nitrate a good target is less than 0.2 ppm nitrate. Reefs can function acceptably at much higher nitrate levels (20 ppm), but run greater risks of algae and color issues. Right now do your best to monitor your levels but unless something bad is happening I would not obsess over numbers slightly outside the recommended ranges.
Edited by Bryce - January 27 2015 at 11:22am
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65g Reef
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Mark Peterson
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Posted: January 27 2015 at 12:36pm |
 Krazie4Acans wrote:
...Just make sure you mix it 2/3 gac and 1/3 gfo to prevent the gfo from caking. You will have to change it a little more often with a mixed media as the gfo will deplete before the gac does.
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I believe its the other way around, isn't it? With a mix of 2/3 gac and 1/3 gfo they will both reach saturation at about the same time, of course, depending on the specific rate of contaminant production in an aquarium.
Regarding the request for comments about media bags vs. a reactor, it depends what media is being used. GFO works better when it is tumbled slowly in a reactor. GAC and AA work just fine and IMO, just as well in a media bag.
It should be mentioned that AA is perfectly fine for use and is not bad for our tanks as was rumored years ago which caused hobbyists to turn to GFO .
Aloha 
Edited by Mark Peterson - January 27 2015 at 12:45pm
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Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks:www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member 
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relethg
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Posted: February 07 2015 at 9:59am |
Here is my latest update. I have added two 5" BRS reactors. They are not run one into another. I run GFO in one and GAC in the other. I have had no issue with getting the GFO to tumble, I just filled it 2/3 and is working fine. My phosphate went to about zero and clarity is excellent. DT Algae is on a big time decline. I have also added three more types of algae to the sump for a total of 4. All livestock looks very healthy. Want to add more corals.
Is it unusual to be needing to dose Alk every week to keep the numbers close? I have added about 70ML of Alk for the last three weeks. everything else is staying good with water changes.
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Bryce
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Posted: February 07 2015 at 10:36am |
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Sounds like things are going great congrats, I dose alk everyday every 4 hours and dose a total of 57ml in 24 hours so no, dosing as you mentioned is not unusual.
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65g Reef
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: February 07 2015 at 10:44am |
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Alk dropping slightly during tank start up is normal. The nitrogen cycle uses alk to produce nitrate in the final stage or the cycle. Live Rock will also consume alk as coraline grows on the rock.
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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Pete Moss
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Posted: February 24 2015 at 3:50pm |
This thread, and all the tracking you've done is AWESOME.
Is there any way you can post a link to the spreadsheet? I would love to have a copy of it.
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125g 90g 2x33g 34g
What stores do I recommend?
Up North: Bill ( Saltwater Paradise 801-317-8115 )
Down South: Jerry ( Reef On 801-563-0600 )
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Krazie4Acans
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Posted: February 24 2015 at 3:54pm |
He posted the link on the first or second page. It's a pretty cool spreadsheet. Krazie
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My ocean. 90g (yup, won it!), 40g, 28g, & 10g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water Tank Thread:
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Pete Moss
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Posted: February 24 2015 at 4:01pm |
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I was hoping to get HIS specific spreadsheet with his data :)
Just curious to see the numbers in detail :)
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125g 90g 2x33g 34g
What stores do I recommend?
Up North: Bill ( Saltwater Paradise 801-317-8115 )
Down South: Jerry ( Reef On 801-563-0600 )
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PDoug
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Posted: February 24 2015 at 7:32pm |
relethg wrote:
Here is my latest update. I have added two 5" BRS reactors. They are not run one into another. I run GFO in one and GAC in the other. I have had no issue with getting the GFO to tumble, I just filled it 2/3 and is working fine. My phosphate went to about zero and clarity is excellent. DT Algae is on a big time decline. I have also added three more types of algae to the sump for a total of 4. All livestock looks very healthy. Want to add more corals.
Is it unusual to be needing to dose Alk every week to keep the numbers close? I have added about 70ML of Alk for the last three weeks. everything else is staying good with water changes.
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Not to revive a dead post but I have to Dose 150ml of alk a day so 70 is not bad at all
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(307)679-7898 Phillip Douglass 75 Gallon Reef Tank
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