Todd's ~ 320 Gallon System- A New Biginning?

Looking good todd. My skimmer was down for about 3 weeks and my nitrates and phosphate shot up noticeably. I overfeed though

 

Thanks DSC
MIne may have started climbing some, I didnt test, or do any WC's during this time though. Nothing really changed luckily- I thought it would have some, but didn't seem to.
My beast skimmer is back online now though- I'll keep looking for noticeable changes

 

tank looks great! saw the force comment there I use the force as well to monitor my tank - however, my tank looks nothing like yours Todd - I should get a picture of the lovely algae farm I have going at the moment.

 

I TRY and cultivate my own algae farm- on my ATS! Overall it's working well.
My DT defintrly has was less nuisance algae.
My FT still had a small amount- MUCH less though than pre ATS usage.
I'm amazed that I acutually got rid of ALL my chaeto that I've been so successful in cultivating for years!
I feel the ATS does in fact do a better job of exporting and reducing/eliminating nuisance algae in my system.

 

Well, good morning,

Today, I figured out the setting on the controllers on the WP pumps a little better.
I currently have a 60, and a 40 - both wp's, in my Display tank.

I realized I had been using the 60, on W1 mode, (on and off- with the cylce set my the turn knob)
in it's lowest setting. I put it to S1, and wow- woke the fish up.
I figure more random flow in the DT can't hurt, right?
Well, maybe wrong!
two of the tree rubber tabs ripped thru the mounting plate hole, partly b/c I had the holding bracket mounted 90degrees to the flow. NOw that it's SO powerful, it pulled two of the three out, and would have gotten the third rubber mount also- except I rescuied it and put it more inline, with the out magnet now being on the side of my DT, and not in the overflow. OH well- I backed it off to S2, and it seems to do fine now.

I'm glad to have my skimmer back online. While I really couldn't see a difference- I do like the dark skim it pulls.
I decided to run a sock or mesh bag on my siphon drain more often too.

Yesterday I siphoned loads of detritus from my sump, and smoe from my FT to my floor drain when I performed my 50g WC ~ 15% WC.

I also cleaned one sheet of my ATS- it has two seperate sheets I stagger the cleanings.

ON a different note; I've been watching one branch of my Bali Green Slimer grow onto, and into one of my larger plating montiporas.
Here's a few pics:




And a top down with some flow off

 

Also, recently I had bought some fittings so divert my drain to the sump, and have some of it feed my FT, then back to the sump.

The way it is now, I have 2 RP's, 1 DC12000 that feeds 100% RP to the DT; and 1 Marineland 5500 RP that
is diverted to my FT, and most of it goes up to my DT.

I was going to divert the drain for the FT, and have all of the flow of the Marineland also going to the DT. Then I put the fittings back, deciding that I actually had enough flow thru my sump already, and over the edge of my 6 ft long coast to coast overflow. I decided more flow thru the sump at some point actually is not a good thing.
So I left my currnet plumbing alone- it wasn't broke anyways.

I also have my back up RP- a DC12000- being used to feed my ATS.
I like the way witrh a push of a button I can adjust the flow to my ATS.
I usually have it on 2/6, or 3/6 flow, which is probably more than enough with such a short head to the ATS.

 

New Pics with my LED's turned down, whiter on 25%, Bluer on 30%

The left


Middle


Right


Left End


Right End


FTS


FTS- with whites on 25%; blues on 5% (See, the back/rocks are Purpleish with the blues almost off)

 

looking good!

 

Sweet Todd. How's your ATS doing? Still making tons of algae? Would you change anything or do you think you have it all dialed in now?

 

Thanks! Yours is coming along also- been checking yours out too.

Thanks; my ATS is doing well- yep- still making Algae- I"m an Algae farmer now- that is the whole idea behind it actually- grow it here, and it won't grow there.
I really wouldn't change much- except- if and when I have the money, I'll go with the red/some blues LED grow lights off Ebay/amazon.
And, I may actually drill a line of 1/8" holes instead of the slot, and hang the sheet just under the holes, instead of sticking it into the slot- maybe.
What's nice about it is it will never 'crash' your system in any way.

Definitely way less nuisance algae than using the chaeto/skimmet/LR method.
Now I"m using ATS/skimmer/LR