looking for a mentor

Hello all here in 3-Reef land.
I have had my tank up for 1 year now and i am kinda stuck at what to do now.
I was hopeing someone on here who has tons more experiance then i can take time in there busy day to pass on little helps and tidbits to help my 75 gallon become a showcase to be proud of in my home/office.
i can do video as well as pics and i am willing to do whatever it takes to make my little ocean reef a home to be proud of!!!
my budget is a little tight but i just want to do this slow as well right!
so anyone out there up for the challange?
let me know by sendinf a PM please.

Good luck and happy reefing to you all.

 

A lot of your questions can be answered by doing a search here on 3reef for the subject you want. There is al kinds of stuff in Matt's archive.

 

So your problem is LHA, right? Lets start from scratch. Need all the details of your set up, EVERYTHING!!!! How, when, where and why. How much do you feed, how often do you change out the filter pads(if any), how often do you clean all your ph's, EVERYTHING. Bulbs, what kind of chemical filteration do you use? Luna

 

You may want to add other types of coral to your tanks diversity. Unfortunately, your fish population is pretty much topped out, in my opinion. Also, Domino's, Clown fish and Tangs can be very aggressive, especially with the introduction of new species.
Also, maybe other species of invertebrates may be just what you are looking for.
Long Tentacle Anemones are not that appropriate for a reef tank! I know you weren't looking forward to hearing that, however, anemones can and will sting and possibly kill other corals as well as fish if they can catch them.
Cleaner shrimp, Conch, hermits(Blue legs and scarlet reefs) just to name a few.
Now consider Gorgonians, Tunicates(Sea Squirts), Sponges(Porifera), some of the more hardy species of Small stony corals, such as Montipora, Pavona, porites and Millipora Acropora. Large polyped stonies like Brain and Plate corals will also be a welcome addition to a reef tank that you are so eagerly looking to replicate.
You should read about each species of coral regarding husbandry, compatibility, and how hardy the particular species of coral etc. is.
Ideal water parameters and proper equipment is also essential in you efforts and success in creating a diverse and beautiful reef biotope, over and above that which you currently possess.
This is it in a nut shell without taking too much of your time and rambling on at this particular time.
Best of luck and hope this helps!
As OTTY and LUNATIK 69 stated very appropriately, their are numerous resources here at 3reef and through the many books and online sites you shouldn't have any problem locating the info to make the best decisions and be successful at the same time.

 

ok here goes i hope this is what your looking for

Tank Dimensions are 48" X 20" X 18"
Lights are on legs about 6 inches from water

75 Gallon Rectangle
20 Gallon Sump/Fuge
2x150W HQI MH
2x96W True Actinic 03 Blue
4 Blue Moon-Glow LED
Coralife Skimmer
950 Mag drive Return
4 Maxi-Jet 600's
100 lb. L/R
2-3 Inch Sand Bed
3 Dominoes
2 Green Chromies
2 Bangal Cardnalfish
1 Clownfish, 1 Blue Tang,
1 6-Line Wrasse, 1 Sleeper Goby
1 LM Blenny, 1 Serpant Star
Frogspawn, Torch, Xenias, Asst. Zoa's, Rics
Long Tentacle Anemone, Cucumber
Flaming Electric Scallop acropora, kenya tree
asst. sponges, Brain type Coral-(not sure due to friends tank sprung a leak and he just gave everything away as wife did not want to deal with it anymore he just never told me what type it was LOL)
and a cleaner crew

I have pics of all occupents in my tank

Temp stays around 79F to 81F

i feed every 3 days

lights are on actinics 1 hour then MH for 2 hours then actinics 1 hour

lights were purchased January 2008 new in box

no filter pads to change as i have a fuge/sumo

10% water change every 2 weeks with Instant Ocean salt mix

R/O Water system in place - filters are 10 months old

PH's cleaned once month

chemicals dosed when needed are Seachem Reef Builder
Seachem Reef Buffer, Seachem Reef Complete
Kent Marine Essential Elements
Kent Marine Kalkwasser Mix

testing done every Friday

last testing May 2, 2008
PH - 804
AMON - 0
NITRITE - 0
NITRATE - 0
PHOS - 0
CALC - 400
KH - 4dkh (but have since raised to 8dkh)

no test as of yet for Mag

hope this helps

 

Just my 2 pennies on a couple things... 1) You need to test Magnesium in a reef tank 2) You need to have a TDS meter to test your RO/DI water. You can get an in-line model for around $35 or a handheld for much cheaper. There is no golden rule for when to replace the filters, a TDS will tell you exactly what is goin on. 3) What I do and what many others do for lighting is Actinics 16 hours, with MH on for 7. You do keep your actinics on while your MH are on, right? Think about natural light... the days on most part of the ocean last longer than 4 hours. 16 hours actinics leaves 8 hours night.
Hope I could help out a little, just thought I'd throw in my opinion on a couple things. Good luck!

 

yes actinics are on with MH
reason for short time with lights is trying to controll hair algea growth
getting mag test today but what is a TDS meter for R/O system?

 

TDS stands for total dissolved solids. It's a measurement of how clean the water is.

If you are having algae issues there are more effective ways to fix it. Have to determine the source first...

 

Ok truck24000, before I give you my opinion, I just want you to know that, thats exactly what it is, my opinion. Always remember that what works for me, doesnt mean it will work for you. Sorry, my attorney told me to put this disclaimer. 1st, I would lower your temp to 76-78, like bmshehan stated, you need a Mag test. Your lucky to have 0 No3 with that many fish, which I think your over fished(imo). You need a tds meter and if your filters are 10 months old, I believe its time to change them except the membrane. Membranes typically last around 1.6-2 yrs. I would test your R/O water first. Raise your ph to 8.3-8.5. How old are the testing kits? Keep the light schedule in a normal stage, for ex. Act on 1 hr before the MH and 1 hr after. The MH can be on for 6-8 hrs for now and after you control your algae problem, you can put them back at 8-10 hrs(MH). Is your skimmer working properly? Luna

 

Ah ' Mr. Luntik is up to the task'

I will say Mr.Truck that (luna) knows his stuff, as well as the OTHERS that posted ABOVE, Seem's you've found a great mentor / and or helpers already.
( ive seen vids/many pics of their tanks and always spectacular to look at )

(imo) I always said if a person seeking help should pick one person and stick with them instead of jumping around , ( but no harm in reading and learning from articles/threads ).