Cali Kid Corals

Alex’s IM 150 EXT

Gyre maintenance

I am a big Gyre fan despite the maintenance effort compared to the MP10/40/60s. The flow seems to be far superior and the cost of a gyre connected to a wave engine is a quarter of an MP40 (recognize that you need the wave engine). That's why I have not been interested in the recent MP40 knock off discussion - but I know folks do not want to run cables in their tanks.

I clean my 4 gyres (maxspect XF 350) every 12 weeks. I try to stick to this schedule not so much because of the impaired flow (I could just crank them up), but because of the amount of stuff which they collect. 12 weeks seems to be the max amount until they need to be cleaned. I have two spare, clean two at a time, and install the previously cleaned (and freshly lubricated ones - silicone) immediately so that there is no rush.

Removing the impeller is a bit of a pain but once they are clean, it feels like a nice accomplishment. And optimal flow combined with good light are key success factors so it seems to be worth the effort, even though every 4-6 months might be totally fine if you do not mind how they look by then.

The two horizontal ones cleaned today.

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Alexander1312 said:
Gyre maintenance

I am a big Gyre fan despite the maintenance effort compared to the MP10/40/60s. The flow seems to be far superior and the cost of a gyre connected to a wave engine is a quarter of an MP40 (recognize that you need the wave engine). That's why I have not been interested in the recent MP40 knock off discussion - but I know folks do not want to run cables in their tanks.

I clean my 4 gyres (maxspect XF 350) every 12 weeks. I try to stick to this schedule not so much because of the impaired flow (I could just crank them up), but because of the amount of stuff which they collect. 12 weeks seems to be the max amount until they need to be cleaned. I have two spare, clean two at a time, and install the previously cleaned (and freshly lubricated ones - silicone) immediately so that there is no rush.

Removing the impeller is a bit of a pain but once they are clean, it feels like a nice accomplishment. And optimal flow combined with good light are key success factors so it seems to be worth the effort, even though every 4-6 months might be totally fine if you do not mind how they look by then.

The two horizontal ones cleaned today.

View attachment 64763
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Nice chatting with you at the potluck. I thought your gyres were vertical?
 
Alexander1312 said:
Gyre maintenance

I am a big Gyre fan despite the maintenance effort compared to the MP10/40/60s. The flow seems to be far superior and the cost of a gyre connected to a wave engine is a quarter of an MP40 (recognize that you need the wave engine). That's why I have not been interested in the recent MP40 knock off discussion - but I know folks do not want to run cables in their tanks.

I clean my 4 gyres (maxspect XF 350) every 12 weeks. I try to stick to this schedule not so much because of the impaired flow (I could just crank them up), but because of the amount of stuff which they collect. 12 weeks seems to be the max amount until they need to be cleaned. I have two spare, clean two at a time, and install the previously cleaned (and freshly lubricated ones - silicone) immediately so that there is no rush.

Removing the impeller is a bit of a pain but once they are clean, it feels like a nice accomplishment. And optimal flow combined with good light are key success factors so it seems to be worth the effort, even though every 4-6 months might be totally fine if you do not mind how they look by then.

The two horizontal ones cleaned today.

View attachment 64763
Click to expand...
I feel like if you tried the icecap gyre you would want to change them all out. Cleaning them is super easy might be easier then the mp40s
 
Alexander1312 said:
Gyre maintenance

I am a big Gyre fan despite the maintenance effort compared to the MP10/40/60s. The flow seems to be far superior and the cost of a gyre connected to a wave engine is a quarter of an MP40 (recognize that you need the wave engine). That's why I have not been interested in the recent MP40 knock off discussion - but I know folks do not want to run cables in their tanks.

I clean my 4 gyres (maxspect XF 350) every 12 weeks. I try to stick to this schedule not so much because of the impaired flow (I could just crank them up), but because of the amount of stuff which they collect. 12 weeks seems to be the max amount until they need to be cleaned. I have two spare, clean two at a time, and install the previously cleaned (and freshly lubricated ones - silicone) immediately so that there is no rush.

Removing the impeller is a bit of a pain but once they are clean, it feels like a nice accomplishment. And optimal flow combined with good light are key success factors so it seems to be worth the effort, even though every 4-6 months might be totally fine if you do not mind how they look by then.

The two horizontal ones cleaned today.

View attachment 64763
Click to expand...
What do you typically clean them in? Citric acid?
 
Reefer Madness said:
I feel like if you tried the icecap gyre you would want to change them all out. Cleaning them is super easy might be easier then the mp40s
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I just cleaned a couple of 2ks for the nano tank - I found the impeller even harder to remove than the maxspect,. I assume the larger ones are better.

The reason the mp40s are easy to clean is IMO that you only need to remove the wet side vs the entire device like the gyre. Also, I am primarily only removing two at a time since I have only two replacements and I let them soak for a few days since they are covered heavily in coralline a.
 
Fish Quarantine
I said I would not do this again (due to the hassle), but I believe I will change my mind and start trying to quarantine fish again under the right circumstances.

I like the three videos Ryan put out after he left BRS (if he truly ever left). I don't agree with everything, but I do like how the content is presented. There is a section in the video below (32:24) on how to do quarantine in the most simple way, which I think I would be willing to do (again) since I have most of the stuff already. If @derek_SR gives me his 55-gallon drum, then I am ready.

 
Alexander1312 said:
Fish Quarantine
I said I would not do this again (due to the hassle), but I believe I will change my mind and start trying to quarantine fish again under the right circumstances.

I like the three videos Ryan put out after he left BRS (if he truly ever left). I don't agree with everything, but I do like how the content is presented. There is a section in the video below (32:24) on how to do quarantine in the most simple way, which I think I would be willing to do (again) since I have most of the stuff already. If @derek_SR gives me his 55-gallon drum, then I am ready.

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Ryan just gets his fish from Elliott at Marine Collectors so he too is just using a QT vendor (which I highly recommend).

Tank transfer method and the hybrid TTM are probably the best bang for buck (time wise) if you aren't getting something from Kenny or online from a true QT vendor. They have pros and cons, but all the protocols you need are on Humblefish.
 
Darkxerox said:
Ryan just gets his fish from Elliott at Marine Collectors so he too is just using a QT vendor (which I highly recommend).

Tank transfer method and the hybrid TTM are probably the best bang for buck (time wise) if you aren't getting something from Kenny or online from a true QT vendor. They have pros and cons, but all the protocols you need are on Humblefish.
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I have done the humblefish protocol previously and I feel it is too complicated for me to do. I have got many of my fish from Kenny and this is still my preferred route. But when, e.g., taking fish from someone else, I would like to expand my options and what he is recommending as a 80/20 method seems to be a feasible approach under certain circumstances.
 
10 January 2025 ICP results

This information has become very useful to me and my goal is to go to a far less frequent cadence of doing them, i.e, quarterly/3 times per year. Still, more adjustments to make before this is achievable.

The one item which stands out is the SAK value, which is similar to DOC, but is below the detection limit. I need to understand this better now since it could be an issue even though lower values are generally desirable.
 

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Adauqua said:
Thanks for sharing your ICP results!
Everything dials in.
Are you dosing manganese? Does it help your gonis?
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Yes and no. Manganese is included in one of the three Fauna Marin Trace elements in the balling light system. I also use the blue/ color elements from Fauna Marin every two weeks with 50% of the recommended dose containing manganese. I am not dosing it individually; manganese alone will not make a significant difference if the other elements are out of balance. So the recommendation to add manganese to fix goni issues is oversimplified and not comprehensive in my opinion.
 
Borbonias Anthias
I have learned from @under_water_ninja today how to identify male and female borbonias anthias. This was super helpful to know since I got two from @SupraSaltyReefer over 6 month ago who have grown nicely and have become our favorite fishes. However, I was under the assumption these were a pair but they do not get along well to this day. Also, one has very strong colors while the other is smaller and shows rather faded colors (probably from being bullied). Both eat well and the same food, obviously.

Now, as you can see on the picture, the both have the elevated dorsal fin which means they should both be male - I welcome other views. So I am now thinking posting a potential trade offer to trade the smaller male against a female if anyone is interested. More to come on this.

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Summer vacation readiness and (Ecotech Versa) dosing pump issues
I am planning my summer ‘vacation’ (not really) in early June in Germany when I will be out of the country for 17 days. Last year, everything went well when we were gone for 14 days, and I simplified some maintenance activities since then for the 14-year-old neighbor, who hopefully will still take care of the tank (he did a great job last time).

Unfortunately, during my weekly water testing this morning, CA was down at 365 mg/l (tested twice because I could not believe the results), which means it did not dose the 88 ml CA daily for exactly the past 7 days. Now if this had happened during my absence, CA could have been down to 260 mg/l. I assume this would be a bigger issue (?).

The tank uses two Ecotech Versas for dosing Alk (+traces) and CA (+traces) - no magnesium. Alk is being dosed in a highly diluted BOLUS dose of 350 ml currently over 30 minutes before the lights go on, CA over 8 hours in 11 ml increments every hour starting an hour after the alkalinity is done. The last two monthly calibrations showed no deviations for the CA doser (which is great), but a 10-15% difference (less) for the alkalinity doser. So larger dosing amounts seem to not be a great idea for this pump.

What generally bothers me about the Versas is that I cannot see their activity online, but this would have not prevented this issue as the doser showed dosing the daily amount (without actually dosing it). This is concerning and I have now an increased lack of trust in this important device. There were issues with the app in the past, where it looked like the dosing pump was on but it was not, I am better at double checking if it is turned on again after turning it off, in case of lags with the app transmission.

What looks now to have caused it was an air bubble (?) in the RO tubing. When fast-forwarding the doser, it took a while until something came out. I prime the doser every time I refill or calibrate it. The last calibration was on Feb 1, so I assume I did not do this properly after the last calibration, and it is not a fault of the device, but just a reminder of the importance of priming afterward - still, I am surprised that the daily dosing would not be able to push out bubble over the past 6 days.

My plans to buy two Hydros soles are now intensifying, but it is a larger expense, and I am also planning to get another XP8, which will be a total of 1k for all three devices, which I am not fully convinced that this is a reasonable investment.

Other vacation preparation activities are
  • Buying the Hydros ATO to automatically (partially) refill my 20-gallon ATO container through a 5-gallon backup while I am gone (the largest I could still fit under the sump).
  • Further removing manual filtration to simplify maintenance in my absence. I was able to remove the filter floss without impacting sump noise and only have the three reef diapers/filter sock replacements in there now, which are easy to replace - still need to be done twice a week. I am still looking for a filter roller that fits into this sump as a potential solution.
  • Determining a smart(er) way to connect the devices to the Delta 2 backup power.
 
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The versa dosing pump tubes had some small pinholes in them, I had heard from some others when I was inquiring about my inconsistencies a couple years back. I noticed air in the line like you mention. I replaced the tube which solved the issue. I have a backup tube on the shelf for when it will happen again. They don't seem to be sold at many online shops.
 
Get rid of those Versas, it's bad enough you can't monitor/adjust via Wifi and have to use BT anyway. I always found that incredibly annoying.

Just curious, why do you feel the need for another XP8? I have a lot of crap running on my tank and still only have the one XP8 (with a dead outlet in fact, so it's really just an XP7...). I've managed to really get a lot of mileage out of the thing by using Y-splitter power cables to share outlets for items that should behave similarly.
 
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