I'm back!

[grizfyrfyter]

 

[richiev]

So, the dimming function on my ati fixed itself overnight.
I don't really understand how. Maybe the internal battery on the controller needed a charge without the bulbs being powered? I've been scratching my head about it all morning.

I lowered it back down to about 8" off the water (to reduce light spill on my co-workers desk who insisted on sitting right next to the tank). Both channels at 35% gives me a peak par reading of 125 μmol on the bottom glass with no shading and some reflection off a vertical pane.

Tomorrow I will see what I'm getting on the top of the rocks. I may have to raise the light a little and just build a shroud for it. Lots of aluminum and a tig welder in our hanger so it won't be hard.

I have no specific knowledge here, but observing from afar it sounds like it might make sense to do some more debugging before committing to them working. It sounds like maybe there's something loose or partially broken, and after heating up (or getting bounced around) it connected enough to work. Might make sense to leave it in a safe failure setup for a bit.

Effectively leave it where you assume it's going to fail by going 100% on, and it's safe for that to happen, untill it really proves it's reliable. Maybe also give it a test of what happens if you shake it some, or leave it unplugged for a couple hours/day and see what happens when you power it up again.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

I have it on a controlled plug and the Apex par sensor in the tank. If it does anything stupid, power will get cut.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

My plan first thing this morning was to pull the unit apart and check for corroded or loose connections.

I was trying to demonstrate the issue to a coworker this morning and the intensity pulsing effect from yesterday wasn't happening. I tried a handful of things to trigger it again, including cutting power to the unit for 15 min, and haven't been able to replicate it.

I was on the phone with ati yesterday and they figure it was a loose connection or bad controller. , if the ballasts lose voltage signal from the controller they will default to full power (off setting in the control is still functional).

The unit is still under warranty for another month.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

It's really handy to be able to graph the par on my light cycle. I adjusted the setting that caused the peak at noon.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

My new phone has a spectrometer! (Top right)

 

[grizfyrfyter]

Pics from today.

 

[RandyC]

My new phone has a spectrometer! (Top right)View attachment 45193

It’s very likely a histogram of available light. It’s used to show the tones or shadows/highlights of a picture. Some cameras also provide RGB histogram showing the distribution of each of the color channels.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

I need to fix the afternoon timing still but this is the reading at the top rocks.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

My coworkers wanted to go coral shopping so we made a trip to sac and hit up Aqua Life, Your Reef and Aquarium depot.

Picked up some beautiful pieces at Your Reef. Found a couple frags at AD but I was really disappointed to see their flatworm infestation covering $1000 acanstrea. Any shop that can't manage or shrugs off something as easy to deal with as red planaria flatworms loses all respect from me.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

In reverse order because I suck.

Solar flare lepastrea, burning banana stylo, beach bum Monti, dragon soul favia, burning man leptoseris, eye of sauron blasto, rainbow Monti (with green flesh, not brown like I've always seen), bizarro cyphastrea, Fanta chalice, purple & green stylo, purple & teal cyphastrea(?).

 

[grizfyrfyter]

.

 

[Coral reefer]

My coworkers wanted to go coral shopping so we made a trip to sac and hit up Aqua Life, Your Reef and Aquarium depot.

Picked up some beautiful pieces at Your Reef. Found a couple frags at AD but I was really disappointed to see their flatworm infestation covering $1000 acanstrea. Any shop that can't manage or shrugs off something as easy to deal with as red planaria flatworms loses all respect from me.

What’s the easy way?

 

[grizfyrfyter]

Predators and vaccum them out until you cant find any more. Treat with flatworm exit, suck out dying FW, water change and fresh carbon. Repeat every two weeks until you don't see them come out after treatment.

If a professional coral seller can't manage that, they have no business selling coral.

 

[Coral reefer]

Predators and vaccum them out until you cant find any more. Treat with flatworm exit, suck out dying FW, water change and fresh carbon. Repeat every two weeks until you don't see them come out after treatment.

If a professional coral seller can't manage that, they have no business selling coral.

Fair enough opinion.
I don’t think it’s that easy personally, but I have never worked at a store.
Ime flatworm exit is not super effective as far as eradication goes.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

It doesn't kill the eggs. Repetitive treatments are necessary.


It's not the easiest thing in the world but unless a store is being staffed by one person, there is time to spend a couple hours in a week for it. Especially if they are selling acanstrea for a grand

 

[Coral reefer]

I did 3 treatments 2 weeks apart in my old system and it made a dent, but that’s it. Nowhere near eradication.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

It's been an interesting week
A friend gave up his battle with flatworms and crysophytes and shut down his 150g tank.

I took all his fish, coral and anemones.

 

[grizfyrfyter]

Flame angel and a large yellow tang are now in the office tank. A cherub angel, hawk fish and six line wrasse are currently in the 100g "vat". In my living room.

I need to build a stand for the low boy frag tank and tie them together. I'm tempted to put an overflow on the biocube and plumb everything together.

 

[grizfyrfyter]