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My Nano Reefs Part Fourteen - 9/11 to 3/12

Last Updated: 4/9/12

On 9/3/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.3 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.40
6 Gallon Tank: 77.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.45
Make up water: 76.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.67

On 9/10/11, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.3 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.56
6 Gallon Tank: 78.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.52
Make up water: 76.6 degrees F, 1.026 SG, pH 7.64

On 9/17/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 78.5 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.71
6 Gallon Tank: 77.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.77
Make up water: 76.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.87

On 9/24/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.8 degrees F, 1.026 SG, pH 7.45
6 Gallon Tank: 78.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.50
Make up water: 76.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.64

On 10/1/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.59
6 Gallon Tank: 78.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.70
Make up water: 76.7 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.91

On 10/8/11, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.54
6 Gallon Tank: 77.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.54
Make up water: 76.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.68

On 10/15/11, I did the usual. I cut some of the green star polyps from the 6 gallon tank that were growing towards the center rock. Instead of tossing them, I wedged them between the two main rocks in the 12 gallon tank where most of the corals have died.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 79.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.54
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water: 76.4 degrees F, 1.024 SG, pH 7.67

On 10/22/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 77.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.44
6 Gallon Tank: 76.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.54
Make up water: 75.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.71

On 10/29/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.7 degrees F, 1.026 SG, pH 7.51
6 Gallon Tank: 76.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.62
Make up water: 78.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.81

On 11/5/11, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter but, for the first time ever, it read "calibration failed." I think the pH readings below are incorrect as a result. Since I am no longer a chemist, I have to buy some new calibration standards. I did not think they would go bad so quick; they are about 10 months old. At least I hope it is the standards and not the meter.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 6.73
6 Gallon Tank: 76.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 6.98
Make up water: 75.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.75

On 11/12/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.7 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.38
6 Gallon Tank: 76.7 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water: 75.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.77

On 11/19/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.0 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.43
6 Gallon Tank: 76.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.53
Make up water: 75.3 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.77

On 11/26/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 76.9 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.37
6 Gallon Tank: 76.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.48
Make up water: 76.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.81

On 12/3/11, I did the usual. I finally got fresh pH 4.0 and 7.0 calibration solutions. This time, the calibration worked. I changed the right hood fan in the 12 gallon nano tank. It had been making a lot of noise for days. Hitting the lid usually stopped it but it was starting to bother me. The old fan was very dusty. They slow down and vibrate noisily once they get old and dirty.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.2 degrees F, 1.026 SG, pH 7.59
6 Gallon Tank: 76.3 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.63
Make up water: 75.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.68

On 12/10/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.84
6 Gallon Tank: 76.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.75
Make up water: 76.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.74

On 12/17/11, I did more than the usual. The tanks have really been in bad shape. I made up two batches of RO water over two days so that I could do a double water change or about half of each tank. Strangely, I would end up with an extra gallon when I was done for which I could not account. I did more gravel vacuuming than usual in both tanks and discarded clumps of small shells full of green and pink algae. I rinsed new Aragonite gravel and added some to both tanks so they look cleaner for now. I tried rinsing some red sand I had but half of it floated so I tossed it. I only tried a handful and saved the rest for who knows what. The red sand came attached to the Aragonite when I bought it. I removed a dead Astraea snail from the 6 gallon tank. How do I know it was dead? The body was hanging out, and its trapdoor was disconnected. I do not think any Astraea snails remain in that tank now.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 77.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.63
6 Gallon Tank: 76.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water Bucket 1: 74.5 degrees F, 1.0245 SG, pH 7.66
Make up water Bucket 2: 75.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.76

On 12/24/11, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.68
6 Gallon Tank: 76.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.63
Make up water: 75.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.71

On 12/31/11, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 77.3 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.53
6 Gallon Tank: 76.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.50
Make up water: 74.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.56

On 1/7/12, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 76.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.49
6 Gallon Tank: 77.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.53
Make up water: 76.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.71

On 1/14/12, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.61
6 Gallon Tank: 76.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.58
Make up water: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.66

On 1/21/12, I did the usual. That morning, the 12 gallon lights were not on. I unplugged it, and they came on. The ballast was replaced once and must be dying yet again.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 73.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
6 Gallon Tank: 76.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water: 74.7 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.66

On 1/28/12, I did the usual. The 12 gallon light has not had the problem again that it had a week ago but I am sure it will eventually happen again. I tried to calibrate the pH meter but it did not work! I know the calibration solutions are okay so the meter must be dying. The pH values below are probably not accurate as a result. Notice how the pH went up as I went through the three water samples. I think the meter was slowing getting back in the actual range.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.08
6 Gallon Tank: 77.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.24
Make up water: 75.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.67

A large section of the green star polyps that was growing on the left glass in the 6 gallon tank detached from the glass. It was hanging and overlapping over itself, blocking the light from itself and more of the coral. I got my reef epoxy and tried to glue it back to the glass. The epoxy stuck to the glass but not the coral. The piece that was hanging was fragile and only about 10% of the entire mass. So, I amputated it off. I hated to throw it away but I had no room for it anywhere. It was not in good enough health for someone else to want it either.

On 2/4/12, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter again, and this time, it took. However, after it was done, I stuck it back in the pH 7.00 buffer and got a pH of 7.09 so it is not fully calibrated. You will notice that the pH is now higher than the last few weeks after it calibrated.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.43
6 Gallon Tank: 76.9 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.53
Make up water: 75.7 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.74

On 2/12/12, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 75.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.65
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.65
Make up water: 75.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.74

On 2/19/12, I did the usual. It was a day late since I was bedridden from illness Saturday.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 74.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.54
6 Gallon Tank: 77.6 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water: 75.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.66

On 2/25/12, I did the usual. As you can see, the heater in the make-up water was on the fritz and cooked the water. I unplugged it as soon as I got the reading below so that it cooled a bit before I got to the actual water changes.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 76.7 degrees F, 1.0245 SG, pH 7.47
6 Gallon Tank: 79.2 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.55
Make up water: 85.1 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.77

I went to the House of Tropicals on 2/27/12 and bought four reef animals. I bought a dwarf blue leg hermit crab that went in the 12 gallon reef tank. He/she is very, very tiny! His/her name is Blue. With Zeby and Scarlet, there are now three reef hermit crabs in there. For the 6 gallon tank, I bought two Astraea snails (all the snails in there are dead except for the nassarius snails) and a small colony of zooanthids which was on a ceramic plug. They are brown but the best corals that I could get for $10.

On 3/3/12, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter. I turned down the make-up water's heater to 72 degrees F, and this time, it worked at the set temperature.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 76.8 degrees F, 1.0245 SG, pH 7.34
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.40
Make up water: 73.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.50

On 3/10/12, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 74.0 degrees F, 1.0245 SG, pH 7.63
6 Gallon Tank: 77.4 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.61
Make up water: 72.5 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.67

On 3/19/12, I did the usual. I was looking for my new betta and had a thought that he might have jumped out of my 20 gallon tank so I got on a stool and looked behind the tank. I did not find any fish but I found a dried up cerith snail. He must have been there a long time. My newest cerith snails are still accounted for. Since there are no gaps in the lid of the 12 gallon reef tank, he must have crawled out when I cleaned the tank at some point. The snails can move fast when they want to do so!

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 77.7 degrees F, 1.045 SG, pH 7.54
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.50
Make up water: 73.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.51

On 3/24/12, I did the usual.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 78.7 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.13
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.24
Make up water: 75.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.56

On 3/31/12, I did the usual. I calibrated the pH meter. The pineapple brain coral dislodged from its spot so I used some new reef epoxy to glue it down.

The water test results for the day were:
12 Gallon Tank: 77.0 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.35
6 Gallon Tank: 77.8 degrees F, 1.0255 SG, pH 7.43
Make up water: 79.5 degrees F, 1.025 SG, pH 7.80

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My Nano Reefs Part Fourteen - 9/11 to 3/12

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