The Official Asylum Reef Tank Thread

[shilala]

Lance, maybe try the tungsten in some salt water apart from your tank?
I'd just like to see if the surface oxidizes. I have no idea what the temp would be where the water meets the electrode. It could be high, it's just the low voltage that doesn't press the catalysm?

Tungsten doesn't bend either, so I will come up with a new way to make the angled tip. And yeah, I will try it apart from the tank first. Tungsten chlorides are blue.

[shilala]

Originally Posted by BC-Axeman

Tungsten chlorides are blue.

Odd and cool. It isn't making magnesium chloride, is it?

Magnesium ends up on the graphite with the hyrodgen and probably ends up as a metal, oxide or hydroxide. The calcium for sure doesn't end up as a metal in the water.

A cool site for elements.

[shilala]

That really is a nice site. Thanks, Lance.

[shilala]

I ordered an aiptaser from the same place Steve did. It seems like that one is the real deal, and it looks to be made well. I saw a couple knockoffs for a few bucks less, but I didn't think that was a good idea. It'd be months before I have time to make my own, and want to kill these few freeloaders I have in my tank before they catch hold and give me a real problem.

Lance, I even thought to bug you into building one for me, but with everything you have going on I figured it'd be rude, even though I know yours would work better.
If you get bored this winter and get all your refinements finalized, keep me in mind, will ya? I imagine I'm going to want something customized so I can reach all the places where this one can't reach if this critter invasion gets hold.

[shilala]

I should also mention that I moved stuff around a bit and buried a really good rock for the maxima to moor himself on.
By moving things just a little bit, I gave myself lots more places to put the frags I had that fell off, etc. I also was able to turn the gonapora around a bit so it was more viewable. I got a good look at my hammer coral, and it has ten or twelve new starts going on. That thing is going to be HUGE in no time.
Everything is growing real well. If there was one thing that I think made a difference, it's the phyto. I finally switched to DT's and I'm much happier. I'm not sure if the Cyclopeeze made a difference, but all the different foods certainly are helping.
My pods are exploding, and everything that died back from the move is coming back way better than before.
Can you tell I'm excited?

[shilala]

I just noticed some new pulsing Xenia babies today.
I made a nighttime soup of frozen coral food, frozen Cyclopeeze, and a couple tablespoons of DT's phyto. The stink was glorious.
I seriously considering a second more bigger water making machine, something with a larger bladder or series of bladders so I can crank out 20 or 30 gallons at a clip. This 3 gallons at a time thing is ridiculous.
Maybe I'll just hook up a regular well bladder tank and let some air out from behind the bladder tank and just use what I have?
Thoughts?

I think the polarity in the DIY thread is backward. The negative electrode bubbles much more actively because of the extra gasses from secondary reactions (sodium mostly). Also, chlorine eats stainless steel. I was messing around with platinum wire from a thermocouple and I didn't use graphite for the other electrode but instead just some of the SS I had. The minus electrode of SS bubbles a lot more than the platinum one did and wasn't eroding. If I put SS on the plus side it erodes and gives off a yellow plume. This makes sense to me. I will reverse the polarity on the zapper I made and try it out.

2Na + 2H2O --> 2NaOH + H2 = f#(ked up anemones. It works MUCH better with the SS zapper hooked up to the (-) and the graphite on the (+). Tears them up into little bits and fries them into white matter. The tip may be even building metal up on it now instead of eroding. It's almost not even fair to the little bastards except I know I can never get the last one.

[Wolfgang]

is it possible to get a picture/video in action?

Originally Posted by Wolfgang

is it possible to get a picture/video in action?

It looks just like that youtube video in the links.
I think when the polarity was wrong I was poisoning the anemones and when I switch it around it fries them with caustics and vigorous bubbles.

[Wolfgang]

Unlike the chemicals its unlikely they will build up an immunity

[shilala]

Lance, the probe stuff you're using now is more conductive. What I'm wondering is if you'll get a further amp push around the death probe?
If there's no fish around, it's hard to tell if they'll get stung, ya know?
Maybe they worked backwards to the graphite so there's minimal effective zappage at the killing probe point?
I don't know if there are any fish in your tank, but if not, maybe a couple feeder tube trained damsels would make good test subjects?

The fish are ever so curious about what's going on and are hard to keep away. They seem unaffected by the chemicals or the charge.
I built my zapper exactly as in the DIY post, except with silicone instead of hot glue. I figured the polarity in the artical was backward and just reversed mine. I never really built a tungsten or platinum probe, just tested them with a power supply and a bowl of salt water.
I measured the graphite at about 25 ohms. That would allow a maximum of about 1/2 amp to flow at 12v. The adapter I am using is rated at 600 mA (.6 A). It all works out.
The good thing about zapping them is if they recover it's easy to go back and get them again. They can recover if they are not damaged enough.

[shilala]

Hopefully I won't have use for one, but there were some aptasia on the frags I got recently. I clean them off by hand, very thoroughly, but who knows?
Thanks for all the input, brother. It's a BIG help.

[OLS]

Jeez what a couple of pages. Sorry but I can't stick an arcing rod into a fish tank. On the pest/plague front,
I have had to go ahead and re-start my skimmer. I have gotten too lazy with water changes and have begun
to notice a plague of valonia algae and just an all-around funk going on. So I fired it up last night and will continue
to change 2-3 gallons a day til I get this under control.

[shilala]

Originally Posted by OLS

Sorry but I can't stick an arcing rod into a fish tank.

Pu$$y.

It doesn't arc, of course. I figure it's a way of injecting concentrated lye into the pests, or at least onto them. I love it, the first sign of hope I've had.
I guess I should do my annual major water change too. I do small ones every month or so.

[LostAbbott]

Guys, I need more pictures. There had been two pages of chatter with no pictures... I don't have a reef tank myself and probably never will, but I love seeing shots of your amazing tanks. Thanks for having this thread here, another reason why this place kicks ass!