Just Bought RSM 130D!!!

[Coltlyn21]

Hi I'm Suzy and My husband Colt and I have been doing Saltwater Tanks for about 4 yrs now. I'm an addict for it! LOL. We recently upgraded to a new tank and bought ourselves a RSM 130D, and I love it already! New to this forum so wanted to say "Hi!" Happy Halloween too to everyone!

[David Shaw]

Welcome!

I have had mine since July 2009 and loving it.

I have modified mine, as have a lot of others. I removed the stock skimmer due to noise, microbubbles and heat and replaced with a Tunze 9002. I also bought Stevie T's media rack, both fitted in a couple of minutes without any "know how".

Those are my only modifications. I ditched all RSM filtration media and use the media rack for carbon, phosphate absorber and white floss to scrub the water.

Hopefully you will be happy with your RSM as it is, with the stock equipment, but those are a couple of little options if you run into little issues like micro bubbles, high temps or noise that are worth considering.

Post pics soon !

[Coltlyn21]

Hey David,

Thanks so much for the info, I will keep it in mind if those start to get bothersome. I will definentaly post pics soon, Thanks again!

[redsea reefer]

Hi and Welcome to rs Suzy

[Dweezil]

Welcome to RS. You'll love the new tank. Make sure you start a tank thread and post some pictures.

[twistedReefer]

Welcome guys,
You'll love the RED SEA MAX great tank, I just got mine 2 weeks ago and enjoy it. there's a wealth of info on this site and a lot of helpful friendly people good luck and post pics we all love to see
Whooo Hooo!!

[tnwillia]

Welcome to RS. You've come to the right place!

[nanoreefing4fun]

Suzy and Colt


to ReefSanctuary, a real Sanctuary of reef forums, with lots of very nice members

Congrats on the new 130D !

Be sure to visit us on the rsm club here on RS & start a tank thread !

http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/...x-owners-club/

[Reefmack]

Here's another to Reef Sanctuary!

[David Shaw]

Your welcome Suzy

People on here are so friendly and i have learned so much from the forums.

I have just finished my weekly maintenance routine. I clean the 4 walls of the glass, water change etc. I love my tank with it's crystal clear water and looking at it when everything is scrubbed clean.

Unlike a lot on people on here i syphon the substrate weekly and have had no issues with gasses or toxins, in fact quite the opposite, everything is flourishing.

Before i put any live rock or corals into the RSM i now do a brief fresh water dip to flush out any potential bristle worms. I know a lot of people want hitchhikers but i have read on here too many horror stories of unwanted kinds of hitchhikers and getting them out once the rock is in place is too stressful. I once spent all evening until 3am chasing around an evil crab hitchhiker that was extremely reef destructive. Ended up taking everything out to get at it. So now i dip and check everything carefully before putting it in.

I test my water parameters weekly and usually just end up adding a little calcium as needed. I don't use any other additives as everything seems to be spot on with the tests. I once tried a coral grow additive but got a bad algae bloom as a result and i have been advised it isn't necessary as long as you keep up with weekly R/O water changes, test regularly and don't overfeed.

I do a 40% water change every week, which might be slightly excessive and not necessary, but doing this i get no algae issues, apart from a little green on the glass which i clean every day, and all my water parameters are great. I have great purple coraline growth on the live rock and the fish and corals all seem happy.

I hope my maintenance routine along with others helps you get some ideas about getting your own routine in place. I guess every tank is different and you have to find what works for you.

I am sure you will be thrilled with your new RSM and i cannot wait to see your photos!

I went to my LFS on friday and had a good look around at all their other tanks, including the new nano cube, but it didn't look half as nice as the RSM, i am so glad i made the leap and got it. I did toy with the idea of the 250, but it it was expensive and i really don't have the room for it if i am being practical. Also, the additional live rock needed etc etc soon mounts up the costs. I am so happy with my 130D and i am sure you will be too, like many of us on here, it is a purchase we are thrilled we made!

David

[Dweezil]

David ~ I agree 100% and it looks like you and I follow almost the same exact routine. I too syphon the substrate, clean all 4 glass walls and try like heck not to introduce any kind of hitchhikers.

Coltlyn21 ~ As David said, you'll find what works best for you it just takes some time to figure it all out. Everyone is different and there are many opinions. Just keep in mind that's all they are and we all will certainly help guide you.

[David Shaw]

Thanks Dweezil

It is a relief to know that it's not just me that is OCD about the cleaning routine, water changes and generally doing our best not to introduce hitchhikers.

Luckily i seem to be bristle worm free (i check every night with a torch). dipping was one tip i learned from this site, i SO WISH that i had known about that technique from the very beginning from the LFS. I have read all those horror stories of bristle worm / hand and finger accidents and mantis shrimps sneaking in that i dip everything now before it goes into the tank. 30 seconds and it flushes everything out.

Everyone has their own tastes and preferences and mine is definitely crystal clear water, glass and algae free substrate.

I am also running fine with the stock pumps. I don't stack the live rock to the back wall so i can both clean it and maintain a good circulation. I have one nozzle pointed to the water surface for agitation and nozzle one into the tank. I personally am not keen on having additional pump heads inside the tank as, for me, it detracts from the all in one clean look of the RSM.

I thought of reducing my water changes down to 20% a week but doing 40% keeps me algae free and my water parameters all good. I have read and seen the scary pics of hair algae etc. So for me it works out at 2 x Jerry cans of pre mixed R/O salt water from my LFS. Far less messy than mixing my own, so all i need to do is bring it up to temp before replacing.

For me personally i want to enjoy the beauty of a clean stocked tank and not to have to deal with nuisance hair algae etc issues. Some poor people seem to have real bad problems with it reducing their tanks to lo looking like a garden lawn!

I am always interested in reading other peoples tank maintenance routines and it is so nice to hear that others do the same routine as me, making me not the only OCD person on here

[Coltlyn21]

Thank you to everyone for the warm welcome and great advice. I am totally on of those OCD people about my tank too!!! My LFS told me that they recomend I do water changes once a month of 25% but I think I will try that at least once a week and see how it works for me. I had never considered flushing or dipping the live rock b/c I was told that would kill the bacteria thats on it, but I do hate hitchhikers! I tore apart my tank one night using my tweezers to get that dumb bristle worm out.

[Coltlyn21]

Thank you to everyone for the warm welcome and great advice. I am totally on of those OCD people about my tank too!!! My LFS told me that they recomend I do water changes once a month of 25% but I think I will try that at least once a week and see how it works for me. I had never considered flushing or dipping the live rock b/c I was told that would kill the bacteria thats on it, but I do hate hitchhikers! I tore apart my tank one night using my tweezers to get that dumb bristle worm out.

[Coltlyn21]

Just a question to all. My LFS told me I only need to run 1 of the 2 pumps. They say the 2nd is a back up incase #1 goes out...... What is everyone else doing, running 1 or both???