New Horizons

[Frankie]

Time for a new journal.
IF you would like to read more on my tank build follow this link to the old thread.
Frankie's 120gal. glass experiment
I will be changing my system over to zeovit starting tomorrow and will use this thread for the journey.
Here is the directions from G.Alexander, (a well known and respected Zeohead) on what i need to do and what to use to do it.

First of all I would recommend to download the dosing guide from:

http://www.korallen-zucht.de/files/z..._english-1.pdf

It contains a lot of useful information and will be helpful to get a feeling for the dosage.

First start with the basics products to decrease nutrients, calculated on your 170 g net system volume:

1. Place 1.5 liters zeovit in a Zeo Reactor. Water flow around 150 gallons per hour. Connect the reactor pump to a clock timer and run the reactor pump with a 3 hour on / 3 hour off / 3 hour on interval. Please make sure the zeolite is not exposed to air while the pump is switched off. Clean the material daily. Leave the zeolite 4 weeks in the filter until you do the first change out. This is the first changing interval, others could be lengthen to 6 – 8 weeks.

2. Place 0.5 liters activated carbon in a filter sock and keep it in a passive water flow in your sump, changed every 30 days. Knead the carbon daily to keep the surface clean. Most users get perfect results with korallenzucht carbon.

3. Dose 6 drops ZeoBac & 3 drops ZeoFood7 daily for the first 2 weeks, flowed by a 2 – 3 x weekly dosage of 6 drops Bac and 3 drops Food. Dose 0.5 ml ZeoStart2 2 x daily (morning & evening). Dose those in front of the Zeo reactor pump while it is switched on.

4. The additional dosage of some food source for the corals works fine. I would recommend to dose 2 drops Pohls Coral Vitalizer daily directly in the tank.

Later on you could use the additional products for coral coloration. Adjust your skimmer to skim wet, keeping it clean to export as much as possible. Do a weekly water change of 5 – 10 % with a good salt.

Your water parameters looking good, just KH is a little bit to high for my taste. Before starting the system, you should adjust water parameters slowly close to NSW and keep them as stable as possible.

KH 6.5 – 7.5
Ca 400 – 420 mg
Mg 1250 – 1300 mg
K+ ~ 380 mg

Especially in a nutrient poor environment K+ (potassium) seems to be a important element. I would recommend you to measure the concentration in your system.

This is a start-up dosage which might be adjusted later.

G.Alexander

It's very comforting to know i have such a person willing to walk me through any obstacles.
I Ordered everything i need from Aquarium Specialty. I was going to use DarkLordCoral but they seem to be missing in action and i want a trust worthy company to deal with. There is very little room for error in this method, I would hate to miss a dose because it was late in shipment. My order arrives today, (waiting for FedEx right now).
This is my order list of products.
1 x ZEOvit Pohl's Coral Vitalizer 50 ml (KZCVs) = $40.95
1 x ZEOvit ZEOfood 7 100 ml (KZZfood7100m) = $29.99
1 x ZEOvit Potassium Test Kit (KaliumTest) = $39.99
1 x ZEOvit ZEObac 10ml (KZZbacs) = $15.99
1 x ZEOvit ZEOstart2 250ml (KZZstart2s) = $35.95
2 x ZEOlith Rocks 1 liter (KZZvit) = $28.50
1 x ZEOvit Pohl's K-Balance Potassium mix 250 ml (KZPKbalances) = $39.00

The reactor i will build myself. I already built one actually but am having second thoughts on the design. So after my order arrives today i will use the zeolites to size out a perfect dose size for my net volume of water.

I have been very board lately with my system and need more of a challenge. I think this will provide it for me.
I will post before and after pictures so we can all see what happens. Should be fun!
Wish me luck, this is a do or die deal. No turning back once it's begun. Anyone wanting to try this method needs to understand that it is very possible to loose everything. The beginning process begins by pretty much starving the corals to near death and then revitalizing them the way they were meant to look. Very risky. I feel up to it!

[blue_eyes53813]

Good Frankie... You wont be sorry.. You may go through some periods of brown algae,, But dont get discouraged... After 6 months my tank is clear as a bell.... The colors of the corals are amazing... Good luck,,

[rmlevasseur]

Before and after pictures please!

[Snelly40]

wow, alll sounds and looks good, let us know how it goes!!!!

[NCguy]

I read your post wrong the other day...I thought you were going to try the Balling Method. Good luck going Zeo.

BTW..How long will those supplies last you?

[Frankie]

Don't know yet. I went with the smallest amount to start with because it has a shelf life. Once i figure it all out I can start buying the larger ones if needed.
I received my order. I got everything but the one thing i really needed and that was the zeolites. They are on back order. How long that will be who knows so i will order from another company tonight and see who get's here first. I will always need them for replacement anyhow so nbd. Scott has been great over at Aquarium Specialty and will be my main supplier. Who do you use Vicki? And what reactor did you go with? I was not aware you started zeovit. I need to read the tank journals more offten it appears.

[reefsurf]

wow that's quite a process!

[Frankie]

Not really, from what i am reading the algae control we deal with now cleaning glass takes more time then dosing. So far i have read thread after thread on how much less time is spent working on a tank that is zeo.

[Triggerjay]

Wow,... I take the afternoon off, and this is created! Look forward to the progress. Frankie and I are kind of starting the Zeo system together... except he is a couple steps ahead of me..

Jason

[blue_eyes53813]

Frankie, I also buy all my supplies from Aquarium specialty. I love how quick he is on shipping the product.. I hope the zeolites come in soon for you.. I have the 3 liter reactor I got from a different site. Scott didnt have any available at the time.. hmmm for the life of me right now I cant think of the brand of it... It is a pretty plain jane model. I will let you know later..

[Frankie]

Thanks Vicki!
Here are my K+ ( potassium) test results. 400++



I will be uploading before pictures this week. I am working on getting a better quality camera.
Hurry up Jason! your falling behind dude!

[blue_eyes53813]

Those potassium test are hard to read

[BaxReefs]

Frankie

Good luck with the switch to zeo. It seems like quite a process, and like anything in this "hobby" takes time to acclimate the system to it. I've seen many folks enjoy success with it so I'll be following along. But I see your point about the doseing time vs. galss cleaning. I am never satisfied with my glass ... but, it always gives me somethingto do

[Ratpack]

Subscribing to the new thread.

Also have to say I also like dealing with Scott at Aquarium Specialty, great service. Also helps they are local too.

[blue_eyes53813]

Originally Posted by blue_eyes53813

Those potassium test are hard to read

Opps I realized that that may have sounded like I meant your pictures wasnt clear.. Just meant in general the test kit can be hard to read.. Good Job Frankie... lol