Shameless plug for my new site Reef Addicts. :)

Reef Addicts has a contest and you can win a Reefkeeper Elite Net controller with all the associated components.



If you've not checked out my new site yet, here's the link: http://www.reefaddicts.com


Also, the first podcast of the new site is up, click the artwork below to learn more:

Reef Addicts is a brand new community-based site. For the past eight months, it has been a dream of mine, something I wanted to develop in the proper way to provide good usable content to hobbyists around the world. Different from Melev's Reef, this new site welcomes your interaction and values your input.

With this new site comes a new podcast that releases on the 10th of each month. If you've been following on Twitter, Facebook or YouTube, you've gotten a few hints of what it's about, and for those of you that have not, here's the link to the site:

http://www.reefaddicts.com

The logo is visible from the front page of this site.


This site isn't going anywhere, have no fear. I will still be available, as will my Reef Shop. In 2010, expect to see more products added. Additionally, you'll find me over on Reef Addicts, as well as Facebook, Twitter and the official YouTube channel. Yes, you can subscribe to all of them and always stay in touch with the latest updates from your friends everywhere.

Also, I just got an email stating that melevsreef was nominated as "Recommended Reading" for and by the users of TheReefTank.com, so that link is now visible as well, replacing the chalkboard you saw previously.







What a great way to start off the new decade!!

A few new corals have been purchased over the past couple of months, and images will be posted soon. November was a very busy month for me as DFWMAS had a number of events take place... my job as membership coordinator keeps me on my toes... and of course preparing for the club functions to help them run smoothly. I even had the opportunity to visit a couple of clubs, and will be heading to Houston next weekend for their Dec 12th meeting to talk about Reef Photography.

And unfortunately for the past few months I've had some major back pain that stopped me from doing a lot of online stuff, like answering your questions. My focus was only to do what I absolutely had to, while seeing a chiropractor three times a week to hopefully get myself back to normal. After five weeks of various treatments, I am feeling better and returning to my normal routine. Those of you that felt ignored - I apologize. My health comes first, so that I can be here in the future. :)

Speaking of the future, a new website is surfacing very soon. Here's the link:



Become a fan & tell your addict friends so that more information can be released before the official start date.

From September 25 - 27, 2009, over 1,100 hobbyists from across the nation and abroad flew in to enjoy this year's Marine Aquarium Conference of North America. And in record time, all the pictures have been edited and uploaded to my site.

If you weren't able to attend this year, this is what you missed: MACNA XXI

This is what I came home with.

Labels: macna

On Sunday, a friend of mine offered to help me from his home in Missouri to get my Aqua Controller 3 working with the U-verse Gateway (router), and get the Aquanotes App on my iPhone communicating with it once again. Knowing it would take some time, we tackled it Sunday afternoon after I had my first cup of coffee.

(It was a long night. My main PC pretty much crashed to the blue screen of death, and my new iPhone joined in the demise. It was bad, but I worked on that all night until 8:30am to get them back up and running. Things are much better, but I really can't wait for Windows 7 to finally hit the market. I'm going to be ready to buy the day it comes out...)

I really hoped to document the solutions we employed, but this networking stuff is really tricky. Even with Eric's experience, it was a very tedious process that ended up taking about five hours to get everything to cooperate. Being so many states apart didn't help matters, but I gave him Remote Desktop Access so he could see and click on the stuff he needed to do. I was on the phone with him the entire time, making changes in the AC3, running back and forth to the computer, changing settings, changing wires, plugged in my laptop for a bit to the AC3; you name it, we tried it. IT (no pun intended) was a beast.

The good news is, he did it. He brought it to life, and the banners appear in my blog like they used to with the current tank stats.


Once we had my controller available locally to my browser, I went to Neptune System's website to download the newest firmware. The update wasn't that bad once I had the settings correct. I was able to run it from my desktop computer, and it found the AC3 via the Gateway. From there, it updated the firmware from 3.3 to3.4. Next, I needed to update the webpages as well, which was a little trickier and took a while to figure out why. It ended up being a Port number change, and with that correction, those pages were updated / uploaded.

I downloaded the lastest version of the App for my phone, and with the new settings, I'm able to "see" my tank wherever I am yet again. From what I can tell, if you have multiple controllers with their own individual log ins, you could see them all from this one page.




Now I can see not only what I used to check in the past, but some newer options thanks to the latest App version.




Outlets is one of the new ones, and my guess is that with the new Apex controller, it was named that way because these are the things you plug in and would be able to measure wattage used. Since I'm using the AC3, it shows what is on, what is off, and what settings they are set to. In this screen shot, the only item on are the Refugium bulbs. From this screen, I can turn any of these items on or off just like you might with a tv remote.




Here are three graphs from today. pH: 8:08 to 8:31




Temp: 79.4F to 81F




ORP: 309 to 322




Another new feature I came across is on the graphs page. You can put your finger on the graph and work your way across the line, and it will provide hour by hour information based upon location. It is more interactive than before. Like this:




I can now view the AC3's program right on my phone, in case I needed help or wanted to share some code with someone else that needed it. When I say share, I mean read it off to them, not give them a file. Still, at MACNA Curt may tell me that I need to make a correction simply by looking at the line by line code, since it would be simple to show him in person.




Another new option is the Backup option. All you do is press Backup and the program is backed up immediately to the phone's log.




This is what the back up looks like, which scrolls up and down with a fingertip swipe.




If I need to restore the program for some reason, that option is in the App. I've not tried it, but theoretically I'm out of town, and my son says a brown out occurred that messed up the tank's settings. I could check with the App to see if the program looks right or if it has gibberish in it. Let's say it does, then I could click Restore and get that into the AC3. At that point, I don't know if I have to do a restart or not (perhaps the App offers a "restart" option after you've done a restore - I don't know yet), but if it doesn't, my son could unplug it and plug it back in and we'd be back in business. Theoretically, right? ;)




I wish I could help others that are struggling to make theirs work with similar gear, but #1) I barely understand it and I think I know something about computers, and #2) Everyone's system varies enough that what worked for my system probably won't for yours. Hopefully you know a guy named Eric too. Thanks Eric!!

Just like this hobby, right?

Labels: ac3, app, aquacontroller III, aquanotes, u-verse

It's the first of the month, and what comes with that? A brand new episode of Reefcast! Episode 32 is up on Itunes, ready to download now. Enjoy.

Download page

If you are an iPhone user like I am, load up iTunes on your computer, go to the Store's Home page, then in the search bar, type in "reefcast" to find our shows. Subscribe to the podcast. It should start downloading the latest show. If you want previous ones, click on "Get Episode" to download more shows.

Plug in your iPhone and sync it up, and it will copy those podcasts to your phone to listen to when you are out and about.

And remember, every month on the first a new show will release.

Labels: podcast

Melev's Reef is proud to announce a new product available from our Reef Shop:



This system has been in development for some time, and I had the first one shipped directly to me for testing. This is big upgrade from the regular 100gpd system I've been selling for years. The 150gpd membrane produces an average of 6.25 gallons per hour. The matching booster pump will provide this rate or better, based upon water conditions in your area.

Included with this 5-stage system is a dual in-line TDS meter, which allows you to measure the TDS of the water before and after the DI section. The meter shuts off automatically after 30 seconds. The default display is the "IN" probe, which I recommend be installed after the DI section, and the "OUT" probe should be installed before the DI to determine what is coming out of the RO membrane.

The booster pump is securely bolted to the enlarged wall bracket, which also holds the power supply. A 110v outlet needs to be nearby to power the booster pump, which will turn on and off automatically when water is being made. Once you close the ball valve on the output line, the system pressurizes and the booster pump shuts off - all is silent.

Running a RO/DI system with a booster pump is audible, and I would say it sounds like the icemaker filling up in the refrigerator. The sound may help avoid some floods, something silent RO/DI systems tend to do when we don't keep an eye on the collection container.

If you have a larger aquarium, run an aquarium-service business, or are on a well, this system will definitely supply your needs. Click below to learn more and order one today.

150gpd Boosted RO/DI

Please help spread the word to your friends or your club. :)

I'm so impressed that I think I'll keep using the prototype for my reef. Seeing water being produced at 92-96 PSI is impressive. It makes 5 gallons in 35 minutes - talk about warp speed!

Labels: 150gpd, booster pump, ro/di