Hi all, New guy here with some questions.

[Hawkeye]

I totally forgot to mention my new membership when I paid for the tank.
I had gotten the email from Michael the same morning but since I don't have my card yet it slipped my mind. :-\
Definitely will remember the next time.

i don't think the tanks are eligible for further discount - so what you paid is the best you'll get. I got mine from AO last year too. Glad you found them!

 

[chaoscat]

I suspect the water change WAS what killed your tank. If you didnt do water changes for 2 and half years, you had a bad case of Old Tank Syndrome going on. The chemistry in a tank like this is such that a large water change can cause a spike in pH, which can convert non-toxic ammonia into lethal ammonium. For tanks like this it's much better to do 10% a day over a week or two, rather than a huge change in one shot.

What I don't understand is how you went 2 years without water changes and your tank didn't look like hairy green Retreiver.

 

[esnapz]

Yup, no real water changes..always topped off when it became too low. Only changed the fluval's media about every month and half or so. We probably did 1 to 2 10-20% water changes in those 2 and half years. Till that day when we shook up the crushed coral and did that 50% change.