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Well, I got to Big Al's today and had a look around. It's a store that I would consider worth a visit to, but nothing so over the top that you have got to see it now. Overall the store is clean, nicely decorated, and does have a large circular tank with a couple of small sharks in it. They...

That location isn't too far from me. With some luck, I may be able to visit this weekend. If I do, I'll write a report.

Looks like a bristle worm to me. Most are harmless. I will remove large ones though. When doing so, don't touch the spines, as they can break off in your skin and hurt. Use something like tweezers to remove them.

I had a similar problem with my Aqua Medic Space light. I removed all the ballasts and other junk, except the bulb holders. I rewired the entire fixture using Blue Line E Ballasts for the MHs. I used them because they could be mounted remotely, without the need for an additional box to house the...

I read he article, and it's not bad for something that can be read in a few minutes. My big problem with this sort of thing, and similar to your own feelings on the subject, is that something that short can not possible convey all the information and knowledge needed to set up a successful reef...

I don't think I've ever seen a magnetic switch fail because of "magnetization of the contacts". Do you have some additional information on this? If so I'd be very interested, because I've seen magnetic switched used in many (non-aquarium) applications over the years and seldom see a problem...

The reason you mount the switches at two different levels is that way if one fails you'll see a slight rise in the water level in the sump. That way you know you have a problem. The wiring you do is the same, with the switches mounted in series. The switches only need about 3/4 to 1 inch...

I just couldn't deal with something like that. I don't care what kind of fish were in it. To me it's more the product of a warped mind. :)

I'm a lazy person, and don't like a bunch of timers, I'd put everything except the LED moonlights on one timer, and the LED moonlights on another. Then I'd set the first timer for 8 - 12 hours of light per day, and the second timer for when the fist one was not on. Others might prefer more...

With MH you usually need one ballast per lamp, no matter what ballast you use. (Note - there are a couple of exceptions, where it's a single box, but has two ballasts inside, but these are kind of rare.)

Sorry to hear about that. That's something that can happen, and why two, mounted at slightly different levels are better.

From your description, you only need 20 lbs. Why not just visit your LFS and get 20 lbs of the sand you like? Then there are no problems or issues. This would be completely different advice, if you were talking about needing 450 lbs to do a large tank. Then it might be worth the risk.

I'd say closing in the front and back is a matter of personal preference. As long as the light isn't in your eyes when you are trying to view the tank, I'd say you were ok. I might want to may sure the light only went into the tank, if I have young children around. I wouldn't want them staring...

One other thought, make sure all the wiring you do inside the fixture is done with hight temperature rated wire. You can often find this for cheep at an auto parts store.

I don't think you'll have any problems with the distance from the glass to the lighting. 150w bulbs tend to be double ended bulbs. These run extremely hot. I don't think I'd trust then in a wood fixture, since they could burn that. Use a metal fixture for double ended bulbs. They also require...

An excellent point about PAR/PUR. Could you be more specific about the "plant grow bulbs"? Some that are more or less full spectrum bulbs would be ok, but other's like the original "grow lux" bulbs are just about worthless for growing anything.

I'm very much old school. It's an interesting tank concept. It's obviously something that you are not going to see everyday. Yet, at the same time, I feel when you build an exotic looking tank, you take away from the star attractions, which are the fish, corals, and livestock. Personally...

I don't see why you can't do this. I have a couple of Aqua Medic fixtures, and I've upgraded all the original ballasts to electronic ballasts. The HQI ballasts did need to be mounted externally. I highly recommend you also upgrade the existing ballasts to electronic ballasts. The Aqua Medic...

Re: To MH or not to MH? This is possible, but see the thread on this topic. Many interesting points made on LED lighting. No matter how you slice it, Solaris lighting is extremely expensive.

A lot of this depends on exactly what your MH configuration is and what you are comparing it to. Most manufactured MH fixtures use coil and core ballasts to keep price down. These are a only about 65% efficient. In other words to light up that 250w MH bulb the ballast is going to draw about...