Reef By Steele
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WE GOT THE REEF
Our commitment to our customers is a driving force behind our business and a major reason that we receive such positive feedback from our customers. Because we listen our business has expanded and grown. Earlier this year I had a customer ask me a question that I had been considering for some time.
“Can you auto dose phytoplankton?”
This is Eugene's @ebgclef tank, and because he travels and didn’t want to lose the progress he had achieved through consistent dosing we brainstormed for a solution. And now we have an answer, YES! There are intricate challenges to auto dosing phytoplankton, but through thoughtful planning and experiment we have developed a working system. Doesn’t phytoplankton need to be refrigerated? No, live phytoplankton can last 2-3 weeks at room temperature (we recommend not over 10 days), refrigeration does extend the storage capacity to up to 3 months industry standard (we recommend 4-6 weeks as we love our phyto fresh). Doesn’t phytoplankton settle, yes that is why you need to shake stored phytoplankton at least every three days so the settling doesn’t smother and kill the cells trapped below. This means the phyto must be agitated to keep it in suspension so that the dosage stays consistent. My first thought was to aerate it like I do with our harvest, but that also promotes evaporation. As this customer, Eugene, and I discussed these challenges he suggested a magnetic stirrer. In his system he uses the stirrer under a dosing chamber he already had on hand, a drawback is that the chamber is square, so some settling occurs in the corners. We have alleviated this with a round dosing chamber. With this setup, he has lowered his nitrates from mid 30’s to 1-2 ppm. Eugene does see them rise if he runs out of phyto between shipments, which reinforces just how effective dosing live phytoplankton is. Eugene dilutes our phyto 3 to 1 with saltwater then doses 4x the volume, to be able to run the dosing pump all day to avoid long term setting in the lines, but it can be dosed at full strength as well to simplify things.
Runs silent.
Eugene also shared a pic, he says can be our new Mascot!
STARTING @ $79
Buy in Combo and Save 50% on Phyto Buffet or Phyto Buffet Extreme
Phytoplankton Dosing Kit
Automate your Phytoplankton Dosing Routine to maximize the benefits your tank receives!
reefbysteele.com
What is in the kit.
1 - 1/2 gallon glass jars w/plastic lid, 1/4" bulkhead, 1/4" acrylic siphon tube
1 - 2' PVC line
1 - 2' RO line
1 - 8' feed line
1 - Line clip
1 - Magnetic Stirrer customized to silence
Also available with
1 - Kamoer Programable Auto Dosing Pump
ALL KITS SHIPPED GROUND FREE!
If prompted that it is out of stock, you can complete the purchase and we will ship as soon as components are back in stock.
And how does it work.
Attach either the PVC or RO line to intake of an available dosing pump on one end and the bulkhead connection on the dosing vessel.
Connect 5’ feed line to output of the dosing pump and route to tank, or return pump chamber of sump/refugium (to bypass skimmer, UV) allowing the phytoplankton to be broadcast throughout the reef.
Calibrate and prime the dosing pump setting it to deliver the daily amount to the tank. We recommend either continual dosing, or multiple smaller dosages to keep the lines filled with fresh fluids, or running a reverse cycle to clear the line.
Every 7 to 10 days remove the dosing vessel rinse with distilled or RO water and refill.
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