The Skeptic goes Hiatt!?!

[DaveMorris]

Well, I did it. I have implemented the Hiatt system on my tank. I know some of you are shocked. Take a close look though...this post is in the freshwater forum. My reef is still all natural, Hiatt and Zeo free.

Right before I flew out to Minneapolis I put the carbon in my Fluval 404 and added the Right Now! bacteria to my 75g planted tank. The night before I was given some more plants and some nice fish by Patty and I received my order of the Hiatt products. I will shoot some pics of the tank on Saturday to show you what it looks like after one week. I have heard good reports on the system and since I neglected my freshwater tank for so long I figured I'd give it a try.

[Jessy]

I saw this post and couldn't wait for the page to load fast enough....you made me almost crap my pants when i saw the title.

[SoCalBoo]

Good luck (I mean that optimistically, not sarcastically). I'm 10 days in on an experimental FW tank with Hiatt...water is clearer, fish are noticeably more active (read - voraciously hungry (now) vs. moderately passive eaters (before)). Obnoxious amount of green thread/hair algae is slowly starting to loose ground. Levels from the start - ammonia from zero less than .25 (is that a hint of green in the yellow or too many beers before testing?), nitrites zero, nitrates less than 5.

Out of everything, the water clarity is the most noticeable. We'll see if it can keep reducing the algae.

It was hard to yank out the bio-media out of the Aquaclear 20 and throw it in the garage. But the tank is looking better for sure.

Keep us apprised on your findings. having the carbon in a cannister is ideal from what I can gather from folks that have been using Hiatt.

[psmith444]

Way to go Dave! I hope all the plants and fish are doing well.

[SuperDragon]

I was going to check up on you Dave... but I guess your working on it.
LMK if you need some more shrimp.
(:

[jacksandgo]

I think some very hot place....just froze over.

Oh, and by the way.... :nopics:

Well, I did it. I have implemented the Hiatt system on my tank. I know some of you are shocked. Take a close look though...this post is in the freshwater forum. My reef is still all natural, Hiatt and Zeo free.

Right before I flew out to Minneapolis I put the carbon in my Fluval 404 and added the Right Now! bacteria to my 75g planted tank. The night before I was given some more plants and some nice fish by Patty and I received my order of the Hiatt products. I will shoot some pics of the tank on Saturday to show you what it looks like after one week. I have heard good reports on the system and since I neglected my freshwater tank for so long I figured I'd give it a try.

[jacksandgo]

Ok, I like this one better, actually.

[slowturtle]

obviously everyone in here is using it

so miss jessycat. u were going to setup your new tank right? u gonna wait another 30 days for it to cycle? j/k

[DaveMorris]

Why is it that so many of you Hiatt heads are so stuck on the quick tank cycle thing? Who cares if your tank cycles faster? I would be more interested in the long term effects. That is all that really matters anyway. Besides, patience is one of the most important aspects to reefkeeping.

[slowturtle]

let me emphasize

j/k

[corbeano619]

do it on your reef tank you will be amazed. If your tank is natural turn your skimmer then see what happens. Run the right now method in your reef tank and you wont need it anymore.

[DaveMorris]

Not gonna happen. The cost and size of materials to do that is prohibitive. I also have no reason to change what I am doing now.

[SDguy]

So Dave, can you explain a bit what your tank was like, what you did or did not like about it with the current setup, and what you are hoping to gain or change using the Hiatt method? TIA.

[DaveMorris]

My tank is a 75g tank. I have two 6700k PC fixtures on it for lighting. I have a second pair of PC's for it, but didn't want them on for fear of algea. Filtration is with a Fluval 404 cannister. I was running CO2 until I pulled the CO2 off to hook it up to my Calcium reactor on my reef. A crayfish killed most of my plaants before that, so I wasn't too concerned about removing the CO2. The substrate is layered with Flourite, laterite, clay, and sand. It is about 2" deep.

The plants that I have look OK, but they don't grow at all. I had heard several people comment that they have had good growth without CO2 supplementation when using the Hiatt system, so that is my motivation to try it out. Clear water has not been a problem, but I should be able to tell if it gets even better. I will post some pics when I get back into town.

[SDguy]

Thanks Dave.