erm.not so sure bout the test.as i know is.the lr is clean ,(no red algae or green algae) ,if u buy from lfs u can c the water condition.normally if the lr tank was connect to their fish tank.means the % of clean was high.if u want make sure 100% the lr is clean.mayb u can put inside the fresh water for few day or let it dry under sun.of coz this will make ur lr become dead rock.hope my explanation was correct

---

Added on December 7, 2010, 6:45 pm
if i was u,i wont use the "master or sifu"as we all still  learning.don think got  ppl who know very well every reef secret ..ppl will afraid to share their experiences coz afraid as giving wrong reply will get flame.
we sharing k 
1st do u know wat bio ring work as?it give a benefit bacteria as home to survive and population .so thn the crush coral.
2ndthe more lr u have ,the more stable tank u can get.coz it provide lot of hidden place to populate the bacteria and    pod.normally a 3 feet tank will intro 50kg-100kg depends.thats y reef tank need a strong support cabinet.
3tha ro water is a pure water free from all chemical by using a gd filtering like diamond water .or u can go buy ro water from water machine somekind like rm 0.20 per litter .and tap water is normal "paip water' inside the paip water got alot of Carolin ,phosphate,ect..

aiyo friend.the lr u have to scape la.go search it.somekind like pyramid.inside is empty 1.can let the small fish hide inside too.u can use a glue to stick it.
if only fot(fish only tank)u not need so much lr lo.without lr also nvm

good to hear u cycle without getting LS 1st..many ppl include me cant tahan.keep restock and restock,at the end,boom..tank crash.
mayb starting u will lazy to rescaping ur lr.but at end u will like it so much ,ya u can use a aqua underwater epoxy,it harden in 5 min.
but after u cycle ur tank.wat in ur mind bout the LS

lol..which algae ,Coraline (high calcium)or green algae(high phosphate).    carefull of the starfish,some kind r harmful for the coral,mushroom and button is easy maintain coral.gogogo..will wating u change tank soon 

btw whr ur location.flame angel wont too expensive la.after u make ur tank look nice.sure they will ask u change bigger tank.like my previous.my mum keep complain me when i have my 2 feet nano.but after that.she suggest me go for bigger and bigger

lol...if is a crap.if posible try catch it out.try diy a trap wif mineral water botal.since u stil no fish and coral,that more easy lo.take out the lr  .normaly they will come out at nite.try use torchlight check.y u want make a holes at lr,u can use any drill tools.coz act the lr is not so harden.

wind blow on the surface, it will evaporate faster. use chiller and have cover closure will reduce.

Hi Mallow, indeed been very long time i didnt follow up any threads.

don't waste the money on such thing, just get a small fan to blow it if overheat is your concern.

yet still you need to show some photos and tell me your setup, what you keeping, how long the tank been running. only than i can give you some proper advice.

you can keep money to invest on a small 2nd hand chiller

mallow

you can reduce the rock a bit, overcrowded.

what you need to buy is

1) termometer
2) NO3 test kit (rest all don't need)
3) some extra sea salt

after you monitor your water tempreture for 1-2 days only can decide need a fan or not.

keeping fish only ( tempreture swing 3-5c tolerance )
keeping coral ( tempreture swing 1-2c tolerance )

stable tempreture is what you looking for.

it can be 30-31 all the time and your fish will be ok

but if you use air con and it swing 24-31c on/off than that will be bad.

lighting depends on you want to keep corals or not? what type
sps? lps? target feed?softie?

true i find a marine tank is a pretty slow hobby ..if u rush you might lose ur whole tank or ur money..

corals are not easy to just add add scrap2..you must consider their growth/nature..you dont really want to cramp everything inside a tank..

bro just keep ur LR i also got keep some ..wat i did is dry it for few days then keep in double plastic and tadaaaa settle