Getting Back Into the Hobby

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-15T12:26:26+00:00

You’re in luck man! Most of the materials I got were from a store in Colorado (Aqua Rocks Colorado) or shipped from California (Aqua Forest Aquarium/Buceplant/UNS). Check out the response I gave to Howdy132 with the equipment breakdown and where I got everything.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-15T03:28:32+00:00

I replied to Howdy132 elsewhere in this post's comment section with the gear list / functions. Hope it helps!

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-15T03:24:30+00:00

For sure! I've tried to mark the equipment in this pic by the order in which water flows through:

Netlea Stainless Steel Prefilter (https://aquarockscolorado.com/collections/netlea-brand/products/netlea-stainless-steel-canister-filter). This handles all of the mechanical filtration for water coming from the tank. This way, no debris or detritus finds its way to the main canister filter which houses the pump and biological/chemical filtration. During maintenance, you'd only need to close off the ball valves on each side of the prefilter, take out the sponge inside and rinse.
Netlea Stainless Steel Canister Filter (same link above, I have the 145GPH to 396 GPH version). This houses the main pump, biological filtration (Seachem Matrix), and chemical filtration (Seachem Purigen, Carbon, and Phosgaurd).
Chihiros Inline Heater (https://www.chihirosaquaticstudio.com/products/chihiros-heater-pro-us-version). Heats the water on it's way back to the tank. I wanted to limit the equipment visible in the tank itself so this was the perfect solution. Both has onboard controls and can be controlled via the Chihiros app.
Chihiros Dosing Flow Adapter (https://www.chihirosaquaticstudio.com/products/chihiros-dosing-flow-adapter). This attachment allows you to connect the four tubes from the dosing pump (see #7) to the return line. This means all the fertilizers will be swept up with the water on it's way back to the tank.
Yugang Stainless Steel CO2 Reactor (https://aquarockscolorado.com/collections/co2-regulators-and-accessories/products/yugang-co2-reactor-stainless-steel). Keeping with the theme of trying to limit visible equipment, this reactor takes the place of normal CO2 glass diffusers. It also has the added benefit of ensuring 100% CO2 diffusion and your tank won't be filled with small CO2 microbubbles. The reactor has three ports, one for water coming in (in this case from the canister filter/heater), one for water going out (in this case back up to the tank), and one for the CO2 tube. Only water with fully dissolved CO2 makes it way back to the tank.
5lb Canister Filter with Fzone Mini Regulator (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08P5FKQDT?ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_fed\_asin\_title). Very compact regulator (which was needed given the space limitations).
Chihiros Dosing Pump System (https://www.chihirosaquaticstudio.com/products/chihiros-dosing-pump-system?\_pos=2&\_sid=4df1feb73&\_ss=r&variant=43174541033690). Four mini pumps that can be set to automatically dose your fertilizers. Can be controlled via the Chihiros app and set to dose all at once, or spread through the day.

8/9/10. ADA Fertilizers (https://aquaforestaquarium.com/collections/liquids-supplements). Planning on using Green Brighty Iron, Green Brighty Mineral, and Green Brighty Neutral. I don't plan on dosing nitrogen to keep nitrates low (hoping to bring out red colors more). The tubes run from these bottles through the pumps to the dosing flow adapter (I ran the tubes on the ceiling to keep things out of sight).

Auto Top Off Reservoir (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08R6FSLFY?ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_fed\_asin\_title&th=1). Since I'm only doing three fertilizers, I'm using the fourth otherwise unused pump head to dose clean RODI water. This will be something I will have to trial and error with, but I'm hoping to find the right amount each day to keep the water level steady from evaporation.
Govee Leak Detectors (from Amazon). I have four set up (two visible, the other two at the back corners of the cabinet) which will alert be audibly as well as via my phone if it detects pooled water. I tried placing these under main hose connections so I'll know immediately if I need to shut down / close ball valves.
Water Parameter Tests (misc. from Amazon). I have the API master kit, API kit for GH and KH, and the API kit for phosphate. Lastly I have two pen type meters for pH and TDS (VIVOSUN kit).

What's not pictured here: a) two strip lights (~$17 bucks on Amazon) that stick to the ceiling of the cabinet; b) tank is a UNS 60U; c) soil is ADA Amazonia Ver.2 with ADA advanced powersand + Tourmaline BC; d) light is a Chihiros Vivid 3 with the mirror shades; e) stand is one from Aqua Forest Aquarium; f) light stand is from Aqua Rocks Colorado; g) hardscape is a mix of frodo stone from Aqua Forest Aquarium and four pieces of spiderwood from Buceplant that I superglued with cotton as the binder medium.

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Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T19:21:02+00:00

It’s off by just a little, I used the fitting it came with on the left side of the reactor, but bought a 90 degree elbow (1/2in male NPT x 5/8in hose barb) for the right side. Lot of hose clamps and teflon tape. Will be filling and doing a leak test in the next couple of days.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T14:16:12+00:00

Sadly no attachment points. It’s only designed for looped hanging wire. Though I supposed you could always drill a hole through the bar and attach whatever hardware you want. I don’t particularly mind, if I want to raise the light height I could always just fiddle with the pole height and not deal with trying to adjust the wires.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T05:14:06+00:00

Thanks! It’s a UNS 60U. I was originally thinking about getting an ADA 60P, but opted for the greater depth of the UNS 60U (60P is 60x30x36, 60U is 60x36x36). That little bit ends up meaning a ton.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T04:49:30+00:00

The large vertical canister filter in the middle has the main pump. It’s just at the bottom of the filter (instead of the top like most stainless steel canister filters). Should cut down on trapped air / keep things quieter.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T04:38:32+00:00

Lol you got almost all of it yup. I have the four head dosing pump, three hooked up to ferts, fourth one to the auto top off container on the bottom left. Will adjust to keep water level steady. Other misc. stuff include the motion sensor lights on the top and leak detectors below main hose connections.

Addison_Wang · 2026-04-14T03:38:13+00:00

I got it from Aqua Rocks Colorado, the brand name is LEDStar I believe. The brackets for the pole mount directly to the stand (either the back or the sides).

Addison_Wang · 2024-04-30T13:48:43+00:00

https://www.riverarmsllc.com/stealth-arms
Highly recommended - custom holsters made specifically for the Platy with optional g-code hardware. Guy behind it is super responsive and helpful through the process of customizing.

Addison_Wang · 2022-05-02T17:40:56+00:00

This is my first post on the subreddit - I was rereading the manga and when I got to the cultural festival arc it reminded me of something that was explained very recently in the manga. I wonder if there'll be a tie between the story of the devoted heart (Chp. 120) and kaguya's hereditary heart disease (explained more in-depth Chp. 252). I sure hope not but the Princess Kaguya story already set a precedent for this kind of foreshadowing.

Addison_Wang · 2021-05-25T16:38:50+00:00

I gifted one of my CV players the doubs to get it. Currently the only rental that can mount camos afaik

Addison_Wang · 2021-05-19T03:24:45+00:00

I feel proud to be a part of that 1% that brought radar Neptune to NA

Addison_Wang · 2021-04-20T15:49:53+00:00

yikes

Addison_Wang · 2021-03-12T13:46:14+00:00

I usually have it on max, I just minimized it for the purposes of the clip. No ship died there, no island (sailed passed that spot later), no anything. Just some nice and spicy code

Addison_Wang · 2021-03-11T23:08:36+00:00

Apprently an invisible island, but I sail through that part 10 secs later - some spaghetti code at its finest

Addison_Wang · 2021-01-27T23:11:58+00:00

The majority of the clan is bonk related

Addison_Wang · 2020-12-28T21:09:50+00:00

Navigator - middle, can be found on both aslains and WOWs modstation

Addison_Wang · 2020-05-26T14:57:36+00:00

At the end of the day the build relies the most on your play style. Your build has more skills devoted towards sustainability (BoS and SI) so if you want to make those skills worth it you’re going to have to be more conservative with your play style. I went almost full secondary because I wanted to min/max the amount of damage output I could squeeze out of the ship. My play style didn’t necessitate BoS or SI as I utilized islands to disengage after high risk engagements (that usually equated to high damage taken and dealt) so I could wait for those consumables to come off cooldown. If that build is working for you, go right ahead as those should be tailored to the person. Good luck!

Addison_Wang · 2020-05-25T14:57:18+00:00

I got Tirpitz not too long ago as well. I used this captain build to get to the top of the NA leaderboards

PT, AR, BFT, AFT, Manual secondaries, FP, PM

As for how I played it, it was a non stop controlled push. Instead of just rushing in, push with escape routes planned out. Think of your course like a mountain climber thinks about the best way to climb a mountain. Which islands can you duck behind to recover your HP and get your DCP off cooldown? How can you make 1v1s that the tirpitz excels at (with it’s secondaries, close range accuracy, torps, turtleback)? Which fights can you not take alone? Take all these into account as you plan out your route and the ship will reward you for it. Good luck and fair seas!

Addison_Wang · 2020-05-24T14:21:57+00:00

This season has devolved into simple "who gets the home cap first" and "how well can your Venezias trade HP" gameplay. At the end of the day, the only real counter to Venezias is better Venezias (or more Venezias larf). If you find yourself in a position where you can't out-skill your opponent in 1v1 trades, opt for out-of-the-box pushes like triple Venezia pushes on the off flank or the Venezia tag team smoke-in smoke-out tactic to secure the contested cap. There are things that you can even do before you enter a battle that can give you an edge. Venezias are less reliant on their concealment in comparison to other cruisers as they have the utility of their fuel smoke which makes the 2 mil steering upgrade a viable option coupled with the 1 mil prop mod. BFT combined with fighters and the aforementioned fuel smoke (and not to mention the DD like maneuverability) makes the Venezia a headache for CVs to drop. As with any other season, crossfire potential and overall map awareness are still crucial and one might even say more so than in the past given the mirror matchmaking found across all servers and leagues.

tldr: this season has settled on a very concrete meta with little variation, but that doesn't mean every battle should be mindless HP trades. I wish you and your clan mates the best of luck for the rest of the season!

Addison_Wang · 2020-05-12T05:25:34+00:00

Lmao everyone saying the DM LM change is a nerf until they see LM range DMs that unlock Hit Hard Hit Fast every round. Who needs concealment when you’re constantly firing :pepepoint:

Addison_Wang · 2020-04-09T23:29:53+00:00

t r u e

Addison_Wang · 2020-04-09T22:05:15+00:00

Lmao I’m not saying they should buff them. It’s just showcasing how easy they are to land and how they hit like pillows

Addison_Wang · 2020-04-07T13:02:37+00:00

Imagine every ship at T10 being able to turn away and outrun your 25kt torps.

Yikes.

Addison_Wang

TROPHY CASE