i am going to be doing a video on this, but basically, my stuff gets cleaned every 6 weeks.
i use a 5 gallon bucket with 1 cup of vinegar, and the rest HOT water unit they are all submerged.
i run them in this for a few hours, and the crud comes right off.
as for the Ca deposits, this is common in areas where you dose calcium or kalk, especially of you dose in a sump. you will see this build up on everything not just your pumps, but its in a different form usually, on the glass and rocks its is quickly consumed for coralline algaes
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Gwen, I am not dosing anything yet. I will check that PH in the AM and see what it is up to. My Nitrites dropped to 0, and my nitrates whent from 2.5 to 5, but my ammonia hasn't changed, it is a .25 I am beginning to doubt the Red Sea test kit.
I came home from work and my tank looked totally different! My son looked into the sump and said "what are these bugs?" I took a look and there are a bunch of tiny clear or white bugs on the glass. They are so small I cannot see any defining marks. I assume they are normal.
My rocks are covered with brown stuff as well as my piping, maybe a diatom bloom?
brown stuff - yes, this looks like diatoms, and is normal in a new tank
bugs - these are various pods, amphipods (large ones) copepods (small ones) and possibly some small shrimps. these are all normal, adn a good sign
the stuff growing, this is likely various macro algaes, and is common (and good) with cured LR. the last picture looks like macro algae, but from the pic i cant be 100% sure
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hi i'm new to the forum as of today. i've been at RC and ultimatereef.com and all the rest. this is by far the best site as to use, function, PODCAST/VIDEOCAST (i love it), and people. i salute to those who came up with the idea and keep up the great effort to keep this site running. i hope to contribute to the forum as you all do.
wildone your doing a great job. DIY is the best. can't wait to see some livestock in there. waiting to see what you pick as your first choice and what your going to keep in your tank.
i'm in the process of planning my tank also. going on over 6 months now. i plan to keep a journal like this too. i hope to only produce half the excitement your journal is getting. congrats.
Thanks for the nice words Cheng21Tang! I appreciate the fact that everyone here was a beginner once and allows me to ask the same questions over and over . I look forward to seeing you get you dream rolling and I hope you use the journal so we can all watch it too!
. Give it a good scrubbing after you are done cleaning. 
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