After a few years outta the hobby due to an unexpected move, I got the bug last week to setup a new tank. Out of all my tanks I have had from 25-320 gallons my old 90 looked the best and was easiest to maintain. So I have decided to replicate what was successful for me. My goal is mostly SPS and some rare LPS. A few cool fish but they are really just to give movement to the aquarium.
This is the aquarium the day before delivery. AGA 90 with center overflow.
My first task was to locate an Aquarium. After a week of shopping I found a 90 AGA at Exotic Aquatics used. It came with most everything to get me started. But far short of the equipment I wanted. Included was a new 4X54 watt JBJ trinity light fixture, 50 pounds of rock that I got to cherry pick, sand, a Evolution 750, mag 9.5, euroreef RS-80, ATO with minijet, fluval 300w heater(really cool with digital read out) and wetdry sump. After taking delivery I ditched the wetdry in favor of the 29 gallon sump I had on the old 90. Cleaned it up, plumbed and got it all wired up to run while I waited on more equipment.
Friday I ordered some supplies from Bulk Reef Supplies. Included were, 5 Stage RO, DI refill (I still had my old canister), refractometer, reef crystals (just something to cycle tank with),some test kits, and a sample of their dry Pukani rock. I asked them to cherry pick me a single rock larger than a basketball that was ultra porous, bigger the better. They found me a 17 pound rock to add to the live rock I already have. That should give me 67 pounds of rock and a nice start. Will likely order more in the next group buy if it is nice. Sunday I was able to pick up 2 more koralia EVO 750's and a MJ 1200.
Today I ordered a 48 inch Maristar 2X250 HQI and 4 54 watt T5's. This is the exact same light I had on my old 90. I also ordered a 2 SLS ballasts that run at 150, 175, or 250 watts. Not sure what bulbs I will go with for the HQI or the T5's.
Things to do and things to buy: Find a better protein skimmer, maybe a bubble magnus NAC 77, Super Reef Octopus 2000i, or a Reef Octopus Diablo 250XS Decide on bulbs for HQI and T5's Order some mroe rock 25-50 pounds Ozone maker, likely Red Sea Calcium Reactor Some timers/ DJ outlet Moon Lights Fans for Canopy and sump. Must be super quite Maybe a chiller. Prefer not to have all that heat dumped into my house though. Replace mag 9.5 with something more energy efficient Wait for tank to cycle Order Clean up crew
Got my RODI in today and installed it in the garage. The intake was tapped off my washer/dryer. My dryer has steam so it alreayd had one splitter on it. I got a 4 way from Homedepot. Drilled a hole through through the wall and ran it into the garage. The waste water was ran through the garage wall and into my flower beds
A controller has really given me a lot of peace of mind- especially when I was travelling a lot for work. If any parameter started going wonky, the controller started shutting things off (e.g. if the temp got too hot, turn off the lights). If it got really out of whack, I'd get a text / email.
I know a lot of folks are happy with the neptune apex line of controllers (including me), but other apparently good choices are the DA reefkeeper elite and lite.
Looks good! for a tank your size and needs I would go with an APEX. For MH I've always liked the phoenix 14k. Some T5 bulbs to supplement with are def blue plus and kz fiji purple.
Got a vortech Mp40w today. Getting it setup. Hopefully Ill get this chiller this week. Most of the $$ stuff is outta the way. Now I have to be patient.
Started to get hair algae the last few days. Ordered a clean up crew that will be delivered tomorrow. Picked up a Desjardin's tang, lawn mower Benny, and 2 5 inch acan lords today. The Desjardin's devoured all the hair algae in 2 hours while the Benny hid in the rocks. Also grabbed 2 monti frags from bimmerz this afternoon.
8' Long In-wall FOWLR: Build Thread 20g Clown tank: Build Thread 26g Bowfront: QT, currently hosting a Yellow Tang Biocube 14, Invert QT, currently acting as a frag tank
That is one mature looking 2 month old tank, nice mix of corals you got there! If that orange mini maxi ever needs re-homing I'd like to be put in line haha.
29gal Biocube - rapid led retro, intank media basket and refugium, vortech mp10wes. 6gal Frankenedge - rimless, ac20, orphek par38.
Coming Soon.... 34gal Solana nem tank 60gal Bowfront Rimless
Origin wrote:That is one mature looking 2 month old tank, nice mix of corals you got there! If that orange mini maxi ever needs re-homing I'd like to be put in line haha.
Thank you!
I got a beautiful purple one too. Couple others you can't really see in the video. Sucks the colors in the vid are so washed out blue where you can't see much. The rics, frags, and zoa's seem almost invisible. The aquarium is not really blue at all. Maybe next month I'll try again with my D5100. This was taken on ipad3. Just trying to keep a log before its packed wall to wall.
Badbrad8500 wrote:Tank looks great. Rockscape gives plenty of swimming room, that's cool. Love those Desjardini's, what else are you planning on stocking?
Well the the sailfin was sold to me as a Desjardini's and it was not. Then it picked on the purple. So it went to a friends tank.
Currently I have a hippo, flasher wrasse, lawn mower, pair of ORA clowns, and a male melanurus wrasse. Future fish will be a copper band (if I can find one that will eat), a flame or potters angel, goby and shrimp combo, Scotts Fairy Wrasse, and maybe a Royal Gramma. A school of something that would play in the vortech would be cool too. Trying to keep the fish load light because Im really more into the coral.
F1SH wrote:looks great man, its come along quickly. you got a ton of frags in there too, your out of room.
I know. I stole rock from the lady's tank just to get most of them off the sand. The rock is a cluster %#^% because of it. I'm going to be thinking out frags as they color up and I can decide what I wanna keep. There are at least 10 bonsai frags alone. Been giving many away. It should start to look good as it grows and I move the small rocks out.
I got the calcium reactor setup tonight. Reef octopus CR140D with a 20 pound tank and SMS controller. A little flavor of the night (SA Oktoberfest) for scale. Forgot to rinse the media and the tank got cloudy for an hour. Wow this thing holds a ton of media. Nothing leaked and it's still in the dial in phase. Tomorrow I will clean up the wiring and the tubing. Super excited to not dose anymore. I broke down and did my FIRST test of this aquarium. Tested alk and it was 10 dkh. I'll be doing that for a few days till it is dialed in.
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Any plans on more SPS colonies or just placing frags and letting them grow?
225 gallon mixed reef tank WITH FISH!!!! 240 gallon freshwater monster predator tank 150 gallon freshwater amazon tank 75 gallon african cichlid tank 55 gallon mixed mutt tank
1badbluehb wrote:Any plans on more SPS colonies or just placing frags and letting them grow?
Its hard to find a nice colony these days. I'm not opposed. Need to clear out a lot of these and replace with some really nice stuff? There are currently over 35 different types of sps. Tank is only 3 months old so once they grow it's going to be seriously packed. Already see a tank upgrade in my future. I have room for at least a 280.
1badbluehb wrote:Any plans on more SPS colonies or just placing frags and letting them grow?
Its hard to find a nice colony these days. I'm not opposed. Need to clear out a lot of these and replace with some really nice stuff? There are currently over 35 different types of sps. Tank is only 3 months old so once they grow it's going to be seriously packed. Already see a tank upgrade in my future. I have room for at least a 280.
Lol. I'm with you on the upgrade. My 225 is packed. Would like to go 400+
225 gallon mixed reef tank WITH FISH!!!! 240 gallon freshwater monster predator tank 150 gallon freshwater amazon tank 75 gallon african cichlid tank 55 gallon mixed mutt tank
I bought the GF and my son separate 28 jbj hqi setups. Once those are complete and things get settled with the new baby I'll have time to actually plan an upgrade. I literally threw this tank together overnight. The good thing is I bought all the equiptment waay oversized and been buying extra stuff with an upgrade in mind. so really just need to plan the tank location and layout. My last tank was 280 and acrylic. I won't do thst again. Thinking 6 foot by 36x36. Or 6 x 32x32
you need to tell me ur secret. looks very well established for such a young tank. my 75g is about the same age as urs and it's nowhere in comparison. my test corals are confusing me, because some are good and others aren't doing as well.
Just randoms from petco. Lol. They have ate some fish and sting my other corals. If I could get them out I would move them to a species only aquarium. They are pretty though TY
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