Innovative Marine Fusion 15 AIO Cube Journey

[Retro Heat]

For the past month... I've slowly been getting the itch to start a reef tank. I've had multiple reef tanks in the past but none in the last 10 years or so. About 2 weeks ago, a close cousin told me that he bought a new fish tank and that motivated me to scratch that itch. I ended up buying a 14-gallon Aqueon rimless cube at Petco during their last sale. I then bought 20 pounds of live sand and 40 pounds of base rock. I have various odds and ends from my past reefing journeys like powerheads, a refractometer, and the like. Still need to pick up an RO-DI unit and some salt so I can start my cycle. But before even that... I had to build my stand. So, this is where my journey starts. I built it out of some leftover 1/2 baltic birch plywood and I built it to the exact dimensions of the Aqueon. I still need to build some kind of door as well as (maybe) a pullout drawer. But, the carcass is built so I decided to start finishing it. I left the inside raw birch and the outside is stained in espresso. I'm going to put about 5 coats of poly once the stain dries.

I still haven't decided on the lighting that I will use or if I will use a protein skimmer or not. I'm leaning towards the noopsyche k7 mini. And, if I do get a skimmer... it will probably be the tunze 9001 or 9004. Also, I intend on keeping a pair of clowns (my favorite fish by far) and some softies like zoas, ricordea, and long polyp toadstools.

 

[Peace River]

Looks good so far and sounds like a good plan! Good luck on the new adventure!!!

 

[Retro Heat]

Looks good so far and sounds like a good plan! Good luck on the new adventure!!!

Thanks, @Peace River The stand is all done. Tested it at 300 pounds and it was stable as a rock. Now I'm working on my aquascape and trying to get that right before I add the sand and salt water to start my cycle.

 

[Retro Heat]

So I was leak testing my Aqueon and at the same time looking for a HOB filter (decided on the Tidal 35) and realized that I would have about $100 invested into this setup. Then I came across the Innovative Marine Fusion 15 AIO Cube that's on pre-sale for about the same price. Needless to say... I decided that it didn't make any sense for me to continue going down this route. I ended up returning the Aqueon to Petsmart and I pre-ordered the IM Fusion 15 AIO. So, I guess I'll be waiting 2 months for my new tank to be delivered. In the meantime, I'll finish up the aquascaping to make sure that it fits in the display portion of the new tank. Then I'll pre-cycle it in a bucket in the garage for a few months to get a jumpstart on my cycle.

Luckily, it looks like the new tank is the same (maybe a fraction of an inch smaller) than the Aqueon tank so I'll still be able to use the same stand that I built. And, I'll have some extra time to build a shelf and door while my rock is cycling. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

The stand is finally complete. Wanted to make a different style door but was limited by the remaining wood that I had. I didn't want to have to buy another sheet of baltic birch plywood just to make a door out of it. That's even assuming that I can find someone who has it in stock. All in all, I think it turned out kinda nice. Especially since I only have about $10 invested into it. Now I just gotta wait for my tank to ship. =)

 

[feresadas]

just bought the same tank, building my first reef tank with it! I am in the same process of starting my aquascape and getting it pre-cycling! once I get my rock shipped I will start a build post as well. following this as it seems your a bit ahead of me in the process to learn from what you do

 

[Retro Heat]

just bought the same tank, building my first reef tank with it! I am in the same process of starting my aquascape and getting it pre-cycling! once I get my rock shipped I will start a build post as well. following this as it seems your a bit ahead of me in the process to learn from what you do

congrats @feresadas I already finished up my aquascape and have the rocks in a 5-gallon bucket with some Dr. Tims and a powerhead. Also, just purchased a Mightyjet 326 to upgrade the return pump. I'm not too sure if this will be overkill. But, I plan to use a Hydor Flo on the return (just because I have a brand new one) to create some variation in the flow pattern so I'm pretty sure it will kill some of the flow rate.

Now, I'm thinking about what light, heater, and ato I will be buying. I'm leaning towards the Noopsyche K7 Mini, the new 30w IM Helio, and probably a Duetto. I'm pretty sure that this setup will last me a while without having to upgrade anything anytime soon.

 

[Retro Heat]

So, ended up buying the Noopsyche K7 Mini, Duetto ATO, APC 650 Battery Backup, and an Eheim Jager for now. Plan on ordering the 30w IM Helio shortly and will use the Eheim as a salt-mixing heater/backup. And, the rock has been cycling in a 5-gallon bucket with some Dr. Tims for about 10 days now. Hopefully, I have less than a 3-week wait until the tank ships. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

So it looks like I got my first inhabitants for my tank... Even though I don't have my tank yet.

Lemme explain. I was on offer up and a person was selling their 15 gallon saltwater setup for $150. I was immediately drawn to the clowns because I want a pair of frostbite clowns for my tank. Well, I asked and he went down to $120 for the complete setup. At that price... I couldn't pass it up. I got a pair of frostbite clowns (been together over a year), a fluvial flex 15, a bunch of odds and ends like python gravel vac, a bag of io salt, coral dip, 4 different kinds of fish food, air pump, microbacter 7, ect. All in all... The odds and ends are worth about $200 by themselves. I even got a small rock of green zoa's. Only problem is that it also included a 2.5 inch hippo tang which I have to re-home since I feel bad that's it's in such a small tank.

 

[feresadas]

So it looks like I got my first inhabitants for my tank... Even though I don't have my tank yet.

Lemme explain. I was on offer up and a person was selling their 15 gallon saltwater setup for $150. I was immediately drawn to the clowns because I want a pair of frostbite clowns for my tank. Well, I asked and he went down to $120 for the complete setup. At that price... I couldn't pass it up. I got a pair of frostbite clowns (been together over a year), a fluvial flex 15, a bunch of odds and ends like python gravel vac, a bag of io salt, coral dip, 4 different kinds of fish food, air pump, microbacter 7, ect. All in all... The odds and ends are worth about $200 by themselves. I even got a small rock of green zoa's. Only problem is that it also included a 2.5 inch hippo tang which I have to re-home since I feel bad that's it's in such a small tank.

Wow! what a haul! very joculous, glad you found it though! the fish are so pretty

 

[Retro Heat]

Wow! what a haul! very joculous, glad you found it though! the fish are so pretty

Yeah, he gave me an awesome deal. What's crazy is that the post was up for just a few hours and he already had 8 people messaging him about the setup. And, he still sold it to me at a $30 discount. Really nice guy. He said it sounded like I would really take care of them so he was good with the deal. He just needed to get rid of the tank cause he just had a baby and didn't have any extra time to take care of the tank anymore.

The best part is that after I get my tank and everything I want is xfered over... I can use the tank as an upgrade for my pink orchard Betta that's currently in a 3 gallon cube. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

Received the tank yesterday and I immediately started setting it up. Luckily, it fit perfectly on the stand I built.

 

[Retro Heat]

Rockwork installed, sandbed good to go, mightyjet flowing away, custom lid customized, K7 mini doing it's thing, and test zoa frag opened up fully. =)

 

[feresadas]

Rockwork installed, sandbed good to go, mightyjet flowing away, custom lid customized, K7 mini doing it's thing, and test zoa frag opened up fully. =)

Duuude,that looks great! I'm so hyped for you! My tank arrives the 2nd..

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Looking awesome! Following along to see your progress

 

[The Deaf Reefer]

Rockwork installed, sandbed good to go, mightyjet flowing away, custom lid customized, K7 mini doing it's thing, and test zoa frag opened up fully. =)

dang u way further along than I am lol ...and I got the tank like last week thrusday

Little tough rock scaping... I realized I didn't pick the greatest rocks to scape with lol.. first time reefer

 

[Retro Heat]

Duuude,that looks great! I'm so hyped for you! My tank arrives the 2nd..

Thanks @feresadas I can't stop looking at it. Definitely worth the 2 month wait. I'm sure you'll feel the same in a few days. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

Looking awesome! Following along to see your progress

Thanks @tuan's Reef such a great tank at a great price. =)

 

[Retro Heat]

dang u way further along than I am lol ...and I got the tank like last week thrusday

Little tough rock scaping... I realized I didn't pick the greatest rocks to scape with lol.. first time reefer

Lol, been waiting/working for 2 months now. The rocks have been cycling for about 2 months in a 5 gallon bucket with Dr Tim's and ghost feeding. Basically, everything took a back seat the second the tank was delivered. Hahaha

 

[Retro Heat]

Upgraded the filtration on the cheap. I 3d printed a filter pad hanger that I use some marineland bonded filter pad and it works perfectly. Actually, it works better than the stock filter sock since it fits flush and the sock's size makes it move away from the front. Then, I added 500g of Fluval Biomax in the 2nd chamber to buff up my biological filtration. Finally, added my Duetto ato.