Red Sea Reefer 300 xl

[triciann]

Hi all,

I’m new, but have a Red Sea Reefer 300 xl being delivered and set up as follows:
Real reef rock (how long does cycling with pure ammonia take with this?)
Carib Sea pink Fiji sand
Real ocean water
Red Sea skimmer 300
Sicce Syncra Silent 4.0
AI Hydra 32HD x2
AI Nero 5 x2
(Note: I have an AI 16HD on my nano so this is why I chose the light)
Colbalt neo term 200 watt (ordered this with everything from my LFS but realized I need 300 watt. Do I order a 300 watt or do a double heater setup? I’m in Southern California)

next purchases:
Neptune apex controller with auto feeder (is there a better feeder? Or controller?)
Neptune trident

goals:
My blenny is my favorite fish and pretty much everything revolves around him. I’d love to have beautiful mixed coral. My acans in my nano are thriving so I love those. I avoid GSP and anything else that grows like a weed. I also don’t want zoas or palys because I have dogs in an earthquick zone.

feedback greatly appreciated!

 

[andrewey]

Hi all,

I’m new, but have a Red Sea Reefer 300 xl being delivered and set up as follows:
Real reef rock (how long does cycling with pure ammonia take with this?)
Carib Sea pink Fiji sand
Real ocean water
Red Sea skimmer 300
Sicce Syncra Silent 4.0
AI Hydra 32HD x2
AI Nero 5 x2
(Note: I have an AI 16HD on my nano so this is why I chose the light)
Colbalt neo term 200 watt (ordered this with everything from my LFS but realized I need 300 watt. Do I order a 300 watt or do a double heater setup? I’m in Southern California)

next purchases:
Neptune apex controller with auto feeder (is there a better feeder? Or controller?)
Neptune trident

goals:
My blenny is my favorite fish and pretty much everything revolves around him. I’d love to have beautiful mixed coral. My acans in my nano are thriving so I love those. I avoid GSP and anything else that grows like a weed. I also don’t want zoas or palys because I have dogs in an earthquick zone.

feedback greatly appreciated!

Sounds like a fun setup! Equipment choices are pretty personal, but here are some notes that you might consider.

1) I personally advocate going with 2x undersized heaters vs. 1 larger heater. Above all else, treat any heater(s) you buy as disposable items and replace frequently. Since you will be purchasing your apex controller later, I would pick up a inkbird or ranco controller to monitor your heater. It's the most likely piece of equipment in your tank to fail and kill your livestock, so babysitting is always a good idea!
2) I'm not impressed with the apex auto feeder. I think you would likely be better served going with another feeder. The eheim is a reliable feeder and won't disappoint. If you really want to be cutting edge, Avast Marine just released an autofeeder and it looks quite promising with some features other feeders don't have. It's new, so I can't make any comments on it's function/reliability, but it's worth taking a look into as a possible option :)
3) Could you explain not wanting zoas because of your dogs? Are you referring to palytoxin or something else entirely?
4) You'll enjoy the Neros.

5) Blennies are some of my favorite fish.

 

[triciann]

Sounds like a fun setup! Equipment choices are pretty personal, but here are some notes that you might consider.

1) I personally advocate going with 2x undersized heaters vs. 1 larger heater. Above all else, treat any heater(s) you buy as disposable items and replace frequently. Since you will be purchasing your apex controller later, I would pick up a inkbird or ranco controller to monitor your heater. It's the most likely piece of equipment in your tank to fail and kill your livestock, so babysitting is always a good idea!
2) I'm not impressed with the apex auto feeder. I think you would likely be better served going with another feeder. The eheim is a reliable feeder and won't disappoint. If you really want to be cutting edge, Avast Marine just released a heater and it looks quite interesting. It's new, so I can't make any comments on it's function/reliability, but it's worth taking a look into as a possible option :)
3) Could you explain not wanting zoas because of your dogs? Are you referring to palytoxin or something else entirely?
4) You'll enjoy the Neros.

I like the size and shape of the colbalts. Since 300 watts is recommended for my tank size, what would you recommend if I broke it down to two? Regardless, I 100% agree with the sentiment that these are replaceable.

I’ll definitely look into the other feeders! Apex seems to be disliked but I didn’t see much on other recommendations. I wake up really early and would like something reliable to feed my fish.

Zoas definitely have to do with palytoxins. I know they have much less than palys, but I’d rather avoid it completely. My fear is the tank falling over during a quake. Overall I prefer slow growing so I don’t have to do too much trimming.

so glad to hear the positive news on the neros since they are new.

 

[triciann]

I actually have inkbird on my freshwater and nano salt water tank. Love the feedback! Thank you!

 

[dtrick]

I would highly recommend getting a Tunze Osmolator 3155 ATO. I really liked the idea of having the stock gravity fed ATO with the 300 XL, however it crowded my sump area once I added my skimmer. It was also difficult to fill the ATO reservoir with a bucket or my RO storage containers. I would also suggest doing all your cable management before adding the sump. Once the sump is in the cabinet with a skimmer, there is not much room to work. Please excuse the mess of wires in the pic below as clips for my cables are coming in today.

 

[triciann]

I would highly recommend getting a Tunze Osmolator 3155 ATO. I really liked the idea of having the stock gravity fed ATO with the 300 XL, however it crowded my sump area once I added my skimmer. It was also difficult to fill the ATO reservoir with a bucket or my RO storage containers. I would also suggest doing all your cable management before adding the sump. Once the sump is in the cabinet with a skimmer, there is not much room to work. Please excuse the mess of wires in the pic below as clips for my cables are coming in today.

Thank you! I’m definitely looking at ato options. How often do you refill your 5gallon? I am trying to find a matching side cabinet for my white stand so I can put a big RODI storage container in it.

 

[revhtree]

Welcome to your new home for saltwater reef aquarium resource and fun! Welcome to the family! :D

 

[dtrick]

Thank you! I’m definitely looking at ato options. How often do you refill your 5gallon? I am trying to find a matching side cabinet for my white stand so I can put a big RODI storage container in it.

I just got it up and working yesterday so I will know in a week or so how often I need to fill it. I am expecting to have to change it weekly as I probably lose a little less than a gallon a day. I do have the return pump spout and my dual IceCap 4ks pointed towards the top of the water line so there is a lot of turbulence at the water surface.

 

[triciann]

Installed and cycling!

 

[triciann]

Still waiting for my nitrites to drops, but spotted some diatoms. Never mind the messy cords (working on cleaning it upper). Installed a Tunze ATO, a 5 gallon reservoir, Apex controller, Kessil Tuna flora for the fuge, and also have an eheim auto feeder ready to go once I add my fishies.

What other piece of equipment do you think is a must? I will be adding a trident before I add in any corals.

Also working on setting up two 35gallon tanks for a RODI/salt station in my garage. I have a Danner pump arriving today for that.