240 Gallon Mixed Reef!

djstud · Apr 18, 2021

I was originally planning on setting up a 150 Tall for this build. I owned one with a stand that I had set up to freshwater in my fishroom downstairs. Found some help to move the tank to my upstairs living room. Placed the sand in the bottom and started filling the tank with RODI from my basement. This is when things took a turn for the worst. It started to leak out of the bottom back seam. Not sure what happened to cause this but we obviously did something wrong. I had already purchased most of the equipment for this build. It was time to come up with a new plan.

I had a 75 gallon aquarium that I was not using. It is the same length as the 150 Tall so it would fit on the stand that I owned. It is not as wide as the 150 so I placed some extra supports under the back of the 75 gallon tank.

The equipment that I chose for this build was based somewhat I what I already owned. I decided not to drill the tank and I was not going to use a sump. I know that is not what most people would advise me to do but this entire system will be upgraded in a few years when I retire. I am using all HOB equipment for this build.

Aquatic Life 21.6 Watt LED 48" 20K/Actinic x 4 (I already owned these)
Aquatic Life 21.6 Watt LED 48" Actinic x 2 (Already Owned)
Guismann Actinic T5 with Fixture
DIY Mesh Top
Reef Octopus Classic 100 Protein Skimmer
Eheim 300 Watt Heater
Auto Aqua Smart Temperature Security
eFlux Wave Pump Kit with 3 Pumps (1050 gph each controllable)
10 Gallon ATO Reservoir (Owned)
Ice Cap ATO (Owned)
16 Switch Power Strip

I built a Control Panel Box for this.
Penn Plax Silent Air B11 x 2 (for power outage)
CPR AquaFuge2 Refugium with LED Light
SeaChem Tidal 110 HOB Filter (450 gph with surface skimmer)

This is the basic equipment that I am using so far.
Stocking list purchased. 2 Ocellaris Clownfish, Bristletooth Tang, 2 Lyretail Anthias, Orchis Dottyback, Six-Lined Wrasse, Algae Blenny. Tank cycled great and all fish were doing well.

I added the following soft corals: Devils Hand Leather, Toadstool Leather, Kenya Tree, Green Snowflake Finger Sinularia, Cabbage Leather, Snowflake Toadstool, Yellow Polyps, Ultra Green & Yellow Zoas, Grube's Gorgonian, Green Star Polyps, Rainbow Ricordea, Caribbean Umbrella Mushroom.

Things were going great until the tank came down with Marine Velvet. All fish died except the Algae Blenny (which is being medicated in QT). I am fallowing the Display Tank for 84 days. I have purchased replacement fish which are being medicated in a QT for 75 to 80 days.

Any advise or comments would be greatly appreciated.

KingTideCorals · Apr 19, 2021

djstud said:
I was originally planning on setting up a 150 Tall for this build. I owned one with a stand that I had set up to freshwater in my fishroom downstairs. Found some help to move the tank to my upstairs living room. Placed the sand in the bottom and started filling the tank with RODI from my basement. This is when things took a turn for the worst. It started to leak out of the bottom back seam. Not sure what happened to cause this but we obviously did something wrong. I had already purchased most of the equipment for this build. It was time to come up with a new plan.

I had a 75 gallon aquarium that I was not using. It is the same length as the 150 Tall so it would fit on the stand that I owned. It is not as wide as the 150 so I placed some extra supports under the back of the 75 gallon tank.

The equipment that I chose for this build was based somewhat I what I already owned. I decided not to drill the tank and I was not going to use a sump. I know that is not what most people would advise me to do but this entire system will be upgraded in a few years when I retire. I am using all HOB equipment for this build.

Aquatic Life 21.6 Watt LED 48" 20K/Actinic x 4 (I already owned these)
Aquatic Life 21.6 Watt LED 48" Actinic x 2 (Already Owned)
Guismann Actinic T5 with Fixture
DIY Mesh Top
Reef Octopus Classic 100 Protein Skimmer
Eheim 300 Watt Heater
Auto Aqua Smart Temperature Security
eFlux Wave Pump Kit with 3 Pumps (1050 gph each controllable)
10 Gallon ATO Reservoir (Owned)
Ice Cap ATO (Owned)
16 Switch Power Strip
I built a Control Panel Box for this.
Penn Plax Silent Air B11 x 2 (for power outage)
CPR AquaFuge2 Refugium with LED Light
SeaChem Tidal 110 HOB Filter (450 gph with surface skimmer)

This is the basic equipment that I am using so far.
Stocking list purchased. 2 Ocellaris Clownfish, Bristletooth Tang, 2 Lyretail Anthias, Orchis Dottyback, Six-Lined Wrasse, Algae Blenny. Tank cycled great and all fish were doing well.

I added the following soft corals: Devils Hand Leather, Toadstool Leather, Kenya Tree, Green Snowflake Finger Sinularia, Cabbage Leather, Snowflake Toadstool, Yellow Polyps, Ultra Green & Yellow Zoas, Grube's Gorgonian, Green Star Polyps, Rainbow Ricordea, Caribbean Umbrella Mushroom.

Things were going great until the tank came down with Marine Velvet. All fish died except the Algae Blenny (which is being medicated in QT). I am fallowing the Display Tank for 84 days. I have purchased replacement fish which are being medicated in a QT for 75 to 80 days.

Any advise or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Huge soft coral fan here so really excited for this build thread to develop! Sorry to hear about the run in with velvet thats a total bummer...

The tank will bounce back after the fallow period I know it! I love your coral list, will look really nice when it gets grown in over time!

count krunk · Apr 19, 2021

Do you know what you plan on upgrading too? The 75 g is such a nice footprint. It will make an excellent softie tank

djstud · Apr 19, 2021

count krunk said:
Do you know what you plan on upgrading too? The 75 g is such a nice footprint. It will make an excellent softie tank

I would like to upgrade to a few more gallons. If I go with a standard 125 Gallon Tank I would be able to use all of the same equipment, except that I would need to purchase a 2nd Seachem Tidal110, a new stand, and I would go with all new lighting. I have also been looking at the Innovative Marine SR120 AIO tank. This would be real nice but the cost is pretty high and I would need new lighting. I have considered going with an acrylic 120 Gallon Tank since it would fit perfectly on my existing stand (48" Long x 24" Wide). I will probably upgrade my lighting no matter which option I go with. My son says that we need to reseal the 150 Tall and use it. If I did this, I would not have to upgrade much except for new lighting and more circulation pumps. Any Advise?

count krunk · Apr 19, 2021

With the upgrade, I definitely recommend adding a sump. It just makes life easier and the tank looks better

djstud · Apr 21, 2021

count krunk said:
With the upgrade, I definitely recommend adding a sump. It just makes life easier and the tank looks better

I have definitely considered a sump when I upgrade. I have some time to go over all of the options as it will be a while before I switch things out. Thanks for the advise.

djstud · Apr 23, 2021

I thought that I would take the time to show everyone my corals. This is a softie tank that was set up on December 2nd, 2020. The tank is not mature yet and the corals are pretty small. I am getting real good growth on most of them.

Snowflake Toadstool Coral added on April 1st, 2021. This one has not grown much but the polyps are extended. I have tried various places in the tank. I am now trying it low.

Green Star Polyps. I know that most people say not to get them as they can spread quickly. I have isolated it on a rock. It does add great color. This was added April 3rd, 2021.

Yellow Polyps. I am hoping that as they mature they will show more yellow coloration. I may have to move these as it always looks like they are getting too much current. They were added on April 1st, 2021.

Kenya Tree Coral. I added this one on January 18th, 2021. It was approximately 1.5" tall when I purchased it. It is now a good 4" to 5". It is beginning to show more green coloration in the center.

Ultra Orange and Green Zoanthids. I purchased 10 polyps and definitely have more than that now. I really like these and will definitely be adding others for a Zoa Garden. I added these on April 1st, 2021.

Grube's Gorgonian. This is a photosynthetic gorgonian that was added on April 1st, 2021. The 2 small "stems" at the bottom are new. I think that this will be impressive when it gets larger.

I am a little confused on this one. I purchased it from Liveaquaria. They have it listed as a Green Glove Polyp. Other sites call theirs, that look similar, a Green Clove Polyp. Which is it? It is not doing as well as I would like. Not sure why. It currently has medium light and medium water flow. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Toadstool Mushroom Leather Coral. When I added this on January 18th, 2021 is was approximately 1" tall. It has thickened up a lot and is 2" to 3" tall. This should be impressive when it is mature.

Green Snowflake Finger Sinularia. I really like this one and it has great polyp extension. I added this on April 1st, 2021.

Devil's Hand Leather Coral. This one was added on January 18th, 2021. It's polys are out 2 out of 3 days. Unfortunately they were not extended when the photo was taken. It grows real slow. It is only slightly bigger than when I bought it.

Cabbage Leather Coral. This is definitely one of my favorites. I have always liked the Cabbage Leathers. The white dot in the middle is a piece of substrate sand. I removed it once I saw the photo. I added this on April 1st, 2021.

Caribbean Umbrella Mushroom. This is not a very good photo. The current is causing it to fold. I moved this one to a new location. It has opened up and it quite large for being added on April 3rd, 2021.

Rainbow Ricordea Florida Mushroom. The colors on this one are amazing. It is quite small but seems to be doing well. I would like to try some others as well as some yumas. I added this on April 3rd, 2021.

Those are my corals so far. I will be adding more but it definitely take restraint. I had forgotten how addictive purchasing coral can be. This is, and always has been, a great hobby. Thanks! djstud

count krunk · Apr 23, 2021

Very nice pieces! A photosynthetic gorg is on my must have list as well.

I love gsp, I have a little frag now as well. The plan is to get it growing on the back wall.

And it's green clove polyp.

djstud · Apr 23, 2021

I am tempted to buy another type of gorgonian. When the get big they will be impressive. Thanks for the tip on the Green Clove Polyp.

djstud · Apr 23, 2021

I have been using lights that I already owned for this build. I am using:
4 - 48" 10K/460nm Blue LED's
2 - 48" 460nm Blue LED's
I was not real happy with the way things looked. It was too white in my opinion. So I ordered a Sun Blaze T5 Fixture off of Amazon along with a Giesemann Actinic Blue bulb. The fixture ran me $36.00.

I like the looks a lot more with the T5. It has more blue and a little bit of shimmer. When I had my 125 gallon soft coral tank I ran it with a 400 Watt Metal Halide. The shimmer was absolutely amazing. The coral growth was through the roof. I lost all of that in my house fire in 2012. I have ordered a second T5 Fixture and a second Giesemann bulb. If I was to switch out the 6 Actinic Life fixtures I would like to go with Kessil A360X Tuna Blue fixtures. I have heard a lot of good things including good coral growth, good color, and excellent shimmer. Would I need 2 fixtures on my standard 75 gallon tank? All I plan to put in this tank are soft corals. Although there are some LPS that are tempting.

I built my own light hood that is only there to cover the light glare when viewing the tank. It covers the front and is easy to remove for tank maintenance. I painted the inside white to reflect light.

Is there another light that I should be looking at for soft corals other than Kessil?

ApoIsland · Apr 23, 2021

djstud said:
I would like to upgrade to a few more gallons. If I go with a standard 125 Gallon Tank I would be able to use all of the same equipment, except that I would need to purchase a 2nd Seachem Tidal110, a new stand, and I would go with all new lighting. I have also been looking at the Innovative Marine SR120 AIO tank. This would be real nice but the cost is pretty high and I would need new lighting. I have considered going with an acrylic 120 Gallon Tank since it would fit perfectly on my existing stand (48" Long x 24" Wide). I will probably upgrade my lighting no matter which option I go with. My son says that we need to reseal the 150 Tall and use it. If I did this, I would not have to upgrade much except for new lighting and more circulation pumps. Any Advise?

I used to have a standard 6' 125 but switched after a few years to the 4x2x2 120g.
It doesn't seem like a lot but that extra depth really makes them look nicer. Not to mention that 2 feet extra room on the sides. Go with the 120!

djstud · Apr 23, 2021

ApoIsland said:
I used to have a standard 6' 125 but switched after a few years to the 4x2x2 120g.
It doesn't seem like a lot but that extra depth really makes them look nicer. Not to mention that 2 feet extra room on the sides. Go with the 120!

That does make sense. I have a 240 gallon freshwater system 96 x 24 x 24 downstairs that I did a build thread on. Those 24 in sides are so much better than the standard 125 width. Thanks!

taulgrl · May 2, 2021

djstud said:
I thought that I would take the time to show everyone my corals. This is a softie tank that was set up on December 2nd, 2020. The tank is not mature yet and the corals are pretty small. I am getting real good growth on most of them.

Snowflake Toadstool Coral added on April 1st, 2021. This one has not grown much but the polyps are extended. I have tried various places in the tank. I am now trying it low.

Green Star Polyps. I know that most people say not to get them as they can spread quickly. I have isolated it on a rock. It does add great color. This was added April 3rd, 2021.
Yellow Polyps. I am hoping that as they mature they will show more yellow coloration. I may have to move these as it always looks like they are getting too much current. They were added on April 1st, 2021.

Kenya Tree Coral. I added this one on January 18th, 2021. It was approximately 1.5" tall when I purchased it. It is now a good 4" to 5". It is beginning to show more green coloration in the center.

Ultra Orange and Green Zoanthids. I purchased 10 polyps and definitely have more than that now. I really like these and will definitely be adding others for a Zoa Garden. I added these on April 1st, 2021.

Grube's Gorgonian. This is a photosynthetic gorgonian that was added on April 1st, 2021. The 2 small "stems" at the bottom are new. I think that this will be impressive when it gets larger.

I am a little confused on this one. I purchased it from Liveaquaria. They have it listed as a Green Glove Polyp. Other sites call theirs, that look similar, a Green Clove Polyp. Which is it? It is not doing as well as I would like. Not sure why. It currently has medium light and medium water flow. Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

Toadstool Mushroom Leather Coral. When I added this on January 18th, 2021 is was approximately 1" tall. It has thickened up a lot and is 2" to 3" tall. This should be impressive when it is mature.

Green Snowflake Finger Sinularia. I really like this one and it has great polyp extension. I added this on April 1st, 2021.

Devil's Hand Leather Coral. This one was added on January 18th, 2021. It's polys are out 2 out of 3 days. Unfortunately they were not extended when the photo was taken. It grows real slow. It is only slightly bigger than when I bought it.

Cabbage Leather Coral. This is definitely one of my favorites. I have always liked the Cabbage Leathers. The white dot in the middle is a piece of substrate sand. I removed it once I saw the photo. I added this on April 1st, 2021.

Caribbean Umbrella Mushroom. This is not a very good photo. The current is causing it to fold. I moved this one to a new location. It has opened up and it quite large for being added on April 3rd, 2021.

Rainbow Ricordea Florida Mushroom. The colors on this one are amazing. It is quite small but seems to be doing well. I would like to try some others as well as some yumas. I added this on April 3rd, 2021.

Those are my corals so far. I will be adding more but it definitely take restraint. I had forgotten how addictive purchasing coral can be. This is, and always has been, a great hobby. Thanks! djstud

Beautiful tank and corals. I’m just getting started and plan to introduce softies. Looking forward to watching your build

Cacopepo · May 2, 2021

I have a colony of those yellow polyps, I always gotta throw them away. they grow like weed. But they always stay as the dull yellow color.

djstud · May 2, 2021

taulgrl said:
Beautiful tank and corals. I’m just getting started and plan to introduce softies. Looking forward to watching your build

Interested in which softies you add.

djstud · May 2, 2021

Cacopepo said:
I have a colony of those yellow polyps, I always gotta throw them away. they grow like weed. But they always stay as the dull yellow color.

I may regret getting them someday. I was really hoping they would be a brighter yellow.

Ferrell · May 3, 2021

Love your selection of softies, I would like to add a sinularia and devils hand to mine. And that toadstool will be magnificent

djstud · Jan 22, 2022

It has been a while since I have updated where I am at on the project. I will try to get this thread up to date.
On May 21st, 2021 I added 17 lbs. of Premium Deco Live Rock from Gulf Live Rock. I am really glad that I did this. I had instant copepods and coraline algae. I had tried both from Algae Barn with very few results. This basically gave this tank instant life.
On September 21st I purchased a 75 gallon soft coral system from a friend of mine. She had been in the hobby for approximately 10 years. I also bought all of her gear and supplies.

I set the 75 gallon soft coral aquarium up in my shop. Some of the corals in here have been around for quite a few years. This was a really good purchase.

This is not a very good photo as it does not do it justice but it gives you an idea of what I purchased. I now had a whole new plan and a reason to move forward sooner than I had originally planned. I am going to repair my 150 Gallon Tall Glass Aquarium in order to combine my two 75 gallon soft coral systems. This will give me a really nice Display Aquarium in my livingroom. The shop system has a Tomato Clown, Smiths Damselfish, Yellowtail Damsel, Sea Urchins, Starfish, Crabs, Snails, Corals, and Macro Algae.

On December 3rd, 2021 I purchased a Lifeguard Aquatics Aqua Step Pro UV Sterilizer and a Lifeguard Aquatics Quiet One Pump for my Tank Upgrade. I bought this one because it can be used as a HOB UV. I am not going with a sump on this system. I purchased my first saltwater aquarium in 1984. I have had numerous systems with and without sumps. I completely understand the benefits and drawbacks of each.

On December 20, 2021 I repaired my 150 Tall aquarium. I used a high grade aquarium silicone for this task. I waited 1 week to let the silicone dry. I then added 6 inches of water and a circulation pump and waited another week. I then filled the aquarium to half full and waited 2 to 3 week. I have repaired this aquarium successfully as I have absolutely no leaks.

On January 2nd, 2022 I compiled a list of everything that I will need to complete this upgrade. I owned 98% of what was needed. I did purchase a DIY Screen Top from Bulk Reef Supply and some CaribSea Life Rock from SaltwaterAquarium. I am going to need the additional Life Rock in order to get the height that I will want in an aquarium that is 30 inches tall.

On January 16th I started the process to combine my two 75 Gallon Soft Coral Tanks into a 150 Tall. I placed corals, Rock, Fish, etc. in holding tanks in my livingroom.

My control panel on the end of the stand came out real good. I have a few more cords to organize before it is complete. I am also going to make a false front to place over it when I do not need access.

I think that it came out great. As always my photos do not do it justice. I need to purchase some filters for my camera. I really like the height on this system even though it is difficult to work on the bottom of the aquarium. I believe that I will paint the bottom trim black as that will look a lot better than the brown that it is now.

Any Comments or Queations!

djstud · Feb 22, 2022

It has been a while since I have done an update. My 150 Tall reef tanks is looking great. It is currently housing quite a few soft corals but I have added a few LPS and SPS frags. I purchased 14 frags on the ReefTide live sale here on Reef2Reef. They are mainly LPS and SPS with some Mushrooms mixed in. I will do an update when they arrive. We delayed shipping as the high temperature today was 1 degree F.