29g bio cube build started 2/4/16

[trevorspencer94]

Okay so I got this tank yesterday and started this process....


1.)clean tank best I can

2.)swap and add sand/rock from the 10g nano I started a month ago and what I have around, may use some of the live rock already in it if it looks okay.

3.) put the clownfish that comes with it back in it after acclimation from its old water to my current water

4.) order snail only cuc from reefcleaners.org to go in by the end of next week and let it cycle another week after the addition of those for a total of 2 weeks after I have the tank converted.

5.) add 1 fish and a 2-3 corals every 2 weeks after that point until I have 5 fish total and at least a dozen corals in it after I have taken it over for a total of 10 weeks.

I will be dosing seachem stability every day from today onward for at least a month

Current fish list planned is as follows:

Ocellaris
Bangaii Cardinal
Purple firefish
Flasher wrasse
Green Chromis

Corals will probably be mostly softies and a couple or few lps

 

[trevorspencer94]

Okay so I got the tank cleaned and half filled with water, took the sand from my other tank, and the rock is mixed from the old rock from my other tank and the new to me live rock. Just a little of the new to me cause the pieces looked good. I'm making more water so I will add that asap, the clownfish it came with was in a 50/50 mix of good water and the stuff he came in in a 5 gal bucket with a heater for the night while the dust settles in the tank. The salinity was 1.028 in that tank when I got it. He is sitting in 1.026 right now, I will have him in the tank at 1.025 later

 

[trevorspencer94]

I got this tank used yesterday, Supposedly the lights worked when I picked it up, I don't remember testing them but the guy I got it from said they did, I can only get the 10000k lights to come on with the far right switch on the hood, the other 3 switches aren't turning on the leds and actinics. Idk what to do about this for the lights.... Maybe test ballasts and bulbs by switching the actinic to the 10000k, but idk what to do about the leds

 

[trevorspencer94]

Got the lights figured out, led's started working magically and i am replacing the actinic bulb. Also built a diy media basket today, have 3 stages of filtration (floss, sponge, then carbon) that leads to the bioballs confined in the bottom layer of the basket. I am hoping this will give me the benefit of the balls, but prevent the detritus build up that people usually change them out because of.. I divided the middle chamber in the back with this media basket so i can add chaeto and make the other half a fuge. have 2 heaters in the first (intake) chamber of the sump now. Might do a diy skimmer (bottles with air pump and wooden stone) in there as well before too long. The clownfish is swimming around happily and eating pellets like they are going out of style. 1.024 salinity now, I hope the change from 1.028 to 1.024 from yesterday to today doesnt effect him too much.

 

[trevorspencer94]

I think im gonna change the plan from a flasher wrasse to a royal gramma, all the else will stay the same i think.

 

[trevorspencer94]

Before pics....

 

[trevorspencer94]

Haven't even had it 24 hrs yet and here is where it stands now...

Pics are front, left side, right side.

Still need to go get a new scraper and finish cleaning off that back wall a little. I even took the hood apart and cleaned it all up underneath and under the splash guard. I will be adding a power head on the back wall on the right side approximately at the same location as the return pump line on the left tonight or tomorrow.

 

[trevorspencer94]

So the tank is just over a month old now, I added the 2nd fish and some frags that I got for a steal from a local reefer. He gave me 7 frags for $60. The royal gramma basslet was $15.

I got a cool color variation of a zoa, a torch, a pulsing Xenia, some gsp, some sort of brain, green hairy mushroom, and a Duncan. Acclimated them for an hour then added to the tank, will post good individual pics when they all open up all the way!

 

[trevorspencer94]

I know the title says started 2/4/16 lol, but that's when I just moved things over to the 29 from the 10g nano, the system as a whole has been up about 5 weeks, some of the rock is from a tank almost as old as me, and some from a tank that's a few months old.

 

[trevorspencer94]

Correction it's a war Favia where I said brain coral

 

[trevorspencer94]

Stumbled across a paired set of firefish today for a good deal, had to pick them up, went into QT today. Got the pair for only $21.70 after tax.

 

[KSReefing]

Awesome. Looks like you got a great deal on the corals. Are you still using the power compacts that the tank came with?

I also didn't see a powerhead/wavemaker which you will need to get in there soon with all the coral you are adding and planning to add.

 

[trevorspencer94]

Yeah I have a 528gph power head in there right now, gonna change it in the future with a controllable one probably. I'm still using the 72w of power compacts that came with the tank yeah, a 16 inch double bulb 36w 10000k and a 16 inch double bulb 36w actinic.

 

[trevorspencer94]

I figure the turnover rate is 30x safely

 

[trevorspencer94]

Here are pics of 4 of the 7 coral pieces I added.

Sorry for the iPhone 6 pics lol

 

[Chrisfish]

Welcome, your tank is looking really good. Looking forward to seeing it progress.

 

[trevorspencer94]

Thanks for the responses! I have a local that is going to give me some dragons breath and snails to add to my tank later this week. I might find some time to make that diy skimmer too. Also, @KSReefing, where abouts are you from in Kansas? I'm in Manhattan, KS.

 

[trevorspencer94]

The diatoms are real right now in the tank, getting more and more present every day, I'm told they will go away on their own, I did a 10% water change today, but snails later this week will help too I imagine.