4.1g Lifegard build

[DDenny]

Let me know if you find something. Looking to getting one as well.

Will do going to wait and see what my tank gets up to with ambient temps in the house at 76-77 might not need a fan but we will see. I have a small 6" clip on fan that i used on my biocube when I had that going that would get the temps down 2-3 degrees but evaporation was a PITA to say the least and I didn't have an ATO in 2005. Researching ATO's looking at the reefbreeder Prism right now.

 

[DDenny]

Playing around with the stax rock just figuring ideas. Should be able to get the tank filled and cycling tomorrow afternoon I hope if not by Sunday morning for sure. Will be working with it until I get it figured out the way I like it. Then I will be using JB water Weld to hold it all together

 

[Bahura-Living]

Playing around with the stax rock just figuring ideas. Should be able to get the tank filled and cycling tomorrow afternoon I hope if not by Sunday morning for sure. Will be working with it until I get it figured out the way I like it. Then I will be using JB water Weld to hold it all together

that is a very nice rockscape. cant wait for your tank to be filled and get the cycling process to start.

 

[DDenny]

Same here got the stand today so got what I could set up then the boss lady said we needed to run errands. Might change out the rigid light bracket for the 18” gooseneck we will see.

 

[DDenny]

got sand and rock in salt mixing up right now will have water in it tomorrow morning. Still have to run and get some bio-spira to add and find some ammonia to dose it a couple of times. Not in any hurry won’t be able to get any coral until April have a business trip first week of April and don’t want the boss lady to have to worry about that.

 

[Bahura-Living]

Same here got the stand today so got what I could set up then the boss lady said we needed to run errands. Might change out the rigid light bracket for the 18” gooseneck w

got sand and rock in salt mixing up right now will have water in it tomorrow morning. Still have to run and get some bio-spira to add and find some ammonia to dose it a couple of times. Not in any hurry won’t be able to get any coral until April have a business trip first week of April and don’t want the boss lady to have to worry about that.

What brand of salt you using? Im currently using saltwater from my lfs but considering getting red sea salt.

 

[DDenny]

I have always used IO regular. If it’s good for Jason Fox then it’s good enough for me. Just al depends on what you are keeping and the parameters you want to meet. Mine will be a zoanthid dominated tank maybe a micromussa or Rock Flower or two and that is it.

 

[DDenny]

Had to take a quick picture with the lights on. tossed in a raw shrimp yesterday will let it go for 3 days then get some bio-spira to put some nitrifying bacteria in to kick start the cycle. Changed up the scape as well. Also ordered the Hydor Pico 260 return pump as the quiet one pump started off quiet but this morning it was rattling a little. Still not that bad but noticeable. Shrimp has been in nearly 24 hours and water is a little cloudy to be expected from what I have read.

 

[ShaneWedge]

Tank and light came in finally and it wasn’t cracked. Have the special grade on hand salt for mixing. Waiting on the star to get her and bacteria for seeding the tank. Once I get back from work travel next Thursday I hope to get it set up and cycling.

you will love this light. I just put one on my Biocube and it looks amazing.

 

[DDenny]

you will love this light. I just put one on my Biocube and it looks amazing.

With all the adjustability I am amazed so far. If I get ambitious later on ( a long way off) and want to add some SPS I know I have the light to do that.

 

[DDenny]

Got home this afternoon and the tank was cloudy. Tested ammonia at it was off the chart. I am just using the API ammonia test (yes I know not the best but for cycling it woks just fine). Added 1/3 bottle of Bio-Spira will test ammonia tomorrow and see what is happening daily. Not worried about testing nitrites or nitrates at this point as I am not in any rush want to make sure parameters are in check before adding corals.

 

[DDenny]

Was going to wait until this afternoon to test again but I thought why not. Yesterday the reading was off the charts above 8.0 this morning roughly 12 hours later it’s at 4.0 maybe a little higher.

current tank parameters this morning
Temp: 77.4-77.8
Ammonia: 4.0
Salinity: 35ppt

Will start testing nitrites and nitrates this weekend not in any rush to add corals have two work trips in the next month. Next purchase and ATO. Either the Prism or the Duetto still researching which one. Hope to have it here and setup before to long.

 

[DDenny]

Tested the water again this evening just cause I was a little curious and it was down to 2ppm ammonia. Also tested another thing. The tubes are supposed to be 5ml of water so I brought home an accurate syringe like I use for give meds to animals and the line is not 5ml more like 4.5ml. So I wonder if some of the accuracy issues are due to not being truly 5ml in the tube. Oh well will have Salifert test when it counts.

 

[DDenny]

Picking up some Nitrite and Nitrate tests today. Didn't have time last night to test ammonia but this morning it was between 0 and 0.25. Water is clearing back up nicely but still slightly cloudy. Time to get that ATO manual topoffs are a pain and I will be out for 4 days in two weeks.

 

[DDenny]

Got two new toys in today a custom media basket made by a member in another forum and the Hydor Pico 260. With the Hydor basically almost tripled the flow and the overflow is handling it just fine. Here are a couple of pics cause we all like the pics. I have got to figure out a better aquascape though.

Ammonia is at 0
Nitrates at 50
Going to do a 2 gallon water change tomorrow and see if I can find a Nitrite test LFS didn't have one.

 

[Bahura-Living]

Looking great. Can you lead me on his direction? I also do like that media basket

 

[DDenny]

One more necessary toy Inkbird ITC 308S. Need the cooling side in Deep South Texas summers. Now time to make sure the temp probe is reading correctly and get it installed. Have about a month before it starts to get really hot down here. Next purchase is an ATO.

 

[DDenny]

Ugh 75% water change and Nitrates are down but only to 25. Guess I will do another water change latter in the week to remove them as I don't have anything to export the nitrates out other than water changes. Will give it a few days and test again Tuesday morning. It's only the end of 1st week of the cycle so not worried.

 

[Bahura-Living]

Ugh 75% water change and Nitrates are down but only to 25. Guess I will do another water change latter in the week to remove them as I don't have anything to export the nitrates out other than water changes. Will give it a few days and test again Tuesday morning. It's only the end of 1st week of the cycle so not worried.

What do you use to test nitrates? Im using API bu they say its not that accurate. So I purchased salifert and its kinda hard to read. I want to buy hannah but they only have low nitrate reading(i think)

 

[Daniel92481]

Salifert is a good choice for nitrates. @DDenny 25ppm is not too high, but could be lower. I would try to keep it around 5-10. Not a big deal though if it moves out of that range. When the time comes, just monitor your corals appearance. Softies and LPS tend to like a little higher/nutrient rich water.