60 Gallon Cube Using 90/10 Method

[NeriticZone]

Background

I am getting back in the hobby after a few year break. We remodeled the house and needed to move out into a rental, so I tore down the tank and sold everything off. I have had a 34 gallon and a 105 gallon tank in the past with mainly LPS/Softies, but I done some interesting things, including sea horses and dwarf cuttlefish. I have about 10 years of reefing experience.

90/10 Method

I was intrigued by Ryan's 90/10 Method. I like the idea of a more direct route to success. My longer term plan is a larger 150 gallon system for the living room, but I set up this 60 gallon cube in my office. I also built an app to help me organize my 90/10 plan using Claude Code. It is currently hosted on NeriticZone.com and has a couple of beta testers. I have not decided whether to make it more widely available, but one of the biggest challenges I had with the 90/10 Method was compiling the "recipe" from the videos on SeriousReefs.com. I felt having an app with checklists and timings planned out was easier to follow.

Ryan talks about panning for the animals, so I started there. Animal Plan (Captive Bred if possible, all quarantined, in this order):

• Clown pair (Gladiator)
• Watchman goby + pistol shrimp
• Tailspot blenny
• 3 pajama cardinals — all at once
• 3 standard firefish — all at once, mesh lid installed first
• 1 royal gramma
• 2 clown gobies
• 2 neon gobies — gated on stability
• Bubble Tip Anemone

= already in the tank

Equipment

I got a cheap 60 gallon Aqueon 60 Cube, drilled it for a eShopps Prodigy L Overflow with a bean animal, and put it on an Alufab 24x24x36" stand. I got a cheap used FijiCube 20 sump. The sump is an "audible." I prefer the filtration flexibility for the long-term, and I am experienced plumbing the PVC. The light is a Gliessman Verve Pro Gen 4 160W light.

I 3D printed a lot of the components, so I will update this thread with those in a bit, as well as some of the other equipment I have added in a bit.

 

[Tahoe61]

Looks amazing. Nice choice on the lighting fixture.

 

[Fish Fan]

Nice looking aluminum stand!

Good luck with your build!

 

[NeriticZone]

Here is my 90/10 plan for this tank:

Tank Type	Hang-on-back (HOB) filter or all-in-one (AIO) — skip the sump	AUDIBLE — 20 gallon FijiCube Sump — I am comfortable with plumbing, and I like the long-term flexibility for filtration.
Tank Size	35–70 gallons	60 Gallon Cube
Source Water	RO/DI only — never tap or spring water	75 GPD Bulk Reef Supply RO/DI Unit
Salt	One quality reef salt, used consistently	Nyos Reef Saltz
Substrate	80–90% traditional live sand with 10–20% ultra-live ocean sand on top	40 lbs of Ocean Direct and 20 lbs of TBS Live Sand
Rock	Dry rock, built as smaller separate structures off the back glass	Macro Reef Saver Dry Rock
Cycle	The 90/10 biome cycle — live sand + saltwater Day 0, ultra-live sand Day 1, lights off ~1 week, first fish Day 14 only if ammonia reads 0	Performed Full Biome cycle and ramped up lights
Flow	A pump capable of alternating/flushing flow, ~20 minutes each direction	2 Vertically Mounted Gyre Pumps, alternating
Lighting	~1 watt/gallon of quality reef LED, ramped over the cycle	Giesemann Verve Pro 160W fixture ramped up from 0.5 to 1.0 watts per gallon
Chemistry	Manual two-part calcium + alkalinity dosing to start; Alk 9 dKH ±1, Ca 430 ppm ±20, Mg 1350 ppm ±50	Two part dosing
Evaporation	An auto top-off (ATO) from Day 1	Tunze Osmolator 3 with 5 gallon reservoir from day 1
Testing	Nitrate, phosphate, alkalinity, calcium and magnesium kits plus a refractometer — weekly, magnesium monthly	Weekly Testing with Hanna Checkers
Stocking	Slow and purposeful — clownfish ~Day 14, cleanup crew Day 28 once there's algae to eat, utilitarian fish one per week weeks 5–7, LPS/soft corals after the Week 8 window	Go slow stocking plan

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Category​

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90/10 Recommendation​

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My Choice​

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13 of 13 decisions recorded, 1 audible. Following the Serious Reefs 90/10 Method.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Following along!