90G Shallow Reef Build

[Preyou]

Picked up a used tank from a local this week. The dimensions are 48"W x 24"D x 18" H. The three front panels are Starfire glass.

Currently it is plumbed with a corner overflow, but I will be installing a ReefSaavy Ghost overflow in place of the corner overflow. Planning for a single 3/4" return.

The sump is a custom acrylic sump by Rob Davis at Luna Reef Customs.

This system will be replacing my current 135G cube, so the bulk of my equipment will be recycled from that system.

Pictures to follow very soon.

 

[SPR1968]

We need the pictures!

 

[Bj’s Reef]

Yes we need pictures. Especially pictures of the sump. I’m thinking of getting one of there sumps for a up coming build.

 

[Preyou]

Here are pictures of the display before I drained it and moved it to my house. Funny, the clowns that are in this picture were so big that it made the display seem small. So to give it some scope, the yellow tang in this picture is almost 5" long. They have been rehomed into a friend's display as I already had a mated pair of clowns in my main display.

The lighting that is pictured will not be adequate for my severe SPS habit, so they will be retired in favor of my Philips CoralCare Gen2 fixtures that currently hang over my 135g Cube.

The sump is really nice, and has plenty of room for my existing equipment. There is a single 7" filter sock that I will attempt to use, but I would like to move to a roller mat system in the near future.

I was considering modifying the tank and installing a ghost overflow in the back, but I couldn't bring myself to drill this display, so that modification will have to wait for my next tank upgrade.

Now, I am trying to figure out the best way to swap the new display in for the old without disturbing things too much. I have a Deep Blue 60g frag tank that I can use as a temporary home for my livestock, but where to put it and set it up seems to be the issue. I hate to put it onto carpet, but that may be my only option at this point.

 

[Preyou]

New display still in the works, but it has stalled a bit. Need to motivation and some new Orphek lights may be just what the doctor ordered.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Any update pictures on your tank?

 

[Preyou]

Okay.... time to get this thing up and running FINALLY. After sitting on this display for two years, it's finally time to get this project rolling. Since this is replacing my existing display tank (the 135 cube), I need to get the livestock temporarily rehomed to support the teardown of the old display.

The old display is suffering from a severe case of old tank syndrome; and while coral is still growing in that display, I know it is teetering on the edge of failure every time I disturb the sand. Last time I accidentally stirred up the substrate, all of my montipora immediately bleached white and died. My acanthastrea echinata and my pectinia almost died off as well. None of my acropora showed any signs of stress. Weird huh?

Regardless of the past issues, it's time for a new start. I have a Deep Blue frag tank that is almost ready for water. I am wrapping up the plumbing this week. It is a 45G display with a 20g sump. As a result of being a long time hobbyist, I fortunately have all of the equipment in hand to make this happen. The 45G will be lit with two AI Hydra 26HD fixtures and I have a pair for Kamoer dosing pumps to handle dripping two part until the new display is back online with the CaRX.

Once I have the frag online, all of the coral from the 135 will need to be moved to the 45G. Hopefully this goes down without any drama. We have a large acro colony that may need to be split to fit the tank, but we will see. I will try to start updating the thread now as I move forward with this project. It's going to be a lot of work, but it should be fun.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Okay.... time to get this thing up and running FINALLY. After sitting on this display for two years, it's finally time to get this project rolling. Since this is replacing my existing display tank (the 135 cube), I need to get the livestock temporarily rehomed to support the teardown of the old display.

The old display is suffering from a severe case of old tank syndrome; and while coral is still growing in that display, I know it is teetering on the edge of failure every time I disturb the sand. Last time I accidentally stirred up the substrate, all of my montipora immediately bleached white and died. My acanthastrea echinata and my pectinia almost died off as well. None of my acropora showed any signs of stress. Weird huh?

Regardless of the past issues, it's time for a new start. I have a Deep Blue frag tank that is almost ready for water. I am wrapping up the plumbing this week. It is a 45G display with a 20g sump. As a result of being a long time hobbyist, I fortunately have all of the equipment in hand to make this happen. The 45G will be lit with two AI Hydra 26HD fixtures and I have a pair for Kamoer dosing pumps to handle dripping two part until the new display is back online with the CaRX.

Once I have the frag online, all of the coral from the 135 will need to be moved to the 45G. Hopefully this goes down without any drama. We have a large acro colony that may need to be split to fit the tank, but we will see. I will try to start updating the thread now as I move forward with this project. It's going to be a lot of work, but it should be fun.

Oooo can't wait to see what the 45 is going to look like!

 

[Preyou]

Alright.... here we go. Finished plumbing the 45 and put water in it today to make sure its all watertight. Looks good so far (fingers-crossed). Pump is running with a tank full of RO as a break-in. Going to keep it running for a few more days before I get too excited.

 

[Preyou]

Frag tank is ready to roll. Going to start putting corals in this week and getting things moved out of the old display. I miss doing this stuff. It's amazing how much more motivated I am now that I have lost some weight.

 

[Cycleguy0623]

Following along here! I’m just moving to a 80gal shallow reef myself. Can’t wait to see more.

 

[Preyou]

Everything is happening! I finished the system setup and let it run for several days. All was solid, so I added salt and got everything dialed in. I have had some rock cooking in my big tank for a couple of years and I added it to the sump of this system to kick the biome into gear. I have added a handful of frags to the display to see how things run. Let's see how they heal since they are fresh cuts out of the big display. Once I am happy with the way things are going, I will entertain moving the colonies to this display, but I am not ready for that yet. With no fish yet, I will likely need to dose some nitrate into this system. I am considering adding some mollies to this system to help with nitrate and make sure that the system gets completely cycled.

 

[Preyou]

Having trouble with finding the sweet spot for acropora right now. Lost my first batch of transfers from the big display due to bleaching. Funny though, my pectinia, pavona and one of the acros seem to be fine. Not sure why yet. Maybe the tank is still too immature.