95G Gorgonian and Soft Coral Cube

Patwa · Jul 27, 2018

First post in years here....might as well post a few pics of my current system...

Lots of Caribbean/Atlantic gorgonian species, with a few from the Indo/Pacific and Indian Ocean. Many other softies, and mushrooms. The only softie I can't seem to keep for any extended period of time are xenia and cespitularia - I suspect my water is too clean!

My fave coral is a Japanese neon green toadstool with lineage back to The Captive Reef. I got my frag from zeppelin who got his from TCR. I've had it 8 years and it's only grown to about 4-5" in diameter. It has a much brighter green and slower growth rate than the 'Japanese' neon green toads on the market today.

My fave fish is my marine betta...i've had him about 13+ years now. He's hand fed every few days, but eats mysis with the regular daily feedings to the other fish.

Tank is 4.5 years old, and is extremely stable....I rarely have to do anything beyond daily feeding and basic maintenance.

tdileo · Jul 27, 2018

Gorgeous. This has to be one of my favorite systems I’ve seen. Where did you get all the gorgonians from? I struggle to find them but they’re one of my favorite corals.

Chrisfish · Jul 27, 2018

Absolutely beautiful tank!! Thank you for the update

dbraun15 · Jul 27, 2018

Love the gorgs! Where'd you get most of them?

Patwa · Jul 27, 2018

Thank you for the kind comments

I truly spent a great deal of time planning this tank out well before a drop of water was poured in. That approach is likely why it's such a breeze to take care of today. The tank itself is very, very low-tech, save for an Apex JR to help control basic systems and alert me when i'm travelling.

The gorgs come from different sources: ORA, Coral Morphalogic's line of Eco-Gorgs, and being at the right place at the right time at my LFSs. Local hobbyists also know of my love for gorgs, so they've usually given me a heads up on stuff I may not have.

Dos Ocho · Jul 27, 2018

Absolutely stunning!! Very well done.

Devaji · Jul 31, 2018

yes yes and YES! love everything about it. I think gorges and softies are so underrated. I am in the process of moving my 90 cubish and doing the same.
can we get some more pics please. would really like to see some of the Indo/Pacific gorgs.

BestMomEver · Jul 31, 2018

That’s just beautiful! I should be so lucky. Thanks so much for sharing!

Mark · Jul 31, 2018

Beautiful! specs?

Patwa · Aug 2, 2018

more pics

This one is from the Indian Ocean

plexaurella sp. (Atlantic species) at night using my handheld UV torch for light

Patwa · Aug 2, 2018

Mark said:
Beautiful! specs?

Hi Mark.....I knew this question was coming, so here's an updated list from an old post

Display

95G rimless, 0.5" thick
Completely reused/recycled from a scrapped 180gal (ie. glass would have otherwise gone to a landfill)
Custom stand (wood)

Sump

45G DIY Acrylic
3 sections (skimmer, bubble trap, refugium/live-rock)
chaetomorpha ball

Skimmer

Deltec AP701 (DIY clone) with Eheim 1263 needlewheel
DIY air silencer
Air bubble diffuser plate
Rated for 400G

Filtration

100+lbs of liverock
Numerous filter-feeding gorgonians
Sand sifting star, legion of nassarius snails (SSB < 1")
100 micron filter sock on overflow

Circulation

Panworld 100PX-X and Oceans Motions on a 4-way closed loop to provide very strong, non-laminar flow
Four outlets into tank (two on rear pane, two on bottom-front pane)
Rear outlets use modified eductors for enhanced mixing and random flow
No unsightly in-tank pumps/powerheads or any other ugly piece of equipment used
Sicce return pump

Main Lighting

2x Kessil A350W Tuna Blue pendants
1x PAR38 LED as rotating spotlight for certain corals to highlight colour and brilliance
Reverse lighting cycle with refugium

Reactor

TLF Reactor
Carbon as needed (once every few months)

Top-Off/Water Change

Tunze Osmolator
With 4gal DIY freshwater reservoir
RO/DI: BRS 5 Stage (SED, GAC, CCB, RO, DI)
15% Water change 2-3 times per year

Temperature Control:

Apex Jr.
Tanks runs approx 79ºF during winter and 82ºF during summer

PDR · Aug 2, 2018

Great looking tank! Do you dose anything? What is your feeding schedule/what do you feed?

mmw64 · Aug 2, 2018

Patwa said:
First post in years here....might as well post a few pics of my current system...

Lots of Caribbean/Atlantic gorgonian species, with a few from the Indo/Pacific and Indian Ocean. Many other softies, and mushrooms. The only softie I can't seem to keep for any extended period of time are xenia and cespitularia - I suspect my water is too clean!

My fave coral is a Japanese neon green toadstool with lineage back to The Captive Reef. I got my frag from zeppelin who got his from TCR. I've had it 8 years and it's only grown to about 4-5" in diameter. It has a much brighter green and slower growth rate than the 'Japanese' neon green toads on the market today.

My fave fish is my marine betta...i've had him about 13+ years now. He's hand fed every few days, but eats mysis with the regular daily feedings to the other fish.

Tank is 4.5 years old, and is extremely stable....I rarely have to do anything beyond daily feeding and basic maintenance.

My only statement is "if only"!

Devaji · Aug 2, 2018

Patwa said:
more pics

This one is from the Indian Ocean

plexaurella sp. (Atlantic species) at night using my handheld UV torch for light

man I need to get my hands on the indo gorg. it looks beautiful!

Jimbo662 · Aug 2, 2018

wow...gorgeous tank!

Patwa · Aug 2, 2018

I so rarely dose anything that I should say "no".....but I should qualify that and say that soft corals and gorgs do not uptake that much Ca compared to other (stoney) corals, so that's why I have next to no worries on my calcium and alk levels and why 2-3 water changes a year is sufficient to maintain the tank you see in my pics. I dose mag once in a blue moon, but only if I suspect bryopsis is starting to show up in more than one area of the tank.

I feed frozen food, that, when breaks down, imparts amino acids and other goodies which also help to contribute to the overall health and vibrance of the tank.

Feeding
Fish: twice daily with PE mysis, along with a few small pinches of NLS pellets (not sure if they make this anymore, but I have lots of it and my fish love it lol). Marine betta gets a piece of seafood every few days (or whatever seafood I happen to be cooking for dinner! - squid, scrimpf, salmon, whitefish, etc). My foxface doesn't seem to realize he can eat green leafy veggies, so he just eats mysis and the pellets and seems to stay fat and active.

Corals: a cube of oyster eggs every few weeks, in addition to stirring the sand bed to move detritus into suspension for the filter-feeders. Most food comes via photosynthesis, but I have an NPS gorg that has been doing quite well for over a year, with no extra special attention given.