Another 40g Breeder Reef Tank

[Dysto]

So here it is. I've been meaning to make a build thread since I picked up the tank, but since I never took any pictures...
THE BUILD:

• Tank
  • Standard Aqueon 40g Breeder tank - It was on sale!
• Filtration
  • Marineland Emperor 350 Biowheel HOB filter - It was on sale!!
  • A floating pond basket filled with chaeto - It was NOT on sale
• Lights
  • Two(2) AI Hydra26's - It was on sale!!!
• Misc. Equipment
  • U.V. sterilizer - Decidedly NOT on sale, but what else are you gonna do with a big Phyto bloom?

For months, this tank languished on its stand, empty and listless.
It spent months with just rock in it, in various shapes and configurations.
Aside from a few minor hiccoughs (Bryopsis outbreak, Phytoblooms, some bubble algae is showing up) its been a relatively smooth ride from a dry tank to a thriving reef.

THE LIVESTOCK

• 1 - Clownfish
• 1 - Dot Dash Wrasse
• 1 - Lubbocks Wrasse
• 1 - Lawnmower Blenny
• 1 - Dragon Goby

So far, I've only lost one fish. I bought the clownfish as a pair, but one contracted ich/velvet and died almost overnight. Confusion was felt, as no one else seemed to be affected. Just recently, my Dot Dash wrasse had a serious bout of popeye. He's gotten over it, for the most part, but has remained very shy.

Thats it, for the most part. I might post some pictures of some corals that seem to be doing particularly well, and if I can get a good picture of the fish, those will be added too.

 

[WIReefer]

Congrats on the tank love the 40b!!!

 

[LeftyReefer]

What are you using for flow/wavemakers in your 40b?

And how is the chaeto basket working out? I have a sumpless 40b that I was thinking of doing something similar with... either a HOB refugium or a small in-tank basket/refugium.

Nice build!

 

[Dysto]

For the most part, i've been pretty happy with just the marineland filter for flow. It's half the length of the tank, and is acting pretty much like a cheap gyre pump. Its rated (supposedly) for about 350gph, which is a solid 9x flow for my tank, and everything seems pretty happy so far. As far as the fuge goes, it has worked out pretty well, the only real issue was figuring out how to keep it from drifting, which I solved with a bit of aluminum wire and bamboo skewers. It was also fantastic as a fish isolation basket. I was initially worried that it would block too much light for anything to be on that side, and while it definitely blocks a good chunk of light, my BTA claimed that side of the tank and seems happy

 

[Dysto]

Just a reminder to everyone who feels discouraged about their coral growth to take pictures. Incremental changes are often almost invisible to the brain because of how it handles memories, especially if its something you see every day. For example, this is a tort I picked up a month ago, and wasn't sure if it was really growing all that much. I was even considering moving it somewhere else, with more flow maybe.

With photos, I'm able to look back a month, and see where it started

Safe to say, its happy and growing just where it is