Censored Reef

[scolson]

Moving on

 

[KrisReef]

Comments:
1. Very through plan; a lot more rigorous effort than a typical hobbyist, ime.
2. SPS consumption of calcium and alkalinity will likely require more than just water changes to supply essential elements. Dosing 2-part, or adding a calcium reactor, or a Calc reactor can help furnish the SPS needs.
3. Consider adding even a tiny bit (3lbs) of live rock into the sump to supplement the bricks and spheres with living micro fauna beyond what a bottle of bacteria contains.
4. If you don't like the look of the UV sterilizer I would encourage you to reconsider the usefulness of that item and the purpose(s) that you have for including it. You may not need it to be successful?
5. Same general concern for the pH probe. Look at what other users experiences have been. They require routine calibration and the results provided have mixed reviews (from my reading on here). Same for ORP probe. I know you like tech, I'm not knocking that, it's cool, but make sure they are going to provide you with something you need or want to monitor constantly and maintain along the way.

If you feel that you have already answered these questions for yourself and you are confident with your reasons then I trust you will ignore and not take offense with my comments and go forth and concur! Again, a very good plan and I only commented to encourage you and support your effort to set up a fun and enjoyable mixed reef.

 

[scolson]

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[PeterC99]

Welcome to R2R! Very well thought-out implementation plan! Looking forward to reading about your Reefing adventures.

Also have RSR425XL, bought used.

 

[PeterC99]

Thanks for your thoughts @KrisReff. Much appreciated.

Regarding the UV, if I can't find a way to wedge it into the cabinet in a useable way then I won't install it. Right now I think it will fit at 45 degree angle but I'm a bit concerned about the top horizontal support at the front of the cabinet blocking my ability to easily change the bulb. I won't know for sure until I have parts in hand.

Regarding the probes, I'm using them because they are included with the controller. My hope is that even if they are not accurate they will be consistent. I'm pretty sure that will be true with temp and salinity but not so sure about pH. However I think it will be an indicator that can show me some trend that I can evaluate even if the number itself is not spot on.

MY 57 Watt UV light is on top of sump, secured to underside of cabinet. Not ideal with the way the water flows from return pump threw it but has been working effectively. Will eventually get UV input/output horizontal instead of from the bottom like pictured. As I said bought used and this was the way it was setup.

 

[scolson]

MY 57 Watt UV light is on top of sump, secured to underside of cabinet. Not ideal with the way the water flows from return pump threw it but has been working effectively. Will eventually get UV input/output horizontal instead of from the bottom like pictured. As I said bought used and this was the way it was setup.

Thank you! I've been looking at the Pentair sterilizers which seem pretty long for what they do. The 25watt is 29 inches which exceeds the interior height and depth of my cabinet and I think the available horizontal space in my sump compartment. It looks like yours is not near that long based on the size of the skimmer. I'll look around and see if I can find something more compact because that would make it much easier.

 

[scolson]

Moving on

 

[PeterC99]

Standard RSR425XL white cabinet. Camera filters make it look yellow. Here’s a pic without filter

 

[scolson]

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[PeterC99]

Camera filters. Something else to learn

Clips onto your phone and takes great aquarium pics!!!!

 

[PeterC99]

Clips onto your phone and takes great aquarium pics!!!!

 

[JumboShrimp]

I think you should plan your project out a little, and not just jump into it Willy-Nilly.

Ahahahahaha! All seems exciting! We are watching to see your dream come true.

 

[scolson]

Moving on

 

[PeterC99]

Really, really smart to get the bigger aquarium upfront. Very jealous!

Best of luck with your 160g aquarium build, plans look solid!

Looking forward to seeing pics of your progress!

 

[KrisReef]

You will be much happier with the second plan, imo.

With all the lead time, you might adjust your plan to add a few pounds of live rock in the sump, or maybe a few in the display? If yes, order now and let it "cook" in a bucket for a few months while the rest of the hardware come together?

Either way, I think you will do well based upon your rigorous planning.

 

[scolson]

Moving on

 

[JumboShrimp]

A lot of cool NSA can be done with the ‘sticks’ type of rock.

 

[scolson]

Moving on

 

[JumboShrimp]

Here’s my other NSA rock made from sticks; I made it like a Teepee (lol). Excuse the Cyno— I’ve started a Sulphur BioDenitrator to tackle that.

 

[scolson]

Moving on