Bears salty return

bearsfish

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Hello everyone,

I have been away for quite some time and I assure you that my posting will be very inconsistent with this new thread. LOL (I know my life).
After taking down my previous 20 long I kept most of the gear and rock "just in case".. Well "in case" is about to happen as predicted.

My intention is to set up a 40 breeder softy tank with some cool fish. There is always potential for things to change in my plan but the last few iterations have taught me a great deal. The primary lesson appears to be "slow down, and keep things simple" so this will be just that, slow and simple.

That being said there are a few reasons for this thread
1 - to catalog my progress
2 - to refer people to when asked questions about failures and successes
3 - because even if I do not post here anymore Nano-Reef has always been my go to source for information and lurking here over the years has helped to answer many questions for me.

I am not sure if this is a true homecoming just yet, but I am on the way.

A few weeks back I obtained a 40 gallon corner bowfront tank. I was NOT in love with this thing. My wife however is. She happens to have a 40 breeder that I want. hmmm Let me back up a moment
we are currently running a 40 breeder and 2 - 20 long fresh water tanks. She wants to combine the 2 - 2o's into one community and I want to separate the fish in the 40 (good swap so far) the issue is that there are 2 fish we took in on a rescue that need to be placed. ONCE this occurs the tank moves will start and I will have the 40 breeder to turn into my personal salty paradise.

Once the tank is ready to get started I will be starting with dry rock, and likely, a crushed coral and aragonite mixed sand bed. I really REALLY want to keep myself in check and keep this tank SIMPLE. 2 good powerheads for flow, a heater, and a HOB for water polishing and the occasional chemical filtration.

I am intending to seed the tank with one live rock (source to be determined) and start the cycle with a table shrimp.

Being that I am going to make every effort to keep things simple and inexpensive I have a unique lighting situation. I have ordered from this company on eBay before and the lights were pretty good for what I have going on. When I had intended to keep the bow front I ordered two set of lights one longer than the other to accommodate the odd shape. This actually works for my aquascape plan. I intend to have a higher pile of rocks on one side then a ridge along the back that will slope down to the sandbed. With these lights I can light the back and the high rocks by putting the lights in an "L" configuration. This will light the tank, focus the light on the corals, and prevent me from having to invest more funds on lights. The lights are in the 10K range so they should be great for softies. I do not intend to keep SPS.

At this moment I think this is all of the details that I have ready for the start of this log.

I will post images, and updates from time to time. Please feel free to comment, question, and conversate on this tank. All constructive conversation is always welcome. That is what we are here for after all.

For those on multiple forums yes I am also... I just want to learn all I can and share the same..
 
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bearsfish

bearsfish

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The more it sites there the more I like it..hmmmm think I may just make it work

20190922_162626.jpg
 
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bearsfish

bearsfish

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OK so the more this tank sat there the more I liked it, and the more the wife did not like it..

So here we go.

First challenge is the cover. I cannot find a cover for this particular tank ANYWHERE its like they don't make this tank here in the United States. so after looking at how I want to set this tank up (details below) I decided that a 3 part cover would be in order. I do not have pictures of the mock up for this but the I am sure you will get the idea as I describe it. Starting at the back corner I will take a 16" square of glass and cut it into a triangle, this will be the rear cover. I will then use a rectangle piece of glass to cover the center section (the trim is designed to accommodate this). Then I will use a piece of PVC sheeting to cover the front. This will permit me to cut the arch for the front and have some left over PVC sheeting for the rest of this project.

Now on to the ideas and Mock up from last evening -

1st - I decided that I do not want a sump, nor to I want a HOB if I can avoid them. (Again wanting to keep things simple and budget friendly, I know me.. I do not want to take out a credit card for this tank.) So a 3 chamber AIO is the solution.. This section will be fabricated out of PVC sheeting using PVC weld to hold the pieces together and then anchored into place using silicone on both sides of the dividers wherever they touch the glass. I know it would bond with the PVC but it should be enough to hold things in place.

Here are the pictures -

Over view


Overflow into First Chamber



From 1st chamber under the wall into the heater chamber (possible Cheato fuge down the line)



Then over the wall into the return section and back into the display portion of the tank


More in the next post
 
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bearsfish

bearsfish

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Since I like the idea so much we decided to try messing with the rock work a little -

Again all in the mock up stage of things





They even look good in blue!


I think I need a bit more rock though. I want to create a bit more height and hiding places for various critters. not to mention places to grow my zoa's, Paly's and other softies that are going to be the inhabitants of this tank.
 

Peace River

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Congratulations on the new adventure! Bow fronts offer a few more challenges and create the space for more creativity - I look forward to seeing what you come up with!
 
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bearsfish

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Picking up the PVC, and my sand

I am going with Crushed coral and a small bag of agroalive.

ohhhhhhhhh things are moving along.. .

I may even get to start assembly of the chambers this coming weekend (homework pending, I am in a masters program).
 

Dr. Dendrostein

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Hello everyone,

I have been away for quite some time and I assure you that my posting will be very inconsistent with this new thread. LOL (I know my life).
After taking down my previous 20 long I kept most of the gear and rock "just in case".. Well "in case" is about to happen as predicted.

My intention is to set up a 40 breeder softy tank with some cool fish. There is always potential for things to change in my plan but the last few iterations have taught me a great deal. The primary lesson appears to be "slow down, and keep things simple" so this will be just that, slow and simple.

That being said there are a few reasons for this thread
1 - to catalog my progress
2 - to refer people to when asked questions about failures and successes
3 - because even if I do not post here anymore Nano-Reef has always been my go to source for information and lurking here over the years has helped to answer many questions for me.

I am not sure if this is a true homecoming just yet, but I am on the way.

A few weeks back I obtained a 40 gallon corner bowfront tank. I was NOT in love with this thing. My wife however is. She happens to have a 40 breeder that I want. hmmm Let me back up a moment
we are currently running a 40 breeder and 2 - 20 long fresh water tanks. She wants to combine the 2 - 2o's into one community and I want to separate the fish in the 40 (good swap so far) the issue is that there are 2 fish we took in on a rescue that need to be placed. ONCE this occurs the tank moves will start and I will have the 40 breeder to turn into my personal salty paradise.

Once the tank is ready to get started I will be starting with dry rock, and likely, a crushed coral and aragonite mixed sand bed. I really REALLY want to keep myself in check and keep this tank SIMPLE. 2 good powerheads for flow, a heater, and a HOB for water polishing and the occasional chemical filtration.

I am intending to seed the tank with one live rock (source to be determined) and start the cycle with a table shrimp.

Being that I am going to make every effort to keep things simple and inexpensive I have a unique lighting situation. I have ordered from this company on eBay before and the lights were pretty good for what I have going on. When I had intended to keep the bow front I ordered two set of lights one longer than the other to accommodate the odd shape. This actually works for my aquascape plan. I intend to have a higher pile of rocks on one side then a ridge along the back that will slope down to the sandbed. With these lights I can light the back and the high rocks by putting the lights in an "L" configuration. This will light the tank, focus the light on the corals, and prevent me from having to invest more funds on lights. The lights are in the 10K range so they should be great for softies. I do not intend to keep SPS.

At this moment I think this is all of the details that I have ready for the start of this log.

I will post images, and updates from time to time. Please feel free to comment, question, and conversate on this tank. All constructive conversation is always welcome. That is what we are here for after all.

For those on multiple forums yes I am also... I just want to learn all I can and share the same..
Welcome back, comrade
 
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bearsfish

bearsfish

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Out of town at a conference (actually in a Presentation room right now).

Picked up a new power head for the return last night so I will have 380hph flow for this tank.

Lots of things going on but hoping for more on the actual build over the next week or 2
 
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bearsfish

bearsfish

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Lesson learned #1 for this build - PVC weld DOES NOT work on PVC sheet goods. Testing another option right now then may have to try plastic welding.. if this is not successful I will likely drop the idea and go with a HOB...

downside - Pain in the butt for my cover design and you can see the equipment.

upside - more room in the tank and more aquascaping options.
 
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bearsfish

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OK time for an update. No progress on the PVC as I have been way to busy with classes, work, etc...

On the way to class last evening my wife calls and says "hey I found an RO/DI unit on Facebook for $60. is that a good price?"

Well, that depends. she described it and I immediately told her to go pick it up..
71876643_1405739949578116_631935700949794816_o.jpg


So I am NOT planning on filling this tank 1 bottle at a time!!!!

Its weird to get this excited over a water filter.
 
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bearsfish

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tested and the RO/DI works great!! Almost time to get wet...

Last night after my homework was completed my wife and I tried cutting glass for the first time..

This cover is in three sections. Front is PVC sheet, then glass (plastic is there to protect from the rough edge and to help open that section when needed) and the last glass corner is siliconed into place. THe corners were cut on this section to permit wires to be fed through..

additionally, I decided making this into an AIO was going to waste to much space so I am adding a small Canister filter instead..

Here is a pic of the cover(s)

72073298_1408473749304736_4601063318763864064_o.jpg
 
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bearsfish

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Fixed the sand and rock work a bit. I still think I need a bit more rock.

also added in a raw shrimp to get this cycle moving (not pictured)..
20191018_170343.jpg
 
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bearsfish

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This waiting is DRIVING ME NUTSSSSSSSSSS
LOL. It is to be expected. I know. I am not rushing. I just want to witness any sort of change..

So ran the first ammonia test last night. As expected 2.0 ppm...

I am considering tossing a bottle of BB in there to move things along.....

stupid dental procedure suddenly became needed and I have to push back buying the additional rock I wanted to put in here... But I can always add the new rock in its not an urgent need.
 
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bearsfish

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Here we go!. First fish and corals drip acclimating.. 2 clowns, trumpet coral, hammer coral, GSP, mushroom or two, and I think xenia..more pox as they get settled
20191103_164808.jpg
20191103_164804.jpg
20191103_164801.jpg
20191103_164757.jpg
 

When to mix up fish meal: When was the last time you tried a different brand of food for your reef?

  • I regularly change the food that I feed to the tank.

    Votes: 32 26.7%
  • I occasionally change the food that I feed to the tank.

    Votes: 39 32.5%
  • I rarely change the food that I feed to the tank.

    Votes: 36 30.0%
  • I never change the food that I feed to the tank.

    Votes: 9 7.5%
  • Other.

    Votes: 4 3.3%
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