I started my Biocube after taking about a five year break from the hobby. Formerly had a 125 gal setup. Amazing how much I forgot!
I purchased nearly all of my equipment and accessories through Amazon which drove both my delivery person and wife pretty crazy.
As we had recently downsized, our home now does not have space for a large aquarium. My wife agreed to a 32 gallon system probably thinking she would get off cheaper since it is a smaller system.
I started with the BioCube Coralife Basic Reef Package. Just stared running the skimmer last week, so not broken in yet. There sure are a lot of bubbles in the tank!
I cycled with Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Argonite Reef Sand, 20 lbs., FritzZyme Turbo Start 900, and some dead rock from my LFS. My ammonia dropped and nitrate started going up in a week. I then added a couple of clowns.
In the back, I now have Cobalt Aquatics Flat Heater and Coralife Protein Skimmer V2 in the first chamber on the right (facing the display). In the second chamber is InTank Media Basket with Marineland Bonded Filter Pad in the top, Chemi-Pure Filtration Media on the middle, and Seachem Matrix Bio Media on the bottom shelf. Next to this is the InTank Fuge Basket which has Chaeto and a COB LED Grow Light 150 W mounted on back with a small fan to keep the light cool. In the third chamber on the left, I upgraded the pump to a Sicce Syncra 1.5 Aquarium Pump, 357 GPH. This chamber also has the probe for my InkBird ITC-308 Temperature Controller, the return for the AutoAqua Smart ATO Micro Automatic Top Off, and the AA Aquarium Green Killing Machine, and Internal UV Sterilizer.
In the display portion, I have two Hydor Koralia Nano Aquarium Circulation Pumps 425 GPH, the inTank Fish Saver Guard, a Marineland Accent Hidden LED (because I just like blue lights) and then Steves LEDS Light upgrade. I'm not sure if I am going to get into any advanced corals, but wanted my options open.
The ADJ AC Power Strip is in the cabinet with a bunch of push pin timers to regulate the circulation pumps and some of the lights. (This power strip is a perfect fit!)
With all of these extras, my tank was running 82 degrees, so I added a couple of small 40mm USB Fans over the back outlet holes on the hood. So far, temp has dropped 1.5 degrees. We'll see.
Other items that fell off of the USPS truck included Red Sea Fish Pharm ARE111220 Coral Pro Marine Salt, Refractometer, Vivosun pH and TDS Meter Combo, Salifert Test kits. I guess the only thing I had already installed was the RO water filter kit.
Since the water parameters looked good, I started adding some livestock mostly from my LFS.
Mistakes I've made so far:
-Put my rocks on top of the sand, THEN got a pistol shrimp who dug tunnels to China. I ended up removing all the rocks, pushing the sand out of the way and re-seating the rocks.
-Didn't warn my wife how much this "smaller" aquarium was gonna cost...
I purchased nearly all of my equipment and accessories through Amazon which drove both my delivery person and wife pretty crazy.
As we had recently downsized, our home now does not have space for a large aquarium. My wife agreed to a 32 gallon system probably thinking she would get off cheaper since it is a smaller system.
I started with the BioCube Coralife Basic Reef Package. Just stared running the skimmer last week, so not broken in yet. There sure are a lot of bubbles in the tank!
I cycled with Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Argonite Reef Sand, 20 lbs., FritzZyme Turbo Start 900, and some dead rock from my LFS. My ammonia dropped and nitrate started going up in a week. I then added a couple of clowns.
In the back, I now have Cobalt Aquatics Flat Heater and Coralife Protein Skimmer V2 in the first chamber on the right (facing the display). In the second chamber is InTank Media Basket with Marineland Bonded Filter Pad in the top, Chemi-Pure Filtration Media on the middle, and Seachem Matrix Bio Media on the bottom shelf. Next to this is the InTank Fuge Basket which has Chaeto and a COB LED Grow Light 150 W mounted on back with a small fan to keep the light cool. In the third chamber on the left, I upgraded the pump to a Sicce Syncra 1.5 Aquarium Pump, 357 GPH. This chamber also has the probe for my InkBird ITC-308 Temperature Controller, the return for the AutoAqua Smart ATO Micro Automatic Top Off, and the AA Aquarium Green Killing Machine, and Internal UV Sterilizer.
In the display portion, I have two Hydor Koralia Nano Aquarium Circulation Pumps 425 GPH, the inTank Fish Saver Guard, a Marineland Accent Hidden LED (because I just like blue lights) and then Steves LEDS Light upgrade. I'm not sure if I am going to get into any advanced corals, but wanted my options open.
The ADJ AC Power Strip is in the cabinet with a bunch of push pin timers to regulate the circulation pumps and some of the lights. (This power strip is a perfect fit!)
With all of these extras, my tank was running 82 degrees, so I added a couple of small 40mm USB Fans over the back outlet holes on the hood. So far, temp has dropped 1.5 degrees. We'll see.
Other items that fell off of the USPS truck included Red Sea Fish Pharm ARE111220 Coral Pro Marine Salt, Refractometer, Vivosun pH and TDS Meter Combo, Salifert Test kits. I guess the only thing I had already installed was the RO water filter kit.
Since the water parameters looked good, I started adding some livestock mostly from my LFS.
- -Clowns (mentioned above)
- -Purple Firefish
- -Linespot Flasher Wrasse
- -Watchman Goby
- -Pistol Shrimp
- -Zebra Barred Dartfish (This is a shy one!)
- -Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp
- -Dwarf Pink Feather Duster
- -Green Star Polyps
- -Zoa
- -Hammer
- -Candy cane
- -4 Trochus snails
Mistakes I've made so far:
-Put my rocks on top of the sand, THEN got a pistol shrimp who dug tunnels to China. I ended up removing all the rocks, pushing the sand out of the way and re-seating the rocks.
-Didn't warn my wife how much this "smaller" aquarium was gonna cost...
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