Brian's Red Sea Reefer 170 Build

[Bubbletips]

Thanks for posting this thread. I’ve got the same tank just started 2 weeks ago.

How do you like your
Syncra Silent 2.0 ? I’m looking for a quiet pump.

I guess i’ll Start saving for the $800 apex, mp10, and apex module.

Keep the updates coming!

 

[Mattrg02]

Thanks for posting this thread. I’ve got the same tank just started 2 weeks ago.

How do you like your
Syncra Silent 2.0 ? I’m looking for a quiet pump.

I guess i’ll Start saving for the $800 apex, mp10, and apex module.

Keep the updates coming!

I’ve also got this tank. Can’t hear the sicce pump.

 

[firedancer414]

Yeah - the overflow / skimmer (Tunze 9004) is "louder" than the Sicce (but not loud at all).

 

[firedancer414]

Saw @demeyer2 posted an update and felt like I should put one on.

First, the good news. Have a bunch of coral in my display. I don't think I have any coral pests. I came to my senses on my rockwork and have two pretty islands now with a channel between.

I took these shots randomly at night (pretty late) - you can't see the golden torch (left) or yellow hammer (right) out, both look great and happy. Zoas are obviously very happy. Spotted gobies + pistol shrimp are getting big, and picked a great spot where I can see the shrimp pretty often.

• Alk Spike / Burnt Tips / STN devastation. The STN brought on by alk burn managed to devastate the SPS that I had in my quarantine. Which at one point was quite a bit. Learned quite a bit from that mistake (I just calculated about $1k). Have some stylos in there that are still having STN - holding out a little hope but I think that they will be dead soon. Got just a bit ahead of myself. Yeesh. Trying not to dwell on it too hard. Placed another Jason Fox order (for significantly less), to give it a last shot. I think it should be better this time. Current SPS in there are a strawberry shortcake, vivid rainbow, PC rainbow, ORA red planet, Tyree pink lemonade, and rainbow monti. Good luck trying to tell them apart, sheesh!
• Nitrates too dang low. I am still struggling to get my nitrates up. Hovering around 0.25ppm. Feeding a ton, running the skimmer dry. My phosphates are OK (0.03 ppm). My acans aren't super happy, and I'm pretty sure it's because of the nitrates being too low (although it may be flow/light related). Particularly the acan to the right of the tank, get quite a bit of light and flow and I'm probably going to move it to a more shaded part of the tank.
• No iodine? Also, did my first Triton ICP test. Everything was green except that my tank has 0 Iodine? Ordered some iodine so I can dose.
• Ich or velvet. Unfortunately the devastation hasn't been limited to the coral. Either ich or velvet killed both purple firefish, a green chromis, a royal grandma, midas blenny, and one of my clowns. Currently planning on running "fishless" (e.g., not adding any more livestock) for 60 days post disease. My red firefish had it and recovered (pictured).
• Sump looking good. In the sump - things have been pretty stable. I moved my carbon (running BRS ROX) from a bag to a reactor, since it was really cheap. Added a Tunze nanostream to the refugium to keep all the detritus kicked up, it's super clean down there. Very little hair algae now, the chaeto ball is super super dense.

 

[Hazenight]

Tank is lookin great, I like the aqua scape.

 

[easily_fishstracted]

Thanks for posting this thread. I’ve got the same tank just started 2 weeks ago.

How do you like your
Syncra Silent 2.0 ? I’m looking for a quiet pump.

I guess i’ll Start saving for the $800 apex, mp10, and apex module.

Keep the updates coming!

i have this pump in a RSR nano and actually find it quite loud. i just ordered a nyos viper 3.0 to replace it, but obviously remains to be seen how much it helps...

 

[firedancer414]

I've been dealing with some heat issues with my tank (temp fluctuating from 79 -> 81). As solutions I have been cutting the chaeto photoperiod when temp > 80, and tons of temp management in my house (air conditioning). Finally bought a cheap clip on fan and attached to my Apex to manage temp between 78 -> 78.5, super pleased with how much it reduced temp swings.

 

[Aaron Gustafson]

I'm sorry about your coral loss. It happens. Took me a few years to get acro-ready. The controller helped get things stable, for sure.

Have you started dosing the Triton yet? If so, are you diluting it at all?

Oh and do you have a current sump shot?

 

[firedancer414]

I do dose Triton although very little. (1 mL every 2 days). I've been slowly lowering my alk after learning about alk burn, I had it in the mid 8's but getting it to 7.

My sump isn't changing very much. I added the Nanostream to keep the detritus kicked up, and there's the new BRS small reactor for carbon. Very thick ball of chaeto that is keeping my nitrates around the 0.1 - 0.2 ppm range. I was thinking about trying to start dosing KNO3 - my phosphates are around 0.02 ppm according to ICP testing.

 

[Aaron Gustafson]

Thanks!

Out of curiosity: Have you considered going skimmer-less?

 

[firedancer414]

Thanks!

Out of curiosity: Have you considered going skimmer-less?

I have considered but my understanding is that there are more benefits to skimmers than just nutrient removal and that it would be better to dose nitrate.

 

[NY_Caveman]

there are more benefits to skimmers than just nutrient removal

Agreed.

Tank is coming along nicely.

 

[firedancer414]

Nitrates have been <= 0.25ppm, with me putting a cube of mysis shrimp + a handful of pellet per day, it was getting silly. I think everything has been starving. Starting to see cyano (or at least red/brown sand) in the display.

Started dosing 3mL of 1Tbsp/1 cup RODI KNO3 on Saturday (roughly 1ppm / 40 gallons). Trying to hold NO3 at 4ppm. Will keep you all posted.

 

[CoralDanimal]

Hey @firedancer414! First time I came across your tank thread and it was awesome to see how much we have in common with our builds. I saw you had some struggles with Alk and fish catching issues, but definitely hang in there - my tank progress was rough for at least the first 6 months so you're on a much better track than I. I'm also dosing stump remover (still weird to say that) to keep nitrates up. Quick question on the sump divider - is the person who built it for you open to others reaching out to buy it as well? I'd love one of those to ensure chaeto doesn't spill into my return section.

 

[firedancer414]

Hey @firedancer414! First time I came across your tank thread and it was awesome to see how much we have in common with our builds. I saw you had some struggles with Alk and fish catching issues, but definitely hang in there - my tank progress was rough for at least the first 6 months so you're on a much better track than I. I'm also dosing stump remover (still weird to say that) to keep nitrates up. Quick question on the sump divider - is the person who built it for you open to others reaching out to buy it as well? I'd love one of those to ensure chaeto doesn't spill into my return section.

Hey! My tank has been having a tough time so have been taking a "break" and trying to let it settle in - I think I got too enthusiastic with the KNO3 and now have cyano issues. Oops.

The site that I made the acrylic thingy at is just here: https://www.ponoko.com/ They do tons of laser cutting and engraving really cool stuff:

Ponoko. 0.25" black acrylic, template links below if you want to do the same thing:

• https://www.dropbox.com/s/qowjn1px65wnbx6/sump_long.eps?dl=0

 

[firedancer414]

Quick update. Short version is I've been learning reefkeeping through a very expensive trial-and-error process, moving too fast (although I started almost 11 months ago). Few notes.

• Got back from a 2.5 weeks vacation to New Zealand, and came back to a tank that was still standing. Apex + ATO + GHL Doser + autofeeder, pretty rad.
• Finally feel like my chaeto is really taking hold. It's taken a while.
• Equipment wise, very few changes. I added another MP10 and moved the pumps to the back of the tank, to increase flow.
• Just completed a chemiclean treatment to get rid of my cyano. I've had a ton of cyano + turf algae issues and I've been trying to wait it out without avail. So did the treatment + upgraded the cleaning crew a bit (emerald crab + urchin).
• I've done well with my chemistry. Held alk between 7-8 for the last 6 months. Used up my black bucket salt and switched to blue bucket.

• I found a great LFS (Aquatic Collection in Hayward - 20 min drive) - much better than the store closer to me (2 miles). Better selection, much less pests (close store is covered in aptasia, for example). So that has made stocking the tank much cheaper + easier.
  • I've bought coral online from WWC, Cherry, + Jason Fox. The best frags I've received were from Jason Fox (massively plugs, encrusted on them). I've learned that my main tastes are for "old" coral classics (I name a few on my wishlist below), and to stay away from relatively new + expensive named acros, etc.
• Learned that you can't dip red dragon + ORA Hawkins, they were dead in 24 hrs. Good thing I really trust the new LFS, I've dipped everything from them in both CoralRX + Bayer and only seen pods come off (maybe a bristleworm?)
• I feel like I'm turning a corner with the tank (finally) and can keep SPS alive (the rainbow monti, chili pepper, green slimer, and Cali tort seem to be doing really well for the last 2 months, some showing signs of growth). But it's been slow going and I've probably killed (eek) ~$2.5k worth of coral.
• I've learned a lot about the types of coral I like, my wishlist (pending a month of survival with current stock) is
  • Pink Lemonade, Strawberry Shortcake, PC Rainbow, Bonsai, Red Planet, ORA Pearlberry. Acans/Zoas? (Utter Chaos)

Not the best photos but here's the stock

• Fish
  • 2 ORA Ocellaris Clowns
  • Midas Blenny
  • Bicolor Blenny
  • Diamond Watchman Goby
  • 2 Orange Spot Gobies + Shrimp
  • Melanurus wrasse
  • Red firefish
• Notable inverts
  • 1 skunk shrimp + 1 blood shrimp
  • 1 (new) hairy colored pincushion urchin (unclear how it's doing)
  • 1 emerald crab
  • 1 electric blue + 1 electric orange hermit
  • Tons of nassarius + cerith snails (no other kinds)
  • 1 Stomatella that somehow got into my sump
  • A lot of chaeto
• SPS
  • Acropora
    • Green Slimer
    • Cali Tort (I think - they said it was an Oregon Tort but I think it has too much green)
    • Red Dragon
    • ORA Hawkins Enchinata
  • Montipora
    • Rainbow
    • Chili Pepper
  • Stylo - Green polyp / purple body
• LPS
  • Euphyllia
    • Purple/green frogspawn
    • Neon Torch
    • Green Hammer
    • Golden Torch (although very unhealthy - not clear if it will make it)
  • Blastos
  • All acans I had are near death
• Zoas
  • JF Atomic Sunrise
  • Blue Eyed Blondies
  • WWC Emerald
  • WWC Twizzlers
  • WWC Funny D's
  • WWC Fire + Ice
  • Rastas

 

[SlvrZ]

Looks great! I hear you on the tank being able to finally handle SPS. My current tank is been like that for I wanna say the last 4 months the now that I've been able to keep my acros alive and well. Something about the tanks just needing to age! Great update

 

[adrianr514]

We need another update!

 

[splitting_lanes]

The site that I made the acrylic thingy at is just here: https://www.ponoko.com/ They do tons of laser cutting and engraving really cool stuff:

Ponoko. 0.25" black acrylic, template links below if you want to do the same thing:

• https://www.dropbox.com/s/qowjn1px65wnbx6/sump_long.eps?dl=0

Are you still running the tunze 9004?

Is there anything you’d do differently if you were going to run a skimmer and refugium in your 170 sump?

I bought a 9004 thinking it would work in my 170’s sump, but see I need more depth. I’m thinking I’ll use your templates and make my sump deeper and have a catch for the cheado.

Unless you have a better suggestion

 

[adrianr514]

I bought a 9004 thinking it would work in my 170’s sump, but see I need more depth. I’m thinking I’ll use your templates and make my sump deeper

If you place the 9004 in the overflow chamber you won’t need to adjust the water level.