Carl's Pro-Clear ProStar 90 Build Log

[1Fish]

Pulled the trigger on a tank upgrade today. Moving out of my old 40 gallon corner tank to a new Pro-Clear ProStar 90.

Seems to be 63.5 in the display and the rest in the sump.

Brought it home today and got the sand bed setup put in most of the new life rock. The rest will come from the current tank plus one more new piece that will be a bridge between the 2 stacks. I'll pull those over once I start the transfer. I'll start out with the single Hydra 32 light that I already have and we'll see if I need to add a 2nd one or not.

I should have enough RODI by tomorrow night to get it filled up along with the 35 gallons or so I'll pull from the current tank.

Looking forward to the upgrade.

 

[1Fish]

Shot of the sump before populating everything. Also waiting to pick up the skimmer later in the week. They didn't have the C120 in stock to fit this sump.

 

[1Fish]

Sunday afternoon update.

Got the tank filled and stable. Everything looks good and started moving over stock. For now just 5 fish, 2 anemones and whatever clean up crew I could salvage so far. Will find my sand sifters as I start digging out the sand from the old tank.

Running both the HOB and the sump for now until I get a couple of good turnovers and then I'll pull the HOB off.

Unfortunately my sump doesn't have submerged space long enough for my heater so it's living in the tank for now. I'll have to figure out what to do about that.

And this is absolutely a 2 light tank so I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for another Hydra 32, but for now it'll do for what I have in there

 

[Anna K]

It looks good so far (minus the need for a second light ha-ha). Can't wait to follow the progress photos of it! :)

 

[1Fish]

Added some new stock to the tank and everyone seems to be happy, so it seems the tank migration has settled in nicely. Getting a bit of a cycle at the moment but it seems to be under control for the most part.

At the moment we have the pair of clowns, purple dotty, vanentini puffer which all came from the original tank and 2 weeks ago added a bristle tooth tang. Also seeded some copepods so we can add some mandarin gobies in a few weeks and some new clean up crew for the upsized tank.

Both lights are up and running. They're mis-matched body color at the moment but I'm going to 3d print some glare shields and you'll never notice it once they are installed.

I just put in the skimmer and getting a lot of aeration in the tank at the moment while I'm trying to get it broken in and tuned, so it doesn't look fantastic at the moment.

My major complaint with this Pro-Clear is the small sump with very little room to work in there. I appreciate some storage in the stand, but I'd rather have a much more maintenance friendly sump. It's 4 chambers in a small area and being able to get hands into all the areas and work on various bits is a PITA.

I also need to spend some serious time on cable management at some point. There is a lot going on under there and it's a bit too messy for my liking.

 

[1Fish]

It was also time for my own RODI system. I've been relying on a friend for my tank change water but with the new tank it was time to be a little more self sufficient.

BRS system plumbed into the washer supply and drain out in the garage.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

It was also time for my own RODI system. I've been relying on a friend for my tank change water but with the new tank it was time to be a little more self sufficient.

BRS system plumbed into the washer supply and drain out in the garage.

Congrats on getting an RODI! Isn't it nice to just be able to make water at your house whenever you want to?

 

[1Fish]

Congrats on getting an RODI! Isn't it nice to just be able to make water at your house whenever you want to?

Absolutely!

Now I just need a bigger storage container so I don't have to keep swapping 5-gallon buckets. I have an old water softener system on the house that isn't used anymore and I may yank the storage tank from it and convert it for this need.

 

[1Fish]

So my tank crashed.

I lost an anemone over night which caused the tank to ammonia spike. I knew the 'nem was on his way out but I didn't have the experience to know to get it the heck out of the tank immediately. By morning the tank was foggy and I lost my dottie. I pulled the fish into a quarantine bucket with fresh mix and did a 50% water change on the tank as fast as I could generate water but the damage was done. The tank cycled out the ammonia out completely within a day with help of the water change, but by day 2 I lost my Bristle Tang and as of today one of my paired clowns didn't make it. The other fish in the tank have signs of ick so I started treating the tank.

No idea how many fish I'll save but at this point I'm down to just my female clown, the puffer and a diamond goby. The crew (hermits, snails and conch) are doing fine from what I can tell. I haven't started adding corals yet so at least there's that.

As of today the tank water is pristine on numbers after a 2nd major water change but I'm on day 2 of the 10 day treatment for ick. Fingers crossed I don't the couple of fish that are left.

Live and learn. No more 'nems for a while.

 

[1Fish]

Well as of this morning I've lost all but 1 fish. 1 clown, the diamond goby and my puffer didn't make it through the night. The larger of my clowns is the only fish left.

Not a good morning.

 

[sgdnycct]

I'm sorry to hear about the crash. I know how frustrating and saddening it can be. Following along and hoping things get better from here!

 

[1Fish]

Well after a complete tank nuke today we added back in the first livestock after about 7 weeks fallow.

The first new members of the tank are a Frostbite and a Midnight Lightning Clown. Also brought in the first coral frags.