Choss' 96 gallon Reef Savvy "Nano" Tank

[Clayton Jessup]

Clayton - glad you are following along - we follow some of the same build so glad to have your feedback here! I'm hoping to have some good updates this weekend. Glad you like the lighting choice. I have a MH running on the frag tank right now and I've seen growth already in one week. This is taking a few small frags from two holding tanks - one with an LED and one with T5. I'm really fired up to get the spectra running with some livestock (and of course a wet tank!).

So thank you you for the complete towards my input , very well received. No worries choss I am going to follow this build for sure. It looks like it's going to be a solid and good build ! I am glad to hear that you are loving the lighting. I am having a internal debate between Radion G4 lighting or ATI T5 lighting for my 75g build . So I am looking for all the input I can. Any suggestions choss for my lighting ? I ran a MH light alone over my 40g Iwagumi FW planted tank and loved it so every now and then I think of a MH setup as well lol but I think I have to go a different direction from MH my wife was not a huge fan of the MH lighting .

 

[choss]

So thank you you for the complete towards my input , very well received. No worries choss I am going to follow this build for sure. It looks like it's going to be a solid and good build ! I am glad to hear that you are loving the lighting. I am having a internal debate between Radion G4 lighting or ATI T5 lighting for my 75g build . So I am looking for all the input I can. Any suggestions choss for my lighting ? I ran a MH light alone over my 40g Iwagumi FW planted tank and loved it so every now and then I think of a MH setup as well lol but I think I have to go a different direction from MH my wife was not a huge fan of the MH lighting .

I have a lot of thoughts. Right now on my 40 cube, I run a single Kessil 360 WE. I love the look of the light, the shimmer, etc. but I had a ton of issues growing SPS. In fact, the first few frags didn't make it. It took me almost a year to get it dialed in and am now having some success with montis. What did really well under this light were my Acans. They are thriving.

I have done a lot of research. People have success with radions but I have seen a many of these reefers go back to either MH or T5. In the end, there always seems to be a lot of adjusting, trying different lighting schedules, etc. T5 seems to be the most reliable by a mile. There are a lot of amazing tanks out there and I've seen success with 4,6,8,10 bulbs. Uniform growth, no shadowing. ATI fixtures just are easy - plug & play. If you want more pop add a reef brite to the fixture.

All of that said, I personally find T5 tanks a bit flat or sterile in appearance. To me there is nothing like the feeling of looking at a natural reef and this is for me the shimmer you get with a Kessil or MH. It is why I ended up choosing a MH/T5 combo. I also decided to go with a single MH bulb to keep my heat down. Finally, I do not love a lot of light spill, and this is why I went with a shorter fixture (24" on my 42" tank). So the last thing I will share is that I plan on having the best of all worlds as I will be testing adding Kessils to my Spectra (if needed). This is to have better dawn to dusk effect and I love the pop I get at the end of the day from my Kessil. So in the end, I will probably have all three sources running.

So I think you should think through all the tradeoffs - plug and play success of T5 (or T5/MH), or the control of the Radions. I think both choices are good ones. I'll be checking in on your build to see how things develop. Good luck

 

[Reduck]

reef savvy tank by choerenz, on Flickr

Ok so yesterday I had 2 of my soccer buds come over at 8:45 am (my reef buddies were busy so you have to go to the next best hobby group...). By 8:50 we figured out that the suction cups were not going to work. One popped off during the first lift and I went pale white, then sweat broke out everywhere.

So we used old fashioned muscle and lifted the tank on the dolly. 10 minutes later (by 9:15) we had the tank up on the stand and centered. I was so stressed the night before, and in the end it was in place in no time at all.

So then I started worrying about the weight of the loaded tank on the stand. The stand is 1.5 inch thick walnut, and super solid gator piping. But I still contacted the manufacturer of the pipes and was told "don't worry, each leg can hold 4,000 lbs". I estimate the full weight to be about 1,000- 1,200 lbs so I think it's all good.

Now the next chapter can start. This weekend I will start the plumbing.

Yea. I remember that stress of moving my new tank into place. No fun at all. But the night of move I slept like a baby. Its coming along great. Some day I'd like to pick your brain on that controller.

 

[choss]

Yea. I remember that stress of moving my new tank into place. No fun at all. But the night of move I slept like a baby. Its coming along great. Some day I'd like to pick your brain on that controller.

I will be playing with the controller in the upcoming days - right now I'm clueless but hopefully I will be an expert soon. Will be happy to share a review of the P4 once i get comfortable.

 

[Clayton Jessup]

I have a lot of thoughts. Right now on my 40 cube, I run a single Kessil 360 WE. I love the look of the light, the shimmer, etc. but I had a ton of issues growing SPS. In fact, the first few frags didn't make it. It took me almost a year to get it dialed in and am now having some success with montis. What did really well under this light were my Acans. They are thriving.

I have done a lot of research. People have success with radions but I have seen a many of these reefers go back to either MH or T5. In the end, there always seems to be a lot of adjusting, trying different lighting schedules, etc. T5 seems to be the most reliable by a mile. There are a lot of amazing tanks out there and I've seen success with 4,6,8,10 bulbs. Uniform growth, no shadowing. ATI fixtures just are easy - plug & play. If you want more pop add a reef brite to the fixture.

All of that said, I personally find T5 tanks a bit flat or sterile in appearance. To me there is nothing like the feeling of looking at a natural reef and this is for me the shimmer you get with a Kessil or MH. It is why I ended up choosing a MH/T5 combo. I also decided to go with a single MH bulb to keep my heat down. Finally, I do not love a lot of light spill, and this is why I went with a shorter fixture (24" on my 42" tank). So the last thing I will share is that I plan on having the best of all worlds as I will be testing adding Kessils to my Spectra (if needed). This is to have better dawn to dusk effect and I love the pop I get at the end of the day from my Kessil. So in the end, I will probably have all three sources running.

So I think you should think through all the tradeoffs - plug and play success of T5 (or T5/MH), or the control of the Radions. I think both choices are good ones. I'll be checking in on your build to see how things develop. Good luck

Choss , thank you so much for you input amazing and I am really considering all option and looking at a lot of the valid points of which you just stated thank you so much I am considering avoiding light spillage and that's why I am considering a 36in ATI SunPower over my tank to avoid the light spillage of the 48in SunPower. But I have given a lot of thought to adding RB to a ATI fixture as well. My ultimate build would be to have a Spectra or a Infiniti over my 75 g but I would need to get it approved by the wife first lol will see as time moves on , to see what unfolds for my build

 

[choss]

Choss , thank you so much for you input amazing and I am really considering all option and looking at a lot of the valid points of which you just stated thank you so much I am considering avoiding light spillage and that's why I am considering a 36in ATI SunPower over my tank to avoid the light spillage of the 48in SunPower. But I have given a lot of thought to adding RB to a ATI fixture as well. My ultimate build would be to have a Spectra or a Infiniti over my 75 g but I would need to get it approved by the wife first lol will see as time moves on , to see what unfolds for my build

Well I can tell you that my wife was impressed with the Spectra from a visual appeal standpoint and that means a lot. It is a great looking unit. High quality. It really adds to the look of the tank. You can of course do what I did - order and ask later ;Bookworm

 

[choss]

Update

Some goodies arrived the other day

Ecotech by choerenz, on Flickr

I think I now have all my equipment. I will start with one MP40 and two MP10s but may add a second MP40 later. I also picked up a BRS delux reactor. Because of the small footprint of my sump, I wanted a small reactor to run both carbon and GFO.

I also added a battery backup - man that thing is a beast. I'll put together the full list of equipment this weekend.

 

[Clayton Jessup]

Well I can tell you that my wife was impressed with the Spectra from a visual appeal standpoint and that means a lot. It is a great looking unit. High quality. It really adds to the look of the tank. You can of course do what I did - order and ask later ;Bookworm

You nailed it on the T choss , that's good to know about the quality of the Giesemann fixture. That statement which you just said is truly making me consider The Giesemann Matrixx II for my build . I have had my eye on theses light for awhile . Thank you again for your valid and strong input on the quality of their fixtures

 

[Reduck]

You will not regret the backup battery. Its saved me quite a few times. Hopefully you never need it.

Update

Some goodies arrived the other day

Ecotech by choerenz, on Flickr

I think I now have all my equipment. I will start with one MP40 and two MP10s but may add a second MP40 later. I also picked up a BRS delux reactor. Because of the small footprint of my sump, I wanted a small reactor to run both carbon and GFO.

I also added a battery backup - man that thing is a beast. I'll put together the full list of equipment this weekend.

 

[choss]

You will not regret the backup battery. Its saved me quite a few times. Hopefully you never need it.

Reduck- would you recommend me using the backup to run a single MP40 or one of the MP10s (would the battery last longer)?

 

[revhtree]

Update

Some goodies arrived the other day

Ecotech by choerenz, on Flickr

I think I now have all my equipment. I will start with one MP40 and two MP10s but may add a second MP40 later. I also picked up a BRS delux reactor. Because of the small footprint of my sump, I wanted a small reactor to run both carbon and GFO.

I also added a battery backup - man that thing is a beast. I'll put together the full list of equipment this weekend.

Nice!

 

[choss]

Nice!

Rev thanks for tagging along. Check in this weekend as I should have some updates.

 

[Reduck]

Reduck- would you recommend me using the backup to run a single MP40 or one of the MP10s (would the battery last longer)?

I am driving both MP40 and MP10. Your run time will decrease using both, but still plenty long enough for most temporary outages. My longest outage was 4 hours this summer and both pumps cruised right through.

 

[choss]

awesome. thanks for the feedback! I looked at getting a generator for the house but the cost was pretty steep. So happy to hear about how reliable the battery backup is.

 

[Reduck]

awesome. thanks for the feedback! I looked at getting a generator for the house but the cost was pretty steep. So happy to hear about how reliable the battery backup is.

We have a whole house generator too. Its not one of the spiffy automatic units, so I will always hesitate to run out and connect it and start it up. We used it a lot during and after Sandy. Just not worth running it for an hour or two. If you don't have one, I would consider it as essential as any other tank accessory. Especially in the colder months.

 

[coralcruze]

@choss looking good man. Plumb that thing up and LMK when you get this thing wet. Tank looks awesome!

Oh and as a Neptune Apex owner, I agree whole-heatedly on your reason for choice on GHL. Nice stuff!!!

 

[Janci]

You nailed it on the T choss , that's good to know about the quality of the Giesemann fixture. That statement which you just said is truly making me consider The Giesemann Matrixx II for my build . I have had my eye on theses light for awhile . Thank you again for your valid and strong input on the quality of their fixtures

Clayton, I have been running the Giesemann Matrixx for over a year and the fixture has never let me down so far.
It is easy to adjust and program and looks very sleek.
You will love them.
The most important is your choice of bulbs which will make the look and PAR you need.

I even think that Giesemann offers the fixture with bulbs. Something ATI does not and Giesemann bulbs are as good as you can get.

 

[Janci]

Looks great Choss.
Eager to see the finished set up!

 

[Clayton Jessup]

Clayton, I have been running the Giesemann Matrixx for over a year and the fixture has never let me down so far.
It is easy to adjust and program and looks very sleek.
You will love them.
The most important is your choice of bulbs which will make the look and PAR you need.

I even think that Giesemann offers the fixture with bulbs. Something ATI does not and Giesemann bulbs are as good as you can get.

Thank you Janci , that is very good to o ow and to hear about the Giesemann Matrixx II ..

 

[choss]

@choss looking good man. Plumb that thing up and LMK when you get this thing wet. Tank looks awesome!

Unfortunately this weekend got away from me. I did manage to work on the stand, leveling the pipes and adding some shims to make sure the tank is 100% level. I'm a bit OCD when it comes to this but it was worth the extra work.

Oh and as a Neptune Apex owner, I agree whole-heatedly on your reason for choice on GHL. Nice stuff!!!

Looks great Choss.
Eager to see the finished set up!

Great feedback. This was maybe the toughest decision I had to make on this build but I'm glad I made the investment in the GHL.

Janci - thanks for being patient! Working on it!