City's 15 gallon Column NANO reef build

[Dj City]

This is who made me start this journey.

 

[Dj City]

The large maroon clown turned this...

Into a pile of rocks and coral by bulldozing the entire right side of the tank.

She also relegated this little guy to the sump for the past year or so..

He's probably going to be the 1st inhabitant of the new nano.

 

[Dj City]

I may wind up using some of the old rock in the rebuild.

I put the rock in a 5gal bucket filled with 1.1 vinegar and water and let it sit with a powerhead for 2 days.
I then rinsed it, brushed all the gook and old algae off and put it back in the bucket and filled it with 1.1 bleach and water and let that sit for 24 hours.
I then rinsed the rock again and it is now sitting in the sun (and rain) since yesterday.
I will keep the rocks outside for a few days, then I will rinse them again and soak them in RO/DI water with Seachem Prime for at least 48 hours.
After that, I will soak them in Saltwater with a heater and powerhead and seed them with an existing rock from my 110gal tank.

I don't know how long I should leave them soaking in the saltwater while seeding with existing live rock.

 

[Dj City]

Heater arrived today

Now the only thing I'm waiting on is my salt and my rockwork to be completed and putting the tank and filtration and auto water change system together and cycling the tank and getting the lighting dialed in and placing corals and clean up crew and choosing fish.

 

[Dj City]

Guess I'm still a long way off.

 

[Dj City]

The problem with going slow is idle time on your hands.

I keep looking at aquascape ideas and keep seeing all these COOL ideas to build from.

I see rockwork that completely covers the back wall and has shelves and caves.
I see caverns done with rock, egg crate and foam.
I see custom made diy rocks in whatever shape YOU choose to make because YOU make the mold.
I see reef saver rock that is EASY to work with and inexpensive.
I see shadowboxes that don't seem hard to build at all and have the coolest look and effect of depth.

So many choices...

 

[Dj City]

Salt!

We are getting closer to getting wet!

 

[cmoore1167]

The problem with going slow is idle time on your hands.

I keep looking at aquascape ideas and keep seeing all these COOL ideas to build from.

I see rockwork that completely covers the back wall and has shelves and caves.
I see caverns done with rock, egg crate and foam.
I see custom made diy rocks in whatever shape YOU choose to make because YOU make the mold.
I see reef saver rock that is EASY to work with and inexpensive.
I see shadowboxes that don't seem hard to build at all and have the coolest look and effect of depth.

So many choices...

Man I didn't even think of egg crates as aquascape. You could make little tunnels and cover the crate with rock and coral!

 

[Dj City]

I am sooooooooooo tempted to put the live sand in the tank, full it up with saltwater and get it started but...

I think I need to wait till my rock is ready.

I'm of two minds on this.
I can start the tank up with the live sand and start the cycle seeding the Seachem Matrix with rock from my 110 gal.

Or

Finish my scape and start it all at the same time.

I would like your thoughts..

 

[Kevin Jaako]

I feel like it will be easier to get your aquascape just right without having to deal with dripping wet rocks going in & out of the tank. Epoxying/drilling/etc will be easier too if you end up going that route.

My pillars are sitting right on the bottom of the tank with sand placed around them, which I think makes them sturdier. I’d say that’s particularly important for rockwork with a high centre of gravity.

 

[NY_Caveman]

I would place the rock and then the sand around it. Much safer for your structure.

 

[Dj City]

Thanks for the advice!

Im going to wait till I have my rockwork complete before starting.

 

[Dj City]

This is killing me!

I've got too many ideas in my head for the aquascape.

 

[Dj City]

Im back at it.

Trying to rebuild whatever it was I was trying to build in the first place.

Hope this one stays together.

 

[Dj City]

What do you think?

What can be improved?
Should I add anything?

 

[Kevin Jaako]

Wooo! Looks great. That tall column looks super tippy... is it?

Also, it looks like the top of the spire is only an inch or two below the waterline, and right under the light, which is something to be aware of...

KJ

 

[Dj City]

Wooo! Looks great. That tall column looks super tippy... is it?

Also, it looks like the top of the spire is only an inch or two below the waterline, and right under the light, which is something to be aware of...

KJ

It's pretty solid and stable. The base holds it up and in place. It would take a LOT to tople it.

It is a bit high.
I might knock the top rock off maybe replace it with another shelf in the opposite direction.

 

[Dj City]

Im thinking of adding a cave towards the front and a rock wall in the left corner but I have not decided yet.

I don't want a cluttered look.

 

[MamaLovesHerReefTank]

Im thinking of adding a cave towards the front and a rock wall in the left corner but I have not decided yet.

I don't want a cluttered look.

Your scape looks good so far. I agree you should add a cave or somewhere for fish to hide when needed.

 

[cmoore1167]

That's legit! I wouldn't go adding a whole lot. Sometimes simple looks better. Might be cool to add the two little ones together to make a little island.