Cthulukelele's 120g build!

[Cthulukelele]

Hi all! I have been getting a 120 gallon up and running over the last 4 months. It is my first tank so be kind

The goal is to fill in a mixed reef!

I bought the gear from another reefer, but I plumbed it myself.

Currently in the sump
Reef octopus 150INT skimmer
BRS 2 chamber reactor running carbon and GFO
Return pump
200w aquatop digital heater
2x filter sock
ATO

Current stocklist
Bonded pair ocellaris clownfish
Molly miller blenny
Skunk cleaner
2x emerald crab
A dozen or so trochus snails
Tuxedo urchin
2x peppermint shrimp
5x astrea snails
3x nassarius snails

Current corals
Orange setosa
Green favia
Indonesian torch
Yuma and florida ricordea
Toadstool
German blue polyp acro
German blue polyp digi (currently brown haha)
Punk rocker zoas
Red plating monti

Any fish/coral/invert addition suggestions appreciated

Also husbandry tips!

I will update this periodically as things move forward in the tank

 

[Cthulukelele]

More pics!

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Looking niceI! I like what you done with the scape.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Looking niceI! I like what you done with the scape.

Thanks! I have absolutely fallen in love with the hobby. There is something really special about cultivating your own ecosystem! My friends all wonder how I can spend so many weekends ignoring them to work on it, but it is genuinely a labor of love don't you think?

Any favorite fish/corals/inverts I should check out for possible addition? I desperately need to add bioload lol with the oversized skimmer and the corals growing now needing more nutrients (especially the softies).

 

[hdsoftail1065]

I love my yellow coris Wrasse and red head Wrasse, always swimming and adds a great color to the tank. Anthias are nice additions as well, they provide a nice splash of orange. Blennys are nice fish as well. So many choices to go with, I have no favorites I like them all for the most part. I would personally skip a yellow tang and lean more towards a foxface. I recommend hitting liveaquaria and looking at the different species, tank size and in your case reef safe. Build a list of what you like and these people will help with stocking order and why or why not they would make a nice addition to your tank.

Take things SLOW, bad things happen in this hobby if you rush.

 

[Cthulukelele]

I love my yellow coris Wrasse and red head Wrasse, always swimming and adds a great color to the tank. Anthias are nice additions as well, they provide a nice splash of orange. Blennys are nice fish as well. So many choices to go with, I have no favorites I like them all for the most part. I would personally skip a yellow tang and lean more towards a foxface. I recommend hitting liveaquaria and looking at the different species, tank size and in your case reef safe. Build a list of what you like and these people will help with stocking order and why or why not they would make a nice addition to your tank.

Take things SLOW, bad things happen in this hobby if you rush.

So far I am averaging less than a fis a month, so I am trying my best to temper excitement and add things slowly. +1 on blennies btw. My molly miller blenny has SO much personality.

What are your thoughts on kole tangs and melanarus wrasses? Those were both intriguing to me.

Also how bad an idea is it to have a macroalgae colony like blue hypnea or dragons breath in the display tank lol

 

[hdsoftail1065]

The melanarus Wrasse are beautiful additions, I have never owned one and I'm not sure your CUC would be to safe. Someone else can chime in on that. I have never messed with macroalgae or a kole in my DT yet so not much help there either...sorry.

 

[NY_Caveman]

Tank is looking great! I enjoyed reading all of the details.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Tank is looking great! I enjoyed reading all of the details.

Thanks! Any fish/invert/coral suggestions?

 

[NY_Caveman]

Thanks! Any fish/invert/coral suggestions?

That is really up to you. There is an ocean of possibilities.

I would say my favorite marine inhabitant is the Cleaner Shrimp, but you already have that. If I had a 120 gallon I would seriously consider a Purple Tang a fish I find to be beautiful. A small group of Anthias might be nice.

Look at similar tanks, stop by the fish store, watch videos. Before I filled my tank I spent months compiling a spreadsheet of possible inhabitants that worked in my size tank. From there I did research and narrowed it down over time.

 

[SPR1968]

That’s a great looking tank and thanks for sharing the pictures with us, very nice!

 

[Cthulukelele]

That is really up to you. There is an ocean of possibilities.

I would say my favorite marine inhabitant is the Cleaner Shrimp, but you already have that. If I had a 120 gallon I would seriously consider a Purple Tang a fish I find to be beautiful. A small group of Anthias might be nice.

Look at similar tanks, stop by the fish store, watch videos. Before I filled my tank I spent months compiling a spreadsheet of possible inhabitants that worked in my size tank. From there I did research and narrowed it down over time.

Gosh purple tangs are beautiful. I'd just feel cruel having one in anything less than a 6 foot tank. Maybe a kole tang will scratch that itch for me

My dream fish that will never work is the blue spot puffer. I love their experessiveness and intelligence.

Do you have any experience with macroalgae in a display tank?

That’s a great looking tank and thanks for sharing the pictures with us, very nice!

Thanks! Got a favorite coral, invert, or fish you'd recommend to add some intrigue to the tank? No pressure. This is just my chance to bug all the pros

 

[NY_Caveman]

Gosh purple tangs are beautiful. I'd just feel cruel having one in anything less than a 6 foot tank. Maybe a kole tang will scratch that itch for me

My dream fish that will never work is the blue spot puffer. I love their experessiveness and intelligence.

Do you have any experience with macroalgae in a display tank?



Thanks! Got a favorite coral, invert, or fish you'd recommend to add some intrigue to the tank? No pressure. This is just my chance to bug all the pros

No on the Macroalgae. I kept a small Refugium for a short while, but my nutrients were just too low.

 

[SPR1968]

Thanks! Got a favorite coral, invert, or fish you'd recommend to add some intrigue to the tank? No pressure. This is just my chance to bug all the pros

Well I like green star polyps as they are very colourful and provide movement and are easy to care for. They do spread, but, well I just like it! Lol

I prefer movement in the tank so I have lots of LPS corals

On the fish, well I love fish as you can see on my build thread, and I have lots...... all happy and friendly together

Yellow Tang (beautiful) stary Blennies have lots of character, wrasse, anthias, chromis, you see you’ve got going now, I’ll be of to the LFS!! Lol

 

[Cthulukelele]

Well I like green star polyps as they are very colourful and provide movement and are easy to care for. They do spread, but, well I just like it! Lol

I prefer movement in the tank so I have lots of LPS corals

On the fish, well I love fish as you can see on my build thread, and I have lots...... all happy and friendly together

Yellow Tang (beautiful) stary Blennies have lots of character, wrasse, anthias, chromis, you see you’ve got going now, I’ll be of to the LFS!! Lol

How quickly should I add fish/how do I know to stop adding lol

I can feel the creeping desire to get every fish ever.

 

[Cthulukelele]

No on the Macroalgae. I kept a small Refugium for a short while, but my nutrients were just too low.

That is the problem I'm having! I assume it will correct as I up my bioload, but with 3 fish I mega overfeed and in the 120 with the large skimmer and gfo run really low nutrient! From all the reading I did before setting up the tank I was petrified of the opposite problem lol

Guess it's just an excuse to get more fish

 

[SPR1968]

How quickly should I add fish/how do I know to stop adding lol

I can feel the creeping desire to get every fish ever.

Just add fish slowly and let your system adjust to the increased bioload. You also need to ensure you have enough mechanical and biological filtration in place to handle and remove the waste.

I have a lot of fish but I also have systems in place to cope with the nutrient removal etc otherwise you will quickly encounter nitrate and phosphate issues.

When to stop? Mmm........ I’m probably not the best one commenting here!! Lol

 

[Cthulukelele]

Here are some more photos! I added a tiger tail, some scarlet hermits, a brittle star, and some pods for diversity. Tried to take some more close up shots.

Next weekend is a big local coral swap event, so some new stuff is coming!

I have dialed in my daily 2 part dosing at 15mls a day to maintain an alk of 9-10 and calcium of 460-480.

Also my nassarius snail just laid a bunch of eggs!

 

[Cthulukelele]

Got a browned out acro from my lfs with 0 polys that looked basically flat about 2 months ago to see how it would do in my tank. It is slowly turning green with blue polyps and lots of little branches

 

[Cthulukelele]

Torch looking especially pretty today