Custom 150 Cube 36x36x28

[swilliams2207]

Things coming along nicely. Currently dealing with a lot of micro bubbles from my skimmer but hoping that resolves itself in the next few days. It’s been about 10 days and only slightly improved.

Water is not as clear as my old tank but still waiting on a replacement UV bulb. Hoping that will help.

I finanlly grew up and am building a dedicated water station. No more 5 gallon at a time refills. I homebrew so use RO for brewing and the tank. I split my out line right before the DI resin to have two output, one for beer that fills my kettle and another that fills my brute. Got my float valve and auto shutoff operational. Just need to build a stand so I can put my saltwater mixing brute below it.

The vinyl tubing pictured connects to a manifold of my return so I can drain and fill the tank from my basement!

 

[InsaneClownFish]

Things coming along nicely. Currently dealing with a lot of micro bubbles from my skimmer but hoping that resolves itself in the next few days. It’s been about 10 days and only slightly improved.

Water is not as clear as my old tank but still waiting on a replacement UV bulb. Hoping that will help.

I finanlly grew up and am building a dedicated water station. No more 5 gallon at a time refills. I homebrew so use RO for brewing and the tank. I split my out line right before the DI resin to have two output, one for beer that fills my kettle and another that fills my brute. Got my float valve and auto shutoff operational. Just need to build a stand so I can put my saltwater mixing brute below it.

The vinyl tubing pictured connects to a manifold of my return so I can drain and fill the tank from my basement!

Looks so good

 

[08TRDOFFROAD]

Well I’m finally 99% up and running. Full sump shot below. The picture makes the cord situation look crazier than it is.

Still a few things to organize better but believe it or not everything is fairly accessible. My Uv bulb died after about 6- 8 months of use so waiting on a replacement. I had to get a little creative with my ATO and dosing setup. Luckily my cabinet is connected internally to the right, so I moved my ATO, doser, and containers to a separate cabinet. Given the limited space, I really didn’t have a choice. The good news is it makes a lot more sense anyway so it’s a win on my part. Rather than putting my trident in the cabinet, I moved it up on top next to my router. This will make swapping regents much easier as well. Utilizing the whole cabinet space worked out.

As an aside PSA, I built this stand to hold water in case of an overflow. I accidentally put this to the test while filling the tank. My tube kicked out of the sump and about 10 gallons filled my tank stand. Since I sealed it with caulk/paint, it retained all the water. Could have been a huge mess. Second, I installed a GFCI outlet inside my stand. I had some electric components temporarily sitting on the stand floor and it ultimately tripped my outlet and shut everything off, saving the equipment and potentially a very dangerous situation. GFCI is really important…if you’re on the fence, it’s worth the short investment.

That plumbing is a work of art! I dig the colored PVC these days. About to start plumbing my build and can't decide if I want to spend the money to get the colored PVC and fittings (or which color to use if I do).

I like your basket solution for managing the power supplies for all the equipment!

 

[swilliams2207]

Things are setting in. Sticking with softies and some simple sps. Will eventually get some green slimer and some digis. Really want things to fill in with various soft corals/LPS that make a statement.

Next will be setting up an aromatic water changing setup. I moved my ATO to the basement so now I can fill my container with RO as needed. So much easier considering I was going through 5 gallons in 3-4 days.

I added a divider to my sump to combat micro bubbles. Still getting micro bubbles in the display despite the baffle and some sponge. I think my skimmer is the culprit but it’s baffling. No pun intended. I’m struggling to tune my BM curve 7 elite to get consistent skim.

 

[swilliams2207]

Been a while since I posted an update.

Things are coming along. I finally set up my water change system and did a 20 gallon water change without lifting a finger! Water drains out into my sewer so there is no mess. I’m probably going to be in the minimal water change group but it’s nice to be able to do them with no heavy lifting.

Here are some pics of tank progress. It’s hard to take a front shot because I have window glare behind me.

Here are left and right shots. Still sticking with LPS/softies for the easy maintence and piece of mind. My plan is to get some additional stuff and see if I can build an impressive softy tank. I have a few easy SPS but nothing special. Will eventually add some hardier acros and montipora digita but in no rush.

 

[08TRDOFFROAD]

Been a while since I posted an update.

Things are coming along. I finally set up my water change system and did a 20 gallon water change without lifting a finger! Water drains out into my sewer so there is no mess. I’m probably going to be in the minimal water change group but it’s nice to be able to do them with no heavy lifting.

Here are some pics of tank progress. It’s hard to take a front shot because I have window glare behind me.

Here are left and right shots. Still sticking with LPS/softies for the easy maintence and piece of mind. My plan is to get some additional stuff and see if I can build an impressive softy tank. I have a few easy SPS but nothing special. Will eventually add some hardier acros and montipora digita but in no rush.

Looking good! I plan on taking the same approach for stocking on my 60 gal cube! Mostly softies. LPS, and few hardy sps!

 

[Reign1]

Nice job looks good and getting mature.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Been a while since I posted an update.

Things are coming along. I finally set up my water change system and did a 20 gallon water change without lifting a finger! Water drains out into my sewer so there is no mess. I’m probably going to be in the minimal water change group but it’s nice to be able to do them with no heavy lifting.

Here are some pics of tank progress. It’s hard to take a front shot because I have window glare behind me.

Here are left and right shots. Still sticking with LPS/softies for the easy maintence and piece of mind. My plan is to get some additional stuff and see if I can build an impressive softy tank. I have a few easy SPS but nothing special. Will eventually add some hardier acros and montipora digita but in no rush.

Your tank is coming along nicely!

 

[swilliams2207]

It's been a while since I've updated so posting some new shots. My tank has been on autopilot since life has just been really busy. I'm enjoying the simple maintenance of running primarily a softee tank with overboard automation. I haven't added any new coral or livestock but growth has certainly been booming and interesting to watch. My waving hand and kenya trees seem to multiply by the hour. I don't love it but it's also nice to just let the tank do it's thing and not interfere with what I think has found some stability. No crazy algae growth etc.

Everything is going well but the tank feels a little random and uneven. My plan is to add some more variety along with some additional easy montipora towards the top of the tank. I also need to go in and eradicate some of the overgrowth of trees/anthelia and move some hidden pieces toward the front. Sometimes it's easier to rethink placement once things have had a chance to grow.

I'm still not sure what my overall vision for this tank is but for now I'm enjoying the stability and minimal upkeep. I still have PTSD from my last SPS tank crash that wiped everything out. Having notoriously bad tap water where I live makes me think I should keep the course with bulletproof coral.

 

[08TRDOFFROAD]

Tank is looking fantastic!!

 

[swilliams2207]

 

[backbayreef]

Nice update. You’re one brave soul with those xenias — won’t they overtake the tank any minute from now?

 

[swilliams2207]

Nice update. You’re one brave soul with those xenias — won’t they overtake the tank any minute from now?

Funny I have Xenia but it’s been kept at bay.. prob shrinking from the Kenya’s. The major overgrowth is waving hand anthelia. I’m hoping I can pull most of it off

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Those xenias are looking great!

 

[swilliams2207]

Did a major cleanout of Kenya trees and some waving hand anthelia. I still have more work to do, but it's a work in progress. Controlled chaos if you will. I was able to bring some corals out front that were buried in the back for months. I also snagged a few leathers from a local reefer. Next haul will be a few monti caps and some digis. Maybe a green slimer if I'm feeling bold.

Outside of this cleanup I feel like I have done zero maintenance on this tank. I'm currently mixing water for my first water change in months. I've kept on top of parameters but haven't checked PO4 or Nitrate in months. I run a skimmer full time but it barely pulls any skimate. I think my reefmat is doing the majority of the heavy lifting. Who knows!

4 stalks of green pocillopora have sprung up out of nowhere. I had it in my last system however NONE was transferred over . Mind you...all of my rocks were scrubbed with a heavy brush post-tank crash. Meaning this stuff is indestructible! I'm pleased for now because it adds variety and it's clearly bullet proof.

Took some photos with my DSLR and an orange filter (also a work in progress :beaming-face-with-smiling-eyes:)

 

[JustAlilReef]

Wow! Your tank looks amazing!!

 

[lilopop11]

Nice looking tank

 

[swilliams2207]

Some more corals. I added some monti caps, a slimer, and a purple stylo. Also added some green toad stools, a few more leathers, duncan, shrooms, and clove polyps. My vision is a softy/LPS dominated tank with easy SPS up top.

More cleanup, more reorganizing, and a 40 gallon water change last weekend. Things are taking shape but still need some growout and some gaps to fill. I'm hoping by next year it will be where I want it to be. My xenia are shrinking a bit and I'm not sure why. I'm looking into dosing iodine per a recommendation to see if they turn around.

 

[swilliams2207]

 

[swilliams2207]

Rare blue look for me. Lotta change and a lotta growth.