Perpetual Novice
Active Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2019
- Messages
- 423
- Reaction score
- 335
I’ve been in the feeding hobby since I was 16. While most kids begged for a puppy I somehow convinced my parents to buy a 75 gallon saltwater tank instead. You might say that tank was a failure, but I fell in love with the hobby during those two years of heartache and frustration.
2 years ago I came out of reefing retirement and managed to convince my girlfriend to let me bring a diy 20 gallon tank into our apartment. I’m not sure how it happened but we now have 4 reef tanks running in our one bedroom flat. All of them are Frankenstein craigslist freebies that probably have no business keeping our reefs alive. But somehow they get the job done.
it’s been fun playing with the different systems and pushing the boundaries. I’m proud of what we accomplished but it was only just hobby.
Now my girlfriend and I are buying a house together and moving out of our apartment has forced us to make a very hard choice about what will happen to our beloved reef tanks. We’re just going to have to suck it up and throw money at the problem. Ahahah
so I schemed up the most ambitious project I’ve ever taken on. We will transport everything in the tanks to our new home and merge the contents into one perfect dream tank. This time we do it right. We won’t cut corners and get thrifty or lazy. this time it’s serious. If all goes well I will be the last tank I’ll ever own.
I found an Local aquarium design and maintenance company and we designed a complete custom system which they will assemble the day I close on the new house. The company is also going to handle the extraction, transport, and setup of all the livestock and rock to the new tank so it’s completely hands off for me. The cost of that labor will be offset by value of all my current tanks which they will remove and sell. And it will all happen in a 2 day window between my closing date on the house and the end of my apartment lease: august 27-29.
if that doesn’t sound crazy already here’s the specs for the new tank build.
180 gallon marinelandreef ready tank with cherry stand and glass canopy.
40 gallon sump with three chambers including a refugium and light
oversized reef octopus skimmer
algae scrubber
overpowered return pump with calcium and carbon reactors plumbed in.
ATO and 20 gal reservoir.
apex controller battery power strip and probes
4 reef octopus wave makers with integrated control system that will be adapted to be compatible with the apex
X3 AI prime lights on mounting arms
x2 cobalt heaters
the idea is a tank that is overpowered on nitrate removal and easy to service. Every electronic component is controllable through the apex app. And the plumbing will feature extra ports for adding reactors so that the tank chemistry can be maintained by equilibrium with whatever reactor media we choose. In theory this can almost entirely replace the need for extensive water testing and dosing.
and the livestock is already established and balanced and a light bioload for the system.
I figured this build was worth starting a thread. I don’t know if I’m more excited about the house or the tank.
please lend me a hand in getting this done right. If anyone has ideas and advice for this build at any time I would love to hear it!
updates will definitely follow as this adventure unfolds. Wish me luck!
2 years ago I came out of reefing retirement and managed to convince my girlfriend to let me bring a diy 20 gallon tank into our apartment. I’m not sure how it happened but we now have 4 reef tanks running in our one bedroom flat. All of them are Frankenstein craigslist freebies that probably have no business keeping our reefs alive. But somehow they get the job done.
it’s been fun playing with the different systems and pushing the boundaries. I’m proud of what we accomplished but it was only just hobby.
Now my girlfriend and I are buying a house together and moving out of our apartment has forced us to make a very hard choice about what will happen to our beloved reef tanks. We’re just going to have to suck it up and throw money at the problem. Ahahah
so I schemed up the most ambitious project I’ve ever taken on. We will transport everything in the tanks to our new home and merge the contents into one perfect dream tank. This time we do it right. We won’t cut corners and get thrifty or lazy. this time it’s serious. If all goes well I will be the last tank I’ll ever own.
I found an Local aquarium design and maintenance company and we designed a complete custom system which they will assemble the day I close on the new house. The company is also going to handle the extraction, transport, and setup of all the livestock and rock to the new tank so it’s completely hands off for me. The cost of that labor will be offset by value of all my current tanks which they will remove and sell. And it will all happen in a 2 day window between my closing date on the house and the end of my apartment lease: august 27-29.
if that doesn’t sound crazy already here’s the specs for the new tank build.
180 gallon marinelandreef ready tank with cherry stand and glass canopy.
40 gallon sump with three chambers including a refugium and light
oversized reef octopus skimmer
algae scrubber
overpowered return pump with calcium and carbon reactors plumbed in.
ATO and 20 gal reservoir.
apex controller battery power strip and probes
4 reef octopus wave makers with integrated control system that will be adapted to be compatible with the apex
X3 AI prime lights on mounting arms
x2 cobalt heaters
the idea is a tank that is overpowered on nitrate removal and easy to service. Every electronic component is controllable through the apex app. And the plumbing will feature extra ports for adding reactors so that the tank chemistry can be maintained by equilibrium with whatever reactor media we choose. In theory this can almost entirely replace the need for extensive water testing and dosing.
and the livestock is already established and balanced and a light bioload for the system.
I figured this build was worth starting a thread. I don’t know if I’m more excited about the house or the tank.
please lend me a hand in getting this done right. If anyone has ideas and advice for this build at any time I would love to hear it!
updates will definitely follow as this adventure unfolds. Wish me luck!
