FINALLY! It's my turn! Mpatient's 90g KISS (keep it simple, stupid) build.

[mpatient]

At long last I am able to say "Welcome to my build thread"! I apologize in advance for the lengthy intro, but future posts will be more pics and less gab.

I started my first saltwater tank 25 years ago (55g, canister filters, no sump) This was back when there was not a lot of information out there, and you just winged it. I was pretty successful, and quickly moved up to a 220g. Then of course life happens. With work, marriage, baby, relocating etc, it all became too much. I sold the tank, but my interest and love of the hobby remained. Fast forward 15 years, and I was back in the game. I had gone through a (amicable) divorce, my daughter was of driving age, and the time was right. I quickly discovered how much the hobby had changed, and how it can break the bank if you let it. To ease myself back into it, I purchased a new BioCube 32g. I had never done a sump, and the AIO concept was appealing. Pretty soon that tank had every upgrade possible, and I was again hooked. As a single mom. it was hard to justify the expense for a larger tank, so I decided to enjoy the one I had, learn everything I could, and started putting money aside. I made the rule that purchases would be made only when I had the cash in hand. Long story short, for the last year and a half I have been scoring items that were on sale or used from Craigslist or EBAY. Its been slow, but I am not in debt! (yet). The last piece to this puzzle was the tank which I pulled the trigger on Black Friday. Tank is custom from a local builder, and will be ready in about 4 weeks. My goal is to keep it simple with mostly LPS and softies with no SPS (don't want the stress), Although the newest (and expensive) gadgets are awesome and make things easier, I know I do not need them all to run a successful tank. The equipment I have is not top of the line, but they are solid. I can always upgrade equipment down the road. With that being said let's get this build started!

Specs:

Tank: 90g (48x18x25) custom, Euro braced, black silicon, drilled for external overflow and returns.
Stand/Canopy: DIY wood stand and canopy. (Girls with power tools rock!)
Overflow: Synergy Reef Shadow 16" External
Flow: Jebao OW-25 Wavemakers
Lighting: Viparspectra 165W (2 units)
Sump: DIY 40g breeder - (Gotta love Petco sales!)
Protein Skimmer: Reef Octopus 150INT. I got the body for free, and just needed to replace the pump (Aquatrance 2000)
Return Pump: Jebao DCT6000. I have a Jebao DC6000 as back up.
Substrate: CaribSea Hawaiin Black (I currently use it in my 32g, and love it)
Rock: Marco Reef Saver
Heaters: Eheim 150w (2 units)
I am not going to start the stand until I get the tank, so first up is to work on the sump and the aquascape. Stay tuned!



My stockpile



Tank Location : Living room recessed wall (Going to have a to find a new place for the Nativity scene!)


Ready to start on the aquascape!

 

[Jon Fishman]

Following along! Good luck! Make good choices!

 

[MERKEY]

Sweet, can't wait to see it full!!!

 

[gotmesalty77]

Congrats on the next leg of your adventure!

 

[mpatient]

Been a busy week, and it's only Wednesday! Trying to squeeze this in with holiday activities will be a challenge. Started on the aquascape last night. I am more of a minimalist when it comes to scaping. Aesthetically, I prefer tanks that have lots of negative space. I have moved the few corals and fish I have from my Biocube to a 20g long holding tank. All that is left is the rock formation with a rapidly growing Duncan colony, and some inverts. (Ignore the detritus; this photo is after I had moved everything around and before I gave it a good cleaning). I am hoping to incorporate it in the new tank. It took me three weeks of trial and error, but 2 years later, I am still happy with it. I like the idea of 2 islands, so that is what I am leaning towards.

So here are pics of the progress (not very much). I am not so thrilled with the rocks size and shapes I received.I also have about 8lbs of shelf pieces. I have the big rock stacked on a bucket to represent the BioCube rock I plan on using. The left is what I came up with so far, but I change it every time I pass the table. Right now, I am feeling 'meh' about it. I am going to take a chisel and hammer to the big rock on the right to hopefully get some fun pieces. Any suggestions are welcome! I am also open to redoing the entire aquascape, but I really don't want to waste 35lbs of coralline encrusted rock.

Current Aquascape






Even my ginormous cat (Moe) is not impressed with the latest rendition.

 

[CasaReefer]

Awesome Stuff Mr. M... I will be M Patiently waiting for the next up-date... Thanks for bring us along Bra

 

[mpatient]

Awesome Stuff Mr. M... I will be M Patiently waiting for the next up-date... Thanks for bring us along Bra

That would be Ms. MPatient!

 

[CasaReefer]

That would be Ms. MPatient!

I am Sooooo Sorry.. Just saw the scary face and AS*umed... Begs for forgiveness...

 

[mpatient]

Just saw this contest from Algae Barn. Go big or go home! I would even be happy with the year supply of pods!

https://www.algaebarn.com/contests/a-tank-under-the-tree-contest/

 

[motortrendz]

Good luck on the build. Following along.

 

[mpatient]

Ok , change in plans! Last night I went to do a water change for my BioCube. When moved the island rock to look for an elusive pompom crab, I discovered the back side was covered in vermetid snails. Too many to deal with effectively, and I certainly don't want to introduce them to a new tank. Not to mention I already have a population of asterina stars. I actually love those guys, but culling is necessary to keep them from taking over.

On to Plan B.

As much as I wanted to use the old rock, when I breakdown the tank, I will bleach , dry out, and store for another day. I have ordered and additional 35lbs of Marco rock including shelf and base pieces. It won't be in until late next week, but in the meantime I am going to start on the sump. Stay tuned!

 

[nickkohrn]

Oh, man. Vermetid snails are such a frustrating pest.

It can be challenging to wait for the pieces of a new system to come in and be put together, but it makes it easier when you have other items to work on in the meantime, such as your sump. I'm looking forward to seeing it come together!

 

[mpatient]

Happy New Year's to all! Just a quick update. The holidays were wonderfully chaotic, and as expected, there was not much time to focus on the build. I did get a call from Joe (who is awesome) at Glasscages on 12/23 to let me know he had good news, and bad news. Good news is that my tank was done, bad news it was made with clear silicon rather than the black I ordered. I had two options, take the tank as is with a discount, or they will remake the tank with black. I opted for them to remake the tank. Yes, I would have save a bit of money, but since it will be ages before another upgrade, I want the black. Very impressed with how GC handles any issues. Actually, it all works out because I am 2 weeks behind on the aquascape and sump. The new, new tank will be ready around Jan 15th, so perfect timing.


I had forgotten how much I do not like aquascaping!! Marco rock is a great product, but I miss the lightness and ease of Pukani. I was this close from placing a custom order with Jestersix (his work is right up my alley) because nothing was coming together. After 2 weeks of me arranging, rearranging, and starting over, I have finally gotten to a happy point. Waiting on more E-Marco 400 (only had half a bucket on hand) before finalizing and cycling in a Brute container. Until then, let me know if there is anything you would change, leave, or remove. Ignore the large cement patches. Will take a Dremel to it once it is fully cured.

 

[mpatient]

It's been a busy, but productive week. I FINALLY got the aquascape done and cycling in plastic totes. I decided keep the totes inside rather than the garage to better regulate temperature. I used Dr. Tims and dosed with ammonia. Threw is several largish pieces of live rock to get things going. By the time the tank is ready, these should be teeming with the good stuff.

 

[mpatient]

I also started and finished the sump. I had been holding on to 2 glass panels from an old 60 gallon for several years knowing I would eventually want to do a sump. Turns out the glass was tempered. I called around to several glass places and 1/4" polished plate glass baffles were stupid expensive. On to Plan B. I ordered an acrylic sump kit off of eBay.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/REFUGIUM-KIT-for-36-x-18-x-17-40-GAL-Breeder-skimmer-sump-aquarium-filter/162218691352?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649

It came in 2 days, and I was extremely happy with the quality. Start to finish it probably took me 2 hours. That is including prep, measuring, taping, silicon and clean up. It was my first time using silicon, and it was way messier than caulking. If I had to do it again, I would cut the tip of the tube smaller, and do one seam at time. I would let the seam set and then on to the next one. I think there would be less clean up to do that way. I am still very happy with results, and would go this route again. I am going to let it cure for a full 2 weeks before putting water in it. Now that those two projects are done, it is sure nice to get my kitchen table back!

Moe has fully inserted himself in this build. Apparently everything needs his stamp of approval before I can proceed. ;Pompus








I am blessed to have a great guy in my life who supports me in this little obsession. Today, he brought over two new 32g Brute containers as a surprise. Yes, I was excited to see garbage cans! I had not planned on doing a mixing station, but looks like one is now going in the garage. I had priced putting a water line to the garage and installing a sink, but that was $1500 I would rather use on something else. I think I have come up with a plan. It will not be completely automated, but it will make water changes easier. I have ordered some plumbing parts from BRS, and I will tackle that project this weekend.

 

[mpatient]

Just a quick update.I am in a holding pattern at the moment. I received a call today from GC and my tank is ready! They are about 45 minutes from me, so Main Squeeze and I will pick it up Friday afternoon. Once I have it in my possession , this build is on! I spent the weekend setting up my mixing station, and organizating my spare room/office. It had become a depository for all my collected equipment and looked like a Going Out of Business sale for an aquarium outlet store. Everything is now organized according to use, and I am not jumping over skimmers and pumps to get to my desk. Also pulled down my Pod/Phyto farm equipment from the attic. It is actually a cool set up, and I will post pics later. I am just too tired from staying up to watch LSU (my Alma Mater) win the national championship. Geaux Tigers!

 

[ReefGrammie]

Looking good! I love the cat in the tank pic! ;Cat You'll need to let me know the best saltwater stores in Nashville. I have a son in the area and will probably be up that way soon. Congratulations on your national championship from an Auburn grad (War Eagle)! LSU undoubtedly deserved it this year. By the way, I was born in Baton Rouge! Small world...

 

[mpatient]

Looking good! I love the cat in the tank pic! ;Cat You'll need to let me know the best saltwater stores in Nashville. I have a son in the area and will probably be up that way soon. Congratulations on your national championship from an Auburn grad (War Eagle)! LSU undoubtedly deserved it this year. By the way, I was born in Baton Rouge! Small world...

It is a small world! I was born and raised in Thibodaux (yes, I am a true from the swamps Cajun). Got my Bachelors and MBA from LSU and moved to Nashville going on 28 years. Check out Emerald Bay, and Aquatic Critter. EB is tiny, but those guys are awesome, and have an excellent livestock and coral selection. AC is 5 miles from me, and they are a great group as well. Although the coral selection could be better, they have a big inventory of healthy salt and freshwater fish. They are extremely knowledgable, and the place is always hopping!

 

[New&no clue]

Exciting build, following along. I'm not a fan of aquascaping either... I'm just not creative. What do you use to glue your rocks together? I find this the most frustrating part. I finally find a placement I like, use super glue or epoxy and it always falls apart on me.

 

[ReefGrammie]

It is a small world! I was born and raised in Thibodaux (yes, I am a true from the swamps Cajun). Got my Bachelors and MBA from LSU and moved to Nashville going on 28 years. Check out Emerald Bay, and Aquatic Critter. EB is tiny, but those guys are awesome, and have an excellent livestock and coral selection. AC is 5 miles from me, and they are a great group as well. Although the coral selection could be better, they have a big inventory of healthy salt and freshwater fish. They are extremely knowledgable, and the place is always hopping!

Thank you!! I'm about 2-1/2 hours from Nashville and am up there pretty often. I've been known to transport coral in a cooler from Jacksonville, FL, so Nashville would be a nothing drive! My son keeps saying we need to check out the Nashville fish stores. My mom likes to tell the story that I was almost born on the side of the road before an LSU football game because the traffic around the stadium was so bad! That was a LONG time ago.