First Build: IM 50g AIO, Mixing Station, QT Setup

[dangles]

Hey! First time reefer here.... This will serve as my build thread.

Tank
- Innovative Marine Nuvo Fusion Lagoon Pro AIO (50g) w/ APS stand

Controller
- APEX Jr w/ temp/pH monitoring
- APEX ATK w/ leak sensor and optical sensor in ATO reservoir
- APEX DOS for auto water changes (currently running at 1 gpd for a 14%/wk water change)

Mechanical filtration
- Filter sock on one side
- Filter fleece/carbon/GFO on the other side

Temperature Control
- 1x 200w BRS Titanium Heater on a Bayite Temperature Controller tstat (planning to replace with 2x 100w in the near future)
- 125w Ejeim Jäger heater for backup

Flow
- 1x Vortech MP10 on a Vortech Battery Backup
- 1x MightyJet return pump (538 gph)

Lighting
- 2x AI Prime 16 HD w/ 18" flex arms to achieve 14" mounting height

Tank Upgrades
- VCA Random Flow Generators
- InTankAquatics filtration cover
- InTankAquatics fuge basket

Mixing Station (situated in the basement directly below the tank)
- BRS 6-stage RODI filter w/ 150 gpd water saver kit, pressure booster pump, and auto flush
- 2x 44g BRUTE trash cans for fresh and salt water (circ pump and heater in salt water container)

QT Tank
- 20L tank
- Tidal 35 HOB filter
- Ejeim Jäger heater
- LED light from Amazon
- Auto fish feeder from Amazon

Everything is plugged into WiFi power strips that allow me to turn them on/off from my phone and set up schedules if needed (as examples... I use that feature for the QT filter during the auto-feeds, and for the cheap QT tank light).

I’m planning on upgrading my controller further to include an EB832, AFS x2, a couple of LLSs and the MXM when that's released. I also want to buy another DOS for dosing All-4-Reef and phyto. Maybe eventually the PM2 w/ salinity probe as well.

The under-tank cabinet is still a WIP. I'm looking into solutions for a nice, cleaner controller board, so don't judge me too harshly

Anyway let me know if you have any questions or suggestions!

 

[LouisianaReef]

I think you did a great job on that controller board. I am happy if I can just manage to keep it from being a rats nest of wires behind or under the tank!

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Tank is off to a great start!!

 

[kevgib67]

Every thing seems well thought out! I will enjoy following your build. Where in Ohio are you? O-H!

 

[dangles]

Every thing seems well thought out! I will enjoy following your build. Where in Ohio are you? O-H!

Thank you! PM incoming

 

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4 Month Update! Video is easiest but I'll post some photos as well.

 

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Quarantine update... I have a Midas blenny and Bangaii cardinal that have been in observation for almost 3 weeks now.



I made a brief overview video of my mixing station too since I was down there

 

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There she is

 

[taylored_projects]

I hope you keep doing updates and videos!

 

[dangles]

Just a quick update with a few recent upgrades...

I swapped out the filter sock for an InTank filter fleece holder. MUCH nicer

I added an EB832 and so far I've moved over my heaters (both primary and backup) onto that, as well as the fuge light and return pump.

I finally fired up the "refugium" caddy (also from InTank Aquatics) a little over a month ago. I peeled off some of the black adhesive from the back and I'm using the new AI Blade Refugium light to fuel it. I had a little trouble getting the cheato to grow at first despite high nutrients, so I turned the light up to full blast 24/7. It's working wonderfully now! I started dosing Chaeto Grow as well. My nutrients are great now so I removed the GFO I had been using to see if the fuge can keep up. My stock could probably be considered "low-moderate" for fish, but I feed sorta heavy so there's leftovers for the rest of the fish after my clowns and Midas blenny finish pigging out.

I also removed the carbon and replaced it with Maxspect's new Nano-Tech Clear Cubes. They're supposed to last a year in a tank twice the size of mine so I'm curious how they'll perform in place of carbon. I may add the carbon back for odor purposes.

I added the coralline-in-a-bottle from Algae Barn about 2 months ago. I’ve been seeing small white specs developing on the back wall and the glass for about a month but I've been scraping them off thinking they were just precipitation from my 2-part. I'm starting to think it's actually the beginnings of coralline algae lol. I'm going to leave it alone for a few weeks and see how it develops!

I did start manually dosing BRS 2-part to maintain a dKH around 9. I'm usually somewhere between 8.5 and 9, and I'm adding about 6-10 mL per day. I have another DOS that I'm currently using for AWC on my QT tank. I have a Tomini tang and a tail-spot blenny in there, due to be transferred in a couple of weeks. Once that tank is shut down I'll clean the DOS and start using it for the 2-part for consistency.

Five months in and I haven't seen any of the bad "uglies" - although there has been some film algae growing on the rocks. Between the newer CUC (including 2 urchins) and the refugium, it's starting to disappear. Otherwise the tank is still very clean and nice looking!

I'll try to post some photos of everything soon!

 

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Here’s the video to go with my last post…

Six Month Update

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I just installed my DIY controller board.

It’s facing sideways in the cabinet so I can get to the back of it through the cabinet’s side door. It’s really ugly behind it but all the cables are rolled, zip tied, and labeled.

I had some major Apex issues when I plugged everything back in to power. Nothing an hour with Neptune customer support couldn’t fix though!

 

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Six Months

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I added the MXM and upgraded to a regular A3 Apex over the past few days (my A3 Jr stopped connecting to wifi and Neptune support couldn’t fix it). The almost 2 weeks it took to get the new unit was awesome - not having any remote monitoring/control, AWC, or maintenance reminders. Sarcasm, obviously. I didn’t realize how reliant my tank had been on the AWC to keep my nutrients down. My phos got as high as 0.28!

Anyway here’s my newly updated controller board…

I plan to put a black PVC sheet against the back (left side of the photo) to cover that opening.

I like the MXM so far. It’s so much easier to get things setup through the Neptune UI on my laptop than trying to manipulate the little sliders and things through the phone app. I hated the AI and Mobius apps from day 1.

In other news, my Yasha goby (the one I didn’t see for 2 months and thought was dead) has finally moved to a spot that’s good for viewing. I’ll try to get a good video/pic of his new home soon. It also happens to be where the pistol shrimp resides. They’ve finally paired up! It only took 4 months lol.

The Tomini tang and Tailspot blenny that I moved over from QT 2 weeks ago are doing really well. The Tomini has basically taken charge of the tank (not mean, though). He swims all over and picks at the rocks all day. The blenny is surprisingly comfortable in the tank. I expected him to hide all the time but he’s found a spot on the tallest rock to just chill, right out in the open. He even swims around mid-water-column a lot of the time. He’s not timid at all!

Videos/pics to come…

 

[dangles]

Also...

Last night I was playing around with the MXM and turned the tank lights on after dark. Bright white. I saw a TON of particulate floating around the tank. I was really confused as to what it might be. I was worried that I screwed up the DOS 2-part settings and it was precipitating out of solution (I set that up yesterday, too).

Nope. They were copepods! TONS OF THEM. Swimming all around in the water column. It was really cool to see. I think I might be ready for a Mandarin goby

 

[BanZI29]

Just WOW!! awesome setup. everything looks great. cant wait to see corals in it

 

[dangles]

Just WOW!! awesome setup. everything looks great. cant wait to see corals in it

Thanks! I can't wait either. I have been holding off on corals because I'm probably moving in less than a year (I figured moving fish-only would be less of a pain than corals AND fish - even if only slightly!). But I may not be able to wait that long lol.

 

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June 28th Flyover

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The red circles (and arrow) are where the Yasha goby lives. It's a cool space because it has multiple entrances.

This is the second DOS I'm using for 2-part. The clear tubing and black Murlock adapters are driving me nuts lol. I ordered some replacements so I can make it all matchy-matchy