FishGeist's 125g Build Thread

[FishGeist]

Greetings.

Suppose I should introduce this system as it currently is.

I will most definitely be updating this page as I get some quality pictures to add to this thread. So feel free to respond to what I have already posted here. For the moment this system page here on Reef2Reef is a work in progress. Feel free to say how it can be improved upon or upgraded.

Thanks

Tank/Glass Box

75 Gallon Marineland tank.
20 Gallon Aqueon Display Refugium.
35 Gallon Trigger Systems Sump

Control

Neptune Apex System
Neptune AFS
Neptune Trident
Neptune ATK V2
Neptune PM1
Neptune Leak Detector (Bottom of Stand)
Neptune OS-1 optical Level Detector (in ATK Reservoir)
Neptune Temp sensor No.1 (in Sump)
Neptune Temp sensor No.2 (in Display Refugium)
Neptune ORP
Neptune PH
Neptune Salinity
Neptune PH (in Calcium Reactor)

Flow

EcoTech Marine MP40
EcoTech Marine MP10
Vectra S2

Dosing

Octo CR-140 Calcium Reactor
5lb Co2 Tank
Kamoer Peristaltic dosing pump
Reborn Media w/ RE Mag
Currently set to 15ml dose
6.89 PH in reactor

Filtration

Filter Socks
Marine Pure Bio Ball
Marine Pure Blocks
Octo Skimmer

Lighting

EcoTech Marine G4 Pro XR15 x2 (Main Display)
Kessil A360X Refugium Light x1 (Display Fuge)

Algae Scrubber

Santa Monica Rain2 4x Gem Lights


Water Sanitation

Pentair Aquatics Smart UV 25 Watt.


Plumbing

BRS Gate Valves
Misc Schedule 40 and 80 fittings
Silicone hoses
HOB Tsunami Overflow

ATK Reservoir

NSF Certified 30 Gallon bought from Rural King

 

[FishGeist]

Wet Ware:

Crushed Florida Coral Substrate in main display
Carib Sea Black Volcanic sand in display Refiugium
Miscellaneous Shelf Rock
Rock Rubble

Salt:

Red Sea Sea Salt

RO/DI

9 Stage RO/DI from BRS, (I have really really really dirty water)

Inverts & Livestock:

In Refugium
6 Line Wrasse
Countless Feather Dusters
Countless Copepods
Live Rock
2x Very large turbo snails
4x Mangrove Trees
Algae Barn Chaeto 2x Softball size now

In Main Display
1x Clown Tang
1x Yellow Tang
2x Black Ocellaris Clown Fish
4x Blue Chromis
1x Silver/Yellow Belly Coris Wrasse
Rag Tag Band of Scarlet Hermits
Coraline Snails
Astrea Snails

Coral Livestock:

Orange Montipora Digitata
Green Star Polyp
TSA Clementine Zoa
Eagle Eye WWC Zoa
Purple/Yellow Favia
WWC Area 51 Blasto
TSA Green Garf Bonsai Acro
Blue Ricordea
Green Psammacora
Turquoise Mushroom
Pipe Organ
Aussie Lord Acan
Watermelon Colored Zoa
Tri Color Ricordea Mushroom

Unwanted Guests

Aptasia
Vertimid Snails
Pineapple Sponges

 

[FishGeist]

Captains Log:

7/12/20
Added 5x Peppermint Shrimp
Added 3x Scarlet Hermit Crabs

7/27/20
Added 1x cheap Mussel from pet store.
Added 1x Caribsea pink dry rock to display.

7/31/20
Added threaded grey pvc pipe from Rural King to the Santa Monica Rain2 filter drain. Had to grind out the base with a dremel to fit the 1.5 inch bulkhead. Replaced the 1/2 inch PVC Schedule 40 pipe. Routed pipe to the skimmer portion of sump. Very noticeable amount of sound reduction and salt precipitation on the sump due to the higher diameter drain pipe

8/1/20
Added small green mushroom (doing well)
Added yellow acropora, unnamed. (doing well)
Removed 3x mangrove trees growing in Hydroponic baskets to outside sunlight, and replaced 2x existing mangroves to grow on new white dry rock in display refugium.

8/4/20
Upped the Calcium Reactor output to 17ml from 15ml on the Kamoer Peristaltic pump.

8/8/20
Added small frag of pulsing Xenia to display Refugium.
Added small piece of pink shelf rock to display

9/9/20
Completely scraped and cleaned all sides of the sump of any detritus on the media. Cleaned the Ecotech Vectra S2 with BRS Citric acid and skimmer. Changed 30 gallons of salt water in the sump.

8/11/20
Re-Routed the skimmer fresh air intake to outside. Added a small mesh screen. *Noticable improvement in the PH of the tank according to the Apex dashboard.*
Also copy and pasted Terrance from Neptune Aquatics live stream on calcium reactors night and day scedule, will update status on this new Calcium Reactor schedule.

 

[FishGeist]

8/18/20
Added Coral:
Pipe Organ
Aussie Lord Acan
Watermelon Colored Zoa
Tri Color Ricordea Mushroom

 

[FishGeist]

8/20/20

Started dosing 4 caps of Reef Fuel every 3 days
PH has now stabilized and hovers around 8 to 8.15 with the outside skimmer line.

8/26/20

Shut down the calcium reactor to add more REMag to the reactor chamber. There is now a full bag in there. Seeing 1245 in my Mag readings from the Trident, we will see if it rises.


9/1/20
Used the Avast Marine break out box to route the new float switch in the Auto Top Off Resivior. Using the Neptune magnetic mount with a modified washer on the float switch to adapt. I will wait until the level goes down to see if I trigger an event in the Fusion dashboard. Now at 10ml on the Kamoer peristaltic pump, Alk is steady at 9.2 with slight variance.

9/15/20

Added stainless steel hinges to sump cabinet as the mild steel ones were rusting from salt creep. Added a Shaving Brush macro to the Display Refuigum. Glued some corals to miscellaneous rocks in the display. Pipe organ and GSP are growing like mad. All corals doing well. Peppermint shrimp decided his new home was in the HOB overflow.

10/31/20 (Halloween Update)

Corals growing well. Added some specimens from WWC and Tidal Gardens. Tried some new Gallicaria Marcroalgae in the refugium. It is doing fair, turning white to black as it's mood changes. Barbers brush Macro did not make it as I think the Turbo Snails destroyed it too much before I traded them in for Nerite snails. Nerite's not really at the same caliber as the Turbo's algae eating ability. I have surmised that I will probably need to rebuy them in the future.


11/3/20

Immediate results in all SPS coral including the WWC Rainbow monti after renewal of bio filter with Brightwell MicroBacter Start XLM soaked MarinePure. All Montipora exhibit extended pollups after biofilter renew. This leads me to believe that the phosphates/ammonia/nitrates were a tad high for them.

12/18/20

Tried a daily cube of frozen mysis for the tank, with higher than expected algae results. Switching back to the minimalist feeding schedule of TDO and Nori and occasional cube of mysis. Caulerpa algae is growing like mad along side the chateo and gallaceria. Tangs and chromis still hungry as ever. Added a new frag rack and rock for the chaos zoas to hopefully grow them to sell.

Existing Parameters:
PH: 8.00 low to 8.15 high
ALK: 8.9
Salt 35.7
ORP: 267
CA: 466
MAG: 1267
Temp Fuge: 78.6
Temp Display 78.3

Tangs, sponge Ecotech guards that fly off decided I should frag some Fire Digitata, so be it. Glued about 9 peices of Fire Digi to frag plugs to sell to a local aquarium shop. Nice haul, still deciding on what to get to grow out and sell.

Added a Red Flower Anenome and Brown/Green Flower to some rocks in the tank. People knock PetCo, but the stuff I've found has given me no fault at all. TSA and WWC are almost 1.3 hours away so when I need a quick fix I'll hit up PetCo or a local aquarium shop to find what I want.

Come to the realization "I need a bigger tank!"

12/26/20

Added a Leopard Wrasse to the fray. She is eating initially and comes out every morning to look for pods on the rocks. I have extensively seeded the tank with Reef Nutrition Trigger Pods in both the Display Fuge and Main Display. Also added a blenny to the Refugium.


12/29/20

Replaced the wet side of the MP40 that was 3 years old. Impeller looked dulled, and the clearances were not at all like new. Out with old in with new. Also added NEM guards on the MP40 and the MP10. I have to rearrange the outflow as I am adding random flow generators specced in 1".

4/11/21

Long time no update, LOL. In the prior months since last update, I've added a Leopard Wrasse, a whole slew of Acro's such as torts and bird nests, 3x flower Nems, added a Harlequin Shrimp that feasts on Asterina's every night.

Hardware wise, I added a Geo's reactor and filled it with SeaChem SeaGel, (Phospate remover/carbon) Also replaced the Pentair UV bulb and quartz sleve. In addition, I added an IceCap 2k Gyre pump. I really don't know what to say about this pump. It's phone application is absolutely hideous. I do not even use it anymore, (just power it off when feeding) I tried hooking it up to the 1-10v on the Neptune control yet it is so finicky, I don't even bother. Flow is good, so I guess it's a keeper for now.

Nothing has died (knock on wood) and all corals, fish and inverts are thriving.

 

[FishGeist]

Rearranged all the electronics from underneath the tank to a separate room. Being the cheap skate I am, I bought the smallest of aquarium electronic organizers. To solve the conundrum of lack of space, I shelf stacked an extra board to the top of the organizer to mount all of my EcoTech modules to the extension. My efforts turned out fine, but I am still in the process of finding a place for the power bricks.

Footnote: A hilarious sea urchin this morning decided to wear a frag plug of Utter Chaos Zoas on himself as a hat! My sea urchin has great taste! lol.