Fluval Flex 32.5G - Mixed Reef

K_Ruckle

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Good evening! Decided I'd go ahead and start a build thread for the tank my wife and I recently setup. It's a Fluval Flex 32.5G Saltwater Mixed Reef tank. Had a 55G saltwater tank back in high school (almost 15 years ago) and MAN has a lot changed! Below is some information on my tank:

Modifications to AIO stock items:

-Added Fluval PS1 Protein Skimmer
-Added Hygger Mini Wavemaker
-Added 2 In-tank-media baskets (1 chamber w/ chemi pure elite / bio media / and filter floss and 2 chamber w/ chemi pure blue / bio media / filter floss)
-Added Sicce 1.5 Return Pump
-Added 2 RFG Nozzles

Livestock currently:

Yellow Watchman Goby
Diamond Goby
2 Clowns
Neon Dottyback
CUC (4 turbo snails, 4 nassarius snails, 4 astrea snails, 8 hermit crabs, 1 emerald crab)

*Just added the emerald crab 2 days ago as I had a few bubble algae spots popping up on frags (yes they were dipped). I was skeptical after reading mixed reviews on whether or not the emerald crab would eat the bubble algae and WOW! He ate 5/5 in less than 48 hrs!

Corals currently:

1 Duncan
2 Blastos
3 Acans
1 GSP wall on back of tank
2 Ricordea mushrooms
1 Superman Rhodactis mushroom
Zoa Garden with 11 different varieties so far (i.e., Rasta, Pandora, Blue Hornet, Fruit Loop, Ultra Eagle Eye, King Midas, etc.)
1 Torch (purple w/ green tip)
1 Fruit Loops Micro Goniapora
2 Small colonies of clove polyps
1 Jack-o-lantern lepto

So far Zoa's are growing at a pretty quick rate / 1 Blasto has grown 3 new heads / & GSP has grown a bit

Tank's date of birth is 07/17/21 so coming up on 3 months. Cycled with Fritz. Was using API test kits early on but just ordered all Hannah Checkers.

Haven't had issues so far, however I've noticed that over the last week or so that my corals are open 2/3 of the day and the last few hours before lights out they seem unhappy. Some will be fully closed, some half closed, some fully open. Not sure what's up but hopefully the Hannah Checkers will shed some light , just don't trust API anymore as they have been very off from LFS Aquaspin testing. I'll attach a picture of what it looks like as of tonight (sorry, don't have lens to take better pictures yet) & some pictures we took early on.

Look forward to documenting this tank's journey & chatting with ya'll!

Kevin

1.jpg 2.jpg 3.jpg 4.jpg 5.jpg
 

kamehameha

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I've got the same tank! I like your rockwork a lot though! Also how much quieter is the sicce pump than the stock one? I just added wavemakers so I could turn that stupid stock pump off!
 
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K_Ruckle

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I've got the same tank! I like your rockwork a lot though! Also how much quieter is the sicce pump than the stock one? I just added wavemakers so I could turn that stupid stock pump off!
There is a significant difference; the sicce is definitely much more quiet if placed correctly. Make sure it's not touching the sides.
 

KonradTO

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Nice! I have the same tank and decided to switch to acrylic top so I can place some powerful leds on top! Is the wavemaker you using making enough flow?
 
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K_Ruckle

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Nice! I have the same tank and decided to switch to acrylic top so I can place some powerful leds on top! Is the wavemaker you using making enough flow?
Awesome! Let me know which top you used, I'm considering that upgrade in the future.

Yes --the wavemaker is great. Only use it on 40-60% most times and there is plenty of flow.
 

KonradTO

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Awesome! Let me know which top you used, I'm considering that upgrade in the future.

Yes --the wavemaker is great. Only use it on 40-60% most times and there is plenty of flow.
It's homemade top with 5mm acrylic. You can see the thread about it here

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/f...riginal-lid-with-led-bar.861382/#post-9447139

Mm.. I am considering to get a wavemaker too,for now I have no corals so the stock pump+ external filter provides enough flow I would say. Unfortunately it is really difficult to find hygger stuff here in EU, I might get the equivalent from jebao. Are you also experiencing lower water level in the central section of the filter or its because the stock one is not pulling enough water out?
 
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K_Ruckle

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It's homemade top with 5mm acrylic. You can see the thread about it here

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/f...riginal-lid-with-led-bar.861382/#post-9447139

Mm.. I am considering to get a wavemaker too,for now I have no corals so the stock pump+ external filter provides enough flow I would say. Unfortunately it is really difficult to find hygger stuff here in EU, I might get the equivalent from jebao. Are you also experiencing lower water level in the central section of the filter or its because the stock one is not pulling enough water out?
Not experiencing that in my central chamber so could be the stock return pump
 
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K_Ruckle

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Hi all! I'm seeking some feedback on dosing. I currently dose Red Sea Alk, Calc, & Mag manually and these are running out. I was thinking about trying out an AIO product like Tropic Marin All For Reef or Polyp Lab ONE. Anyone have a preference or can provide some input?
 

JNalley

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Hi all! I'm seeking some feedback on dosing. I currently dose Red Sea Alk, Calc, & Mag manually and these are running out. I was thinking about trying out an AIO product like Tropic Marin All For Reef or Polyp Lab ONE. Anyone have a preference or can provide some input?
I'm no expert, but all-in-one solutions dose the same equal parts every time and don't take into account that the elements are leeched at different rates, so you could potentially overdose something, and need to buy them separately anyway... I think this is much harder to track for things like trace elements, but it's still something to watch out for... Having complete control over something is a better starting point than having limited control...
 

darrow0903

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Good evening! Decided I'd go ahead and start a build thread for the tank my wife and I recently setup. It's a Fluval Flex 32.5G Saltwater Mixed Reef tank. Had a 55G saltwater tank back in high school (almost 15 years ago) and MAN has a lot changed! Below is some information on my tank:

Modifications to AIO stock items:

-Added Fluval PS1 Protein Skimmer
-Added Hygger Mini Wavemaker
-Added 2 In-tank-media baskets (1 chamber w/ chemi pure elite / bio media / and filter floss and 2 chamber w/ chemi pure blue / bio media / filter floss)
-Added Sicce 1.5 Return Pump
-Added 2 RFG Nozzles
Which RFG Nozzles did you get? 1/2 inch?
 
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K_Ruckle

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Are you using the stock light? I’m guessing it’s the Fluval marine 3.0. How do you find it?
Yes I'm using just the one stock light (fluval marine 3.0). It's working okay for me, although I'm sure a better light would have better results. One of my blastos has gone from one head to six heads in 5 months, and zoas are growing. No growth on some of my other stuff yet (i.e., duncan). Thought about getting a second marine 3.0, but worried about temp with the hood, and I like having the hood.
 

JNalley

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Are you using the stock light? I’m guessing it’s the Fluval marine 3.0. How do you find it?
you can buy a 2nd one from Fluval directly, they do not sell them off the shelf, the ones off the shelf are either too big or too small to fit in the stock secondary location. They are also more expensive by a fair factor, 220-ish USD because you have to buy the light and the transformer separately from them.
 

Lsuhunter

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THanks! Was it hard to remove those flippers? I was trying to take them out but they wouldn't budge!
This was one of the hardest things I had to do for the tank. I didn't notice much difference anyways and ended up putting one duck bill back on. It ended up getting to the point where I want to use the return nozzles for surface agitation for the surface scum issue, and just get better waver makers for flow in the tank.
 

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This was one of the hardest things I had to do for the tank. I didn't notice much difference anyways and ended up putting one duck bill back on. It ended up getting to the point where I want to use the return nozzles for surface agitation for the surface scum issue, and just get better waver makers for flow in the tank.
Yep, this exactly, I left both duckbills on to break water surface and use the wavemakers lower in the tank for flow.
 
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