Gee's Eshopps M130 Build Thread

[AlyciaMarie]

The tank is looking great! Following along.

 

[Mattgee87]

Call me crazy, but sometimes an opportunity lands in your lap that you simply cannot ignore. I recently came across a "pennies on the dollar" deal that changed the trajectory of my system overnight. I managed to acquire an entire seller’s inventory of high-end SPS colonies.

I am fully aware that my tank is still in its early stages. Usually, the rule of thumb is to wait 6 months to 1 year before diving deep into Acropora and other sensitive species. However, I’ve spent months obsessing over the system's infrastructure to ensure it could handle a heavy load when the time came. This wasn't just a "toss them in and hope" situation. The secret sauce to making this move work was the biological transfer. Along with the coral, I took the seller's entire established Matrix filtration media and all of his live rock. By placing all that seasoned biomedia directly into my sump, I hope to have performed a biological transplant.

So far, the results have been incredible. The tank hasn't skipped a beat. My stability is holding firm, and I’m keeping a very close eye on the "Big Three."

The most interesting development has been the nutrient floor. With this many colonies suddenly demanding resources, my nitrates began to bottom out. To prevent the corals from starving or paling out, I’ve started dosing NeoNitro to maintain a detectable nitrate level. It’s a delicate balancing act, but seeing the polyps out and the colors holding has made every bit of the effort worth it.

It’s an ambitious jump for a young tank, but with the right biological foundation and constant monitoring, I’m excited to see how this "instant reef" matures. This was last night, and as you can tell, the coral seems happy

 

[Mattgee87]

Big news!

I just wanted to take a minute to publicly thank the team over at Eshopps and give a very special shoutout to Scott.

The updated sump for my Mariner M130 system came in!!!! Scott completely took care of me and made sure the replacement got to me quickly and without any hassle. I’m currently getting it all slotted, retrofitted, and dialed in for my setup.

It is always refreshing to deal with a company that stands behind its products and has customer service representatives who genuinely care about the hobbyists. Thanks again, Scott, for going above and beyond to keep my M130 running strong!

@ESHOPPS.INC