Hentz
Active Member
Welcome to my thread everyone!
Going to give you a brief build update from start to current, as I have not added my tank to this website yet!
Equipment:
Lighting: Hydra 26 HD x 3 / 3-Bulb T5HO Retrofit
Flow: Maxspect Gyre-150
Skimmer: Bubble Magus Curve 5
Return: Rio 1100 (Nothing special!)
Reactor: Vertex 1.5 ZEOvit Reactor
Sump: Trigger Systems Emerald 26 Sump
I previously ran a 75 Gallon SPS dominated tank. I thought I was moving out of my parents and the apartments I were looking at only allowed 55 gallons and under. So naturally I was excited about a downgrade/upgrade. All went well, I changed up my lighting from Reefbreeders, to Radion XR15 and realized that just wasn't going to do it for all my SPS. I then upgraded to an ATI 6x24 Dimmable unit which was phenomenal. Long behold, this was my setup at the time!
Months pass by, corals grow... So does my bubble algae.. And I begin to get frustrated. With what you might ask? Not having a sump was really getting to me. I was tired of having an HOB skimmer. I was tired of not being able to hide all my cords and have everything hidden underneath the stand. So I upgraded, to a sweet tank!
Crystal Dynamics 56 Gallon, 36x19x20.
Drilled in the back over flow, very solid stand, and a sump to come with it.
Loved this tank from when I saw it. I knew it was going to be something great! Couldn't wait to transfer! So I got to it and realized, holy cow. I have a serious bubble algae problem!! I scraped it all off, as much as I could, and got on with my life..
Transferring over, everything was okay.. Just felt out of place.. I glued everything to the rock but the tank just seemed... Blah to me.
So I got sick of it and finally found time to reorganize and restructure my aquascape!
Everything was going smooth, especially since I had just started ZEOvit! My corals were going crazy. Then it got a little scary, I lost color in almost all my acropora's. Why? Well the ZEOvit stones stripped my tank, so I just stuck through it and dealt with it. I also transitioned to two Hydra 26 HD's which was scary as well, coming from T5! Though everything acclimated well!
Then I got word from my friend that his roommate was moving out and I could move in, so of course I did! Got out of my parents finally, not that I don't love them.. But at 23 I just felt it was time to go on my own, kind of! I moved the tank and got it in place at my new house, in my bedroom. This was definitely a chore!
Finally got it to the new house and all set up!
I then went ahead and followed an old guide which was great. I didn't want to spend $200 on mounting equipment for my lights so I went ahead and used TV mounts that I slightly modified!
Then I happened to find a really good deal on a canopy a local reefer was selling that fit my tank PERFECT! This is when I would add the 3 Bulb Retrofit that had came with the canopy.
I loved it! I was now running T5 AND LED, best of both worlds! My Acropora's took to it right away, and quite well I might add!
I then bought a Gyre 150 from a local reefer. I just tossed it on to see if I even liked it. Not only did I like it, but my corals LOVED it, way more than my MP40's!
Here in Las Vegas, we had an event called the "Spring Bling", where vendors such as Reef Raft, Shipwreck Corals, House of Sticks, and others came to sell frags and show off their stuff. I of course couldn't resist, and ended up bringing home everything on this rack. Corals ranging from FH Blueberry, Pikachu, Hyacinth, WWA Mint Chip, RR Starlight, Strawberry Shortcake, Sunset Millipora, and various other Acropoas!
I got a little crazy and added a third Hydra 26 HD unit to my setup. My tank now is COVERED with lighting and should be able to allow all shapes and sizes over Acropora to grow all over my tank!
I finally let everything settle in and got around to gluing all my new frags down in their new permanent (hopefully) spots. This is where we sit right now
Cheers everyone and happy reefing. I will keep this thread updated as I'm always on this website!!
Going to give you a brief build update from start to current, as I have not added my tank to this website yet!
Equipment:
Lighting: Hydra 26 HD x 3 / 3-Bulb T5HO Retrofit
Flow: Maxspect Gyre-150
Skimmer: Bubble Magus Curve 5
Return: Rio 1100 (Nothing special!)
Reactor: Vertex 1.5 ZEOvit Reactor
Sump: Trigger Systems Emerald 26 Sump
I previously ran a 75 Gallon SPS dominated tank. I thought I was moving out of my parents and the apartments I were looking at only allowed 55 gallons and under. So naturally I was excited about a downgrade/upgrade. All went well, I changed up my lighting from Reefbreeders, to Radion XR15 and realized that just wasn't going to do it for all my SPS. I then upgraded to an ATI 6x24 Dimmable unit which was phenomenal. Long behold, this was my setup at the time!
Months pass by, corals grow... So does my bubble algae.. And I begin to get frustrated. With what you might ask? Not having a sump was really getting to me. I was tired of having an HOB skimmer. I was tired of not being able to hide all my cords and have everything hidden underneath the stand. So I upgraded, to a sweet tank!
Crystal Dynamics 56 Gallon, 36x19x20.
Drilled in the back over flow, very solid stand, and a sump to come with it.
Loved this tank from when I saw it. I knew it was going to be something great! Couldn't wait to transfer! So I got to it and realized, holy cow. I have a serious bubble algae problem!! I scraped it all off, as much as I could, and got on with my life..
Transferring over, everything was okay.. Just felt out of place.. I glued everything to the rock but the tank just seemed... Blah to me.
So I got sick of it and finally found time to reorganize and restructure my aquascape!
Everything was going smooth, especially since I had just started ZEOvit! My corals were going crazy. Then it got a little scary, I lost color in almost all my acropora's. Why? Well the ZEOvit stones stripped my tank, so I just stuck through it and dealt with it. I also transitioned to two Hydra 26 HD's which was scary as well, coming from T5! Though everything acclimated well!
Then I got word from my friend that his roommate was moving out and I could move in, so of course I did! Got out of my parents finally, not that I don't love them.. But at 23 I just felt it was time to go on my own, kind of! I moved the tank and got it in place at my new house, in my bedroom. This was definitely a chore!
Finally got it to the new house and all set up!
I then went ahead and followed an old guide which was great. I didn't want to spend $200 on mounting equipment for my lights so I went ahead and used TV mounts that I slightly modified!
Then I happened to find a really good deal on a canopy a local reefer was selling that fit my tank PERFECT! This is when I would add the 3 Bulb Retrofit that had came with the canopy.
I loved it! I was now running T5 AND LED, best of both worlds! My Acropora's took to it right away, and quite well I might add!
I then bought a Gyre 150 from a local reefer. I just tossed it on to see if I even liked it. Not only did I like it, but my corals LOVED it, way more than my MP40's!
Here in Las Vegas, we had an event called the "Spring Bling", where vendors such as Reef Raft, Shipwreck Corals, House of Sticks, and others came to sell frags and show off their stuff. I of course couldn't resist, and ended up bringing home everything on this rack. Corals ranging from FH Blueberry, Pikachu, Hyacinth, WWA Mint Chip, RR Starlight, Strawberry Shortcake, Sunset Millipora, and various other Acropoas!
I got a little crazy and added a third Hydra 26 HD unit to my setup. My tank now is COVERED with lighting and should be able to allow all shapes and sizes over Acropora to grow all over my tank!
I finally let everything settle in and got around to gluing all my new frags down in their new permanent (hopefully) spots. This is where we sit right now
Cheers everyone and happy reefing. I will keep this thread updated as I'm always on this website!!
