Here we go!!

[MeDatReef]

I have been planning a tank build for sometime after being out of the hobby for 6+ years. I wanted to make sure everything is well thought out and planned to perfection. Turns out this is taking a lot more time as there is so much new equipment, tanks, practices and information out now.

After almost pulling the trigger several times on a few different tanks, I kept hesitating because it wasn’t quite what I was looking for. I didn’t want to sacrifice my dream for my own impatience. An add popped up for Sea Cardinal AIO on Facebook one evening while I was doing some research and I clicked on it. Well, I spoke to my wife about it and she told me I should do it so I can find my dream tank without compromising what I want and hopefully relieve the pressure of finding something right this moment. I searched for reviews and information about the tanks and couldn’t find much of anything out there on them. The price was too nice so I decided to be a trailblazer and just go for it.

Fast forward 4 days and the shipment arrived yesterday. I didn’t waste any time setting it up. Overall, I’m pretty impressed with it. Is it perfect? No. Will it scratch the itch until I can build out my dream and not go into massive debt? We will find out, but I hope so!!!

I don’t have my Rodi unit hooked up yet, but it will be in the future fish room in the basement. The plan is to get plumbing in place and a utility sink installed next week. So we’re not getting wet just yet, but soon…. More to come!

 

[ieatbugman]

I'm excited to see how this goes!
Good luck!

 

[kevgib67]

Following!

 

[MeDatReef]

It’s been an insane couple of weeks, changes to fish room location, creating new plans, new plumbing, life in general, etc…. but finally got around to installing the plumbing, sink, and Rodi unit.

You’ll have to excuse the purple on the wall as primer and I don’t get along. It’s not pretty, but it’s mine. I’ve got a bit of drywall work to do still. And the water on the ground was a leak test before gluing the pvc. No leaks!!! However, when I took the drain apart, that water had to go somewhere.

It’s now in the garage, which will be my new fish room location! Scored a couple of 10 gallons on sale, which will be for my QT setup, but first let’s get this tank wet!!!!! Thanks all for reading through my journey so far.

 

[MeDatReef]

Finally! The water is in, pumps are running and lights are turned back off! Starting my fishless cycle tomorrow. I’ll be dosing Brightwell’s Microbacter7 with a piece of raw uncooked shrimp. I am thinking that I will be doing 4 cup water changes, daily. Get myself back into the swing of things. I’ll be running the brute trash can water storage method right now until I can track down some 100 gallon vertical storage tanks. Again, thanks for following along!

Oops, looks like I have some cable management to do.

 

[CaptJeff220]

How is this Cardinal tank doing? Wanted to get one for my quarantine tank.

 

[MeDatReef]

How is this Cardinal tank doing? Wanted to get one for my quarantine tank.

So sorry, I was on vacation and just seeing this! Overall pretty well! I will start with the cons.
-Heater: I wish it was a smaller watt, because it heats the tank over 82 degrees.
-Skimmer: cheap/flimsy/ parts don’t fit well together, loud, everything you think about when you see something no name in this hobby.
-Stand: although it looks nice, it’s very flimsy.
-Lights: I don’t like where they sit, it seems like they are too far back and a fair amount of light is blasted into the back chambers.
-Wave maker: didn’t last 24 hours before starting to make knocking sounds.
-DIY cover: horrible, I mean, it works….. but I can go into further detail if you want, but just throw it away lol.

Now for the pros!
-Tank: great footprint and seems well made.
-Return Pump/ plumbing: no complaints. More than enough power for this tank.

If I was asked if I recommend the sea cardinal tank, I don’t think I could. The cons far out weigh the pros. And majority of the items are very cheap/ something you won’t use for very long. I think there are far more better AIOs for around the same price point. I do really like the aesthetic that it has. It’s a very attractive kit. Just more-so for a beginner to get them up and running until they get their hands wet until they can build their actual setup. Hope this helps!!!!

 

[SeaCardinal]

So sorry, I was on vacation and just seeing this! Overall pretty well! I will start with the cons.
-Heater: I wish it was a smaller watt, because it heats the tank over 82 degrees.
-Skimmer: cheap/flimsy/ parts don’t fit well together, loud, everything you think about when you see something no name in this hobby.
-Stand: although it looks nice, it’s very flimsy.
-Lights: I don’t like where they sit, it seems like they are too far back and a fair amount of light is blasted into the back chambers.
-Wave maker: didn’t last 24 hours before starting to make knocking sounds.
-DIY cover: horrible, I mean, it works….. but I can go into further detail if you want, but just throw it away lol.

Now for the pros!
-Tank: great footprint and seems well made.
-Return Pump/ plumbing: no complaints. More than enough power for this tank.

If I was asked if I recommend the sea cardinal tank, I don’t think I could. The cons far out weigh the pros. And majority of the items are very cheap/ something you won’t use for very long. I think there are far more better AIOs for around the same price point. I do really like the aesthetic that it has. It’s a very attractive kit. Just more-so for a beginner to get them up and running until they get their hands wet until they can build their actual setup. Hope this helps!!!!

I appreciate your feedback and I'm sorry that our kit didn't meet your expectations. I'd love the opportunity to address any concerns and offer suggestions that might help improve your experience. Please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected], and I'll do my best to assist you.

I look forward to hearing from you and finding a solution together.