Home Office 40B AIO "Letterkenny" Build

[ScubaSnacks]

it's not horrible yet but it's bad enough. I noticed some cyano and was about to treat it and saw the diatoms that I thought were diatoms were actually dinos..... And my little buddy (tail spot blenny) passed away over night. I pulled him and put him in a 5 gal qt, but the other fish beat him up too much. he lasted 2 days. Not sure who went after him, but they did a bang up job. he had bites in his sides.

That sucks, sorry to hear.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

New Flow Video:


I picked up the Jebao MCP-90 and installed on the right back wall in vertical orientation, then moved the two ALW-10s to the left back wall. They're running in the equivalent of wave crest mode where Left fires, then both right fire. I also picked up two random flow nozzles and replaced the stock ones. So far pretty happy with the results. Everything is happy except the finger leather, but I'm pretty sure it's getting ready to shed again.

Other than that, nitrates and phosphates are stable at 5/.02, water changes brought salinity back up to 1.025, alk to 8.1, CA to 400, and Mg to 1440.

EDIT: One more thing... I think I finally figured out what to do with the negative space behind the duncans and hammers and doodled it to see what it might look like. Thoughts? On the hunt for a purple candelabra gorgonian or two...

 

[TheWB]

New Flow Video:


I picked up the Jebao MCP-90 and installed on the right back wall in vertical orientation, then moved the two ALW-10s to the left back wall. They're running in the equivalent of wave crest mode where Left fires, then both right fire. I also picked up two random flow nozzles and replaced the stock ones. So far pretty happy with the results. Everything is happy except the finger leather, but I'm pretty sure it's getting ready to shed again.

Other than that, nitrates and phosphates are stable at 5/.02, water changes brought salinity back up to 1.025, alk to 8.1, CA to 400, and Mg to 1440.

EDIT: One more thing... I think I finally figured out what to do with the negative space behind the duncans and hammers and doodled it to see what it might look like. Thoughts? On the hunt for a purple candelabra gorgonian or two...

I love the Gorgonian idea. I have a couple thinner branching ones that are more forward in my tank, becasue they don't fit anywhere else right now, but they were supposed to be background pieces like yours will be.

 

[BBarry]

New Flow Video:


I picked up the Jebao MCP-90 and installed on the right back wall in vertical orientation, then moved the two ALW-10s to the left back wall. They're running in the equivalent of wave crest mode where Left fires, then both right fire. I also picked up two random flow nozzles and replaced the stock ones. So far pretty happy with the results. Everything is happy except the finger leather, but I'm pretty sure it's getting ready to shed again.

Other than that, nitrates and phosphates are stable at 5/.02, water changes brought salinity back up to 1.025, alk to 8.1, CA to 400, and Mg to 1440.

EDIT: One more thing... I think I finally figured out what to do with the negative space behind the duncans and hammers and doodled it to see what it might look like. Thoughts? On the hunt for a purple candelabra gorgonian or two...

I have really been struggling to nail my flow. I thought I had it down but the area between the rocks and filter box was lacking. That's where most of my dynos started. And of course the view is obstructed by the rocks, so I didn't see them. I just added the smaller Hygger wavemaker to the center of the filter box blowing straight towards the front of the tank. It has a very wide flow pattern so I'll see how it works out. I have the larger Hygger on the back wall, similar to your top ALW-10.

I was tempted to pull the gyre and just go with to bigger wave makers but I kind of like where you are going with yours. I have my box the exact opposite of you (output on left, intake on right) so I'm thinking about trying the same thing you did. put my Gyre mounted the same way on the back wall, just opposite side.

Which random flow nozzles did you get? I wanted to try them too but haven't gotten to it yet.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

I have really been struggling to nail my flow. I thought I had it down but the area between the rocks and filter box was lacking. That's where most of my dynos started. And of course the view is obstructed by the rocks, so I didn't see them. I just added the smaller Hygger wave lolmaker to the center of the filter box blowing straight towards the front of the tank. It has a very wide flow pattern so I'll see how it works out. I have the larger Hygger on the back wall, similar to your top ALW-10.

I was tempted to pull the gyre and just go with to bigger wave makers but I kind of like where you are going with yours. I have my box the exact opposite of you (output on left, intake on right) so I'm thinking about trying the same thing you did. put my Gyre mounted the same way on the back wall, just opposite side.

Which random flow nozzles did you get? I wanted to try them too but haven't gotten to it yet.

I picked up these on Etsy.

I have an update...

So I rescaped this afternoon... All the same rock, just arranged differently. I have super glue all over my body.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

Everything looking good after rescape. The gorgonian that I ordered from Seahorse Savvy to go behind the old scape came in, and basically put it in the same place. Here it is as the sun was setting yesterday. I really like it!

My @Kraken Reef lid came in as well. Joshua had warned me that the lid might bow in in the back where unsupported around the AIO insert. Originally I planned on 3D printing them, but I don't have one, and I got a quote that was about 4x what I paid in materials for these and an AIO cover. I whipped up these stand-offs that also provides ledges for a cover over the AIO at the same height. A table saw, some super glue and some filing later...

Installed.

And with the lid.

And finally, the FTS.

 

[tharbin]

Everything looking good after rescape. The gorgonian that I ordered from Seahorse Savvy to go behind the old scape came in, and basically put it in the same place. Here it is as the sun was setting yesterday. I really like it!

My @Kraken Reef lid came in as well. Joshua had warned me that the lid might bow in in the back where unsupported around the AIO insert. Originally I planned on 3D printing them, but I don't have one, and I got a quote that was about 4x what I paid in materials for these and an AIO cover. I whipped up these stand-offs that also provides ledges for a cover over the AIO at the same height. A table saw, some super glue and some filing later...

Installed.

And with the lid.

And finally, the FTS.

This is probably the cleanest 40 breeder install I have seen. It looks like a major manufacturer assembly. Everything fits together well and nothing sticks out to say "Petco Tank". Really nice job. I also like your aquascape and livestock choices.

I would be proud to have this setup in my home. Very well done.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

This is probably the cleanest 40 breeder install I have seen. It looks like a major manufacturer assembly. Everything fits together well and nothing sticks out to say "Petco Tank". Really nice job. I also like your aquascape and livestock choices.

I would be proud to have this setup in my home. Very well done.

Thank you. Still a work in progress, but I'm excited for how it is going so far.

 

[BBarry]

Man I love their lids. They always look great.

Everything looking good after rescape. The gorgonian that I ordered from Seahorse Savvy to go behind the old scape came in, and basically put it in the same place. Here it is as the sun was setting yesterday. I really like it!

My @Kraken Reef lid came in as well. Joshua had warned me that the lid might bow in in the back where unsupported around the AIO insert. Originally I planned on 3D printing them, but I don't have one, and I got a quote that was about 4x what I paid in materials for these and an AIO cover. I whipped up these stand-offs that also provides ledges for a cover over the AIO at the same height. A table saw, some super glue and some filing later...

Installed.

And with the lid.

And finally, the FTS.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

Man I love their lids. They always look great.

I have extra of the stock i assembled to make the standoffs and can send you the schematic for the lid if you want it. You'll just need to cut to length and file the inside of the U for fit.

I'm going to use a few inches of it to make a wier for the inlet to raise the water level to the trim when I get around to it.

 

[BBarry]

I have extra of the stock i assembled to make the standoffs and can send you the schematic for the lid if you want it. You'll just need to cut to length and file the inside of the U for fit.

I'm going to use a few inches of it to make a wier for the inlet to raise the water level to the trim when I get around to it.

That would be awesome. I'll email you.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

I'm delinquent on posting this, but happy belated 6 months birthday to the Letterkenny reef. After 2 months of stability, got myself into a bit of a pickle. The rescape I did caused all of the algae that went from light to shadows to die off causing cyano, which killed the gorgonian which drove even more cyanobacteria to take over. Add to that the die off caused by the black out cover for the ATO and I really screwed up.

I did a bunch of sand vacuuming and water changes to no avail, so I caved and chemicleaned. No more cyano, and not too much of a nutrient spike - now at 10/.08 but hopefully that comes back down shortly with Microbacter and some water changes. Here was the tank this morning before I headed to the airport. Don't worry about the Duncans, they just got ran over by the urchin.

If you've been following along, you'll notice a whole bunch of new euphillia from @TeamAquaSD and @RiptideAquaculture. A few corals moved around and Goni ledge has two new inhabitants. Really happy with how things are looking, especially with that bright white sand. Another update either later this week or next week. One more torch, a few hammers, and a frogspawn to fill out the left overhang.

That is the bulk of the changes for now. I bought a 3D printer so some custom upgrades to come. I'm most excited about making my own custom wifi connected auto feeder, and third light mount to enable SPS at the top of the reef.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

When I got back from Boston on Weds, my 3D printer had arrived. I spent the last few nights setting it up and tinkering. Last night I printed the AIO cover support, the stand offs, and the removable access lids. I'm pretty happy with the result.

@BBarry, I'm printing your standoffs now but probably won't get them in the mail until week after next. Back to Nashville this week. The 6 week break from travel was nice, hopefully I'll get another after this week.

Edit: they just finished.

I'm honestly surprised it's taken me this long to get a 3D printer. I've been doing 3D modeling in various CAD suites for nearly 20 years... Better late than never, I guess.

A few new corals came in - a couple hammers, a frog spawn, torch, a different Duncan morph, and @TeamAquaSD threw in a freebie monti. I don't have the PAR for it (yet), but we'll give it a go. This is the last order I had open. I'll wait a few weeks until the next big sale.

Until next time!

 

[BBarry]

When I got back from Boston on Weds, my 3D printer had arrived. I spent the last few nights setting it up and tinkering. Last night I printed the AIO cover support, the stand offs, and the removable access lids. I'm pretty happy with the result.

@BBarry, I'm printing your standoffs now but probably won't get them in the mail until week after next. Back to Nashville this week. The 6 week break from travel was nice, hopefully I'll get another after this week.

Edit: they just finished.

I'm honestly surprised it's taken me this long to get a 3D printer. I've been doing 3D modeling in various CAD suites for nearly 20 years... Better late than never, I guess.

A few new corals came in - a couple hammers, a frog spawn, torch, a different Duncan morph, and @TeamAquaSD threw in a freebie monti. I don't have the PAR for it (yet), but we'll give it a go. This is the last order I had open. I'll wait a few weeks until the next big sale.

Until next time!

looks awesome. sorry, been busy and haven't been on here much. I did message ya though

 

[TheWB]

I gotta echo @tharbin post above. This might be the nicest looking set up of a 40b I've ever seen with the aio section and the way the skimmer is recessed seemlessly with the covers and lids. You've really done a great job with this, it does look like one complete kit rather than pieced together.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

I gotta echo @tharbin post above. This might be the nicest looking set up of a 40b I've ever seen with the aio section and the way the skimmer is recessed seemlessly with the covers and lids. You've really done a great job with this, it does look like one complete kit rather than pieced together.

Thank you. Sorry for the lack of updates. When I got back from Boston, a couple corals succumbed to the cyano. Which caused a nutrient spike. Sea urchin dropped it's spines.

Things are back to stable, the remaining corals are happy, and the urchin is already growing spines back. I have a bag of chemipure blue in the aio now. Hoping that helps with the phosphates that seem to plague me.

We added two more fish - a pair of PJ Cardinals called Reilly and Jonesy. They fit in with the crowd great. One more fish on the list!

Pics soon!

 

[TheWB]

Thank you. Sorry for the lack of updates. When I got back from Boston, a couple corals succumbed to the cyano. Which caused a nutrient spike. Sea urchin dropped it's spines.

Things are back to stable, the remaining corals are happy, and the urchin is already growing spines back. I have a bag of chemipure blue in the aio now. Hoping that helps with the phosphates that seem to plague me.

We added two more fish - a pair of PJ Cardinals called Riley and Jonesy. They fit in with the crowd great. One more fish on the list!

Pics soon!

Cool. Looking forward to the new pics. Always fun to get new fish, I haven’t got a new one in a looong time.
I use a bag of chemipure elite regularly and it does a nice job helping to keep the nutrients manageable.

 

[BBarry]

Awesome! My Dino battle looks to be winding down. Had some casualties but we're grinding it out. Dosing system arrived today as well as my Adaptive Marine controller board. Should be interesting setting up a dosing system on a tank with no sump. Scuba and I have almost identical tanks so it's always fun to compare and try things. He's helped me a ton and hopefully I at least entertained him in our conversations HAHA

I am setting up a new 10 gallon QT tank
Then repurposing my 20 long peninsula to a frag tank. (this was my old QT tank)
Finally I got a 15 gallon Innovative Marine cube that I need to find a spot for and get running.

Man I'm going to have to start a thread documenting all this like you did Scuba LOL. Just need more hours in the day

 

[ScubaSnacks]

Awesome! My Dino battle looks to be winding down. Had some casualties but we're grinding it out. Dosing system arrived today as well as my Adaptive Marine controller board. Should be interesting setting up a dosing system on a tank with no sump. Scuba and I have almost identical tanks so it's always fun to compare and try things. He's helped me a ton and hopefully I at least entertained him in our conversations HAHA

I am setting up a new 10 gallon QT tank
Then repurposing my 20 long peninsula to a frag tank. (this was my old QT tank)
Finally I got a 15 gallon Innovative Marine cube that I need to find a spot for and get running.

Man I'm going to have to start a thread documenting all this like you did Scuba LOL. Just need more hours in the day

Definitely entertaining . You've definitely helped in slowing me down on corals and speeding up on fish. I usually just post while watching TV in the evenings or waiting on acclimations. It definitely helps that I work from home and the tank is just feet away. I do most of my maintenance while sitting on calls.

This week my goal is building the foreground rock work. It was something I didn't tackle when doing the major re-scape a few months ago.

The plan is to replace the rock on the very left with something smaller with a mounting spot for one more hammer, and the two zoa frags currently there. Next, the Duncans need to be moved as the Tailspot nips them protecting his territory (more on that later) so those will be moved to an island in front of the left overhang. When that grows out, I'll probably sell to LFS for credit towards a cynaria, acantho, scolly, wellso, etc. Finally, I'm thinking I need to relocate the Tailspot. I also need to build in some height in the middle foreground so I'm going to kill two metaphorical birds with one literal stone/barnacle centerpiece. The leather coral will mount to the top of this piece. This leaves a very naked right side. Fingers crossed for some inexpensive hammers/spawns in the next live sales.

I've gotten all three rocks glued together and barnacles are arriving today. On hold for a few days as I ran out of super glue. Took this picture to hopefully help with visualizing what I'm talking about.

 

[ScubaSnacks]

So I found some glue and the barnacles shower up. This is what I'm thinking for the center piece.

Here's another angle - more like how it would be viewed when in the tank.

Hopefully this makes more sense lol.