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Hello everyone! This thread will document the ongoing evolution of my new Cade 1800 S2 aquarium. I am a bit tardy in making this post as the aquarium has been setup since June 2021.
A little background on my journey in the aquarium hobby. I started my first reef tank (RedSea Reefer 250) in February of 2020. This was my first ever saltwater/reef tank after twenty plus years of keeping freshwater fish – mainly discus and Tanganyikan cichlids. I had my ups and downs with the Reefer 250 but I learned a great deal and that tank is in a very good spot (I will post some pics of it in this thread later). Of course, the Reefer 250 only served to whet my appetite for reef aquariums so I planned on getting a larger tank for some time. My wife and I just purchased a new home at the beginning of 2021 so after getting settled in I decided it was time to pull the trigger…
I looked at tons of different tank options but I decided on the Cade 1800 S2 (6 feet long, 171 gallon display,35 gallon sump); I really liked all of the features it provides and a nice deal with Algae Barn’s summer kickoff sale. The tank was delivered but I had to wait about a week before the moving company could come help me get the stand and tank into place. I placed it in my basement/man cave since my wife said I could only have one display tank in the house (a compromise since I do have a separate fish room – it is only freshwater tanks for now so I won’t go into much detail about it).
My current equipment list:
Next I filled the aquarium with saltwater – no leaks – and added the rocks.
With water added, it was now time to cycle the tank. I used the 4 month cycle method that I learned about from BRS videos so the first 2 months were dull – added Dr. Tim’s bacteria, gave the bacteria some fuel and looked at an empty tank with nothing but ambient light.
My first fish into the tank was a pair of da Vinci clownfish that I added just after the 3 month mark. After that, I added a few fish every couple of weeks until I reached my current stock list:
I would still like to add one more tang, either an achilles or gem, a flasher wrasse and a yellow coris wrasse but I am still debating if and when to add these.
My plan is to have a mixed coral tank with softies, LPS and SPS. I know a mixed reef makes things more complicated but I switched to the Reef Moonshiner method on my Reefer 250 (a mixed reef tank) and it really has helped with my tank; my zoas, LPS and SPS have never looked better. Therefore, I plan on using the Moonshiner method on this tank so that it will mitigate any issues with running a mixed reef.
I’ll post updates as I receive more livestock and equipment. Thanks for reading and happy reefing!
A little background on my journey in the aquarium hobby. I started my first reef tank (RedSea Reefer 250) in February of 2020. This was my first ever saltwater/reef tank after twenty plus years of keeping freshwater fish – mainly discus and Tanganyikan cichlids. I had my ups and downs with the Reefer 250 but I learned a great deal and that tank is in a very good spot (I will post some pics of it in this thread later). Of course, the Reefer 250 only served to whet my appetite for reef aquariums so I planned on getting a larger tank for some time. My wife and I just purchased a new home at the beginning of 2021 so after getting settled in I decided it was time to pull the trigger…
I looked at tons of different tank options but I decided on the Cade 1800 S2 (6 feet long, 171 gallon display,35 gallon sump); I really liked all of the features it provides and a nice deal with Algae Barn’s summer kickoff sale. The tank was delivered but I had to wait about a week before the moving company could come help me get the stand and tank into place. I placed it in my basement/man cave since my wife said I could only have one display tank in the house (a compromise since I do have a separate fish room – it is only freshwater tanks for now so I won’t go into much detail about it).
My current equipment list:
- VarioS-6 Controllable DC return pump
- 600 watt and 300 watt titanium heaters (using inkbird controller until I purchase an Apex)
- (2) Red Sea Reef Wave 45 gyres
- (2) Vortech MP 40 (I plan to purchase these at a later date prior to the addition of corals)
- (3) Radion XR15 G5 Pro lights w/track bar mounting system (I plan on adding a 4th light prior to adding SPS corals)
- Aquamaxx ConeS DRC-2 Controllable In-Sump Protein Skimmer
- Apex and Trident
- Dosing pumps (still deciding on what brand)
- Refugium lighting
- One additional XR15 G5 Pro
- 4 Vortech MP40s
Next I filled the aquarium with saltwater – no leaks – and added the rocks.
With water added, it was now time to cycle the tank. I used the 4 month cycle method that I learned about from BRS videos so the first 2 months were dull – added Dr. Tim’s bacteria, gave the bacteria some fuel and looked at an empty tank with nothing but ambient light.
My first fish into the tank was a pair of da Vinci clownfish that I added just after the 3 month mark. After that, I added a few fish every couple of weeks until I reached my current stock list:
- 2 da Vinci clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris)
- 3 dispar anthias (Pseudanthias dispar)
- 1 yellow tang (Zebrasoma flavescens)
- 1 whitetail bristle tooth tang (Ctenochaetus flavicauda)
- 2 watanabei angelfish (male and female)
- 1 crescent tail fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus lunatus)
- 1 orange back fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus aurantidorsalis)
- 1 striped blenny (Meiacanthus grammistes)
- 2 pyramid butterflyfish – still in QT (Hemitaurichthys polylepis)
I would still like to add one more tang, either an achilles or gem, a flasher wrasse and a yellow coris wrasse but I am still debating if and when to add these.
My plan is to have a mixed coral tank with softies, LPS and SPS. I know a mixed reef makes things more complicated but I switched to the Reef Moonshiner method on my Reefer 250 (a mixed reef tank) and it really has helped with my tank; my zoas, LPS and SPS have never looked better. Therefore, I plan on using the Moonshiner method on this tank so that it will mitigate any issues with running a mixed reef.
I’ll post updates as I receive more livestock and equipment. Thanks for reading and happy reefing!