Lys' 55g Build

[lysaer]

So here's the setup:

55g AGA, 40lbs bimini pink sand, 25lbs CaribSea base rock, 25lbs Life Rock
4 stage 264gph canister filter with surface skimmer and UV
Lights are set...Actinics on at Noon, 12k whites at 1pm, actinics off at 2pm, actinics back on at 8pm, 12k whites off at 9pm, actinics off at 10pm. One 1350gph powerhead runs from 1pm-9pm, the other from 9pm-1pm. Tank temperature is maintained right at 26 degrees C from a 300w heater set up by the filter's spray bar.

I've got 5 coral frags sitting in a QT while the main tank cycles, which should be done anywhere from 5-10 days at this point.

Here's a shot with the actinics on - seriously, the whites went off *right* as I was lining up for the picture, I'll take another one later. Please pardon the salt line - that was from the fill at 30g while I went for more water!

https://goo.gl/photos/XBPASQS7nsYNwReQ9

 

[sureal00]

Might want to invest in a refractometer.It's more reliable than a hydrometer.Any fishes in the tank now?

 

[lysaer]

Eventually I will, but right now there's been too much into equipment/rock/sand, which is impressive since I already had the tank, stand, and light. How did I spend $500??!? lol

No fishes yet! Things are still cycling. At least I think they are. Ammonia's at 1ppm (was 3ppm last night) but I'm not seeing any indication of nitrites or nitrates, so I added Seachem Stability this evening to jump start things.

 

[lysaer]

Update 7/25:

Tank appears to be fully cycled - had my diatom bloom last weekend and they're starting to disappear. I broke a few rules, I KNOW, and started adding fish, corals, and inverts early but most seem to be doing fine. I've been careful not to add them all at one time. I have lost two corals, I think. The pipe organ one is not opening like it used to with the polyps coming out, but when I use my UV flashlight on them I can see the neon green inside the tips...but I'm not holding out hope. The other one is the rock that had some un-identifiable coral on it that I thought was a Zoa colony, but nothing's opened at all. I ended up tearing down my temporary QT and am setting up a new one (10g), although it's kind of after the fact now. Chicken vs egg, right? Anyway.

Current tank occupants: 2 yellowtail damsels, 2 black and white damsels, 1 six line wrasse, 1 peppermint shrimp, 7 red leg hermit crabs, 3 trochus snails.

I've started placing the corals I got from one of the AquaSD sales and those are all doing VERY well. They've colored up well since their arrival, and all the echinata/favia/acans are exuding their feeder tentacles (...whatever you call the short tentacles that exude out from around the mouths) noticeably - which based on pictures I assume is a good thing.

So, to list the corals, because yes I went a little crazy ordering in the sale but I love them all:
3 frags Australian Tiffany Favia
3 frags Australian Echinata
3 frags Australian Acan
2 frags "Fruit Punch" (zoas or palys...still not sure of the difference, but they are MUCH larger than the zoas I got from my LFS)
4 frags "Super Pink Tips" Stylos
1 frag Joker Platy
1 frag Midnight Glow Torch
2 un-named zoa frags (lfs)
3 random Australian Echinatas
1 frag Australian Prism Favia (lfs)

The "dead" mystery coral does have something bright pink growing out of a crevice...looks like it may be some type of an acro, but I'm just gonna let it grow to find out.

I think I need more rock in the tank, though. I'm not totally happy with the scaping as it is now, and I know I'm going to need at least one more rock to mount frags to.

I do have a question ... I'm studying up on water chemistry, trying to figure out all these different variables, and it seems I have an oddity. Or maybe not. I can't really tell. Based on one test, my KH is around 180ppm, and another test, my Calcium is 540-560ppm. That Calcium value seems really high, but I keep finding articles and threads on raising Calcium, not *lowering* it. I just did a 10 gallon water change on Tuesday, but I guess I need to do another one on Sunday.

Ok, FTS time. I'm going to hold off on detail shots until things start to grow in. Which will probably be several months.

 

[lysaer]

Oh, and based on reading of lighting articles, I've adjusted my lighting schedule. Actinics now come on at noon and go off at 10pm, while the 10k whites come on at 1:30 and go off at 8. I also ordered a controller for my powerheads which should be here next week, so I can do a better wave schedule.

 

[lysaer]

I sit corrected! The rock frag with what I thought was a dead coral has decided to show up as zoas today! not sure what kind, seem to be mostly purple throughout, but for the first time in weeks the polyps are ALL opening up and it seems to have used the downtime to propagate some! Apparently I'm doing something right. And the other "dead" frag still isn't showing polyps but is showing signs of restoration. I might be better at this hobby than I have a right to be.

 

[lysaer]

The adage "you get what you pay for" is never as true as it is when it comes to used electronics. I noticed today that one of my powerheads was running backwards - and not very well at that. Read up on the mechanics of how they work, and discovered that sometimes they will start backwards but that makes the propeller snap forward, get caught by the notched plastic at the front of the cage, which causes them to reverse direction. Took mine out of the tank, looked at it, and yyyyyeeeeep. The plastic notch is broken. Time to acquire a new powerhead!

 

[lysaer]

Tonight's chemistry:
pH: 8.3
Pho: between 0 and 0.25 - thanks, API, for being accurate.
Alk: 2.9 Meq/L
Ca2+: 500mg/L

need to bump Alk a bit, I think, and get a Magnesium test.

 

[kschweer]

The adage "you get what you pay for" is never as true as it is when it comes to used electronics. I noticed today that one of my powerheads was running backwards - and not very well at that. Read up on the mechanics of how they work, and discovered that sometimes they will start backwards but that makes the propeller snap forward, get caught by the notched plastic at the front of the cage, which causes them to reverse direction. Took mine out of the tank, looked at it, and yyyyyeeeeep. The plastic notch is broken. Time to acquire a new powerhead!

This happens a lot with the korila power heads. For the time Being while you get a new one I would run it constant instead of on the wavemaker and leave the other on the wavemaker.

 

[lysaer]

This happens a lot with the korila power heads. For the time Being while you get a new one I would run it constant instead of on the wavemaker and leave the other on the wavemaker.

I suppose I should update my own thread, lol!

I am now runnign two Koralia Evolution 1150gph powerheads off the wavemaker.

I have also swapped my light out for 2 165w WellPar LED fixtures - review thread is here: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/wellpar-black-box-led-lights-a-study-in-real-life.210370/ (I'll be updating that over the next few weeks as I adjust the lights up and watch how the tank responds)

 

[lysaer]

The powerheads I was running off the wavemaker were SunSun brand, by the way. Not sure if that was clear.

 

[lysaer]

Well, I'm back. Been an eventful 8 months. Everything was going fine til I went out of town for a few days in January, and while I was gone the power went out at home. When I got back, I found that my light timers were stuck ON, and I was now the proud owner of a 55 gallon algae farm. I tried for a while to save the corals that had not been suffocated by algae, but lost that battle. I decided corals were not in my near future so I just worked on getting the algae out and keeping my fish happy, and mostly managed to do so.

Until 3 weeks ago, when for some reason, a massive bacterial bloom happened and all the fish suffocated from a lack of oxygen. I couldn't figure out why at first and then I realized on top of the bloom, the canister filter had stopped working completely AND started a slow leak. Thanks to physics I was now the owner of several dead fish and a wet floor. I gave the fish their swirling funeral and drained the tank before I found the filter was the source of the leak.

I wrestled with giving up completely for a week. I'd put a lot of money into this, although I had cut corners to save some, and in the end, I was to blame for everything. I seriously considered selling everything, especially when I made a list of everything I needed to do this hobby the right way and did he math. In the end, I decided that if I was careful, and smart, and not impatient like I was when I started, I could do this properly.

So I am starting again, although not quite from scratch. I scrapped the canister filter (and there was much rejoicing), and installed a protein skimmer and carbon reactor. I drained the tank down to the sand and purchased an RO/DI filter. I've refilled the tank using RO/DI water and reef salt. I'm still trying to work out how I can incorporate a sump, because the stand I have doesn't really have room for one. I think I could fit a 10g tank under it but maintenance would be difficult so I'm drawing diagrams out to see if I could put a sump with a lid (to minimize evaporation/condensation) in the closet next to the tank. At the moment, the skimmer and reactor are HOB.

I thought I would have to start the tank cycle completely over, but when I was measuring salinity the other night I saw a hermit crab picking its way over one of the rocks. I turned the lights on and to my pleasant surprise, there were 3 crabs moving around visibly, and many snails on the glass and rocks as well! I'm not planning on adding any fish for a few weeks though, and longer still to add corals. I have planned out equipment to be added over the next few paychecks to spread out the cost, and if I don't add any more livestock (other than additional CUC) for several months I'm OK with that this time. I've learned my lesson. Upcoming additions will be a second reactor in series with the first, an HOB overflow (tank is not drilled), and some type of sump - whatever I can make work best.

Current tank parameters:
pH 8.3
Alk 9
Ammonia <.5
Nitrate 30
Phosphate <.25
Calcium 460

 

[lysaer]

Ending this build thread - I've picked up a 40g breeder, stand, and a good quality sump and I'm going to transfer to that tank. I may revive the 55 tank later but for now, I'm going to set this up proper and move all the rock and sand into it.