Mattdg's 120G SPS / Mixed Reef Build and Progress

[Chessmanmark]

I know what you mean about that sweet spot. I’ve seen hobbyists go from having success in a 90 and then struggle with a 120.

I bought my 90 in 2004 and have fantasized about a custom tank for years. Then I “window shopped” a Red Sea Reefer, a Waterbox and recently a Nuevo INT 150. I’ve always wanted to go deeper, but I would like my tank to be 5 foot long. Maybe after I put my kids through college.

Right now I’m just trying to get my reef back on track. It’s been 11 months since I started rebuilding. Some of the frags I acquired are starting to turn into mini colonies. I’m enthused about the hobby again and happy with my tank as it matures.

If you haven’t followed Matt’s YouTube channel @Craft Aquatic, then you’re missing out. His reef tank videos are very professional.

Check your Reef2Reef mailbox Matt. I sent you a PM last month.

 

[mattdg]

I posted a new Craft Aquatic video for October. In it, I share some of my best reef keeping tips and tricks, while trying to keep it somewhat entertaining. Check it out!

 

[mattdg]

My two saucer sized OGB mushrooms have been steadily putting out splits. Here's what I have collected over the past few years. At least, the one's that don't float away and stay mounted. Will definitely have to sell a couple soon, or better yet trade for a few more high end bounces.

 

[mattdg]

The tank is doing well, heading into the colder season. I do always notice the coral react to the PH shifting, as we start to close up the house. The SPS loses some of its brilliance as it adjusts. Some of that has been curbed by the new AWC system I recently installed. The pictures below are of the new saltwater mixing station, sitting next to our frag tank downstairs. I am currently changing around 3/4 of a gallon per day. It's been two weeks since everything was finally implemented. It was a long a tedious project, but so far, well worth the effort. It felt so good to skip that first 13 gallon water change last Saturday. I do plan on doing a 30 - 40 gallon change every 3 months. Really hoping between that and the gallon or so a day, I will not need to return to every other week. I feel like the added stability and consistent trace throughput is already beginning to show.

BTW, my son and I thought the blood shot eyes on Mr. salty, were appropriate. The right side is fresh RODI. Another thing that is SO nice to have. There are two ball valve operated spigots, one for SW and one for FW. On demand is the only way to go, from now on. The down stairs coral farm has become an entire system in itself. The added benefit of the mix station is simply cutting down on manual labor, when it comes to both tanks.

When I start projects like this, I always question if the cost and effort will pan out. It is not always the case. All said and done, this was a $1200 install and hours of work, with all plumbing, dosing pumps, wood, tubing and parts. The bucket and hose I used previously were free. Was it worth it? So far yes. Plus, the point is that after all of this pandemic stuff blows over, our family will be able to leave these tanks to care for themselves and go travel for a month at a time. I know we are all looking forward to that, but is convenient to have extra time around the home to finally tackle some of these herculean projects.

As far as the 120 mixed reef, I sold some of the larger coral colonies to make way for new SPS frags that I have been wanting to add. After almost 3 years, this tank is reasonably stable. I have most recently acquired a Tyree superman tenuis, TSA Bill Murray, Cherry Bomb Tenuis, pinky bear, JF solar flare, the vingh, ORA pearlberry, TCK inferno, TCK dark dragon and a few others. The RMF Acid trip and Voodoo magic that have now been in since end of last year, are finally starting to branch out and really color up. Very exciting to see. The Homewrecker and OP are looking big and amazing, while the WD is still a bit lack luster, back from when I was having issues with flow. No longer, with my kick butt Tunzes.

I am optimistic about where things are at and patiently wait for the new frags to fill in their chosen areas of real estate.

 

[mattdg]

I don't think I have ever posted a picture of the frag tank we have in our basement.

Here it is. It has been invaluable for maintaining the upstairs reef, as well as raising some cash to pay for aquarium consumables.. The system is three tanks, plumbed to a central sump. Very simple and effective. The 15 gallon on the left is a low flow, dimly lit mushroom and LPS growout. The middle tank is high light / high turbulent flow. The one all the way to the right is medium light with laminar flow. They have all worked very to grow out a wide variety of coral.

The next thing will be to add a cube under the 15 gallon rubble tank. I refer to the overall setup as the rack and rubble frag system. The cube will be independent from the rack and rubble system, to house leathers. The red light you see above the tanks is for the mangrove I have growing, just beyond the frame in this picture.

 

[mattdg]

Here is the newest video where I outline the Saltwater Mix Station build and show what I am currently using for my Auto Water Change (ATW) setup.

 

[mattdg]

I've already posted these pics two other places on R2R, but wanted to park them here since I think they are excellent reference of how the tank is doing and a few additional interesting points. The Jason Fox Homewrecker on top is shown under Blue LED's only. The one below a mixture of blue / white and T5.

It really stands out, how different this particular tenuis looks when its fluorescent pigments are being excited by the blue LED's. IMO, it looks very nice under white too. With that said, the most interesting thing to me, is not the light at all. Under enough PAR, any brand of LED can assist in developing dazzling coral color, in this case a viparspectra black box. What is clear is how much better the color is, where the branches are being exposed to higher flow. In the case of this picture, towards the bottom of the shot. There is a Tunze 10" away, forcing 3500 GPH of water just past the tips. Overall turnover in this tank is around 20,000 GPH, if you believe the volume ratings on each circulation pump.

Of course, 8 months of relative stability, stable nutrients, keeping my hands out of the tank and especially not playing with my LED settings is also important.

 

[Chessmanmark]

There has been a lot of talk about PAR with regards to lighting, however there are many lights that provide plenty of PAR and one of the lessons to be learned with all these choices is that spectrum is the variable that can make the difference for the most eye pleasing color we see in corals.

I prefer the second picture. That being said you get to enjoy the best of both worlds with the ability to change the spectrum.

As far as the Tunze goes, do you have the wave maker controller for it? I have a Tunze nano pointed at some SPS that crosses the return output with a Stream on a controller on the other side.
You have a lot of power heads in your tank, and I think you have a couple of Votechs on the back that are wavemakers. Breaking up that linear flow as much as possible makes for an interesting display and effects growth.

For example, Randy gave me a red Cap that grows flat in his tank. He gets random flow from his VorTechs, but in my tank this coral scrolls. You can see some acros that grow long like a stag while this same acro can grow in a tight formation in another tank with different flow.

I know you like to place the same coral in different places in your tank. You must have plenty of examples of the subtle differences that you observe. The Bubble gum Digi probably shows green tips with less light. A Red Planet shows green with less light and looks pinkish with high light. That Exquisitor acro loses the green tips with higher lighting. Your PC Rainbow looks different in your frag tank than in your display.

 

[mattdg]

There has been a lot of talk about PAR with regards to lighting, however there are many lights that provide plenty of PAR and one of the lessons to be learned with all these choices is that spectrum is the variable that can make the difference for the most eye pleasing color we see in corals.

I prefer the second picture. That being said you get to enjoy the best of both worlds with the ability to change the spectrum.

As far as the Tunze goes, do you have the wave maker controller for it? I have a Tunze nano pointed at some SPS that crosses the return output with a Stream on a controller on the other side.
You have a lot of power heads in your tank, and I think you have a couple of Votechs on the back that are wavemakers. Breaking up that linear flow as much as possible makes for an interesting display and effects growth.

For example, Randy gave me a red Cap that grows flat in his tank. He gets random flow from his VorTechs, but in my tank this coral scrolls. You can see some acros that grow long like a stag while this same acro can grow in a tight formation in another tank with different flow.

I know you like to place the same coral in different places in your tank. You must have plenty of examples of the subtle differences that you observe. The Bubble gum Digi probably shows green tips with less light. A Red Planet shows green with less light and looks pinkish with high light. That Exquisitor acro loses the green tips with higher lighting. Your PC Rainbow looks different in your frag tank than in your display.

Mark,

I do agree that the majority of the pigment (pleasing color) being excited in our coral does in fact have to do with the spectrum. Steady, appropriate PAR can encourage these pigments to further develop over time. Spread and mix can help with both. Simply raising an LED fixture that struggles with spread and mix (assuming it is powerful enough, which most are) can make up for both of these shortcomings.

Interesting that you prefer the second picture, but coming from a metalhalide user, perhaps it's a preference towards the whiter spectrum? I like both, but if I had to choose one, it would be under the blue LED's. It will be interesting to see how yours develops under the halides.

The tunze that is closest to the HW, does ramp up and down. I forget which model, but it is one of the big boys. I tend to not use the pulsing wave making functions, unless as you mentioned, in conjunction with a mixture of pumps to encourage turbulence throughout the tank, especially at the surface. Really, increased turbulence is what I am mainly going for.

Interesting regarding the capricornis that Randy gave you. I'd love to see a side by side comparison.

Very true about the bubblegum digi and my exact experience with the Red Planet, in the past. The exquisitor is an interesting example, but in my experience is effected the most by shifting tank parameters. The PC rainbow is another one of those coral that has a personality disorder. Right now in my main display, a small frag placed lower down is almost entirely green, while the colony higher up is a mixture of red / brown / green with subtle purple highlights. It is a very interesting SPS coral. It's either growing out of the tank or on complete pause, but like I said before, locking in nutrient levels and overall parameters has been key.

 

[Chessmanmark]

When you gave me a frag of the PC Rainbow I placed it on a frag rack on the side of the tank. It displayed three colors, but the top part looked more brown than red. I didn’t mount it until months later, and when it got more direct light it showed more red. It wasn’t until I added the Reef Brite XHO that it became a real stunner. Since then the red part on top has become much richer and the tips are now purple. Interestingly enough the base is still green and the middle is gold. It’s a beautiful acro under the XHOs especially.

 

[mattdg]

AWC dosing pump update, carried over from another thread I started.

I have had the two 50ML/M BRS dosers installed for a month now. I am pretty impressed with their performance and reliability, so far. I would still like to figure out a way to run the return doser in conjunction with the ATO's float switch, but have temporarily installed a second float switch in the event the system gets stuck on. Still waiting for the Versa's to come available, but becoming more and more comfortable using the BRS dosers, the longer I wait. I may just purchase two more for the frag system and be done with it.

I basically hooked up both BRS dosers to a simple timer. They perform a 1 gallon water change daily. 1 gallon a day perfectly matches my total previous water change volume (slightly more). I do notice a slight variation in input/output, due to the mix station being 8 feet below the tank. The peristaltic pumps are positioned next to and 3/4 up, behind the 120 gallon mixed reef. So far, I am compensating for the variation by increasing the SG in the new water reservoir to 1.030. Fingers crossed, but this is working perfectly. Display tank is stable at 1.025 and I can adjust downstairs SG as needed. It also has the added benefit of adding a bit more salt mix to the system, than the actual 1 gallon water change.

Note: I recently left the system on it's own for a week and through a 4 hour power outage. All backup systems worked and everything survived. I installed wifi cameras to monitor all of the critical components of the system, just in case I needed to call for help or rush home. I was more concerned with my RODI than my AWC (high street pressure in the water pipes due to needing a new household expansion tank and pressure regulator) which for me, says it all.

As far as the mixed reef, there is a VERY noticeable difference in the overall stability, health and color of the coral. Now that I have implemented AWC, I will most likely never go back.

 

[mattdg]

A Protein Skimmer Update, carried over from another thread I started.

So I went ahead and ordered the Lifereef SVS3-24 modded to fit my 24" max height and 10" sump area. It was close between that and the Tunze, but here is why I finally settled on this decision.

I found Jeff to be a wealth of knowledge. Speaking with him in person, filled in all of the holes in my knowledge of skimming. I like the idea of purchasing a product from a company / craftsman / owner, that always picks up the phone, answers all of my questions and passionately stands behind his products. One of my criteria was to get something that will last for many years... done.

I actually prefer the concept of Venturi only skimming. Not a huge needle wheel, or DC motor fan, so this works for me. Being able to choose any pump is critical for longevity, affordability and keeping up with improving AC/DC motor tech, if I choose to. With that said, I ordered it with the supplied Mag Drive. I want to see how it works, AS IS. I'll replace it with another pump, if I am not satisfied. I can always use an extra Mag Drive somewhere.

I chose the SVS3-24 over the SVS2-24, due to it coming with the flange, for future expandability.

This is a heavy duty skimmer. Even though I have a high bioload, I tend to skim light and run a nutrient rich system, utilizing several means of nutrient export. I will put it on a timer, if I feel it is skimming too heavily. The timer could actually help, if it does end up being too noisy in my quiet living room. I can run it at a time when no one is sitting on the couch, back to the tank. I will of course report back, when I have installed the unit and ran it for several months. I don't think I'll be installing it until after the holidays anyway, just to be safe.

As far as good value, I think the points above cover this. It was at the mid to high end of my budget $641 shipped, but I believe the price is justified.

As I stated, I prefer equipment that is simple with as few things to fix / maintain / adjust / replace / plug in / screw up, as possible. According to Jeff, you don't even really need to clean this skimmer. The Venturi is as straight forward as it gets, unless a foreign particle clogs it. It sounds like removing a small plug and utilizing a special brush will take care of that. Please let me know if you have had any experience with maintenance on your lifereef skimmers. Have you needed to perform regular cleanings, other than emptying the cup?

As far as build quality, I don't think a skimmer could be any more beautiful. I can't wait to receive mine, ordered it with a deep maroon/red red flange and skimmer cup cover, black used for all other fittings and unions.

 

[mattdg]

The Lifereef SVS3-24 has been installed for 3 days. It was well packaged and the skimmer itself looks and feels like an original work of art, which it very much is.

It took a few days to start producing skimmate. I assumed it would. The turbulance in the skimmer body is truly something to behold. Due to my long, detailed conversation with Jeff, the footprint and height came out 'spot on'. Fits in my sump like a glove, with a little room to spare. The Mag Drive Pump, that Lifereef included, is working perfectly. It's quiet and seemingly sized appropriately. I don't think I'll see any need to swap it out. I did apply the rubber cushion, that he supplied upon my request, to the bottom of the skimmer and the pump, which I am sure helped with any potential noise. It is also worth noting, that I built my stand dense and heavy, which also goes a long way to reducing cabinet resonance. The hose that connects the skimmer cup to the venturi does a amazing job at quieting the hiss that is produced, to almost inaudible, when the cabinet door is closed.

This is by far, one of the nicest pieces of reef keeping equipment that I currently own. I'll post some pics and a link to a video soon.

 

[mattdg]

Top down photos of colonies and some newish SPS frags

Walt Disney Tenuis and Fox Flame Acropora. Upper left of the WD is a cherry bomb tenuis, very slow grower, but just starting to impress. The blue acro above the Fox Flame has been in my frag system for awhile. It could be a number of things, but has taken on a rich lilac hue, since being in my display tank. I look forward to seeing where it goes from here.

Bill Murray recently added. I was very excited to finally acquire one of these. Like the Acid Trip below this, it was not cheap, but I LOVE the colors. One of the most amazing coral I've seen as a colony, in pics.

RMF acid trip FINALLY starting to branch out.

One of the yellow/orange acropora is a Jason Fox Solar Flare and the other is a TCK inferno. In person, there is a slight color difference, but very subtle. I'm hoping it becomes clear which is which, as they grow into larger colonies. All the way to the left is a coral recently given to me by a reef2reef member. I believe it's a yellow lokani, deepwater species. Looks quite a bit more yellow in person. Looking forward to seeing what it does.



The Red Dragon is one of my favorites (the teal coral in front is "The Vingh") and generally grows well in this setup. It prefers the T5's, which is what I originally grew it under. It is basically directly between the AI Hydra 64HD and T5 strip. The SPS frags are all growing up into colonies, I need more light coverage overall so will soon be upgrading the lighting system to include two additional 48 inch LED strips and the two t5 strips along with the Hydra 64 HD's. I will be swapping out the second Viparspectra, once I post a black box Verses AI Hydra 64 comparison video to the channel. It has been a very interesting experiment running a cheap black box along side the high end Hydra, for almost a year.

 

[mattdg]

These yellow with green streak, Acan Lords are really something else. They make me smile every time I look at the tank. I acquired them from Unique Corals, two years back. They've settled in to this color, so I am cautiously optimistic that I have a true yellow variety, which in my experience, has been hard to find.

Just one of the coolest Acropora in the hobby, this is my Oregan Tort. SLOW grower, but I love having a good solid blue in my main display. The ORA Borealis comes in a close second. Upper right is a tiny frag of the Strawberry shortcake that used to dominate the upper left portion of the reef. I had some issue with it and decided to frag it down and start over. I am very happy with that decision, as it helped to motivate finally adding some of the high end SPS I've been dreaming about for years.

I grabbed a picture of these nepthea, while I had the camera in the top down view box. I never really see them, as they have yet to become large enough to peak over the island of SPS coral in front of them. The darker green variety to the right is stunning in person. Hoping they will eventually form a flowing backdrop, along with Randy's gargonian, immediately in front of them.

View from the front. To the left, just above the bright red flower pot, Jason Fox Limelight hydnophora is taking off. I like it, but it is a bit more aggressive than other Hydnophora I have kept. Think I am going to let it take over the lower left region of the display. Hopefully some of the setosa can stand up to the bullying, as I really like the orange / green look, in this area of the tank.

 

[Chessmanmark]

Nice update Matt. It’s nice seeing your tank evolve. Each evolution gets better acros.

Have you considered the Reef Brite VHOs? I like this light.

I look forward to seeing your tank in person when my mask doesn’t fog my glasses.

 

[Chessmanmark]

This seems like a good deal relatively.

Acropora Live Coral Pack: Vivid Rainbow, RMF Acid Trip, TSA Bill Murray, TSA Twisted Sister - Top Shelf Aquatics

Coral frags: Vivid Rainbow, RMF Acid Trip, TSA Bill Murray, TSA Twisted Sister

topshelfaquatics.com

 

[mattdg]

Nice update Matt. It’s nice seeing your tank evolve. Each evolution gets better acros.

Have you considered the Reef Brite VHOs? I like this light.

I look forward to seeing your tank in person when my mask doesn’t fog my glasses.

Thanks for following along Mark. It's nice being able to finally add some of my grail SPS pieces.

Yeah, I did consider the reefbrite XHOs, but am going to go with the same brand reef bar, longer 45" version, I'm using above the 15 gallon tank downstairs. Originally found them on Ebay around $75 each for 45" bars. They have been growing coral consistently down stairs for two years with excellent color and no loss of par according to my MQ-510 and is 1/3rd the price, so I feel like I can trust them for supplemental lighting.

I'll be keeping the two t5 strips as well. I'll probably add two of the XHO's eventually when the T5 bulbs are no longer available, though I wish someone would develop a proper reef compatible LED t5 bulb, that I could just throw in the existing Sunblaster lamps.

Either way, I should have plenty of coverage with the two new Hydra 64HD's (THEY ARE AWESOME), two 48" LED bars and two sunblaster strips.

Are you running the XHO's along with your Metal Halides? I've heard great things about them in that configuration.

 

[Chessmanmark]

Yes. I like the XM 20k bulbs once you get some growth, but you can’t find them anymore. I use Phoenix 14k, but while they grow corals, they don’t make them pop. Once I added the Reef Brite there was a noticeable difference. I wish I could add another but my pendants are really big.

I have a V1 Reef Breeder over my softy nano and it’s nice to dial in the color you find the most pleasing.

It takes me a long time to accept change when I find success with what I have done in the past, but I can see more LED in my future.
They work. I’m just still worried about spread, but with another Reef Brite it shouldn’t be a problem. I still worry about how it will look visually and how the corals will adapt to the change.

I have finally accepted that black boxes grow coral. I find it amazing because I think I paid $200 for my first PC that I used over my first tank, a 29 gallon. A black box is cheaper and ten times better.

 

[mattdg]

Yes. I like the XM 20k bulbs once you get some growth, but you can’t find them anymore. I use Phoenix 14k, but while they grow corals, they don’t make them pop. Once I added the Reef Brite there was a noticeable difference. I wish I could add another but my pendants are really big.

I have a V1 Reef Breeder over my softy nano and it’s nice to dial in the color you find the most pleasing.

It takes me a long time to accept change when I find success with what I have done in the past, but I can see more LED in my future.
They work. I’m just still worried about spread, but with another Reef Brite it shouldn’t be a problem. I still worry about how it will look visually and how the corals will adapt to the change.

I have finally accepted that black boxes grow coral. I find it amazing because I think I paid $200 for my first PC that I used over my first tank, a 29 gallon. A black box is cheaper and ten times better.

Yeah, the performance can really be quite amazing.

My luck with the cheaper black boxes is partially due to the fact that they are simple. new high end LED units are much better in a multitude of ways, than the cheap black boxes, as long as they are set and left alone. As I said, I have upgraded to the AI Hydra 64's, mostly because AI was my first foray into LED lights, way back in 2013 on two separate SPS pico/nano tanks. I still have my AI SOL Blue and it works just as good as the day I purchased it. Of course, many reefers have a long track record of success, with them.

Actually, check this out. There is an article published in Reef Hobbyist Magazine about my 7.5 Gallon SPS cube, back in 2013. It's the very last article. Sorry if I already showed this to you.

The Geldof 7.5G SPS Nano Cube

www.reefhobbyistmagazine.com/read-magazine.php?did=6574320_52742289

With that said, I mainly ran Metal Halides and T5's, over my reef display tanks from 2005 to 2017. I could see the writing on the wall, so decided to try the LED's over my 34 Solana, having experienced luck with the 7.5 gallon cube and this 3 gallon nano vase.

April 2011 NTOTM

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1999606

And here is a very old video, published in 2009, showing our 75 gallon mixed reef, under MH.



The Vipar Spectra over the Solana was a test, to decide if I wanted to go with LED, T5 or MH over the 120, which wasn't yet built. Being that the LED's worked well, over the solana, which was jam packed with SPS colonies that had been grown under t5's exclusively, I felt comfortable making the move. It was very much an intentional process, with some reluctance.

LED's do not come without their challenges, but I have come to accept their shortcomings over the heat issues, replacing bulbs and high electrical bills of MH and T5.

Still LOVE the look of MH and the amazing coverage of t5. I can see why you choose to stick with MH, for now.