xbrentx
Active Member
So after a lot of research and shopping around, I finally put together my first ever aquarium build, jumping straight to a reef tank.
I picked up a used 125G tank/stand w/canopy/45G sump and he also gave me his live rock, as seen in the image below.
I picked up an rodi unit, a skimmer, some live sand to get the setup going.
The plumbing was a nightmare (i knew nothing about pvc), the previous owner had 4 holes drilled along the back 1 inch 3/4, I opted for some quality bulkheads instead of the typical aquarium ones which only left me with 3/4 inch holes, so I am using all 4 as drains and the return simply comes up the back into the canopy and locline hose into the top right.
It is currently cycling and I have noticed an ammonia spike in the first few days, since I used live sand and live rock that was in a tank before I'm assuming my cycle will be quick. I'm going to give it at least 2-3 weeks anyway to let it seed and stabilize.
I put the blue LED's on for the image, however the lights are off for the cycle process. I feel as if my aquascape is amazing but anyone would say that about their own work right
. I separated the 2 reefs since there is a brace in the middle, didn't want light to be blocked, and the open space in the middle is nice for swimming. The left reef is in the shape of an M and the right reef is like an upside down U. The last owner gave me all his gear too, he has 2 Koralia 1400's and 2 1050's. Most people have been telling me to get a Koralia 6 and drop a 1050, which I think I will do. I want nice flow.
Some of the gear I bought may have been noobish of me since I didn't know any better, I bought a Coral Life Super 220 skimmer and a few experts have told me it is garbage, so I will deal with it for a year or so, see how it does, if needed I will replace it.
I wanted to go LED since it would be cheaper on electricity and no bulb replacement so I went with 2x 36 inch marineland reef lights which covers the top end to end. I braced them to the canopy and a 2x2 on the middle brace, nice and secure.
So here is what I need to know; HELP ME!
I feel as if I got the bare minimum of gear, skimmer, lights etc. I see all these elaborate setups with dosing and so forth. I want to have the healthiest and nicest fish and corals.
I think my next purchase will be a Koralia 6 for more water movement, that will put me at 1x 1050, 2x 1400, and 1x K6.
What else can I add in or on the sump for better water? I hear alot of people using reactors for carbon or calcium, what is good and what should I look for?
I picked up a used 125G tank/stand w/canopy/45G sump and he also gave me his live rock, as seen in the image below.
I picked up an rodi unit, a skimmer, some live sand to get the setup going.
The plumbing was a nightmare (i knew nothing about pvc), the previous owner had 4 holes drilled along the back 1 inch 3/4, I opted for some quality bulkheads instead of the typical aquarium ones which only left me with 3/4 inch holes, so I am using all 4 as drains and the return simply comes up the back into the canopy and locline hose into the top right.
It is currently cycling and I have noticed an ammonia spike in the first few days, since I used live sand and live rock that was in a tank before I'm assuming my cycle will be quick. I'm going to give it at least 2-3 weeks anyway to let it seed and stabilize.
I put the blue LED's on for the image, however the lights are off for the cycle process. I feel as if my aquascape is amazing but anyone would say that about their own work right
. I separated the 2 reefs since there is a brace in the middle, didn't want light to be blocked, and the open space in the middle is nice for swimming. The left reef is in the shape of an M and the right reef is like an upside down U. The last owner gave me all his gear too, he has 2 Koralia 1400's and 2 1050's. Most people have been telling me to get a Koralia 6 and drop a 1050, which I think I will do. I want nice flow.Some of the gear I bought may have been noobish of me since I didn't know any better, I bought a Coral Life Super 220 skimmer and a few experts have told me it is garbage, so I will deal with it for a year or so, see how it does, if needed I will replace it.
I wanted to go LED since it would be cheaper on electricity and no bulb replacement so I went with 2x 36 inch marineland reef lights which covers the top end to end. I braced them to the canopy and a 2x2 on the middle brace, nice and secure.
So here is what I need to know; HELP ME!
I feel as if I got the bare minimum of gear, skimmer, lights etc. I see all these elaborate setups with dosing and so forth. I want to have the healthiest and nicest fish and corals.
I think my next purchase will be a Koralia 6 for more water movement, that will put me at 1x 1050, 2x 1400, and 1x K6.
What else can I add in or on the sump for better water? I hear alot of people using reactors for carbon or calcium, what is good and what should I look for?
