My Aussie Waterbox 20 Build Thread!!

dawi03

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After changing tanks more times than changing undies I am finally happy. have blown a lot of money in the process but to say Im happy with the Waterbox 20 is an understatement.

Just for History and to help with my Build Thread here it is :

Jan 4th 2022 - Purchased my first tank, Fluval 13.5 gallon
hadnt even cycled tank fully before deciding I would get a Waterbox Peninsula Mini 25

Jan 9th 2022- Purchased Waterbox Peninsula Mini 25
Loved this tank size, unfortunately I didnt have it in the right spot that I wanted, and due to the Peninsula shape, it wouldnt fit where I actually wanted it one I convinced the MRS that a tank in the Lounge Room is the right thing to do :)
Had cycled tank and decided to scrap it and go Freshwater due to freaking out about everything...... then backflipped again and went SW. kept fish in tank for about 2 weeks.

March 4th 2022 - Purchased Petworks 30l cube for bedside table just a FW setup. Subsequently sold tank after MRS got angry about having tank in bedroom. Loved it!

March 22nd 2022- Purchased my ultimate forever tank..... Waterbox Frag 85.3g.
Transferred everything to this tank from my Peninsula Mini, and spent a bucket load on gear. I thought this would be the last tank I get, loved the room, but with the amount of room came maintenance, and whilst I managed to curb my partners temper about having such a big tank, the thought of maintaining the tank not just cleanliness, but species inside it got the better of me, as family comes first not fish :). I wanted to find something that was asthetically pleasing, easy to clean/maintain, and small.

April 10 2022: Lightbulb moment, ill get a cube, the tank that I originally wanted when I first started looking. Facebook Marketplace had a fully loaded WB 10 setup, for relatively cheap. But I thought the wb10 was a little small, so I set my sights on a wb20, but I did buy the 2b10 setup and will be using a lot of the gear I bought with this tank, and use the wb10 as a backup.

Fast forward a week and im so happy ive gone through all of this, yes I have wasted a heap of money but I have learnt so much along the way, and how I feel about certain tanks and equipment. I would be the only person in the world I think that HATES sumps, and I will never go back to a Sump tank.

My current Equipment List
1 x AI Hydra 32
Filter Sock for now
Sicce 1.0 return pump
1 x Nero 3 Wavemaker

My current stock list is:

2 x Occy Clowns
1x Helfrichi Firefish
1 Lawnmower Blenny

6x Trochus Snails
1x nassarius Snail
1x conch

5 frag corals
1x small Elegance
1x Small Torch

Incoming stock list next week

1 decent sized Hammer
1 decent sized Torch
1 goni
1 x Cleaner Shrimp


I am looking for the last 1-2 fish to complete my livestock ( I might get some more snails down the track)
Looking for some suggestions that will get along with my 4 current fish and wont be bullies!

Any ideas for a 20 gallon tank? I was thinking a small fairy wrasse but unsure what Fairys will be happy in a 20 gallon? Any other suggestions at all?

Thankyou so much for looking and reading thru all of this :)

wb2122.jpg wb201.jpg wb20.jpg
 
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dawi03

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What about a royal gramma or orchid or neon dottyback?
was thinking about a royal gramma as they are pretty chill. Was only thinking of something like a 6 line to help with cleaning of tank, but Royal Gramma could be a go, was also thinking of a yellow goby
 
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blaxsun

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was thinking about a royal gramma as they are pretty chill. Was only thinking of something like a 6 line to help with cleaning of tank, but Royal Gramma could be a go, was also thinking of a yellow goby
You need something to match the curtains!
 

Starganderfish

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Nice!!! Loving the Waterbox Tanks. Really nice setup. And as a fellow Aussie... YAY!!
I have a 20 and one of the very rare Waterbox 4 gal cubes.

My 20 has a pair of Ocellaris Clowns, a Rainfords Goby and a Bullet Goby. Lawnmower Blenny is on its way this week.
I have a Maxima Clam and a Rose Bubble Tip Anemone, a couple of Torches, a Hammer, a Gonio (a second Gonio is arriving soon), an Elegance, a Fungia, a big Favia in the back and a smattering of Zoa frags
CUC is the Bullet Goby, a horde of Nassarius Snails, a couple of Trochus, a smattering of Turbos and three stupidly large Strawberry Conches/Strombus Snails. The dang conches knock my Zoa frags off their rock every single day and crawl all over the Elegance and Fungia so they're going to have to go. Replacing them with some smaller West Australian Sromb snails. Also ordered a stack of Cerith Snails to help with algae in the sand, and an Abalone.

I don't use a Skimmer (too hard to balance Salinity with evaporation, skimmate and ATO) but I find the Clam, corals and algae in the back chamber is keeping Nitrates undetectable and Phosphates nice and low.

I feed heavy so all my cleanup crew are well fed and the Nassrius and BUllet Goby keep the sand well-turned over.

I've started dosing All-For-Reef because the Clam is sucking down minerals and water changes alone can't keep up with Calcium and Alk. I shared some info on my tank thread about the Auto Water Change system I use - they're incredibly handy on small tanks like this.

We just got back from a week's holiday away. Between the ATO/AWC, fully automated lighting and flow cycles and a Zacro auto-feeder, the tank was completely stable while I was away. We even had a 12-hour blackout while we were gone. that the tank rolled right through. I use a rechargeable 20,000 MHA Power bank and a small 5v USB pump as an emergency in the tank. The battery is permanently plugged in and charging and is enough to run a pair of the small 5v pumps for about 24 hours (one for each tank ). The pumps are always running and don't do much for flow normally, but when the power goes out, the rechargeable battery kicks in and they continue to run while everything else switches off, keeping the water moving and the surface agitated.

WB 20.jpg
 
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Starganderfish

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Also, as an Aussie, let us know where you are shopping, local fish shop or online?
My LFS is pretty good but finding the right stock of exactly what I want is hard.

I've bought a bunch of stuff from Gee-Marine, 100% Reef Safe, Zeobox corals.. finding Aussie sites that have good stock and ship is tricky.
 
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dawi03

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Also, as an Aussie, let us know where you are shopping, local fish shop or online?
My LFS is pretty good but finding the right stock of exactly what I want is hard.

I've bought a bunch of stuff from Gee-Marine, 100% Reef Safe, Zeobox corals.. finding Aussie sites that have good stock and ship is tricky.
Hey mate! so good! im a Gee Marine man, and i live in Melbourne so theres a few good LFS around!!
 
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