bcurran
Community Member
This thread will follow the progress of my Waterbox 180.5 build. I take a lot of advise and recommendations from eatsleepreef, because he seems very knowledgeable and we have the same tank. If you are following his thread mine will probably feel very similar.
My Tank (Mine is black)
I narrowed the tank I wanted down to a Red Sea or a Waterbox. I went with the Waterbox, mainly because I do not like how the ATO reservoir sits on top of the sump in the Red Sea. Also I read a lot online about how seams are coming apart in the larger Red Sea aquariums. (I later learned admin will not let you post anything negative on the Facebook Waterbox owners group)
Equipment:
Neptune Apex I went with an Apex because lets face it, they are in a league of their own. As you continue you will see a lot of Neptune Systems products.
COR-20 I decided on the COR-20 because I wanted to go with a Neptune product and the 20 is stand alone. I knew I would be getting the system wet before I hooked up the Apex, because I wanted to take the time to build a controller cabinet but I didn't want it to hold up the cycle.
WAV I originally wanted to go with MP-40's but decided on the WAV's at the last minute. I was looking for the smallest footprint possible on the sides of the tank and these seemed like the best option. With the flow these generate I may even try to put these on the back glass.
ATK It was between this and the Tunze. I decided on the ATK because of its triple redundancy.
AFS I need a auto feeder because due to my profession I am very busy, The AFS will take care of some of the routine feeding for me.
DOS & DDR I will have at least one DOS for auto water changes. I may skip the other DOS and DDR for a Calcium Reactor
MPR This product is pretty self explanatory.
BRS Titanium Heater x2 I am going to use two of these for redundancy.
Reef Octopus Classic 202-S When I started thinking about this build I knew I would be using a Reef Octopus. I decided on this one because it is pretty straight forward and I do not need a DC pump.
MarcoRock RS Shelf Rock I went with Reef Saver shelf rock because I like the look. If I had it to do over I probably would have went with Real Reef Rock.
Carib Sea Fiji Pink One of my LFS went out of business and I got this stuff for $10.00 a bag.
Fritz Reef Pro I read a lot of good reviews about this product and it it readily available at my LFS.
Hanna Instruments I wanted to take the guess work out of my testing so I went with the best.
Nyos Torq I was going to go with the cheap BRS reactors but I was able to pick this guy up from the same LFS going out of business for $100.00 and I liked the reviews.
Kessil A360X Tuna Blue x3 I like all the reviews I've read on these light and decided they were the way to go.
Skimz MBR 157 I have not purchased this item yet. I'm not sure I like the fact it has to go in the sump. I may decide to go with a Pax Bellum.
Pentair Aquatics UV Sterilizer I have not purchased this item yet. After some research I may go with a different product.
Dr. Tim's One and Only I will be doing a four month fishless cycle following the Dr. Tim's method. I will put some utilitarian fish in at two months and will not kick the lights on until the four month mark.( I'm hoping to avoid the ugly phase)
Purple Helix & Pink Fusion There is very little product reviews on this item. I was able to get it buy one get one on cyber Monday, so I'm gonna give it a try. I will let you know how it works.
Food I'm sure I will add to this list but this is where I'm going to start.
My Tank (Mine is black)
I narrowed the tank I wanted down to a Red Sea or a Waterbox. I went with the Waterbox, mainly because I do not like how the ATO reservoir sits on top of the sump in the Red Sea. Also I read a lot online about how seams are coming apart in the larger Red Sea aquariums. (I later learned admin will not let you post anything negative on the Facebook Waterbox owners group)
Equipment:
Neptune Apex I went with an Apex because lets face it, they are in a league of their own. As you continue you will see a lot of Neptune Systems products.
COR-20 I decided on the COR-20 because I wanted to go with a Neptune product and the 20 is stand alone. I knew I would be getting the system wet before I hooked up the Apex, because I wanted to take the time to build a controller cabinet but I didn't want it to hold up the cycle.
WAV I originally wanted to go with MP-40's but decided on the WAV's at the last minute. I was looking for the smallest footprint possible on the sides of the tank and these seemed like the best option. With the flow these generate I may even try to put these on the back glass.
ATK It was between this and the Tunze. I decided on the ATK because of its triple redundancy.
AFS I need a auto feeder because due to my profession I am very busy, The AFS will take care of some of the routine feeding for me.
DOS & DDR I will have at least one DOS for auto water changes. I may skip the other DOS and DDR for a Calcium Reactor
MPR This product is pretty self explanatory.
BRS Titanium Heater x2 I am going to use two of these for redundancy.
Reef Octopus Classic 202-S When I started thinking about this build I knew I would be using a Reef Octopus. I decided on this one because it is pretty straight forward and I do not need a DC pump.
MarcoRock RS Shelf Rock I went with Reef Saver shelf rock because I like the look. If I had it to do over I probably would have went with Real Reef Rock.
Carib Sea Fiji Pink One of my LFS went out of business and I got this stuff for $10.00 a bag.
Fritz Reef Pro I read a lot of good reviews about this product and it it readily available at my LFS.
Hanna Instruments I wanted to take the guess work out of my testing so I went with the best.
Nyos Torq I was going to go with the cheap BRS reactors but I was able to pick this guy up from the same LFS going out of business for $100.00 and I liked the reviews.
Kessil A360X Tuna Blue x3 I like all the reviews I've read on these light and decided they were the way to go.
Skimz MBR 157 I have not purchased this item yet. I'm not sure I like the fact it has to go in the sump. I may decide to go with a Pax Bellum.
Pentair Aquatics UV Sterilizer I have not purchased this item yet. After some research I may go with a different product.
Dr. Tim's One and Only I will be doing a four month fishless cycle following the Dr. Tim's method. I will put some utilitarian fish in at two months and will not kick the lights on until the four month mark.( I'm hoping to avoid the ugly phase)
Purple Helix & Pink Fusion There is very little product reviews on this item. I was able to get it buy one get one on cyber Monday, so I'm gonna give it a try. I will let you know how it works.
Food I'm sure I will add to this list but this is where I'm going to start.
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