Backstory: my son and I setup a biocube 29 about 15 years ago. It developed a leak a couple months ago and I had to make some quick decisions and action to save the inhabitants, mainly Nemo who I’ve had for ~ 11 years. After the replacement biocube arrived at Neptune Aquatics with a crack (and my wife saw all the beautiful tanks they have setup) I ordered a Reefer 170 & started gathering all the other items.
We looked at all the lighting options and decided on the Kessil a360x and a controller. I also picked up an Octo various 4, which I exchanged a few days later for an Octo various 2. In hindsight, either will fit, but I thought they would interfere with the space available for the skimmer, but I was wrong.
Parts list (so far):
Red Sea Reefer 170
Titebond #3 for cabinet assembly
Red Sea cover
Mitre box, saw, and metric tape measure for cover assembly
Kessil a360x light
Kessil tank mount arm
Kessil spectral x controller
Eheim 125w heater
Octo various 2 DC pump
3/4” return hose and adapter
Tunze 9004 DC skimmer (unused so far)
25 lbs live sand
Here’s some pictures of progress:
Unboxed the stand/cabinet
Looked at the construction of the stand and decided I should ask about gluing it, posted this thread:
And here’s a picture of it after it’s assembly with glue. No door yet.
Had my wife and friend help move the existing tank over so we could put the new stand and tank into its final location. To move the biocube, I drained half the water, slid it 3-4 feet down the wall, then re-added the water. Also put plastic under the biocube to slow the leaking into the hardwood floors.
As my plan was to relocate the reef from the biocube, it was suggested to start with fresh sand.
Here’s the reefer in place with sand and water:
I waited a day for things to settle and fired up the pump to check for leaks. Yup, I had leaking where I adapted the 3/4” to Red Sea (metric) parts. A couple more trips to Neptune Aquatics (my LFS) and I was able to obtain fittings that didn’t leak. Then I installed the heater in the sump and started bringing the tank up to temp.
I waited one more day, and on Labor Day, checked the biocube for the severity of its leak. It was leaking several ounces a day, enough to cause pools of water on the plastic and run off onto the floor. I decided to move the whole reef that day before the new reefer was cycled, or had started a cycle.
The plan was to move as much of the existing water into the new tank as possible to avoid shock from chemistry differences. So we drained 20g out of the reefer, captured Nemo and put him in a bucket, and started moving water from the biocube to the reefer. I moved about 2/3 of the water before I started moving live rock — and that was a mistake— I should have moved all that I could, as once I started moving live rock the biocube got so stirred up that I couldn’t move any more water from it.
Nevertheless, we got everything moved over that I could find, live rock, the anemone, a couple bunches of macro algae, and lots of Green Star polyp coral. I removed some of the GSP, and will remove more later as I get some other types of coral to fill in. I was unable to locate any of the smaller critters, crabs, worms, etc, so I kept my eyes on the biocube for a few days. Those critters never turned up in the biocube, but they had made it to the reefer, presumably hidden in the live rock.
So, here are some pictures of how everything is looking one week after the reef relocation. It took a few days for the GSP to come out.
Now I’m waiting for my Random Flow Generator to arrive, and a Kessil H80 light for the refugium, while thinking about what I want to add — another fish or two, some more Zoas.... after a few more weeks to let everything stabilize in the new tank.
Thanks to all the help I received, a lot from searching posts and my step son, and Linh at NA. Nemo now has a new home.
We looked at all the lighting options and decided on the Kessil a360x and a controller. I also picked up an Octo various 4, which I exchanged a few days later for an Octo various 2. In hindsight, either will fit, but I thought they would interfere with the space available for the skimmer, but I was wrong.
Parts list (so far):
Red Sea Reefer 170
Titebond #3 for cabinet assembly
Red Sea cover
Mitre box, saw, and metric tape measure for cover assembly
Kessil a360x light
Kessil tank mount arm
Kessil spectral x controller
Eheim 125w heater
Octo various 2 DC pump
3/4” return hose and adapter
Tunze 9004 DC skimmer (unused so far)
25 lbs live sand
Here’s some pictures of progress:
Unboxed the stand/cabinet
Looked at the construction of the stand and decided I should ask about gluing it, posted this thread:
Setting up a new reefer 170 - should I glue the stand?
From the instructions it’s built like an ikea dresser which eventually starts falling apart, and I’ve repaired them with glue. Should I glue the Red Sea stand before I put the aquarium on it? Thanks in advance!
www.reef2reef.com
And here’s a picture of it after it’s assembly with glue. No door yet.
Had my wife and friend help move the existing tank over so we could put the new stand and tank into its final location. To move the biocube, I drained half the water, slid it 3-4 feet down the wall, then re-added the water. Also put plastic under the biocube to slow the leaking into the hardwood floors.
As my plan was to relocate the reef from the biocube, it was suggested to start with fresh sand.
Here’s the reefer in place with sand and water:
I waited a day for things to settle and fired up the pump to check for leaks. Yup, I had leaking where I adapted the 3/4” to Red Sea (metric) parts. A couple more trips to Neptune Aquatics (my LFS) and I was able to obtain fittings that didn’t leak. Then I installed the heater in the sump and started bringing the tank up to temp.
I waited one more day, and on Labor Day, checked the biocube for the severity of its leak. It was leaking several ounces a day, enough to cause pools of water on the plastic and run off onto the floor. I decided to move the whole reef that day before the new reefer was cycled, or had started a cycle.
The plan was to move as much of the existing water into the new tank as possible to avoid shock from chemistry differences. So we drained 20g out of the reefer, captured Nemo and put him in a bucket, and started moving water from the biocube to the reefer. I moved about 2/3 of the water before I started moving live rock — and that was a mistake— I should have moved all that I could, as once I started moving live rock the biocube got so stirred up that I couldn’t move any more water from it.
Nevertheless, we got everything moved over that I could find, live rock, the anemone, a couple bunches of macro algae, and lots of Green Star polyp coral. I removed some of the GSP, and will remove more later as I get some other types of coral to fill in. I was unable to locate any of the smaller critters, crabs, worms, etc, so I kept my eyes on the biocube for a few days. Those critters never turned up in the biocube, but they had made it to the reefer, presumably hidden in the live rock.
So, here are some pictures of how everything is looking one week after the reef relocation. It took a few days for the GSP to come out.
Now I’m waiting for my Random Flow Generator to arrive, and a Kessil H80 light for the refugium, while thinking about what I want to add — another fish or two, some more Zoas.... after a few more weeks to let everything stabilize in the new tank.
Thanks to all the help I received, a lot from searching posts and my step son, and Linh at NA. Nemo now has a new home.
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