MaiReef
Valuable Member
I have started reef keeping 3.5 years ago. I have a 100 gallon tank with a 30 gallon tank holding 20 gallons for my sump/refugium. I built my own stand and took an old 30 gallon and siliconed in some baffles and got started. I have found that my lighting, reefbreeders value fixtures just aren't enough for sps, even though I have some limping along for years. LPS seem to do well in my tank as well as mushrooms and softies. My most grown coral is my frogspawn. I just ordered two Aquatic Life XS-UV 14" fixtures after seeing my friends 60 gallon with one doing incredible. I also use a hang on back with just quilt fill for mechanical filtration as I dump directly into my sump with my protein skimmer. I use auto-top off water from a autotopoff.com which has worked for over two years with a food grade 20 gallon pet food container. I have a ro/di system in my basement with 2-32 gallon brute cans, which is used for ro/di water and one for premixing. I plan to pump the mixed water up for water changes, but haven't yet. I have a fairly stable tank at 7.8 pH, 440 calcium, 9 Alkalinity, Nitrates that had been a <5, but have recently climbed to 40 and from 0 Phosphate to .25. My refugium suddenly lost all macros twice and I replaced them and they seem to be holding better. I know my pH seems a bit low, but that has been the most stable measurement in my tank. I fluctuates between 7.8 and 7.9, but everything seems to do well in general. I use reef crystals and I feed flake mixed of formula 1 and 2, twice daily and various frozen foods with coral frenzy a few times a week. Basically that is it.
