Painfully slow 45 gallon build.

[phi delt reefer]

Finally added H20...and some salt :) - 45 Gallon shallow slow build

In February of this year I decided to get into the hobby.

Bought a 23 long and a 20 long sump in June. (did some test scaping - :squigglemouth:)

Bought some equipment in August...also got married... may have paid for some of the equipment with some wedding money but there is no proof of that to this date.:xd:

Decided on a sweet stand that was going to be so big that i figured i might as will up the tank size.

Framed in September;

partially painted, sealed and semi paneled in October (Still looks like this today :what:);

just so you can imagine the scale - thats my three year old

Ordered this tank (black silicon, 10mm glass, BeanAnimal overflow peninsula) two weeks ago. Should be ready next week.

 

[phi delt reefer]

Went to the border (I am Canadian but I shop in the US:bigsmile:) to pick up some more equipment.

SWC 150BMK from Luke at Reef-Filtration

BRS Reactor (gonna run pellets and carbon)

20 Long sump full of random equipment

• couple maxi-jet 1200s
• RO fittings to break out the BRS Reactor
• couple 2x39w t5ho ballasts
• RKL w 2 PC4s
• 2 Koralia Nanos 425
• Salifert/SeaChem test kits
• Eheim 1250 return pump
• Jager 150w heater
• Odyssea Pump and Heater for salt mixing
• ATI bulbs ( 4 B+, 1 AB Special, 1 GE6500, 1 ATI Purple Plus)

Lighting - used TEK LIGHT 6x39w (running old bulbs - not the ones listed above)

 

[skinz78]

Looks very nice, and it may be a slow start but it is best to take your time and do it right!

 

[litenyaup]

Very cool!!

 

[Joost's reef]

I know what your talking about!
Is this your first tank? Any ideas of what you want to keep?

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Gonna be a great tank!

 

[Troylee]

Agreed!!!! That's a nice start...

 

[DBarsotti]

looking good! I really like how you did the stand. I need to pick up one of the BRS reactors too.. dang

 

[Antonias1391]

cant wait to see how this thing goes brother!! good job with planning tho. and idk why but Canadians can make some D4mn fine tanks!!

 

[phi delt reefer]

lots of stuff so its a good thing i went bigger than a 23 long.

McCosker's Flasher Wrasse
Harlequin shrimp (mated pair) with Rose Tip anemone
Purple firefish
Ocellaris Clownfish (mated pair)
Green or Red Mandarin (after the pop population is up and running)
Yasha White Ray Goby

corals - I have a rule of $20 - wont buy anything coral wise that costs more than $20. I'm sure i can trade or find good deals. no Mortgage payment chalices for me :wink:

 

[WhoDey]

no Mortgage payment chalices for me :wink:

Yeah, never really understood that one myself....

 

[phi delt reefer]

so here is my rock from Eco-reefer - aka Torsten (Canadian version of Marco Rocks)

Ordered 45lbs, Torsten being the great guy he is sent me back with a little extra :mrgreen:

here is what i came up initially - green tape represents the 23.5" width of my tank. My tank is only 12" tall so I need to keep my scape short for SPS growth

I was left with this much rock...

slept a couple days... had some reef dreams and figured I should use some more rock as a biological filter and so my fish have some hiding places, etc. So I added a couple more pieces;

There is about 9" of "rock free" area from the front glass to the closest rock. I think that will be sufficient swim room for the fish.



i will leave a small gap at the back of the glass to help ensure i get some flow back there;

I still have a few large pieces left that i might use in the sump or break up and try to glue a floating bonsai pieces. I have a lot of ideas...problem is that i am pretty lazy :(


****

Do you guys/girls think I should go back to my original scape OR do you like the latest version better? I will have a 1 to 1.5" sandbed as well.

 

[btkrausen]

You could get some acrylic bar and stack some to make a pillar. I think that looks awesome. Drill through some of the rock with the same size as the bar, and stack it :)

 

[BlazinNano]

It way have taken you a while. But thatxstand is gonna look awesome with that tank sitting in it. Can't wait till you get the tank. Love the rock layout so far. Good luck!

 

[phi delt reefer]

You could get some acrylic bar and stack some to make a pillar. I think that looks awesome. Drill through some of the rock with the same size as the bar, and stack it :)

yeah i got my wallet and grabbed my jacket then opened the front door ....8 inches of snow... looks like i am sitting on the internet for a bit...gonna grab some screws for my magnetic doors/epoxy and acrylic rods once it clears up tommorow.

It way have taken you a while. But thatxstand is gonna look awesome with that tank sitting in it. Can't wait till you get the tank. Love the rock layout so far. Good luck!

thanks man - its been pretty expensive to build. going to be done next week hopefully. going to kick the staining into overdrive tonight.

 

[skinz78]

Nice looking rock, I really like the aquascape you are planning on doing with it as well! Any reason to put rock in the sump?

 

[phi delt reefer]

Nice looking rock, I really like the aquascape you are planning on doing with it as well! Any reason to put rock in the sump?

more biological filtration is the reason i am thinking. I have a 20 long and 23 long tank i can use as a sump. My reactors all work out of sump so i will only have my return pump and skimmer in there. Rock has no value to this build sitting in my basement. I probably wont put it in my sump but who knows. Might just smash it into a million pieces and use em as frag plugs. The goal is to get enough sps growth to frag every month or so the tank is self supporting financially.

 

[skinz78]

The reason I ask is that I feel when rock is added to a sump it can act as a detritus trap and become a nitrate factory.

 

[phi delt reefer]

The reason I ask is that I feel when rock is added to a sump it can act as a detritus trap and become a nitrate factory.

very true, but i figure if i keep the rocks small enough and a couple nano powerheads i will be able to keep it pretty clean there. 425 gph from the powerhead + 200gph in system turnover is 625gph in a 4 gallon area (= 156.25x turnover in that little area). Which is way to much actually (doing this all in my head as i type it so bear with me). Might settle with just the system turnover as the only flow through that area (=50x turnover). No sand bed but possibly some snails.

 

[btkrausen]

Your currently rock setup looks nice, the pillar was just a suggestion. My brother did it in his 90, and it turned out pretty good. You might not want the height of a pillar on a 45, but you could use the acrylic bar to help stabilize any stacked rock. This is what I plan to do once I get another tank to make at least one pillar.