preview of 800 g tank in 3 rooms
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Eric R.
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Just read this whole thread. Great build! Love the spaciousness of your fish room, and think the DIY dialysis machine is very neat. Also like the cabinet access design, as well as the hidden library door!
Following along for updates.
Following along for updates.
How thick is the aluminum bracing?Here is a picture of the top bracing - aluminum. I can take them out when the tank is empty for dry aquascaping etc...
The overflows are loosely installed here. The tank filled without even a creak from the stand. Next, it will be entombed in bubble wrap to protect if from flying nails etc... Next next... to start pre building the rock structures and plumbing sections..
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FishTruck
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Maybe 1/8 inch for the perimeter bracing, and folded 1/16 perhaps for the cross members? I can't measure it easily, it is concealed by the canopy and covered by a pvc splash guard at this point. If I did it again, I would have a rim of glass put around the edges of the tank for splashing water (trigger fish). The PVC one that I made is not clear, so it blocks a little bit of light.
here is a link - although I can't find the specs on the thickness of the aluminum
Lifetime Aquariums - Custom Aquariums
LIFETIME® Aquarium systems are some of the most reliable and long lasting fish tanks on the market. Discover the LIFETIME® difference today!
www.customaquariums.com
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FishTruck
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Just an update. I ditched my plywood frag tanks and replaced them with some Fiji cubes that had the Same footprints. I also ditched my algae reactor that was more trouble than it was worth.
In one previous frag tank, I made an algae refugium. This is working great. PO4 is holding at .1 ppm with no need to dose LC in 90 days. I also have a place for my splitting anemones before they take over the display.
In one previous frag tank, I made an algae refugium. This is working great. PO4 is holding at .1 ppm with no need to dose LC in 90 days. I also have a place for my splitting anemones before they take over the display.
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FishTruck
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I have had some events between Oct and Jan 2024 which resulted in lost colonies (was able to frag and save most species), finally getting ahead of it.
Classing rolling consequences scenario of good intentions not well received by the corals.
1. light changes - I fixed numerous blown out channels in my Orpheks, added four light bars, tweaking things to make it look pretty.
2. more light more heat - tank temp went up suddenly one day to 84 degrees. This was corrected by repositioning my cooling fan and I shortened the light cycle a bit - but damage was done.
3. at the same time, the nutrients dropped - (new refugium is way more effective than I imagined). Phos is .03.
4. you guessed it... burnt tips, faded white montiporas. I was stubborn and hoped the corals would adjust. Things got worse, ALK drifted up to 9.3.
5. by Christmas, I was starting to see new burnt tips on some of my favorite colonies, so I decided I needed to make changes.
Recovery - I think. Adjusting to a lower nutrient tank.
1. I shut down my Ca reactor and let the ALK drift down to 6.5 - where I am keeping it.
2. I changed the lights to an "acclimation" setting, which significantly reduced the time at peak intensity, and also reduced peak intensity by 15% or so.
3. Faced reality, and pulled out all the struggling colonies, fragged off the good parts and tossed the rest
4. Reduced the light cycle on the refugium to just 8 hours, and started feeding the heck out of the fish.
In the last week, I see no new burnt tips, montis seem to be coming back, and my fragged survivors are still alive. Fingers crossed, this gets things back on track!
Classing rolling consequences scenario of good intentions not well received by the corals.
1. light changes - I fixed numerous blown out channels in my Orpheks, added four light bars, tweaking things to make it look pretty.
2. more light more heat - tank temp went up suddenly one day to 84 degrees. This was corrected by repositioning my cooling fan and I shortened the light cycle a bit - but damage was done.
3. at the same time, the nutrients dropped - (new refugium is way more effective than I imagined). Phos is .03.
4. you guessed it... burnt tips, faded white montiporas. I was stubborn and hoped the corals would adjust. Things got worse, ALK drifted up to 9.3.
5. by Christmas, I was starting to see new burnt tips on some of my favorite colonies, so I decided I needed to make changes.
Recovery - I think. Adjusting to a lower nutrient tank.
1. I shut down my Ca reactor and let the ALK drift down to 6.5 - where I am keeping it.
2. I changed the lights to an "acclimation" setting, which significantly reduced the time at peak intensity, and also reduced peak intensity by 15% or so.
3. Faced reality, and pulled out all the struggling colonies, fragged off the good parts and tossed the rest
4. Reduced the light cycle on the refugium to just 8 hours, and started feeding the heck out of the fish.
In the last week, I see no new burnt tips, montis seem to be coming back, and my fragged survivors are still alive. Fingers crossed, this gets things back on track!
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FishTruck
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Update.
Acros are back to normal and whatever was wrong at the end of 2023 seems to have passed.
A couple of recent bumps...
1. my ALK was getting too low (hitting 5.5 at one point) using JUST kalkwasser so I fired up my calcium reactor. The flowmeter malfunctioned and 24 hours later the ALk increased from 6.5 to 12, with a noticeable drop in the pH to 7.5! Crap!!!!
The good news is that the ALK is dropping fast since I shut everything down (corals consuming it) and I see no signs of stress or burnt tips.
Phew!
2. My conductivity probe drifted out of calibration..... and the SG had drifted up o 1.030. Probably no ill effects, except my pods seem to have disappeared (may or may not be related). I measured the Mg which was 1500 - perhaps due to the SG being so high. I have not added magnesium in over a year and I was actually expecting a low reading. Curious.
3. The frag tank is doing much better. I feel like I have nearly won the bubble algae battle and my little clippings are becoming colonies here and there.
4. Plans for this year are to add two or three more rock towers, and eventually more fish. This fish will be the tricky part. I am not buying much coral these days, I have enough diversity for my tastes so I am just pruning and redistributing for the most part.
Acros are back to normal and whatever was wrong at the end of 2023 seems to have passed.
A couple of recent bumps...
1. my ALK was getting too low (hitting 5.5 at one point) using JUST kalkwasser so I fired up my calcium reactor. The flowmeter malfunctioned and 24 hours later the ALk increased from 6.5 to 12, with a noticeable drop in the pH to 7.5! Crap!!!!
The good news is that the ALK is dropping fast since I shut everything down (corals consuming it) and I see no signs of stress or burnt tips.
Phew!
2. My conductivity probe drifted out of calibration..... and the SG had drifted up o 1.030. Probably no ill effects, except my pods seem to have disappeared (may or may not be related). I measured the Mg which was 1500 - perhaps due to the SG being so high. I have not added magnesium in over a year and I was actually expecting a low reading. Curious.
3. The frag tank is doing much better. I feel like I have nearly won the bubble algae battle and my little clippings are becoming colonies here and there.
4. Plans for this year are to add two or three more rock towers, and eventually more fish. This fish will be the tricky part. I am not buying much coral these days, I have enough diversity for my tastes so I am just pruning and redistributing for the most part.
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