Prostar 200 Build

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rcpiv93

rcpiv93

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PraziPro has done a great job after the first dose. Popeye is gone, and the fish are no longer following the cleaner shrimp around. I plan to do a small water change on Saturday and complete a second dose.

Do you think a third dose is mandatory? My only concern would be further suppressing the appetite of my fish. They all continue to eat, but the anthias and leopard wrasse seem especially picky.
Flukes... All of the anthias are showing signs of flukes, and two have a minor case of popeye. This likely explains why they were begging (to no avail) the pistol shrimp to clean them.

I did a small water change, added three scarlet cleaner shrimp, and dosed prazipro. I have kept the skimmer running for aeration purposes, but I am allowing the skimmate to drain into the sump.

Everyone is eating and acting normal. Is there anything else you recommend doing?

I plan to dose three times every 5-6 days.
 
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A couple fish are scratching again, so the eggs have definitely started hatching. I plan to dose a day early (tonight) and I will do a third dose after all. Better safe than sorry, especially with an order of quarantined fish coming in at the end of the month.

That said, everyone looks really good and is eating well.
 
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Two days after installing the UV sterilizer and, at the very least, I know that it works from a water clarity perspective. The tank is crystal clear, and the glass stays algae-free much longer.

As for parasites...that remains TBD. The fish look great. They're all eating and they're all active.

As far as the unit itself, I installed an Aqua UV 40w system. It runs with a Jebao DCP 5000, and I have the pump set at around 65%. The pump pulls from the middle chamber of the sump (after the filter socks and next to the skimmer) and it empties into the final chamber, directly next to the return pump. As far as I'm concerned, this is as close to a closed loop as I'm going to get without plumbing the UV into the return line.
 
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Very, very simple.
 

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UV seems to be working wonders. All of the fish are spot-free and eating well. Let's hope that this continues to be the case. When my next round of fish come, I plan to slow the pump feeding the UV just to be safe. But thus far, I am thrilled.
 
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I finished my last dose of prazipro yesterday, turned the UV back on, added carbon, and did a 15% water change.

It has been interesting to watch the way my fish have responded to each dose. Most have been completely unfazed. The leopard wrasse ate a bit less after the first dose but ate normally after the second and third. The only fish that was consistently bothered was the male anthias. He refused to eat the day after each dose, but slowly regained his appetite in the days after. I just made sure to overfeed a day or two before each dose so that he would be good and full when his hunger strikes inevitably began.

All in all, the tank is doing very well. I picked up an incredible bernardpora yesterday, and when it opens up, I'll add some photos.
 
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Oh my, what a night! My lid from Top Lids arrived yesterday, so I was finally able to install my Eheim auto feeder. Unfortunately, I must have done something wrong, and the first feeding dumped hundreds of pellets into the tank. HUNDREDS!

I quickly grabbed some buckets and a few filter socks and sucked up as much as I could, returning the water and cleaning the socks. Luckily, I had about 15 gallons of water ready, so I then did a quick water change, turned the powerheads on full blast, stirred up the remaining debris, and dosed some Microbacter 7 just in case.

What I thought was a sure disaster turned out to be fine. In fact, my corals looked very happy for their unexpected feeding.

Testing this morning showed no ill effects on water quality...but needless to say, lesson learned nonetheless!
 
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Stocking updates below. If I no longer have an animal that I added, they will appear at the bottom of the list with an explanation. Once my order is finalized, I will also post a detailed review of my experience with Dr. Reef!

Lamarck Angel (4/19)
Flame Angel (4/19)
Lyretail Anthias (4:1 ratio) (5/4)
Royal Gramma (5/4)
Leopard Wrasse (5/11)
Pistol Shrimp (5/11)
Cleaner Shrimp (3x) (5/12)
Magnificent Foxface (6/5)
CB Yellow Tang (6/5)
Hippo Tang (6/6)
Purple Tang (6/6)
Blue Jaw Tilefish (6/6)
1" Crocea Clams (4x) (6/7)

Randall's Goby (5/11) (Jumped)
Blonde Naso Tang (6/5) (Never ate frozen foods)
Moorish Idol (6/5) (Taken to LFS, convicted coralivore 🥲)
Exquisite Wrasse (6/5) (Passed away)
Yellow Coris Wrasse (6/5) (Never to be seen again)
 
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So, it has been a couple of months. Lots to mention:

I decided to add some more fish. I was struggling to keep nitrates off of zero, so I added a scopas tang and a blonde naso tang to the mix. I also moved my clowns from my Biocube, a red scooter blenny from the same tank, and my CB mandarins graduated from the grow-out tank. Everyone is doing well.

As for coral, lots of activity. Nothing special, but they all caught my eye. The real eye-catchers, however, are my OG Holy Grail Torch, my Tiger Torch and my Amazeballs Goni.

Lastly, one small equipment modification. I added a 60” Orphek OR3 for fill light. It runs 6 hours a day and really gives the tank a nice glow.


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20250916_084116_26D379EB-0B32-4088-90C4-1B43298CD999.png
 

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@rcpiv93 love the thread. I’m thinking of taking the plunge with a ProStar V2 200. The price difference from others and people’s appreciation of build are driving factors. I’ve read where some don’t love the sumps and am also curious if you needed to address the sealing around the overflow or if you just left it as is. Thanks for the input!
 
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@rcpiv93 love the thread. I’m thinking of taking the plunge with a ProStar V2 200. The price difference from others and people’s appreciation of build are driving factors. I’ve read where some don’t love the sumps and am also curious if you needed to address the sealing around the overflow or if you just left it as is. Thanks for the input!
Hello!

I left the overflow as is. My logic was the following: a leak from the bulkhead would be caught by the sump, buying me some time. Plus, it would be a perfect excuse for an upgrade!

I am happy with the sump. I wish it was plumbed for a roller mat, but the filter socks work just fine. No complaints.

Overall, the tank is worth the money I saved, and it looks beautiful. I am very happy with it.
 

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