Rabe's 120 Mixed Reef Aquarium

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

Sorry everyone, but I didn't start a build thread here. I'll go get my pics from my phone and other threads and deposit them here.

This post will start the story of Rabe und das 450 Liter gemischte riffaquarium

I started in the hobby about 20 years ago, but I haven't had a reef aquarium in about 10 years. They had always proved to be too much maintenance and too much headache, in my experience.

But in all fairness, I only had small tanks and other priorities.

I had always wanted a 120 gallon reef. The 48 x 24 x 24 dimensions just seem so perfect. But the cost had always been so prohibitive. But about 7 months ago, I found one online, used and for $150 bucks including a stand, canopy and delivery. Well I couldn't pass it up!

No worse for wear, I moved it into my basement office, rebuilt the plumbing and built a sump

Initial Setup:
1. 80 pounds of Bahama oolite sand
2. ~120 pounds nature's ocean dry rock
3. 2x Hydor 2450 gph powerheads
4. 40 gallon diy triton method sump (actual water is about 20g)
5. Octopus Classic 200INT skimmer
6. 2700 gph return pump (about 1200 at the return head)
7. 2x 165w WiFi LED lights from China
8. 2x 54w dimmable ATI T5 Blue Plus retrofit (still need to put together)

Day One:

ngoodermuth · Feb 14, 2019

Woop! A new 120g tank to follow, I love mine! Just big enough to open up some more options, but not too big that it's difficult to manage. Any stocking plans so far?

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

After a month of cycling, I added a small cleanup crew of bumble bee snails, cerith snails, red leg hermits, tiger sand conch and a couple cleaner shrimp. Only about 3-4 per species and 2 of the conchs. Of course, there wasn't much in the way of food for these guys so I fed them a block of frozen and a algae wafer each day.

They've done well, but I haven't seen the conchs in a while. I stopped going looking for them as every time I have before, they were fine when I found them and pretty ticked.

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

ngoodermuth said:
Any stocking plans so far?

When I started this 5 months ago I made a stocking plan. There's corals too but here's a list of the fish and inverts.

I'll get pictures as I reorganize this build thread.

Zakery Murray · Feb 14, 2019

I've always wanted to do a big tank like that, but just don't have enough room for one right now. Good luck with it, and if you're going all out I noticed you had 2 purple firefish on there ever heard of helfrichi firefish?

ngoodermuth · Feb 14, 2019

4-wheel drive goby LOL I've never heard that one, I'm pretty good with Latin names though so I could still work it out

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

Zakery Murray said:
I've always wanted to do a big tank like that, but just don't have enough room for one right now. Good luck with it, and if you're going all out I noticed you had 2 purple firefish on there ever heard of helfrichi firefish?

No, but I looked it up. That is a good looking fish!

Zakery Murray · Feb 14, 2019

Rabe said:
No, but I looked it up. That is a good looking fish!

If you're willing to spend the extra money that's what I would go for.

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

ngoodermuth said:
4-wheel drive goby LOL I've never heard that one, I'm pretty good with Latin names though so I could still work it out

LOL I hear ya. I've always known it as a twin spot / twin eye goby. But I recorded it as 4 wheel drive - from saltwaterfish.com

Some sites list this one as being difficult. I don't know why, its been a joy and never even hinted at being hard. He drives around sifting the sand and when I feed the tank - he eats LFS reef frenzy.

Nokiaec11 · Feb 14, 2019

I love pics

Rabe · Feb 14, 2019

Zakery Murray said:
If you're willing to spend the extra money that's what I would go for.

Hmm.. Maybe...

I buy the smallest specimans I can and I put my list together the way I did hoping to alleviate aggression... Introducing the gobies together, introduce the tangs together when I get to them. So far, this strategy is working. My only complaint is that when I bought the firefish, I ordered to of the smallest specimens but they sent one large and one small.

There's been a little aggression between them, but nothing too bad. The big one will chase the small one into it's hiding spot once in a while. Most of the time, they hang out in different parts of the tank and sometimes together.

I'll research this one and see what I can find out.. Then figure out how to justify the $100 price tag.

Zakery Murray · Feb 15, 2019

Rabe said:
Hmm.. Maybe...

I buy the smallest specimans I can and I put my list together the way I did hoping to alleviate aggression... Introducing the gobies together, introduce the tangs together when I get to them. So far, this strategy is working. My only complaint is that when I bought the firefish, I ordered to of the smallest specimens but they sent one large and one small.

There's been a little aggression between them, but nothing too bad. The big one will chase the small one into it's hiding spot once in a while. Most of the time, they hang out in different parts of the tank and sometimes together.

I'll research this one and see what I can find out.. Then figure out how to justify the $100 price tag.

Well for the agression thing i've owned both and I find that the helfrichi firefish are less agressive than the purple ones, but that is just my opinion, and well for the 100 dollar price tag I figured that I have spent much more on just one coral so why not the fishies too. lol