Red Sea Reefer 250 Deluxe - Full Triton Build

[PiscesPower]

@PiscesPower updates !!!

Been so busy. I'll try to get something in here with some pics this weekend. Tanks are both doing great.

 

[Sarah24!]

It was crowded, but great. I spent too much money of course. I was getting a cold so I didn't stay for the whole thing.

Hello,

Errrrr you know (as one who works in the medical field), going out and getting a cold isn’t normally recommended.
But I’m curious as to how much they cost, so I can buy them all and make people feel better. Sure hope they take dum dums and gummy bears as payment.

 

[PiscesPower]

I owe an update so here it is. Pics first, description of current step up and stock after pics.

Current Equipment List

• RSR 250 tanks with Crystal Reef Aquatics Stealth Triton Sump
• 2 X AI Hydra 26 HD LED and 4 ATI Blue Plus T5 in the Giessmann Stellar Hybrid fixture - LOVE IT
• 2 x AI Nero 5 wave pumps - LOVE THEM
• 1 x AI Prime Fuge Light - Much better choice than the Kessil H380 as it was just way too powerful for my fuge
• Bubble Magus Curve 5 skimmer - it's a workhorse, have had it since the tank got wet
• VariosS 2 Return pump - Also a workhorse and stays really clean
• Apex 2016 with the following modules: Trident (was lucky enough to be in the second NSI group so I have had it since the beginning of April), LDK, DOS x 2, DDR x 2, Auto feeder.
• Lifeguard reactors x 2 but I rarely use them - I add carbon in a bag and I have been using Phosphate Rx to deal with any phosphate issues.
• Tunze 3152 ATO w/ Crystal Reef Aquatics Stealth 6g ATO reservoir

I think that's it for equipment. I have a large fuge that has a mix of chaeto, feather caulerpa, Ulva and some gracilaria which seems to always get choked out. In my sump I have 1k Maxspect Nano Balls. Half in a low flow area of my fuge and half in the higher flow area of my skimmer area.

I run Triton Core 7 Triton Method and BioBase. I use a variety of different supplements with no real rhyme or reason to when I use what. Acropower, Reef Enhance, Live Rock Enhance, Phytoplankton, Benereef, Brightwell Vitamarin M, Selcon. I feed with just about as much variety and use a variety of frozen brands: LRS, V2O (live the reef caviar), Algaebarn copepods, PE Mysis, PE Mysis pellets (all sizes mixed in a container) TDO Chromoboost (all sizes mixed in a container), Cobalt Aquatics flakes, Two Little Fishies Veggie sheets (purple, red and green). My fish and corals eat more variety than I do.

Livestock: My tank is heavily stocked, which is why I have added additional filtration media.

Fish:
Kole Eye Tang
Melanurus Wrasse
Christmas Wrasse
Tanaka's Pygmy Wrasse
Potter's Angel
Royal Gramma
2 x PJ Cardinals
2 x Red Mandarins
Orange spot Blenny
Orange spot Goby & Pistol shrimp (2 of my oldest inhabitants)
Flame Hawkfish
Trio of Bartlett's Anthias (1 male / 2 female)

Inverts:
Pistol Shrimp
Harlequin Shrimp
2 x Cleaner shrimp
1 x Peppermint shrimp
2 x Serpent stars
1 x Tiger conch
2 x Acropora crabs
1 x Strawberry crab
1 x Pom Pom crab
1 x Pencil urchin
Assorted hermits
Assorted snails: Cerith, Nassarius, Astrea, Trochus

Corals:
SPS - some notable named ones - Walt Disney, RR Rainbow Loom, WWC Hippie Juice, RR Pink Cadillac, Oregon Tort, PC Rainbow, assorted monitpora species, cyphastrea,
LPS - Duncans, My prized Trachyphyllia, Octospawn, Frammer, 4 awesome gonipora, blastos, acans, Rainbow and Space Invader Pectinia
Softies - a few, not enough
Mushrooms: Jawbreaker, Kryptonite, assorted rhodactis. I had some great ricordea but they just melted and completely disappeared, about 8 of them in a 4 days period. POOF.
I had no success with non-photosynthetic gorgonians, or chalices, but I just added a chalice for another try.

In general I think the tank has done great. I have been really lucky not to have to deal with some of the devastating things I see others getting struck with. I do put this down to being in tune with the tank, attending to it daily and feeding a variety of different foods, specially geared at boosting the immunity of my inhabitants. I have not dealt with Ich, thankfully.

I am still obsessed with the tanks and tank more pics of them than I ever did of my kids. Here are some of my favorite things in the tank (a few are from my second tank a Waterbox 28.2 AIO that is beside my main)

 

[simonfchr]

Hello. Great tank, i envy you! I have a RSR250 aswell and running triton method too. My refugium dont seem to be able to handle the nutrients in my tank even though it is about the same size as yours. It grows chaeto rapidly, but i still get a lot of algae growth on the back Wall in my display to the point where ive started dosing NOPOX to fight them. I guessed my refugium was just too small, but seeing your great results makes me question that. How can you and i have so different results from what seems to be the same method? I know you probably cant tell but yeah, i envy your beautiful tank. Gj!

 

[PiscesPower]

Hello. Great tank, i envy you! I have a RSR250 aswell and running triton method too. My refugium dont seem to be able to handle the nutrients in my tank even though it is about the same size as yours. It grows chaeto rapidly, but i still get a lot of algae growth on the back Wall in my display to the point where ive started dosing NOPOX to fight them. I guessed my refugium was just too small, but seeing your great results makes me question that. How can you and i have so different results from what seems to be the same method? I know you probably cant tell but yeah, i envy your beautiful tank. Gj!

Are you using the standard Red Sea sump? I switched mine out for a Triton style sump made by Crystal Reef Aquatics. My fuge section is pretty big. I have also added additional filtration media in the sump.

 

[simonfchr]

No i have the same sump as the one you started with, and made a pretty much identical fuge to yours. It couldnt handle nutrients alone for you? Im going to my LFS tomorrow and debating whether i should buy some marinepure blocks or a reactor, or just switch away from triton method, as i have suspicion that the algae “food” in the triton method is whats feeding the algae in my DT.

 

[PiscesPower]

No i have the same sump as the one you started with, and made a pretty much identical fuge to yours. It couldnt handle nutrients alone for you? Im going to my LFS tomorrow and debating whether i should buy some marinepure blocks or a reactor, or just switch away from triton method, as i have suspicion that the algae “food” in the triton method is whats feeding the algae in my DT.

I struggled when the fuge was small. I would switch to Other Methods and continue with the NOPOX and adding more media. I was not a fan of marinepure, it was really crumbly. I really like the Maxxspect balls.

 

[simonfchr]

Okay. That makes sense. Ive been looking for a better sump but cant find any good ones in Denmark. Ill try what you said. Would you still keep the fuge? Im considering making it a lot smaller to give room to media or a media reactor, but i med it for my mandarin. Thanks for your advise

 

[PiscesPower]

Okay. That makes sense. Ive been looking for a better sump but cant find any good ones in Denmark. Ill try what you said. Would you still keep the fuge? Im considering making it a lot smaller to give room to media or a media reactor, but i med it for my mandarin. Thanks for your advise

Sorry, I missed this post. I would keep the fuge. They do make a great home for pods and it still helps clean the tank and add oxygen. Can't be a bad thing. I feel the more natural we can keep things the better we are.

 

[powers2001]

@PiscesPower Updates!! How's the Trident running?