Reefcowboy’s 150 gal SPS System

[Reefcowboy]

So Storm Isaias hit hard on Long Island and of curse I didnt have a generator. I lost power for a full 4 days and even though I was able to purchase one and power the tank back a day after the power loss, most sps melted and all fish died except a green chromis and coris wrasse.

As with any disaster, comes the thinking of giving up and giving the hobby a rest after we start counting how much we've lost.

So after a few days I started cleaning what was left and decided to revamp the system and give it another go.

Wanted to try a cleaner design tank with with more room for sps to grow. I learned with the last system and realized many things I would like to do different.

Here is the last pic of the system the day before we lost power. It was looking its best then! Get a Generator guys...murphys law will claim your hard work someday too

 

[Reefcowboy]

Got some African reef shelf rock and started working on a new structure... it came out great. It is very sturdy and looks very natural

Will post pics later

 

[fishybizzness]

Living in the Caribbean, a generator is not a luxury, it's a necessity! After irma i was on generator power for over 2 months. I have a whole house, a Honda 3000 and a inverter charger connected to a deep cycle battery! Backup to the backup of the backup! The inverter/battery setup in my opinion is a great tool to have for anyone with an aquarium! Good thing about it is that it has an automatic transfer switch built in and you can link several batteries to it for extended run times!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Living in the Caribbean, a generator is not a luxury, it's a necessity! After irma i was on generator power for over 2 months. I have a whole house, a Honda 3000 and a inverter charger connected to a deep cycle battery! Backup to the backup of the backup! The inverter/battery setup in my opinion is a great tool to have for anyone with an aquarium! Good thing about it is that it has an automatic transfer switch built in and you can link several batteries to it for extended run times!

Wow I'm jealous! I have to work on my generator set up for sure. All I could get was a 6500w unit, no inverter.
Any recommendations? I was thinking about leaving this new one for my house(fridge, some lights, etc) and get a 3000w for the tank alone...maybe I should invest on an inverter?

 

[Reefcowboy]

So thinking about the new aquascape I thought of going with something that allowed more flow and room for the fish to swim. I had ideas of upgrading to a 60x48x30 but my wife squashed it so I guess I'll have to best work with what I have.

I like the idea of a floating scape and got my inspiration from tanks like this one:



Another thing I will do differently is getting smaller fish. I will definitely have tangs, but this time will get them as small as I find being my last ones grew fast.

I called/emailed an aquascape rock structure manufacturer that has some pretty cool designs made out of epoxy and they looked awesome. I was really trying to skip making one myself but I never got a response from the vendor, and I was then willing to pay a premium.

So I figured what the heck and decided to make a better one from shelf rock and I'm glad I did. It came out better, exact measurements needed and it will serve as biological surface area vs a non porous/epoxy artificial one.

Here is pic of how it turned out. Tank glass is dirty, didnt have yet a chance to clean it. The structure measures 30"x 15" w x 12" tall

 

[najer]

Sweet.

 

[montethemoster]

Sweet.

That looks fantastic! What did you use to join the rocks together?

 

[Reefcowboy]

That looks fantastic! What did you use to join the rocks together?

Thank you
I used epoxy with gel glue to close big gaps and give the initial hold. For hanging structures like this one that wont be enough.
Then I filled all cracks with very fine reef sand and poured super thin cyanoacrylate(thin superglue). It dries immediately and the sand turns into a cement like consistency.
Forget mortars, I tried Aquaforests and it doesnt hold, breaks and is useless.

I've watched videos about this method and could not believe how strong of a joint and how quick of a bond fine sand mixed with thin superglue allows for when aquascaping.

You can build virtually any structure you desire.
I wasnt in the mood of building one at first, reason I wanted to buy an already built piece, but once I started and found out how cool it is I actually enjoyed it a lot...

 

[montethemoster]

Thank you
I used epoxy with gel glue to close big gaps and give the initial hold. For hanging structures like this one that wont be enough.
Then I filled all cracks with very fine reef sand and poured super thin cyanoacrylate(thin superglue). It dries immediately and the sand turns into a cement like consistency.
Forget mortars, I tried Aquaforests and it doesnt hold, breaks and is useless.

I've watched videos about this method and could not believe how strong of a joint and how quick of a bond fine sand mixed with thin superglue allows for when aquascaping.

You can build virtually any structure you desire.
I wasnt in the mood of building one at first, reason I wanted to buy an already built piece, but once I started and found out how cool it is I actually enjoyed it a lot...

Thanks for the detailed information. Do you think this approach would work for rocks that have been curing for awhile, or just with dry rock?

 

[fishybizzness]

Wow I'm jealous! I have to work on my generator set up for sure. All I could get was a 6500w unit, no inverter.
Any recommendations? I was thinking about leaving this new one for my house(fridge, some lights, etc) and get a 3000w for the tank alone...maybe I should invest on an inverter?

I have a 16k generac with a auto transfer switch for the house for normal outages but during extended periods like after major storms i shut it down when we leave for work and run the tanks, fridge and freezer off the honda 3000 inverter. It burns about 2 gallons of gas a day on eco mode. It's also super quiet. Best investment i have made. It's a little pricey but for quietness, it can't be beat!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Thanks for the detailed information. Do you think this approach would work for rocks that have been curing for awhile, or just with dry rock?

Hmmmm... difficult to tell for sure. If the rocks are wet, it could present a problem for the adherent properties of the glue.

I've only used this on dry rock and it seems to be the perfect medium for it.

You could try letting the rock dry for two days or so, glue them then place them back in the curing bin...lots of work, I know but IMO worth it if you have time and a cool design in mind
A few pics while I was making it in my garage

 

[Reefcowboy]

Little update...loaded with sps frags again(50 pieces).some lps coming in hopefully over the next couple of days...high end gonis, hammers and chalices.
Many sps frags already entrusting. System nice and stable

 

[CoralNerd]

I did it, I made it through your thread in one night. Killer tank and your writing style is entertaining.

 

[Reefcowboy]

I did it, I made it through your thread in one night. Killer tank and your writing style is entertaining.

Thank you CoralNerd,
I hope my mistakes can help guide others in their builds.
I'm due for an update am now trying different amino acids and the results on the sps.

 

[kiet_kat]

How is your tank doing? One of my favorite builds on here