Jarob
Active Member
I've been lurking on this site since 2013 and have been keeping reef tanks for about 18 years now and have tried it all, except a large tank. Up until this upgrade my current tank is the largest I've had being a Waterbox 80.4 Frag which is a 48x24x12 65g display. I've almost always stuck with softies and LPS with a few SPS here and there but with my most recent move I decided to jump into Acros and currently have 44 different frags. I quickly realized my 12" deep tank will no longer work and am picking up my new (to me) tank this Friday.
New Aquarium is being purchased used from a local reefer and is as follows:
Aquarium - SCA 180 gallons (48 x 36 x 24) with top and bottom eurobrace and Exotic Marine Systems 32" Overflow with 1.5" drains.
Stand - Framing Tech 80/20
Sump - IceCap RS-36XL Reef Sump
Return Pump - Octo Varios8
Powerheads - 3x EcoTech Marine MP40WQD, 2x Tunze, 2x IceCap Gyre 4k
Lighting - ATI 48" Powermodule Hybrid 8x54w T5 & 3x75w LED (coming from my current tank) supplemented with 2x 47" Quantum Helix Meso Blue bars (just ordered)
Skimmer - Vertex Omega 180
Other Equiptment - KH Guardian, full Apex system w/ DOS for AFR, 25w UV (will upgrade), Ranco Temp Controller
Stand is currently poorly skinned with PVC, I will clean it up and wrap it in 3M Architectural Vinyl to match out house design (wifes requirement for the upgrade). Still debating how I want to mount the panels, either french cleats or magnets or a combination of the two. The canopy will also be re-skinned but is currently an 80/20 frame mounted to a motorized desk lift (250lb capacity) to move it up and down. Biggest challenge for me will be wiring up the new setup as my current one is a mess. I will build a controller board and do it properly with the help from my dad as he was an electrician for 30+ years.
I will do the transfer over the course of a week if everything goes to plan, all new sand, all my current rock, and I have about 60lbs of additional rock that has been cooking in the dark for about two months that was seeded with my sump rock.
I've been battling aiptasia for about a year now and as of this week it is FINALLY almost gone. I tried peppermint shrimp first with no luck, got rid of them and then added 10 LARGE berghia which after 3-4 months I gave up on after zero improvements and never seeing them, then added a Klein Butterfly which completely ignored them and immediately started nipping at my new SPS frags (none of my established SPS which was odd), then added a Aiptasia Filefish which again I never saw him pick at them over several weeks, then last week added 9 peppermint shrimp from AlgaeBarn. Im not sure who is doing the work, maybe a combination of all of them but I can barely spot an aiptasia now after having well over 100. The Klein has also stopped nipping at my SPS entirely and has been a great fish for the past few weeks.
Current stock list:
Fish - 3x Dispar Anthais, Klein Butterfly, Aiptasia FileFish, Allards Clownfish, 2x Springeri Damsels, Firefish,
Coral -
I've also got a Nanocube 14 in my office with all of my old softies and gorgonians and a clown pair and Biota Radial Filefish I will be taking down - I'll put some of it in the new tank but mostly will be sold off.
The new tank before I pick it up:
Next post will be my current and past tanks!
New Aquarium is being purchased used from a local reefer and is as follows:
Aquarium - SCA 180 gallons (48 x 36 x 24) with top and bottom eurobrace and Exotic Marine Systems 32" Overflow with 1.5" drains.
Stand - Framing Tech 80/20
Sump - IceCap RS-36XL Reef Sump
Return Pump - Octo Varios8
Powerheads - 3x EcoTech Marine MP40WQD, 2x Tunze, 2x IceCap Gyre 4k
Lighting - ATI 48" Powermodule Hybrid 8x54w T5 & 3x75w LED (coming from my current tank) supplemented with 2x 47" Quantum Helix Meso Blue bars (just ordered)
Skimmer - Vertex Omega 180
Other Equiptment - KH Guardian, full Apex system w/ DOS for AFR, 25w UV (will upgrade), Ranco Temp Controller
Stand is currently poorly skinned with PVC, I will clean it up and wrap it in 3M Architectural Vinyl to match out house design (wifes requirement for the upgrade). Still debating how I want to mount the panels, either french cleats or magnets or a combination of the two. The canopy will also be re-skinned but is currently an 80/20 frame mounted to a motorized desk lift (250lb capacity) to move it up and down. Biggest challenge for me will be wiring up the new setup as my current one is a mess. I will build a controller board and do it properly with the help from my dad as he was an electrician for 30+ years.
I will do the transfer over the course of a week if everything goes to plan, all new sand, all my current rock, and I have about 60lbs of additional rock that has been cooking in the dark for about two months that was seeded with my sump rock.
I've been battling aiptasia for about a year now and as of this week it is FINALLY almost gone. I tried peppermint shrimp first with no luck, got rid of them and then added 10 LARGE berghia which after 3-4 months I gave up on after zero improvements and never seeing them, then added a Klein Butterfly which completely ignored them and immediately started nipping at my new SPS frags (none of my established SPS which was odd), then added a Aiptasia Filefish which again I never saw him pick at them over several weeks, then last week added 9 peppermint shrimp from AlgaeBarn. Im not sure who is doing the work, maybe a combination of all of them but I can barely spot an aiptasia now after having well over 100. The Klein has also stopped nipping at my SPS entirely and has been a great fish for the past few weeks.
Current stock list:
Fish - 3x Dispar Anthais, Klein Butterfly, Aiptasia FileFish, Allards Clownfish, 2x Springeri Damsels, Firefish,
Coral -
I've also got a Nanocube 14 in my office with all of my old softies and gorgonians and a clown pair and Biota Radial Filefish I will be taking down - I'll put some of it in the new tank but mostly will be sold off.
The new tank before I pick it up:
Next post will be my current and past tanks!
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