show your fluval evo 13.5

[walnuts923]

wanted to start a evo thread maybe get some info what lights people are running equipment used and so on

i downsized from a 35 gallon to the evo new kid had to make a sacrifice. tanks been going for about a month month and a half. used live rock from old tank and some corals. running chemi pure blue, purigen and some bio media that came with the tank. stock pump ehiem heater and current marine orbit lights mp10 powerhead.

 

[Nano Reef Q]

I upgraded to the orbit controller lighting system, my corals weren't happy at first & I had to do some rearranging (just when I finally get those darn plugs actually glued)...I have to lay the cover on top of the orbit light since fit is off. I can't use the side piece then BUT I have already had to pull out the stock pump & upgrade it for better flow in the chambers & see significant improvement already. I was constantly siphoning those chambers. I pulled out the black spnge & dropped in a lg filter pad & chemipure nano bag + 2 red mangroves. (Even tried a filter sock there). Mangroves added to make that side of tank prettier & they also have value to water chemistry. I did add the Jebao wave controller because I had one before but its off now. With upgraded pump way better flow but I see a deadspot & might add Koralia 425. Also have the stock skimmer which I run on weekends.
The one thing I hate is when I have to clean the pump filter...unscrewing that dual flow nozzle every week is a pain, I hate having to disturb my tank...I am on a mission to figure out a new setup where I don't have to do that!! hope others post I am curious how/what they are doing too.

 

[Maacc]

This is mine with a kessil 160we. Upgraded stock pump with a lifeguard 800 and a spin stream nozzle, hydor koralia 240, with marine purr balls, chemipure blue and polyfilter pad, no skimmer.

 

[walnuts923]

yea i really want to hear from others as well.
i need to siphon the rear chambers they have some buildup on the bottom of all three chambers.
i made a media basket out of some egg crates where i keep filter floss on the top shelf followed by purigen then chemi pure blue in the second shelf. i threw the biomax that came with the tank in the middle chamber. i want to upgrade the lights to a mini tide it seems to be a really good light. but corals seem happy with the marine orbit so if it aint broke dont fix it right.
i t

 

[Nano Reef Q]

Neither one of you have coralline growth all over your black wall-are you scraping it weekly? Its like the dark surface is an attractant- I get a few spots on glass here & there but nothing like that black background. I finally gave up scraping.
Or maybe my tank is further along in growth cycle?
Great idea on the egg crate. I wish I would have thought of that! Someone just suggested it as a tank cover actually.
I bought the IM nano marine one -the size should have fit until I saw that each chamber has some "shelf/lip" to monopolize you into only their equipment...so I would have had to saw about 2" off the IM filter basket to get it to fit into the middle one.

 

[walnuts923]

yea fluval put that stupid lip in for the skimmer. imo u dont really need a skimmer for a tank this size but what do i know.
yea i dont have any coralline growth yet tank is only about two months old. im prob gonna buy the brs net top with the im clips. hopefully intank will hurry up and make there media basket i hd one on my spec v i really liked it alot.

 

[Nano Reef Q]

Whats everyone doing for additives?
I used to do Kent Nano A & B daily by hand for first 3-4 months. Was a pain for my pet sitter (I travel alot).
I went to a frag show and bought into Prodibio Nano vials (you dose every 2 wks)...getting to first 2 mos with that system. Prodibio is pricey but convenient. Parameters still same either way. Are those acans maccc? I think I want some!

 

[reef-rc]

This is mine with a kessil 160we. Upgraded stock pump with a lifeguard 800 and a spin stream nozzle, hydor koralia 240, with marine purr balls, chemipure blue and polyfilter pad, no skimmer.

@Maacc - what do you think about Kessil 160we on the Evo? How long have you had it running on the tank? Your max intensity setting + duration? Too much intensity?

 

[reef-rc]

All - curious if anyone put anything below the chamber where the overflow chamber is; where the skimmer reside if one is installed? Seems like a rather good space for something.

 

[reef-rc]

All - curious if anyone put anything below the chamber where the overflow chamber is; where the skimmer reside if one is installed? Seems like a rather good space for something.

I am considering starting to run ZeoVit and thought this area would be a good spot to place the Zeolites in a mesh media bag and shake the bag lightly occassionally. Thoughts?

 

[Mike N]

Having trouble with my Evo getting real hot. Heater is set to 79 deg, however when I get home from work the temp is nearly up to 83 deg.
It has to be the stock lighting, its very hot to the touch. Anyone else have this issue?

 

[reef-rc]

Before I switched lighting a few weeks back, I had observed the hood heating as well. It's more related to a closed hood and the # of leds imo. May help if you elevate the hood or somehow run air across the hood and lighting. I know when I had the hood and even had the ceiling fan in the study running, it was warm. Previously with the hood + stock lighting and ceiling fan running on low, it was around 79-81 based on Apex log (with 4 pumps running - skimmer pump, standard return pump, tunze 6040 and refugium pump)

With an open tank and different light on the tank, temperature has been averaging 78 deg.

 

[Mike N]

Before I switched lighting a few weeks back, I had observed the hood heating as well. It's more related to a closed hood and the # of leds imo. May help if you elevate the hood or somehow run air across the hood and lighting. I know when I had the hood and even had the ceiling fan in the study running, it was warm. Previously with the hood + stock lighting and ceiling fan running on low, it was around 79-81 based on Apex log (with 4 pumps running - skimmer pump, standard return pump, tunze 6040 and refugium pump)

With an open tank and different light on the tank, temperature has been averaging 78 deg.

That makes sense. Is there a consensus best light upgrade for the evo? What light are you running?

 

[reef-rc]

What's on the tank currently - Kessil Tuna Blue A80. I will likely add another once there is a need for more lighting based on the corals' need.

best light upgrade - imo will depend on what you plan to keep. I know when I searched this forum alone I saw a number of options (i.e. Orbit Marine).

 

[Mike N]

You were right. I laid the hood on diagonal so the corners were open to air and the temp dropped to 80.4 pretty quick.
I may fire up the 3d printer and make some little spacers for the corners of the tank until I upgrade the lights.

 

[reef-rc]

Awesome! 80-81 is alright.

 

[WarEaglesReef]

Here's my evo at just a bit over 4 months old. Everything's filling out nicely and it's finally starting to look beautiful! Running carbon and GFO along with the biomax media that came with the tank in a homemade media basket I made out of egg crate in the middle chamber rather than the foam. Added a koralia 240 about a month back which has helped a lot with flow. Lighting upgrade will be my next step since I picked up a couple of more high demanding frags of LPS this weekend. Still not sure what I'm gonna go with.

 

[reef-rc]

nice looking. imo sm frags are the way to go with this size tank. i see acan, duncan, torch, frog spawn, hammer etc...all look good.

i picked a few more frags than I should myself yesterday... mostly acans

 

[WarEaglesReef]

nice looking. imo sm frags are the way to go with this size tank. i see acan, duncan, torch, frog spawn, hammer etc...all look good.

i picked a few more frags than I should myself yesterday... mostly acans

Thanks! Seems like a common occurrence in this hobby. I always say I'll go to the LFS or a frag swap to "just look" and end up coming home with a handful of stuff.

Small frags have been the coolest to watch grow too! Much easier to see change when you've only got one or two heads to start with. Acans are about all I've got room left for now. Or anything else small I can put on the sandbed. Quickly running out of real estate. Haha

 

[reef-rc]

I may be be running out of real estate from the set of frags I picked up the other day....what you think?