Taking the plunge

[chefjpaul]

Awesome job so far.

 

[dowsetts101]

Awesome job so far.

Thanks Paul...just need to get my lights sorted now, looking at the ATI Hybrid T5/LED units. Then all the equipment will be done and I can focus more on stocking it. It’s been fun so far anyway!!!

 

[Clayton Jessup]

The tank is looks very nice [emoji1303] well done !

 

[dowsetts101]

The tank is looks very nice [emoji1303] well done !

Thanks Clayton...move my first fish from QT next week so can’t wait for that!!!

 

[dowsetts101]

Quite a few things done since my last post here. Main focus (apart from getting fish through QT) has been to get my water change station enclosure finished off and my chiller hooked up. Given that we’re in the middle of spring here and already had quite a few hot days, it is a critical component for my tank especially coming into summer.

I purchased a Teco TK500 Chiller and installed it outside in my water change station.

Originally I had the pump for the chiller (another Fluval SP4 to match my return pump) positioned in this section next to the chiller, but it just didn’t work, so it’s now sitting in my sump in the return chamber.

Two immersed pumps in the sump probably isn’t desirable, but I didn’t think that redoing the pumping into a single circuit was going to work.

Just some final fitting and touchup paint on the cuts and should all be done.

I’ll give a livestock update in a separate post.

 

[dowsetts101]

Livestock wise I’ve been having mixed success with my QT efforts. Have had two batches through my QT tank and on my third now.

Currently I have in my DT
- 2 x Azure Damsels
- 1 x Lawnmower Blenny
- 2 x Scarlet Cleaner shrimp

I’m currently got in QT
- 2x Clownfish
- 2 x Decora Firefish
- 1 x Banggai Cardinal

Cleanup crew
- 4x Trochus
- 2x Nassarius
- 1 x Strombus
- 4 x “Algae Snails”

Coral wise
- Duncan
- Leather
- Organ Pipe
- Acan Lord
- Fungia
- 3x small mushrooms

I’ve purchased a ATI Powermodule Hybrid 24” so when I have that fitted I’ll look at getting some more corals as the T8’s I’ve got in there at the moment are barely cutting it for what I’ve got.

 

[dowsetts101]

Received my stocking of Marine Rotifers, Marine Amphipods, Copepods Harpacticoid and Copepods Plankton Wild Mix from AquaticLiveFood today.

Going to add them to my refugium and turn off the low flow into to let them settle in.

Hopefully it will add a bit of diversity into my tank, which given I started with RealReefRock instead of Live Rock I probably need.

 

[dowsetts101]

I hadn’t realised that it had been so long since my last build thread update, so I thought that I should get my act together!!

The tank hardware is pretty much complete. I might look at adding a controller down the track, but won’t be for a while.

Since the last photos that I’ve posted, I’ve done the following:

• Completed canopy/hood
• Installed lights (ATI PowerModule T5/LED Hybrid)
• Installed Aquamedic Evo 4

I struggled a bit with getting my lights sorted...ended up being a pretty simple fix and really happy with them. I’ve got a fair bit of light spill out the top of the canopy as I decided to keep it open behind the hood, went for airflow for the lights instead of closing it all in.

Fish wise I’ve only added in a Labout’s Fairy Wrasse and a Blue Eyed Tang and probably not really lookin at adding any more.

My two cleaner shrimp died a little while back, which I was really disappointed with. I had them for almost 18 months and they died within a couple of weeks of each other. Couldn’t find a cause. The other two shrimp (1x peppermint & 1x Blood Red Fire Shrimp) are doing ok, but a lot less social than the cleaners, so definitely on the lookout for some more cleaner shrimp as I just loved the other two.

I’ve been struggling over the past 6 months or so with aiptasia. With the shape of the aquarium, it’s a struggle to get to the back of the rock formations, so they keep on popping up around there. I’m using Aiptasia-X as my control. It doesn’t look like we can get berghia nudibranchs here in Australia (that I can see) and peppermint shrimp seem to just be expensive snacks for my wrasse!!!

Still taking it pretty slowly with corals, just got my first couple of SPS, so learning about the dosing requirements.

Anyway, that’s probably about it for the moment....off to do a water change now.

 

[Bj’s Reef]

Your tank looks great. May I ask how many gallons it holds and where you got it from. I’m considering getting a corner bow front tank myself.

 

[dowsetts101]

Your tank looks great. May I ask how many gallons it holds and where you got it from. I’m considering getting a corner bow front tank myself.

Thanks for that. Not sure if you can still get these tanks...I’ve had this one for around 15 years, originally as freshwater but converted to saltwater just over 2 years ago. It’s from AquaOne, model UFO 880. 80 gallons for the tank volume. I managed to build a sump of around 15 gallons...but really hard to get a good footprint under the tank.

I love the look of the tank as a piece of furniture; it sits really nicely in the corner of the room. As an aquarium I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s very deep, so really hard to work in...can barely get my arm all the way to the bottom. Apart from that it’s really awkward to maintain, especially in the corners. Hard getting good lighting coverage as well.

Any tank I got in the future would be a conventional rectangular tank...for what it’s worth.