TF's 50G Triton Cube Build

TechnicalFisher · Dec 1, 2016

So after 15 years I've decided to get back into reef keeping. Our oldest son, now 3 is obsessed with fish and provided the perfect window to get back in the game[emoji846].

Last week we ordered an SCA 50 gallon cube that's set to arrive on 12/7. Steven at FCA was a pleasure to deal with and helped me with all of my questions. I ordered the tank with a Herbie drain setup (which they are apparently doing standard now) and upgraded to the wood stand. I also placed a big black Friday order with BRS, some of which started arriving today. More to come tomorrow and into the weekend.

Planning on putting the tank down in our basement/home theater on a wall that backs up to utility space that I can use for water handling, RODI and quarantine.

Looking forward to getting started!

helen ann · Dec 1, 2016

Welcome back to the addiction!!!

jamesamantha · Dec 1, 2016

I got the same light for my 45 cube from BRS. Have you found the coralvue youtube video on setting up the light via the app? It isn't bad once you get the hang of it. I like it so far....hope you do too.

Salty1962 · Dec 2, 2016

Welcome to R2R! Looks like a great start, keep us posted!

TechnicalFisher · Dec 2, 2016

jamesamantha said:
I got the same light for my 45 cube from BRS. Have you found the coralvue youtube video on setting up the light via the app? It isn't bad once you get the hang of it. I like it so far....hope you do too.

I haven't seen it but will check it out, thanks! Love the look of the light- very sleek and low-profile. Looking forward to firing it up and trying out the app.

TechnicalFisher · Dec 2, 2016

Good news,tank's on the truck and heading east! Using this weekend to get the utility room together and RODI running so that we're ready for arrival.

revhtree · Dec 2, 2016

Welcome back!

TechnicalFisher · Dec 3, 2016

New delivery yesterday of BRS reef saver rock, heaters, salt mix and my gate valve.

So it was time to start playing with some scape. I was quickly reminded of how bad I am at it, but managed to come up with a couple of general ideas. Have to say that after only ever working with live rock, I like the luxury of time and experimentation that the dry stuff provides. Id like to keep it fairly sparse, with one main area and then a smaller outcropping out and to the left of it.

Came up with one that's fairly uniform and sloping.

And with the help of some zips another more interesting one with some overhangs.

Here's the second one from above.

I'm curious whether for an SPS dominant setup I need a bunch of of flat table space to place corals or if it's not so important to have a lot of horizontal space. Also, I like the look of overhangs but wonder if they end up being counter-productive as you are limiting higher-light areas. I don't want to limit myself too much on where I can place stuff. Thanks for any thoughts/suggestions.

TechnicalFisher · Dec 5, 2016

Got the RODI system set up in the utility room yesterday.

I think I'm going to do a permanent connection to either the cold side of the water heater or directly off the main. Any befit to one vs. the other? It's all accessible near where the RODI unit sits. Planning on just dropping in a tee with a shutoff valve.

Brute cans for RODI and salt are coming today/tomorrow so hoping I can get some water mixed and waiting before the tank arrives.

Been going back and forth a bit on depth of my sand bed, ran a very deep plenum system years ago, but think I'm going to go with 1.5" or so shallow bed this time.

Also finalizing scape and how I'm going to place it in tank. Has anyone used small pieces of egg crate under the base rocks to keep them off the glass and in place?

TechnicalFisher · Dec 8, 2016

The tank setup was delivered yesterday and we decided to surprise our 3-year old this morning by getting his elf on the shelf in the mix. Needless to say he was psyched!

There are a couple of issues with the tank and stand that I've reached out to Steve at SCA about. It has some areas where the paint and/or caulked has cracked or receded and some chips out of the bottom. The door's also got some alignment issues but the hinges are adjustable so I'm sure I'll be able to straighten it out. Aside from these fit/finish issues, it feels solid and looks great. Unfortunately, when I got the tank lit I also noticed that it's got a 3-inch or so scratch on the inside of the front glass on the top left. The pic's not great but you can see it in the center of the shot.

At first I was hoping it was sealant or some kind of residue but I can feel a groove with my fingernail. I'm torn about how to deal with it- on one hand I don't want to have to go through the exchange process, on the other I wonder if it's going to be even more noticeable once water gets in there and/or I start having some algae growth. If anybody's dealt with a similar issue on a brand new tank, particularly an SCA I'd be interested to hear how you dealt with it. Given what I've read about SCA on the forum, I'm confident they'll deal with everything appropriately in any event.

Spent some time playing around with the Ethereal last night and found the ICV6 iPhone app pretty easy to work with once I figured it out. Looking forward to getting it dialed in and figure out the right settings, but so far it looks to be a pretty slick setup. I'll be working on getting plumbing/electrical worked out, as well as putting a conduit in the wall behind the tank to run it into my fish room. I'm planning on running my ATO and dosing out of that room through the wall to keep the sump area neat.

TechnicalFisher · Dec 8, 2016

jamesamantha said:
I got the same light for my 45 cube from BRS. Have you found the coralvue youtube video on setting up the light via the app? It isn't bad once you get the hang of it. I like it so far....hope you do too.

@jamesamantha, thanks very much for pointing me in the direction of that CoralVue video! I was having some trouble with the app and didn't understand that I needed to create a group to adjust photoperiod. That video made everything clear- thanks again!

TechnicalFisher · Dec 16, 2016

Well, the scratch ended up being pretty significant so I contacted Steve at SCA to arrange for replacement. He was great to deal with and handled it very quickly, sending out a replacement tank. Unfortunately the replacement, which was shipped via UPS, arrived today and when I opened it the entire back glass was shattered. [emoji43]

So, it's back to square one. Not having much luck with tanks but I have to say that SCA has been amazing dealing with everything so far. Here's hoping third time's a charm for the tank...

TechnicalFisher · Dec 28, 2016

Just about getting the sump area laid out- plumbing's been dry fitted and electronics are placed. Still need to work on a bit of cord routing and place my probes, but so far the cord management seems to be working well. Waiting on a Gyre pump and controller to arrive on Friday and that will complete the gear for now. Here's a shot of the dry fit pluming...

Also got the QT cycled so we added a clownfish pair. Picked them up from @PacificEastAquaculture, took the family down and everybody enjoyed it. It's really a great place with very friendly folks. The clowns were in great shape and were eating well from day 1. Really looking forward to going back down for some coral shopping when it's time.

The replacement tank arrived this am and is intact so hoping to finalize plumbing and get some water in the tank tonight!

TechnicalFisher · Dec 30, 2016

Tanks finally up and running! Got it leak tested on Wed, water, BRS reef saver and 40lbs ocean direct went in yesterday. Looked like this for 24hrs...

And tonight it's cleared up nicely.

mr70ss · Jan 3, 2017

Lookin good!

kazikage42 · Jan 3, 2017

Awesome, Following

Ridem32 · Jan 4, 2017

You said you bought yours from Steven at FCA. What does FCA stand for? I want to look at website. Thanks.

TechnicalFisher · Jan 4, 2017

@Ridem32, sorry that was a typo. It's SCA- SC Aquariums. They were absolutely great to deal with.

Ridem32 · Jan 4, 2017

Ok got it. Thanks

TechnicalFisher · Jan 8, 2017

Tank's been settling in nicely and Nitrites zeroed out early last week, pH ranging 8.10-8.15 and Alk steady at 9, so I moved the clownfish pair out of QT and into the main tank over the weekend. It was a little wild at first, they had done great in the QT but fought like mad for the first 2 hrs they were in the DT. I thought I was going to have to pull the little (presumably male) one out to the QT but then they settled down. Doing great since then, I guess they just had to re-establish the pecking order in the new digs.