The Silent Reef - Fresh tank build

[TheSilentReefer]

Time to make a tank post,

The tank has been running for around 5 years so i will try and start from the beginning :doh:
First of all the name, Long story short i have been running an instagram page for some time of my reef journey and its just a name i have stuck with, So if you want to see more head over to instagram.

Post covid - I had been running my last 4ft reef for the best part of 10 years, this is my main tank where i did all my learning, I managed to keep a successful sps reef tank.

here's a picture of the tank before i started to plan the new one.

The tank was full to the brim and sometimes i wonder why i moved on :scratchhead:

Anywho fast forward to 2020 and i was stuck working from home like most. Then one day i had the bright idea of ordering my "final" tank. I wanted this to be the tank i had dreamed of for all those years.
So this leads me to the current project.

Tank spec
6 x 2 x 2 Aquariums 4 life build with 4ft custom sump, Full cabinet and pelmets with cupboards either side. The pelmet i need to work on but thats a story for later.....

Equipment
Ati Power module hybrid T5/led
3 x Ecotech MP40QD
2 x 600 titanium heaters
Turf Scrubber
Nyos 220 Quantum skimmer
Ecotech M2 return pump
Neptune Apex A3 pro
2 x Neptune Dos pumps with DDR
Reef factory Kh keeper pro

Fish
Orange shoulder tang
Reverse mimic tang
Marine betta
Green chromis
Yellow tailed tamarin wrasse
Flasher wrasse
Christmas wrasse
Pair of onyx clowns
Australian stripey

Tank a while later and it was love at first site, the tank i had always dreamed of.

I decided to reach out and order a proper reef scape this time. It wasnt cheap but i was thinking its what my vision was so off i went to pay in full.
Tank was leak tested then filled to the brim and cycling away.

To be continued....

 

[JumboShrimp]

Keep the photos coming! Looking to check out your Orange Shoulder, if you still have it.

 

[Mas0n]

Oh man... That scape, particularly the rock on the right.

 

[TheSilentReefer]

So this tank went through quite a few changes to begin with.

Back in 2020 i had pictured the lights i wanted to run on the reef, The brand new ATI Stratons that had just been released. I ordered 3 as soon as i could and couldnt wait for there arrival.
Unfortunately this was right around the time when the industry was struggling with microchips and the amount of ATI units entering the uk was the odd few...

I lost my patience and went with 6 red sea 90s to begin with, The lights were great but it wasnt the colours i was hoping for. I have always loved being able to play with leds with the other colours of the spectrums like reds/greens etc.

Following that i decided to try 6 Gen 6 radion xr15 pros. I thaught why not my go to safe bet as i ran the gen 4 pros over my last reef and had amazing results. How wrong was i....

i didnt find the lights spread to be very good, the par was great in a focused beam under them but just fell off a cliff the further away you got.

So i settled on the next best thing, I picked up an ATI Power module Hybrid 5ft unit and was sold. T5s for the epic growth and light coverage with leds to satisfy my late evening "radion" glow.

es that is a clam in the back of the picture my monster maxima clam i had grown for the last 8 years.

So fast forward to the present, i have been currently running Modern Reef RKS

I have been having great results with these, but as you know with reefing, you always believe there is more to be acheived!!!

 

[TheSilentReefer]

So this brings us up to most recent,

I am going to switch back to the most stable setup i ran on my old tank and simple things again...

My trusty Calc reactor, The plan is to run this and dose coral essentials 2 part trace mix designed for just this.

I will update the main post up top with all my current equipment/ fish/ coral etc.

 

[TheSilentReefer]

Next thing your going to learn about me is my second hobby is my love for photography, So natually why not combine the 2.

I have took some pics below of some of the collection i have growing at the min.

 

[TheSilentReefer]

Just managed to get my hands on 3 ATI stratons, will have to work them out and transition from the hybrid.

 

[PacoPetty]

Absolutely incredible pictures!

 

[TheSilentReefer]

Thanks, I got the light above the tank this weekend, was on with doing some par tests to dial them in. I have gone for a schedule that mimics WWCs. I will get some pics up. I also had the opportunity to grab a fish off a local reefer. A stunning gem tang. He’s fit straight in with no issues.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Following along!