Waterbox 130.4 Macroalgae Display

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So after a 3 year hiatus from owning a saltwater tank.... I'm finally back with a Waterbox 130.4 Tank!

This tank will be mainly macroalgae similar to a tank I did back in 2011!
Link for those that'd like to check the old tank out
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/150g-rimless-macroalgae-tank.74027/

My livestock for this tank will mainly be inverts consisting of

  • Sexy Shrimps
  • Anemone Shrimps
  • Pom Pom Crabs
  • Feather Dusters
  • Tunicates
  • Tridacna Clams
  • Oysters
  • Emperor Shrimps
  • Sea Apple
  • Filter Feeder Cucumber

My Fish list is very simple and will consist only of small Gobies and Cardinalfish!

Equipment List for this tank is pretty simple

  • Apex Controller
  • Nyos 160 Skimmer
  • Apex Cor-15
  • Radion G4 Pro x2
  • Ai Nero 5 x2

Some pictures of the tank / stand being assemble =)



W9Bz0dph.jpg


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Some Equipments =), I plan on mounting the Ipad on the wall next to the tank. The Ipad will be used to controlling the tank and displaying the tank status.

flyMc8sh.jpg


Cabinet fully assembled!

0Xq2gBih.jpg


Tank placed on top!

DKT58BAh.jpg


1 Light mounted!

DQGbjrxh.jpg
 
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While I was waiting for this tank to be built (and now to be cycle), I started a small 10g tank to grow out some macroalgae until the big tank is ready.

Some of the Algae I have collected so far is, I will provide correct ID with pictures later down the line =)

Please excuse the poor picture quality. I will try to do more with DSLR in the future

  • Botryocladia (Red Gape)
  • Bryothamnion triquetrum
  • Cryptonemia crenulata
  • Barbed Heart Macro (Not sure on scientific name)
  • Gracilaria hayi
  • Galaxaura
  • Coralline Algae (Fine Branched)
  • Unknown Leafy Coralline Algae
  • Hypnea pannosa
  • Dragon's Breath
  • Portieria
  • Codium
  • Purple Fauchea
  • String of Pearls Macro Algae
  • Halimedia Sp.

SESnEM4h.jpg


a81Dqg7h.jpg


s9bGiwDh.jpg


2ejWKrSh.jpg


Unknown
PdcQNkFh.jpg


Unknown Coralline Algae
FBrkUV2h.jpg


Fine Coralline Algae
YfiVD78h.jpg


Some Feather Dusters

1CpxLxYh.jpg


lbsMlPyh.jpg



Currently cooking some Live rocks in this tub for the Display =)

nSn74n2h.jpg
 
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Very nice and interesting. Where do you find Tunicates these days? Pretty rare to come across the more interesting specimens.



I'm trying to get some wholesalers to find some Tunicates along with macroalgae (it's an odd request since nobody order it)

This is one of the ones I'm trying to get

39811009820_3fbc5c44cf_b.jpg
 
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Thanks guys!

I'm planning on dosing the tank with the full line up from Reef Nutrition, along with some meaty frozen for the maxi mini I'll have for the sexy shrimps to host.

With an algae tank growing, nutrient won't be too much of an issue along with the nyos skimmer 160 and regular water changes.
 

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Thanks guys!

I'm planning on dosing the tank with the full line up from Reef Nutrition, along with some meaty frozen for the maxi mini I'll have for the sexy shrimps to host.

With an algae tank growing, nutrient won't be too much of an issue along with the nyos skimmer 160 and regular water changes.

I like your vision. I question the long term wisdom of your protein skimmer. I have operated marine tanks for 47 years using the Trident Method before it had that name. I have been skimmerless for 35 of those years. Skimmers remove organic nutrients that are at the bottom of the food chain, mostly bacteria. Ken Felderman research papers on Advanced Aquaria document a 35% effieciency of removing TOC, while a mature biofilter will recycle > 55% of TOC and activated carbon will remove > 65% of TOC.

One year ago, I converted a 25 year EcoSystem mud/macro refugium into a cryptic sponge refugium. With the proliferation of cryptic sponges, DOC is recycled into DIC and Marine Snow, both of which feed filter feeders. I choose to use complex food webs to produce live food of differrent sizes to feed differrent filter feeders a continuous food supply instead of the coral smoothie.



https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/2...m-on-top-with-30g-ecosystem-mud-macro.421526/

This is my newest display at one year this month.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/wet-salty-for-christmas-2017.428100/



In looking for oddities for your mixed lagoon, I suggest you look at Gulf of Mexico diver collected live rock.

http://www.gulfliverock.com/premium-decorative-rock.html

Premium Decorative Live Rock is our most popular rock. This rock will have thick coralline algae on it and a mixed variety of plants, animals, hard and soft corals, sponges and so much more. This type of rock has an enormous variety of animal and encrusting marine life.The shapes and sizes are extremely unique. This rock could contain multi-colored christmas tree worms, cup and tube corals, feather dusters, gorgonians, serpulid worms and encrusting clams.

This rock is fully blanketed with colorful coralline algae's, these algae's come in multitudes of fascinating shades of purple, reds, oranges, peaches and yellows. Most rocks contain bryzoans,orange leather sponge,gracilaria algae,halimeda, sea grapes, cluster corals, and cup corals. All of our premium decorative live rocks contain seeded plant life,both macro and micro algae.All pieces are hand collected fresh from our gulf lease site by our diving staff and shipped directly to our customers.We do not use any chemicals in our process. The rocks pictured are for example only. All of our premium decorative live rock is as good or better than the rocks pictured. This is Florida Aquacultured live rock.

All of our live rock comes from our personal Federal Aquaculture Lease site located 10 miles offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. All of our rock was planted on the ocean floor in 1994. So you can image how much marine life has grown on it in over the last 15 years. We have live rock in all different sizes and we can custom fit your order. Our premium decorative live rock starts at $5 a pound. We offer wholesale prices on larger volume orders.
 
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I like your vision. I question the long term wisdom of your protein skimmer. I have operated marine tanks for 47 years using the Trident Method before it had that name. I have been skimmerless for 35 of those years. Skimmers remove organic nutrients that are at the bottom of the food chain, mostly bacteria. Ken Felderman research papers on Advanced Aquaria document a 35% effieciency of removing TOC, while a mature biofilter will recycle > 55% of TOC and activated carbon will remove > 65% of TOC.

One year ago, I converted a 25 year EcoSystem mud/macro refugium into a cryptic sponge refugium. With the proliferation of cryptic sponges, DOC is recycled into DIC and Marine Snow, both of which feed filter feeders. I choose to use complex food webs to produce live food of differrent sizes to feed differrent filter feeders a continuous food supply instead of the coral smoothie.



https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/2...m-on-top-with-30g-ecosystem-mud-macro.421526/

This is my newest display at one year this month.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/wet-salty-for-christmas-2017.428100/



In looking for oddities for your mixed lagoon, I suggest you look at Gulf of Mexico diver collected live rock.

http://www.gulfliverock.com/premium-decorative-rock.html

Premium Decorative Live Rock is our most popular rock. This rock will have thick coralline algae on it and a mixed variety of plants, animals, hard and soft corals, sponges and so much more. This type of rock has an enormous variety of animal and encrusting marine life.The shapes and sizes are extremely unique. This rock could contain multi-colored christmas tree worms, cup and tube corals, feather dusters, gorgonians, serpulid worms and encrusting clams.

This rock is fully blanketed with colorful coralline algae's, these algae's come in multitudes of fascinating shades of purple, reds, oranges, peaches and yellows. Most rocks contain bryzoans,orange leather sponge,gracilaria algae,halimeda, sea grapes, cluster corals, and cup corals. All of our premium decorative live rocks contain seeded plant life,both macro and micro algae.All pieces are hand collected fresh from our gulf lease site by our diving staff and shipped directly to our customers.We do not use any chemicals in our process. The rocks pictured are for example only. All of our premium decorative live rock is as good or better than the rocks pictured. This is Florida Aquacultured live rock.

All of our live rock comes from our personal Federal Aquaculture Lease site located 10 miles offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. All of our rock was planted on the ocean floor in 1994. So you can image how much marine life has grown on it in over the last 15 years. We have live rock in all different sizes and we can custom fit your order. Our premium decorative live rock starts at $5 a pound. We offer wholesale prices on larger volume orders.



I had actually done something similar with my first Macroalgae tank, I left quite a bit of rock in the sump and seed it with a bunch of sponges I found in a very matured system. I feed excessively and those sponges took off after a few months, my water clarity improved greatly because of this. The reason I want to add the skimmer is because I will be feeding multiple time a day to accommodate some Sea fan / Wire Corals that I will eventually keep in this tank. I think without the skimmer, the water quality will degrade rapidly and kill off the inverts / fish I have.

I still aim to raise a bunch of sponges along with various other filter feeder / pods to help create a food chain for the tank in addition to dosing Reef Nutrition.
 
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It's been a busy week trying to set the tank up, but its done and I only have a few more kinks to work out (Programming Apex / Set up Radion schedule ect).

My vision was this was to be 2 island with one having a deep sand bed (8-9") enough for some garden eel to make it their home. Another aspect was having a very open tank so that all the smaller fish / inverts will make the tank seem bigger.

Here are some pictures of the tank being set up / aquascape!


First Rock in

jc2EjCeh.jpg


oFFHB34h.jpg


Water filling up the tank! I had some issues with my RODI system and ended up having to buy 100G RO from the LFS.

It appear my TDS is over 600 from the Tap and that killed my RODI system in less than 2 months without the tank being set up!

KnCwxQgh.jpg


3ZlAT8oh.jpg


Tank filled up!

5bqXYwLh.jpg


Another View

mORxkGBh.jpg
 
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Here are some progression pictures! I added these macros about 4-5 days ago

maxmloNh.jpg


AHVL7lHh.jpg


W1yOBVFh.jpg


And here some pictures from today!

I moved all of my feather duster from my nano tank into this new tank and most started open up immediately.

I also added 9 Rainbow Maxi Mini Anemone and added 17 Sexy Shrimps to host them

Right side of the Tank

DJapXR1h.jpg


Feather Duster

LPAU2Hzh.jpg


My Sexy Colony

u1RVbYTh.jpg



And whats a macro thread without some macros?

hFSXRChh.jpg


Rk948FJh.jpgp


BTf1gmch.jpg
 
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Amazing photos. How did you cycle if so fast?

I have had the rocks cycling for the last 2 months since I had to wait for the tank to be delivered.

The sand bed was both dry sand with live sand spread on top, I had a mini cycle but the macroalgae actually help keep down the nutrient. All I really experienced was a small brown diatom bloom that quickly disappear.
 
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