Hey all,
I have a Red Sea Reefer 350 but I am struggling to find balance for a mixed reef. Everything is growing but some things aren't thriving and I know it's because of lower nutrient levels. My sticks appreciate it, but my lps and mushrooms aren't pleased. So I thought this would be a good opportunity to set up a smaller frag tank for them. I've never done a build thread and figured I could contribute since I'm actually starting this tank from dry.
I like to save a buck where I can and shopped locally for a used tank. While I love my rsr, something about Waterbox tanks always draws my attention. Perhaps because it seems they have improved on some issues I have with my reefer. In any case, I found an awesome deal on a Waterbox 28.2 w/ return pump about 1.5 hours away from me. Turns out it was Waterbox headquarters selling their display tank! I had no idea they were in FL.
I happened to pick up on the day they had started aquascaping their Eel Island tank and got to see first hand just how awesome that peninsula was going to look. They were using Caribsea shapes and I geeked out a bit because I had been looking into the small arches. Watching them stack and have everything come together really sold me. The only problem I had was the smaller shapes are only sold by the box for $120 and I only needed a single arch. Then I remembered that MACNA was right around the corner and I had already bought my tickets for the exhibit floor in advance.
I hoped Caribsea would be there and I'd be able to grab a single arch. Then along comes Dorian and makes a mess of everything. When we arrived, I went straight to Caribsea and the man I spoke with said they were packing up to head home and hurricane prep. I was bummed, but carried on through the booths. I picked up a bottle of Fritz Turbo Start 900 and looked for other arches along the way.
BRS was doing a sort of scavenger hunt for stamps. They sent you around to different booths for a stamp and then you turn your card in for the raffle. Tridents and a $2500 check for a BRS shopping spree. By the time we turned our cards in, I noticed a different rep at the Caribsea table and he actually let me buy an arch for crazy cheap through Top Shelf. I was pretty pleased!
I have only ever been to frag swaps and Reefapalooza, so this was my first MACNA experience. It was awesome, so much equipment and answers to all the questions I had. Everyone was in a great mood. I bought a single sheet of raffle tickets and realized that with the approach of Dorian, we would only be able to stay until the 1 pm raffle and would have to miss the BRS raffle. There was just too much uncertainty at the time and so much prep at home.
The raffle ended up being delayed by about an hour so I was stressing out a bit, but imagine my surprise when my girlfriend found out I had won a Kessil A360x! They even provided the A series mounting arm. She called me and said 'you won! A tune blue something or other!!' lol, I love that she supports my reefing addiction even though she doesn't care about the equipment. I had been looking at AI Primes because of price point, wondering what spare equipment I could sell to afford a new one, so the timing really couldn't have been better.
I grabbed a neon rock flower nem and we headed out. I was still in shock because I am generally not a very 'lucky' person. But that day just seemed like everything fell into place for me. The universe really wants me to have this frag tank, haha.
There was crazy traffic on the way back, it ended up taking over 3 hours to get to Sarasota. I posted on the MACNA app that I had a great time but wished we could have stayed for the BRS raffle. Several people replied that I had won a trident, but needed to be present to win. Haha, oh man, that would have been sweet. But I don't have an apex and really can't complain with my brand new kessil. So I hope the person called in my place really wanted a trident and left just as pleased as I did.
I was able to find a cheap used 150 watt cobalt neotherm, which I loved using in my smaller tank. Fits perfect. I was worried about height.
When we got home, I set up the mount and light and realized I would need the slide bar extension because this tank is 2x2 and the rail doesn't allow for it to be centered. Glad they actually make the extension, $25...not bad for a free light setup! I couldn't figure out what the open slot on the bottom of the mount was for, but then I realized the whole bar is hollow to allow for cord management. It looks great, I truly appreciate that little detail.
BRS also provided everyone who turned in a card with a $25 coupon code. I was able to use both of our codes to order some sand and fish food. I went with Caribsea Fiji pink. There were a couple of free samples of Chemipure blue nano in the freebie bags too, I can use those later.
That's all I've got for now. Sand should be here Friday so hopefully I'll be able to get this up and running by the weekend. I'm hoping with all the different products, the tank will have a nice variety of bacteria to start up.
I have a Red Sea Reefer 350 but I am struggling to find balance for a mixed reef. Everything is growing but some things aren't thriving and I know it's because of lower nutrient levels. My sticks appreciate it, but my lps and mushrooms aren't pleased. So I thought this would be a good opportunity to set up a smaller frag tank for them. I've never done a build thread and figured I could contribute since I'm actually starting this tank from dry.
I like to save a buck where I can and shopped locally for a used tank. While I love my rsr, something about Waterbox tanks always draws my attention. Perhaps because it seems they have improved on some issues I have with my reefer. In any case, I found an awesome deal on a Waterbox 28.2 w/ return pump about 1.5 hours away from me. Turns out it was Waterbox headquarters selling their display tank! I had no idea they were in FL.
I happened to pick up on the day they had started aquascaping their Eel Island tank and got to see first hand just how awesome that peninsula was going to look. They were using Caribsea shapes and I geeked out a bit because I had been looking into the small arches. Watching them stack and have everything come together really sold me. The only problem I had was the smaller shapes are only sold by the box for $120 and I only needed a single arch. Then I remembered that MACNA was right around the corner and I had already bought my tickets for the exhibit floor in advance.
I hoped Caribsea would be there and I'd be able to grab a single arch. Then along comes Dorian and makes a mess of everything. When we arrived, I went straight to Caribsea and the man I spoke with said they were packing up to head home and hurricane prep. I was bummed, but carried on through the booths. I picked up a bottle of Fritz Turbo Start 900 and looked for other arches along the way.
BRS was doing a sort of scavenger hunt for stamps. They sent you around to different booths for a stamp and then you turn your card in for the raffle. Tridents and a $2500 check for a BRS shopping spree. By the time we turned our cards in, I noticed a different rep at the Caribsea table and he actually let me buy an arch for crazy cheap through Top Shelf. I was pretty pleased!
I have only ever been to frag swaps and Reefapalooza, so this was my first MACNA experience. It was awesome, so much equipment and answers to all the questions I had. Everyone was in a great mood. I bought a single sheet of raffle tickets and realized that with the approach of Dorian, we would only be able to stay until the 1 pm raffle and would have to miss the BRS raffle. There was just too much uncertainty at the time and so much prep at home.
The raffle ended up being delayed by about an hour so I was stressing out a bit, but imagine my surprise when my girlfriend found out I had won a Kessil A360x! They even provided the A series mounting arm. She called me and said 'you won! A tune blue something or other!!' lol, I love that she supports my reefing addiction even though she doesn't care about the equipment. I had been looking at AI Primes because of price point, wondering what spare equipment I could sell to afford a new one, so the timing really couldn't have been better.
I grabbed a neon rock flower nem and we headed out. I was still in shock because I am generally not a very 'lucky' person. But that day just seemed like everything fell into place for me. The universe really wants me to have this frag tank, haha.
There was crazy traffic on the way back, it ended up taking over 3 hours to get to Sarasota. I posted on the MACNA app that I had a great time but wished we could have stayed for the BRS raffle. Several people replied that I had won a trident, but needed to be present to win. Haha, oh man, that would have been sweet. But I don't have an apex and really can't complain with my brand new kessil. So I hope the person called in my place really wanted a trident and left just as pleased as I did.
I was able to find a cheap used 150 watt cobalt neotherm, which I loved using in my smaller tank. Fits perfect. I was worried about height.
When we got home, I set up the mount and light and realized I would need the slide bar extension because this tank is 2x2 and the rail doesn't allow for it to be centered. Glad they actually make the extension, $25...not bad for a free light setup! I couldn't figure out what the open slot on the bottom of the mount was for, but then I realized the whole bar is hollow to allow for cord management. It looks great, I truly appreciate that little detail.
BRS also provided everyone who turned in a card with a $25 coupon code. I was able to use both of our codes to order some sand and fish food. I went with Caribsea Fiji pink. There were a couple of free samples of Chemipure blue nano in the freebie bags too, I can use those later.
That's all I've got for now. Sand should be here Friday so hopefully I'll be able to get this up and running by the weekend. I'm hoping with all the different products, the tank will have a nice variety of bacteria to start up.
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