BurgerLocker
New Member
Hi all, welcome to my very first “tank thread”. I’ve always been a fan of nano reefs and cube tanks, with my current running tank being an IM 14g peninsula AIO aquarium and my favourite tank that I’ve had being my former 60g cube with trigger systems ruby cube sump. I’m an idiot for selling that system.
I’ve recently decided to upgrade my IM tank as I have much more time to devote to caring for it. I have dreamed for years of getting a RedSea Reefer. In my research for this upgrade, I stumbled on Waterbox, who from my understanding fairly recently opened up shop here in Canada. After watching a few videos featuring their tanks, it seemed to me as though a Waterbox is a superior tank, using better materials (glass vs plastic pieces and better plumbing). I decided to go with the Marine X 35.1 with the white stand due to my space limitations as well as my requirement of having a sump. My partner also really likes the look of the sleek white stand, which is always a bonus.
The same day, i ordered mostly everything I would need to get this set up and running. I went with 2x 100w Eheim Jager heaters. I wanted a sexy return pump, but due to the small size of the return section of the sump I decided to try the IM MightyJet midsize dc pump (538gph). I have the desktop (328gph) version of it on my 14g and it’s been great, and it was a quarter of the price of a Vectra. For my light, I plan to use my AI Prime HD as it has been a great light and is sized perfectly for this tank. I went ahead and purchased the 3DReefing diffuser for it to reduce light spill into my living room, as the tank sits beside my TV. For sand, i bought 20lb of CaribSea Special Grade Reef Sand, which has always been my favourite.
I ordered 20lb of CaribSea Liferock Shapes from Waterbox when I ordered the aquarium. It took 19 days from the time I ordered everything to the day it all arrived by freight, with everything safe on one pallet. Three boxes in total (stand, rock, tank/sump in a cardboard box with convenient plastic handles).
It took me around an hour and 15 to assemble the stand using a cordless drill and a philips screwdriver. It was straight forward and everything lined up and went together really well. I used coral glue to fasten the plastic covers over the metal fasteners and that worked well.
It killed me, but I waited to open the aquarium box until I had finished the stand and levelled it. I cannot say enough how impressed I am by my first impressions of this system. The thickness and clarity of the glass, the silicone, everything... I love it.
When it came to aquascaping, I played around a little bit with it, but ended up sticking with the first scape I tried, which looks cool like some sort of volcano from the top, and provides many places for my fish to hide and surface to mount corals. I’m not sure if it’s too tall. Let me know what you think if you’d like.
So that’s pretty much it for now. I’ve got saltwater mixing currently so I’ll get the tank up and running tomorrow and get the cycle going. I’ll post pics then.
My plan for this tank is to let it sit for the next week or so with a few small piece of rock from my existing tank, since it’s always been pest free. After making sure i don’t have any leaks or issues, I’ll add the remainder of my rock to the sump, and then acclimate and add my current livestock. Tomorrow or the next day I’ll post pictures when the tank is full, do up a current/future equipment list, and my plan as far as livestock goes.
Im super excited for this tank! I want to do it right this time.
Cheers!
I’ve recently decided to upgrade my IM tank as I have much more time to devote to caring for it. I have dreamed for years of getting a RedSea Reefer. In my research for this upgrade, I stumbled on Waterbox, who from my understanding fairly recently opened up shop here in Canada. After watching a few videos featuring their tanks, it seemed to me as though a Waterbox is a superior tank, using better materials (glass vs plastic pieces and better plumbing). I decided to go with the Marine X 35.1 with the white stand due to my space limitations as well as my requirement of having a sump. My partner also really likes the look of the sleek white stand, which is always a bonus.
The same day, i ordered mostly everything I would need to get this set up and running. I went with 2x 100w Eheim Jager heaters. I wanted a sexy return pump, but due to the small size of the return section of the sump I decided to try the IM MightyJet midsize dc pump (538gph). I have the desktop (328gph) version of it on my 14g and it’s been great, and it was a quarter of the price of a Vectra. For my light, I plan to use my AI Prime HD as it has been a great light and is sized perfectly for this tank. I went ahead and purchased the 3DReefing diffuser for it to reduce light spill into my living room, as the tank sits beside my TV. For sand, i bought 20lb of CaribSea Special Grade Reef Sand, which has always been my favourite.
I ordered 20lb of CaribSea Liferock Shapes from Waterbox when I ordered the aquarium. It took 19 days from the time I ordered everything to the day it all arrived by freight, with everything safe on one pallet. Three boxes in total (stand, rock, tank/sump in a cardboard box with convenient plastic handles).
It took me around an hour and 15 to assemble the stand using a cordless drill and a philips screwdriver. It was straight forward and everything lined up and went together really well. I used coral glue to fasten the plastic covers over the metal fasteners and that worked well.
It killed me, but I waited to open the aquarium box until I had finished the stand and levelled it. I cannot say enough how impressed I am by my first impressions of this system. The thickness and clarity of the glass, the silicone, everything... I love it.
When it came to aquascaping, I played around a little bit with it, but ended up sticking with the first scape I tried, which looks cool like some sort of volcano from the top, and provides many places for my fish to hide and surface to mount corals. I’m not sure if it’s too tall. Let me know what you think if you’d like.
So that’s pretty much it for now. I’ve got saltwater mixing currently so I’ll get the tank up and running tomorrow and get the cycle going. I’ll post pics then.
My plan for this tank is to let it sit for the next week or so with a few small piece of rock from my existing tank, since it’s always been pest free. After making sure i don’t have any leaks or issues, I’ll add the remainder of my rock to the sump, and then acclimate and add my current livestock. Tomorrow or the next day I’ll post pictures when the tank is full, do up a current/future equipment list, and my plan as far as livestock goes.
Im super excited for this tank! I want to do it right this time.
Cheers!
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I think my current scape will be better for keeping more corals though.
