Waterbox peninsula mini 15 build

jzape24

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Hey all!

As promised, I am starting the build of my new Waterbox peninsula mini 15. I was looking to start a new tank with more thought and planning put into it (not that I didn’t do that with the 40 breeder) but with this tank I’m trying to be creative with the aquascape and keeping the display clear from everything to make the tank look more natural.

-This is what I have going so far. Got the dry rock from brs and broke it down with a hammer to play with. In total, it’s about 11 pounds.

- I upgraded the filtration in both chambers in the back. I really didn’t want to use a filter sock so I changed it to a 3 compartment media basket from InTank.

- I will be I bought the prism ATO from reef breeders and I’ll be using a 5 gallon water jug as a reservoir.

- I’m waiting in the stand to arrive. I went with the cobalt aquatics c-vue stand, it’s supposedly arriving on the 12th… we will see about that!

- for the sand, I will be using carib sea special grade. I went with this because I want to make this a mixed reef tank. So having higher flow with a smaller tank would be very difficult with any grain size smaller than this one.

- as for the light, I was jumping back and forth as to which one to choose. I was thinking either the AI prime 16 HD, or the kessil a360x. After discussing it with a lot of people, one of me good friends and fellow hobbyists said the 360 would be overkill for this size of tank. So I went ahead and decided to go with the a160we.

That’s pretty much where I’m at so far. So for such a long post. It’s my first build thread and figured I go all out and be as detailed as I could be. I will update everyone once I get the stand.

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HeyLookItsCaps

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Looks awesome! I built something similar, they’re great little tanks.

Couple recommendations if I may…

AquaMaxx NF-1 nano skimmer works great and has been a great upgrade for chamber two. Fits perfectly with room to slip my apex probes past


I would also recommend the inTank surface skimmer, however not because it skims. You can better control display side water height by moving the skimmer vertically.


While there I also purchased the filtration cover to hide the skimmer/wires etc (this one isn’t a must IMO)


Although this one is fairly expensive it is the only one that looks really clean on the tank and will prevent all your snails from making it to the floor. This was the final straw in spending the money since this is a rimless tank and small, it was a daily snail hunt.


Lastly I got a chamber one filter cup setup so I could throw a bag of chemipure or fill a cheap freshwater bag with carbon in it into the overflow area


Hopefully some of this helps or at least gives ideas. Here’s some pics of my journey with it!

Good luck!

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jzape24

jzape24

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Looks awesome! I built something similar, they’re great little tanks.

Couple recommendations if I may…

AquaMaxx NF-1 nano skimmer works great and has been a great upgrade for chamber two. Fits perfectly with room to slip my apex probes past


I would also recommend the inTank surface skimmer, however not because it skims. You can better control display side water height by moving the skimmer vertically.


While there I also purchased the filtration cover to hide the skimmer/wires etc (this one isn’t a must IMO)


Although this one is fairly expensive it is the only one that looks really clean on the tank and will prevent all your snails from making it to the floor. This was the final straw in spending the money since this is a rimless tank and small, it was a daily snail hunt.


Lastly I got a chamber one filter cup setup so I could throw a bag of chemipure or fill a cheap freshwater bag with carbon in it into the overflow area


Hopefully some of this helps or at least gives ideas. Here’s some pics of my journey with it!

Good luck!

D948A9A8-79D0-4C99-B09F-0BE1436FD5F4.jpeg
1A352F18-543E-4366-A983-7246802F3306.jpeg
AF63ABD9-E998-432D-8D38-19A92688AC61.jpeg
AF716EB1-8A3D-4B65-BE0A-DF90F1B03B84.jpeg
C87326F5-492D-4024-BFCC-033197AD9122.jpeg
26A6B727-998B-46FB-A58B-E2DF8AFFD72B.jpeg
A70D75A9-6EC5-4CE1-8088-3B05BA1995F3.jpeg
Thanks for the recommendations. I have literally looked at all those extra upgrades. Smart reefers think alike! I also have the surface skimmer and the filter cover, I forgot to add those on there. But I do intend to get the kraken lid very soon. You got a nice set up. Are you going to keep it fish only?
 

HeyLookItsCaps

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Thanks for the recommendations. I have literally looked at all those extra upgrades. Smart reefers think alike! I also have the surface skimmer and the filter cover, I forgot to add those on there. But I do intend to get the kraken lid very soon. You got a nice set up. Are you going to keep it fish only?

This is how it is now, took this photo yesterday. I specifically built it to hold torch coral and rock flower anemones. “Sting Nano” or the “doesn’t play well with others Lagoon

1AA6FABB-00E3-42DB-B18D-DCBBE9C8BA2D.jpeg

Unfortunately it seems like euphyllia and specifically torches harbor lots of flat worms! Even after dips. So this evening I did a flatworm exit treatment after planning my battle movements over the last week. Hit em hard, did a big water change, and yes that’s a carbon reactor with a sicce stuck to the glass doing cleanup/toxin protection.

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HeyLookItsCaps

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Thanks for the recommendations. I have literally looked at all those extra upgrades. Smart reefers think alike! I also have the surface skimmer and the filter cover, I forgot to add those on there. But I do intend to get the kraken lid very soon. You got a nice set up. Are you going to keep it fish only?

Actually just noticed on my first post it uploaded the photos backward! The last one was the first day and the first one is yesterday
 
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jzape24

jzape24

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Looks awesome! I built something similar, they’re great little tanks.

Couple recommendations if I may…

AquaMaxx NF-1 nano skimmer works great and has been a great upgrade for chamber two. Fits perfectly with room to slip my apex probes past


I would also recommend the inTank surface skimmer, however not because it skims. You can better control display side water height by moving the skimmer vertically.


While there I also purchased the filtration cover to hide the skimmer/wires etc (this one isn’t a must IMO)


Although this one is fairly expensive it is the only one that looks really clean on the tank and will prevent all your snails from making it to the floor. This was the final straw in spending the money since this is a rimless tank and small, it was a daily snail hunt.


Lastly I got a chamber one filter cup setup so I could throw a bag of chemipure or fill a cheap freshwater bag with carbon in it into the overflow area


Hopefully some of this helps or at least gives ideas. Here’s some pics of my journey with it!

Good luck!

D948A9A8-79D0-4C99-B09F-0BE1436FD5F4.jpeg
1A352F18-543E-4366-A983-7246802F3306.jpeg
AF63ABD9-E998-432D-8D38-19A92688AC61.jpeg
AF716EB1-8A3D-4B65-BE0A-DF90F1B03B84.jpeg
C87326F5-492D-4024-BFCC-033197AD9122.jpeg
26A6B727-998B-46FB-A58B-E2DF8AFFD72B.jpeg
A70D75A9-6EC5-4CE1-8088-3B05BA1995F3.jpeg
Thanks for the recommendations. I have literally looked at all those extra upgrades. Smart reefers think alike! I also have the surface skimmer, I forgot to add that on there
 
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jzape24

jzape24

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That was my fault, I missed those first photos. I love torches, I have 2 in my 40 breeder. Luckily I haven’t had any issues with flat worms (knock on wood) but I hear you on that. Sometimes you gotta tackle those issues head on full force. I was looking at the Nero 3 but it’s tough to convince myself to buy a power head that costs more than the whole tank itself. But I’m sure I’m going to end up getting it to keep the display looking extra clean.
 

HeyLookItsCaps

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That was my fault, I missed those first photos. I love torches, I have 2 in my 40 breeder. Luckily I haven’t had any issues with flat worms (knock on wood) but I hear you on that. Sometimes you gotta tackle those issues head on full force. I was looking at the Nero 3 but it’s tough to convince myself to buy a power head that costs more than the whole tank itself. But I’m sure I’m going to end up getting it to keep the display looking extra clean.

It’s an impressive unit once it’s in. When you first open the box it feels like a yo yo or something. My first thought was “cmon really? There’s no way it can pack the punch they’re claiming….”

When I did my treatment last night I turned it all the way up to circulate the display (I run it minimum 5% max 15% on random flow) and took a face full of tank water.

I have the tunze micro/nano in my qt observation fluval 13.5 and it’s a great powerhead but is probably 3x the size. The Nero is so slim and clean in comparison it’s not even close.
 
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jzape24

jzape24

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It’s an impressive unit once it’s in. When you first open the box it feels like a yo yo or something. My first thought was “cmon really? There’s no way it can pack the punch they’re claiming….”

When I did my treatment last night I turned it all the way up to circulate the display (I run it minimum 5% max 15% on random flow) and took a face full of tank water.

I have the tunze micro/nano in my qt observation fluval 13.5 and it’s a great powerhead but is probably 3x the size. The Nero is so slim and clean in comparison it’s not even close.
Yeah I hear people rave about them all time. I know I’m going to end up getting it. I’m going to push it to the side until I know I need to buy one.
 
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jzape24

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Well after waiting almost 2 month, the stand for the peninsula has finally arrived. Long story short, I ordered the stand from chewy and they ended up sending the tank for the stand rather than just the stand. Had to call customer service and found out that the stand was out of stock. Had to send back the tank they delivered and look somewhere else for the stand. Liveaquaria had it so I ordered from them. I probably won’t buy from them again due to the poor experience I got from them. But all the wait might have made the stand just that much nicer.

So now that I got the stand, I had to make a decision on the light. After lots of back and forth, I landed on the Radion xr15 and I got to say I can’t be happier. It’s so sleek and overall just a great light. I figured I can just use it on a future tank as well given that it’s a powerful light.

So here is how I set up my new build.

A couple pics are with 12% cool white lights and the others are just indirect sunlight. Pretty happy how it’s turned out. Definitely the best build I’ve done so far. I’ve thrown a few frags, GSP, zoas, kenya tree, mushroom, and a torch. I will get some pics on here one they are fully acclaimed.

Stay tuned, definitely more to come…

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Grootzilla

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Well after waiting almost 2 month, the stand for the peninsula has finally arrived. Long story short, I ordered the stand from chewy and they ended up sending the tank for the stand rather than just the stand. Had to call customer service and found out that the stand was out of stock. Had to send back the tank they delivered and look somewhere else for the stand. Liveaquaria had it so I ordered from them. I probably won’t buy from them again due to the poor experience I got from them. But all the wait might have made the stand just that much nicer.

So now that I got the stand, I had to make a decision on the light. After lots of back and forth, I landed on the Radion xr15 and I got to say I can’t be happier. It’s so sleek and overall just a great light. I figured I can just use it on a future tank as well given that it’s a powerful light.

So here is how I set up my new build.

A couple pics are with 12% cool white lights and the others are just indirect sunlight. Pretty happy how it’s turned out. Definitely the best build I’ve done so far. I’ve thrown a few frags, GSP, zoas, kenya tree, mushroom, and a torch. I will get some pics on here one they are fully acclaimed.

Stay tuned, definitely more to come…

C4C61382-94B1-40DB-B563-18F8FE22F458.jpeg
872069FB-7E44-478D-BB02-D40E1243E9C5.jpeg
9DECB5B2-2144-41F2-B3C3-EED884E6FBE0.jpeg
99BBD54D-1A62-48FD-9DFA-ED18DAE76E34.jpeg
Nice! What stand did you get?
 

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Looking great!
 
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