Fresh Build: The Clean White Stage

[RMc]

Hi All,

I've had quite a few tanks over the past few years (http://www.bostonreefers.org/forums/showthread.php?130331-Reef-Journal-V2-Now-with-more-water). I enjoy the hobby a lot and wanted to finally take the time to do it right. Each previous build has been a bit of a hacked together set of craigslist finds and dirty diy - this one is new and clean. It's the exact tank I've been eyeing for quite a while. After flip flopping between the cadlights 70/45 and the redsea 350/450xl for months I've pulled the trigger.

The light is built completely from scratch and is a 6 channel Bluefish controlled spotlight LED (300W) and 2x 24W T5 hybrid. If you're interested in the build you can read more here: http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/372331-narrow-reflector-for-the-nanobox-v3-array/ It has been in the works for 6 months and damn it feels good to finally see it come together.

The tank arrived today (heavier than I thought). I put together the stand and couldn't help but set up a dry run before the big switch tomorrow - wish me luck!

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Ooh, very sharp!

 

[Dashiki]

Looks sweet! I would suggest not putting the tank in the middle of the room like that though. Reaching outlets may become a problem

 

[this is me]

Which tank did you end up with? The Redsea?

 

[Alex]

That looks sick. Love the light.

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[RMc]

Broke it down and stood up the new tank yesterday. I keep forgetting how much labor is involved.

Now for some shots of the good the bad and the ugly:

Amazing how much fit in that little tank.

Some quick concepts for a new scape addition - though after looking at the unpacked suitcase above... not sure where it will go .

I bet you can smell it through the tubes...

 

[RMc]

All the problems start once we add water... At this point I was strongly considering keeping a nicely lit glass box.

Making water... Transferred the coral from the buckets at this point as they had been deprived flow for long enough - still have the coral / fish in the flat tote.

I'm no wire management expert - here's some of the sump equipment.

Skimmer - skimming / filter sock / marine pure block. Pretty tight in that first chamber.

Sump was missing from the setup - luckily a local shop had a spare for cheap. This is an odd chamber setup, but I'll give it a shot.

 

[RMc]

Next morning and everything is leak free - a bit cloudy and no aquascape yet. Will be introducing the remaining livestock after it all stabilizes a bit.

 

[Aros]

What is that light you have over the Fuge? I need something like that for mine.


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[RMc]

What is that light you have over the Fuge? I need something like that for mine.


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Hi aros, it's an inexpensive light that came with the tank. I doubt the wattage is high enough to grow much of anything. It also has an extremely wide spread. (Read: would not recommend)

I plan to replace it with either a spare nanobox led that I have or a few led strip lights with reflectors. The form factor of this sump begs for a couple powerful strip lights running front to back.

 

[RMc]

Worked on the scape today - lots of drilling and cursing. Reused almost all of the coral from the last tank. I'll likely be shedding a few pieces to open up more water (rear right hand trumpet/gsp rock).

I'll post some more once the water clears and the coral is a bit less pissed.

 

[Curren007K]

Wow, looking great!

 

[thomb]

Nice!
Really like the LED's - thanks for posting the build thread link.

I don't need any lighting for my tank, but I can see making some lamps in the future using those heatsinks...

 

[RMc]

3 day update. The jebao pump that came with the tank has failed already - so sad. Luckily I had a 10 year old Eheim 1250 that still works a treat. Flow is a little low but the tank is silent again.

Other than that, the typical break in period is occurring. Expecting a bloom of some kind soon but the coral are slowly finding their happy place.

 

[Alex]

Looking good.

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[Alex]

Question about the marine block in the sump. Does water flow through it or around?

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[RMc]

Hi Alex, water flows both through and around the reef block. Ideally, the block would be fully submerged, but with the wicking and splashing the top still stays wet. I think this is OK - the portion exposed to air should more densely colonize nitrifying bacteria than it would otherwise. I love these blocks and plan on using one in any tank moving forward - fresh or salt.

Here's an instructional video I filmed on its use: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xiskT7hXCaM

 

[Jim Tansey]

LOVE the rock work!!!!!!! Not sure about BB Please keep us informed about your experience with the marine block, I followed your past threads....good read. I'm in the process of setting up a frag tank and considered using the block but after years of listing to advice to remove bio-balls from your sump I'm confused, they are just one big bio-ball.

Jim

 

[RMc]

Hi Jim, it is a bit confusing isn't it? The marine block is superior to bio balls in a few ways.

1) it is not a detritus trap. The pores are very small and most large gunk will not make it "into" the block. This means that cleaning it is as simple as taking it out and dunking it in some water during a WC.
2) surface area. Bacteria needs a surface to grow on and I would wager that this rock has more surface area than 100,000x the volume in bio balls.
3) denitrification. This is the big one. The block is large enough that the central section (especially when placed flat) will be a low to zero oxygen zone. Denitrifying bacteria can only grow in low oxygen environments. This block will help reduce nitrates in your tank.

 

[RMc]

Day 4 and some Macro shots of my favorites settling in.