Tank of the Month - August 2002

[Skipper]

This month we are featuring Kedd Lyttonsmith's (kedd) awesome 180 gallon reef:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-08/totm/images/resize7sm.jpg (http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-08/totm/index.htm)

More details can be found here (http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-08/totm/index.htm) or by clicking on the picture above.

Congratulations, Kedd!

[Playfair]

S W E E T ! ! ! :)

[FISH]

Well done , very nice layout of your profile also.
I agree with you on the enjoyment of watching them grow .
Congrats on a tank well done !!!!!!

[original-reefland]

Excellent tank! Congrats.

[GreatLakes]

Looks Good...

[smiller]

:thumbsup: :bounce3: :dance: :bounce1: :thumbsup:

[loui]

I see you have a sea horse, how is that working out in such a big tank?

[mia1974]

Did that BEAUTIFUL teal/green acro on the very top left actually start out as a brown colony (I see it in before pics)?? That sps is amazing!!!!! Your tank is very beautiful!

[Rock Anemone]

How is the seahorse doing? I want one for my 75 gallon reef but would be afraid....

Great Tank Though!!! :D
Rock Anemone

[Yaryman]

Just a thought.

Isn't that tank a little densely populated?

I count about 40 different corals in what looks to be a 3' area.

Let the flaming begin.

[Playfair]

Yary- I only count 38? ;)

Rules for coral density aren't the same as fish; as long as you are willing to do the upkeep, i.e. seperation pruning, they don't contribute much to the system bioload.

[kedd]

Thanks for the kind words.
The tank gives the family lots of enjoyment, and is much better than watching TV.

Rock anemone the large tank my not be the ideal for a seahorse, but it was not eating at the lfs, they ordered captive breed and received wild, so I took it home.
The sea horse started eating a week after being introduced and does very well.

Yaryman, it is very densely populated now and I am constantly fraging things to give them room. About half of the corals started as small frags and had plenty of room. Looking back I could have used more space between them, but too late now.
As Playfair said they seem to do fine as long as you stay on top of things.

Kedd

[kedd]

Hi Mia1974,
That millepora didn't start as brown, but it wasn't as green as it is now.
It was a light green.

Kedd

[Ninong]

Kedd,

Congratulations! Absolutely stunning tank!

Have you had any problems with jumpers, especially the wrasses?

:D

[Aire]

WOW, i LOVE the seahorse in your tank *claps*

Very very very nice tank. Good job dude! :D

[Jabrams]

Great Tank Kedd!

[Siddroww]

A seahorse and a Harlequin shrimp ? I thought they were both no - nos for a reef . Now my mind is really going .

How often do you have to put in new starfish for the harlequin ?

[kedd]

Thanks



I feed the harlequin a starfish about every 3 weeks.
I have had him it about 9 months.
I got it to eat the small parasitic starfish that I had.
The harlequin finished them off it about 2 months.

[Ninong]

Originally posted by Ninong
Kedd,

Congratulations! Absolutely stunning tank!

Have you had any problems with jumpers, especially the wrasses?

:D

Kedd,

Besides my question about jumpers, I was wondering what your experience has been in controlling spilled light from your suspended fixture? I see that you have what appears to be about a 3 - 4 inch trim around the top of the tank. Does that help much?

Thanks,

:D

[scubadude]

A VERY nice variety! Well deserved for tank of the month. Congratulations :)

[JB NY]

Sweet tank Kedd!! You've done an outstanding job :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[ABahn]

You've got a beautiful reef aquarium!

I've recently upgraded to a 180, and your tank is an inspiration. Hope mine looks like yours in four years time, and yours twice as good!

Good Luck.

[ramsin32]

It is abselutely gorgeous Kedd :) :)

congratulation,

much prettier than my wife ;)

LOL


ramsin

[RandyM]

Incredible!! Congrat"s, Looking at that make"s all of that hard work worth every bit .It is fantastic.It must be awsome to be able to look at that all nite!! Excellent job:beer:

[kedd]

Thanks again everyone for the great comments on the tank.

Ninong, I have had a couple of jumpers, about one a year, but not the wrasses.
As far as the 3" strip around the rim of the tank, it makes all the difference in the world.
I had to do something once I got the pendant, it was hard to look at from across the room.
The strip really keeps the light off the walls and out of your eyes.

[Kaos]

Two thumbs up!:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Very inspiring to an up and comeing reef aquarist like myself

[Theo]

what do you mean by "parasitic starfish"? Exactly what did they do to make them parasitic?

[Skipper]

If I am not mistaken, he is referring to starfish like these:

http://www.garf.org/32/27/STARFISH/stars582266.jpg

They are very small and irregularly shaped. Some believe that they eat coral. Others claim they don't.

[kedd]

Hi Skipper,
You are correct, those are the starfish I was talking about.
The harlequin finished them off in about a month.
It seems they are not the preferred food of the shrimp though, if there is any other starfish in the tank they will go for it first.
It took 2 weeks for it to start eating them.
I was worried about starving the shrimp, and almost gave in and got a sand star to feed it when I saw it eating one of the parasitic stars.

Now I see one of the parasitic stars now and again, but they are 99% gone.

[kedd]

Harlequin eating a sand star not a parasitic star

[scubadude]

Kedd the last pic you just posted is NOT a parasitic starfish that you and skipper are referring to. Correct?

[kedd]

No, the last pic posted is the shrimp eating a sand star.

[reef120]

One word to say AWESOME tank man.

[despair]

do you see your harlequin shrimp much? because you have such a big tank..

if possible could you post pictures of your Euphyllias?

[tentacle]

Gorgeous tank Kedd. Anyone with a Harlequin shrimp in their tank is a friend of mine. :D Keep up the great work, and enjoy!

[wayner1]

Great Tank!, just wondering how long you've had the AB Spacelight over the tank & if your pleased with the color & growth of the sps.

[cuc]

WOW beautiful tank!!!!! I'm stunned and very gealous. Great job kedd.

[kedd]

To reply, I do see the harlequin every night when the first set of lights go off.
He has lived in the same spot the entire time.

The Aquaspacelite is great,and has great color after the first 50 or so hours.
I will say I couldn't use it without a chiller, it is hot.

[Jon_Hewett_85]

kedd<> You have by far one of the hands down NICEST tanks i have ever seen. I hope my tnak can one day look like that. I'm very envious especially of your acro colonies (and other sps btw) IT's by far my favorite tank of the month. Oh wouldn't i love to get into your tank with ye trusty ole wire cutters. You've got sooo many nice ones i couldnt pick a favorite. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!

[reefgeekers]

Looks like a fake reef.

You should think about useing Home Depot sand, it looks so much better.

Please try again.:rolleyes:

[jav]

I have seen this tank in person
and its even better then the pictures
its ROCKS
and kedd is a nice guy

Joseph

[kedd]

ReeFgeekers sorry your disappointed in the look of the tank.
Well since it is in my living room, I guess it is a fake reef.

[kedd]

Thanks Jav, it was nice meeting you.
How are the frags doing?

Thanks Jon_Hewett_85, I'm gald you like it.

[jav]

they are doing very well
they are some of the best ones around

and you sir are a gentleman
you treated me honestly and very fairly
when I bought that item from you which is working very well

you have a great tank I know you know

I also sent you e-mail today did you get it ???
i was inquiring about reef and fins.

[MarkS]

Originally posted by reefgeekers
Looks like a fake reef.

You should think about useing Home Depot sand, it looks so much better.

Please try again.:rolleyes:

MMMMMM... Nothing like fresh troll in the morning!

[Skipper]

reefgeekers: Adios! :wave:

[despair]

no pictures of your Euphphyllias? :( :( :(

[kedd]

Hey Despair, here is a pic.

[kedd]

one more.

This coral has had the discoloration since I got it.

[Goby1Knoby]

Kedd

Very very Nice !

Bet u gotta keep that pruning shears well oiled. ;)

Congratulations on a fantastic Reeftank.



Cheers


Brian.

[despair]

i like the discoloration effect..

nice without a doubt..

[Mike Chapman]

That tank is truly breathtaking. I hope to have one like it in the future!

[Schism]

Wonderful tank.
My only concern is the seahorse. Nothing other than the possibility of seeing your tank giving other reefers the idea that this is something that can be done rather easily. Especially with all those fish that can't be an easy task getting that guy fed. Unless he devotes his diet to pods I would think you would have to spend quite a significant amount of time spot feeding.
Message to other reefers:
Leave the seahorses in a reef tank to the extremely advanced keepers (as kedd obviously is), PLEASE!

[kedd]

Hi Schism,
I understand your concern.
I took it home because it was not eating in the local fish store.
This seahorse is wild caught to make things more difficult.
I would never say this should be an addition to a reef, in fact as I said in one of my earlier posts.
I know my tank is not the perfect place for a seahorse, this one does eat the pods though.
I got lucky and so did the seahorse for the time being.

Kedd

[Steve Richardson]

Well done.

...very nice.

nothing to do with the seahorse comment... but are there any animals in there that you wish you did not have? (aggressive growers, etc)

[kedd]

Hi Steve,
To answer your question, I would have to say the anemone.
Sometimes it is a pain, it doesn't move, but some days it almost doubles in size.
The rest of the Inhabitants are great.

[kruiswyk]

Great Tank!!! Where did you pick up your soundproofing foam? My tank is in the family room as well and I want to add some soundproofing to the stand to quiet things down a bit more.

Rich

[Skipper]

Yeah, I'd like to know that, too.

[kedd]

It is cheap foam matting.
It is usually sold in the camping section for sleeping on, at most sporting goods stores.

My stand took about three rolls.
The rolls cost about $10 each.

Kedd

[kruiswyk]

I take it you were happy with the noise reduction from this stuff?

[kedd]

Yes I was.
It cut it down by about 80%


Kedd

[deuce]

Hey Kedd Tank looks great.I too have seen this tank in person and It is truly breathtaking.Kedd you did a great job.Thanks for including the frag I gave you it looks great.Keep it up and I'll see you at the store soon.
Deuce

[BuddhaProvides]

Kedd,

Very nice tank! no wasted space, but someof the corals look young, how longs it been up for? i havent had a chance to read your description yet.. Anyway great tank and keep up the good work!

--Other people--/
Does anyone have the link to sally jo's website?

[kedd]

Hi Deuce,
I will see you soon, I'm sure.
Thanks for the compliments,and the frag you gave me is doing very well.

[kedd]

Buddha, the tank is about will be going on five years in the winter.
A lot of the sps started about about a year and a half ago as frags.
There are some young corals in this tank.

I should have more space between, but too late now.
I just keep the shears sharp.

[Newreeflady]

Wow, Kedd! That is AMAZING! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! !! ! !

I totally understand what you mean about the anemone. I have a bta in my 65, that gets huge. He extended so large I had to move a coral frag that I had near it, and as he further extends he is encroaching upon stylo territory:( Which is well established and I do not want to move. I wish i'd left the anemone out, too.

Quote: Closed-loop pump is a CustomSeaLife velocity T-4
• Two returns on the closed-loop system are oscillated by Sea Swirls


How is this done. You have a closed loop w/o having the tank drilled for one? I didn't know that was possible. This is a closed loop, not leading to the sump, and the tank is not drilled? How does that work?

You have an awesome tank. I rarely even glance at the tank of the month, but saw your name as the last poster and thought i'd take a look. Little did I know that you owned this magnificent tank!

Thx,
angela.

[srlumaye1]

Awesome tank Kedd!!! Wish mine looked like that.

You mentioned you do manual water topoff due to the long distance involved.

I have a 33gal plastic garbage can in the basement that gets filled with RO/DI water. A spectrapure litermeter sits upstairs in my stand and sucks water from the garbage can, up 8' to the basement ceiling, across the basement 60', and then up through the floor 3' to the litermeter. All through airline tubing.

I evaporate about 3 gallons/day currently and actually dose pickling lime for calcium through this method.

Works like a charm. Something to consider. It has saved me an IMMENSE amount of time and spilling by automatically dosing topoff water.

Steve

[scubadude]

I just received some corals from him and he did me righteous! Great guy to do trades with too! Thanx Kedd! Email me when you get a chance buddy....I want to ship you some corals monday.

[kedd]

Hi Scubadude,
I'm glad you got them ok.
I just got back from the cape, I will e-mail you soon.

Kedd

[kedd]

Newreeflady,

The closed loop's intake is in the corner by the overflow, it goes up and over the back of the tank.
The intake has PLENTY of screens on it, so there is really no powerful suction to speak of with so much intake area.
The fish and more important the seahorse have no problem being next to or on it.
The plumbing for the intake is buried behind some live rock.

All hoses coming from and going to the pump have unions and ball valves, also there are holes drilled 1-2 inches below the surface for a siphon break on the intake.

[TBIRD]

Beautiful Tank,

What exactly are the benefits of having the reverse lights on?
For some reason it sounds promising although I don't see the method mentioned often.


Per your notes:

"2 x 65W Smartlights on a reverse 12 hour daylight schedule for the sump"

[aliaird]

Great tank, a real motivator!

I love the variety in colours you have. My corals (esp acro's) have a tendancy to drift towards brown for some reason.

Just a quickie, I haven't seen the answer elsewhere, but at what temperature do you keep the tank?

regards

[kedd]

To answer the questions.

The temp of the tank is between 81-83

The reason for the light on the sump, is the help the PH swing and for growth of the calupra.

[Elmo18]

Now, THAT is one awesome tank!!

Congrats,

Elmo :)

[iconjs]

That is one beautyful tank Kedd! The thing that jumped out at me immediately was the color of your light. I've been thinking of buying one like it! Are you happy with the fixture? Where did you get it? I noticed it is not mounted in the middle of the tank but towards the back. Any particular reason? Have you considered eggcrate to cover part of your tank to keep in the jumpers? Congratulations!

[eddiem]

I just read through this post and didn't see any mention of a calcium reactor....is this correct?

I did see that you dose with B-Ionic. Do you do this manually or do you have some type of a doser?

I use MTC's dual doser on my tank for B-Ionic. I was thinking of getting a reactor but after seeing your tank (155g) I think I'll wait a little longer. Do you have any plans of getting a reactor?

That is one of the most beutiful tanks I have ever seen. CONGRATULATIONS!!!:thumbsup:

[aaronk]

Breathtaking display of reefing!
Makes me really want a Seahorse!!:eek2:

[FishinGriffin]

Nice tank

[FishinGriffin]

Very Nice Tank

[FishinGriffin]

Excellent tank in fact

[FishinGriffin]

Someday i hope to aspire to having such a spectacular tank

[FishinGriffin]

Well Done

[kedd]

Eddiem,

No I don't have a reactor, I use two meter liters for doseing.
To answer your other question, I don't have any plans to get a reactor.
The meter liters are working fine, I test levels once a week and they are always in check.

I do use timers on them, the timers are set for 6 hours and the dose is multiplied by 4 so they are more accurate.
Spectra pure told me the larger the dose the more accurate they become.

Kedd

[kedd]

FishinGriffin, Elmo18, aliaird, Tbird, Aaronk, Srlumaye1, Eddiem

THANKS!

[Playfair]

Kedd, how much Bionic do you go through a month?

I was using 100 ml of each part every day on my 120, which came out to about a gallon of each part per month! That's $25 per month even purchasing the 5 gal pails...

Loved the results, but with the reactor it only costs about $8 per month.

[kedd]

Playfair,
You are about on the money, I use 120ml of each a day.
I spend about $20 a month on the two gallons.

I have heard good and bad about reactors, and since I haven't had a reactor, I can't comment for sure.

I do know, with the amount of fishing trips I take for days at a time, I am more comfortable with dosing the B-ionic, that way the babysitter just has to feed and top off water.

I would worry more than I do now I think, about adjustments needed and not being there to do them.

I may be totally wrong, but I don't think a reactor is just set it and forget it.

[NYReefMan]

Kedd,

Your tank is AWESOME - BEAUTIFUL - STUNNING, did I leave anything out?;)

I like your webpage too.

[urb77]

Hi kedd

What kind of calcium device you use in your great reef aquarium?

haim

[kedd]

I dose with B-IONIC part 1 and 2

[kedd]

Thanks NYReefMan.
What part of NY?

Kedd

[NYReefMan]

Originally posted by kedd
Thanks NYReefMan.
What part of NY?

Kedd

Pleasantville - it's in Westchester County.

[urb77]

Hi Kedd

No calcium reactur ?

tHANKS
Haim

[Skipper]

Hey Haim. Read his response to Playfair above. No, he does not use a reactor.