29 gallon SPS tank build...

[Jester]

I'm moving my tank from a 25 gallon to a new drilled 29 gallon tank that was a present for Christmas... I have a base stand for the tank, but will be building a canopy soon... This setup is going to be plumbed thru-wall and into a spare bedroom of my house...

Here's my equipment list...
29 gallon drilled tank (1" drain 3/4" return)
150 watt HQI MH with 14k Pheonix bulb
2x55watt PCs (10k and actinic)
2 Tunze Nanostreams 6025 (possibly to be modded)
AquaEuro Recirc 135 Skimmer
10 gallon fuge w/ PC lighting
25 gallon sump
JBJ ATO

This weekend I masked off the tank and painted to back a dark blue color... Looks good to me... I hate those plastic backgrounds when salt creep gets between them and the glass... I'll be updating as I finish the build and transfer my live rock and corals over...

Ready to be worked on...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon/29g02.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon/29g01.jpg

Removed the bulklheads and masked everything off really well...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3895.jpg

ready to paint....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3901.jpg

Try to keep your strokes and painting even for the best results... I used almost an entire can for just this tank...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3905.jpg

Spray paint dries fast, but I still let it sit outside for an hour or so before bringing inside...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3907.jpg

Make sure you run a razor blade along the edge between the plastic frame and glass... the paint will peel off with the painters tape if you don't do this... believe me, I found out the hard way...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3913.jpg

finished and blue..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3916.jpg

Back in its home...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/100_3920.jpg

I tried my hardest but still got a little overspray under the black plastic frame near the center of the aquarium... its driving me crazy, but I keep telling myself you wont see it once the canopy is on the water level is set... we'll see, there's not much I could do anyways to get the paint from under there...

I've started picking up my plumbing pieces, so that will be next...

Jester

[nanotrigger]

looking good.

[Jester]

I went to my friends reef/marine store last night and talked to him a little about my plumbing... I was told that my original plans were a little too complicated and he helped my simplify it a lot... so.. tonight I'll be going by a plumbing shop to get the last few pieces I need to start the plumbing... then the fun of drilling through the wall will begin... =)

Its been record breaking high temps here lately, so I'll have good weather to start building the canopy and stand for my sump, fuge and skimmer this weekend... hoping to get the tank up and running with a few new pieces of live rock before this weekend and then transfer the existing livestock over at the end of the weekend... Something always messes up my plans, but we'll see how this turns out... I'll be updating photos as I go... I cant wait to have this tank up and running...

Jester

[nattarbox]

Your configuration is very close to what I am planning on setting up within a month. Subscribed!

[reefman13]

Looking good. Nice job with the paint. Any ideas for getting all the equipment running and starting to stock it up?

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11549354#post11549354 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefman13
Looking good. Nice job with the paint. Any ideas for getting all the equipment running and starting to stock it up?

I think you're asking what equipment am I going to be using on this tank or the process of getting the tank running..?? I am going to be transfering all the equipment from my 25 gallon tank to this 29, but there is a dilemma when transfering equipment... I'd ideally want to hook the 29 up and have it running for a little while before adding my livestock from the 25, but that starts getting complcated since I technically need all the equipment to run my current tank... I'm still trying to work it all out... I'll probably have to transfer everything over at one time and call it a day...

[WZHANG]

Cool tank, keep us updated on the build and transfer!

[Jester]

Havent been able to do much physical work on the tank this week... Things have been hectic since the holidays are over... I did get to do a little more planning though, which probably is better in the long run...

My 2 Nanostream 6025s should be here today and I picked up some of my power control center stuff last night... here's a few pics of the things I picked up last night... I have a dj controller for the room where the tank will actually be located... This will control my MHs, PCs, moonlights, and both nanostreams... Then there will be another one located on the sump/fuge stand that will control the skimmer, fuge, ATO, heater, etc...

(as you can see in the background... all that equipment sitting next to the 25 gallon, is what caused this project to start...)
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/photo-1.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/photo.jpg

[Jester]

Here's some pics from playing aound with sketchup... I typically use Viz, but I need ot get better with sketchup...

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon02.jpg

[Jester]

I test fit the DJ controllers in my stand and it fits perfectly in the opening for the stand door... so with a few pieces of wood it will fit so that its right behind the door... tomorrow will be a day of building for the 29 gallon... Had a package waiting for me when I got home, too... Here's a few pics of my goodies...

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/photo-2.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/photo-3.jpg

The Nanostreams are awesome compared to the old powersweep I have in my 25 gallon... the quality of the pumps seem to be a little less than I expected though... the plastic front shroud barely stays on the pump and seems to fall off if the cord moves barely... the magnets are extremely strong though... keep those things away from each other... I had one move about 8 inches by itself to grab the mount... heheheee... scared the crap out of me...

[cashman95]

Jester, check out the modding forum on the Nano's, I had 4 of them on my 75 gallon tank....I modded them and had 3 times the flow allowing me to remove one easily. I had them up and running about 6-9 months without a single problem....! Its easy and still reliable!

[Jester]

After a really long weekend of building I have some update pics...!!! I didn't get as much done as I wanted, since there's no water in my aquarium... but I did make a lot of progress...

Canopy under progress...!!!
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/hood_02.jpg

Canopy almost done.. just needs a little trim and some black paint..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/hood_01.jpg

I added a brushed steel handle to the stand...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/stand.jpg

I had to build a few brackets to hold the dj controller under the stand...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/controller.jpg

Drilled a few holes in the wall...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/wall_02.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/wall_01.jpg

Here's the other side of the wall where the sump/fuge and everything will be held...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/wall_03.jpg

Sump stand under construction...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/sump-stand_02.jpg

Finished and drying...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/sump-stand_01.jpg

Another part of the build that I don't have documented is the 4 hours it took to clean the garage just so I had room to work... heheheee....

[RandyStacyE]

I dig the Sopranos picture on the wall :) I love the Sopranos!

[pheromo]

so the fuge and sump are in one tank?

[conorwynne]

It's handy being an architect all the same.

Nice start lad.

Regards
Conor.

[nanO352]

Like it a lot man. Doing well. Keep us updated.

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11594033#post11594033 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pheromo
so the fuge and sump are in one tank?

Right now I have a 10 gallon tank that I made into a custom sump/fuge combo... For a while this will be how I run everything, but after I transfer everything over from my 25 gallon to the 29 gallon, I have rough plans of converting the 25 gallon into a sump alone and then making a 10 gallon fuge that will gravity feed into the sump... I will get all that done when I can find to draw up my plans and get into the laser cutter to cut some acrylic...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11600272#post11600272 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by conorwynne
It's handy being an architect all the same.

Nice start lad.

Regards
Conor.

Being an architect definitely has its perks... It'll definitely help when I am designing my own home with an in-wall reef tank that will finally be the size I've always wanted... heheheee... some day...!!!!

Being huge into this reef hobby, I try to get aquariums into all my designs... so far I havent been able to make a client see that it would be an awesome feature for there space... heheheee

[mnml]

looking good. taggin along....

[Jester]

I got home a little early from work today, so I hit up Lowes and got a few more things I needed to get the building phase of the project done... Here's some progress photos from tonight...

I added a 3/4" top to the sump stand... Thought it couldn't hurt and possibly could help...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_03.jpg

My DJ controller also fit perfectly (not really planned) into the sump stand...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_04.jpg

I added some commercial grade rubber backed carpet to the top of the stand... help keep any water that may get on there from getting to wood stand below...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_05.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_06.jpg

The brackets i made for the stand were dry and stable, so I was able to mount the DJ controller inside the stand too...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_01.jpg

After all that I was able to put the tank back on the stand and do a little mock up of the plumbing... nothing is glued yet, but it was good to finally see the pipes coming through the wall...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/01142008_02.jpg

I'll probably continue with the plumbing tomorrow and maybe actually glue some things together...

[Chad Vossen]

sweet, i did something like this for my 65 gal. tank in one room with the sump on the other side of the wall in my closet. it worked great, but i had to downgrade...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11594033#post11594033 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pheromo
so the fuge and sump are in one tank?

Here's some old pics of when I designed and built my sump... I dont have a HOB skimmer anymore, so ignore that label... hehehee

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/sumpcopy.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/sump01.jpg

[Jester]

I've been working on the tank recently, even though there has not been any pics in the past few days... a lot of time has been focused on organizing the new "sump" room and sanding the canopy to get it ready for paint... it took a lot of effort to get a good finish on the canopy even though I bought nicer wood this time, due to building my last canopy out of crapy pine and regretting it later on... with a can of gloss, satin, and flat paint I jumped in... On a few test pieces all the paints looked bad by themselves, but the satin looked great when I put a few layers of flat underneath. So, thats whats I ended up doing... I painted the exterior of the canopy last night and I'm going to be painting the inside with white appliance epoxy paint tonight... Does anyone know if the appliance expoxy will stick to wood..?? I hope so.... Here's a quick pic I took before walking out the door this morning...

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/black_canopy.jpg

Jester

[pheromo]

that sump is awesome .. i want one!! ... whats ur return pump on all this?

[EWC88]

Does your canopy open up at all? and are you planning on drilling holes on side for fans or did you keep the back open?

Its coming along great though! can't wait to see it with water. As well as seeing everyone build one gets me more and more excited when I can start getting mine going.

Would you be able thought to tell me the demensions of the American DJ power supply? LxWxH please?

Cashman95, do you know the thread that had the mods for the nanostreams? I have a 6025 and considering doing it

[Jester]

pheromo, my return pump is a gen-x 4100... I've had to throttle it back all the way with my HOB overflow, but now I'm hopefully going to be able to open it up and get more flow with the drilled tank...

EWC88, The very top of the canopy is going to be hinged on the back with a full length piano hinge... so the top will swing up with the lights attached... that way I can get full access to the aquarium from the top...

The dimension of the american DJ controller is 17" wide x 4" deep x 1.75" tall... thats the main metal box of the controller... there are 1" metal tabs on each side of the front of the controller, which is where the screws are used to attach to wherever you want it to go... the buttons extrude about another .25-.5" from the face of the controller... it doesn't really take up all that much space...

I've seen the mods for the 6025s... not sure if I'm going to do them until I get them running stock first... All I've heard is good things about the mods... and it seems really easy, too...

I'm painting the inside of the canopy with white epoxy as I'm typing this... so tomorrow I will hopefully start transfering over my lights and stuff... may take the day off to work on the aquarium.. don't tell anyone...=) we'll see, though... depends on my weekend plans... don't want to start and then have to go out of town in the middle...

[Jester]

forgot to answer the fan question... I did leave the back open, but I am also planning on adding a 3" fan on each side of the canopy... I'll probably have them blowing inward and forcing the hot air out the open back of the canopy... I would have already drilled the holes, but my friend has been out of them at his store... I'll be going by his shop tomorrow, so maybe he'll have them in stock now.. if not I have a double fan unit that clips to the lip of the aquarium that I could use until them... I may try that first anyways so I don't have to drill the sides... the tank is in my living room and most of the pics I've seen of canopys with fan holes in them throw a lot of light out of them... not a big fan of that... I don't even like the light that comes out of the rear of the canopy...

[yuwei24]

That's cool. I am gonna setup a similar tank with the sump behind the wall. Looking forward to more exciting pics.

[Jester]

Well after a long day of work on the tank... it has water now and all my rock in it... well actually everything is in there... haven't seen my fish since I put it in there but we'll see if he's out in the morning... I also hooked up a ground probe, two new heaters, a new aqualifter, and bought a media chamber for running carbon... below are the only pics I could get uploaded tonight... but I will be posting more soon...!!!!!!

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/pipes01.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/pipes02.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/water.jpg

[Jester]

Here are a few more pics that help explain the process of moving everything over...

Here's a picture of my sump after emptying and cleaning... This thing was full of crap... I had to scrub and soak with vinegar to get it to look like it does now...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01801.jpg

Added some water and the sand...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01803.jpg

Here are some pictures of my living room as I started the moving process...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01802.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01804.jpg

I went to my buddies reef store and came home with a bunch or goodies... I bought a media chamber, media, two new heaters, 2 filter socks, and a titanium grounding probe... never really have ran carbon or anything, so I figured it would help put a little with the tank moving...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01805.jpg

Sump room setup and running...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/DSC01812.jpg

(not a good pic) Here's a pic of the tank up and running... I'll take more later tonight...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/SumpRoom.jpg

I also went to the reef shop last night and picked up two celebratory frags for the new tank setup... I'll take a lot more pics and post later...

[Bri Guy]

Looks great, can you take a pic of the inside of your canopy, how did you fit a halide and 2 pc's in 12"!

I like the through the wall sump, nice idea.

[pheromo]

CONGRATS MAN >>> nice job ...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11659424#post11659424 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Bri Guy
Looks great, can you take a pic of the inside of your canopy, how did you fit a halide and 2 pc's in 12"!

I like the through the wall sump, nice idea.

I'll take a few pics tonight when I got home... I'm going to try to squeeze another halide in there at some point, too... hehehee

[mnml]

slick set up! keep up the great work!

[WZHANG]

Bravo, you got it all running! I'm inspired to do something similar to my tank now by plumbing a sump room (been thinking about adding a refugium to help stabilize ph at night)

:celeb1:

[mr pink floyd]

maybe i missed it, but how are you getting water into the skimmer section?

JMO but i would run the drain into the skimmer section first, so it gets skimmed before it goes anywhere else


nice looking setup though!

[reefman13]

+1 on what pink floyd said

looking really good. looking forward to the new pics.

[yuwei24]

is the water intake of 6025 very large for a small fish to easily get in?

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11661892#post11661892 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mr pink floyd
maybe i missed it, but how are you getting water into the skimmer section?

JMO but i would run the drain into the skimmer section first, so it gets skimmed before it goes anywhere else


nice looking setup though!

I am running a small pump in the sump thats pumping water to the skimmer... The pump is located in the intake section of the sump... I will probably split the intake to feed the skimmer when I install my new sump that I'm designing...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11663260#post11663260 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by yuwei24
is the water intake of 6025 very large for a small fish to easily get in?

There's really not an intake on the 6025... its open around the entire pump... there's little slots in the pump housing...

[Jester]

Here's a few more pics of the tank... and not the plumbing... hehehee...

full tank shot..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon011.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon004.jpg

Side shot... the clam isnt looking too good after the transfer..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon023.jpg

Top down with all the pumps running... lots of surface movement...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon018.jpg

There little frags seem to have lost a lot of color since I bought them yesterday... guess thats due to the stress of moving them... hmmmm....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon007.jpg

Can anyone ID this one for me...?!?!
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon008.jpg

Bri Guy, Here's the light setup...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon017.jpg

[conorwynne]

That's a nice canopy, how close is it to the water surface?

[danoreef]

lovin it. Tagging along for the ride.

[EWC88]

What is a titanium grounding probe? And what wattage is the MH did you get and from were?

Tank looks amazing! Can't wait to see when you add more corals and have fish!

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11666202#post11666202 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by conorwynne
That's a nice canopy, how close is it to the water surface?

The bottom of the wood panel where the lights are mounted is around 7" from the water surface...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11667249#post11667249 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EWC88
What is a titanium grounding probe? And what wattage is the MH did you get and from were?

Tank looks amazing! Can't wait to see when you add more corals and have fish!

the grounding probe helps eliminate any stray voltage that may be introduced into your aquarium from the various pumps and things we have in our tanks... here's a link to one so you can read a little more about it... Grounding Probe (http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=3946&Nty=1&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&Ntk=All&pc=1&N=0&Ntt=grounding&Np=1)

that is a 150 watt HQI halide... the bulb is a pheonix 14k... I bought the reflector and everything from hellolights.com ...

I can't wait for my corals to grow larger... I wish I could give them some miracle grow or something... heheheee

[kar93]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11664256#post11664256 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Jester

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/29gallon004.jpg


Love the way the light reflects on this pic

[EWC88]

Jester you have a beautiful tank! I'm looking on the hellolights website and was wondering a couple things. What ballast did you get? Eltronic? or magnectic? Also do you have to purchase the power cord with it? And were did you get your 55wat pc lights from?

I also must say this is probably the best looking tank with a blue backround that I seen. I'm a big fan with the black back rounds cause it shows the colors more ( atleast I think ) but this is a beautiful tank and love the back round on it! Now I might consider my next tank be blue!

[conorwynne]

How would you rate the phoenix 14K 150W? I am ordering three new bulbs, and would like to know what people rate as best.

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11669260#post11669260 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by conorwynne
How would you rate the phoenix 14K 150W? I am ordering three new bulbs, and would like to know what people rate as best.

I personally really like the pheonix bulb... it makes my corals look a lot better than the XM 15k that I have before...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11668840#post11668840 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by EWC88
Jester you have a beautiful tank! I'm looking on the hellolights website and was wondering a couple things. What ballast did you get? Eltronic? or magnectic? Also do you have to purchase the power cord with it? And were did you get your 55wat pc lights from?

I also must say this is probably the best looking tank with a blue backround that I seen. I'm a big fan with the black back rounds cause it shows the colors more ( atleast I think ) but this is a beautiful tank and love the back round on it! Now I might consider my next tank be blue!

I ordered the SunLight Supply Blue Wave 3 HQI ballast for my MH bulbs and I ordered there retrofit HQI reflector. I did have to buy the lamp cord seperately, but there was a power cable attached to the ballast. I bought the PC bulb kit from AH Supply. I bought this ballast and kit about 8 years ago and everything is still kicking. Hope this helps.

Jester

[otto486]

I love the clean un-clotted design. It looks great, keep the pics comin!

[Jester]

Sorry about the pics not working... Don't know how long the pics were down, but I upgraded my photobucket account now... no bandwidth issues now... I'll be posting some update pics soon... I've moved some of my new frags and have added two more fish...

Jester

[Jester]

I've started getting a lot of algea growth on the top of my pumps and loc-line... plus a little under the rock where the light can't reach... Its been years since I setup a tank, so I can't remember if this is normal or not... I'm going to take some pics tonight and post an update...

[killagoby]

Nice set-up!

I had the same size tank, and the same stand.

Tagging along to see your progress...

[yuwei24]

Photos! the more the merrier

[Jester]

Here are some update pictures... I was trying to play around with the camera a little... I found that if I turned the actinic off I got better pics... some of these have the actinics on, but others dont... does anyone know if this algea that is growing is bad..?? look at the Nanostreams and loc-line... it reminds me of hair algea and brings back a haunting fight I had with it with one of my past tanks...

crab decided to come out and play on the Nanostream..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture185.jpg

One of my Millis..
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture187.jpg

Two new additions to the tank...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture197.jpg

FTS
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture201.jpg

Scary Algae...?!??!
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture203.jpg

top down...
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture206.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture205.jpg

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture208.jpg

Small monti cap that I've had forever and theres my newer frag next to it... that I have no idea what it is..?!?! suggestions anyone...?!?!
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/updates01312008/Picture209.jpg

[OnlyCrimson]

I think that algae is to be expected, even though you moved from an existing tank. I would remove as much as i could by hand though.

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11774104#post11774104 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by OnlyCrimson
I think that algae is to be expected, even though you moved from an existing tank. I would remove as much as i could by hand though.

Thats exactly what I've been doing... every few days I go in there and wipe it all down with my hand and let it get caught in my filter sock... I need to set my fuge back up too... that seems to help me when I have nuisance algea issues...

[Jester]

UPDATE:
I have a lizard goby that should be arriving this week sometime... and I have been eyeing a few corals on fragarmers website... dont have a lot of space, so I want the nicest pieces of croals I can get and afford... hehehee... I wish they grew a little faster... maybe some miracle grow for corals needs to be invented...

I've also been looking at chillers recently... My tank has always hovered around 79-80.5 degrees, but lately with my house being somewhat hot with the crazy "winter" weather, I've had days where its traveled op over 81 degrees in the tank... the temp always seems to be the most unstable part of my tanks... I have fans over the sump that are hooked to a temp controller, plus three fans in the canopy and they are just not cutting it for me... It will really become an issue when I add another 150 watt HQI to the canopy... anyone have recomendations on brand and size of chillers..??

Last night I noticed a small scratch in the glass on the front of the tank... thats enough to drive me crazy... I hate it when that happens...!!!!! hehehee...

[Jester]

I went up to the reef shop tonight and my new lizard goby arrived yesterday... I'm giving it a few more days to acclimate at the shop before I bring it home, but here area few pics I took real quick...

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/lizard01.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/29gallon%20build/lizard02.jpg

[BLKTANG]

Nice job.

[Jester]

I picked up and added the lizard goby this afternoon... I wont be able to take pics until it calms down a little... he's hiding most of time, except when I fed the tank... he came right out and started eating with the rest of the fish...

I also spied a cool "supergirl" montipora at the reef shop where i get all my stuff... It has bright blue polyps with a lighter, but bright green tissue... I can get a small frag for 40 or buy the whole rock for 190... the rock is close to the size of my fist and is completely covered... any opinions..??

[mikellini]

Looks great! I see a few similarities with my own 29g, check it out

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=1239673

How tall is that MH reflector? Are you having any heat issues, or a lot of evaporation? How about a fuge pic?

[racksteris]

Your tank looks great, Love your sump set-up.

[ginger7286]

I love the outlet you are using, it looks great and it is hidden. Tha set up is HOT!

[MyMonkey]

Great work there! Tagging along.

[Jester]

Glad to see people are still checking in here... I need to post some update photos this weekend... Lately I've been letting things get acclimated and stable. I found out a few weeks back my Mag was really low since I started using kalk... about the only other exciting news is that I had to replace all 5 stages of my RO/DI system and I should be having a few new frags shipping soon... Thanks for checking in everyone and I'l lbe posting more pics soon...

Jester

[tpenn187]

set up is looking good, although your clam still doesn't look too happy. get a closer pic of it and post it on the clam forums, kind of looks like pm, but i cant tell by the pictures. nice frags by the way.

[nu2reefva]

hey ive gota quick question i live in chesapeake and was wondering what reef shop you go to locally.

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12048264#post12048264 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nu2reefva
hey ive gota quick question i live in chesapeake and was wondering what reef shop you go to locally.

I am at the Reef Chief's shop all the time... thats where I buy everything.. not to say you wont catch me at Fish Safari or AJ sometimes... If you havent checked out the Reef Chief you need to go there...

[block head]

love the set-up

[Jester]

I'll have a ton of new frags coming up in the next few weeks... great hard to find corals too..!!!!

[tigerarmy40]

how is the temp holding up?

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12087616#post12087616 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tigerarmy40
how is the temp holding up?

Temp is holding pretty well now... It may get to around 80.5 during the day with the lights on, but thats about as high as I've seen it since getting all the fans in the canopy... During the summer when its 90 degrees outside I may have to think about a chiller, but I should be good for a few more months... I am about to replace all the windows in my house, so that will hopefully help keep the temp swings under control...

[kblack3]

You are rocking 6025's would it be overkill if I used 2 6055's controlled in my 24 gallon for sps?

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12223457#post12223457 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kblack3
You are rocking 6025's would it be overkill if I used 2 6055's controlled in my 24 gallon for sps?

I would have gone with the 6055s if I had the money for them... I like the 6025s and I'm about to mod both of them, so that puts them near the 6045s... I would say that the 6055s will work when dialed down... so you really could get away with something smaller, but if you have the money and want the 6055s... go for it...!!!! =)

Jester

[kblack3]

I think I will go with dual 6055's its not like they won't be good for a larger tank in the future and I guess the more flow the better when it comes to sps

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12229159#post12229159 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kblack3
I think I will go with dual 6055's its not like they won't be good for a larger tank in the future and I guess the more flow the better when it comes to sps

Exactly what I was thinking earlier when I replied...!!!! Flow is very important to SPS corals...

[mikellini]

From all I've heard/read, the modded 6025 puts out quite a bit more flow than the 6045. I have a modded 6025, and I believe it (I'd say the flow has doubled since the mod) but I've never had a 6045 to compare. Anyone have both?

[Eklikewhoa]

Awesome set up!

Was wondering though.....you have that large sump stand why not put a larger sump there? You would increase your gallon capacity as well as being able to hold a lot more LR!

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12234997#post12234997 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Eklikewhoa
Awesome set up!

Was wondering though.....you have that large sump stand why not put a larger sump there? You would increase your gallon capacity as well as being able to hold a lot more LR!

Thats what I'm working on right now. A buddy of mine owns an aquarium acrylic fab shop, so I'm working on plans for a new sump that will have a larger fuge and more room for rock... I'll need a few more pounds of rock since I'm working on a 30 breeder prop tank that will be plumbed into the system soon... here's a pic of the new drilled breeder I picked up a week ago..

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/30Breeder%20prop/30breeder02.jpg

[Ricunger]

Bump... update?

[redskins2647]

nice to find another reefer from va on this sight. you said you shop at reef chief? jeff's a cool guy. definitely hooks people up on some deals and has some rare stuff that no where else around here has right now i have A 28 bowfront w/ 20 sump/fuge looking to upgrade to a larger tank in november im usually at jeffs earlier saturday or sunday haha 1 time a week or id be outta cash

[Jester]

A lot has been going on with the tank recently. I started Prodibio about a month ago... which has had its up and downs with my tank. I have noticed that dinoflagellates have started taking over my tank. Its kind of driving me crazy and I'm not sure if its because of the Prodibio or not. Here are some pics though....

<b>
These are my newest frags....</b>
ORA Marshal Island Tri Color
ORA Pink and Lavander Acro
Blue tip vermiculated
Larry Jackson Tri Color
Green Slimmer
Blue Slimmer
orange digi with green skeleton
Rainbow Monti

(****Ignore the recovering orange digi thats in some of the pics***)

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000200.jpg" border="0" alt="">

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000170.jpg" border="0" alt="">

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000184.jpg" border="0" alt="">

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000180.jpg" border="0" alt="">

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000189.jpg" border="0" alt="">

<img src="http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j127/Jester4lfe/08-26-2008/P1000199.jpg" border="0" alt="">

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13467146#post13467146 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by redskins2647
nice to find another reefer from va on this sight. you said you shop at reef chief? jeff's a cool guy. definitely hooks people up on some deals and has some rare stuff that no where else around here has right now i have A 28 bowfront w/ 20 sump/fuge looking to upgrade to a larger tank in november im usually at jeffs earlier saturday or sunday haha 1 time a week or id be outta cash

I go to Jeff's a few times a week... I can't afford to buy something everytime I'm there, but I like to make sure there not something new that I have to get... heheheeee... He is the one who talked me into starting Prodibio...

[Jester]

Tonight it is starting to look like the dinos are starting to go away. I cut the photo period in half a week ago and started skimming wetter.

[redskins2647]

just went up tonight picked up some elkhorn and a skimmer seaclone was getting old still messin with the new one but your tank looks great nice frags

[Jester]

I jsut modded one of my 6025s last night. I was cleaning it and decided to go ahead and try it... it really kicks out more flow now...!!!! I am going to mod the other 6025 tonight...

[mikellini]

Just remember, the modded 6025 may have issues restarting if it is angled up at all... I saw a fix for this somewhere on here a while ago, but I can't find it and now I have to put my hand in front of the pump to reverse the direction when the power goes out, otherwise it just sucks the water in...

[Jester]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13537131#post13537131 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikellini
Just remember, the modded 6025 may have issues restarting if it is angled up at all... I saw a fix for this somewhere on here a while ago, but I can't find it and now I have to put my hand in front of the pump to reverse the direction when the power goes out, otherwise it just sucks the water in...

Good thing to think about... I'll have to play around with it and make sure it will come back on after a power outage...

Jester

[hddtran]

great setup on this little setup.
The more I look at your build the more I want to downgrade my setup.
Great job. keep it up

thanks

[helitaiwan963]

If you still have this setup, how high is your 150watt MH from the water surface? I think I may do a 150watt Mh setup on my 29gal as well...

Also, did you end up ever needing a chiller?