I_Found_Nemo
01/25/2011, 01:42 PM
Hi everyone! First I'll introduce myself... I'm a full time student in eastern canada in the third year of my bachelors of commerce degree. I tried to get a poorly thought out and ill-prepared/rushed tank going a couple years ago and failed miserably, so after some research, I have decided to give it another show with a slightly larger setup :dance:
The goal of this is to get it running and stable some time before I (hopefully) move 18 hours away for my law degree, and have the tank able to come with me for the three years I intend to stay there. I haven't fully thought out the logistics of this yet, but I figured a full HOB setup would be most practical for this goal.
The tank will be set up on my desk which will provide a few key things:
1. Near where I spend a lot of my time, which will provide me with some more light and a more relaxing work environment
2. Near my RO source (directly beside the garage)
3. I don't have to build a stand :thumbsup: I have already jumped up on my desk with my girlfriend and it supported us dancing around no problem (combined weight just slightly below the expected weight of this setup).
I know its not the best idea to have near electronics, but everything is about 6 feet away and far outside any possible "splash zone." I'll take a chance and if things start going sour, I'll figure something out. If the tank erupts, well, then I'm screwed.
I plan on making this a complete mix of everything, I'm a big fan of color, so the more colorful something is, the more likely I am to have it in my tank, given proper comparability with other things in the tank.
First up, I picked up my tank which measures 36"x12"x17" and is made by Hagen at the LFS. They were on sale for $65 tax in! :) I know its not the best tank, but it should do the trick. I also picked up a 10 gallon QT while I was there.
Next up I made an order from www.JLaquatics.com based on the far side of the country, so shipping might take a while, but it will all get here eventually. I ordered the following:
Coralife super protein skimmer (65 gallon version)
Lifeguard Aquatics Aquastep Pro UV sterilizer 15 (15 watt)
Stealth Pro heaters (1x50w, 1x150w, placement to be decided. I'm thinking 150w in the refugium and 50w in the tank?)
CPR Aquafuge regugium, size medium
CPR light fixture for said refugium and bracket
Bright well Aquatics KoraLagoon refugium substrate
Caribsea seafloor special grade sand, 15lbs (might need more I think... I initially ordered for a 20 gallon tank and then changed my mind after I ordered from JL.)
Sunlight Supply Tek Light 4 Bulb T5 Fixture (36 Inch, 4x39W) and brackets
Power chrome lights (1 antinic, 2 aqua blue, and still trying to dEcide on the fourth bulb)
Various pumps and power heads as well as a new valve for the skimmer air intake
For right now the tank is just sitting on my desk empty. I'm going to pick up some black vinyl tomorrow and put it on the back of the tank and then start leak testing it in the garage.
That's it for now, as things progress and arrive I'll update my thread. Thanks for looking, please feel free to comment or yell at me if I do something stupid :wildone:
One last thing... I'm a freelance photographer, so be ready for some nice photos as things start arriving! :bigeyes:
The goal of this is to get it running and stable some time before I (hopefully) move 18 hours away for my law degree, and have the tank able to come with me for the three years I intend to stay there. I haven't fully thought out the logistics of this yet, but I figured a full HOB setup would be most practical for this goal.
The tank will be set up on my desk which will provide a few key things:
1. Near where I spend a lot of my time, which will provide me with some more light and a more relaxing work environment
2. Near my RO source (directly beside the garage)
3. I don't have to build a stand :thumbsup: I have already jumped up on my desk with my girlfriend and it supported us dancing around no problem (combined weight just slightly below the expected weight of this setup).
I know its not the best idea to have near electronics, but everything is about 6 feet away and far outside any possible "splash zone." I'll take a chance and if things start going sour, I'll figure something out. If the tank erupts, well, then I'm screwed.
I plan on making this a complete mix of everything, I'm a big fan of color, so the more colorful something is, the more likely I am to have it in my tank, given proper comparability with other things in the tank.
First up, I picked up my tank which measures 36"x12"x17" and is made by Hagen at the LFS. They were on sale for $65 tax in! :) I know its not the best tank, but it should do the trick. I also picked up a 10 gallon QT while I was there.
Next up I made an order from www.JLaquatics.com based on the far side of the country, so shipping might take a while, but it will all get here eventually. I ordered the following:
Coralife super protein skimmer (65 gallon version)
Lifeguard Aquatics Aquastep Pro UV sterilizer 15 (15 watt)
Stealth Pro heaters (1x50w, 1x150w, placement to be decided. I'm thinking 150w in the refugium and 50w in the tank?)
CPR Aquafuge regugium, size medium
CPR light fixture for said refugium and bracket
Bright well Aquatics KoraLagoon refugium substrate
Caribsea seafloor special grade sand, 15lbs (might need more I think... I initially ordered for a 20 gallon tank and then changed my mind after I ordered from JL.)
Sunlight Supply Tek Light 4 Bulb T5 Fixture (36 Inch, 4x39W) and brackets
Power chrome lights (1 antinic, 2 aqua blue, and still trying to dEcide on the fourth bulb)
Various pumps and power heads as well as a new valve for the skimmer air intake
For right now the tank is just sitting on my desk empty. I'm going to pick up some black vinyl tomorrow and put it on the back of the tank and then start leak testing it in the garage.
That's it for now, as things progress and arrive I'll update my thread. Thanks for looking, please feel free to comment or yell at me if I do something stupid :wildone:
One last thing... I'm a freelance photographer, so be ready for some nice photos as things start arriving! :bigeyes: