My noob tank at 5 months

[UnusualSuspect]

I started my first salt water tank over the Christmas holiday season, and am at 5 months now. I did almost a complete do-over at three months. I find the progression interesting.

In a previous life, this 36 gallon bowfront tank was freshwater planted with CO2 injection & the whole 9 yards.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/93314284.jpg

Early January, after initial fill. Eheim canister filter, Remora protein skimmer, a Koralia 2, 2x65W CoralLife CF fixture. Inhabitant - a bag of phosphate sponge.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135137924.jpg

Mid-January, I got some live rock. Marineland "Reef Capable" LED fixture replaced CoralLife. Began adding CUC shortly after this.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/131859616.jpg

Early February, starting to get some fish & corals.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135137898.jpg

Mid-February, added a small HOB fuge.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135137960.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135137852.jpg

Late February, more livestock & progressing nicely.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/132718355.jpg

Late March, just before I tore it down & re-built. Looks like an eighth-grade science fair project.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/133720807.jpg

[UnusualSuspect]

Early April, after the re-build. Changed out the sand. Canister filter & HOB fuge gone, Remora now in the stand with my DIY 10gal sump/fuge. Replaced 3 Koralia Nano 425 with one Vortech MP10. Temp & pH probes now in the sump. NOTHING over the back wall. Even painted my algae magnet black.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/133720889.jpg

Late April, progressing nicely.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135137990.jpg

Mid-May, added a DIY RapidLED fixture. Somebody in another thread said my enclosure looks like a casket, LOL!
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/134826548.jpg

Gotta do something about the electricals.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135138004.jpg

Current shot, 5 months now - tank is maturing nicely. I don't think I could have expected more when I started.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135138035.jpg

[dzfish17]

The tank looks alot cleaner after the redo. Just imagine what it will look like a yr. from now. Very nice.

[BlueFyre]

I like the progress pictures. The tank looks very nice.

[Lwhite]

I am very impressed, I like how the dark background offsets the oak. Very nice

[RJT]

Great job. Very smart of you to redo.

[greech]

Looks great, congrats! Your progression looks a lot like my own, going from a sumpless to sumped system.

[b0bab0ey]

Very nice! Like the progress pics and how you've got everything labeled in that one pic.

[btsd]

Very sharp and clean. Nice job

[Angel*Fish]

Very nice!

[D. Murphy]

Looks great. How is the overflow working for you. I have been thinking about putting 1 in my 44 gallon corner tank. I wasn't sure if it would flow enough though. I know the next size up comes with a 1.5" bulkhead, and I thought that was a bit too big.

Dan

[UnusualSuspect]

Looks great. How is the overflow working for you. I have been thinking about putting 1 in my 44 gallon corner tank. I wasn't sure if it would flow enough though. I know the next size up comes with a 1.5" bulkhead, and I thought that was a bit too big.

Dan

I really like the overflow. I use a Mag-3 return pump, so I guess I'm getting about 250+ gph through it. They say 3-5x tank volume per hour is all you really need for filtration.

Most of my circulation is from the MP10 - I really love that thing despite the price. It replaced 3 Koralia Nano 425's and does a much better job.

I agree, the next size up would be too much for my tank and for yours as well.

[Seahorse NJRC]

Very nice! I really like the redo. I am contemplating doing something similar with my 55.

[Atom0023]

Wow, the white sand looks much nicer then the original rocks. I have seen some nice electrical panels that you might want to try.

[D. Murphy]

Do you have any pics of the sump/fuge? What all did you put in it.

Dan

[lionfish_shane]

The rebuild was definitely worth the effort. Much much better looking. :thumbsup:

[UnusualSuspect]

Do you have any pics of the sump/fuge? What all did you put in it.

Dan

Things are so tight under the stand, it's hard to get photos in there.

It's a 10gal "leader" tank. Working volume is about 7.2 gallons, leaving 2.8 gallons of backflow room for power outages, etc. I used picture-frame glass for the baffles, so there's a few sharp edges in there.

Here's a doctored-up photo of it when I was leak testing it.

http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/133264737.jpg

The HOB skimmer (at the left side) allows me to have an inlet section just wide enough for the Maxi-Jet 1200 that feeds the skimmer.

I made the 2nd section of the bubble trap 2" wide to accommodate the heater.

Return pump is a Mag-3. I tee'd the return flow to feed the fuge.

The fuge is nothing special - 3" of sand, some live rock & rubble, a bit of chaeto that doesn't grow very well. I'm starting to get a decent colony of 'pods growing in there.

I now also have a UV sterilizer (Turbo-Twist 9x) rigged into the sump due to a recent bout with ich. It's fed by a Maxi-Jet 400 in the return section, and it drains into the fuge.

I'll see if I can get some photos of the whole thing in action.

[UnusualSuspect]

Okay - photos of underneath the tank. I had to mod the stand, removing a couple of braces, to get the sump to fit in there. I added bracing in other areas to compensate.

Left end of the sump showing Remora protein skimmer. Temp & pH probes are in the inlet section.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135166866.jpg

Right end with the fuge light removed. You can see the tee'd return and the UV sterilizer.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135166868.jpg

Center section. My "bubble tower" in the inlet section is a piece of 2" PVC with teeth cut in the bottom.
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135166872.jpg

Command central, inside the door. I see it's time for a bit of Marine Buffer...
http://www.pbase.com/mlandry/image/135166879.jpg