View Full Version : 205 Gallon tank log. (w/ pics)
Well to start the tank display is 130 the sump is 20 and the refuge is 55
i got the tank afew months ago and started installing it
here is a lay out of the tanks flow for now
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/578/119114tankplan.GIF
water flows from the 130 down the drain pipe and into the 20 gallon sump. from there it is pumped at 30 gph into the 55 refuge then siphoned back into the sump
from there it makes its way to the ocean motion at 1000 gph and back into the tank
there is also a evaporative chiller that can be turned on when needed
expect more soon as i am building my canopy in a few days!
Ok update
i am curerently draining the refuge so that when i add hte base rock (150 pounds) the tnak wont over flow. ill take a pic of the rock IMO it wasnt wortht he price. there is less rock per pound then real LR and it wasnt that much cheeper.
icecap is sending me my ballast today so im going to start building my canopy right now.. i need to find my camera's wire so i cant upload the pics..
found my cam! but now the water is soooo clowdy im building the rockwork by feel... you get good at it if your used to working im muck (try setting a mooring for a boat in water where you have to hold a dive gauge against your mask just to see it :P any way that was a fun day) ill take some pics after it settle and then a few more of how it looks after i rearange it
i am using a method that ( should be) extreamly pleasing to the eye that many FW planted tank people use.
reef rock 150 lbs total
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a1c3e428.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/46d9902d.jpg
tank still to coudy for pics
in a few days i will order some LR from dr fostersmith.com cant decide what i want yet
NCreefwannabe
04/22/2006, 12:01 AM
Get marshall island or kaelini. Marshall is what my next tank will be.
i was thinking of 3 different types. 22 lbs of premium select blablabla figi some of the tonga and koulu . or somthing like that. ill look again later . i just rememebr for thae longest tiem they were all on backordre lol
what do you like about marshall?
scrmbld33
04/22/2006, 06:26 AM
indonesia from www.reefscience.com is great too, it would be really good to seed your tank
got any pics of the life that comes on it?
DARN!!! i had some one helpingme ( asked him to just clean the dust off the rock while i put it in) i go to the bath rooma nd he adds the sand and CC.. now its nearly impossiable to make the rock touch the bottom. the tank is so deep i can hardly reach the bottom to move the sand out of the way.. ohh i could kill him LMAO~!!~
two shots. one of front one of tank room
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picturefa009.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picturefa010.jpg
yes i know there boxers on the floor.. they work great when you dont have a towel :P
any one want me to lable the pipes next time? or does no one really care :P
Cutiewitbooty
04/22/2006, 06:30 PM
be sure to keep up with the thread. It's cool being able to look back on it. :D
i love taking pics so i know at the very least ill have tons of picts to look back on
i may be setting up several wireless webcams on the sid eof the tank ( possiably in the tank if i can be told for sure that the RF wont hurt any thing.
im going to do a few wierd things in the tank . ( possiably try to use mirrors to effect the way SPS grow to come up with cool shapes...) also i plan to sell any coral frags i get so im going to try to get some rare or LE corals
im building my canopy tommorow and i will have alot of picts
soon i will build a pully sytem for my canopy since it weighs about 100 pounds ( knotice it isnt on the tank LMAO)
Cutiewitbooty
04/22/2006, 06:40 PM
lol, i take a million pics too :D Can't wait for your new pics :D
ok update. canopys half done..... i messed up but its an easy fix ( bulbs are 1/4 inch to far away from end caps.... DEDEDE
illpost a pic when get on my other pc
ok this is a warning to any one who builds there own any thing!
knotice my canopy
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0002.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0004.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0005.jpg
do you see the problom?
maybe this will help
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0007.jpg
according to ice cap the bulb MUST BE FLISH WITH THE END CAP OR ELSE ARCING CAN HAPPEN!!! be careful this isnt "good eonugh" now i have to redo my canopy and mount he other 3 lights
i was expecting 880 wats of light but im only going to beable to have 770 watts :( im really really really upset that i couldne tfit the last bulb...
now ill show how to fix an annoying problom. btw ill post some pics of the construction of the tank room after i find my old Harddrive) should be able to retive them if i dont use it as the primary drive)
heres some of the base rock. im still not done. i dont want hte base rock htat high since im gonna cover it in real LR
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0009.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0008.jpg
here is my refuge you can see my tunze skimer in there along with a smaller tank that maintains constant water lvl for the tunze. ( not needed but i wantd to use the tunze as a recirculating skimer instead of a flow throu so )
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picturefa011.jpg
in my last picture on the left side you can see a pipe with a airhose comming out. cant you? this pipe is a siphon that returns the water from refuge to sump. i sshould of made the pipe wider but.... im dumb, ill take a full shot of it later
Cutiewitbooty
04/24/2006, 05:14 PM
you need to use a flash or turn on some lights on your tank shots lol
yeah it will look bettetr nce i get the lights on there
im using an underwater camera that is very anoying. im gonna be replacing it soon. ( camera was 600 bucks so im tyring ot hold on to it as long as possiable)
it always under exposes or over exposes except when at 60 ft on an overcast day with a external strobe.... sucks dont it
gosen
04/24/2006, 07:12 PM
Looks good!
ok orded 150 ish pounds of lr and payed nextday shipping. should be here in 2 days. price wasnt much for for firstday so what the hey
anyways its like 50 lbs of laulu or somthing 50 lbs of figi "premium" and 50 pounds of baserock
btw any one want picts form when we actualy built the room the tank goes in
ok DR fostersmith just called....
didnt relize they use fedex :(
anyways rockw ill be here tomorrow!!! YEA!!!! im happy!
right now im waiting for my ballast. shoulda been here 2 hours ago ups sualy dosnt deliver this late
jarhed
04/26/2006, 08:54 AM
More pics!!! :D
Hey, where did you get your base rock? From the pic, it appears solid and smooth. Could be the lighting though. How is your lr shipment?
well just got my lr and im kinda upset... i want to get it intank but i feel sooooooooooo sick right now that i can only stand long enough to put in one piece at a time
anyways. the rock shown in the tank now cost 50 bucks for 45 pounds. its just dead coral rock ... its the same stuf that TBS uses when they set up the aquaculture sites ( they start out dead also remember)
i got it from ... ehhh hmm trying to remember but its hard to find. you have to enter in the item number cause it isnt listed on hte site its only listed in the catalouge. ( petsolutions.com i think. dont quote me on that!)
off to the doctars i go.. when i come back ill do the LR i guess
billblass_44
04/26/2006, 02:50 PM
I noticed a lot of burn marks on your PVC...You know that could lead to pipie failure down the road.......I might want to suggest that you use flex tubing or find someone or buy a heating blanket made to evenly heat up PVC to bend it............This is only my opinion......but I know that electricians use such blankets for the grey PVC I am no expert in PVC but I am sure it will work on the white stuff too
yeah the burn marks arnt as bad as they look. its only the very surface. i can rub it off with my hand
i tried to keep the flame just farenough away to heat the pipe but not burn it.
anywasy pipes have been like this for over 7 months no probloms.
anyways 20 bucks on a propane torch or 100 bucks on a fancy extra hot hair dryer or blanket. . i choose to becheep lol ^^ anyways if any one else decides to heat pipe. make sure to use the thick stuff. thin (scdl 80) is to thin to be trusted. especialy when you heat it
im honored that this thread has been viewed almost 900! times
please post some more feed back so i know what you al thinnk!
today when my lr came the person helped bring it into the house and was asking questions aobut buying fish online ( box said live fish but its really lr)
anyways they seemed impressed by the tank. ( she may have been in the hobby also cause i never had a fedex person ask so many fish questions about online stores)
the lr
WOW the live rock isnt quite what i ordered the rere's subsitued my lowquality with medium qualiuty SHOW SIZE ROCK!! this stuff is hugeand so dense i cant break it..
the lil chunk i did break shows that it is SOLID not like most livve rock that is porus..
anyways to big and then the order where i wanted the high quality stuff htey shiped me medium cause htey were out of the high... ill use it anyways but i am kinda upset about the fact they didnt ship what they said... who thinks if i stop payment on them that they will pay for me to return the rock.. cause unless they pay for shipping again they arnt getting it back lol... then again i could be nice and try and get free shipping on my next live order.
gah anyways... back to the tank. i got some picts but am gonna wait a lil to post them so i can trry and take a few more.
i know you think im over reacting but they tried to cover up there mistake when i asked them about it... if i didnt press harder they would of never admited that i didnt get what they ordered.
now that i have ppushed them a bit they seem to be willing to work with me. im a firm beliver that if you make mistake you should do somthing in return to keep the customer.
good news also. got back from the doctor and he says all these probloms should be going away soon ( fainting., dizzyness, nausia, coughing) boy i cant wait.
i hate depending on others and so far iv needing non reefers to help me out with the tank. i wanna get back to just me! lol
woot.. ballast blew again!
Live rock is here
not what i wanted but liveaquaria made things right. i definitly recomend them! ( www.liveaquaria.com )
icecap and tunze also are top of the line service
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/c25a2378.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a8ebb42c.jpg
look how dense this stuff is.. its less porus then concreat!
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/34d23623.jpg
This is the tank before i added my LR
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/b2437229.jpg
i will get a pic with LR after it settles down a bit
these are my lights befor the ballast blew
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/370f1a63.jpg
now only 4 bulbs work. till i repair the other ballast
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/4bfcee78.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/ef8190ec.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/7c0d57cd.jpg
in the first pict of the ballast you can see a silver piece of metal.( heat sync)
underthat is part q3 and q4 this is what was danmaged when the ballast blew
i intend to still use my dimmer but on a different setting i think
i think i will make it be dawn 6:30 sunrise 6:30 noon start 9
that way the dimmer skiped the 0 - 30 percent dimming
Cutiewitbooty
04/28/2006, 01:37 PM
cool, u need to post pics with the lights on and the LR in htough :D
yeah yeah i know waters cloudy and still havent fixed the other ballast. :( radioshack dosnt have the part and so far oline it is 10 bucks each ... cant find cheeper yet
REEFERINDC
04/28/2006, 02:07 PM
clearer pics of the tank its really hard to see whats atually going on in there.Maybe cut on the flash or some lights or something
i know
its a digital underwater cam so it dosnt take ver good pics unless its underwater with external flash
once i get the lights up top it should look better.
but the canopy weighs 100 lbs and the tank is like 5 ft tall. no way can i lift it my self lol
wanna come help :P LMAO
i think my new picts came out better. i opened the flash difuser by 50 percent
enough to see the tank not enough to cause a blinding reflection
tank water is coudly and skimmer is overflowing . the sump has foam in it from the air mixed in as it falls.
i turned down the skimmer so the bubbles can pop and become sludge in the skimmer cup instead of making so many bubles so fast that it actualy comes out of the air holes in the top.
guess there was a lot of die off on these rocks! lol
i would like to run carbon but dont have any
tank water is alot cleaer today and that is wierd since there is hardly any skimate (spelling?) in the skimmer and currently all i have going is a settlment area and the skimmer when it comes to filtration
Cutiewitbooty
04/30/2006, 02:14 PM
be sure to keep track of you prams :D
not yet
im gonna either get new probes for my dimmer/computer ( even tho they never worked well)
or get just temp probe for it and then also get a neptune computer thingy with probes
i usualy start testing after about 3 weeks of cycle no point testing till then ( except salinity)
anyways i need new test kits. iv been using that mastertest kit that they sell for ever and am finialy sick of the color charts
im thinking of switching to one that uses clear plastic for charts since those are easier to read... just gotta ask around at what ones best
ok tested today ( you happy!)
nitrite 0
ph 8.2-8.5
SG 1.023
CA- didnt care to test
Cutiewitbooty
05/01/2006, 05:08 PM
lol what about nitrates and ammonia? :D That will tell you where your cycle is.
yeah i ran out of nitr ate test kit ( had one drop left literaly)
and iv never tested amonia except on FW tanks
but i will be buying some more test kits tomorrow when i run to the LFS
also maybe get a hardy fish like a blue danmsil or two ( i really like them) if the ammonia really is 0
lotta people looked so far. how bout some more comments
Cutiewitbooty
05/01/2006, 09:28 PM
just make sure that the ammonia is 0 and you already said that nitrites are 0 also make sure that the nitrates are down to about 10, then i would say add a clean up crew. Yuo could get a damsel or two but they are going to be a pain in the a** later down the road. If you want a fish and your prams are in check you don't you get a clown or something like that?
i love danmsals lol iv had them before . i currently have a clownfish that my friend is keeping for me... ( hes going in close to last cause i reallllllyyyyy like my clown fish lol)
anyway im going to the lfs tomorrow
apparently they have a new employee whos father used to be editor or owner of some big marine magazine. ( i forgot what one lol but apparently shes a real bit...... and when she test water instead of doing somthing like 7 drops she just squirts it and says good enough)
anyways sadly its either that store or bigals ... it realy sucks has a theme park feel to it... and you need to take a number to be helped.. really BLOWS!
so heres whats on my list for tomorrow
test kits ( two of each one hagen and i wanna give a nother brand a shot)
some screen to protest the fish from going into the overflow.
airline tubing and connectors
clean up crew
some live sand and ... a light for my refuge .
also some black acrylic so that i can block light to parts of my refuge.
Cutiewitbooty
05/02/2006, 07:33 AM
why would you want to block light going into your fuge? Oh and what is the airline tubing for?
Also i like damsels too and i haven't had a really bad one before, but like 99% of people on here have lol I have one in my tank now and he is great, just wanted to give you a heads up :D
LFS said water was perfect... ( he didnt wait 20 minutes like it says)
so i got my own kit and it was really high. .. past 1 ppm ( i think its in ppm not looking now)
fish is in my nano for now
"why would you want to block light going into your fuge? Oh and what is the airline tubing for?"
i want to block light to keep algae from growing in 2 areas. the skimmer and also the siphon that takes water back to the sump
air line tube is hooked to a dosing pump that sucks the air out of the siphon and also will feed the CA reacoter when i make or buy one . for now it just goes back in to the tank
Cutiewitbooty
05/02/2006, 07:06 PM
but in you fuge (refugium) you want algaes to grow espically marco algaes, that will stop algae from going in your main tank.
Here is a pic of my refugium, i got all sorts of nasty stuff growing in there.
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b316/Amber1983/DSCF3261.jpg
Here is my tank
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b316/Amber1983/DSCF3248.jpg
Cutiewitbooty
05/02/2006, 07:08 PM
oh also what was 1ppm? thats not bad depending on what exacly it is.
1ppm ammonia. to high. again it may not of been ppm. i am not looking at the kit now . still it was way to high
but see your plumbing is different then mine. i use a pvc siphone and need to to stay clean. i just added a screen around it so algae wont get in there
but remember this. my refuge is 55 gallons. i got plenty of extrra room. only half will be lit anyways the rest will be for sponges to grow and stuff ( no light = no algae = no smothering of the sponge)
Cutiewitbooty
05/02/2006, 07:22 PM
i have never heard of doing it that way before, but i guess that would be cool. I have a huge spong thing growing in my fuge, with no problems. I did have to put the cheato in my main tank because it wasn't doing good in my refugium. It's behind the rocks.
yeah your fuge is kinda emtpy . the type of fuge i am planning on is the type with lotsa algae .
i know somepeople just use a fuge for the pods but thats not me
you may want to try a new bulb or get a PC with a screwbase that plugs into a incandecant light socket.they at like 10 bucks i think and work well
Cutiewitbooty
05/02/2006, 07:28 PM
yeah i need to get another bulb it's only a 20watt 50/50 bulb.
in how big of a fuge
i had calurpa and chato grow in a tank with a 8 watt bulb( old refuge was a eclips tank)
i put some algae form my big tank into my nano so it will stay alive
its calurpa and thats hard to find around here so i hope i put it inthere before its compleatly dead ( its white right now and really stringy)
i want to install some fans on the canopy but havent decided how yet
im thinking 4 on the back all blowing in and possiably a few small holes in the top to vent since i just knotives the bulbs will sit about 2 inches above the tanks lid O_O
btw i dont trust my stand anymore. it looks like parts are peeling way. the dumb company only used glue ( would of been ok if they did the knotched type of corner instead they just put 2 pieced of wood together and did a dab of glue.. i doubt they even used dowls ( or what ever its callsed)
anyways. a few more days till i can get a good pic of hte tank since i need help with the canopy but ill post some picts of a new navy boat from fleetweek and a pic of my CA reactor if you want lmao
more LR yes or no i got 30 lbs of base rock in my refuge. i cold move it or i could go down to a LFS thats an hour a way and get really nice stuff
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/35eb36a4.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/10626d81.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/6c459e44.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/38b6892c.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/42565988.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/87b73414.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/cd72853b.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/d130e276.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/8dba7902.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/b1743b65.jpg
in the last few picts you can see my intake strainer... nice isnt it O_O
im going to hate getting coralin off of that lmao.
im standing on a navy ship that is going out ( apparently) for its last tour of duty
in this pic you can also see a new ship . its replacement
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/39a9fafa.jpg
anyways back to fish
i took this
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/7e8709b6.jpg
and turned it into this
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/71ad7ae8.jpg
this is an intake screener
oh and heres a crappy pic of me. accidently loaded it to photobucket. might as well post it lmao
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/3c10ed04.jpg
wanted to say. i know the eggcrate in the tank looks kinda ugly. ill be ataching xenia to it tho ;)
also this tank is 2 ft tall so there is more rock then it apprears. alrady i think 230 ish pounds of rock
i would really like to see the rock on the left side to be about twice as big theone on the left.
i kinda want the rock to be 3/4s way to the top and then take up half of the back wall( while sloping down... ) kinda like it is now but,... ehh ill draw a pic
red line shows where i want the lr
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/eaaa77b8.jpg
red line shows where i want the lr
no comments? really wanna know what ya think befor i fiddle witht he rock
Cutiewitbooty
05/06/2006, 07:42 PM
I think it will look good when you get it like the drawing shows. You water doesn't look very clear for some reason though. Oh yeah and the eggcrate does look kinda funny lolwhat are your prams? It looks like your getting an algae bloom and need a clean up crew.
actualy there are no lights so there is only diatoms on that front. dont bother me muhc yet
water is crystal clear. its my camera that makes it look that bad
anyways
LEAK
DAMN tenecor... i hope htey rot in .. oh hey all
anyways i just rested my arm on my drain pipe.. that was enough force to BEND the back pane of acrylic and warp it enough to cause hte bulk head to leak.
i should of gone with 1 inch acrylic but " that will be custom so it will cost a lot more since we need to design it . thinker acrylic cost more also"
HOW SO! its the same tank just thicker..... ( jerks) anyways it seem to of slowly stoped after i taped on it lol....
i hate tenecor
Dannyboy17
05/06/2006, 09:37 PM
This project is friggan GHETTO! Props.
only the tank room is ghetto the front of the tank actualy looks nice except the eggcrate ( and that will be hidden shortly by xenia or zoanthas) iv seen ghetto tanks. ( my friends for example) he has a soda cup skimmer and a diy wood stand for his refuge that is crooked ...
anyways 2 probloms in one day
for somereason my lil 20 gps pump is pumping more then 20 gph... this caused my refuge to over fill and the refuge's siphone couldent return the water fast enough!
im thinking of rebuilding hte siphon using 1 inch pvc instead of the 1/2 inch i used last time. altho this will be more water in there for my lifter pump to maintain
( i did test on pvc and found my doser pump could suck all air our of a 1/2 inch tube and raise water lvl in the tube.. but could not do it for a 1 incher...
anyways i was planning on extra switch relays to prevent this from happening... never got around to making them)
i went to blows i mean lowes to day..( i prefer HD)
i got some stuff to make a new siphone and also to orgonize my wires. ill post pics in a lil
gah more probloms.... :(( i didnt have time to make the part i needed so.... its still not looking good
sump has some foam in it from the bubbles.. hmm i made me a down draftskimmer O_O
my tunze skimmer is almost useless untill i can increase the flow entering the sump that the tunze is in ( currently about 10 gph)
shroomer2
05/09/2006, 09:40 PM
thats gonna be nice
i hope it will be. im gonna buy a back up ballast tho i think. any one wanna sell an icecap 660 that is less then 1 year old? didn think so
BumpinTJ24
05/09/2006, 11:33 PM
where are you located goda?
opps forgot to enter in allmy location info.
ft luaderdale florida area
added some epoxy to thetank to hold some rocks..
it is grey but i put sand over it so it looks almost natural now!
im going to build a cave out of acrylic bent over a pvc pipe tehn covered with small rock chips
ill try and take picts while i do it)
DirtySouth056
05/12/2006, 05:33 PM
looks like its time for a water change, when was the last time? Maybe its the lighting?
its the lighting. last water change was 1/2 month ago when i drained the refuge to add some equiptment then filled it back up with new SW
( about 40 gallons of water i think)
remember this is still cycling
the front has diatoms from ...well rock die off but they are slowly going away
my ammonia is now at .2 and i plan on adding some snails tommorow
Ironsheikh
05/12/2006, 09:00 PM
about the types of live rock -- i've hacksawed and hole sawed several types and tonga and haiti are by far the hardest. I'm a bodybuilder and by the time I was done hacksawing I had full sweat and arm pump lol. I have a pic of the piece I put together out of 3.
Brazilllian live rock is by far my favorite type. Lightest, most coralline covered, and can be broken apart by lightly banging two rocks together.
about the damsels, I'm a damsel fan -- gotta love the fiesty and colorful. The way the get along depends on territory and which one establishes dominance. My blue would attack any other damsel I put in the tank until I added a bigger snowflake damsel, fiji devil, and talbots -- now if it tries to go after the smallest talbots the snowflake will come over and chase the blue away.
Cutiewitbooty
05/13/2006, 06:02 AM
i like damsels too, i have one in my tank with no worries. :D
I wouldn't add any snails or crabs to the tank untill your amm and nitrites are 0 then you can add some snails. If you put them in your tank and they end up dying then that could screw up your cycle.
well ammonia is nearly undetectiable and nitrite isnt really a problom in marine tanks apparently ( its very low anyways)
i added 20 snails and 20 hermits today
( 1 snail went to my nano cause it had a feather duster on its back[actualy part of its shell] )
they all lived
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7356870#post7356870 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ironsheikh
about the types of live rock -- i've hacksawed and hole sawed several types and tonga and haiti are by far the hardest. I'm a bodybuilder and by the time I was done hacksawing I had full sweat and arm pump lol. I have a pic of the piece I put together out of 3.
i was sawing at this rock for about 10 minutes and only got 1/2 inch into it
but that was enough for me to hit the otehr side with a hammer and crack it along the line i sawed
im gonna trya nd get a ballast today. see if i can get tehm down to 150 ( they sell for 179 localy)
ok lights are on the tank i got a lawnmower blenny ( it was cheep and they had a really nice looking one.. couldent help my self. i planned on getting one. just not this soon)
anyways hes happy
i got 10 more snails and they are taking care of the algae on the glass.( diatoms)
i will post some picts as soon as all the algaes gone
anyways this room gets sunlight first thing in the moring ( not much but still more light then i had on my FW tanks)
anyways i cant decide weather or not i should have sun rise /set run with the actual sun cause of htis or if i should set it back by a few hours so i can look at the tank at night ( doing this will almost be like having my vho's on for 3 extra hours at 10 percent
i just transfered my blue reef devil danmsal over to the big tank.... i didnt have a net so had to usemy hands... after 30 minutes of chasing him and removing all the live rock he ended up catching him self ( swam right into the cup i was gonna use to transfer him!!!!!!!)
he likes the big tank . anyways due to my sump being only 20 gallons i have a micro bubble problom( if it was 55 like i planted it to be the bubbles from the drain would have time to rise up befor getting to the pump)
looks like i need to go back to the lfs and buy some sponges to help trap the micto bubbles
i made a quick fix using a milk jug but i n half then placed under the drain pipe it redirects the bubbles upward where most of them pop
( id say it decreased micro bubbles by like 90 percent)
should apply for a job at the lfs. i think i could help them out alot.. the store has gone down hill since the old ownersold it and big als opened up a few miles down the road and took alot of the bussiness
remember i have diatoms.. the snails have eaten about 50percent as of tonight ( this was taken this morning wehn it was about 90 percent left)
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/6a3be3a7.jpg
now
some picts taked one end of the tank to the other (if you line them up they should almost overlap a lil )
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/168a0c74.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/f3ba62db.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/3735f919.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/b56a7978.jpg
heres a fw randoms
you can see the caves i made in the first one
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/957b11b4.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/13a9c65d.jpg
lil blue fish follows me around the tank
btw post comments or tips .
what on this tank would you change?
yoboyjdizz
05/16/2006, 06:19 PM
nice process i would try to clean it up a bit though more pleasing to the eye.
snails are doing that for me. its acrylic so i want to stay as far away from scrapers as possiable!
yoboyjdizz
05/16/2006, 06:41 PM
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7379867#post7379867 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by goda
snails are doing that for me. its acrylic so i want to stay as far away from scrapers as possiable!
thats a good reason why you want to clean as often as you can. The more you let build up the harder you have to work to get it off and the easier it is to scratch it.
snails are handling it. and since it isnt coralin i know htey will get it all off once i start having coralin ill scrape that off daily
omg i keep trying to take a pic of my lawnmower blenny ... he is always watching me and near the front.. until i ge tthe camera. second i get the camera he hides and the blue danmsal gets in the way... its like they know or somthing!
100th post in thread and also palindrome for my total post count ( spelling)
606
NCreefwannabe
05/16/2006, 09:32 PM
my combtooth is the same damn way... makes me made lol.
hey 585 post for ncreef :P
anyways i get retarted late at night
i knoticed some corals or hydroids or baby jelly fish on the rocks in my tank ( 3 of htem) ill get pics later..
they look .... wierd. im hoping f they open they will open up tomorrow
i need to come up with a way to keep my canopy opened while i work in the tank >< cause this isnt working
went to homedepot and got a piece of acrylic
im sick of scratches so im going to put this infront of the tank so any new scratches will be on the cheep replacable piece of acrylic!
i love that lawn mower blenny.. there are a whole bunch of 'kiss marks' on the front pannel where he was cleaning
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/168a0c74.jpg
hey do you see the green coralin on there. i think a lil bit of it is slowly comming back .. but it seems coralin in other places is still dieing off
Dude u need to run some carbon in the sump ASAP!!!! And get a sock and clean ur tank, before it gets hard on there.....
Keep us updated.
Sam
ehh no
its diatoms
there are micro bubbles still that make water cloudy
if i turn off the pump for about 2 minutes the tank is crystal clear and the water is perfect
i dont get why people in the hobby always are like ' turn up the skimmer run this do that' in the end every thing balances in new systems the ecosystyem cant handle extra anyting ( live rock die off) if you leave a tank alone in about 3 months everything takes care of it self. thats why usualy when setting up new tanks i dont even change water for the first 3 months and i only run carbon during the live rock die off / cycle
( after that i usualy do water changes daily to once a week)
. all the algae on the front is gone still alil on the sides
and diatoms dont get hard on the glass
i just cant take new picts because the cameras busted
right now im actualy trying to get a patch of hair algae to grow some but hte blenny is eating it faster then it grows ( put in a piece of lr from the lfs that had a patch of algae on it)
anyways once the camera is fixed i got a few hydroids and some type of polyp on my rock also a sponge that is growing some. so far so good
currently my CA is high (620 ppm. dont ask why cause i dunno)
its slowly falling and i will start dosing b ionic after it lowers a bit more. ( will then also turn on my diy ca reactor. when i do that ill need to does less b ionic and possiably a low dosage of trace elements or iodine . since ca reactor wont provide everything and since it is not using a co2 tank it wont be too great)
ok something wierd
some type of animal
it looks like feather dusters tube and all
but the difference is these seem to be conected to eachother... branching like acoral.
it may be a coral or it may be somthing similar.. there are several types of these in the tank
the branching type
then there is one that look like brown steel wool ( with lil wite dots at the tip of each fiber)
anyways creepy. i think they may be hydroids ?
ohh also there is a red piece of what i throught branching coralin but now there are hairs comming out of it so im having my doubts
i got 4 things today
a nice colony of xenia (29 bucks. but i picked one out that had a nother xenia and rock attached to it :P love it when you get 2 for 1)
green ricordia (11 bucks and it looks like it may be splitting)
and a really starving fish for 2 bucks. i hope i can save it ( scooter blenny)
and bioballs to try and get rid of the microbubbles from the downflow.. i realllllyy dont want to have to make a baffle or use a baffle with sponge ( usualy most effective)
update
ricordia is doing great. xenia is beautiful but still not pulsing like my other xenia ( guess this kind dosnt pulse as much. its silver branch)
anyways
went to the fish store today
got a lil shrimp and some brine shrimp to feed the fish im trying to save
my ocean motion started making noise. i think im gonna switch it out with my spare then lube it up :P
PICCY TIME!!!
remember same crappy cam. but now on lower resolution since i dont have a card any more
full tank shot
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picture002.jpg
shot of my ricordia
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picture004.jpg
how of my ricrodia using macro... didnt come out to great
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picture007.jpg
my xenia
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picture005.jpg
wow my cam sucks
any one wanna buy me a new one!
ok question
should i redo the rock?
bawla47
05/26/2006, 06:45 PM
hey goda nice tank, kinda similar to mine. mines a 100 gallon tenecor with a 30 gal sump.
this is at 2 weeks old.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/96925100-med.jpg
ZURCSREEF
05/26/2006, 11:43 PM
the thing thats branching like a coral that looks like a feather duster is actually a feather dust, they are called Feather Clusters. (Several feature dusters that look to be tangled right)
nice bawler
hey zurc. lfs employee
what store?
btw this is the wierd animal zurc
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/Picture003.jpg
im almost 100 percent sure it isnt a feahter duster.
see they breanch. but like off eachother
also theya re in extreamly high flow
a type of high flow iv never seen a featherduster want to live in
bawla47 i dont think that is a tenecor. it says seaclean on the glass ^^ or did you stick that there
no one knows what those are?
ZURCSREEF
05/27/2006, 06:43 PM
Yeah, its definately not a feather cluster, anyway you can get a better picture?
-Mike C. aka ZURCSREEF
with my current camera .. lol nope
that is already a macroshot
i guess i could take a closer one if i put the cam in the tank.. ill do it later before i turn off the lights
yeah i still dont have a timer for those darn lights lol
coral coral coral .. and shrimp!!
today. bigals. got a big piece of slighly danmaged frogspawn for 50 bucks ( compared to the small aquacultured frog spawn they sell for 64 bucks.)
and i got 3 shrimp for 40 bucks
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/6c8cbe94.jpg
first time ever using this cam to shoot film so.. forgive the out of focus and such
mainly just wanted to show the mystery animal ( looks like feather dusters almost)
and the way my corals move in the water
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/th_DSCK0001.jpg (http://s74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/?action=view¤t=DSCK0001.flv)
heres a really good movie
id prefer if you saved it instead of using the photobucket to watch it several times as im almost to bandwidth limit on bucket
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/th_327f9010.jpg (http://s74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/?action=view¤t=327f9010.flv)
also some picts!!!
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/2fcb56d3.jpghttp://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a9c40e10.jpghttp://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/312cc5bf.jpghttp://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/8823e1c8.jpghttp://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a48c4f44.jpghttp://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/6018df92.jpg
143gadgets
05/28/2006, 05:48 PM
Cool Vid. What did u use to record it?
sea and sea dx3100 underwater digicam
im gonna be upgrading to either a sealife camera or an olympus 7 mp camera ( they are 300 off right now at the dive shop!!)
just hope i can save up some $$ before the sale ends lol
do you see how the colors are all off in every pic and vid?
well the reason is teh camera wont let me make any adjustments and the ccd is very low end imo
i did it! my ballast is working with the dimmer
its a mirical! omg wow.. holly crude .. this is the first time i ever had it work with anything over 2 bulbs!!
and its still working. sunrise number 3! or is it 4...
143gadgets
06/01/2006, 03:02 PM
Cool! Can't wait to see the vids with yoiur new camera. Hurry up and get it before the sale ends. ;)
sadly i didnt get a new camera. ( wasnt able to sell current one)
600 bucks is alot of money that i could put into the tank instead
BUT good news!!! i took picts using my dads camera and they came out nice . color is still off a bit but its good enough
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/1ac044af.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/c19e5549.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/186b66e0.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/9b01f091.jpg
just got a yuma from "ClarkiiClown" here on rc.
so far it looks great
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a20/blj500/MVC-030S.jpg
this is it when it was in clarkii's tank
143gadgets
06/01/2006, 09:40 PM
That's a nice Ric!
i hope it looks this nice in my tank
( since i wanna frag the heckouta it
skimmer stoped working had me worried
a simple cleaning took care of it
tunzes skimmers are sooo easy to clean
well first trade seemed to of gone well :)
anyways i moved my xenia so it would start growing on the eggcrate in the back and sides
yoboyjdizz
06/07/2006, 01:01 PM
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7515509#post7515509 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by goda
anyways i moved my xenia so it would start growing on the eggcrate in the back and sides
Hopefully it wil hide it little distracting..But tank is starting to clean up looking much more clearer then previous pictures. I like whats you done keep up the good work. Might be moving a little fast though.
naw. not moving to fast atleast imo
this is a lil faster then i usualy do but that is only because i feel i have a better idea of what im doing now then when i did my old tanks. to fast would be me being a compleat noob and having coral that i know nothing about :)
the new shots look better because htey were taken with a different camera
like i was saying i am starting to co me out of the "cyno phase" and am prode tosay.. it hardly covered anything. next comes the green hair algae. i hope hte blenny can keep up
this tnak was started and had water in it for about a year.
and if i do end up moving to fast i have a plan
a few waterchanges. and turn up my skimmer and throw some carbon in
i havent started testing CA ( as much as i should at least)
this is because its a 130 gallon tank with very low ca demand. i think the sand will beable to keep up for now ( i do have a doser pump set up to do 50 drips of 2 part buffer a day. just need to plug it in)
anyways i think im gonna apply for a job soon at a lfs so i can get a discount. plus as i said before.. the lfs i go to needs all the help it can get
one last thing. got two feather dusters today they are aclimating right noiw
lmao just my luck.. one of the feather dusters fell into the rockwork ( an area thats glues together)
ehh if he dosnt like it he can move
im getting some torch coral soon and am considering letting it grow along with the frogspawn and hope they grow in to one head of coral .( would look cool half frog half torch vollyball size piece :P
im thinking its almost time for a waterchange.... yay the one part of the hobby i hate :P
i think what ill do is just compleatly drain my sump then fill it back up and turn the pumps back on after the water mixes witht he refuge water to get it as close to the same salinity as possiable. i think its just dumb to dump new water into a tank.. even 20 gallons into a 130
anyways.. gotta go get some rubbermaids from walmart and some tube taht will fit over my maxijet pump.
really should only do a 3 gallon change once a weeks ince thats how much ro water i have at all times ( pressure tank) i guess i need to get a bigger pressure tank or some type of float switch so i can fill buckets withouyt having to stand around
ok got some torch coral. and some candy cane and paly
ill post later
woot got a job at an lfs.
lets prey i get discounts :P
i could really use a nice RBTA
anyways
my pump to my skimmer /refuge area quite
therefor the skimmer is just skimming the same water over and over and the refuge.. isnt doing much
my auto top off is in my refuge and amazingly the salinity hasent changed
i guess there some water movment throu the utube due to osmosis and the temp differance between the sump and the refuge/skimmer sump
disapointed in the yuma i got.
the color in the photo had to of been photoshopped as the real one is a solid pinkpurple
ZURCSREEF
06/23/2006, 07:11 PM
its a macroshot, what do you expect it to look like? take a macro shot of the one you have and it will look the same.
ehh no it wont lol
i think it is a different coral
the color in the pic is so much brighter
and multicolored. the real one is solid darkredish.
im not sure if the vho that i have and the MH they have made a differece but even the day i got it it was always the same color
ZURCSREEF
06/23/2006, 07:41 PM
well, lighting definately makes a big difference and the way the took the picture, what camera they were taking the picture with, etc.
i dunno. but i had them take a pic of the frogspawn i sent them so i could see if the colors were off on the camera ( sometype of setting)
BUT the frogspawn in the pic they took was the exact same as mine telling me that the camera was taking the true color ( same as mine when i lookat it.. not when i take picts.. my camera adds red tint)
anyways. its still a nice coral. its somthing that is hard to find in florida.
my refuge is up and running
i hooked my aquapod lights to it ^^ then moves some algae formt he display to the fuge ( both macro and micro algae (hair and cyano))
picts comming soon
i need a restart timer for my one pumpbecause it slows down after about an hour and the only way to make it pump again is to turn it off then back on
well fuge is really taking off with the algae.
today i was looking at my tank and the lights were dimming down and hten getting brighter about every 1-5 minutes
i was like.." WTH" then i looked at my controller and it was simulating clouds passing over head "pm cloudy" it looks really cool when it does it
newreefbishop
07/12/2006, 07:55 PM
nice goda cant wait to see more pics of everything.....are you just dosing CA?
actualy i am only dosing iodine and trace rarly. along with a small random amount of 2 part.
my CA and alk are staying where they need to be so i am not going to switch to just twopart untill i see a drop ( need many more corals lol) fornow sand disolving seems to be holding it stedy at 440 ppm and 12 dkh
... lotta pest now!!!
i added my friends lr to my tank
i have some wierd star fish ( one arm facing one way then 4 clumped close together on the other side).. it hink its bad
i have one aiptasia
some BIG bristleworms
Cuby2k
07/21/2006, 12:36 AM
Interesting, looking good. I like how much it seems to have cleared up so you must be doing something right.
BTW I think your base rock looks very nice. I know you were disappointed in it but it looks great IMO.
Anyways, keep up the great work and keep sharing pics, I love 'em. Have you got some good pics of your skimmer in action? I know that doesn't sound like an exciting thing to share but I could really use the information as I am having a tough time getting mine going.
Thanks for sharing,
Cuby
ill take ssome picts ... geez whens my next day off...
they have me working 9 days straight at work ... :( no time to enjoy the tank .. or take picts
15 days in a row lol
anyways.. i got a new sps. it was called a green fuzy acro
while some of the tenticals now have a slight brown tint to them ( after almost a week in my tank ( protine skimmer stoped working due to the pump that sends water to teh skimmer sump stoped :( )
anyways. even tho the tenticals are brown the corals mouth area and the rest of it is still bright green. except for one spot that is shaded but one of the other branches :( i broke a tip off while travaling with it. but already there is some new growth begining to cover it ... did i mention this was an sps
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/ad5802de.jpg
new openbrain
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/50f5d546.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/8eca0a61.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/ce86195b.jpg
new sps coral i really like it
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/445b0426.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/df3c9d7c.jpg
" fuzzy green acro"
yes i see the algae...
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/86897a3c.jpg
trumpet coral
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a795e5d7.jpg
palythoa
ZURCSREEF
08/04/2006, 08:51 PM
I like the last pic, the palya's. Although they do look like zoanthids. Nice though.
i say pallys based on the fact that they resemble palys in every way but the length of the tenticals
they are on a stalka bout 1/2- 1 inch long. this is hidden by the algae ( the algae was already there.. i had that coral given to me by a friend. also the green on the rock wasnt thereuntill i added some new rock.. dont wanna hear any one say its somthing that is wrong.. it is just a lil cycle of algae.. no problom)
i like the second to last pic.. just wish i had the whole coral in the photo,,,, its kinda hard to take picts when you cant look at the viewfinder... ( stuck the camera in the water to take the pic) the colors are nice and the closest to true to life then any other photo
well everything bleached due to it heating to 87 degrees. i got a chiller and slowly everything is comming back..
i also set up a 75 gallon prop tank
ZURCSREEF
08/17/2006, 09:12 AM
that "fuzzy acro" is actually a hydnophora..
Cutiewitbooty
08/17/2006, 10:24 AM
looking alot better since i last saw. Still looks like your battling diatoms but good job. Did you ever get the xenia frowing on the back? I actually did in my tank i had about 3-4 stalks attatched to the back glass but when we moved i had to scrape them of so they wouldn't die (that was little disappointing lol)
yes i know its a hydrophora i researched what it was after i posted that. i knew it wasnt really an acro thats why i put it in quotes
and no xenia dosnt like my tank. it melts away. altho i do have one stalk left of a different type of xenia taht seems to be doing well altho not spreading
got a jawfish but i havent seen him at all :( may be dead from stress
got two purple fire fish today and a purple tang. all seems well. purple tang is already picking at rocks
soon ill be getting a manderin and a nother jawfish if i never see the one i already have. then that is IT for the fishlist ( except a pair of neon gobys in the future those are so cool)
gigi4539
08/21/2006, 07:53 PM
Tank looks good!!!
I wish I lived that far south. I am in the process of seeing about farming in the gulf with using frags from my tank. ALOT of HOOPS to jump through with the state though:(
Scott
now that would be cool good luck with that. i bet there main issue is non native things isnt it?
expect more full tank shots soon. just gotta get rid of the green algae on the glass that the new lr added :( im almost ot the point of throwing in phosex and phosguard just to get it over with :P also time for me to change my ro's carbon
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/a320c3be.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/3923b2c6.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/cb656443.jpg
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/bcd967e6.jpg
thor32766
09/01/2006, 10:16 AM
nice corals
well i got my new ro unit and am using 0 tds water as opposed to 12 tds i was using before
i think there was somthng good int hat 12 tds because since i had the new ro unit some of my corals look a bit faded.. even the ricorida.
algae is now almost 100 percent gone and that is the last time i ever take rock from someone who's tank water is green
my newest corals are a red acro with green polyps ( it was a rescue and it still isnt doing to well.. a lil more bleaches out recently.. im hopign it was the snail i pulled off of it)
and a pink birds nest acro
i am starting to aqua culture as well and am setting up some frag tanks
i may also be getting into high quality artifical LR ( concreat lr cured along side natural LR and mud)
needless tosay i am gettign a SW vat in my garadge and several tanks out there... i may need an ac once some money comes in
everything seems to be doing fine overall altho i do need a new overflow as the design i used isnt working ( really wish that i got the overflows installed :( anyways.... off to work to play with some fish..
got some yellow ricordias today
corals still seem a bit faded altho they are all fine and growing.. corlor is returning to some..
but iv also been doing heavy feedings of reefbugs ( basiacly yeast.. but it was free) and brine shrimp
also decided to remake my overflow.. i need to come up with a way to make it only 1 inch wide as opposed tot the 6 inches it is now.
it takes up to much room and looks ugly
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:37 PM
hey - i have a 150 that i bought used from a LFS ... tenecor as well ... same bent front corners ... stand is the same, but mine is a dark paint ...
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7034-2/PICT0516.JPG
we also seem to have the same canopy - i modded mine though to fit 8 T-5's in it ... and did you ever figure out your fan question - about placing fans in the canopy for cooling?
i put 4 fans into mine .. drilled with a whole saw kit & mounted them. i can take some pictures if you want. would be tomorrow though.
this was my original rock aqua scaping:
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7102-2/PICT0538.JPG
i've re-arranged it a few more times - tonight once again. will take some pics tomorrow.
here are some more, pre- re-aqua-scaping
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7278-1/IMG_3273.JPG
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7272-2/IMG_3271.JPG
whats with all that PVC pipe in your tank ... doesn't look all that appealing to the eye?!
are you running all VHO's?
--marco
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:42 PM
thinking to self ... you must be running VHO's - because T-5's shouldn't be dimmed on the IC 660's via a dimmer ... what kind of dimmer are you running anyway? that cloudy day setting sounded kind of interesting.
glad to see you tank clear up BTW ... and to be honest .. the first few pages of this thread i was thinking ... HOLY SH!T - THIS SETUP IS GHETTO! ... mostly because of the eggcrate in the tank, and the burnt bent PVC under the tank ... but if it works for you - thats all it matters!
REEF ON!
the pvc was for the ocean motion return im in the prosess of redoing it all im starting to find better ways altho i do like the turbulant flow i get from it.. i get nice random flow and lots of turbulance from a 1200 gph pump
im trying to decide if i should go tunze or possiably mj mod or seio
or even just redo the inputs and .. really nice is the point lol
your tank dosnt seem to bow.. my top sags on the tank.. and its soft acrylic.. i dont like tenecor
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:43 PM
me in the tank when i was buffing it ... since it was used it was scratched to he!!.
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/5936-2/042.JPG
yes i am running vho solar dimmer 1000 its a pos
the thing only dims 3 bulbs semi reliably but its really jumpy.. if i switch it to 2 bulbs it works perfect... :(
i may switch to t5 soon ( 8 t5 and 2 vho on the dimmer)
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:48 PM
no, i've read alot of complaints about tenecor in the recent past ... but my tank is about 6 years old ...... 60"*24"*24" made out of 3/8" acrylic ..... i have NO bowing issues at all!
you are not the first to mention leaning on the top & a bulkhead leaking!
i really haven't had any complaints with this tank ... but i already do know that my next tank will NOT have bowed corners int he front! they are a PITA to clean ... my magfloat scratches the corners.
how do you keep them clean? i do have a few scratches int he acrylic ... 2 big ones right up front - when i moved the rock in, one piece fell & hit it - and another one when someone attached the magfloat after they dropped it on the floor - and scrubbed the tank ... :-( .... i'll buff the outside one this weekend.
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:50 PM
you will NOT be able to fit 8 T-5's + 2 VHOs in there
8 T-5s fit - but you will have to mod the canopy for that to happen .... best way:
6 x 80w (60") rear
2 x 54w (48") front where the corners in the canopy
in the back, on the brace that holds the back together - you will have to saw out about 1 - 1 1/2" .... that way it will fit perfectly
took me 15 minutes!
btw pvc usage is getting cut down alot. im switching to spaflex and or vinal
pvc was just kinda a way of getting it done fast :P
im making my return a closed loop and going to use a slower pump for the return
i may use a littlegiant as a CL .. havent decided yet but i am aiming for 50 x turnover
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:52 PM
and i like my T-5's .... they put out a bunch of light.
so far i only have the 6 80w bulbs in the canopy - i was awaiting my cooling fans that arrived today ... i should be installing them this weekend .... i will post a pic tomorrow on how i did it. looks good - like it should have been there from the factory.
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 10:55 PM
hang on - i found my gf's camera - let me take a few pictures really quick.
brb
i have 7 vho bulbs in there now i may not use reflectors on a few of the t5;s i dunno ill think of somthing
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:02 PM
ok, pics are loading from camera - why would you want that many anyways?
i'm running about 760w - thats plenty of light! the T-5's put out alot of PAR from what i've researched & read. so far the only benefit of having VHO's that i can tell is the true actinic bulbs ...
i wish people would give vhos a nother try.. i have acros on the bottom of my tank and they actualy colored up... next paycheck im getting more acros some nice blues
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:08 PM
i had VHOs on this tank originally ... i like the T-5's much better .. smaller, brighter, more light output (i'd think) than VHOs ... and less wattage?! - a little cooler.
no more watts
a 110 watt vho uses 55 watts of power on an ic ballast
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:16 PM
alright - cooling fans:
i used a wholesaw to pu tthese holes in 3 1/8" wholesaw
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7305-1/PICT0574.JPG
still have to drill the 4th one - the inserts you can buy @ Office Depot ... they are the 3" cable sleeves for the office desks .. usually in the furniture section.
here is a close-up of that sleeve.
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7317-1/PICT0578.JPG
the sleeve is a little bit too deep - so i cut it where the ridges end that go down the sleeve.
6 8w T-5's so far - room for 2 54 watt'ers:
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7308-1/PICT0575.JPG
my cooling contraption - used a 4" hole saw to drill into the covers & screwed a 120mm fan into each - the fans have each 3 blue LEDs in them - great for nightlights.
if you look careful in the front of the tank - you can see the surface of the water moving.
one fan is blowing DOWN, the other is blowing UP.
same witht he 4 fans on top - the 2 fans on the left (still missing) will be sucking the HOT ait out of the canopy - the 2 fans on the right are blowing the COOL air into the canopy.
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7314-1/PICT0577.JPG
for fans i used the 3" Coral Vue fans - my LFS has them for $35 - they are the auto adjusting to heat fans.
--marco
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:18 PM
missing the 2 x 120mm fans w/ LEDs - and in this picture you can also see the canopy cutting i was speaking off - in the back.
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7311-2/PICT0576.JPG
nice
i just use all 48 inch bulbs tho i think ill change to t5 soon
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:26 PM
in this picture right above here you can see the little green tip hanging from behind the reflectors - that is the heat sensor for the 3" fans i have above the lights in the top.
Via my AC3, when the lights turn on - the fan for that section will turn on as well - otherwise the fans are off.
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:28 PM
i went with the full lenth bulbs - 60" for the 60" tank ... that way the rocks near either end of the tanks will not block the light down to the sandbed ... but either way ... you could make it work just fine.
wiszmaster
11/30/2006, 11:29 PM
LOOK 'MA' - 'NTHIN IN THE STAND!
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/d/7052-2/PICT0522.JPG
here are all of my pics ... including my sump & protein skimmer ... and all of my stuff i keep in the garage.
http://marcoprechel.com/gallery2/v/random_pics/aquarium/
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