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Unread 05/14/2018, 05:23 PM   #1
Parsedout
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Join Date: May 2018
Posts: 4
20 gallon long AIO

I've been in the freshwater planted tank world for many years, have had a wide range of tanks and set ups. Reefing has always been the "ultimate" result of the hobby for me. So despite my better judgement, I've decided to go with a nano reef as my first attempt, not only that but I'm going to DIY as much as possible. I'll document my progress here for anyone interested in following along.

This will be a "peninsula" tank placed between our kitchen and living room. Side note, at some point I'd love to put a custom built 6ft acrylic tank across this entire area and have a true show piece...one step at a time.

Started out with a 20g long from Petco ($1/gallon). Derimmed it very carefully, cleaned up the silicone, wet sanded the edges from 800 to 1500 grit. To hopefully put the uncertainty of derimming standard tanks to rest I did a very simple 2" euro brace setup with 1/8" glass from a local stained glass shop. Only geing a 20g long, I think it'll have plenty of strength.

Since it'll be a peninsula tank, the back end will be a fully enclosed "AIO" style compartment with 1/4" black acrylic.

I'll be using Caribsea Life Rock and bare bottom. For lighting I'm going with the Current USA Orbit Marine, gets good reviews and should support the corals I plan to keep.

I will have a pair clowns, a Yellow Clown Goby and a Royal Gramma. A mixture of softies and LPS.

The tank is now set up and cycling, need a bit more rock to finish the scape I have in mind and still need to finish up the ATO.

Will update with more photos as I get them.


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Unread 05/19/2018, 05:14 PM   #2
riveclay-boaeef2024
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Posts: 492
You turned a cheap tank into a very nice tank. I built my daughter's tank from scratch. Yours looks nice will look great filled

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk


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Unread 05/21/2018, 04:57 PM   #3
Parsedout
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Quote:
Originally Posted by riveclay-boaeef2024 View Post
You turned a cheap tank into a very nice tank. I built my daughter's tank from scratch. Yours looks nice will look great filled

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk
Thank you, I appreciate that. Here's an updated filled photo. It's cloudy from just being filled and the dusty dry rock. Now I wait for the cycle...


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Unread 05/21/2018, 08:05 PM   #4
davocean
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Location: San Diego, CA
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Pretty slick!


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There's a fine line between owning your tank and your tank owning you!

Current Tank Info: SCA 120g RR Starfire, Tunze silence 1073.02 return, 40g sump w/ fuge, SWC Extreme 160 cone skimmer,Geismann reflexx 4xT5, 2x Panorama Pro LED strips, Vortech MP40QD
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Unread 06/14/2018, 10:12 AM   #5
Parsedout
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Redid the filter compartment, wasn't getting the right amount of flow with my first design. Also removed the euro bracing and went with a standard cross brace, this way I can have better flexibility with my filter chambers. Switched to a Hydor Slim Skim Nano in chamber 1 and media basket in chamber 2. Tank finished cycling last week so now it's time to find some fish. Stocking will be a Royal Gramma, Yellow Clown Goby and a pair of Clownfish (haven't decided which color morph).


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Unread 06/14/2018, 10:55 AM   #6
oldhead
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Looks like you are well on your way to having a cool little tank. Nice work on the AIO.


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Unread 06/19/2018, 02:47 PM   #7
Parsedout
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Finally got some life in this tank! Got a pair of what the fish store called Mocha Clownfish, we'll see if they stay this dark as they get older. Also picked up a Hammer Coral frag, was quite ****ed after the dip but has come back to it's fish store glory.


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