Tigebell's Build

[Brieninsac]

Man you have a lot of gear in the sump! Did you build those shelves? I put a plastic drawer in mine. But then again, mine is a more rudimentary system then yours.

[TigeBell]

Yes, my friend had some left over 3/4" melamine board that i cut and screwed the supports into the cabinet.

I am thinking of redoing my shelf that my reactors sit on. It is only sitting on eggcrate and the reactors are not as stable as I like. Might hit Taps Plastic and get some 3/4" starboard that will server as the shelf. Cost looks to be around $25. hummmmmm

[TigeBell]

Vectra is installed, water is flowing, heaters are on, and I am not adding salt yet. Will probably run the tank without salt for a day just to make sure the plumbing isn't going to leak but as of right now, no leaks. The Vectra pump is very quiet but I also have the pump on the first LED light and the flow seems to be good. I can't wait to add salt tomorrow and start the cycle. Today is a great day

[Diamond Jack]

Looks great. I pulled the trigger on a reefer myself and am trying to plan out the controller area. You setup looks nice with the shelves. I haven't seen that yet.

[TigeBell]

Originally Posted by Diamond Jack

Looks great. I pulled the trigger on a reefer myself and am trying to plan out the controller area. You setup looks nice with the shelves. I haven't seen that yet.

Thank you. there are three shelves 6 inches apart. The top two shelves are attached to the stand while the bottom shelf can be removed if needed. I didn't want to attach the bottom shelf because I wasn't sure what else I would be adding into the cabinet that I would need space for. Right now, my test kits are there but I think I will be moving them into a plastic storage container and storing them in the garage where my mixing station is. But for now, we will see what happens.

[Saltwaternooby]

That's great David, glad you got that going.

[Vlad91]

Nice build, any updates ???

[TigeBell]

The cycle has started. The skimmer was a PITA to get broken in because of the JB Waterweld that was used to join the rocks. At this time, I have cycle progressing. I went to Your Reef and dug into the rock sumps that John has and got the oldest live rubble that he had and added that rubble to one of the filter socks. The shimp that was added helped get the ammonia to .5 and backed off to 0 where it is today. I added another shrimp last night in hopes to raise the ammonia back up a little but again, the original shrimp is still there. The Nitrites are at .25 and haven't dropped yet while Nitrate is still at zero and hasn't moved up. The cycling has been very very fast and I can confirm that Microbacter 7 does help with cycling the tank.

The next step for the tank would be to order some copepods and Phyto from AlgaeBarn and wait a few days before adding a small clean up crew of cleaner shrimp, snails, emerald crabs, and/or urchin (not entire sure I will be doing the urchin anytime soon but it is an option).

[TigeBell]

The cycle is coming along good with nitrate still reporting at 0 with the API test kit. I think I can see a slight change in color with the test but it could be a hope that it is changing . I will be gearing up for a 25 gallon water change this weekend and having it ready for that day that the cycle is completed.

[Saltwaternooby]

Awesome. Almost ready to go.

[TigeBell]

Tank is still coming along. Ammonia is .5 ppm and nitrites are 2 ppm. Nitrates are at 50 ppm. I just stopped dosing Microbacter7 (MB7) today.

My issue that I think I found was the bottle of MB7 went bad on me 5 days ago. After I removed the second raw shrimp (1/19/17), my ammonia spiked to 1 ppm and didn't lower. Yesterday, I was thinking where my ammonia source was and wasn't sure why ammonia was still high. Then I had an idea that the MB7 was bad. I grabbed the second bottle that I have and dosed that into the tank last night. Low and behold my ammonia dropped to .25 to .5 in a 24 hour period and my nitrates from 5 ppm to 2 ppm. So I believe that my dosing of MB7 was my source of ammonia (dead or dying bacteria) and the reason why the cycle stayed consistent without a change during the last week.

[Saltwaternooby]

That would do it for sure, was only adding to the decay.

[TigeBell]

Ammonia is showing zero and nitrates are finally dropping. I ordered 5280 Copepod pack and OceanMagik from AlgaeBarn today to start with part of the clean up crew. Looking to do a water change Wednesday or Thursday and then the copepods go into the tank. thngs are going well right now.

[Brieninsac]

Originally Posted by TigeBell

Ammonia is showing zero and nitrates are finally dropping. I ordered 5280 Copepod pack and OceanMagik from AlgaeBarn today to start with part of the clean up crew. Looking to do a water change Wednesday or Thursday and then the copepods go into the tank. thngs are going well right now.

I ordered two of those 5280 copepod packs after New Year's and I think they were either dead or nowhere near the amount stated. Let me know your thoughts when you get them.

[TigeBell]

Originally Posted by Brieninsac

I ordered two of those 5280 copepod packs after New Year's and I think they were either dead or nowhere near the amount stated. Let me know your thoughts when you get them.

I got the 2 for 1 deal since it was my first order. Algae Barn says that there is a ton of copepods that you can't see since they are very small. But I will check it out and see how things are. Then I will report back to here and tell everyone

[Diamond Jack]

Originally Posted by TigeBell

I got the 2 for 1 deal since it was my first order. Algae Barn says that there is a ton of copepods that you can't see since they are very small. But I will check it out and see how things are. Then I will report back to here and tell everyone

Interested to see what you think also. Was getting ready to place an order with them as well. Does it automatically double your first order? I was trying to find a code for it.

[TigeBell]

Originally Posted by Diamond Jack

Interested to see what you think also. Was getting ready to place an order with them as well. Does it automatically double your first order? I was trying to find a code for it.

When you sign up, they send you a link to their 5082 and phyto back and automatically add them into the shopping cart. Then I was able to use paypal to pay. Very simple and painless for sure

I also just got notified that my package was shipped today via USPS and it takes 2-3 days to get here. So, the last half of this week is looking great and will give me time to do a water change. Hoping that water change can be done Tuesday or Wednesday still but definitely want to do the water change before the packs get put into the tank.

Overall, I am happy with the progress Algae Barn has done and looking forward to seeing how things arrive here.

[Diamond Jack]

Originally Posted by TigeBell

When you sign up, they send you a link to their 5082 and phyto back and automatically add them into the shopping cart. Then I was able to use paypal to pay. Very simple and painless for sure

I also just got notified that my package was shipped today via USPS and it takes 2-3 days to get here. So, the last half of this week is looking great and will give me time to do a water change. Hoping that water change can be done Tuesday or Wednesday still but definitely want to do the water change before the packs get put into the tank.

Overall, I am happy with the progress Algae Barn has done and looking forward to seeing how things arrive here.

Cool thanks! I got the coupon now. Placed the same order as you since it expires in 3 days. Are you going to put all the phyto in right off the bat? I've only delt with the dead stuff before and am not sure how long live phyto would keep. 10,000 pod drop ftw!

[Brieninsac]

I know with my last order it sat at the Fed Ex facility for a few days but when I got them they were still a little warm from the hand warmer. I have to admit, I didn't add phyto so that could have been my problem. I need to learn more about the use of phyto.

[TigeBell]

Originally Posted by Diamond Jack

Cool thanks! I got the coupon now. Placed the same order as you since it expires in 3 days. Are you going to put all the phyto in right off the bat? I've only delt with the dead stuff before and am not sure how long live phyto would keep. 10,000 pod drop ftw!

I am going to put the amount that they suggest into the tank. I think that if i put that much in at one time, the ammonia will sky rocket once the phyto dies or I will have a huge outbreak of copepods and the ammonia they will produce will be too much for the rocks to handle. Either way, I will follow the directions.

On the other side of things, I will have an extra phyto that I think will need to go to someone because I won't be using it. Way too much phyto for the amount that I will be dosing.

[TigeBell]

Originally Posted by Brieninsac

I know with my last order it sat at the Fed Ex facility for a few days but when I got them they were still a little warm from the hand warmer. I have to admit, I didn't add phyto so that could have been my problem. I need to learn more about the use of phyto.

whew, glad mine is coming in USPS.

[TigeBell]

[SeaMonkee]

I'm in love with your setup.

[Diamond Jack]

Well done. I like the gyres on the overflow. Super clean.

[TigeBell]

Thanks. I am trying to keep things clean and out of site as much as possible in the DT. I won't know until I get stuff into the tank to see if the gyres are going to work and be effective near the overflow. I have them turned up to 100% on a Oceanic Gyre Cycle setting right now and it is moving a lot of water.