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Unread 09/30/2010, 04:22 PM   #1
Russter
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Russter's 20 gal Reef

After 2 years, I decided to tear down my 90 gal reef that was in the dining room. High electrical costs and a couple of spills on the hardwood were enough to make me try to please my wife and get the tank out of there.
So I decided to downsize and put a 20 gal tank in my built-in entertainment center in the basement. I could set up a fishroom on the other side of the wall and keep all the noise and equipment out of earshot and sight. This will hopefully make my wife happier

The tank is a 20 gal high and I am using an old 55 gal I had around for the sump. I also have a 10 gal tank that I am using for a RO-DI reservoir.

Here is a picture of the entertainment center


I am using the Beanimal overflow style again on this tank and I love it. 1" pipes on all the returns and it is dead silent. Once it crusts up with some coraline, hopefully you wont even be able to see the elbows.

Lights are 4x 24w T5 Odessea with 2 ATI blue plus, 1 ATI aquablue special, and 1 KZ Figi purple. I really like this setup of bulbs and it really seems to bring out the colors in the corals.

Closer up FTS


The fish room is directly behind the cabinet in another room. I built a low stand for the 55 gal that has the SWC Xtreme 160 skimmer, Mag 18 return pump and refugium. I put most of the leftover rock and sand from the 90 gal in the refug.



I also purchased a Level Loc auto-topoff so that I could hook it directly into my Bulk Reef Supply 75 gal/day RO-DI unit. No more lugging jugs for me.



The system is controlled by a Digital Aquatics Reefkeeper Lite. Unfortunately, something happened to one of my PC4 power bars during the move and I have shipped it off to DA to (hopefully) get fixed. I should have it back late next week or the week after. Then I will be able to set up my doser and get the moonlights on a timer for dusk/dawn.



I have a mixed reef with the only flow coming from the 1.5 inch return off the Mag 18 pump. This provides the corals with what I would call moderate flow, but I think I am going to purchase a Vortech MP10 to mix things up in there.

Here's some coral shots:










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Unread 09/30/2010, 04:25 PM   #2
Russter
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And a few more:



I have 1 Saddleback Clown, 1 Percula Clown, and a Lawnmower Blenny




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Unread 10/01/2010, 03:03 PM   #3
gasbatalla
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Looks good


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Unread 10/01/2010, 05:25 PM   #4
Russter
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Looks good
Thanks gasbatalla!


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Unread 10/02/2010, 12:42 PM   #5
Costa reefing
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Thats a pretty big sump for a 20g!

Nice aquascape


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Unread 10/02/2010, 08:33 PM   #6
Russter
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Costa reefing View Post
Thats a pretty big sump for a 20g!

Nice aquascape
I know. But I had that old scratched up 55 lying around and I was tired of everything being jammed into my old sump. Plus this up's the total water volume and allowed me to have a large 'fuge. I would eventually like to put some mangroves in there too.

I really like the aquascape too. It seems to allow for good water movement without any powerheads.


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Unread 10/30/2010, 09:32 PM   #7
Russter
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Update

Here are some updated pics of my tank as of October 30, 2010:



I got rid of my Saddleback Clown because he was getting a bad attitude and killed a purple firefish that I had added. So I traded him in and and got a second perc clown and a strawberry dottyback



You can see the chunk out of it's tail from the Saddleback


Also got some new Zoas


Some of the other corals in the tank










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Unread 11/26/2010, 03:07 PM   #8
Russter
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Coral warfare

I woke up the other morning to a battle in my tank. A chalice was getting attacked by his close neighbor favia.



I knew that I had placed them too close to begin with but was hoping for the best. I moved the favia but the damage was done.



It has been a couple of weeks now and the chalice is starting to heal and look better. Lesson learned I guess.


By the way, can anyone ID these two corals for me?


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Unread 11/26/2010, 06:35 PM   #9
Agu
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Tank looks great and nice setup in the back room

But one thing has me confused, "I have a mixed reef with the only flow coming from the 1.5 inch return off the Mag 18 pump. This provides the corals with what I would call moderate flow....."

Moderate flow from a Mag 18 ? Instead of keeping it valved back I'd recommend you plumb off another return from the Mag and avoid putting a powerhead in the tank. JMO because I have an aversion to too much equipment in a display tank. Your's looks so clean I'd hate to see you junk it up with a powerhead.


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Unread 11/26/2010, 07:40 PM   #10
Russter
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Thanks Agu!
I have been thinking of plumbing another return. I also like the clean, uncluttered look without any powerheads and I have lots of flow left on the Mag 18. I have it 5/8ths open right now and would like to be able to open it up more but it is too strong with the single return.


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Unread 11/26/2010, 07:48 PM   #11
100%hydrophylic
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WOW! thats alot of equipment for a 20g! I love it! lol.

i really like those speckled zoas a couple posts back, where did you get them?


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Unread 11/26/2010, 08:21 PM   #12
Russter
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 100%hydrophylic View Post
WOW! thats alot of equipment for a 20g! I love it! lol.

i really like those speckled zoas a couple posts back, where did you get them?
Thanks, I got them at my local LFS in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada called Tropical Fish and Pet Supplies.


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Unread 11/27/2010, 12:32 PM   #13
cherubfish pair
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Is that a Galaxia on the left?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Russter View Post
Here are some updated pics of my tank as of October 30, 2010:




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Current Tank Info: thirty rimless
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Unread 11/27/2010, 01:35 PM   #14
100%hydrophylic
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^ i would have guessed it was some type of goniopora?


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Unread 11/27/2010, 01:40 PM   #15
Russter
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I was told it was Alveopora due to the # of "petals"


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Unread 11/27/2010, 02:26 PM   #16
islesfan4lyf
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I love the back room setup you have. My plan is to do something like that when I move in a few months. If I have any questions I know who to ask


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Unread 11/27/2010, 09:11 PM   #17
Russter
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Quote:
Originally Posted by islesfan4lyf View Post
I love the back room setup you have. My plan is to do something like that when I move in a few months. If I have any questions I know who to ask
No problem, I would love to help anyway I can.


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Unread 11/27/2010, 09:19 PM   #18
Russter
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From ReefPedia:

Alveopora spp.

Difficulty: Medium to Hard
Light: Moderate
Aggression: Not aggressive
Hardiness: Very delicate
Growth Rate: Slower
Availability: Uncommon to rare

The Alveopora spp. corals are commonly known as "Flowerpot" corals, and are close relatives to Goniopora. Goniopora spp. are also known as "Flowerpot" corals, so it is worth noting that they share a common name, but are different genera of coral. Alveopora is the slightly easier to keep cousin to Goniopora. Both genera of corals, Alveopora and Goniopora are very delicate, and have limited success in the aquarium trade. A difference is noted between the two by looking at a polyp and counting the nubby tentacles around the polyp. Alveopora has twelve of these "petals", while Goniopora has twenty-four. There are several species of Alveopora with limited available photographs for identification, making it somewhat difficult to determine exactly which may be in your possession.


I have had this coral for over a year and it has grown a bit. I do not usually directly feed it but it will get the occasional squirt of reef chili.


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Unread 11/28/2010, 07:30 PM   #19
cherubfish pair
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Wow! Does it close up at night?


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Current Tank Info: thirty rimless
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Unread 11/29/2010, 06:26 AM   #20
Russter
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Quote:
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Wow! Does it close up at night?
Yep, it closes up after the lights have been off for a couple of hours, but is open again by the time they come on in the morning.


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Unread 11/30/2010, 12:50 AM   #21
Haplochromine
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Very clean. Looks good.


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20G Frag Tank - Koralia 750, Sunlight Supply New Wave 4x24W T5HO, 50W Eheim Jager Heater.
20G Frag Tank - Koralia 550, 70W Metal Halide 20K Ushio, 50W Eheim Jager Heater
10G Rimless Display - Koralia 425, 70W Metal Halide 20K Ushio, 50W Eheim Jager Heater
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Unread 11/30/2010, 05:19 AM   #22
robot2222
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i love your tank . it has to be cool to have a fish room like that ?


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Unread 11/30/2010, 06:28 AM   #23
Russter
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Very clean. Looks good.
Thank you Haplochromine, I try to clean the glass every day or so. The overflow gets cleaned about once every week or so too.


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Unread 11/30/2010, 06:35 AM   #24
Russter
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Quote:
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i love your tank . it has to be cool to have a fish room like that ?
Thanks, Robot2222. Having a fish room for a tank is about as good as it gets IMO. No more trying to stuff things in a small spot in a cabinet under your tank. I also like being able to have a large sump. I think it makes a big difference in being able to keep my parameters stable than if I had a smaller sump, especially on a tank of this size.

Speaking of parameters, here are the latest as of last night:

pH ~ 8.21
Salinity ~ 1.026
Temperature ~ 81.0 F
Alkalinity ~ 9 DKH
Calcium ~ 400 ppm
Magnesium ~ 1350 ppm

All tests are done with Elos test kits.


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Unread 11/30/2010, 05:06 PM   #25
Russter
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Here is quick video of my tank. Sorry about the quality, it was taken with a blackberry. I need to borrow a real camera and take some nice video.


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