August 2001 Reef Tank of the Month

Skipper's Reef Tank

Skipper's 118-gallon reef tank.

Full angle view.

Tank:
My reef was set up in March of 1994, now making it a little over seven years old.  The tank is an all glass Ocean View 118 gallon (6'L x 19"W x 20"D) made in Pascagoula, MS.  It is housed in a custom-made oak veneer and plywood stand/canopy which I helped design.  Two 4" Radio Shack fans provide ventilation in the canopy with one pushing air in, and the other pulling out hot air.  It is a reef-ready tank with the overflow located in the right corner.  The outside back wall was spray-painted an aqua-blue.  Unfortunately, at the time I set up the tank, crushed coral was all the rage as a substrate, and it remains to this day.

Side view.

Lighting:
My lighting philosophy is a little different from many reefkeepers in that I attempt to not only provide the inhabitants with a proper spectrum and intensity, but also try to achieve a display that is aesthetically pleasing to the eye by using a combination of assorted lighting technology.  With that in mind, I use several different kinds of bulbs:   incandescent, power compacts, VHO fluorescents, normal output fluorescents, and metal halides.  The metal halides consist of a 150-watt HQI 10,000K Ushio bulb housed in a PFO mini-pendant and a Custom Sea Life 175-watt retro kit driving a 10,000K Red Sea bulb.  The VHOs are powered by an Ice Cap 660 ballast which drives three 140-watt bulbs:  two URI Actinic 03 and a Coralife 10,000K.  Additionally, two 40-watt NO Coralife Magtinic bulbs are used.  There are four small power compacts:  two 9-watt 5,000K bulbs and two 27-watt bulbs--a 5,500K and an actinic.   These are used mainly as highlights for the middle of the tank in that the halide coverage is minimal in this area.  Two different incandescents are used:  60 watt 5,000K and 25 watt blues (for moonlight). 

Filtration:
Approximately 150lbs. of aquacultured live rock (which began as ordinary 'honeycomb' rock) was seeded with a mixture of Marshall Island and Fiji live rock.  The system is skimmed by an ETS 600 driven by a Little Giant 3-MDQX-SC pump running continuously.  Three types of filtration media are used in the sump:  Chemi-Pure, Phos-Zorb and an industrial grade PolyFilter.  The refugium was set up in February, 2001, and is a budget model based on a translucent file box found at Wal-Mart which holds about nine gallons.  The picture below will give you an idea of how it looked on day one of installation.  Lighting is supplied by a Lights of America 27-watt power compact fixture, with a reverse-daylight photoperiod.   Currently, it is stocked with about 3” of Florida live sand, assorted varieties of Caulerpa sp., a few Stomatella snails, mysid shrimp, pods, bristleworms and spaghetti worms.  Circulation is accomplished by means of a ‘tee’ off the closed-loop re-circulation system.

Make-up & Top-off Water:
I use an AquaFX Mako, 50-gallon per day RO/DI filter to prepare all freshwater.  Freshwater is stored in a 33-gallon container which uses a Kent float valve for automatic replenishment.  I just recently switched to this unit after having used two Aquarium Products Tap Water Purifiers in series for many years.   Prior to that, Kentwood Distilled Water was used exclusively during the first couple of years of the aquarium's life.  For top-off, a SpectraPure LiterMeter doses kalkwasser, and this is stored in an 18-gallon Rubbermaid tub.  Two 18-gallon Rubbermaid tubs are used to prepare fresh saltwater with a valve installed that drains the new saltwater into the sump.  Instant Ocean salt has been used for the past couple of years.

Refugium

Other Equipment:
I am very fortunate to have an 8' closet located in another room, directly behind my tank.  It was a simple matter to cut a small hole in the wall for all the plumbing and wires.  In this closet, I am able to keep about 99% of everything I need. Some of the equipment found in this closet includes: a Lifereef LCR-1 calcium reactor with a DIY secondary chamber made from an old Tap Water Purifier shell, the protein skimmer and it's pump, the metal halide ballasts, and a couple of other pumps.   Additionally, the make-up water tubs, kalkwasser tub and the refugium are located here.  For monitoring water conditions, I use a Pinpoint pH monitor, an Extech ORP monitor and a Lifeguard Big Temp thermometer.  Future plans call for the addition of a Nielsen kalkwasser reactor.

Feeding:
Once a day, I feed a varied combination of Tetra Marine flakes, Ocean Nutrition’s Prime Reef and Formula Two, Omega One Marine flakes, Sera GranuMarine, VibraGro, frozen mysid shrimp, brine shrimp and plankton, and silversides for the anemone. When I get a chance to obtain some from out of town sources, live brine are offered.  The cleaner shrimps and serpent star receive an occasional night feeding of Wardley’s Shrimp Pellets.  I also use Ocean Nutrition Seaweed Selects.  All food is soaked in Boyd's Vita-Chem prior to feeding.  Indo-Pacific Sea Farms' Coral Heaven & Two Lil Fishes' Marine Snow supplements the coral's diet a couple of times per week.

Maintenance:
Water changes of 15 gallons are made bi-weekly.  The skimmer is cleaned usually every three weeks.  Diatoms are removed from the front and side glass approximately every three days.  Coralline growth is scraped from the front and rear glass as needed.  I occasionally use SeaChem's Reef Plus and Ecosystem Reef Solution for trace element supplementation.  Water tests are performed occasionally using Salifert test kits, and a log is kept of parameters.  I have also kept a written tank log of any maintenance performed to the tank, as well as any changes made or livestock additions.  The VHO bulbs are replaced roughly every nine months and the NO bulbs are replaced every six months.

Inhabitants:

Orange Montipora digitata

Tridacna derasa

Clowns spawning

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