Reefcowboy's 80 Gal Rimless thread

[Reefcowboy]

So ive gotten bit by the reef bug again, and went shopping for a bigger system. Have had great success with my 20 long, but wanted to get a bigger tank so i could keep some tangs, and more fish...and as always corals too...:biglaugh:
I really like the rimless tanks and thanks to Joe from Long Island and Chris from Brooklyn, was able to find a brand new tank and stand. Since ive always had T5s, felt more comfortable with that system in this shallow tank. I can really appreciate some great LED lights as their blues are insanely color-popping though. Lets say for now ill try what i have and see what happens.
Thanks to Javier i found a Tek light 6 bulb fixture, so i will start my tank soon!

Here is a pic of them as i will spend next week setting it all up transfering all corals and fish over....

 

[Reefcowboy]

Wanted to post a pic my old tank so i can get tips from other members on the best practices during the transfer of all animals. On my new tank i will have black crushed coral substrate, the same i had on my 20 gal. I like the look and how it makes colors pop even though white sand looks nice and really natural too... The reason i like the crushed corals is i can syphon it when i do WC's and keep the tank cleaner without too much disturbance.

Here is the old house

 

[CancerverO]

Wow that was your 20 gallons !!!! Amazing

I can't wait to see the tank up and running!!!

 

[mbg75]

The 20 looks great. What bulb combo is that?

 

[STHILL]

That 20 looks great...good luck with new tank...

 

[edd]

i can't believe thats a 20g. with a tank that nice i don't think you need any pointers. good luck

 

[roycinus]

looks great. Maybe you can start a tank thread.
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/tank-threads/

 

[yesjenks]

Wow, that 20g looks amazing!

 

[Reefcowboy]

Wow that was your 20 gallons !!!! Amazing

I can't wait to see the tank up and running!!!

Thanks Javier, after seeing your tank, everything else looks boring!

 

[Reefcowboy]

The 20 looks great. What bulb combo is that?

Thanks bud, funny its a four bulb being 10k/460nm/10k/actinic(420)... Since my tank is very shallow, didnt worry too much with the stock bulbs my light came with, and the 10ks and actinic are Deep Blue believe it or not.

I like the look 10ks give when with blue+s, sort of daylight and the corals seemed to do well. Not sure what combo to do on the new fixture, was thinking aquablue special,blue+,10k,blue+,actinic,and blue+.

 

[Reefcowboy]

That 20 looks great...good luck with new tank...

Thanks a lot, input is always appreciated!

 

[Reefcowboy]

i can't believe thats a 20g. with a tank that nice i don't think you need any pointers. good luck

Thanks!! I always like to ask for opinions here, i get very good direction:approve:

I see im posting at the wrong spot on the site...how to switch to the thread section?


Got a sump today, wanted to get something shallow that would allow me to stick my hand under the stand and at the same time have room to keep lots of my LR. I will shoot for a corals only display tank, with the minimum amount of LR up on the DT. In the past ive built baffled sumps, but have now been thinking of using mainly a tank with egg crate dividers, like the one i have had in my 20...
Im still debating on it. Here is a pic of the tank, a 30 gal breeder(36x18x12.5). That should fit perfectly under my stand.


Also got some black sand, the same kind i use on my current tank...its pitch black (hawaiian)and larger grains. Will transfer most of the ones from my cycled tank, and add another 60lbs...Would that be enough? I dont want the substrate too deep because the tank is already shallow, would like to use the space for the animals.

 

[sroot17]

Tagging along! What size tank did you get? I'm about to do an upgrade to a rimless as well.

 

[Reefcowboy]

Tagging along! What size tank did you get? I'm about to do an upgrade to a rimless as well.

Its an 80 gal, ive always liked the shallower systems. Your tank looks really good, is that an ATI?

 

[sroot17]

Its an 80 gal, ive always liked the shallower systems. Your tank looks really good, is that an ATI?

Yeah it's a 36in 6 bulb ati. That tek is gonna be nice. Good luck, looking forard to it!
And thank you. The 20 looks great.

 

[E.intheC]

Looks like a great start. The 20 was an excellent tank.

Did you think about using black starboard? It would provide the color pop while allowing easier clean up.

 

[Reefcowboy]

Looks like a great start. The 20 was an excellent tank.

Did you think about using black starboard? It would provide the color pop while allowing easier clean up.

Sorry if im stupid, but what is that? Like a background cover sort alike?
I dont want to paint the back of the tank because after a few months i might want to have the see through look again, i mean i switch to change the look after a few months.
I am however using the background(black) i have in my 20, which is the cheap Petsmart background... Any suggestions for something i might not know to do instead? The all black tank should have a nice pop to all that is in the tank

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

That 20 is amazing! I can't wait to see this 80 in full effect , good luck with it!

 

[Reefcowboy]

That 20 is amazing! I can't wait to see this 80 in full effect , good luck with it!

Thank you! Im still thinking about ways to make it simple yet nice. The 20 is nice, i really stacked it with corals at first and once things started growing, it was a sting fest! In the new build i want to keep open spaces...lets see what happens..but thanks again for the good luck!!

 

[E.intheC]

Sorry if im stupid, but what is that? Like a background cover sort alike?
I dont want to paint the back of the tank because after a few months i might want to have the see through look again, i mean i switch to change the look after a few months.
I am however using the background(black) i have in my 20, which is the cheap Petsmart background... Any suggestions for something i might not know to do instead? The all black tank should have a nice pop to all that is in the tank

The starboard is actually HDPE (plastic cutting board) used for the bottom of the tank instead of sand. I am using a light blue colored board. Most people use white. I'm recommending it for you because it seems like the black crushed coral is mostly for looks and you want to give your corals the pop, meanwhile you're going to use crushed coral for easy cleaning. Starboard might be an easier solution. And it comes in black.

As for the back wall, I'm using a piece of black acrylic but for your tank, a painted background could work. You can also use a background like you're describing. I've used both in the past and they've worked fine.