(First Reef Tank Ever) *** 600gal Display *** 1300gal System

[Blue Tang]

That is one awesome tank setup, I hate to ask but that setup must cost a small fortune? It looks like one of your pumps would cost the same as my whole setup? Looks like you sure enjoy this marine hobby, Half your luck , All the best with setup, I want one like yours!!!!! lol

Blue Tang :mrgreen:

 

[yellowfiji]

Bravo. Bravo.

 

[jt481]

Ok, I am by far one of the last to offer advice to you in reference to maintaining a reef. As a police officer I just had a very scary thought. And, maybe I missed a post and you already addressed the issue.

Your chiller is outside correct? It would not take much for a vandal to destroy your reef by breaking the water line. Could you install fencing with a locked gate or better yet a small, well ventilated shed attached to the house? Just a thought. Good luck it looks incredible.

 

[jt481]

deleted

 

[mr_X]

jt...i'm just guessing here, but that looks like a pretty decent neighborhood :wink:

 

[yellowfiji]

I agree with jt48. Extra precautions should be taken for stuff outside. Especially, the chiller is hooked to a delicate reef system. Besides, vandals, there are plenty of uninvited animals (big and small) come visit us every day and night. On top of that, after a few hot summers, the PVC pipes will become brittle.

 

[mr_X]

i'm just thinking in terms of a/c units. no one bothers them...vandals or animals, and the weather. i wonder why you all feel so strongly about a chiller, that everyone else in the free world would think is an a/c unit.

 

[jt481]

I work in a very nice neighborhood and that is exactly part of the problem-a rapist, carjacker, thief, or murderer has no interest in cutting someones a/c or chiller unit but a well to do 13 year old boy bored stiff out of his mind because theres nothing to do in his boring little community may get his rocks off taking a hack saw to that thing. Sort of like smashing mailboxes with a baseball bat or throwing eggs at stucco houses (very expensive to clean btw). Although not nearly as common, several years ago, the township that I work for experienced a rash of vandalism complaints of freon lines being broke.

 

[miston]

so how's the tank coming?

 

[cbui2]

heres what been done for the past 4 months

1. 125gal weekly water changes
2. remove and replace top layer sand bed weekly
3. clean & remove detritus for sump monthly
4. clean & remove detritus for 1st fuge tank monthly (no sand bed)
5. no cleaning require for 2ng fuge tank since snails and crabs are taking care of most of the work for me w/5"
sand bed. just mag float to keep front glass clean
6. clean & remove detritus for frag tank monthly
7. finish lighting rack, added 8 36" & 3 72" VHO's super actinic w/ 9 PFO moonlights,
3 Reef Optix V Reflectors w/400w PFO Ballast and 3 separate circuits feed the light rack
8. clean skimmer pumps every 3 months, neck every 3 days. i really need to get the SCH.

just about caught up in work and reef keeping so I will be able to make more time on the forum with current updates.

 

[cbui2]

ok i have some pics saved few months backs, but
took me awhile to learn how to post pics again

here are the VHO's brackets that was mounted onto .5" x 1" white pine strips. 6 pc's were made to hold a total 11 bulbs. 1/4" bolts were used to hold them in place of aluminum light rack since wood screws was not reliable.

 

[cbui2]

ok got some more pics, i'm getting better at this now
all lights are mounted then electrical wiring was done.
commercial velcro was used to hold 9 PFO moonlights in place.
question on the 3 icecap 660 looking at how they were installed will i need to installed the heat sink that comes with them where i have them mounted at?

 

[cbui2]

here’s how the vho’s look like with all of them installed.

3 Reef Optix V Sun System w/400w PFO ballast 20k Radium will power the front of the main display
& currently 3 400w reeflux 12k for the rear on LA3

 

[Anonymous]

This is one sick aquarium. Excellent worksmanship too. You not only do quality work, you're also VERY fast.

Can I request more pics of your tank inhabitants?

Incredible job!!! 8O

 

[cbui2]

5 months update pics, not much since i don't access to a real camera yet

equipment and fish room

150gal fuge almost full, will harvest soon. i taught weeds grow fast . started with 4 quart bags and 2 months later

before FTS

after FTS

 

[cbui2]

its about that time to again make some foods (3 quart ziploc) which they consume in three months.

ingredients used:
1 whole garlic
1/2 lb. fresh shrimp, squid and scallop
2 frozen packs of Hikari algae, mega angel and ocean plankton
1/2 cup formula 2 pellets and 1 cup of flakes
1/2 cup spectrum thera+ pellets by new life
15 grams whole freeze dried cyclop-eeze since out of frozen one
1 oz. garlic xtreme, 30ml Selcon, 4 oz. Zoecon and 2 oz. vita-chem

procedure for mixing ingredients together:
1. all frozen food Hikari cubes are soaked w/RO for an hour
2. fresh seafood are chopped and blended to almost paste form
3. add fresh seafood along w/Hikari products mix using spatula
4. add all pellets, cyclop-eeze and all liquid vitamins mix again
5. last item added flakes then carefully folding w/spatula but not breaking flakes into pieces

 

[cbui2]

ok took some pics, but there're not the best so enjoy. every time i get ready to ordered a real camera, i end up with coral orders instead . this week shipment coming in on Friday will contain 15 pc's SPS and 7 LPS. this tank is taking forever to stock up and besides i really need to get my calcium and kalk reactor online as these corals are depleting my calcium and alk pretty fast, almost double the dosage in the past 3 weeks since tons of corals have been added lately.

Left

Middle

Right

Full Tank Shot

 

[bleedingthought]

Looking good.

 

[cbui2]

thanks Thiago, here are some pics i took, not so great and enjoy.
i am curious to know what this is, once in awhile they show up in my display. is there something i need to be worried about, i believed its coming from the snails. sorry bout flash

king of display for now

 

[Mike612]

What happened to your Powder Blue hybrid? I see a regular Powder Blue in there.