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Unread 05/30/2008, 09:03 PM   #1
chrismunn
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chrismunn's officail 14g bio cube thread

well, after a couple of years with no reef, i decided to get a little somthing to tide me over untill i get the 75g reef put into the wall. ive been waiting for the 75g for so long, (3+ years) i just couldnt wait any more!

i was searching through my local club classified forums and found this 14g biocube w/20# of tonga branch being sold by one of the members, and a stand for the BC14 being sold by another member.

i already have the tank and LR setup in my living room, and i have a small skimmer (giant skimmer for that tank) in the tank just polishing up the water before i put anything in it.

ive also been checking and adjusting some of the parameters. at this point the tanks been running at my house for about 5 days now, and one would think i would test for ammonia, nitrate and nitrite before anything else, but no. i havent tested for any of thoes yet. i have tested calcium, ph, alkalinity, phospahte, silicate and magneseum all with salifert test kits.

two days ago my results were:

ca-300 ppm

alk- 9.6 dkh or 3.43 meq/l

ph- 8.1

po4- 1ppm

si- 0

mg- 1080 ppm

that same day i added 2.1 - fl.oz. of ket liquid calicium to raise my calcium up to 420 ppm, but instead it went up to 460 ppm. the other thing i want to raise is magneseum, but idont have any additive for that. no worries. i might be going a little far by checking ths stuff right now, but i want the tank to be prepaired in anticipation for some live stock.

i just got done testing a few things again tonight. right now thier at:

alk- 8.8 dkh or 3.15 meq/l

ca- 440 ppm

ph- 8.0

still waiting for that calcium to come down a bit. as soon as it does im going to start trying to figure out how to use my b-ionic again. im gonna need to maintain a stable and balanced calcium and alkalinity, but i need to get the hang of how much to dose. its been a while.

as far as stocking goes im going to keep it soft. anything more in this tank is just going to be a headach. i know an anemone isnt considered a softie, but hey, its go no skeleton ... besides what else is going to go with my 2 clowns??? yeah i think im going to go with a BTA, some GSP, some zoas, mushrooms and a pair of clowns.

right now im not liking the tonga branch. im going to have to go get some acrylic rod so i can peg up a cool scape. i also want to get one of thoes little oceanic bio cube skimers. i did look into getting the 70w hqi mh retro but thoes are like $350.oo. forget it!

ill get some pics tommarow sometime, but right now there isnt all that much to see. its just a really small tank with a giant skimmer, a pile of coral skeletons, and a couple of starfish and snails. i dont know where the starfish or snails came from, but the starfish worrie me. i dont know whether thier good or bad? anyways, you'll se tomarow


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Unread 05/30/2008, 09:07 PM   #2
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pics?


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75g SPS tank, 30gal sump/refuge. Melev RO/DI, Coravue duel calc reactor, MSP 200 skimmer, 2 Vortech MP40, Mag drive 9.5 return, autotopoff.com ATO, 2 CoralVue 250W SE finished pendants(with 20k Radium bulbs), powered by 2x Icecap ballasts, controlled by a ACJR.
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Unread 05/30/2008, 09:08 PM   #3
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oh, i also forgot to mention. there's a cool little area in the back of the tank that shows the sump water level. it has a high mark, and a low mark. from high to low is exactly 2 cups. right now with the lid open, 1 power head and the skimmer on 24/7 the evap is exaCTLY 2 cups per day, and the temp stays at 80. that will change when i take out the skimmer and close the tanks lid. i expect the evap to go down a bit, and perhaps the temp to go up? i dont know though, we'll have to see?


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Unread 05/30/2008, 09:09 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally posted by Ehaze
pics?
tomarrow, i promise


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Unread 05/30/2008, 09:10 PM   #5
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lol weird, i saw that tank being sold by Dee, i believe.

youre going to love the tank. i had the 16.5" 70w sunpod on it but i hated the look without the top, it looks ugly. i went with putting the lid back on and im going to keep LPS and zoanthids in it

so far i just have a frogspawn and onyx in it with some zoas

let me know how your tank goes! if youre going to be messing around with alk and calcium, you might as well start adding LPS instead


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Unread 05/31/2008, 08:37 AM   #6
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well ide first like to start out by asking a moderator to change one of the words in my title. this was supposed to be my "official" thread, not my "officail" thread thank you very much

yes, i got it from dena. it was a pretty good deal too! the tank is in perfect condition. and you may be right, i should add a piece of hammer or frogspawn so i have a good reason to tweak off my calcium and alkalinity yeah i dont want to take the top off for stronger lighting. that 70w hqi is a retro fit specifically for the bio cubes, but again they're like $350.oo.... and if i actually wanted to spend that much upgrading this system i would also drill the sump section of this tank so that i could attach it to a REAL sump. this tanks NOT supposed to be a headach though, thats my next tank

have i mentioned that i hate tonga branch? what a disaster that stuff is! its impossible to sccape in this little tank! i need to peg it together with some acrylic rod. thats going to be a project sometime in the next 3 or 4 weeks i suppose?


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Unread 05/31/2008, 08:39 AM   #7
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this is what the tank loks like right now sitting in my living room with a towel draped over the light.



without the towel



and what the scape looked like this morning before i re-arranged it all.




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Unread 05/31/2008, 08:43 AM   #8
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i had to redo the rock work because as you can see inthe previous pic, the rocks about to be scratching the glass. here's what the rocks look like now



this is the rock that i have to work with, but i think im going to offer a trade for some fiji on my local club forum.



this is one nice piece of fiji that came with the tank. look at that nice purple coralline coverage!




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Unread 05/31/2008, 08:47 AM   #9
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the starfish





and the snail



does anybody know what kind of starfish or snail this is? i have about three of each, and dont want them to become a plague! right now i still have time to remove them if they're going to be a problem. im most concerned about the starfish, i dont really care for starfish and i wouldnt want it eating anything its not supposed to.


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:30 AM   #10
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so as of right this very second sitting on my couch looking at the tank it looks just like this



that wal that has the picture and sword on it is the wall that will eventually house my 75g. im actually going to build the wall out 3' towards the tv to fit the tank because there is a laundry room right behind that wall. thats where i have my ro/di set up


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:40 AM   #11
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Sorry i didnt read carefully, but if those are stock lights, and you got them that high because of your skimmer, i think you can forget about having most corals besides polyps and mushrooms.


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:41 AM   #12
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i know its a boring little nano with no life, but come on now

WIAGAC


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:44 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally posted by Been_There8
Sorry i didnt read carefully, but if those are stock lights, and you got them that high because of your skimmer, i think you can forget about having most corals besides polyps and mushrooms.
that skimmers not staying in there. its just there for right now while nothing lives in the tank. are you kidding me, look how ugly that is! im going to get the oceanic bio cube skimmer. that giant skimmer is temporary...


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:50 AM   #14
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The starfish is an asterina and the snail looks like a cerith. The snail should be fine. You'll get mixed responses on the star - I have some in one of my tanks. I've seen them eat gorgonia, and I think they are the reason that I can't keep zoanthids alive in that tank. Some say they are harmless algae grazers. I think there are a number of different types, so I can't say which you've got.


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:57 AM   #15
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great.... well thanks for the heads up. i do plan on keeping zoanthids so i might have to get rid of them...?


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:59 AM   #16
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Sorry - I know that wasn't very illuminating. Maybe you should ask over at the "other invertebrates" board. Maybe someone can tell you which you've got.


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Unread 05/31/2008, 10:25 AM   #17
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will do buddy, thanks!


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Unread 05/31/2008, 02:46 PM   #18
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well if anybody cares, i have this link to an article by anthony calfo on RKM.com. at the bottom of the page is a good summary on the asterina starfish. thats what a couple of people said i have over in the "other inverts" forum. one guy said it was harmless, another guy agreed but said that some people claim to have lost sps and zoas because of them...

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...ture/index.php


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Unread 05/31/2008, 06:20 PM   #19
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so mods, any word on changing my title to help fix my foolish typo? pretty please


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Unread 05/31/2008, 07:12 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally posted by chrismunn
that skimmers not staying in there. its just there for right now while nothing lives in the tank. are you kidding me, look how ugly that is! im going to get the oceanic bio cube skimmer. that giant skimmer is temporary...
I try to not give negative comments with out a reason, I would hate it if I go and buy something like 200$ and have someone say its crap.


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Unread 05/31/2008, 07:17 PM   #21
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if i left that skimmer in there permanently i would be an idiot and would deserve to have somebody hurt my feelings for being so stupid!

honestly i wish i could incorperate that skimmer into my system but its just not possible unless i drill a hole in the back of the tank and add a sump. ive considerd it but decided against it. im just going to keep it easy on myself and get the skimmer built for the tank.

thanks for the concern though, you never really know with some people right!


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Unread 05/31/2008, 07:57 PM   #22
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i can see why you covered the tank with a towel!


let me know what you figure out with the lighting. i just took off the sunpod a few days ago and im already having the stalks of the zoas reach out for the light! im either going to keep it like that for a while or upgrade the light and add another PC bulb to it

one more thing i did with my tank was add an ATO to it; works well and dont have to add water by hand anymore

if you really hate that rock and want some better rock, look up marco rocks or you can go to liveaquaria.com and look into the nano live rock they have there


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:05 PM   #23
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ide rather make a trade to someone at ARC or MAAST for some fiji. if not ide rather buy some LR from the LFS so i can choose my pieces, and just give whatever tonga branch i dont use to someone at the club. i dont want base rock, and i deffinatley dont want to pay $15.oo per pound to some company on the internet, no matter thier reputation! what can i say, im kinda picky i actually had to pass up $3.oo a pound rock because i spent all my money

its not that i completely hate the tonga branch, its that its a pain in the neck to scape with unless you drill and rod it, which is exactly what i plan on doing. so i guess it aint tha bad, but i want a mix of the banch and the fiji.

as for the lights and towel, the only reason i have the tank open is because of that giant skimmer. the reason for the skimmer is to keep the tank clean while thoes rocks cook. the reason the lights are on is because i want the coralline to spread. thats also why im messing with calcium and alkalinity already.

that skimmer is NOT staying in the tank for much longer. and the top will NOT remain open like it is. as soon as im done cookin' these rocks the tank will go back to its normal configuraion, without the skimmer, and with the top closed.

i want to get the bio cube skimmer, and the hydor korilia nano. the stock lights that came on the tank are just fine. my only concern is the heat, and the fact that my fat hand doesnt fit in the rear sections of the tank. at first i considerd the 70w hqi mod but thats hecka money! i also considered drilling the tank to add a sump but that defeates the purpose of the all in one design although one day i will in fact drill this tank, and add the hqi upgrade. but that will have to wait untill i have my 75g setup. that probably wont happen untill i get a new job. although i did just get a raise at work


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:19 PM   #24
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ive been having some ideas on stocking and aquascaping . i want an anemone, 2 clowns, a mix of zoas, a mix of shrooms, GSP, perhaps some montipora capricornis, and ill probably skip any LPS.

i want to create some vertically standing pillars with the tonga branch, and a small shelf up towards the top of the tank. coming from the verticall branches ill have horizontal branches like tree branches. at the bottom ill have a couple of fiji boulders. down in the bottom of the tank i want the GSP, and in the center of the tank i want the anemone. around the anemone i want a mix of the shrooms zoas, and GSP., and growing up the branches i want a mix of zoas and shrooms. ill let the GSP, shrooms and zoas battle it out for growing space. ill just have to use tons of carbon to keep the chemicals down. anything that comes in contact with the anemone is history so im not worried about having the anemone overgrown by anything. upon the top shelf will be the montipora. the montipora should be ok under the 48w of pc i have as long as its close to the top. the chemical warfare thats going to be happening below it might do it in, but im willing to take that chance. worst case scenario i lose the montipora and have my shelf overgrown with shrooms, zoas and GSP.

we'll see if i can keep any of this stuff alive though . i think i know what im doing but thinking and doing are two different things

i just gotta get some acrylic rod and drill these branches. i think i might use my angle grinder and diamond granite blade to shape and notch the rocks and branches to fit together moe betta ive got high hopes!


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Unread 05/31/2008, 09:55 PM   #25
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Quote:
Originally posted by nietzsche
i can see why you covered the tank with a towel!


let me know what you figure out with the lighting. i just took off the sunpod a few days ago and im already having the stalks of the zoas reach out for the light! im either going to keep it like that for a while or upgrade the light and add another PC bulb to it

one more thing i did with my tank was add an ATO to it; works well and dont have to add water by hand anymore

if you really hate that rock and want some better rock, look up marco rocks or you can go to liveaquaria.com and look into the nano live rock they have there
Is the sunpod the glass under the lights?


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