My 500 + gallon system. Last 13 years to now. Build, Aquascaping & more. Lots of pics

[slief]

Really loving these Mitras. This is the end of sunset phase just before the lights went out tonight. The colors in the tank are spectacular. These pictures do no justice.

[kal1gvla]

hi. i'm big fan of your great tank.
do you run the carbon reactor 24/7 or only when is need?

thanks

[slief]

Originally Posted by kal1gvla

hi. i'm big fan of your great tank.
do you run the carbon reactor 24/7 or only when is need?

thanks

Thank you!

I run my carbon reactor 24/7. No reason not to in my opinion.

[GoVols]

Slief,

That sunset is perfection.

Thanks for sharing

Are you still pushing 6 Mytra's and 6 Kessils?

[slief]

Originally Posted by GoVols

Slief,

That sunset is perfection.

Thanks for sharing

Are you still pushing 6 Mytra's and 6 Kessils?

6 Mitras and 8 Kessils. I've got the Kessils dialed way back now and the Mitras turned up so the tank is mostly lit with the Mitras. The Kessils now peak at 45% where as before they peaked at 75% when I was running all ten. The Mitras peak at around 75% right now. My normal photoperiod is 12 hours. I've got the Mitras set to 12 hours and the Kessils on for 10 so that the sunrise and sunset are Mitras. I will bump the Mitras another 5% this weekend and drop the Kessils another 5%. So far the corals have all responded just fine. I've also been monitoring my power usage and the current combined power consumption between the Mitras and the Kessils is the same power consumption as it was with the 10 Kessils. I am trying to keep my power usage in line with what it was and also use that as a guideline as I increase the intensity of the Mitras and drop the intensity of the Kessils. That said, I really do love the coloration. Pictures unfortunately don't do the Mitras any justice when it comes to tank shots. The corals have much more "pop" now and are much more vibrant looking.

[GoVols]

Originally Posted by slief

6 Mitras and 8 Kessils. I've got the Kessils dialed way back now and the Mitras turned up so the tank is mostly lit with the Mitras. The Kessils now peak at 45% where as before they peaked at 75% when I was running all ten. The Mitras peak at around 75% right now. My normal photoperiod is 12 hours. I've got the Mitras set to 12 hours and the Kessils on for 10 so that the sunrise and sunset are Mitras. I will bump the Mitras another 5% this weekend and drop the Kessils another 5%. So far the corals have all responded just fine. I've also been monitoring my power usage and the current combined power consumption between the Mitras and the Kessils is the same power consumption as it was with the 10 Kessils. I am trying to keep my power usage in line with what it was and also use that as a guideline as I increase the intensity of the Mitras and drop the intensity of the Kessils. That said, I really do love the coloration. Pictures unfortunately don't do the Mitras any justice when it comes to tank shots. The corals have much more "pop" now and are much more vibrant looking.

[jason2459]

Slief, keep that seneye around. It's proven to me to be pretty darn accurate.


A little PAR shootout between Seneye w/ v2 firmware/software upgrade and an Apogee MQ-510
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2626700


But yes, they can't read kelvin over 10k

http://answers.seneye.com/en/Seneye_...light_readings

"Once you are above 10k, the kelvin quickly shifts up and toward infinity with the addition of only tiny amounts of blue light. This will create a point so far off the line that we have to label it ‘not a kelvin’. Also, plant tubes high in green can pull the spectra point away from the line toward being a green colour.


Actinic lighting does not have a kelvin; it is a blue-coloured (wavelength) lamp, and a single tube can add significant amounts of blue which will also give ‘not a kelvin'. "

[slief]

Here is a video update/walkaround on the tank. It was shot today. Best if viewed in HD!

[worm5406]

Looking real good. Those frags in your frag tank really need a home. LOL

[slief]

Originally Posted by worm5406

Looking real good. Those frags in your frag tank really need a home. LOL

Thanks! I am very pleased with the big tank. It's doing amazingly well with little to no help from me. The Hammers have been slowly finding new homes and clearing out space in the frag tank which is nice. I will probably move one of those hammer colonies into the new tank in the near future. I moved a handful of SPS frags from the frag tank to the new 100 gallon tank about a week ago. So far they are doing well. That tanks been up for about 4.5 months now and those were the first corals to go in there with exception of a finger that I fragged from the main display. It's good and stable now and beyond the initial cycles. If all continues to do well in there, more frags will be moved into the new tank in the next week or two. I'm not in any rush though. I really wish the new tank was plumbed into the big system. That would put my mind at ease and reduce maintenance. I hate working on tanks and have only done two 5 gallon water changes on the 100 gallon tank since setting it up over 4 months ago. Unfortunately connecting it to the main system isn't possible due to it's location in my house so I will just have to deal with occasional water changes and filling the ATO tank which is a regular chore.

[sfsuphysics]

At 1:42 is that a massive cardinal fish that's almost as large as your achilles tang? Or is it just really close to the camera?

[slief]

Originally Posted by sfsuphysics

At 1:42 is that a massive cardinal fish that's almost as large as your achilles tang? Or is it just really close to the camera?

I had to go back and look at what you were talking about. The camera was just zoomed in which makes it look much bigger than it is.

[sfsuphysics]

Ah ok, both seemed to be in the same focal plane too which made me wonder if it was truly a behemoth (or a tiny baby Achilles )

[slief]

Originally Posted by sfsuphysics

Ah ok, both seemed to be in the same focal plane too which made me wonder if it was truly a behemoth (or a tiny baby Achilles )

They do look big when they are zoomed in on! I can see why you asked!


I decided to record my nightly feeding tonight. When I do my walk around videos, it's tough to see all the fish to guage how many there are. I figured this would allow people to see most of the tanks inhabitants. My nightly feedings are usually done an hour or two before the lights go out. In this case, it was an hour before the lights went out so the tanks lights are ramping down.

[IvanTheTerrible]

Thanks for the videos. Everything looks great! I didn't see many inverts. What do you use for a CUC, or is that not necessary because you have so many fish?

- Ivan

[slief]

Originally Posted by IvanTheTerrible

Thanks for the videos. Everything looks great! I didn't see many inverts. What do you use for a CUC, or is that not necessary because you have so many fish?

- Ivan

There are 2 coral bandit shrimp, at least 2 cleaner shrimp, some emerald crabs, coral crags, possibly some peppermint shrimp, a few harlequin shrimp, countless hermits, turbo snails and other snails. There are also brittle stars, a serpent star, asterina starfish, all kinds of pods, bristle worms and god knows what else. The CUC is pretty extensive but I also have a lot of well planned flow that keeps stuff from settling. My closed loop dumps out under the live rock which keeps constant flow on the bottom of the tank. Then there are the Tunze's which keep flow going in the water column and then the returns covering the surface. Several times a day my Tunze's and closed loop go into a flush mode. The Tunze's kick up to a constant full power one side at a time. One side runs at full power for a few minutes while the other side is off. Then the other side turns on full power while the first side turns off. At the same time, my closed loop pump kicks up to 3000+ GPH and blasts water out through a manifold that circles the base of my overflow sending water jetting out in all directions of the tank. Anything on the bottom gets kicked up into the water column where the Tuzes get them suspended and up to the high levels. My return dumps out through sear swirls which do a good job in getting most of the suspended solids into my overflow for my filter socks and skimmer to take care of. It works remarkably well. I never vacuum my tank granted I don't have a lot of sand in it. Anything that does settle is food for the CUC.

[dave.m]

Originally Posted by slief

I really wish the new tank was plumbed into the big system. That would put my mind at ease and reduce maintenance. I hate working on tanks and have only done two 5 gallon water changes on the 100 gallon tank since setting it up over 4 months ago. Unfortunately connecting it to the main system isn't possible due to it's location in my house so I will just have to deal with occasional water changes and filling the ATO tank which is a regular chore.

This is easily resolved by adding MORE small tanks around the house. That will make servicing this one tank so much less of an individual task.

Dave.M

[slief]

Originally Posted by dave.m

This is easily resolved by adding MORE small tanks around the house. That will make servicing this one tank so much less of an individual task.

Dave.M

You're preaching to the choir! I think I have enough tanks!

For now!

[slief]

Some of you may appreciate this. I often get asked how I deal with phosphates. I decided to do a video showing my process.

[worm5406]

I am glad I get notification on when you put up new videos. I saw it right after you put it up.

Very good video. Nice explanation.

I am glad more and more people are documenting in video. Some people relate better to video as they can see it.

Keep up the good work!

[dave.m]

Great vid and thx for emphasizing all the caveats. I'm sure that will help a lot in many people's understanding of the process.

Dave.M

[Alfrareef]

Originally Posted by slief

Some of you may appreciate this. I often get asked how I deal with phosphates. I decided to do a video showing my process.

Thanks for the info.

[Malign Reefer]

Tank is still looking good Scott.

[slief]

Originally Posted by Malign Reefer

Tank is still looking good Scott.

Thank you very much! I am always surprised and very pleased with its health and growth! Especially considering the minimal amount of effort it requires to maintain it.

[dave.m]

I haven't seen your little box fish in the past few videos. Is he still in there?

Dave.M