In again sps reef tank build log. - Page 3

jda · 04/02/2018, 07:03 PM

If it is not too late, I strongly suggest that you order some real live rock from blue zoo, livestock usa, or somewhere, and save yourself any possible headache of the dry rock.

DesertReefT4r · 04/02/2018, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reefmutt

Nice and neat plumbing.
If you run the output of the gfo reactor into the biopellets, you may reduce their ability to reduce nitrates.
If p is completely stripped from the water, they will not reduce n..

Thanks. Im no plumbing master but it should work.
Yeah that's what I was thinking as well. Striping the water of po4 before it enters the biopellets would effect their efficiency. On the other and having the pellets before the gfo and carbon would likely clump them up with bio film. I really only have room in the sump for 1 reactor, maybe 2 could be squeezed in. Should I just run one or the other? I could always dose vinager in my ato with kalk.

DesertReefT4r · 04/02/2018, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jda

If it is not too late, I strongly suggest that you order some real live rock from blue zoo, livestock usa, or somewhere, and save yourself any possible headache of the dry rock.

I have yet to purchase any rock for the tank yet. I am going with mostly dry rock because I dont want to deal with pests from live rock. I have had a few reef tanks with high quality LR as well as plain fiji LR. Loved and hated all the life it came with. In the begining I was excited about it after a few years and a few pests my mindset has changed. I have had flatworms, aefw, red bugs, gorilla crabs, aptasia, bristle worms, bubble algae, bryopsis, cotton candy algae, gha, cyano. I hope to reduce or eliminate many of these pests by starting off with clean dry rock and seeding with a small piece of LR, pods and bacterial strains. BRS Reef Saver is what I am thinking on using. Eco friendly and no die off on it.

jda · 04/02/2018, 08:44 PM

It won't happen. None of what you mentioned can survive the cycle of real live rock... it came in other ways. Unless you QT everything, they will make their way back in again. ...and if you QT correctly, then there is no pest difference between pacific rock and dry rock, so take advantage of the phosphate free and ready-to-contribute live rock. Good luck.

DesertReefT4r · 04/02/2018, 10:19 PM

Trust me pests are and have been an issue and many come in on the rock. I have pulled about 4 gorilla crabs and a 4 inch long black crab from my LR, that one was a big nasty looking guy that stole several frags. Bristle worms and flat worms came in on LR and I had issues with those going crazy. Bristle worms just suck because you get stung by them but them do add to the CUC, I can live without them. I will also be removing new frags from their plugs, dipping and considering a QT tank. I know pests and unwanted algae will get into the tank one way or another. I will however do all I can to prevent them.

DesertReefT4r · 04/09/2018, 11:39 AM

Ok I think I have my return manifold figured out, only running 1 valve off it. Only have room for 1 reactor so if I carbon dose it wont be with bio pellets. I would rather have the reactor for carbon and gfo and dose a liquid carbon like vodka if needed. I will get the manifold glued and mounted today and my return hose will be in tomorrow. Almost ready to freshwater test the tank, I hope it all works out. Pics to come.

DesertReefT4r · 04/09/2018, 08:00 PM

Pics as promised. Finishing off the last piece of plumbing tomorrow after work. Just need the 3/4" tubing from BRS.

DesertReefT4r · 04/09/2018, 08:02 PM

Skimmer in its home.

DesertReefT4r · 04/10/2018, 09:59 PM

All plumbing is do e and ready for a wet test. Water coming soon. I need to get my Spectrapure RODI up and running again, needs fiters and pressure gauge. Then I can get my RODI station setup and making water for the tank.

DesertReefT4r · 04/18/2018, 10:51 PM

Not much new...just a water test!!! Just tap water for now to test for leaks ect. Found 3 leaks all at bulkheads on the overflow. 1 on the bottom center drain bulkhead and of coarse both bulkheads on the back of the tank have a small drip. Got them as tight as I can by hand but still a small drip every few minutes. Stuffed a towel under the overflow for now and I will see if it seals up overnight. If not a big wrench will come home with me from work and I will get them to stop dripping. I am pretry happy with the Speed Wave/Jeboa DC return pump. It moves a lot of water, way more than I need at 100% so its dialed back to 60%. It does make a little noise, like a computer fan, but I dont think it will bother me. I also picked up a 5g aquarium for ATO res while I was out LFS hopping today. I was very happy with 1 store in particular. Very friendly, awesome coral selection and very clean stock tanks. Of the other 2 I went to one I have been going to for years and it seems like they have been slacking on the corals systems for a while but still looking decent. The 3rd is whats left of an older pet store that closed down reopened in a smaller location after a few employees bought the store contents. Has the same feel as the old store and not the best looking systems or coral selection. I did buy the 5g tank from there though and they had a good selection of dry goods. Got the the leaks fixed as well, gaskets on wrong due to insteuctions being wrong, poor infomfrom Eshopps. On to the pics

DesertReefT4r · 04/18/2018, 10:54 PM

More pics

reefmutt · 04/19/2018, 07:23 AM

Nice job!

DesertReefT4r · 04/21/2018, 07:52 AM

Thanks reefmutt means a lot coming from you.
Little update. Some small items came in last night. RK bus cables, calibration fluids, filter socks. Ordered DA float swtich kit for ATO. Lastly my PP-8 powerheads came in. Put one in the tank and it can push some water and make waves.

DesertReefT4r · 05/29/2018, 12:34 AM

Sorry big update to come, a lot has been happening with the build. I have been more active on and other popular reef forum and less on here so I have not been updating this thread lately.

DesertReefT4r · 06/10/2018, 02:44 PM

Big up date. A lot had been happening over the last several weeks. Tank is all set up and running, full of new saltwater mixed using 0 ppm tds rodi water and HW Marine Mix salt. Controller is hooked up and running everything but the return pump and power heads. Tank has been cycling for about 2 weeks with no fiah and no light.

DesertReefT4r · 06/10/2018, 02:47 PM

Half full. Live sand and live rock in.

DesertReefT4r · 06/10/2018, 03:14 PM

Full and the rest of the live sand went it. Made a nice cloudy mess. Cleared up overnight though. Aquascape done. Used 80lbs Ocean Direct live sand and 60lbs of cooked and cure LR picked up from a guy I know locally. The rock is really clean and was cooked very well, no pests or algae. I have seen a few small feather worms but thats it as far as micro fauna so far. Im ok with that I plan to seed pods anyways.

DesertReefT4r · 06/10/2018, 03:21 PM

Very happy with the skimmer. With no bio load, cured rock and only adding frozen shrimp and blood worms to cycle the skimmer is working very well and I figured out how to make the intake silent. Drains are dead silent and I have it tuned so not bubbles make it into the sump. Now I just need to wait for the tank to cycle and mature for a couple months.

DesertReefT4r · 07/12/2018, 11:42 PM

Update time. The tank cycled in no time. I have added a few the first fish and a cleaner shrimp. I was going to wait a few weeks longer than I did to start adding fish but the tank was ready and I did not want to keep ghost feeding the tank. So the tank now has the cleaner shrimp, 2 chromis damsels, sixline wrasse and a lubbocks wrasse. The live rock is blowing up with life like sponges, micro pods, feather dusters, some spots of coralline. Best of all no algae at all since the start, I have not run the lights yet no need.

DesertReefT4r · 07/12/2018, 11:47 PM

More pics, FTS, sump and skimmer in action.

DesertReefT4r · 07/16/2018, 01:35 PM

Sad update. Woke up yesturday and went to feed the fish their morning meal and found my lubbock wrasse dead. No idea what happened. I saw him eating and was activly searching for food when I fed. I did not ever see any real aggression from the other fish and he did not look bet up when I removed him from the tank. He was a little thinner than when I got him and I notice he was not as active the day before. Maybe I did not feed enough but I feed 2 times a day generously. Could have been parasites so I will watch my fish closely. Already regret not setring up a qt tank.

DesertReefT4r · 10/30/2018, 09:27 PM

Sorry everyone for not updating more, I am more active on clay-boa now so check out mynbuild thread there. Anyways a few thing habe been going on with the reef. Still following my take it slow method and it has been working out well. We will start with the bad, had flatworms in my fuge and had to Flatworm Exit the tank. Went well as it has in the past, killed all flatworms and nothing else. I had a nice Talbot Damsel that just vanished on me, it was doing great then poof gone. I got 2 clowns had some issues with them fighting and moved one to the sump and the skimmer got it

. Now for the good. No algae bloom still! Totally shocked by that. Added 2 test corals and both did good, zoas and acan. The acan is growing heads fast. Coralline is showing up on powerheads and glass. Added 3 more frags Jedi Mind Trick, acropora and another acan 4 days ago and they are all doing well. Also got a cool psuedo as well, love these fish. Water quality as been great and stable with no dosing yet and monthly water changes. Switched to Fritz RPM when BRS was out of HW Marine for over a month. So I like Fritz. Now for some pics.

DesertReefT4r · 10/30/2018, 09:31 PM

More pics

DesertReefT4r · 12/04/2018, 09:25 PM

Update, been slowly adding more corals. The tank is doing really well.

DesertReefT4r · 12/04/2018, 09:26 PM

More pics

04/02/2018, 10:19 PM	#55
DesertReefT4r Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mesa Az Posts: 771	Trust me pests are and have been an issue and many come in on the rock. I have pulled about 4 gorilla crabs and a 4 inch long black crab from my LR, that one was a big nasty looking guy that stole several frags. Bristle worms and flat worms came in on LR and I had issues with those going crazy. Bristle worms just suck because you get stung by them but them do add to the CUC, I can live without them. I will also be removing new frags from their plugs, dipping and considering a QT tank. I know pests and unwanted algae will get into the tank one way or another. I will however do all I can to prevent them. __________________ Tank history 29g tropical ,55g cichlid tank, 20H softy reef, 29g mixed reef, 20H brackish goby & puffer tank, 55g mixed reef, 6g Nanocube softy lps reef, 40B sps reef, 75g sps reef, 75g sps reef in bu Current Tank Info: 75g sps reef build in the works.

04/09/2018, 11:39 AM	#56
DesertReefT4r Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mesa Az Posts: 771	Ok I think I have my return manifold figured out, only running 1 valve off it. Only have room for 1 reactor so if I carbon dose it wont be with bio pellets. I would rather have the reactor for carbon and gfo and dose a liquid carbon like vodka if needed. I will get the manifold glued and mounted today and my return hose will be in tomorrow. Almost ready to freshwater test the tank, I hope it all works out. Pics to come. __________________ Tank history 29g tropical ,55g cichlid tank, 20H softy reef, 29g mixed reef, 20H brackish goby & puffer tank, 55g mixed reef, 6g Nanocube softy lps reef, 40B sps reef, 75g sps reef, 75g sps reef in bu Current Tank Info: 75g sps reef build in the works.

04/19/2018, 07:23 AM	#62
reefmutt Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Mtl. Canada Posts: 7,824	Nice job! __________________ Matt. Current Tank Info: 53x32.5x26 190g dt 60g of sumps 3 tank-100 gal frag system 6xAI prime 8xt5. 4x maxspect gyre. Skimz Dual internal sicce pump skimmer Deltec PF601s ca rx+Kalk stirrer

04/21/2018, 07:52 AM	#63
DesertReefT4r Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mesa Az Posts: 771	Thanks reefmutt means a lot coming from you. Little update. Some small items came in last night. RK bus cables, calibration fluids, filter socks. Ordered DA float swtich kit for ATO. Lastly my PP-8 powerheads came in. Put one in the tank and it can push some water and make waves. __________________ Tank history 29g tropical ,55g cichlid tank, 20H softy reef, 29g mixed reef, 20H brackish goby & puffer tank, 55g mixed reef, 6g Nanocube softy lps reef, 40B sps reef, 75g sps reef, 75g sps reef in bu Current Tank Info: 75g sps reef build in the works.

05/29/2018, 12:34 AM	#64
DesertReefT4r Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mesa Az Posts: 771	Sorry big update to come, a lot has been happening with the build. I have been more active on and other popular reef forum and less on here so I have not been updating this thread lately. __________________ Tank history 29g tropical ,55g cichlid tank, 20H softy reef, 29g mixed reef, 20H brackish goby & puffer tank, 55g mixed reef, 6g Nanocube softy lps reef, 40B sps reef, 75g sps reef, 75g sps reef in bu Current Tank Info: 75g sps reef build in the works. Last edited by DesertReefT4r; 06/10/2018 at 02:28 PM.

04/02/2018, 07:03 PM	#51
jda Dogmatic Dinosaur Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 6,256	If it is not too late, I strongly suggest that you order some real live rock from blue zoo, livestock usa, or somewhere, and save yourself any possible headache of the dry rock.

04/02/2018, 08:44 PM	#54
jda Dogmatic Dinosaur Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 6,256	It won't happen. None of what you mentioned can survive the cycle of real live rock... it came in other ways. Unless you QT everything, they will make their way back in again. ...and if you QT correctly, then there is no pest difference between pacific rock and dry rock, so take advantage of the phosphate free and ready-to-contribute live rock. Good luck.

07/16/2018, 01:35 PM	#71
DesertReefT4r Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Mesa Az Posts: 771	Sad update. Woke up yesturday and went to feed the fish their morning meal and found my lubbock wrasse dead. No idea what happened. I saw him eating and was activly searching for food when I fed. I did not ever see any real aggression from the other fish and he did not look bet up when I removed him from the tank. He was a little thinner than when I got him and I notice he was not as active the day before. Maybe I did not feed enough but I feed 2 times a day generously. Could have been parasites so I will watch my fish closely. Already regret not setring up a qt tank. __________________ Tank history 29g tropical ,55g cichlid tank, 20H softy reef, 29g mixed reef, 20H brackish goby & puffer tank, 55g mixed reef, 6g Nanocube softy lps reef, 40B sps reef, 75g sps reef, 75g sps reef in bu Current Tank Info: 75g sps reef build in the works.