a definate work in progress . . .

[quicksilver]

Well here it goes. . . This is my first attempt at a reef tank. Here are some pics. Pls. let me know what i can improve on any opinion would gladly help.




http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01195.jpg

Jes got done ironing too. :P

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01196-1.jpg

Testing my lights that I ordered from gina's aquarium supply. Super Nova Extreme t5 4x39watts. 40 gallon tank I picked up from Og's

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01198.jpg

Here goes the cycle. I have about 55lbs of live rock (I wish i had known about this website when i started my fowlr tank, I would of saved a grip of money on rocks insted of going to PK or that other aquarium place in la mesa). and 60lbs of live sand.

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01205.jpg

In goes the fishes to help speed up the cycle.

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01216.jpg

First attempt to keep a coral in my tank.

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01215.jpg


http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t166/quicksilver_tank_shots/DSC01211.jpg

In goes everthing else from my fowlr 20 gallon. The only thing that really came from the 20 was the pair or b/w clown and live rock. i had crushed coral in my 20 gallon. Had a lot of advice to get rid of the crushed coral so i invested in 60lbs of live sand.

So far i have frogspawn(purchased from lth03), pink zoos and orange (purchased from row12), and xenia (pif from palemedes). If your selling any coral for cheap or would be interested in pif'ng me something that would be greatly appreciated and would definately help since my budget got a little streached.

Definately open to opinion, criticism and recomendations. . . pls take it easy this is my first attempt at a reef. I've had only fowlr and after gaining some experience with that i though i'd give reefin a shot. . .

[DaChrisDude]

How long has it been running now?

Very nice fish selection and rock arrangement, looks very nice.

What all equipment are you running? I see a CPR backpack, some sort of canister filter, and then another few hoses running over the sides... What are the other hoses for?

What medium(s) are you running in the canister filter? I would only suggest running water-polishers: ie carbon, chemi-pure, phosphate-pads, and your basic filter pad, etc... Let your LR do the biological filtration.

The first few pics show lots of algae on the rocks, but the more recent pics don't --apparantly you're doing something right, keep it up!

Tank looks very good. :)

[aznshyguycv]

looks great... maybe you can try using a turkey blaster and blasting your live rock so that nutrients and sand dont settle on it... like maybe twice a week would be good :) I kinda do it when i can... would love to do it everyday but its in la and im in sd :(

[quicksilver]

Yes, infact it is a cpr back pack, I also have a fluval 404 that has all activated carbon. I am also running a 9 watt coralife uv sterilizer (morning only). which is all the other hoses in the back it looks like a mess and believe me it is. Once i have some budget again i will be doing pluming, replacing my skimmer which is what roel has rocomended. I am also looking to do hob overflow so i can setup a sump. and ohh yeah its been running jes about 5 months in this tank. my fowlr was setup for about 6 months before i upgraded. . .

"water polishers: ie carbon, chemi-pure, phosphate-pads, and your basic filter pad" are these chemical additives ??

what exactly is turkey blasting??

thanks for your input. . . more will defiantely help

[aanntthhoonnyy]

Looks great..Loving that clown pair.

[row12]

hey Francis..im here to help bro..you can come over anytime you need help or advice since you aint too far..thanks, Roel

[aznshyguycv]

those are like little rocks that absorb impurites and usually come in little bags to add to the aquarium or you will have to buy a bag for it. The pads are just pads that you add to the system. Turkey blasting is so that no nutrient build up builds up on the rocks to allow for unfavorable algae growth. You get a turkey blaster and blast the rocks. neways off to class. :P

[iVgOnMaD]

Yes, infact it is a cpr back pack, I also have a fluval 404 that has all activated carbon. I am also running a 9 watt coralife uv sterilizer (morning only). which is all the other hoses in the back it looks like a mess and believe me it is. Once i have some budget again i will be doing pluming, replacing my skimmer which is what roel has rocomended. I am also looking to do hob overflow so i can setup a sump. and ohh yeah its been running jes about 5 months in this tank. my fowlr was setup for about 6 months before i upgraded. . .

"water polishers: ie carbon, chemi-pure, phosphate-pads, and your basic filter pad" are these chemical additives ??

what exactly is turkey blasting??

thanks for your input. . . more will defiantely help


:p No those are chemical filters. Chemical additives are the ones you use to keep your Calcium, Alkalinity, pH, Magnesium, etc, in the right levels.

Turkey Basters are used to spot feed corals/fish/anemones, blast rocks with water to clean them, cleaning corals without risk of fragging them, etc.

I have a Silicone BBQ basting brush that I use to clean my live rock and my tougher corals like Zoanthids, Leathers, and Clams with the soft silicone bristles causing no harm at all.

[seahorse_man]

Hey looks good so far but you can put the UV steriliver in-line on the return line of the fluval to get rid of those hoses and extra pump.:D

Also when you put the UV in-line you can use the extra pump for more flow to keep the rocks clean and help with the red slime algae.

[dc_909]

Do not do a HOB overflow. Being it is acrylic, just drill it. Also, get that cyano under control before putting anything else in tank.

patience, patience and more patience.

[quicksilver]

thank you all so far for your opinion.
aanntthhoonnyy they are a blast to watch. i think they might be spawning too (they like bang on each other and go on rocks and rub there belly and the male seems to always follow right behind the female and does it on the same rock she's rubbing her belly on), but what the heck do i know. . .=P
roel, definately will hold on to your number and give you a call as needed.
seahorse_man I think i will take your opinion and run my uv along with my fluval atleast until i get my sump going.
aznshygucv, ivgonmad, i will get to work on cleaning those rock and changing my filter on my fluval.
dc 909, i thought about drilling, but i think i would prefer to do the HOB overflow. And i will definately hold off on purchasing anything else bec. i don't have the money right now. . .lolZ

can i remove my fluval completely??? if yes can i take it off now or should i wait till i get my sump??

What additives are you all using??

Also I purchased a hammer from aw, but it died any idea why?? Had my water tested and everything tested fine everything in my tank is still alive. I haven't had any dieoff. . . this is actually happened twice. Evertime i buy something from a store it dies (aside from the fish), but when i purchase something from someone it does fine in my tank. . . any clue????

[iVgOnMaD]

Maybe you just had bad luck.

I use Fiji Gold and Kents Liquid Reactor.

[kinktao]

I see a few flaws in your system

1: you definitely don't have enough flow.

Second, it could be a cycle thing, not sure how long your tank has been up.

Third, acclimation is a big thing and corals that aren't acclimated properly go through shock and potentially die even if they don't show signs of it initally.

Lastly, do you top off your water regularly? I find that salinity fluctuation is the biggest problem. Even calcium and alk isn't that big of an issue considering you only have one coral.

[quicksilver]

Well i have taken care of flow. I added 2x214 powersweep. I had a 20g fowlr before i tranfered it over to this 40g. I slowly transfered some water over from the 20 gal to fulfil my 40 gal need. I figure is if tranfer 5-10 gallon of water a week from my existing setup i can shorten my cycle period. Also all the live rock came from the 20g. I typically acclimate an average of about 2 hrs. yes, i top off about once a week. I buy pre mixed saltwater from pk as i find it easier for me and closer then scripps.

[lth03]

Take the acrylic cover off your tank Francis,don't remove the Fluval 404 until you can replace it with a sump.I use tootbrush to brush off those deep purple algea with air bubble attach to the live rock,I don't think they are benefit anything IMO.
I definitely recommend to use some sort of refugium to mantain and balance all the chemical and biological in your tank.You will do way better with a refugium,maybe a HOB filter modified?

[aznshyguycv]

Well... he has some 'jumpers' or at leas tone obvious one... so yeah.. .maybe replace teh acrylic cover with an egg crate... i wouldnt leave the tank without a cover though... ;P

[lth03]

Remove these cover not only let more spectrum light go through,it also help to cool off the tank in summer time by evaporation.
How many of you guy running a reef tank with the cover on?
Egg crate seem like a good idea too but I don't have any fish in my tank try to jump out of water yet so should I need to put in on?

[Galeepley]

Nice tank! I can't wait to see it fully stocked!