- Joined
- Jan 3, 2020
- Messages
- 27
- Reaction score
- 71
Hello reefers.
I've been doing my homework for a month or so and am at the point where I have a decent idea of the equipment and livestock that I want to get. I'm still a couple of months away from ordering the tank but thought I'd post everything here and see what kind of feedback the reef2reef community has for me. So here we go.
Tank - Waterbox Reef 70.2 (47.2 G DT|22G Sump|3G ATO) - I don't really have the room (or the cash) for a 4' or 6' tank so I'm going to go with the 2'x2' Reef 70.2 from Waterbox. Everyone seems to be pretty happy with quality of the tank and stand. It comes with the plumbing and a decent size sump (more on that later). ~69 gallons of total system volume seems like a good amount of water to protect me from my worst mistakes. And moving up to the next highest size (3' long) just means spending more $$$ in equipment but not enough really volume to be able to add more (i.e larger) fish (I'm sticking with softies and some LPS).
Lighting - Kessil A360X with wifi dongle - I think I prefer this one over the AI Prime 16HD because I'm not a big fan of the "disco effect" that the AI produces due to the fact that each led has it's own lens. It's unlikely that I will venture into SPS corals anytime soon but if I do then I will likely add in the Aquatic Life 24" Hybrid light.
Skimmer - NYOS Quantum 120 - Waterbox recommends this one. The reviews seem pretty positive. Anyone think I should stay from it? I am going to have a refugium set with macroalgae, copepods, etc so the skimmer will (hopefully) act as supplemental filtration. Also the skimmer chamber in the sump is only 7" wide so I'm not going to me able to fit anything much wider than this the Quantum 120. They only thing making me wonder if this is the best choice is the $400 price tag. Especially since I want to set up the refugium to do most of the filtering. Anyone have a recommendation that has a small (no more than 6 inch square footprint?
Sump - The tank comes with a 22 gallon sump. It's got and intake section and two filter sock compartments. Then a 7"x17.2" skimmer/reactor chamber that I plan on dividing into a 7"x7" skimmer section and a 10"x7" refugium. Gonna get the refugium starter kit from algae barn. Looks like I can also use that to cycle the tank.
Sump light - Tunze Eco Chic Refugium LED Light Fixture - I, of course, want the Kessil H380 ($300) but it seems overkill for the relatively small amount of room that I have for my refugium section. I like the Tunze because it attaches via a magnetic clamp which should allow to just attach it to the sump wall. I won't have to worry about a mount or bracket and it'll be easy to move out of the way whenever necessary.
Return pump - Vectra S2 - Waterbox recommends it for the Reef 70.2. Everyone seems to love it. It supports a battery backup. Enough said.
Powerhead - Vortech MP10 - I think it will be perfect for a 2'x2' cube. Everyone seems to love it. It supports a battery backup. Enough said.
Battery Backup - EcoTech Marine Vortech Battery Backup - No explanation needed.
Heater - Colbalt Aquatics 300W plus a cheaper backup heater - Get a reliable heater! they said. Add a cheaper back up cause heaters fail! they said. I listened.
ATO - Tunze Osmolator Universal 3155 - According to the boys at BRS, this is the one to get. So I'm getting it.
RO/DI Unit - BRS 6 Stage 75 gallon/day unit - Seems prudent.
Salt Mix - Tropic Marine Pro - According to BRS testing, it's the fastest to dissolve, the most consistent from top to bottom and the least impurities. Sounds good to me!
Rock & Substrate - Pukani dry rock & Carib Sea FIJI Pink Arag Alive! - I like the pukani cause all those cracks and crevices will provide lots of living for amphipods and copepods (I'm almost certainly getting a Mandarin at some point so a thriving copepod population is a must). Need the finer (but not to fine) sand will be for the gobies.
Curing dry rock - about a month before I order the tank, I'll start curing the rock using the bleach method. That way it'll be ready and (possibly "live") when the tank arrives. This should reduce cycling time dramatically.
Quarantine - About the same time that I start curing the rock, I will set up the RO/DI unit and a 10 gallon QT tank for fish. That way I'll have the first fish ready to go (fingers crossed). I will do the same for coral once the fish look like they are settled into quarantine. I figure this way, I'm not overwhelming myself. I'm used to freshwater tanks, where losing the occasional plant or fish is (financially) no big deal. This saltwater **** is expensive!
Fish - I found a really interesting article that talks about stocking levels and the best way to introduce fish into their new home. With that in mind, after the obligatory introduction of Picasso Clownfish (shut up) as soon as the tank is cycled, I will over time add the following:
Ok. That's that. What am I missing? Let me know what you think.
I've been doing my homework for a month or so and am at the point where I have a decent idea of the equipment and livestock that I want to get. I'm still a couple of months away from ordering the tank but thought I'd post everything here and see what kind of feedback the reef2reef community has for me. So here we go.
Tank - Waterbox Reef 70.2 (47.2 G DT|22G Sump|3G ATO) - I don't really have the room (or the cash) for a 4' or 6' tank so I'm going to go with the 2'x2' Reef 70.2 from Waterbox. Everyone seems to be pretty happy with quality of the tank and stand. It comes with the plumbing and a decent size sump (more on that later). ~69 gallons of total system volume seems like a good amount of water to protect me from my worst mistakes. And moving up to the next highest size (3' long) just means spending more $$$ in equipment but not enough really volume to be able to add more (i.e larger) fish (I'm sticking with softies and some LPS).
Lighting - Kessil A360X with wifi dongle - I think I prefer this one over the AI Prime 16HD because I'm not a big fan of the "disco effect" that the AI produces due to the fact that each led has it's own lens. It's unlikely that I will venture into SPS corals anytime soon but if I do then I will likely add in the Aquatic Life 24" Hybrid light.
Skimmer - NYOS Quantum 120 - Waterbox recommends this one. The reviews seem pretty positive. Anyone think I should stay from it? I am going to have a refugium set with macroalgae, copepods, etc so the skimmer will (hopefully) act as supplemental filtration. Also the skimmer chamber in the sump is only 7" wide so I'm not going to me able to fit anything much wider than this the Quantum 120. They only thing making me wonder if this is the best choice is the $400 price tag. Especially since I want to set up the refugium to do most of the filtering. Anyone have a recommendation that has a small (no more than 6 inch square footprint?
Sump - The tank comes with a 22 gallon sump. It's got and intake section and two filter sock compartments. Then a 7"x17.2" skimmer/reactor chamber that I plan on dividing into a 7"x7" skimmer section and a 10"x7" refugium. Gonna get the refugium starter kit from algae barn. Looks like I can also use that to cycle the tank.
Sump light - Tunze Eco Chic Refugium LED Light Fixture - I, of course, want the Kessil H380 ($300) but it seems overkill for the relatively small amount of room that I have for my refugium section. I like the Tunze because it attaches via a magnetic clamp which should allow to just attach it to the sump wall. I won't have to worry about a mount or bracket and it'll be easy to move out of the way whenever necessary.
Return pump - Vectra S2 - Waterbox recommends it for the Reef 70.2. Everyone seems to love it. It supports a battery backup. Enough said.
Powerhead - Vortech MP10 - I think it will be perfect for a 2'x2' cube. Everyone seems to love it. It supports a battery backup. Enough said.
Battery Backup - EcoTech Marine Vortech Battery Backup - No explanation needed.
Heater - Colbalt Aquatics 300W plus a cheaper backup heater - Get a reliable heater! they said. Add a cheaper back up cause heaters fail! they said. I listened.
ATO - Tunze Osmolator Universal 3155 - According to the boys at BRS, this is the one to get. So I'm getting it.
RO/DI Unit - BRS 6 Stage 75 gallon/day unit - Seems prudent.
Salt Mix - Tropic Marine Pro - According to BRS testing, it's the fastest to dissolve, the most consistent from top to bottom and the least impurities. Sounds good to me!
Rock & Substrate - Pukani dry rock & Carib Sea FIJI Pink Arag Alive! - I like the pukani cause all those cracks and crevices will provide lots of living for amphipods and copepods (I'm almost certainly getting a Mandarin at some point so a thriving copepod population is a must). Need the finer (but not to fine) sand will be for the gobies.
Curing dry rock - about a month before I order the tank, I'll start curing the rock using the bleach method. That way it'll be ready and (possibly "live") when the tank arrives. This should reduce cycling time dramatically.
Quarantine - About the same time that I start curing the rock, I will set up the RO/DI unit and a 10 gallon QT tank for fish. That way I'll have the first fish ready to go (fingers crossed). I will do the same for coral once the fish look like they are settled into quarantine. I figure this way, I'm not overwhelming myself. I'm used to freshwater tanks, where losing the occasional plant or fish is (financially) no big deal. This saltwater **** is expensive!
Fish - I found a really interesting article that talks about stocking levels and the best way to introduce fish into their new home. With that in mind, after the obligatory introduction of Picasso Clownfish (shut up) as soon as the tank is cycled, I will over time add the following:
1 Orange stripe Prawn Goby
1 Tiger Pistol shrimp
2 Chalk Bass
1 Royal Gramma Basslet
Once those are settled in:1 Lawnmower blenny
2 firefish
1 Naoki's Fairy Wrasse
Coral - I'm not far enough along to know exactly which corals I want but I do know that it's going to be mostly softies and polyps with a few LPS corals.Ok. That's that. What am I missing? Let me know what you think.
