BuddhaReef's Reefhab Waterbox 60.2

[BuddhaReef]

A really really dope wild colony I snagged from the shop. There are 2 acro crabs that live in this piece.

Notice behind, the 2 stumps of digi. They are happy accidents from the digi in the picture above. I have accidentally fragged that little piece about 10 times, and it just keeps growing like a weed. I actually think it is going to be an issue soon.

A keen eye will see a bleached deep water acro just above the colony and below the digis. A week ago, our AC broke in our house and it was a few days before we were able to have it repaired. This is the only piece that struggled, and I imagine it just likes cooler water and the spike up to 83⁰ was too much. Fingers crossed at least a polyp made it, but we will see.

 

[BuddhaReef]

My OG clam is in this shot, a small crocea. It has grown about a half an inch in the past few months, and has a dope turquoise purple color when observed from the top. You'll also notice another digi frag, from the same mother piece two pictures up.

You can see the stylo is pretty happy, almost twice as large since the last picture in this thread.

Other things of note in this picture; a Garf Bonsai that has literally done nothing, a Jake Adams Crystal experiment monti, a green shaggy tenius behind another TSA acro stub puddler. Tucked behind on the left are a peach and purple digi, hoping they'll grow and mingle a bit.

 

[BuddhaReef]

A side view, to hopefully show you how sticky this will be in a few months. The big antler shaped digi i saved from about 20 polyps, and has now about doubled in size.

There is an encrusting monti on the side that just never got with the program (being forcefed light and flow basically) but there are a few polyps, so I leave it be.

Also hoping that pocci doesn't start spitting babies off, but who knows!

 

[BuddhaReef]

The other seriatapora corner, I guess? The BoP has exploded, and the basic green one has finally got on track, took a while for it to be used the high flow and light it was receiving.

You may notice one of my rock flowers took a walk, and that's cool, because it's just as happy back in the corner as it was in the front.

You might notice the cloudberry chalice towards the left, been very happy with it's growth and coloration, a really cool piece.

Also, a poor highlighter goni that I've just been shredding in flow and light, but it's never closed and is slowly growing, so I leave that too!

 

[BuddhaReef]

Last one for now, promise. My OG Maxima, about 6 months in the tank and a lot bigger!

For whatever reason, I put an elegance in, and much to my suprise it has been as happy as, well, a clam!

Some other cool things in this shot, a plasma blast anacro, a green digi, and the WWC firewalker monti cap. Also, a cool purple smooth skin frag, and my Tuxedo with his GSP hat!

 

[BuddhaReef]

I lied. Quick fuzzy stick.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Last one for now, promise. My OG Maxima, about 6 months in the tank and a lot bigger!

For whatever reason, I put an elegance in, and much to my suprise it has been as happy as, well, a clam!

Some other cool things in this shot, a plasma blast anacro, a green digi, and the WWC firewalker monti cap. Also, a cool purple smooth skin frag, and my Tuxedo with his GSP hat!

Clam is looking great!

 

[BuddhaReef]

Clam is looking great!

Thanks! I just blast it with light, and it's been happy! It has been slightly changing its mantle color and pigmentation, I'm assuming it is regulating its zooxanthelle in response to the high light.

Also, I love clams. I have 4 Maximas in my tank currently, and the Crocea.

 

[AquaReefsTV]

Hello Reef2Reef!

This will be a thread about (and to document) my Waterbox 60.2. I started reefing about 8 years ago with a 5g pico reef. A few tanks between then and now, and I have had my Waterbox 60.2 running for about 3 years, with rock from my original setups!

Due to life challenges, equipment challenges, hurricanes, and poor life choices, it fell into disrepair.

In the past 6 months, I have quit drinking, and got a new job (coincidentally at a LFS,) which has reignited my passion and care for my tank. Here is a GIF of a few months of reef rehabilitation:

And, here is the tank today:

This tank is still a work in progress, but I am happy with how far it has come, and look forward to how far it can go!



Equipment:

• Waterbox 60.2 Marine X
• Sicce Silent 3.0 return (liars!)
• Radion XR15 Blue G6
• Hygger 30w LED (supplemental, Radion is a little weak!)
• Nero 5 and Nero 3 running phased pulse
• Jeabo SOW wavemaker through the rocks
• Klir DI-4 fleece roller
• Reef Octopus 110-int Classic
• TLF Phosban 150 reactor running GFO
• IceCap small CO2 scrubber
• Aquatop internal UV sterilizer
• Heater with controller, and fan run through Inkbird
• Jeabo doser

Fish

• Pair of clowns
• Firefish
• Royal Gramma
• Blue Green Chromis
• Springeri Dottyback
• Mandarin dragonet
• Pair of baby Benggai cardinals

Inverts and CUC

• Pincushion urchin
• Tuxedo urchin
• 10 astrea snails
• 10 throchus snails
• 10 Blue leg hermits
• 3 Mexican turbos
• 1 cleaner shrimp

Corals and clams

• Small Crocea clam
• Medium Maxima clam
• Lots of Montipora digitata
• A few Monti. caps
• A couple encrusting Montis
• A couple Stylophoras
• A couple Seriatoporas
• A few Acroporas and Milleporas
• Assorted zoas
• One big Chalice
• One Goniopora
• One Frogspawn
• One Hammer
• A few Cyphastrea

Trials and tribulations

When I started my rehab (of the tank!), I was battling NO3 in the 180ppm range, and it was riddled with hair algea. A few months of 50% water changes, GFO sucking PO4 out of my rock and sand, manual removal, and ravenous herbivores, I believe I have gotten the upper hand on both high nutrients, and pest algea!

Equipment wise, I started this tank with an IceCap K1 skimmer that I could never dial in, and chinese black box lights that I either roasted, or underlit coral. I also used crappy powerheads with no adjustability, and probably did not have enough flow through my display. Over the last 6 months, I have upgraded to the equipment above, and have also started controlling temperature better, as I had been running at 81⁰!

Current chemistry, issues, and methodology

As of today, my numbers look like:
35ppt Salinity
NO3 21.2
PO4 .03
Alk 8.7
Ca 430
Mg 1380

I setup my Radion, and with it decided to turn the tank into an SPS dominant display. After adding some more light intensive inhabitants, notably the Crocea and some Acros, I decided to PAR map my tank. To my suprise, I was barely pushing 250 PAR at the top of my rocks with the Radion pushing AB+ at 99%!! I decided to add 2 cheap 30w amazon LEDs, and am now pushing a comfortable 400 at the top of my rocks.

The one down/upside of the Radion, is that it pushes an INCREDIBLY even spread throughout my 24" x 19" x 19" display. No spot on my rocks, even before supplemental lighting, is under 150 PAR, and as such I have run into issues with corals such as Cyphastrea. As far as I have been able to tell, Cyphastrea is the only species that I am having issues with in my tank so far.

My current methodology is slow changes, and stability as a key. I am fine with my NO3 and PO4 levels where they are, and I believe the nutrients support my high lighting and flow. I do about 10% water changes weekly, and dose Alk, Ca, and NoPox through a doser, and I top Mg monthly (thanks RMM!)

I have my Neros blasting 100% with child and parent pulse settings, with the Nero 3 chasing the Nero 5 at a 90⁰ phase. I use the old Jeabo to bring flow through the back of my rock work. My Radion blast 99% AB+, with my supplemental lights on for about 7 hours to up the peak photoperoid.

Phew, if you made it this far, thanks!! I'll keep this thread updated, I'll post some of my favorite inhabitants, give you all a sneak peak of the perks of working at the LFS!

Hello! I have a Waterbox 60.2 as well and recently put my Klir Di-4 fleece roller in the filter sock tray. I noticed that some water bypasses the sock tray. Is this normal, or is there a way to position the fleece roller to prevent this?

 

[BuddhaReef]

Hello! I have a Waterbox 60.2 as well and recently put my Klir Di-4 fleece roller in the filter sock tray. I noticed that some water bypasses the sock tray. Is this normal, or is there a way to position the fleece roller to prevent this?

So which way do you have the roller orientated? The way I run mine is to have the opening of the roller face the flow of the water.

 

[BuddhaReef]

Top down before a water change! Never really get to see this!
Picked up some new friends today, as well. Can't wait to share.

 

[BuddhaReef]

andddd I found monti eating nudibranchs... good thing there isn't a lot of monti in my tank!

oh.. wait... yeah there's a lot..

 

[BuddhaReef]

New, beautiful Deresa clam!

 

[BuddhaReef]

So, I am pretty flummoxed about my Montipora Eating Nudibranch problem. As you can see, I have lots of montis, and they all look very happy! That MEN was on a nice spongodes frag that I had let fall into my elegance, and I assumed it had RTN'd from being stung, so I left it for a few days on the sand.

When I picked it up today, there was a healthy patch of tissue and polyps on the underside. This is where the MEN was.

What I originally saw ^.

 

[BuddhaReef]

I did a cursory check on all my other monti's and as far as I could see, there were no active MENs and no visible damage I could see.

I have not added coral for almost 3 weeks, before today, and it wasn't even a montipora. I dip everything that goes in, but I guess I neglected the basting on a piece at some point. Does anyone think I could have had MENs for 3 weeks and only just now noticed one, and at that only because I checked a frag that was upside down on the sand?

This leads to my predicament, I have a lot of monti. To pull it all and chip off what's encrusted will be... work. I could make room for a corris or lined wrasse, but at best I'd just be keeping them at bay. Would love any insight from reefers who have dealt with this before.

 

[AquaReefsTV]

So which way do you have the roller orientated? The way I run mine is to have the opening of the roller face the flow of the water.

Well if this makes sense I have my roller positioned in which the motorhead is facing the side closest to the plumbing. Waterbox mentioned to me that it's normal for some water to bypass the sock tray. But my question is, would the water level still rise as the roll gets dirty despite some water passing through?

 

[BuddhaReef]

Well if this makes sense I have my roller positioned in which the motorhead is facing the side closest to the plumbing. Waterbox mentioned to me that it's normal for some water to bypass the sock tray. But my question is, would the water level still rise as the roll gets dirty despite some water passing through?

Hm... I don't have much/any water bypassing the sock tray, although I'm sure some water goes around the Klir, the water level still rises naturally. What return pump are you using? How high is the water level in your sump?

 

[BuddhaReef]

Here's a quick video from a couple weeks ago. Tank is booming right now, and I'm doing less to it than I have ever done.

I have switched up my dosing regimen, and am now dosing Reef Pro part A and B, Acropower, Nopox, phytoplankton, and a tailored Isol8 Trace element cocktail.

I have changed about 10 gallons in the last 3 months.

 

[BuddhaReef]

FTS without the lens. Going to start having to trim some things soon.

 

[BuddhaReef]

As you can see, I ended up not doing anything more for the MENs than adding a 6-line. In the end, I'm glad I didn't rip everything out to dip and treat, but rather kept my tank stable and healthy to help the Montis fight the nudis with the help of the wrasse.

In the meantime of the MENs, I found ANOTHER type of nudibranch!!! This, I believe to be the Tritonia welsi, or diamond back nudibranch, or gorgonian eating nudibranch.

This is what I saw on initial discovery:

There were about 7 on this Gorg in total, with about 3 egg clutches. After removing the nudis and eggs from the gorg, it did a good full shed, and has been in great health since.