JBJ RF-25 Nano Build

[anotherone]

Hey everyone!

I'm starting up my second tank and figured having a build thread going would be fun. I enjoy watching everyone else's progress, so why not give it a shot?

Regarding my "style" I try to keep things as minimal as I can. My goal is to keep things as stable as possible with as few pieces of equipment/products as possible. I'll be keeping mostly LPS and softies, with the occasional SPS if it'll be happy in my tank lol. I'll also be doing weekly 5-gallon water changes

I added water to the tank on January 22nd, 2024, so it's officially been running for 2 weeks. In terms of products and equipment for this build, see below:

Tank: RF-25 Rimless Flat Panel Aquarium & Stand (25 gallon) - black - JBJ
Light: Radion XR15 G6 Pro LED
Pump: VorTech MP10mQD
ATO: Duetto2 Dual - Sensor - XP Aqua
Heater: Eheim 70W
Lid: Top-lids custom
Salt: RedSea (blue)
Sand: 20 lb Fiji Pink Arag-Alive
Rock: some purple wet rock at my LFS (not live) - 25 lbs
Carbon: Chemi-pure elite
Biomedia: SeaChem Pond Matrix
Mechanical Media: BRS Filter Sock (4 x 8 inch)
RO System: BRS 150 GPD

Cycling:
I cycled this tank by using the FRITZ-Zyme Fishless Fuel, followed by the FRITZ-Zyme Turbo Start 900. My previous tank I cycled by using live rock, so this method was new to me. I tend to get nervous when trying something new, given I know what I did in the past had good results.

Anyways... on the first day, I added the Fishess Fuel and Turbo Start (whatever the measurements on the bottle said to do). I also added one of those little ammonia badges into the tank to keep an eye on the ammonia levels. By January 27th, the little badge was back to <0.02 ppm, so I did the same thing (added the Fishless Fuel and Turbo Start) again.

Now it's February 5th, and I'll have a pair of clownfish in the tank this week

Livestock:
In terms of livestock, this is what I plan on adding:

Fish-

• Pair of Percula clownfish
• Yasha Goby pair (undecided)
• Basslet of some sort (undecided)
• Trimma Gobies (undecided)

I wouldn't be adding all of those "undecided" fish. I'm just unsure which ones I'd want out of those. If you have any thoughts/ideas, I'd love to hear them!

Invertebrates-

• CUC (blue-legged hermit (x2), scarlet hermit (x1), trochus snail (x2))
• Randall's Pistol Shrimp
• Banded Coral Shrimp, Blue

I'll also add some pods this week to get those guys started.


But yeah, I think that's it. I'm sure I'm missing some stuff, so I'll make sure to add them as they pop up. Let me know if you have any questions! I'd be more than happy to answer them Below is a picture of my tank today. I'm letting the "ugly" algae grow so the CUC will have something to nosh on when they arrive. Thanks!!

 

[Macbalacano]

Nice set up! Following along!

 

[anotherone]

Nice set up! Following along!

Thank you!!

 

[anotherone]

Today was the day to add some livestock, finally lol.

I ordered all of these guys online, and the experience has been great so far. All the inverts came from Drreefsquarantinedfish.com, and the clownfish came from a breeder. Customer service was great, shipping was flawless, and everyone seems active and well so far. This is what I got:

• Percula clownfish (pair)
• CUC (blue-legged hermit (x2), scarlet hermit (x1), trochus snail (x2))
• Randall's Pistol Shrimp

I'll provide an update in the next couple of days on how everyone is doing

 

[Ben's Pico Reefing]

Looking good. Love the scape and layout.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Hey everyone!

I'm starting up my second tank and figured having a build thread going would be fun. I enjoy watching everyone else's progress, so why not give it a shot?

Regarding my "style" I try to keep things as minimal as I can. My goal is to keep things as stable as possible with as few pieces of equipment/products as possible. I'll be keeping mostly LPS and softies, with the occasional SPS if it'll be happy in my tank lol. I'll also be doing weekly 5-gallon water changes

I added water to the tank on January 22nd, 2024, so it's officially been running for 2 weeks. In terms of products and equipment for this build, see below:

Tank: RF-25 Rimless Flat Panel Aquarium & Stand (25 gallon) - black - JBJ
Light: Radion XR15 G6 Pro LED
Pump: VorTech MP10mQD
ATO: Duetto2 Dual - Sensor - XP Aqua
Heater: Eheim 70W
Lid: Top-lids custom
Salt: RedSea (blue)
Sand: 20 lb Fiji Pink Arag-Alive
Rock: some purple wet rock at my LFS (not live) - 25 lbs
Carbon: Chemi-pure elite
Biomedia: SeaChem Pond Matrix
Mechanical Media: BRS Filter Sock (4 x 8 inch)
RO System: BRS 150 GPD

Cycling:
I cycled this tank by using the FRITZ-Zyme Fishless Fuel, followed by the FRITZ-Zyme Turbo Start 900. My previous tank I cycled by using live rock, so this method was new to me. I tend to get nervous when trying something new, given I know what I did in the past had good results.

Anyways... on the first day, I added the Fishess Fuel and Turbo Start (whatever the measurements on the bottle said to do). I also added one of those little ammonia badges into the tank to keep an eye on the ammonia levels. By January 27th, the little badge was back to <0.02 ppm, so I did the same thing (added the Fishless Fuel and Turbo Start) again.

Now it's February 5th, and I'll have a pair of clownfish in the tank this week

Livestock:
In terms of livestock, this is what I plan on adding:

Fish-

• Pair of Percula clownfish
• Yasha Goby pair (undecided)
• Basslet of some sort (undecided)
• Trimma Gobies (undecided)

I wouldn't be adding all of those "undecided" fish. I'm just unsure which ones I'd want out of those. If you have any thoughts/ideas, I'd love to hear them!

Invertebrates-

• CUC (blue-legged hermit (x2), scarlet hermit (x1), trochus snail (x2))
• Randall's Pistol Shrimp
• Banded Coral Shrimp, Blue

I'll also add some pods this week to get those guys started.


But yeah, I think that's it. I'm sure I'm missing some stuff, so I'll make sure to add them as they pop up. Let me know if you have any questions! I'd be more than happy to answer them Below is a picture of my tank today. I'm letting the "ugly" algae grow so the CUC will have something to nosh on when they arrive. Thanks!!

Nice looking aquascape!

 

[anotherone]

Looking good. Love the scape and layout.

Thanks! Kind of hard to tell by that picture, but the rock in the front right is its own little island too

 

[anotherone]

Nice looking aquascape!

Thanks so much!!

 

[anotherone]

I've learned that I need to take a photography course of some sort lol...

Anyway, here are some pictures of the clowns I got in last week. I'm looking forward to getting some corals in the tank to practice my very amateur photography skills.

(If anybody has any tips on how to have these not come out blurry I'm all ears)

 

[anotherone]

Just hopping on to document the first coral inhabitant. It's still adjusting but hopefully, it'll look better tomorrow

 

[Matt2939]

Looks good. I’ve got similar size setup I am starting now.

 

[anotherone]

Looks good. I’ve got similar size setup I am starting now.

Thank you! I'd love to see pictures of yours

 

[anotherone]

Been a little bit...

The thought of organizing and gluing these corals down pains me lol. But here's a pic of the current mess:

So, for livestock, in order, I've added a clean-up crew (a couple of trochus and hermit crabs), pods, a pistol shrimp, a Dracula goby (which I have not seen since the day I dropped him in - 21FEB2024), a blue coral banded shrimp (21FEB2024), and three crocea clams (28FEB2024 and 02MAR2024). All of them seem to be doing well (except I don't know about the Dracula goby since he's MIA).

Regarding corals, I've added some torch corals, zoas, blastos, monitpora, and some mushrooms. Everyone seems to be doing well. Ignore the one grumpy torch in the photo... he's having a bad day.

 

[anotherone]

I may or may not have underestimated the size of these acanthos...

Regardless, the tank seems to be doing well. Organized the frags a bit, added a Donald Duck shrimp, and have just been keeping up on water changes every 1-1.5 weeks. Here are some pictures as of today during high blues: