ksfulk's Red Sea Reefer 525xL

[ksfulk]

In an effort to continue to shamelessly rip off @Broadfield - I continued working out the bits of the system that still needed attention. Namely, my Apex. It took my nearly all day to do this, which seems kinda sad really, but I had to take things off line a little bit at a time, as the Apex is/was keeping my old refugium going. I also needed to take care of the QT as well. Anyhow, the results of a whole day of working "under the hood" got me close to roughing out all of the control system. Granted, I still have quite a bit to do, as all I was able to do was get the modules mounted - its a rats nest behind those boards Fun thing I did see was the HUGE reduction of energy consumed. I have two EB8s, and each of which were pulling 8.1 - 9.4 amps each. I dont have my ATI on the one I hooked up tonight (which will continue to draw 8.1 amps when everythings fired up), but the other EB8, with everything on it is pulling only 3.3 amps! Should be interesting to see if the electric bill comes down next month too.

Anyhow, thanks all who have commented! I'll get more pictures tomorrow - my phone died, as I was using it as a flashlight for wiring most of today.

 

[ksfulk]

Pictures for Labor Day

 

[ksfulk]

Just a quick shot tonight of the rescue zoas from my fuge. They've been under a horticulture fixture and not doing so well in that setup. I pulled single polyps off and put them on fresh plugs to keep any unwanted things out of the new tank.

 

[john.m.cole3]

Dope tank! Glad you stuck it out. My fiance is kinda like yours in regards of not liking anything about this hobbu but she knows it makes me happy and allows it to exist in our lives. I catch her staring in the tank from her seat on the couch occasionally...! BUSTED!

 

[ksfulk]

Dope tank! Glad you stuck it out. My fiance is kinda like yours in regards of not liking anything about this hobbu but she knows it makes me happy and allows it to exist in our lives. I catch her staring in the tank from her seat on the couch occasionally...! BUSTED!

Thanks! Im slowly plugging along with things trying to get it all up and running. My wife thinks its a waste that the tank is up and running and just has water in it right now, when we have a bunch of colorful fish in the other room. Luckily, she knows that if the conversation goes any farther, she has to listen about the nitrogen cycle and about bacterial populations - which she doesnt like (really, I dont think many people do), so it generally stops there and I continue to tinker

I got the rest of my probes in yesterday and hooked up a new pH, ORP and salinity (conductivity) probes. Everything seems to be reading fine after calibration - now I just need to understand what they are telling me. (ORP seems to be a vexing subject). I also might have to build an air draw from outside, as the pH of the tank is pretty low (7.7) - but Im not sure if thats indicative of the CO2 in the air, or if its due to the water chemistry of a new tank. I'll monitor it and adjust as necessary.

Ive got a box from UniqueCorals waiting at FedEx for me once I get out of work today. The labor day sale was too good to pass up, so I procured the final few fishes that I want in the tank so they can begin QT procedures (small Naso tang (2"), a tailspot blennt, and a yellow clown goby. Got a few zoas and a monti that Ive been eyeballing for a while as well. Here's hoping that the tank can manage these few corals.

Ammonia has come and gone already. Nitrates are somewhere between 5 - 12 ppm based on the test kits. Looks like cycling the rock for several months + KZ start up = baby cycle. Im not entirely sold its done yet, as the diatoms havent showed up yet, but without much in the way of biologics, I think it might take a little longer than usual to show up.

 

[john.m.cole3]

Yeah man when people say, "but where is the filter?" I get all excited that they will also be interested in the biological forces that manage our tanks, but no... things get quiet and we change subjects, LOL!

I've tested ph 2 or 3 times, but the digital Hanna checker I have is a pain to calibrate and hold it's calibration. I shoot for good surface agitation and leave the front door open for a few minutes whenever I think about it or the flies and mosquitoes aren't too bad out. Maybe I should look into it more, but... life...

are you going to run a QT for your coral?

I'm a firm believer in bacteria in a bottle products. I had my nitrates shoot up to around 100 when I cycled my current tank with 50 lbs of rock from my old system and 50 lbs of dry rock. I also rinsed 40 lbs of live sand to cut down on silt clouds in my tank , so I don't know how my nitrates shot up. I did 3x 50% water changes over the course of 2 weeks to correct this issue while the 8 fish I transferred over were in there. How many fish are going in the tank from your holding tank?

 

[pelphrey]

Painting the plumbing really made the sump area look great!

 

[ksfulk]

Yeah man when people say, "but where is the filter?" I get all excited that they will also be interested in the biological forces that manage our tanks, but no... things get quiet and we change subjects, LOL!

I've tested ph 2 or 3 times, but the digital Hanna checker I have is a pain to calibrate and hold it's calibration. I shoot for good surface agitation and leave the front door open for a few minutes whenever I think about it or the flies and mosquitoes aren't too bad out. Maybe I should look into it more, but... life...

are you going to run a QT for your coral?

I'm a firm believer in bacteria in a bottle products. I had my nitrates shoot up to around 100 when I cycled my current tank with 50 lbs of rock from my old system and 50 lbs of dry rock. I also rinsed 40 lbs of live sand to cut down on silt clouds in my tank , so I don't know how my nitrates shot up. I did 3x 50% water changes over the course of 2 weeks to correct this issue while the 8 fish I transferred over were in there. How many fish are going in the tank from your holding tank?

My first degree is in marine biology (botany focus), so I get a bit more excited about these things than most people do - to the point where I simply expect the disappointment when they arent really interested. The challenge sometimes is to see how long you can draw it out!

Ive got my Apex monitoring pH, so I have an understanding of whats happening when. Its a nice tool to understand your tank stability. Without a fuge on this system, I expect their to be some variance between lights on and off, but there's basically nothing in the tank right now, so I expect that it will maintain a fairly level reading until I get some biologics in there. We keep our house closed up tight, as there are WAY too many random pollens in the Michigan summers to keep my allergies in check, and I hate walking through life with watery red eyes that wont stop weeping. Luckily, I think my solution is to run a piece of rigid air line through the wall and then tap into the dryer vent (which is a 3" pvc tube that leads outside), then run the line inside the dryer vent to the outside and just run it out the vent and pop a filter on the end of it. Should be relatively pain free - problem is I dont know exactly what the air draw on my skimmer is in relation to how much air can flow through the small diameter tubing. I might have to use a "Y" or something so the skimmer can pull in house and fresh air.

As for the corals, I'll set one up shortly - but Im still waiting on a few bits and pieces. I bought a kessil lamp off the forum here earlier this week, and Im planning on tearing down the old fuge (24" x 24" x 18" cube) and using that for coral QT. Unfortunately that wont happen until AFTER this shipment comes in, but Im planning on combing over these ones thoroughly before they go into the new tank. I might even use the ATO container to keep then in until I get the light next week. We'll see.

At this point, almost all of the fish in QT will be going into the 525. Im just in a holding pattern right now. Some of the fish are older and more established, so I dont want to give them free reign of a new tank and territory for the next 30-60 days before introducing some smaller less robust fish. Plus, they've already been in QT for 2 months, another month isnt going to hurt anything while the tank cycles. If anything, it lets me fatten up the new guys and focus them to deal with one another upfront, that way when they have swimming room, they are less likely to be jerks to one another. Lets see what I can recall thats in there right now:

Masked Swallowtail Angel (male): Genicanthus semifasciatus
*Swallowtail Angel (female): Genicanthus melanospilos
Lemarck's Angel (juvenille): Genicanthus lamarck
Copperbanded Butterfly (adult): Chelmon rostratus
Yellow Pyramid Butterfly (adult): Hemitaurichthys polylepis
Clownfish Pair (male 'phantom', female 'snowflake'): Amphiprion ocellaris
*Lyretail Anthia (female): Pseudanthias squamipinnis
Bartlett's Anthias (x3) (females currently): Pseudanthias bartlettorum
Carberryi Anthias (x2) (male & female): Nemanthias carberryi
*Resplendent Anthias (x3) (females currently): Pseudanthias pulcherrimus
Bangaii Cardnial (male): Pterapogon kauderni
Yellow eye Kole Tang (adult): Ctenochaetus strigosus
*Ornate Leopard Wrasee (female): Macropharyngodon ornatus
Flame wrasse (transitional): Cirrhilabrus jordani
*Linespot Flasher Wrasse (male): Paracheilinus lineopunctatus
*Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse (male): Paracheilinus carpenteri
*McCosker's Flasher Wrasse (male): Paracheilinus mccoskeri
* likely to be rehomed

Incoming:
Tail Spot Blenny: Ecsenius stigmatura
Yellow Clown Goby: Gobiodon okinawae
Naso Tang: Naso lituratus

To purchase
Black capped basslet: Gramma melacara
Sunburst or Fathead Anthia: Serranocirrhitus latus
Longfin Fairy Wrasse: Cirrhilabrus rubriventralis
Pintail Fairy Wrasse: Cirrhilabrus isosceles

Really, the to purchase list is dependant on what other livestock is rehomed.

Painting the plumbing really made the sump area look great!

Thanks! It came out really really good. I debated on going over the "Red Sea" logo in black/white on the knob, but I was tired of waiting at that point and figured no one else but me would care if I did it. Low reward for a huge pain in the butt. The white paint is coming off of the rubber screw cap on the lower right, but thats because I was moving the ATO reservoir around and I think I scraped it off. Nothing a white paint pen cant fix!

 

[MCooper]

loving it!

 

[ksfulk]

loving it!

Thanks! Im excited to see it come together.

I just spent the better part of the last 2.5 hours doing acclimation, dipping, gluing, water changes, etc etc etc. The order from @uniquecorals came in packaged amazingly,as per usual. All of the fishes got a 20 minute warm up then into the acclimation bucket. 15-20 minutes in the 5 gallon bucket, then into the QT acclimation box until tomorrow or the next day once all the fishes get used to one another.

The corals got a bit of a different treatment - getting acclimated, Bayer dipped for 10 minutes, double rinsed, pried off the original frag plugs, glued onto new ones, Bayer dipped once more, double rinsed, then into the tank. They were polyped out in the dips and look great even a few minutes in the new tank.

Bone head move from me though - I completely spaced that I bought a derasa clam. So he got his shell scrubbed off with a toothbrush and then into the tank as well. Its fully extended and reacting well to light and flow. No gaping, but we'll see how it looks tomorrow.

Little tufts of algae are starting to pop up on some of the rock, so thats a good sign. Still no ammonia, and nitrate is 5-12 ppm still, so consistency I suppose. I thought it was cool that Unique sent out the Blue Tang comic book that they are giving out at MACNA - made me a little sad that I didnt get to go this year, but I have this tank to play with instead, so I suppose as consolation prizes go, this one is pretty good

So - pictures! Oh and a short video showing off the new corals/clam.

 

[Patekphilippe]

Looking good

 

[ksfulk]

Spent some time working on the wiring and tidying things up in the "control cabinet". I got my DDR in the mail on Saturday and went to make some 2 part so I could play around with that thing, when I found out that I have two containers of Alk powder, but no Calcium powder :mad:

So - another order to BRS, and I thought about just ordering some more Calcium powder (which I did), but I've always been curious about trying ESV, since several reputable vendors I frequent use ESV for their SPS corals. So, I tossed the gallon packaging in my cart as well (and a Vertex dosing tube holder) and I'll have all of that on Wednesday. Thank god shipping is free at BRS!

Lost the Naso tang in QT - she was breathing heavy out of the bag, and though she lived the night in the acclimation box, when I let her out among the public in the QT, I found her a few hours later stuck to the MP10 . Luckily, Unique has an awesome 14 day guarantee, so I was issued a refund, but I'm still bummed about the fish. I think I was pushing the envelope with adding it anyhow, since they get so big, but there's a pretty healthy reef community around the area, so I knew I would be able to rehome without much issue.

That leads me to my next conundrum, do I pick up some of the wishlist fish, or should I just wait it out? Not sure what to do, I'm just trying my hardest to keep from ordering a bunch of corals with all of the great sales going on during the MACNA weekend. Anyhow, I have a bunch of stuff coming this week. Today started the bonanza - a new rear set of Giesemann bulbs. Not sure if I'm going to replace one at a time, or just do it all at once, since there aren't many things in the tank now. I'll likely replace one at a time over the next four days.

Tank is in the ugly phase now. Brown algae popping up everywhere, some hints of green are sprouting as well. Derasa doing great, fully extended and being awesome. I swear its like some kind of voodoo keeping these guys alive. I didn't help things by moving over the last of the salvage from my fuge this weekend. I dropped one of my rock nems right on the clam. I kept it from being pinched inside the clam, but the clam got stung a bit, the mantle a bit wrinkly in one place for the better part of Sunday. Anyhow, I moved five rock nems, a mini maxi and a small bowerbanki colony got put into the tank this weekend. They were all in the spot I wanted and attached right away - then this morning I realized I left the WAV pump off on that side (so I could place the nems) and I kicked it on from work. When I came home this evening, lo and behold, three of the nems moved away, while another one scooched into a crevice - figures!

Anyhow, did some testing tonight - Ammonia is 0, Nitrates are ~8ppm (between 5-10 on Red Sea and Nysos), Alkalinity 162 ppm (9.04 dKH), Calcium 455 ppm (a bit high). Did the first 10% water change on Sunday as well. Eventually I get around to testing Phosphate, but I just don't care at this point - gotta let the bacteria work a bit, you know?!? So, things are working. The KZ guide says I could add my first fish today but I'm waiting for them to all get through QT first. I picked up a few members for my CUC - a pair of trochus snails, a nassarius snail, an emerald crab, and a small pencil urchin. They all took to the algae with a gusto, so that's good. I have to source some additional trochus snails - just having a hard time spending $30 on shipping for $10 in snails Might just have to bite the bullet on that though, as I don't want to use turbos or astraea snails this time around. NO HERMITS either! In a month or more I'll pick up a conch or two and some sand sifting cukes and a few more nassarius snails. Maybe a cowrie and a chiton or three... I love those guys. I really want to steal some of the LFS stomatella snails from their coral prop tanks, but they wont sell them

 

[ksfulk]

Added a few goodies to the ol Apex for this tank, and finally got around to updating the labels on most of my outlets and tiles. I still need to calibrate my Conductivity probe, but it hasnt really been a priority yet, since I've been checking with my refractometer. Should get it all taken care of later this week, once I get the next box from BRS.

 

[revhtree]

Nice job!

 

[fishboys]

Nice. I have a S-650 sitting in my garage as we speak. Your build is getting me excited to start my build.

 

[ksfulk]

Nice. I have a S-650 sitting in my garage as we speak. Your build is getting me excited to start my build.

Those 650s are nice! Its so much fun building these tanks, that you tend to forget that there is about three months of waiting immediately following the rush first couple of days getting it all set up. Luckily theres enough "other" stuff to keep me busy between now and then. Word to the wise - blonde dog hair LOVES the neoprene on the tops of these stands... I have four blonde dog hairs that are sticking out from between the neoprene and the glass that I cant remove - it was driving me nuts until I cut them off with a razor blade. I still know they are there though...

 

[fishboys]

Feel lucky you still got your hair balls with you.

 

[ksfulk]

Well - today is day 14 and Ive been enjoying the past few days - watching the tank start to populate with life.

It was interesting to note that there was very very little algae in the tank in the past two weeks - practically nothing until Day 10ish where some brown algae started popping up. Day 11 I added 6 more trochus snails to help combat what was already being fought by the first couple of snails I put in there - boy those little critters really plow through the algae - not sure if its solely them or the pencil urchin too. Anyhow, Day 12 we were all kinds of brown in the tank - to the point where I used a toothbrush to scrub the frag plugs off so the corals didnt get covered. Yesterday when I got home from work and popped downstairs to play with the tank - everything was GREEN!

Not GHA green - but phyto green - neon green... greenest green Ive seen water in a long long time. I panicked a little, but when I noticed it was mostly the glass having been covered, I felt better. I scraped the glass, changed the filter socks and watched the clam pull in bits of algae into its siphon - that thing must work like a hoover - its more puffed up and extended than Ive seen it ever before. Kinda cool really. Anyhow, did some general daily maintenance, and figured out what my dosing strategy is after today going forward so I dont have to wing it.

Had to put a filter sock on the return for my carbon reactor, as the ROX started making its way through the filter sponges and into the sump. I netted out as much as I could, and then zip tied a little 4" sock to the end of the PVC. I've got to figure out something neater for that. The Deltec 1456 has been chugging along - finally started getting some skim up and over the throat and into the collection cup. Thick ring of discolored slime in there right now, but its still breaking in - once fish go in, Im sure it'll be working like a champ.

Does anyone with these Red Sea tanks have a skimmer collection container? I was spoiled with my bigger builds and used a 5 gallon bucket for my waste container. I dont have it anymore, but taking the head off the skimmer all the time seems kinda crummy. But there's not a whole lot of "extra" room in the sump cabinet, nor can the collector be too high, as the collection cup wouldnt drain. I'll have to figure something out for that - nothing like a little innovation to inspire laziness! I still kept the pressure switch and sensor from my last tank for this same reason, so I'll likely use it to hook up whatever work around I come up with this time to the Apex.

Fish are all doing well in QT, I really want to pick out a few more specimen to start working on, but I think that Im going to have to wait. Really for a few reasons. Right now, my @ArtFully Acrylic lid is set to be finished around the end of the month (maybe another two weeks?) and my fish should be through the full regimement of CP and another two rounds of PraziPro around October 3rd. Once I have the lid, I can think about stocking the tank, but if I pick up something else, the clock resets and no fishes in the purty tank until Halloween. *sigh* Always with the patience thing! Still, it will be good to take a break from QTing for a while, since winter is coming and the unfinished fish room/furnace room gets pretty cold once the snow flies. Not to mention that QT tank has been setup since June!

Im debating also on what sand sifters I want to pick up for this tank. I really like conch, as they are just cool to look at and do a good job pushing things around (they arent REALLY sand sifting I know, but thats where Im putting them). Ive always been wary of nassarius snails, as I was sold some whelks instead on my first tank, and Ive been gunshy ever since. No stars for me since they would just croak in this tank. Maybe a cuke? I dunno, Im more afraid to put a 3" cucumber in my tank than I am a $500 coral... Not sure what that says about me, but its just how Ive always felt.

 

[john.m.cole3]

I'm in the same boat as you looking for a good sand sifter. Orange diamond goby seems to destroy everything with sand that's even remotely close to the bottom. I've been stirring my sand bed daily and siphoning it w/ WCs.

 

[ksfulk]

Picked up nice looking torch coral on my way home this evening - I had a $40 reward to one of the local stores that expires this weekend, so I had to pick up something. I havent done euphyllia in my last couple of tanks, so its nice to get a nice one in this tank. I shot a couple of videos as I was just mesmerized by the tendrils moving around in the current. Its near hypnotic.

Anyhow, the seam on one of my holding tanks let loose and I had to move some livestock so they didnt end up flopping on the floor. Not a big deal - the corals went into the old fuge and the snails and conches got scrubbed with a toothbrush and then tossed in the tank. I also found another rock anemone attached to the floating macroalgae mass in my fuge - so it also went for a ride into the big kid tank too.

Did some maintenance-y stuff, 10 gallon water change, scraped algae off the walls, changed out filter socks (and overflowed my skimmer in the process!).