My first reef - CADE 1200 S2/P

[Cthulukelele]

Added “Benny” the lawnmower blennie

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And “Mimi” the mimic tang (lemonpeel)

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Is that mimic tang as ridiculously tiny as it looks in the photo lol adorable

 

[findingsimple]

Is that mimic tang as ridiculously tiny as it looks in the photo lol adorable

Yeap it was absolutely tiny - cutest thing ever

 

[findingsimple]

Hmmm, I believe that model should fit. This guy was able to in his Cade 1200, take a look to see how he did it. u can see it around 7:30 mark

My sump/tank looks different to that one

 

[Cthulukelele]

Yeap it was absolutely tiny - cutest thing ever

Did it pass? If so sorry for your loss. Very juvenile tangs can be really hard to care for.

 

[findingsimple]

Did it pass? If so sorry for your loss. Very juvenile tangs can be really hard to care for.

Nope still going strong. It will be tank boss is my guess

 

[findingsimple]

@Super Fly

Still got the Refugium spot clear and ready to go for when it’s needed

 

[Super Fly]

@Super Fly

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Still got the Refugium spot clear and ready to go for when it’s needed

Wait a minute, is your Cade 1200 the Peninsula model?… which explains the different sump layout. Sorry, should’ve paid attention the ur thread title more closely. I was considering the Peninsula model myself bc they provide larger display volume but now gonna have to reconsider if the Clarisea doesnt fit into the sock chamber…bummer.
Glad I asked. Thx.

 

[findingsimple]

Tech update - tired of having to pull out and set up my RODI unit every time I’ve needed to top up my ATO reservoir….

I’ve done some rearranging and fixed the RODI unit to the wall near my tank and purchased and set up the Auto Aqua smart RODI RO unit to automatically manage filling the reservoir.

It should save me at least an hour or so each week making sure I have enough to top up my tanks.

I drilled some holes and plumbed it through the wall and outside as I don’t have any easy access to a tap.

 

[FreeEnergyReefer]

=== Table of Contents ===

* Diatom Bloom
* Cycle Considered Finished - added 2 Clowns + CUC
* Plumbed in Clarisea with Vectra s2
* Added lawnmower blennie + mimic tang
* Auto water changes using Versa
* Added first corals (a few small zoa frags)
* Added flame hawkfish and then moved him to separate tank
* Added some torches + dispar antheas
* Hitchhiker ID - tldr; bristleworms (separated post)

=====================


Posted my intro post, now here is my build thread.

I'll begin with where it is currently at....

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And then go back to the beginning....

My dad had large fresh water tanks when I was very little and I've always loved aquariums, the ocean and beach. Last year I was lucky to go snorkeling on the great barrier reef.

In December while I was taking a month leave from work I randomly got the crazy idea to spend some time investigating what it would take to set up a reef tank. One visit to my LFS and a day later I'd somehow ordered an Aquarium and a bunch of items I barely knew what to do with such as...

* CADE 1200 S2/P White
* Ecotech Vectra M2 Return Pump
* Deltec 600 Protein Skimmer
* ClariSea Roller Filter
* A couple Ai Hydra 32HD Reef LEDs + hanging kits
* A couple Nano 5 Powerheads
* Teco TK 1000 Chiller
* Sand
* A couple heaters

A week later all the items including the tank were delivered and I had the task ahead of me to build and figure out how the plumbing and all the bits and pieces work together (which was going to be a lot of fun - and a wee bit of stress)

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I had about a week to wait for an initial delivery of water so I started looking at Rocks and scaping. This was my initial attempt with an assortment of rock we purchased. I later decided I needed some more for the right.

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Water was eventually delivered. First time plumbing I only had 1 major issue leaving water spilling our of the weir onto the floor but the LFS staff quickly helped me figure out the issues.

Once full I had to go through the murky phase while things settled.

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I've since done some shuffling around in the sump, remove the clarisea while I wait for a new pump to get flow to it and added the refugium divider back in.

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Things I've learned / figuring out

* Water evaporates really - I mean really - quickly in this set up. I quickly realised I needed to go out and purchase an RO/DI unit and make use of the ATO. I ended up getting one of the Auto Aqua ATO duo controllers. It'll been working really well
* Protein skimmer is running a bit wet most of the time - I try to tweak but from what I can tell, due to the lack of stuff in the water this is probably expected and it is also braking in.
* The Clarisea doesn't really fit nicely connected to the main drain in this CADE so I've got a Vectra S2 on order that i'll use to pump from the sump into it and I'll leave the filter cups as well.
* I didn't think I needed the chiller - but on a few of the warmer days we've it has kicked in and turned on. The teco seems a little noisier that I was expecting - but maybe my expectations weren't right
* It's nice being able to run the pump, lights and power heads through the mobius app. The Vectra was a little frustrating during setup in that it resets to running max speed initially and I was not ready for it
* Water temp stability is pretty hard - what is considered stable?
* What little gadgets do people recommend for cable / pipe management in the sump

Next things on my list
* Get through cycling........killing me not having any fish at the moment. Cycling isn't going as I expected - I'll post on that seprately.
* Better setup for water parameter testing and monitoring - using API test kit and apparently that is not good.
* Setup clarisea fleece roller with pump
* Figure out salt water mixing and an auto water change system (looking at using a couple ecotech versas)
* Set up the Refugium

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Absolutely Fantastic Build you have here. I love the location,the peninsula,the power bars. Phenomenal!

 

[findingsimple]

Livestock update - My LFS is helping me round things out with a few fairy and flasher wrasse on order. The first have arrived and passed quarantine
* Red Eye Fairy Wrasse
* Carpenter Flasher Wrasse

 

[findingsimple]

Lost the red eye fairy wrasse to flukes - I think I've managed to limit the damage and got to the others in time

 

[findingsimple]

Aiptasia…

 

[findingsimple]

Collection of updates
* Got over the flukes and aiptasia :fingers-crossed: - no more losses thankfully - and thankfully not that many. Everyone happy and healthy
* Had a bad bacterial bloom (first one) which seemed to knock around ph and alk quite a bit - at the same time I lost (and continue to lose) some of my test Acros. Just happened all of a sudden.
* Added some carbon (in media bags to my sump) and as I'm not running a fuge at the moment I've set up a frag tank of sorts in my fuge area and have set it to run lights overnight - opposite to my DT. This appears to helping stabilize ph/alk. I've got a co2 reactor/scrubber on the way as well I will hook up to my skimmer. I should see a small bump in ph from this.
* After I got ph and alk back to normal I decided to check my light levels - found a LFS I could borrow a PAR meter from and discovered that my lights were horribly low PAR on my rocks - especially low for the Acros - which probably explains at least some of the acro deaths. This is quite frustrating to be honest - I really wish I found a part meter earlier or the LFS I got to helped set things up properly. Explains why my LPS were doing well at high positions in the tank though.
* So....I've adjusted lighting - all I could do was lower the lights over my DT Acros but that seems to result in much better PAR for the acros I have left in the DT
* All the parts I need for the battery backup for my return pump have arrived - so I'll be setting that up properly this week.

Video of tank towards the end of the bloom - you can see the light emphasizing the bloom on the right

 

[findingsimple]

I've been trying to get a culture/s of pods going in some of my spare Waterbox 10 cubes but not having any luck - however I'm finally seeing them pop up in my DT

 

[findingsimple]

Find your flow

 

[findingsimple]

 

[wdwilson9]

Tank lookin good!