Hello Everyone,
Just wanted to show off my new tank. I've had a few freshwater tanks but this is my first saltwater. I am from the Midwest but I love scuba diving and being on the beach. It's been a few years since I've been able to take a vacation. My family was supposed to go on a nice trip at the end of May but given the current situation, that trip was cancelled. I figured if I can't go to the ocean, I'll bring the ocean home. I'm also fortunate enough to have a job that allows me to work remotely, so I will be working from home for the next month or so while I get the tank set up.
I chose a Waterbox Marine AIO 40.2 for a few reason:
-I already have a freshwater Waterbox Clear Mini and I love it. I wanted to stick with Waterbox.
-I picked the largest tank size I could find that would still fit reasonably well in my house.
-From what I've seen, this is about as big as you can go without moving to a sump. I knew if I had a sump, I would be more tempted to "perfect it" and spend a lot more money. I'm a manufacturing engineer for industrial and agricultural machinery so it would be very easy (and expensive) for me to go overboard with automation.
-I wanted to set myself up for success to make sure this is a lifelong hobby.
I have been extremely happy with the tank and stand so far. Let me know if anyone is considering this tank and has questions.
Currently, the tank is on day 11 of a fishless cycle using Brightwell Microbacter. The ammonia has dropped and nitrites have spiked. Natrates have risen but I'm still waiting for the nitrites to drop.
I spent a lot of time on the rock structure. Since the tank is essentially a large cube, I wanted to take advantage of the depth and make a very dynamic rockscape that would give interesting views from all sides. I wanted there to be plenty of surface area for attaching corals while still leaving a lot of the sand open for inverts and bottom dwelling fish.
Below are some pictures of the progress so far with more to come soon!
Just wanted to show off my new tank. I've had a few freshwater tanks but this is my first saltwater. I am from the Midwest but I love scuba diving and being on the beach. It's been a few years since I've been able to take a vacation. My family was supposed to go on a nice trip at the end of May but given the current situation, that trip was cancelled. I figured if I can't go to the ocean, I'll bring the ocean home. I'm also fortunate enough to have a job that allows me to work remotely, so I will be working from home for the next month or so while I get the tank set up.
I chose a Waterbox Marine AIO 40.2 for a few reason:
-I already have a freshwater Waterbox Clear Mini and I love it. I wanted to stick with Waterbox.
-I picked the largest tank size I could find that would still fit reasonably well in my house.
-From what I've seen, this is about as big as you can go without moving to a sump. I knew if I had a sump, I would be more tempted to "perfect it" and spend a lot more money. I'm a manufacturing engineer for industrial and agricultural machinery so it would be very easy (and expensive) for me to go overboard with automation.
-I wanted to set myself up for success to make sure this is a lifelong hobby.
I have been extremely happy with the tank and stand so far. Let me know if anyone is considering this tank and has questions.
Currently, the tank is on day 11 of a fishless cycle using Brightwell Microbacter. The ammonia has dropped and nitrites have spiked. Natrates have risen but I'm still waiting for the nitrites to drop.
I spent a lot of time on the rock structure. Since the tank is essentially a large cube, I wanted to take advantage of the depth and make a very dynamic rockscape that would give interesting views from all sides. I wanted there to be plenty of surface area for attaching corals while still leaving a lot of the sand open for inverts and bottom dwelling fish.
Below are some pictures of the progress so far with more to come soon!
