New 25 Gallon lagoon set up 2024

[J A' mhuir]

Hey y’all,
I am starting a build thread, for my IM Nuvo 25 gallon lagoon. Set up tank May 24, 2024. Live in Buffalo, NY.

Specs and equipment: all bought new
Tank: Nuvo 25 gallon lagoon
Lights: One Nicrew HyperReef 100
Return pump: Stock (came with tank)
Powerhead: Nero 3
Heating: Helio PTC heating system 100w single element.
ATO: Duetto 2 ATO, 5 gallon bucket reservoir.

RO/DI unit: BRS 4 stage 75GPD with booster pump kit. Running at 80psi

Filtration: 1- filter sock, poly-fill, carbon, ceramic Bio-media balls
18lbs live rock
20lbs live sand
Hoping soon or after stocking fish to add micro-fuge.
Maybe protein skimmer, not sure.

Quarantine tank 10 gallon, simple set up. Cycling began 06/01/2024 today lol.

Tank mates so far: added 05/28/2024
2 - Scarlet Hermit crabs
1- Cerith snail: haven’t seen it since (06/01)
1- Astrea snail

Pics below of build so far

 

[taytay_1119]

Happy cycling!

 

[J A' mhuir]

Happy cycling!

Thank you

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/06/24 Added 2 clownfish
Tank parameters:
Ammonia: little to none, no discernible color, Salifert tests
Nitrate: under 2, hardly discernible (will need to do ultra low range)
Temperature: 78°
Salinity: 1.025 sg


I believe they are some variation of Saddleback? I don’t remember. They are captive bread. About 1.5 inches long (maybe not even that) at the fish store they were very active and speedy…. I thought it was important to choose active and perky fish. So I did!

The fish store is only 8 minutes from my home. So they didn’t have a long journey. A little after 1:00pm got home, I floated the bag in the tank to acclimate temp. Then I added a drip valve onto the end of a length of tubing, created the siphon and into a small bucket they went.
They were drip acclimated for 25 minutes total…. At which point the procedure was done. The salinity difference from the fish store to mine wasn’t that far off. Which is nice.

Then I left for work. Got home at 7:30 and checked in on them. All seems ok… won’t feed till tomorrow. Give them time to settle.

Interested to play with the lights, I need to get them set up anyway.

Every time I move rock, add rock, acclimate a fish bag, my return chamber water level plummets. Drops way below where I want it and I can’t get it back. The pump came with the tank. A mighty jet 360gph I think. I keep it at the lowest flow rate possible. I want to keep the flow rate higher so there is more water movement, so more filtration.

How do I raise the water level in the back chamber?! Do I need to buy a smaller pump??

Overall excited and the fish hang out at the bottom front of the tank, oddly.

 

[J A' mhuir]

Tonight or rather also today 6/7/24

I was very worried about the return chamber being so low…. So I added about a liter and a half of saltwater…. Mixed by hand and the temp was fine cause room is so hot…..

Reef to Reef jumped to the rescue with suggestions and thoughts…..

It seems I just needed more water!! Learning isn’t fun sometimes but I guess this was a simple problem after all….

I also removed some ceramic media and moved the heater to the section (right beside the left overflow) where I wanted the fuge to go. I’ll prob do a HOB fuge later on….

Pump is now going max and doing great!!

 

[J A' mhuir]

Today I see little copepods or Amphipods?? At least a large shed of some shrimp maybe?….. kinda hoping they are harmless….. I know the tiny white ones floating everywhere are harmless….

And of course I can’t resist a photo of Hermi…. So cute!!

 

[DDenny]

Looking good take it slow and be patient (easier said than done).

 

[J A' mhuir]

Looking good take it slow and be patient (easier said than done).

Thank you! I am trying to just let it do its thing….. it is hard to be patient.

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/13/24
Today I made a bold move (to some) and added corals to my tank.

I started with a vibrant orange colored Zoa, has one large head and two tiny. Of course I picked up a nice size GSP.

The local Aquarium store specializes in corals (A Reef Creation/TCK Corals) but selling most of their corals on their online store. They have a great selection of corals to choose from. I knew I wanted GSP cause it will flourish anywhere.

Zoas are just amazing. The color choices are endless.

The store is holding a Helfrick fire-fish for me. Picking it up Tuesday.

I got a new reservoir for my ATO. 2.5 gallon clear water dispenser from Walmart. That way I can see when I need to refill. And it leaves more room on the lower shelf of the stand.

I also noticed brown algae on the sand….

The light schedule I have starts at 1:30 PM, 5% white and 40% blue. 100 W Nicrew hyper reef lights. And ends at 10pm.

Water parameters have been stable. Nitrates have been around 5 to 10.
Salifert testing kits.

 

[DDenny]

Looking good can’t wait to see where this goes.

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/14/24
Today I changed some things around and added a rock structure that i am super excited about.

I changed the light scheduled to start ramping up from 12 PM to 1 PM and then start wrapping down from 9 PM and then lights off at 10 PM. 5% white and 40% blue.

I’m also noticing more of that gross brown algae on the sand bed. I have no idea what to do about it but tomorrow going to do a first water change.

The idea is to have GSP covering the top
Rock to look like “sea leaves” kinda like a reef bonsai tree and slowly add Zoas on the base and “trunk” or supporting piece.

Then I want to change around the existing rock, piled from left to right sloping down to the “tree rock” like a mountain with caves and crevices.

Then to have islands for species that need their own island. In the front as I kinda already do.

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/14/24

Ohhh, the corals legit opened up by this morning….. it’s so cool. They are stunning……

I also am trying to figure out what to do for fish food because my clown fish are being extremely picky with the pellets. I know I need to start transitioning them to fresh frozen meal. I kind of wanna make it myself as a chef. I feel like I can figure that out.

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/16/24

Today was a great day. A Reef Creation in Buffalo, held a Helfrich Fire-fish for me. I was supposed to pick it up Tuesday (6/18) but I got back into town sooner than I thought. I also had much more time Sunday afternoon to introduce the newest member to the tank. So I got it Sunday around 2pm. It is stunning!!

This will be the last of the fish I believe. I want to focus on corals. I didn’t want to introduce this Helfrich too much later than the clowns so they can sort out their territories now rather than later.

I temperature floated the bag in the DT. Then drip acclimated for 25 minutes I think. Made a liter of new saltwater to replace what was used for acclimation.

The Helfrich cost me $80.00. I also got some frozen fish food, to tide me over till I can maybe make my own mush meal for the fish. The FS gave me some shells for my hermit crabs. One moved into a new one right away. I boiled them in RO water before placing them randomly in the tank. It looks like a war zone .

The Helfrich took to the tank almost immediately. I fed them some of the frozen fish food and the clowns loved it. The Helfrich even ate a little bit.

Some pics below of the tank. I need a better camera to take photos.

 

[Northern Flicker]

you are doing great. I've got this tank too, one big struggle I had was finding aquascaping I really like. The reality is that these lagoon tanks really shine when seen from above, and it can be tough to find a scape that feels right from the front view.

Good luck dude. Looking forward to seeing it progress.

 

[MDAquatics]

Looking good!

 

[J A' mhuir]

Looking good!

Thank you!!

 

[J A' mhuir]

06/17/24
Tank is looking good! Fish are doing well. My helfrich is active and not shy so that’s wonderful… switched to frozen food which the clowns love…. Helfrich is a little shy of the food but hopefully over the next few days it’ll take to feeding….

The other day I found this brown feathery thing on the glass just above the sand bed…. I got it with a tweezer but it slipped out somehow and flew away. I wondered if it was Bryopsis.

Now today I find two of them, same thing just above the glass but on the opposite side from the first one sighted…. Ima turn off the pumps and try to remove them. Pics aren’t great but the shape is there…. They are golden brown color….

 

[J A' mhuir]

you are doing great. I've got this tank too, one big struggle I had was finding aquascaping I really like. The reality is that these lagoon tanks really shine when seen from above, and it can be tough to find a scape that feels right from the front view.

Good luck dude. Looking forward to seeing it progress.

Thank you, I appreciate you.
I also struggle with the scape…. It’s Just not quite right….. I guess it’s a work in progress…. They do look amazing from above….

 

[Townes_Van_Camp]

It's a great tank format. Yours looks great. It's hard to keep fish in.

 

[J A' mhuir]

I used my Hannah phosphate checker yesterday (6/16) and it read 0.28….. I did it just to get the hang of it…..

So today (6/17) I added a small pouch of GFO. See if that takes it down….