TX’s Reef’s zoo med 50 gal lowboy

[Lgara1303]

for this size tank, it covers the whole thing entirely with plenty of power. I am able to grow SPS, LPS, soft corals and bubbletip anemones without issue in this tank, dimensions 48x24x12 inches. For a deeper tank, shadowing can be an issue. On my display, I also have the Kessil AP9x but with an added Orphek bar for additional coverage.

$350 is a great price, I'd definitely go for that.

This sounds great planning for mostly LPS but I know I will go into SPS have you tried acros in it.. But I can confirm I have talked him down to take 285 for that APX9 and a tunze chic refg light 285 plus two corals a frogspawn and a torch that hasn't been doing well for me for both of the lights I said. From what I've seen everyone loves the kessil and especially for the frag tanks. You aren't the only one using it to light the low boys. I think this just reassures me to go get it today.

How is it to set up anything like the AI setting if you're familiar I hear there is plenty of in app options with the kessil as well.

 

[TX_REEF]

This sounds great planning for mostly LPS but I know I will go into SPS have you tried acros in it.. But I can confirm I have talked him down to take 285 for that APX9 and a tunze chic refg light 285 plus two corals a frogspawn and a torch that hasn't been doing well for me for both of the lights I said. From what I've seen everyone loves the kessil and especially for the frag tanks. You aren't the only one using it to light the low boys. I think this just reassures me to go get it today.

How is it to set up anything like the AI setting if you're familiar I hear there is plenty of in app options with the kessil as well.

yes, It is growing acro frags just fine.

Setup is fairly easy with the app, unlimited options for controlling schedule, power, spectrum.

 

[TX_REEF]

The pod population in my frag tank has EXPLODED recently! The only change I’ve made is adding a dosing pump running kalkwasser. Wonder if there’s a correlation? Swiffer (my six-line wrasse) really needs to step his game up.

 

[Lgara1303]

The pod population in my frag tank has EXPLODED recently! The only change I’ve made is adding a dosing pump running kalkwasser. Wonder if there’s a correlation? Swiffer (my six-line wrasse) really needs to step his game up.

Great to hear... So you haven't done anything to help the Pod population, how about dosing any Phyto?

Just got live rock this week to help Cycle my low boy and got water mixing up hoping to add it this weekend and get the cycle going wish I had more media and stuff but my current Frag tank is only 12 gallons.

 

[TX_REEF]

Great to hear... So you haven't done anything to help the Pod population, how about dosing any Phyto?

Just got live rock this week to help Cycle my low boy and got water mixing up hoping to add it this weekend and get the cycle going wish I had more media and stuff but my current Frag tank is only 12 gallons.

Good call on the live rock!

Nope I haven’t dosed any phyto in this system.

 

[Lgara1303]

Good call on the live rock!

Nope I haven’t dosed any phyto in this system.

I’m suprised at how big the pods are in there then just be a healthy tank.

And yes, I knew I had to get some live rock like I said going from 12 gallons to a 90 gallon system. I have like two bags of media and two medium blocks that have been cycling and I’m gonna run some turbo start in there so hopefully that will start the cycle pretty quickly. Might ask you for some advice on the light once I have to set it up as I don’t know much about it.

 

[TX_REEF]

One of the porcelain crabs in my fuge molted and left a perfectly intact exoskeleton, pretty cool!

 

[Lgara1303]

One of the porcelain crabs in my fuge molted and left a perfectly intact exoskeleton, pretty cool!

That guy is pretty cool.
Any problems with him and any other inverts or fish.
Any problems with coral. I love looking for new inverts I love them

Picked up a Tuxedo urchin
3 sand conchs
3 halloween hermits
5 throcus snails
2 turbos yesterday for my display been dealing with some GHA so hope they get it under control.

 

[TX_REEF]

I added a fuge fish. Saw this guy at the LFS for a few weeks, decided he needed to live in my display refugium. His name is Zed.

 

[Lgara1303]

I added a fuge fish. Saw this guy at the LFS for a few weeks, decided he needed to live in my display refugium. His name is Zed.

Little damsel ?

 

[Lgara1303]

I added a fuge fish. Saw this guy at the LFS for a few weeks, decided he needed to live in my display refugium. His name is Zed.

Going to do a build on that reef casa? What you planning on lighting that with ?

 

[TX_REEF]

Little damsel ?

Yep, feisty little three stripe/humbug damsel

 

[TX_REEF]

Going to do a build on that reef casa? What you planning on lighting that with ?

I got 2 reefcasa 18s, on one I’m gonna use a reefi uno and on the other a xr15. Intention is to observe the difference between the two quite similar fixtures. Have to find the time and motivation to set them up…

 

[Lgara1303]

Yep, feisty little three stripe/humbug damsel

What made you choose a damsel for the fuge? Or was he just at the right place at the right time ?

 

[TX_REEF]

What made you choose a damsel for the fuge? Or was he just at the right place at the right time ?

I've always wanted one of those mean little three stripe damsels and figured solo in the fuge is the best way to keep him from being a bully, short of setting up a new tank just for him. I also just wanted more natural nutrients for my frags, and liven up the display fuge a little. He'll also theoretically help pick at any excess food that makes its way down to the fuge and provide physical waste for the inverts down there to snack on.

He is quite entertaining to watch!

 

[Lgara1303]

I've always wanted one of those mean little three stripe damsels and figured solo in the fuge is the best way to keep him from being a bully, short of setting up a new tank just for him. I also just wanted more natural nutrients for my frags, and liven up the display fuge a little. He'll also theoretically help pick at any excess food that makes its way down to the fuge and provide physical waste for the inverts down there to snack on.

He is quite entertaining to watch!

That is smart. So do you go out your way to feed him at all or just let the food get down to him for him to feed off?


I like the domino damsels they’re pretty cool but like you said are bullies

 

[TX_REEF]

That is smart. So do you go out your way to feed him at all or just let the food get down to him for him to feed off?


I like the domino damsels they’re pretty cool but like you said are bullies

I usually give him a little pinch of flake food around 8pm when the fuge lights come on because I'm a softy

 

[Lgara1303]

I usually give him a little pinch of flake food around 8pm when the fuge lights come on because I'm a softy

What is your Fuge Light schedule?

 

[TX_REEF]

What is your Fuge Light schedule?

8pm-8am and then also 2:30pm-3:00pm to supposedly prevent the caulerpa from going sexual.

 

[yPhye]

Looking good man, congrats!!

I finally got my stand done. I screwed up my back assembling it in place (had to, it's significantly taller than the door way) because I was so limited on space and it's pretty heavy. It's basically 2 full sheets of 3/4" plywood.... whatever that weighs. Anyway, it's done and I don't think I will ever build something like this again. I'm not a huge fan of the stacked tanks but I had no choice. I didn't have enough room to build out so I had to build up, lol. Still need to build lighting fixtures, put baffles in the sump, and do some simple plumbing and I'll be ready for water as well.

This is the current state of my man cave. Please ignore the mess!

Do you have a build thread of the cave?