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MARCH 2007
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Mike P's 30 Gallon Reef
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My dad had several fish
tanks in the house as I grew up and I guess it wore off on me. I
started my first tank, a 55g freshwater, a few years ago. I found
I was always looking for something new. Soon I had three
freshwater tanks on the go. I had considered a marine tank but
always thought they were too complicated. Then about a year ago a
co-worker of mine was telling me how easy his 33g tank was to care
for. Soon after that I was converting my 30g into a saltwater
system. Now the addiction has really set in.
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System
My 30g tank has been running
since June 2006. I have two powerheads for flow, one 400gpg the other
200gph. I use two hang-on filters, one containing carbon and the
other live rock rubble. This tank runs without a sump, skimmer, or
refugium.
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Substrate is crushed coral and there is about 35 pounds of mixed
live rock.
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Tank
Chemistry
Specific Gravity: 1.025
Alkalinity: 10 dkH Calcium:
415ppm
Temperature: 80 F
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Water is
topped off manually every other day and 25% water
changes are done every couple of weeks. I supplement for
calcium, alkalinity, and iodine. I also use prime water
conditioner at every water top up and change. I feed the
tank every evening. I use NLS flake and pellet foods as
well as mysis shrimp, brine shrimp and seaweed sheets. I
target feed the anemones with a large piece of flake or
a turkey baster of mysis, the plate coral also gets
mysis every other day. I put phytoplankton in a few
times a week too.
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Lighting and Photoperiod
Lighting is one 55
watt 10000K power compact bulb which is a DIY set up. I
wanted to keep the canopy as it was so I gutted the original
lights and wired up a bulb and ballast I bought from a local
lighting store. Looking back I wish I would have gone with a
higher wattage bulb but the 55 watt has done quite well for
me. The lighting cycle is 12 hours, on at 10am off at 10pm.
Moonlight is one blue LED lamp that is on while the main
lights are off. |
Feeding
and Maintenance
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My favorite
thing to watch in the tank is the emerald crab that I bought
to take care of a little bubble algae. His antics really
crack me up sometimes. Like hitching a ride on the back of a
turbo snail to the top of the tank only to inadvertently
'skydive' back down when he falls off.
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I also like watching
the plate coral eat mysis in what seems like super slow
motion. The clown and anemone's are neat too, what an
interesting relationship. My kids think it's pretty weird
that he sleeps in there like it's a bed. |
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Tank Inhabitants
Fish- 1
percula clown, 1 yellow tang, and 1 mandarin goby.
Inverts-
one coral banded shrimp, one cleaner shrimp, one emerald crab, one pom
pom crab, one red fromia star. One 6 inch crocea clam, and two green
bubble tip anemones (I only had one until he recently decided he needed
company and cloned himself J).
Hermits and snails.
Coral-
(LPS, Softies, & 'Shrooms)
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Frogspawn
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Orange plate
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Favia
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Pom Pom
xenia
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Pulsing
xenia
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Kenya tree
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Finger
leather
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Green star
polyps
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Toadstool
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Green hairy
mushrooms
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Purple
mushrooms
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Zoos
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There
isn't much of a future for this tank. My next tank is a 190g reef,
some of its features will include metal halide lighting,
moonlights, a sump with built in refugium, skimmer, auto top off,
everything you've seen in my 30g and a whole lot more.
If I
have learned one thing it's to be patient. Research everything and
you will save time, money, and frustration. I'm glad I started out
with a small simple tank. I want to keep my next tank a simple as
possible. It will be a whole lot bigger and there will definitely
be more work involved but to me if I overdo it with equipment and
maintenance that isn't necessary it takes away from the fun of the
hobby. I've seen several large simple systems that work great and
I plan to model my 190g after them. I guess it boils down to how
much time and money you have and what you want to keep in your
tank. My 190g will hopefully look like a giant version of the 30g.
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Special thanks
I would like to send out
thanks to Canreef and all its members. I have received everything from
great advice to frags from fellow Canreefers. I would also like to
thank all the local Calgary fish stores.
-MikeP
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