Some Pics

[Kronk]

Figured I would post some pics of my little reef.

New Emerald crab he was snacking on algae seconds after i dropped him in. At that point i also noticed he was missing 3 Legs!

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/NewCrab007Large.jpg

I dont think he is used to the brightness of the metal halide, shrooms make a good umbrella apparently

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/NewCrab004.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/NewCrab002Large.jpg

[Kronk]

Fire shrimp doing what he does whatever that is?

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/Macroshots005.jpg

A decent macro shot of the Nem's texture

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/NorthernLights006Large.jpg

Yes the tank is on the floor... no i dont like that idea just waiting for the 65g. by the way this is one of the few times the cat even bothered to acknowledge the tank is there. And i keep the door closed... mostly

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/Silas021Large.jpg

[Kronk]

My reef when i first picked it up 2 years ago... used as you can tell. Who can believe it, i have been in the Hobby with a 20g for 2 years without upgrading is that a record?!?

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/NEWSWdirty006.jpg

A shot of my 10g Planted

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/11pufftank001Medium.jpg

My first aquarium 44g pentagon with cichlids i made the back of the tank out of concrete and styrofoam.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/BestPicMedium.jpg

[rocketlily]

Nice pictures. I really like the planted tank. I've been developing an interest in these lately. Is the back of the tank real rock or something else?

[Kronk]

Its a type of sandstone i found when hiking, its not heavy at all so i just siliconed it to the back of the tank.

[danny zubot]

I really like the back wall of the hex tank. It gives the tank a certain mysterious feeling. Very cool.

[Diana]

Nice pics! You should post your hex tank on malawimayhem.com (not sure if you're over there already ;) ). They would be very interested in how you made the background!

Cheers
-Diana and Raf

[Kronk]

I should have mentioned i sold the cichlid tank a while back. It was a pentagon shape 44g there are some DIY threads on cichlid forum (http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_list.php) that show some different ways of making those backgrounds. At the moment i am making my own live rock i will post some pics of that when i am done. It will be a long process though as its going to be a busy summer... here is one rock i made to test the batch the salt isnt disolved yet so it doesnt look porus

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/ROCK001Large.jpg

[BC Mosaic]

...... rock i made to test the batch the salt isnt disolved yet so it doesnt look porus

Sorry, but I don't understand.

Nice tank work there BTW.

[Kronk]

here is one rock i made to test the batch

The DIY rock is made with a number of different materials, i made one rock so that i could test the recipe.

the salt isnt disolved yet so it doesnt look porus

The rock has to be soaked in order to disolve the salt which i have not done yet. Once the salt disolves it will leave holes in the surface and interior of the rock. The pic makes it look like a solid block of concrete because the salt crystals kind of blend in. When the salt disolves the rock will look more like lavarock than a sidewalk.

[dsaundry]

Would like to know the recipe for the rock...:biggrin:
Did you figure out what it would cost per pound to make it?

[BC Mosaic]

What kind of cement are you using? It doesn't look like portland.

What kind of salt? Do you make "snowballs" of salt and place in the cement bit by bit as you cover over with cement and build your "rock"?

Water ratio to cement must be small in order to prevent the "snowballs" from melting before their time. Yes?

Intriguing. Good work.

[Kronk]

Dsaundry the recipe can be modified a lot its really whatever looks best i am using 2 part sand 2-cement 2-salt 1-Oyster shell. Some people dont use sand others dont use oyster shell. I am not sure what i paid per pound as i got the cement free from a fellow canreefer (thanks Rob) and the sand i picked up pretty cheap.

BC Mosaic the cement is white portland from Rona. The salt i am using is a mix of small salt used for de-icing the driveway and large chunks of water softening salt. Both types of salt are very resistant to disolving, almost too resistant. There are several methods of molding the rock most use sand to create molds and build on it like you said.

[Kronk]

Some update pics of the 20g i have nearly won my battle against the green hair algae. The tank is still on the floor of the rec room... I have abandoned the idea of getting a 65g as my job is getting more and more travel orientated and my wife has no interest in the hobby. I think i am going to build my own aquarium 30x15x19 i have always wanted to try it. Also any opinions on how many MH to have over a 30" long tank? I know the general rule is 1 per 2ft but i dont want to deal with the heat issues of having 2 MH.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/front.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/left.jpg
http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/right.jpg

[Snaz]

Are you using your custom LR? Which piece is it? Are you happy with how it came out?

[Kronk]

Its all still sitting in a bucket of water. Apparently you need to add a heater and some good flow to get the salt crystals to dissolve which i never did. And i kind of lost interest when i realized i want going to fit the 65g into the budget. I still plan on making another batch but its not a priority.

If you google aragocrete there are some good articles out there. There is even a powerpoint presentation video on youtube with the benefits of aragocrete.

[tang daddy]

for lighting on a 30" tank I would use 1 mh or t5 those are really your best options if you're looking for a cheap mh pm me cheers.

[Kronk]

Some update shots... I just had new windows installed in the house and had to move the tank. Only 20g but man it took a long time, I think i am going to stick with nano's as I seem to be moving the tank every 6 months. I actually bought a metal stand for the 20g but of course i forgot it down the coast and so the tank is still on the floor. Below the tank is a green sponge that is growing like mad and a macro shot of my candy cane eating.

Cheers.

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/IMG_0492.jpg

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/IMG_0490.jpg

http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k266/Kronk_01/jan09072.jpg

[BlueAbyss]

Looks awesome! I love the sponge, photosynthetic I assume?

[Kronk]

I dont think so, it was growing in the back corner of the tank out of the light until i had to move the tank so I think its a standard filter feeding sponge.

[Kronk]

Been a while since i have posted on the board here is a LINK (http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=55474) to a thread on my new tank build in progress...