badAZZlars' 125 sps reef build (Updated FTS)

[badAZZlars]

So i'm back in the hobby after a ten year absense and am really excited to get back into things. It's pretty cool to see how things have changed in the hobby with the new higher tech equipment you can buy and what seems to be easier access to high or ultra grade corals.

When I was in the hobby before I was living in Nanaimo BC but had to shut things down when I moved to Alberta to go to school. My tank was a 60 gallon softie/lps. I always loved the look of the sps tanks but there was little to no access to nice sps corals at that time on Vancouver island.

Ten years later and now living in Calgary I can't believe how easy it is to find amazingly colorful corals whether it be from other hobbyists or from LFS or the internet.

So after doing much research and reading many posts on canreef and reef central I started to piece together my plans to assemble a rimless 125g tank.

Here's the details:

Tank
Starfire 60X24X20 high rimless
Built by concept aquariums based on positive posts read here on canreef.

Sump
48X20X20
Multi chamber with fuge and baffles
Built by Concept Aquariums

Stand
31" high tubular metal stand built by form member "The Grizz"
I plan to get a wooden facade built to wrap around the metal stand

Lighting
Hamilton Cebu Sun 3X250W MH/4X96W Actinic/Moonlight LED's
I plan to hang this fixture from the ceiling but am just going to start with the mounting legs.
JL Aquatics

Skimmer
Bubble Magus 180CS
Awesome deal from Concept Aquariums on this skimmer

Power heads/Wave Maker
2X Vortech MP40W es
Awesome deal from Concept Aquariums on these pumps

Return Pump
Magdrive 18

Base Rock
I bought 150lbs of base rock from eco-reefer
I'm really happy with this rock and how it stacks

Live Rock
I bought 50lbs of fiji live rock off of a canreef member after a tank shut down. This will be used to seed the base rock.

Dosing/Top up
I plan to do two part dosing, I bought the "large" package from BRS to get started with this.
I plan to buy a 4 pump profilux dosing pump in the near future to automate dosing and top up

Carbon/GFO
I bought the double canister from BRS to house the carbon and GFO

Sand
80 lbs Caribsea aragalive seeded with 40lbs of live sand.

RO/DI
Vertex 100gpd

I should have some pictures up tonight as the tank has been delivered and I am just starting the build.

[mws]

Welcome back to the hobby! This will be a nice looking system.
Looking forward to see some pictures.

[fishytime]

^^^ditto^^^.....and welcome to canreef too......your right....there is a lot of sweet sps here in Cowtown.....

[eli@fijireefrock.com]

welcome to canreef
you seem to be on the right track for an awesome tank outcome.

[badAZZlars]

Thanks for the welcome remarks. I'm really excited to get things setup and get some life in the tank.

[badAZZlars]

Stand
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/picture.php?albumid=505&pictureid=4099

Stand with ply
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/picture.php?albumid=505&pictureid=4100

Boy in tank
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/picture.php?albumid=505&pictureid=4101

Tank
http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/picture.php?albumid=505&pictureid=4102

[badAZZlars]

Got the sump delivered tonight. Need to wait a week before running in in the system as it was just completed yesterday and the silicon needs time to setup.

Should give me lots of time to get the plumbing setup. I'm going to try full pvc setup with no flexible tubing. This will be my first crack at it so hopefully it goes ok.

[eli@fijireefrock.com]

Good luck with the plumbing.
Remember measure twice cut ounce.:wink:

[badAZZlars]

This is an initial shot at getting the base aquascaping in. The end result is bound to look quite a bit different as I still have 50lbs of live rock to add to the system once its flowing.

Also I got the back of the tank painted black...


http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5058/5430983288_40256b5cf8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5430983288/)




http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5296/5430377093_e577d0b165_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5430377093/)

[cale262]

Looks Great thus far...

:popcorn:

[The Grizz]

Looking good man!!:biggrin:

[lastlight]

Very nice looking so far! Looks like a lot of rock in that badboy.

[dave_C]

This is an initial shot at getting the base aquascaping in. The end result is bound to look quite a bit different as I still have 50lbs of live rock to add to the system once its flowing.

Also I got the back of the tank painted black...


http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5058/5430983288_40256b5cf8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5430983288/)




http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5296/5430377093_e577d0b165_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5430377093/)


Hay Mike you may want to spin the sump around before you do your pumping lol the filter socks on the outside will be way easier to take out and clean:mrgreen:

[badAZZlars]

Looking good man!!:biggrin:

Thanks Greg, stand is working out well. I'm really glad we went with flat bottom and no feet. I would have next to no room under the tank if we hadn't done that.

[badAZZlars]

Hay Mike you may want to spin the sump around before you do your pumping lol the filter socks on the outside will be way easier to take out and clean:mrgreen:


Great point!!! It will make it alot easier to plumb the return lines as well.

Thanks for the heads up.

[badAZZlars]

Very nice looking so far! Looks like a lot of rock in that badboy.


Yeah it is alot of rock, I ordered too much. You get alot of bang for your buck when you buy dry rock. I didn't realize it would amount to so much. I have even left some out of the tank that I got in my order. Maybe it will end up in the sump.

[lastlight]

Make sure it's accessible. I have maybe 30 lbs in mine but I can't really get to it and stuff does accumulate there. More so now that I'm not running filter socks.

[badAZZlars]

Got the plumbing all done. Went pretty well for my first time. Haven't leak tested it yet but i'm pretty confident it should be fine.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5211/5437980446_138bbf8b40.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5437980446/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5176/5437373195_fcb83be757.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5437373195/)

[badAZZlars]

Tank is up and running!!!

There were a couple of leaks but just on the threaded joints with teflon tape. Glued joints all seem good.

I was quite surprised at the level of evaporation after the first full day of running the system. Almost 8 litres over 24hrs. The sump compartment that my return pump is in will go dry within 2 days at that rate so I will be needing to get an ATO working right away. I'd say that even after a day and a half the pump would start sucking air.

Also I added the filter socks to the sump and even though they were cleaned first they made the skimmer go crazy. Gonna run them through another cycle in the washer before trying them again.

[The Grizz]

Once you close in the stand Mike it will help some what with the amount of evap. not a lot but some and an ATO is always a good idea. My ATO consists of a 5 gal bucket, my kitchen sink and my 2 arms ATM :lol:

[badAZZlars]

Once you close in the stand Mike it will help some what with the amount of evap. not a lot but some and an ATO is always a good idea. My ATO consists of a 5 gal bucket, my kitchen sink and my 2 arms ATM :lol:

I'm actually meeting with someone tomorrow night to discuss getting the wooden facade built. I'm not overly concerned about about the amount of evap I just though i'd maybe be good for a couple of days without needing to top off but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Oh well just one more thing to buy.... I'm already $1500 over my budget for getting this tank running so whats another couple hundred. :biggrin:

[The Grizz]

I'm actually meeting with someone tomorrow night to discuss getting the wooden facade built. I'm not overly concerned about about the amount of evap I just though i'd maybe be good for a couple of days without needing to top off but that doesn't appear to be the case.

Oh well just one more thing to buy.... I'm already $1500 over my budget for getting this tank running so whats another couple hundred. :biggrin:

It might level out once your house humidity stabilizes, if you home is fairly new it can be a bit of a battle. I know when I built a new house and was running FW tanks I was topping them off every day but after a few months it settled down a bit.

Ya its only money right :lol: I mean really what else could you do this some extra cash now a days.

[hillegom]

Its looking good. Can't wait to see water in it,

[badAZZlars]

Its looking good. Can't wait to see water in it,


Thanks, it definitely looks better now with water in it. I'll try to put some photos up tonight. I just have to move some of the rock into the sump as I have added the 50lbs of live rock and now there is waaaayyyy too much in the main tank.

[badAZZlars]

Here is a picture with the water in and my first few fish. I started with 3 truncate anthias. They seem to like the tank and their colors have improved quite a bit compared to what they were at the fish store.

I'm getting the itch to start adding corals already but will be patient and wait a few more weeks.

Water parameters are all looking great though other than a small bloom of cyano but it was small and already seems to be going away.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5295/5462378418_88798a68a2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5462378418/)

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5297/5461785897_ef3142782a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5461785897/)

[badAZZlars]

Well i'm already changing out equipment. I found that the mag 18 I was using as my return pump was way too loud and I thought I maybe didn't need that much turn over in my sump.

I ended up buying a quiet one 4000. The flow is quite a bit less but I think should be sufficient and the bonus is that I can't even hear it running.

Now the only part of my tank that I can hear is the lighting (fans, and ballast hum).

Makes the wife a lot happier :biggrin:

[badAZZlars]

when I bought my group of Anthias to get the tank rolling I bought 4. Right away one of them looked sick and it clearly had nothing to do with water quality as the other 3 are thriving. This one has since disappeared and i'm sure is rotting in the tank somewhere polluting the water.

I'm getting Algae growing on my rocks and i'm sure this missing dead fish is to blame for the bloom. Looks like i'll being doing a few larger sized water changes over the coming weeks to clear things up again.

[badAZZlars]

I got a custom reservoir made for my tank. It's 16X12X24 high with a hole for a float switch. It's nice that my ro/di line will reach to the reservoir so I don't have to move water back and forth. I also got a Tunze Osmolator kit for doing ATO. It's works great.

With the size of the reservoir I should be able to get at least a week of top up before I need to refill it.

Eventually everything will be covered with a wooden facade. I have someone building the facade for around the main tank right now and then I will have to figure out how I want to cover the reservoir and the MH ballast's that are on the other side of the tank.

url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5493037947/]http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5218/5493037947_577d9b4289_z.jpg[/url]

[badAZZlars]

Recently added 14 new sps frags to the tank. Water parameters all measured within range so I thought i'd take the plunge. I started with 4 a week ago that I got from snappy, they were doing well so I bought some more off fellow reefer xtreme.

Everything seems to be doing great so far. I look forward to looking back on these pictures in a year or so to see how much they have grown.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5253/5515255121_d152ce14c2_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5177/5515254825_a62e948a9f_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5015/5515846906_4ab6a56ee1_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5096/5515847198_cf8702b52b_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5219/5515255847_3b53fcab14_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5220/5515847650_c9578572f4_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5132/5515256281_a328452fc1_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5056/5515848100_06f58b65e8_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5218/5515256763_f8692ffe34_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5138/5515256995_333891960c_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5020/5515848934_75b0fdded8_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5054/5515849174_214726299b_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5252/5515849408_3baff0a2e0_z.jpg
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5174/5515849654_4afd1b973c_z.jpg

[Snappy]

Glad things are going well for you. :biggrin:

[badAZZlars]

Glad things are going well for you. :biggrin:

Thanks Greg. Everything seems really happy right now so I'm remaining optimistic. Looking forward to watching them grow but damn I wish my tank was mature right now. Colonies look a little bit nicer than frags. :)

[badAZZmom]

Have u made any changes to the tank recently?

[badAZZlars]

Have u made any changes to the tank recently?

Haha, Love the user name.

I'll post some new pictures tomorrow. I'm finally getting the wooden enclosure delivered tomorrow but will still need to stain it. And i'll take picture of all of the tank inhabitants. Lots of new coral frags since the last post and a few new fish.

[badAZZlars]

Been awhile since i've posted an update.

Everything in the tank is doing great. Algae problem is all gone and all tank parameters are pretty much bang on where I want them

Salinity 1.026
pH 8.2ish
Calcium 430-450
dKH 8.5
Mg 1300-1400
PO4 .03
NO3 almost undetectable

Just had the wooden facade/skin for my metal stand dropped off today. It consists of 3 panels that are held on to the stand with strong magnets. I'll have to do a bit of shimming to get the panels to all line up nice but overall i'm pretty happy with it. Now I need to get it stained which I will hopefully get done next weekend. Next I will be getting a matching wooden enclosure for my metal light hood that will then be suspended from the ceiling. I will also be getting matching enclosures created to cover up the reservoir tank on the left side of the stand and the MH balasts on the right side of the stand.

Got a 4 pump profilux doser as well now. Now my weekly upkeep will just include feeding daily and keeping the glass and skimmer cup clean. It will be great now that the dosing will be automated, I really like having the ATO that I setup awhile back as well. I don't mind doing tank maintenance, but having top up and dosing automated is nice because these are things that I wouldn't want to forget to do on a daily basis in my tank.

I have also added a number of new tank inhabitants since the last post. My tank stock to date is the following:

Livestock
Yellow Tang
Deep water coral beauty
White Goby
2 X Percula Clowns
3 X Truncate Anthias
Fire Shrimp
Peppermint Shrimp

Corals
25 sps frags. I only know the name of a few of them so won't try to name them
1 Acan

Some nice new Growth on this one. Most of it is on the under side and the base that is attaching nicely
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4100/5604185330_704a88cc4e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604185330/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604185330/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Acans seem happy
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4105/5603600735_934c015961_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600735/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600735/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5029/5603600419_6903735bc9_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600419/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600419/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5024/5603600151_c6899f44d4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600151/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603600151/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5108/5604183266_e8ed45405d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604183266/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604183266/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5310/5603598973_11571a0202_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598973/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598973/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5230/5603598659_6d38cb2aa4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598659/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598659/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/5603598405_0032371432_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598405/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603598405/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5105/5603597745_8ca1a973b2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597745/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597745/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5229/5603597447_866051b9fa_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597447/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597447/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5309/5603597067_251bc4913e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597067/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603597067/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

This one was completely brown when I got it a couple weeks ago and is coming back nicely
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5188/5604180806_87923d2fd2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180806/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180806/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Have had this one almost 6 weeks and not noticing much change. I think the tips are starting to green up but no real growth
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5187/5604180550_76a768653b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180550/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180550/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

New frag I got today that I hadn't mounted yet
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5142/5604180262_6818aaf081_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180262/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604180262/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Small Green Mili colony
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/5603595949_605439e57b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603595949/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603595949/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5266/5603594751_3ed37a4e4e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603594751/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603594751/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5222/5604178130_77930b0ab9_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604178130/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604178130/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5026/5604177476_cce1e7e3e1_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604177476/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604177476/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5229/5603593267_30df4291c4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603593267/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603593267/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Unfortunately this one has lost some of the intense blue color it had when I got it from "extreme". I guess it misses the zeovit dosing :)
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5022/5604176844_06a8c6e94c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176844/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176844/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Lots of growth on this one
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5103/5604176560_d7cdb33689_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176560/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176560/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5182/5604176268_9439e59994_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176268/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604176268/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5144/5604175596_253fa049d1_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175596/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175596/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5024/5604174750_82271e919b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604174750/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604174750/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5307/5603590515_cce359817a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603590515/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603590515/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5189/5604174026_bd3e53b953_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604174026/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604174026/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5189/5603589735_2cdeb4a32e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603589735/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603589735/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[badAZZlars]

New dosing pump
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5149/5604175276_688a033cf6_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175276/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175276/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Left side of tank
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/5603595341_5bf85c4fd2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603595341/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603595341/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Right side of tank
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/5603601077_5d27aef197_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603601077/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5603601077/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Full tank
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5190/5604183578_d3d61a6ed4_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604183578/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604183578/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Full shot with new stand in place. Doors are just taped on for now until I get it stained and the hinges mounted. It will be a very dark nearly black stain but I will keep it so that I can still see the wood grain.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5142/5604175946_b6421815b5_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175946/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5604175946/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[rburns24]

Just read through your build, and I have to say IMHO, your tank looks really good. Lots of nice frags and the rock work looks quite pleasing to the eye.

[badAZZlars]

Just read through your build, and I have to say IMHO, your tank looks really good. Lots of nice frags and the rock work looks quite pleasing to the eye.

Thanks I appreciate the feedback. Overall I'm really happy with the progress of the tank over the 2 months it's been running. I look forward to the corals growing out and filling the tank out.

I think I'll add another 20-30 frags and then just watch it grow.

I might actually put in an order with fragalot soon just to get the rest of the frags to fill things in. I know they get bad reviews but for $10 frags I'd be willing to accept some mistakes.

[badAZZlars]

I finally got the wooden facade stained and cleared and installed on the metal stand. Overall i'm really happy with the finished product.

Now I just need to get something similar made to cover the reservoir tank and to mount the light hood in as well.

Yes I am using milk jugs for my dosing.... Sure its pretty Ghetto but it does the trick. They will be going in the cabinet shortly once I get the dosing pump mounted in the cabinet.

On the weekend I also ordered 25 more frags from fragalot.ca. I know they get bad reviews on here but for the price I had to try as they were offering some pretty nice pieces. They are supposed to be delivered on Thursday. I'll take pictures and update once I receive them.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5062/5685020306_f3f5b6db34_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5685020306/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5685020306/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[badAZZlars]

Got my order from fragalot today and overall I would say that everything went well. My order was shipped and delivered when agreed to, frags were packed well and i'm pretty sure I got what I ordered.

Out of the 27 frags that I ordered the only one that seems to be having any issues is the pink birds nest which has lost some tissue. Not that surprised as birdsnest apparently doesn't travel very well.

Not sure if I just got lucky but i'd say my experience with fragalot was a good one especially for the price.

I will post pictures once I get all frags mounted to the rock work and things have settled in.

[Skimmerking]

Tank looks very clean and well done i loved the tape on the doors in the earlier picture:lol:

[Oxymoron]

Tank looks awesome, i can't wait to see it all grown in.
I was wondering...
Can you post some more photos of how the facade is held on with magnets and how it all sits together?

[Oxymoron]

Also i noticed that you swapped out return pumps due to it being loud.

I was wondering on your opinion of the noise level of the mp40s? I've heard mixed reviews to they're noise level? What setting do you run them on?

Thanks for the info.

[badAZZlars]

Tank looks awesome, i can't wait to see it all grown in.
I was wondering...
Can you post some more photos of how the facade is held on with magnets and how it all sits together?

I'll take some pictures for you when i shoot the new frags this weekend.

[badAZZlars]

Also i noticed that you swapped out return pumps due to it being loud.

I was wondering on your opinion of the noise level of the mp40s? I've heard mixed reviews to they're noise level? What setting do you run them on?

Thanks for the info.

I run them on reef crest "random" mode at 70%. On occasion I'll switch to short pulse to get some wave action going at 80% and the constant on off can be a bit annoying but you get used to it. The loudest part of my tank right now when all the lights are on is the light fans. Overall with my setup I'm happy with how quiet it is.

[badAZZlars]

Tank looks very clean and well done i loved the tape on the doors in the earlier picture:lol:

Thanks for the comment. I agree the tape was a good look but it just didn't hold the doors well enough. :biggrin:

[Oxymoron]

I run them on reef crest "random" mode at 70%. On occasion I'll switch to short pulse to get some wave action going at 80% and the constant on off can be a bit annoying but you get used to it. The loudest part of my tank right now when all the lights are on is the light fans. Overall with my setup I'm happy with how quiet it is.

Nice, happy to hear this. Looking forward to pics.

[rburns24]

Glad the frag order turned out well. Looking forward to picson the weekend.

[badAZZlars]

Well i'm a little late posting the latest pics, I tend to get lazy with posts. But here are some mediocre pics of the frags I got from fragalot. Out of the 27 I ordered I lost 1 and the rest seems to be doing well.

I really need a macro lens, i've already got the good camera (canon 40d) but I struggle with my current lens to get anything decent.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5028/5731846593_a4af06ac78_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731846593/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731846593/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2253/5731846829_d5bf71673d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731846829/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731846829/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5181/5732394104_26ceb48b8c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732394104/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732394104/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5182/5731847311_cdc98e9573_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731847311/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731847311/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5122/5731847775_1413403394_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731847775/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731847775/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3586/5731848241_fd07f35b9a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731848241/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731848241/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2124/5732395400_0317cdb68c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732395400/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732395400/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5168/5732395606_14fa9a2808_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732395606/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732395606/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2229/5732396066_54518a4c10_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732396066/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732396066/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5109/5731849351_2ed3c6c204_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849351/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849351/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2525/5731849577_3247987f0f_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849577/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849577/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5063/5731849797_3057789f34_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849797/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731849797/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3067/5732396926_e81aa53e61_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732396926/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732396926/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5206/5731850455_5267fb13ab_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731850455/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731850455/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2131/5732397536_391d024e3f_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732397536/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732397536/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2068/5731850821_1f21b673ed_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731850821/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731850821/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3548/5731851037_886337072c_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851037/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851037/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2531/5731851245_b0c863c10a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851245/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851245/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3227/5732398356_0821aabb7b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732398356/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732398356/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3302/5731851659_6d9301359e_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851659/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731851659/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2069/5731852075_e789a605a9_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731852075/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5731852075/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[The Grizz]

Those look like half decent frags and to only lose one is no bad either. Tanks lookin good Mike.

[badAZZlars]

Here are some pics of the facade and how its held on for Oxy

Magnets are rare earth magnets and you can get them from Lee Valley. They come with a receiver that you counter sink into the wood and then the magnet slides in.

In this one you can see how the magnet is counter sunk into the wooden panel. They site pretty much flush with the wood surface and then attach to the stand from here.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3242/5732399286_94f909ec6a_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399286/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399286/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

This pics shows the edge how the front panel extends over the side panels. All panels are independent of each other.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2764/5732399546_8f587d8f53_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399546/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399546/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Pics of the back of the front main panel. It had 6 magnets holding it in place two on each side and two that attach to the center brace of the stand.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2204/5732399764_91abaf3825_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399764/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5732399764/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[fishytime]

27 frags!.....holy crap!.......there was a roll of the dice....glad to hear it all did well....looks like you got some sweet stuff

[The Grizz]

What type of wood was used for the panel? Very nice and tight, love the color too.

[badAZZlars]

27 frags!.....holy crap!.......there was a roll of the dice....glad to hear it all did well....looks like you got some sweet stuff

Yeah I was pretty relieved when they showed up healthy. Had to get at least 24 for the free shipping though :biggrin:

[badAZZlars]

What type of wood was used for the panel? Very nice and tight, love the color too.

Thanks Greg I'm really happy with how it turned out. The wood is maple.

[Oxymoron]

Here are some pics of the facade and how its held on for Oxy

Awesome thanks alot for that,
I can now visualize the whole thing alot better.
It turned out really nice and the color is just perfect.

[badAZZlars]

Just a quick update on a few new changes with the tank. I added a royal gramma and a copper band butterfly last weekend. Brings the fish count up to 9, i'll probably only add a few more and call it good. I had an abundance of tube worms in my tank but the copper band just keeps sucking them out of their tubes i'm sure they'll all be gone in a couple weeks.

I also started to dose a couple of zeovit products yesterday. Coral Vitalizer and Xtra special. Most of my corals look pretty much the same as the last pictures I posted so I will be using those as base line to see if the zeo has much of an affect on their growth and color.

[Oxymoron]

Good luck on the copperband bud, keep us updated.

[rburns24]

I was wondering how your frags are colouring/have coloured up and if you can noticed any effect of using the zeovit products yet.

ATB
Robert

[badAZZlars]

I was wondering how your frags are colouring/have coloured up and if you can noticed any effect of using the zeovit products yet.

ATB
Robert

I would say that yes I have noticed better color in some of the acros but not all and I have noticed better polyp extension in some acros but not all. By no means would I say that the product is a big game changer for my tank so far. I remain optimistic and will continue to dose until my current bottles are gone and then will evaluate from there.

I think at the very least I would continue to dose the coral vitalizer as food but am currently unsure about the xtra. I haven't been using it very long yet though so need to give it more time before I come to a conclusion.

Growth is going pretty well with most of the frags but a few have stalled out after they encrusted their frag discs.

[lastlight]

That stand looks fantastic. I love dark-stained maple had it in my old house. I'm surprised those little magnets can hold the entire front on are they strong like the tunze magnets?

Looking forward to seeing those frag grow out I was thinking 'wow' as I looked at them and 'double wow' when I saw where they came from.

[badAZZlars]

That stand looks fantastic. I love dark-stained maple had it in my old house. I'm surprised those little magnets can hold the entire front on are they strong like the tunze magnets?

Looking forward to seeing those frag grow out I was thinking 'wow' as I looked at them and 'double wow' when I saw where they came from.

Yeah they are the "rare earth metal" magnets that I believe are also used in the tunze units. For the size they definitely have alot of hold.

I too was pleasantly surprised when the frags I ordered from fragalot showed up as ordered and healthy for the most part. Still only have the one loss from the order and all are doing well. I decided to go for it after a recent favorable review from another canreefer. Hopefully things are turning around for the better with that outfit.

[fishytime]

Growth is going pretty well with most of the frags but a few have stalled out after they encrusted their frag discs.

I've noticed that acros will go through growth phases.....sometimes they seem to grow up and out and sometimes they encrust.....I suppose they do need to build a bigger base befor they can grow taller/ wider....

[lorenz0]

"rare earth metal" magnets that I believe are also used in the tunze units

lol i didn't know that magnetite was so rare

love how you put it in qoutations

[badAZZlars]

lol i didn't know that magnetite was so rare

love how you put it in qoutations

Haha yeah I'm just reading off of the container the magnets came in.

[badAZZlars]

Made a couple of changes in my tank recently.

I changed the aquascaping just a bit to get rid of some rocks that looked out of place. The new setup give me a better setup for adding corals.

Also I changed out two of my actinic t5's that had turned a faint purple color for some reason, to some geisman actinic plus bulbs. Wow are they ever blue but overall they add just a bit more blue to the look of the tank. Still a nice crist white/blue color so not overdone. I'll try to post an updated picture in the next couple of day.

I also added in a new acan that I picked up from Red Coral on the weekend.

[fishytime]

Ooooo yes ..... Must see pics...... Especially of the acan..... There sure is some nice cans there... What color did you get?

[badAZZlars]

Ooooo yes ..... Must see pics...... Especially of the acan..... There sure is some nice cans there... What color did you get?

Here's a pic of the Acan. There were some really nice red striped ones in there but I already had a red one so got the green. Polyps are really large compared to my red one.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6127/5991499251_9ac96cd040_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5991499251/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/5991499251/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[Lampshade]

Tank looks great, happy to see that everything's working out. I Love that stand, great idea, I may just steal it for my own.... Just need to find a way to kid proof it.

[badAZZlars]

Bought some new fish yesterday. 6 Banggai Cardinals, a regal tang, and a flame angel. Bought them at Ocean city and all are doing awesome. Every fish i've bought from there has done really well.

That puts the fish count up to 15 in my 125 gallon. I'm thinking that should probably be it even though i'd love to add more fish. What do you guys think should be the max for this size of reef tank? The only fish I have that will get big are the yellow tang and the regal tang.

[Skimmerking]

watch your Bangii's they will start to hit on each other ones a pair is matched up

[badAZZlars]

Here is an updated FTS. I tried my hand at coral importing and put a number of them in my tank to accelerate the growth process :). I know that starting out with frags can be satisfying once they grow out but they really take a long time to grow. I was getting good growth but am a bit impatient. The small colonies still need to grow a lot but it immediately transformed the look of my tank.

The rest of what I brought in is sitting in my frag tank in my basement. Dave at concept aquariums hooked me up with some great deals to put the frag/holding tank together.

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6066/6118464622_748cf4299f_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6118464622/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6118464622/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[badAZZlars]

watch your Bangii's they will start to hit on each other ones a pair is matched up

Not sure if its because they were picking on each other (which I didn't see much of) or they had some other issue but over the last week I have lost 5/6 of the cardinals. All of my other fish are 100% fine. The bengii's weren't showing any sign of distress but they just started dying. Can't explain it but will chalk it up to being a bad batch that Ocean City got in as these should have been the most hardy fish I have in my tank.

Its too bad really because I loved how all 6 were swimming together in the middle of the tank.

[rburns24]

Nice FTS. The fact that you see the tank every day probably diminishes the changes, but the tank looks like it has really matured over the last 3 or 4 months. The frags have turned into mini colonies, which it pretty impressive and the rocks look a lot darker, which really helps the coral stand out more. Looking very good.

[Myka]

Nice looking tank! You lucked out with Fragalot ordering that many in one go! Some of my nicest SPS are from Fragalot though, so there is something to be said there.

Not sure if its because they were picking on each other (which I didn't see much of) or they had some other issue but over the last week I have lost 5/6 of the cardinals. All of my other fish are 100% fine. The bengii's weren't showing any sign of distress but they just started dying. Can't explain it but will chalk it up to being a bad batch that Ocean City got in as these should have been the most hardy fish I have in my tank. Its too bad really because I loved how all 6 were swimming together in the middle of the tank.

Banggai are cool fish. They are awesome when they are schooling, but they will only do that if they are unpaired, immature, or are in really large tanks. Once they start pairing up they will get territories and stick to their mate instead of schooling because our tanks are too small. If the Banggai were wild-caught the die off is not unusual at all. Ask Ocean city if they were wild or captive bred. This is one of many reasons why Banggai should always be captive bred. The trouble is that Banggai make poor candidates for profitable breeding, so mostly just hobbyist breeders are breeding them.

[badAZZlars]

Nice FTS. The fact that you see the tank every day probably diminishes the changes, but the tank looks like it has really matured over the last 3 or 4 months. The frags have turned into mini colonies, which it pretty impressive and the rocks look a lot darker, which really helps the coral stand out more. Looking very good.

I'll admit I cheated a bit and actually added some mini colonies. Frags are growing nicely but not that fast unfortunately. :biggrin:

[badAZZlars]

Nice looking tank! You lucked out with Fragalot ordering that many in one go! Some of my nicest SPS are from Fragalot though, so there is something to be said there.



Banggai are cool fish. They are awesome when they are schooling, but they will only do that if they are unpaired, immature, or are in really large tanks. Once they start pairing up they will get territories and stick to their mate instead of schooling because our tanks are too small. If the Banggai were wild-caught the die off is not unusual at all. Ask Ocean city if they were wild or captive bred. This is one of many reasons why Banggai should always be captive bred. The trouble is that Banggai make poor candidates for profitable breeding, so mostly just hobbyist breeders are breeding them.

Thanks for the info. I think i'm going to try them again eventually but will make sure that they are captive bred. I was pretty disappointed to see them all drop off but I think my two large brittle stars were pretty happy about it. I think they ended up consuming 3 of the 6.

[spawn]

Hey Mike the tank is looking good. I've still got a few pieces you may want, fire off a pm if interested.

[badAZZlars]

Some updated pics

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6095/6308969623_e98088a66d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308969623/)
tank 001 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308969623/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6051/6309489430_30a009b5f0_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6309489430/)
tank 003 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6309489430/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6092/6309489686_3e137edb89_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6309489686/)
tank 004 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6309489686/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6111/6308970499_a668eeb1a9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970499/)
tank 006 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970499/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6096/6308970193_f8109a5f4d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970193/)
tank 005 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970193/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6060/6308970889_7fc73c105b_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970889/)
tank 009 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970889/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6230/6308970691_d0dc3dd298_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970691/)
tank 008 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308970691/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6230/6308971671_f94fa2f672_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971671/)
tank 011 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971671/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6099/6308971103_9facf22527_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971103/)
tank 010 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971103/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6048/6308972123_cbf88679bb_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308972123/)
tank 013 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308972123/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6049/6308971923_d836e54cdb_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971923/)
tank 012 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6308971923/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[spawn]

Lookin awesome Mike. What is the coral in the 3rd pic down from the FTS?

[badAZZlars]

Lookin awesome Mike. What is the coral in the 3rd pic down from the FTS?

No clue, unless its a milli or a stag i'm pretty bad with species identification.

But when its grows out a bit more there will be a frag with your name on it. :biggrin:

[spawn]

sweet

[Youngster Dan]

Looks awesome, well done.

[lastlight]

corals are looking killer =)

[badAZZlars]

Looks awesome, well done.

corals are looking killer =)


Thanks guys, i'm pretty happy with how things are coming along. I think i've got my fill of sps now and am going to start slowing filling in spaces with some lps and zoas.

I'm a bit concerned my tank will be too bright for zoas so i'll just try a couple small pieces to start.

[badAZZlars]

Got a new coral today. Aussie elegance.

[badAZZlars]

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7008/6521476907_fb12785f8d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6521476907/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6521476907/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[Delphinus]

Wow looks great!

[wayner]

Wow! - love the aquascaping! - that Setosa looks Stunning! :biggrin:

[Snappy]

LOVE IT!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h210/Trainer02/applausemd3-2.gif

[rburns24]

The FTS looks really good. Your tank is coming along very nicely, to understate the case.

[badAZZlars]

Wow looks great!
Thanks!!


Wow! - love the aquascaping! - that Setosa looks Stunning! :biggrin:
Thank Wayne. I love the Setos. Put it front and center in the tank. Can't wait for it to get big. It seems to be happy.


LOVE IT!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h210/Trainer02/applausemd3-2.gif

Thanks Greg.

[badAZZlars]

The FTS looks really good. Your tank is coming along very nicely, to understate the case.

Thanks for the comment. I'm really happy with how things are coming along. Like everyone there are things i'd do a bit different if I started over but for a tank that's 9 months young i'd say she's coming along :)

[fishytime]

definitely drool worthy dude:biggrin:

[hillegom]

So many corals!
Beautiful setup. congrats, looking good

[ScubaSteve]

Love'n the tank! I'm curious, what bulbs are you running in your fixture?

[Nano]

Thats Hot

[badAZZlars]

Love'n the tank! I'm curious, what bulbs are you running in your fixture?

I've currently got 3 14k Hamilton 250w halides 2 ati actinics and 2 ati blue plus.

Halides need replacing so I thought I'd give the eBay bulbs a try as others on here say they are good. Ordered 3 yesterday for $70 all in. They should last me until I decide if I'm going to LEDs or not.

Thanks for the comments.

[badAZZlars]

I've started dosing prodbio reefbooster. My tank is already ulns using GFO and a fuge so I didn't think I would waste money on the other components of the system.

I am currently dosing 1 vial per week and have already done 3 doses. Things that I have noticed so far are better polyp extension in some of my corals during the day and the pieces I have that were browned out are getting some color in the tips. So far it seems like it was a good idea.

At the price I payed the cost is minimal, like $6/month based on how I am dosing it.

[badAZZlars]

Here is an updated FTS shot taken today. Not too many changes with the tank lately. A few new frags and everything is just growing now.

I started to get a bit of cyano on my sand now that I am dosing 1 vial of reef booster each week. I am going to cut it back to 1 every two weeks now that it seems to be a bit too much.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7045/6808026870_d4863f30b9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808026870/)
FTS March 2012 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808026870/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[Triggz]

WOW! That is some nice growth since your last FTS! Gorgeous tank man :thumb:

[spawn]

Your tank is looking awesome Mike.:) How many ml's per gal per day r u up to?

[Delphinus]

Great FTS! Care to share any tips on how you got that? My attempts always fall flat.

[badAZZlars]

WOW! That is some nice growth since your last FTS! Gorgeous tank man :thumb:

Thanks. It's really surprising how fast sps can grow once they take off. I'll be into the pruning stage in the next few months I would imagine as some are starting to grow into each other.

[badAZZlars]

Your tank is looking awesome Mike.:) How many ml's per gal per day r u up to?

Hey man. I just upped my dosing actually to 140ml/day. I would assume with my sump volume that I have somewhere near 120 gallons of actual water in the system so just over 1.1ml/gallon. It's been a pain lately as the dosage keeps changing. It seems every few weeks i'm bumping it up by ten ml. Hopefully it stabilizes soon, i'm getting tired of testing all the time.

[spawn]

Hey man. I just upped my dosing actually to 140ml/day. I would assume with my sump volume that I have somewhere near 120 gallons of actual water in the system so just over 1.1ml/gallon. It's been a pain lately as the dosage keeps changing. It seems every few weeks i'm bumping it up by ten ml. Hopefully it stabilizes soon, i'm getting tired of testing all the time.
+1 against the testing. Hopefully it balances out for you. Mine did for about a month after I took out those 2 colonies. I may have to lose a bit more. Regardless of the extra work, keep it up, again things r looking sweet Mike.

[badAZZlars]

Great FTS! Care to share any tips on how you got that? My attempts always fall flat.

Believe it or not that one was taken and edited with my iphone 4s. I've found for the best white balance I shoot it at a slight downward angle so that the sensor doesn't pick up the MH bulbs. The cropping and framing really make the shots look good. I pretty much cut out everything that is outside of the rockwork/livestock. I use the app camera+ to edit the photos. I do apply one filter to the pictures called sun kissed it just brightens it up and gets rid of some of the blue. The color is pretty true to what my tank actually looks like.

I also have a canon 40d slr but the white balance on the iphone seems to work better. The canon will obviously take a higher quality picture but those pics always require quite a bit of editing to get looking right.

Here is the original pic before I edited it.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/6808360948_6170d62266_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808360948/)
Fts (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808360948/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

And after editing again.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7045/6808026870_d4863f30b9_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808026870/)
FTS March 2012 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6808026870/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[krazykarl]

Your Tank looks great! Love to see how the tank changes as you progress from day one to current tank shots. Thanks for sharing.

[badAZZlars]

Grabbed a few new pieces yesterday. Starting to add some lps and will be removing a few of the lower sps pieces.

Chalice
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7055/6967069114_0a25d4f7c4_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6967069114/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6967069114/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Brain
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/7113143323_106f3b945d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/7113143323/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/7113143323/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

Aussie Green Hammer
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/6967067522_de1e0eca79_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6967067522/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/6967067522/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[reefgirl189]

I love this tank. It's one of my favorite build threads. You seem to make it look so effortless too!

[badAZZlars]

I love this tank. It's one of my favorite build threads. You seem to make it look so effortless too!

Thanks a lot for the comments. It's nice to have others appreciate the work that we put into our tanks.

I wouldn't say my tank is effortless but it has hit a sweet spot lately where I am getting good growth and colors with little maintenance.

[Snappy]

Looking good Mike.

[badAZZlars]

Looking good Mike.

Thanks Greg.

It's good to see you have your tank healthy and rebuilding now.

[badAZZlars]

Thought i'd post an updated full tank shot. Not too much has changed in the tank. Pretty much just in maintenance phase now and fragging corals when they get too close.

Pic is a bit blurry and a bit too purple but you get the idea.
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8291/7590306592_cca86ef966_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/7590306592/)
Untitled (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mike_larsen/7590306592/) by badAZZlars (http://www.flickr.com/people/mike_larsen/), on Flickr

[wayner]

Very Nice Mike - Can you share any changes that you've noticed in your SPS since switching to LED?, how long has it been now since the switch from Halide?

Thanks

[badAZZlars]

Very Nice Mike - Can you share any changes that you've noticed in your SPS since switching to LED?, how long has it been now since the switch from Halide?

Thanks

Thanks Wayne, my view on LED so far is that they've made some corals look better and some corals look worse so its a mixed bag. I think the growth is similar as I am dosing the same amount of 2 part daily to maintain parameters as I was with the halides. I think i've been running them for a couple of months now.

Also things still seem to be changing so I don't think the full impact of the change has been realized on the tank.

Overall I would say that I am happy with the lights for sure. Way less power (now only max 300W instead of 1150W), no more bulb changes, and I get almost half the evaporation that I used to get.

With that being said if I wasn't concerned about the cost of running and maintaining a halide system and dealing with the heat issues I would still run halides. Probably 400W. I find that I just prefer the look of a quality halide bulb more than an LED look but I think the LED's look better than the crappy Ebay halides I was running recently.

[badAZZlars]

Picked up this chunk of red planet at ocean creations today. It's about 3"x2". I already had a frag that hasn't really done anything in the last 6 months so I had to grab this piece when I saw it.

Also bought a small blue throat trigger today.


9754

[molotov]

Anymore updates to this thread since the purchase of your new tank?

[badAZZlars]

Anymore updates to this thread since the purchase of your new tank?

Not too much has changed. Things are still growing and in decent condition. Corals colors aren't the best right now as I have been neglecting the tank a bit in anticipation of setting up the new one.

The new tank is getting close to start up. I got the sump in place and am just waiting on my skimmer and return pump from Dave at concept. I am currently filling it with RO water to hopefully get things rolling next week.

Then it will be the slow process of getting the tank cycled with the new rock I bought and move over all my livestock.

Will hopefully have my current setup for sale sometime in October.

I'll be sure to take some updated photos before the tank comes down and this thread comes to a close.

[molotov]

Are you going to frag anything before the big move?
:mrgreen:

[badAZZlars]

Fragging is a possibility with some for sure. More likely once I add them to my tank and have to shape them to fit into the design.

[molotov]

Let me know, i have lots of interest.

[rburns24]

Can't wait to see the new build:biggrin:. Will you be sticking with Sunbrite LED's?

[badAZZlars]

Can't wait to see the new build:biggrin:. Will you be sticking with Sunbrite LED's?

Hey there, you can find the new tank build here: http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=88811

I am currently still using my old 60" sunbrite on my new tank. While it is doing the job for now if I keep the tank running I will need to get different lighting as some of my sps is currently suffering. I think that I would either look at going with the new GHL Mitras or possibly the new sunbrite version 2 lights that have more PAR for deeper tanks.