http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487640

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487659

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487675

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487690

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487706

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487723

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487798

And finally, this is what the tank looks like in my haus.

from the living room..
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487870

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487969

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250488129

from the dining room..
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487887

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487924

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250487950

from the stairs..
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250488001

from the foyer..
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250488029

http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/...g?t=1250488054

Fantastic….fabulous……amazing…..

Possibly a dumb question, but keeping in mind Im still only setting up my first ever SW tank, which of the corals in this latest post of pics are SPS?

Also, what special requirements do SPS need? Im trying to figure out if, after my tank has a few months to develop, I can get some SPS corals?

I have an coralife aqualight pro with three 250W MH and four 96W blue actinics along with moon lights.

I do not have a UV sterilizer or calcium reactor yet. Are those required? Let me know what else SPS needs including dosing if any?

haha, also, on the first post of this page in the last picture, what is the black squiggly worm swimming away from your coral thats over top of the white rock? Im sure its nothing but just funny it got in the shot :razz:

It is probably a piece of poo :-)

Pics #1, 2, 4, 5 and 7 are SPS. SPS stands for Small Polyp Stony corals. This means they have a hard calcium skeleton with small polyps which extend out from skeleton. If you look closely at them you can see their tiny little polyps. LPSs are Large Polyp Stony corals, like in picture #3, where they have a calcium skeleton as well but their polyps are much much larger :-)

Your light fixture will be sufficient for growing SPS. However, light isn't the only factor. They also need very clean and well skimmed water so investing in a good quality skimmer is a must (in my opinion; others may disagree). Lots of people dose chemicals, I do not (yet). Nor do I use a Calcium Reactor but lots of people do. I do not use a UV sterilizer either, although some people swear by them. Are they required? Well, that depends who you talk to :-) They are not required for me, but some may feel they are required. Maintaining a proper temperature, salinity, PH, alkalinity, all very important as well.

It is gorgeous! I love your house lay out too. What amazing job you have done it is just
incredible.

Definitely a beauty. I like the choice of white on the stand & hood. What type of paint/finish is that? And you've also decided to have the light fixture above the canopy? Kind of a neat idea too, but would you care to elaborate on the reason behind that decision? I realize it's a fixture not a retro light set up, but it does throw a lot of light into the room the way you have it set up.

Love the monster on your couch. We have an Eric and a Beth living on ours.

hehe, thanks :-)

The canopy is painted in a glossy enamel from a spray paint can :-) The stand doors/skin is an Ikea cabinet door "Abstrakt" that was already painted and finished in a smooth high gloss finish.

Actually there quite a few reasons why I went with this design for the canopy and light combination.

1. I wanted to be able to remove the top easily to gain access to the tank for maintenance. I can just pull the light off, then the canopy. Neither are very heavy. I would not have minded hanging the light if I didn't have a two story vaulted ceiling over the tank :-)

2. I also wanted to vent the heat from the tank out the top of the canopy. There are a lot of canopy designs where the light is right inside the canopy and it is completely enclosed. With that design you typically have to install fans or something to help vent the heat. Well, with this design there are lots of avenues for heat ventilation. I did install vent holes on either end of the canopy in case I too needed to install fans for extra air flow but because the top is completely open, it seems enough heat is escaping out the top and I have not had any heat issues with my tank.

3. Having the light sit outside and on top of the canopy also helps to keep the light fixture itself cool. This should help prolong the life of the fixture and bulbs.

4. The lights are high enough away from the surface of the water as to prevent splashing onto the light and developing salt creep. I hate cleaning out light fixtures and with this design I only have to wipe the glass every few months instead of every few days or weeks even.

Agreed it does produce a bit of light spill but not as much if you see it in person. The camera is very light sensitive so it exaggerates that light spill more than what you actually see. In the end it is no different than if you hung the light from the ceiling which many people seem to like to do as well :-)