180G Office Reef Tank

[JDigital]

Well I am back at the office today...... I gotta say, it's not so bad saying that when I'm not actually here for my 9-5 job!

I finished the aquascaping... and I am liking my first attempt quite a lot.. I was originally worried when I did my mock up (pictured above I think) that I was gonna have a hard time creating a good looking aquascape with such a deep tank... I've never had a tank deeper than 20" before, so this was a bit of a challenge but like I said, very happy with how it looks right now.. Lots of tunnels and passages for the fish.

Couple shots of the aquascape..



Left side at an angle...


Middle at an angle.... I purposely left the middle section of the rock lower due to the fact that the stupid glass bracing that I wasn't able to remove cuts my lights spread through the center of the tank.. So I will use that area for low light coral most likely.


Right side at an angle...



And the water is flowing!.... Slowly @ 100GPD...

[Aquattro]

The biggest regret I have with my build is adding eggcrate like that. I would never do it again. I've always just put the rock on glass, and the egg crate made no difference.
But with the sand moving around, it's exposed and looks like crap. And there's no removing it now. I'd really re-think that before you get too far....

[Doug]

If its bare bottom would that not collect detritus? If covered in sand, {and not exposed as Brad mentioned}, would it matter? Under a sand bed the crawlies can still get in there.

[JDigital]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

The biggest regret I have with my build is adding eggcrate like that. I would never do it again. I've always just put the rock on glass, and the egg crate made no difference.
But with the sand moving around, it's exposed and looks like crap. And there's no removing it now. I'd really re-think that before you get too far....

I will be adding a fairly good sand bed... In my experience I've never had sand blow around so much that its exposed any part of the bottom of the tank.. I did find it to be rather beneficial actually while scaping for supporting some pieces that would have otherwise been rocking back and forth.

I'm really liking the rock work as it stands now. I've seen plenty of builds go this route with no issues, so I'll just to live with any consequences which I think will be nil. If the sand is moving around that much, I will be thinking more about altering my flow before worrying about a bit of exposed egg crate.

Originally Posted by Doug

If its bare bottom would that not collect detritus? If covered in sand, {and not exposed as Brad mentioned}, would it matter? Under a sand bed the crawlies can still get in there.

Certainly won't be BB.. I am waiting to add the sand until I get the salt mixed in, and as mentioned, I'll have a decent depth sand bed for the crawlies to travel through.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by JDigital

I've seen plenty of builds go this route with no issues, so I'll just to live with any consequences which I think will be nil. If the sand is moving around that much, I will be thinking more about altering my flow before worrying about a bit of exposed egg crate.

Hope that works out, it sucks to not want it after it's there I didn't even have a good reason to add mine, just read about it somewhere -lol

[JDigital]

Me too.. lol

It seems like a 50/50 debate on various forums as to whether to use it.. Mostly varying opinions on dispersing pressure points and whether or not it "traps" nutrients. Personally I think fauna is gonna travel vertically and horizontally through the sand bed, so I hardly see it as a nutrient trap.

I'm obviously on the side that says it doesn't have any/many serious negative side affects to the tank. but it's also something fairly new to me. Meh!

One argument against it that gave me a chuckle was "Have you ever seen a TOTM with it?" While possibly true, I wouldn't know as I'm not one to follow every TOTM out there.

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by JDigital

One argument against it that gave me a chuckle was "Have you ever seen a TOTM with it?" While possibly true, I wouldn't know as I'm not one to follow every TOTM out there.

Well, let's say I got TOTM....before the pics, I'd cover the exposed area with sand. Nobody would know it was there, and I wouldn't admit it

I don't think it traps anything, other than some smaller snails. The bugs and worms seem to move around, although I do notice I don't have the same fauna I used to have with plain sand. I also don't think it's a concern either way with pressure points. If there is enough weight focused to go through the glass, it's going to go through the plastic at the same time. Which isn't likely

[Duker]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

The biggest regret I have with my build is adding eggcrate like that. I would never do it again. I've always just put the rock on glass, and the egg crate made no difference.
But with the sand moving around, it's exposed and looks like crap. And there's no removing it now. I'd really re-think that before you get too far....

Yup, I agree. We had it in the 180 display at proreef (before closing down) and I had a few choice words for the stupid eggcrate. Just put rock inbefore sand...same stability! Also when u decide to up grade to some kick as vortech pumps, the sand could move more water and expose the eggcrate. also love the overflow, very sharp looking. But I think there is one SUPER IMPORTANT piece of equipment you may have over looked.....chiller??? Especially with halides. Also, drilling ur rock can give you more open areas and unique aquascaping options rather than the rock wall or rock pile looks. More negative space is nice for bigger tangs and then u will have more room for SPS ;0)....just saying!