AHarp

Well two years isn't too long between updates... So this tank lasted longer than anticipated. I do have the school tank up and running again, but got attached to having one here at home, so...It is time to upgrade though, and I'm in the process of setting up a 90 gallon to move everything into. First, new pictures. Things are looking pretty good overall. There's definitely not enough space for my blue tang though. So, time to upgrade. I have a 90 gallon almost ready to go. And by almost I mean...well... My current hold up is deciding if I should use the tank and stand as they are or if I should modify the stand to allow for more space underneath. It's a simple iron frame with plywood as a base for the tank and for the sump. With the sump in place there really is very limited clearance. I'm debating routing a channel into some 4x4 to lift the plywood base up a few inches. Anyone tried something similar or have another thought for increasing clearance?

I'd be happy to take that! I'll PM you to figure out pick up. Thank you!

I do have a couple! This is from the initial set up: And this is from just before COVID shut down my school and I had to take it all home. Right now the tank honestly looks terrible. It's not really in a good location, right in front of windows. It gets a lot of sun. I did paint the back black and I have the right side blocked with paper, but the algae growth right now is ridiculous. Eventually, I want to make a canopy for it to help some, but I haven't had time. The clowns and damsels are in, along with a couple hermit crabs and some top snails. I need to get a big clean up crew in there soon.

Good deal, I've done the same thing with my lighting here at home. I don't have the ability to mess with the ceiling at school so it'll be the same method there. I don't think I'll be able to use the skimmer; I just don't have space for a sump that big. I'm contemplating picking up some live rock in Haymarket, so Centreville would work out nicely if I can do both in one trip. Possibly tomorrow during the day?

@maevepotter facepalm. Added the link, and I'll check out your suggestion! Thanks! @howaboutme Awesome! I can't see any of the pictures in your threads, but how is the light suspended over the tank? Does it have like a gooseneck, or wire? How big is the skimmer? The sump I have is really kind of small and there's not much space to fit anything in. I've been considering adding a second small sump/10 gallon aquarium and having one for equipment and one for a refugium. Would the skimmer fit in a 10 gallon or could it possibly be run inline?

This tank was set up for 1 year at my previous school, 1 year at my current school, and then shut down for a year due to COVID. I'm getting it back up and running now that we are planning to be back in the building full time in the fall. I got the tank wet a couple weeks ago and am now working to get the salt right and get the tank cycled. The tank was donated to a middle school locally and never used. I overheard the department talking about throwing it out and asked if I could have it. The tank is plumbed with a relatively small sump (I think between 15 - 20 gallons). I got the PTA to buy a stand, and started a club to raise money to get the necessary equipment. So, my equipment is definitely on the cheap end. I figured that I would use the cheap stuff to get it up and running and then start replacing parts as they broke down/needed upgrading. I am currently using: 1 Flexzion Pond Pump Submersible (2100GPH) as a return 2 x Hydor Koralia 1050 circulation pumps 2 x Aqueon Pro 300W heaters 1 Koval LED light Livestock (currently in my home tank, but will be moving back once the school tank is ready) 1 Blue Tang 2 x Yellowtail Damsel 2 x Talbot's Damsel 2 x Clarkii Clown 2 x Turbo snails Small to medium hermits Some ceriths, nassarius, and nerites Initially, I ran the tank as a FOWLR but did start adding some corals that were mostly donated by a local shop. The main factor keeping me from doing much with corals was (and still is) my light. I'm also concerned about the amount of upkeep to do a nice reef tank, since I have limited time to work in the building. So, I've been contemplating updating the light. The concern is still money. At this point, I'm not sure that I'll be able to run a club this year. I'm anticipating the school system will want to limit the time students are in the building still. With that in mind, I found this light on sale from Marine Depot. https://www.marinedepot.com/48-inch-current-usa-truelumen-pro-12-000k-diamond-white-led-striplight Does anyone have any experience with them? Could I use it to add some simple corals or should I stick with FOWLR?

Sand CaribiSea new unopened 20 lbs bag $5 Coral Propagation Kit for soft corals. Includes rubble, plugs, coral dip, Lugol’s solution, glue, and scalpel. $10 Bulk Reef Supply Biopellet Reactor with pellets and a pump. $30 Wave Maker hydor $10 I'm interested in these items. I could probably make it down that way this weekend.

@tpallasI'd be happy to dip it! Uh...what exactly does that mean? I'm envisioning slathering French onion all over the rock, but something tells me that's not quite right. Edit: OK I should have just done the simple thing and googled coral dipping. It's probably the best way to go, but I'm a bit bummed because there are a few brittle stars and other little helpful things in the rock and corals. I'll do my best to get them out before dipping. That's great! I'm up by Olney ES. I drive down Emory all the time getting my son to the Rockville Ice Arena.

Oh fun. Thanks for the confirmation! I've removed the rock and scraped off as many as I could find. Any advice on whether it's worth it to try and keep scraping or another method of removal? Or maybe move the birdsnest to another rock? Or just nuke the whole rock and coral?

Well I had a couple batches of eggs. They popped up, grew some, and disappeared overnight. I'm glad the fish are happy enough to lay eggs! That being said, the corals don't seem nearly as happy. I'm not seeing any growth really and some retraction in the GSP and toadstool. The birdsnest started looking pretty dull also. My wife noticed a few odd looking growths on the birdsnest and the rock it is on. I'm wondering what they might be. We were thinking maybe vermetid worms? I took the rock out and scraped off all that I could find. I have it in a bucket for now. Can anyone help identify what these might be?

So since this post, the eggs that were there hatched and a second brood was laid and also hatched. Or at least they disappeared. We never saw anything come out and move around, but we were able to see the eggs grow and develop growing black dots. So that was cool! Reading up, I don't think I have the ability at the moment to really raise fry, so I'll take it as a win that the fish are happy and healthy! Yay for me. Thanks all!

Hi all! I'm thinking I have some eggs. The larger of my yellow tail damsels is spending all his (I'm guessing male) time around one of the rocks, chasing everything else away. My wife noticed some growth that look a lot like eggs to me. Can anyone confirm? And then if they are eggs, is there a chance to take care of them or are they pretty much likely to be eaten/caught in filters/etc? Eggs pic 1 Eggs pic 2 Not happy with me taking pictures.

I'm thinking I have some eggs. The larger of my yellow tail damsels is spending all his (I'm guessing male) time around one of the rocks, chasing everything else away. My wife noticed some growth that look a lot like eggs to me. Can anyone confirm? And then if they are eggs, is there a chance to take care of them or are they pretty much likely to be eaten/caught in filters/etc? Eggs pic 1 Eggs pic 2 Not happy with me taking pictures.

@ReefAddictOh awesome! I considered getting some Chitons with my cleanup guys but didn't want to pay the extra shipping. I'm happy to have some!

@tpallasThanks! Not too much detritus, thankfully. I'm really hopeful the algae drops. I'm tired of brushing it haha! I like the acan a lot also! It's got a new head on it I'm excited about. @YHSublime The corals I got from you are awesome! I didn't get a good shot of the mummy eye but I'm really excited about it. Thanks again!

Had some free time today, so why not update! It's looking pretty nice at the moment. I put in some new corals from @YHSublime, who was beyond generous and awesome to talk to. The fish and CUC all seem great! The corals seem to be at least holding their own. I've started dosing with Coral-Vite and Essential Elements, so I'm hoping to see some growth soon. I've had an issue with green hair algae. I switched over to RO/DI water, which doesn't seem to have changed anything yet. I've been pulling out each rock about once a month and scrubbing off the algae with a toothbrush, which is time consuming and means I'm disrupting everything in the tank relatively frequently. I got an algae blenny to try to help, but it died within a week. I'm hoping consistent water changes will help bring down what the algae is feeding on. I did get some chaeto and put it in one section of the sump with a light, but algae seems to be growing better there than the chaeto. When the algae is freshly scrubbed, though, the tank looks nice! FTS: Birdsnest: I think this is favia? Purple leather and what my kids call a stick: Red monti cap: Trumpet and toadstool: My wife found one thing I'm not sure is good or not. It looks like an isopod of some type. I know some are considered beneficial and some are parasites. No idea what I have here. Anyone have an idea? Thanks for checking it out! I'd love to hear any constructive criticism. Still figuring it all out!

Wow I meant to update this sooner. Time's flying by. The aquarium is chugging along nicely. I got the skimmer put in, and I have a light coming this week to attempt a refugium compartment in the sump. I'll put in some chaeto and hopefully it will out compete the algae growing all over the rocks. I've switched to RODI water, so hopefully that will help, too. One thing I didn't think about is that the RODI water would change the pH. It wound up dropping a fair bit before I caught it. I did add a clean up crew of hermits and snails. I'm picking up some pipe coral and birdsnest from a member this weekend and hopefully things start spreading. The hard part is going to be telling my wife I have to take it back to school once we reopen. She's gotten pretty attached and really enjoys searching for new things coming up out of the live rock. So far she's found fan worms, brittle stars, macro algae, aptasia, and possibly a peanut worm.

@Origami Thanks! I'll check it out. @Josh&Sarah That makes sense. So it's more about the filters themselves/the number of stages, not the canisters then. @Jon Lazar Thanks! The backup drain sounds like a good plan. @kingrowland1217 Oh good! Simple and easy is right up my alley. Thanks all!

Awesome! @Mattiejay6 Thanks for the overview! I am on city water so sounds like a 4 stage will be fine. I do have a couple of Brutes on dollies I use for water changes now. I'll have to get around to the mixing station someday soon! @Josh&Sarah @kingrowland1217 Spectrapures do look nice. So, when you say I can add on or get pricier filters, it isn't too hard to mix and match brands? Like, I can buy any brand of charcoal for my smoker (some might work better than others, but they'll all get the job done) but I can't use an Xbox controller on a Playstation. For an RO/DI, pretty much any brand of filter will fit and work? @Origami @YHSublime I love supporting sponsors. I'll check out AWI! Is there a promo code or something for the filter replacement deals? The BRS video said there's an auto-shutoff; is that standard across the board? Or is there another way to keep reservoirs from overflowing? Thanks again, all!

So I have been using just regular tap water for top offs and water changes. I'm thinking it's time I stepped up and got some good water for my tanks. I'm trying to figure out what system would be best for me. I have a 55 gallon tank with a few beginner corals and fish. Because my budget isn't large, I'm planning to use a bucket to collect filtered water for now, and eventually work up to a full mixing station. My questions are: What's the biggest difference between a 3 stage, 4 stage, etc system? For my relatively simple tank, how many filtration stages do I need? What brands are generally considered good? I see AquaFX Baracuda, Bulk Reef Supply, Aquatic Life...Are they pretty much all the same or is there a definite leader? What do people do with the waste water? Just run it down the drain? I was considering using it with my freshwater tanks, but the thought of giving them waste water is weird. Do the systems use electricity to run or just water pressure? What's the easiest way to let a system run but not overflow the reservoir? Finally, is there anything I'm missing? Tips or tricks or snags to look out for? Thanks!

Well darn. Two things-- First, I can't believe I looked at as many images of the drain as I did trying to fix it and didn't catch my mistake. Second, y'all are awesome. I swapped the pieces and while it's not perfect, it's SOOOO much better. I'll check out the other ideas (bigger hole, air line, don't put the drain too far into the sump) to get it completely set. The skimmer does look like a Coralife. I'll check out some Weldon, but also looking at some images, I might be able to just stick the skimmer in the sump instead of hanging it on the side, so if it leaks, no big deal. Thanks all! You're awesome.

So I'm having some trouble with my drain and with my skimmer. I slammed together a nice set up I got from an awesome dude at the beginning of COVID and was just happy to have it up and running. The longer it's been set up, though, the more little issues pop up. I've got two issues that I can't get a handle on right now. My drain "flushes" instead of constantly draining. I have a Durso style drain, and I'm thinking I might just need to make the hole in the top end cap bigger. I've been slowly increasing the size and haven't noticed a difference, so I wanted to double check. In the picture below, the water will come almost up to the weir, then "flush" down below the level it can get into the drain pipe. My other issue is my skimmer. The collection cup is cracked and leaks; I probably cracked it moving or over tightening. I'd love to get a new cup, but I can't for the life of me figure out what brand of skimmer it is. Any ideas?

The stand looks nice! Awesome how the panels fit pretty much perfectly! Is it on castors?

One month update! Everything seems to be doing very well. The corals for the most part are looking good. The fish and shrimp are all still alive. There's a bit of aggression between the fish, but that's to be expected since the tank is a good bit smaller than what they have been used to. There seem to be enough caves and such for everyone to find a good place to chill out and get away from the rest. I do have a pretty substantial algae growth. I cut down the time my light is on, but I'm also wondering if I should invest in a CUC. Reef Cleaners seems like the place to get them, and I am considering this package with dwarf ceriths, nassarius, Florida ceriths, nerites, and hermits. The tank dimensions are right, at least. I considered the package with Mithrax crabs, but I'm not seeing bubble algae, and I have one emerald crab already, so I'm not sure if another Mithrax would be too much. I also have a bare bottom tank, and I'm wondering if I should add any live sand. I didn't bring any during the move because I ran out of time and buckets. At this point, I feel like adding sand might be too much of an issue for the fish, with the dust getting suspended in the water and all. So, any thoughts on a CUC with/without Mithrax? Should I go ahead and add sand a little bit at a time or not worry about it at this point?

@AlanM Agreed! It's a decent looking tank and a much nicer light than I've had before, also. That helps because my wife is spending more time watching the fish and corals than I am. :-) Nice to keep everyone happy. Thanks very much for the help with the corals. I'll get them in place and get some new pictures up! @Jon Lazar