War Chief's 120g

[WarChief]

EHEIM Classic 600 and a Fluval FX6 Cannister Filters

2x Uniclife Aquarium Wave Makers

Hygger aquarium Heater 1000W

Off brand full spectrum light bar. Changing to Kessil AP9X's at the end of the month

 

Edited April 10, 2023 by WarChief
Update Build

[DaJMasta]

Off to a nice start!  Do you have any particular stocking goals?  I assume corals are in order given the pending upgrade.

[WarChief]

Yea see below for some of my starter coral. Then I’ll get more complex. 
 

Candy Cane

Zoanthid/Palythoa

Green Star Polyps

Bubble Coral

Lobed Brain

Favia Brain

Hammer

Elegance Coral

Sun Coral

Bird’s Nest 

Alveopora/Goniopora

[WheresTheReef]

Welcome to WAMAS and thanks for sharing your tank. Feel free to ask questions. Many of us have tried lots of equipment, methods etc. and are happy to share our experiences so you will hopefully learn from our mistakes. The for sale forum is also a good source to get equipment and livestock at good prices.
 

Since you’re just starting this out I would highly consider ditching the canister filters and drilling the tank (if not tempered) and adding a sump. A sump will allow you to hide equipment for a more natural look. Eventually you may want to add a skimmer, ATO, reactors, dosers etc. A sump can make it easier to do so. Also, you will have a way to skim that nasty protein surface layer that you will hate.

 

Looking forward to seeing your tank build out.

[WarChief]

The glass is tempered and said not to drill. I have a HOB Octo 100 classic I’m about to put on. 

Edited April 11, 2023 by WarChief

[WheresTheReef]

Yea then not a good idea to drill. Often times the short panel isn’t tempered. I have a DeepBlue 120g standard dimension tank and I drilled the short side after confirming it wasn’t tempered. What are the dimensions of the tank, and who is the manufacturer?
 

That HOB skimmer should get you going for a bit, but will likely be undersized in the long run. Since you will have various electrical cords running down the back of the tank make sure you have drip loops, especially with saltwater tanks. The skimmer and live rock will be your primary forms of filtration. The canister filter can give you some mechanical filtration and a place to run media, but will need to be maintained regularly.

 

Can you tell us a little about your experience in the hobby? Please do take our comments simply as suggestions based on experience and figure out what works best for your tank. There many ways of reefing. Most of us in the hobby have had success and failures regardless of what path we take.

[WarChief]

The tanks 6' long by22" tall by 24" deep. Its a 120 but I dont know who the manufacturer is. I bought it on FB Marketplace. I am new to the hobby. I have had several fresh tanks over the years. I have always wanted a salt tank. I have a few very experienced mentors who I question a million times a day. I am a very fast learner and have a lot of common sense so I am usually good at figuring things out. I dont know how to tell if the other glass is tempered. There was a thing on the bottom saying not to drill bottom. I thought about trying to wedge a corner over flow in so everything would be consolidated in one place but well see how I do with the filters first. And I am all for advice. Ultimately I bounce things off the few mentors I have that I really trust and then decide. 

[therootcause]

Here is how to perform a tempered glass test:

Tempered Glass Test - Youtube

 

I like the tank dimensions and the crab theme above the tank.    You mention your familiarity with freshwater systems.   For mine I always used tap water with prime.  This doesn't work so well with saltwater tanks.  Most people use RO/DI water to remove minerals and silicates from the water.  Were you able to use RO/DI?

 

Nutrient export (Nitrates/Phosphates) can be done through water changes, growing macroalgae/turf scrubber, and running the protein skimmer that you mentioned in your previous post. Without efficient nutrient export your tank will quickly grow algae.  Your export methods need to outcompete that algae growth.

 

Your proposed lighting list is enough light to grow corals and algae in my tank and yours.  Why so aggressive on the lighting?  A tank like this could make a really nice softie and LPS system with half of the lighting that you are proposing, which could also reduce unwanted algae growth.

 

When considering this tank, what is your ultimate goal?