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TheyCallMeMr.703's 55g. Mixed Reef


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Everyone wanted me to start a thread on my aquarium and post Pic's/Video's, well...

   "I finally Figured out how"


 


Here's a Video of my 55gallon Tank as of a few days ago, I have since Re-Arranged it slightly...

%5BIMG%5Dhttp://i1281.photobucket.com/albums/a505/maseman703/th_MyReef55G72513_zps997736ba.jpg


It all started about 2 years ago when I decided to " Try- Again". After having a crash that was worth near 2G's, I gave up, Swearing I learned my lesson. But one day after being down the street and seeing My Friend's tank I got bit by the bug, and just had to start again... I pulled my tank out, rinsed my old rock( Lil' I had left), and started again...

 After months of cycling, and dealing with that OH so Wretched smell of Live Rock Curing...

To the First piece of Macro Fauna and Flora, to them Covering my tank...

To that First Anemone and fish, to plants taking over, to being overrun by corals now...
From that First " Fish ", to a Pineapple Favia.

From Softie's and Kenya's, to now LPS and more..
From only studying and only dreaming, to finally Beginning my Journey into the World of SPS...

Seein' and watching the aquarium has been quite a Journey, and has been quite rewarding to me along the way...
For Everything that goes on in our lives, the random occurrences, to the Trivial and problems of everyday life... To the rewards and Dreams that can come also... We always can know our tank is there.. and its just how we want it...
~~Drilling tank Soon, Sump holding Macro and Micro Fauna/Flora.... / maybe a Mini frag Stand. ~~
~P.S. , Thank's Tom for letting borrow the MH. ~~ 

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So what are all the fish you have in that tank?

 

That is the first tank I have seen on here with the Greek Ruins as part of the aquascape. It's different and I'm looking forward to watching it grow.

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So what are all the fish you have in that tank?

 

That is the first tank I have seen on here with the Greek Ruins as part of the aquascape. It's different and I'm looking forward to watching it grow.

 

Looks nice.....

     ~~Thanks, Me too. :clap:  And I really do appreciate it... and  I got...

 1 Clarkii

2 Blue Damsel

1 Niger Triger

1 Pink Spotted Watchman Goby

 And The corals Are another story... I got about 11 or so diff' kinds... Although mostly all beginner type Softies, So now Starting to Frag, and Swap/trade them for the ones I really want... Or to help supplement to next purchase's, :)

 

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How are the two blue damsels getting along? They are known to be a little territorial.

HAHAHA, VERY TOERRITORIAL... lol. Each one actually has their own side of the aquarium. It's pretty interesting...

 One has the Back Right corner by the Macro Flora, and the other has the left side, around the middle left rock.... It is pretty cool watching their interactions... Other then that, The clown like to hand out under the same rock as the one Damsel, and they both like to call claim to the top left Hammer Coral. Which is pretty fun to watch them Chase each other around and through it... Kinda' Hilarious... I'll make a video sometime. lol

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And when they meet each other halfway.. or one crosses into the other side... they bite, and Almost lock up with each other for a split second..., Then sometimes they Hit back and forth, Like Punches Headfirst... Really Interesting really...

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We always can know our tank is there.. and its just how we want it...

 

I don't think I have ever had a tank that I could say was just how I wanted it. It seems like I am always finding something to change or rearrange.

 

I think if you found a new home for one of the blue devils they will both be a little less stressed.

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I don't think I have ever had a tank that I could say was just how I wanted it. It seems like I am always finding something to change or rearrange.

 

I think if you found a new home for one of the blue devils they will both be a little less stressed.

They don't do this often.... It is just somethin' I have seen... They all have a place in the system where they all fit in... a Niche' I think. lol

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  • 1 month later...

I have Finally added another tank to my 55... I am turning this 15 gallon into a Sump Type tank... Because it is really not... But Will be in Due Time... lol.
  
 this is my Drain to my Display, ( 55 sits under ), and I just put this there the other night, after reading on someone else's thread how to Silence a Overflow....post-2633751-0-46888000-1380077470_thumb.jpg
    The tank is finally Lookin' better, after my Lil' Mishap before,,,, Taking out the Cycling Rocks... My tank has cleared up Considerably ( in cyano sense)
   post-2633751-0-82944200-1380077687_thumb.jpgpost-2633751-0-86682300-1380077702_thumb.jpg
   post-2633751-0-98794200-1380077744_thumb.jpg <----  this is before I put the Silencer in the Overflow....  The Return is ACTAULLY my HOT Magnum canister Filter I have been using, Just cut some tubing off of my Gravel/Cleaner Equipment, Stuck it into the output, and Wrapped it with Plumber's Tape. This is thus, Drives the water up into my 15, where is Drains back into my 55... This all cost me about maybe $20 after lunch. ;) post-2633751-0-98794200-1380077744_thumb.jpg
 

 
And another pic. post-2633751-0-51979500-1380078017_thumb.jpg finally got the 2 systems Complete...   Now can put a Skimmer and Thus' into the tank. and Finally start " The Next Step " in my tank's life.... :)

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BTW, this is not my Permanent set-up... as I am Upgrading and Building up ATM, and Still have plans for more... But I think this will Greatly improve my Parameters... Any Idea's or Thoughts??

Edited by TheyCallMeMr.703
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I will post new/more pics tonight.... The tank is Finally Back where it needs to be... ( Been nice and Stable and Cleaner everyday.... ( since gettin' rid of the rock ), and Staying OnTop- of Top-Offs. lol. Anywho, Tanks are Plumbed and attached and running quietly and smoothly ;), I think the 45 degree bends helped also...  No 90's at all... ( Figured this would help to increase the water flow as, I forget the numbers, but I do know that a 90Degree turn cuts off a certain percentage of flow( Origami/Tom could help me out with this one.lol )

 

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I like the roman ruins, especially the way he has it set up...Nice tank....

Thanks... Originally when I was cycling it around 2 years ago... got so Bored and tired of seeing just Rock... and at the time, Only like half of what I have if even,,, So Was basically Just  this Vast StankyAss.lol Water Container really... So Dropped it in to Fill it up, and take up some space at the same time. Has kinda' always been there for that reason... Now I guess I have kinda' grown attached to seeing it. lol Thanks Again.

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(edited)

Sorry it took till' so late... Just one of those days, and then it seems like Jobs just never end sometimes. Lol. When it Rains' it Pour's.
  ~ Update and Pics.... ~
 Livestock: Corals have come and gone, through Trades, Sales, Giveaways, Near-Tank-Crashes, Etc. Still got a Few I have Kept since " day 1" and never want to get rid of... More then glad to Frag, :). Just LOVE Them, Will Update List on them another day... Working on gettin' it to where " My Dream Tank "image is from... Mostly Softie's and LPS... But Now really gettin' into SPS.
                   Also now trigger fish is gone, Only 2 Damsels and a Clarkii... Can't forget my Monster, Always Hungry Watchman Goby.
    ~~>Finally got my tank attached that Jeremy, on here, a WAMAS Member gave me. If I might also, say thanks to ChrisTran who gave me the water to fill and for a change. ( Sorry, I forgot your SN Jeremy :( FAIL.lol ) But, Using it as a Sump and Sooo Glad to have the extra Volume of water... Also, a Shout-out to Chris/FishyPapa who gave me a 20G to use a Mixing Tank, and Eventually ( ?I hope to turn it into a Top-off tank one day).

    There are so Many other that Helped to push me, and get me through the Rough Tank Phase... Had nearly just avoided 2 Crashes's in 3 months... But decided to not give up, and Redesign and Keep Pushin'... as this is My Passion... So Thanks to the WAMAS Community as well....

    

 

     Since cost is unfortunately a factor in All this as well, I used my H.O.T. Magnum canister filter, to act as a Pump to Direct my water Up to my Sump. Funny thing is I used the Tubing from my Gavel Cleaner... lol. That I really don't use enough Anyways... and ATM Figured this was a Much better use for it. ;), Crammed it inside the Return, far enough inside, then wrapped it in Plumber's Tape... and Wha-Lah', I got Myself a Return Pump with Tubing. And We all know PVC is so cheap, so Hard Plumbed the rest... ( Really, I wish I did this sooner... ),.  **Please, excuse the Pink Wrap... The Lady wanted "The Pink One", and I said, if she bought it... I don't see why not....lol. So that being said, I ended up using pink. 
  

     After first plumbing it... It worked Great, although there was a Lil' Splash and Noise from the Return. I then decided to use a sponge I had laying around and Split it apart with my hands. Deciding to put it over the outlet, was the best idea of the day, and possibly of the Month as the Lil' sponge was much Dramatically helping to cut back on the Splash, and also I Don't have to clean it EVERY DAY like a Filter Sock.post-2633751-0-20021700-1380776022_thumb.jpg

  

     After hearing the tank slowly fill...  It made some Noise.... but then It would get Silent and I mean SILENT," Like someone Found the Raid and finally got Gimeny Cricket..."

   Then outta' NoWHERE... ( LOUDEST FARTING SOUND EVER..... and ) and this would go on.... and On... then turn to a Gurgle.. ( No Pause, Just one into the other.lol ), and a Loud Gurgle at that..... then as Sudden as it came... it disappeared... as tho' it never even happened... But If only it never did... This went on, and on, to only repeat... All night long. lol. That was a LONG night. :hammer: 
    ( The Tank happens to be in my Bedroom. )

 

     I remembered reading on here before. How simply drilling a hole, and adding a tube/stick/airline in the Overflow Pipe, This would allow a channel of air which would " Silence " the overflow... Worked like a charm one said... So much quieter... I immediately did this before going to bed the next evening, You can bet on that.lol. ;)
   Here you can see the piece of Airline Tubing, I used on the pipe to act as a silencer. ----->post-2633751-0-52231400-1380775224_thumb.jpg post-2633751-0-85027400-1380775159_thumb.jpg   :bounce: 
  

     The Entire time I was designing this, I was thinking of whether to plumb with hard PVC or Flexible, as both have their Pro's and Con's... Either way, In the end I decided to use 45*Degree bends only. Figuring this will help increase the flow, and cut back on the Friction and Slowing effects of using only the typical 90 angle, I think It turned out well, and will prove to be most beneficial in the future. Only time will tell...  ALSO, I believe the 45 Bend on the Screen in the Sump, helps to allow that Gap of Air to form as well, and also cut down on noise...

      A few more angles... --->post-2633751-0-44898700-1380775413_thumb.jpg

  :clap:   My Goby wanted in on the fun... so Here's a shot of him as well. --->post-2633751-0-79194800-1380775450_thumb.jpg  

   

:blast:   And The Lil' Dude that protects " The Tank " and the light...   :blast: 
             I will take more Pic's Soon, and Hopefully a New Video...  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I have been trying to do nothing to the tank... Just Maintenance now...
 Got my sump up and running, Took out my Rock that was not ready and was Leaching Phosphates and Alike into the water... so They are Cycling in a Container... Now I look toward the Future, and the next things I will need... Maybe a Protein Skimmer in the Future... but Not in the Budget ATM, I think the next best/most important thing would be a RO/DI Filter....

:cheers: My Birthday is coming up in less then 2 weeks now... so Who Knows. Lol. Wooo  
 

Edited by TheyCallMeMr.703
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  • 2 weeks later...

                       UPDATE                                  ( A.K.A., - bored and decided to do an update )
So a Lil' over 2 weeks now without running any Carbon at all.... all the Cyano has cleared up... Only lost 1, maybe 2-3 SPS frags, but all is good. :) :)
 Tank is happy...
 I am LOVING having a Sump... Makes all the difference in the world, and Now since I moved my Heater in there also... Looks Very Clean... :) :)
   Shrimps are doin' Great, and another New fish was added ( strawberry pseudo ), System seems to be Doin' Great. Just lettin' the tank do its thing ATM...
  Will try to post a Video later tonight after work...

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  • 2 weeks later...
(edited)

So, I have been looking for a picture of when My Tank just got started again.. maybe be on another HardDrive somewhere. But I came up with this tonight...
10548847065_460c581b3f_o.jpg
    ( Above )       Here is just 5-6 months ago...
   Tank was finally ready to start getting into Corals.... Started Pullin' Caluerpa, and whatnot, Keeping it to the Right side, and Corals/ Rock on the left.. ( Display/ Refugium all in one). I was runnin' 3 Diff' kinds of lights at this point... Nothin' but Kenya's, Shrooms, GSP, Yellow Star Polyps, a Filter Feeder, and Diff' kinds of Anemones... and like 3 fish?? lol.
   I know I said it before," I believe I met a good Point with my tank." Look where its at now...Just swapping out old boring stuff, for new Fun Crazy Colors, and Interesting growths, more Diversity...
 

10550072693_59d9aedc83_c.jpg
       This is only 3 and half months ago... and With a BigThanks to Tom, who let me borrow his 70w MH, I was running 4 lights at that time. lol. IT WAS BRIGHT. lol and that allowed me to have Good Growth surprisingly, Was even startin' SPS here.
       This was actually shortly after FragFest. haha. ( Why I needed the light, would never have been so blessed to get so many Corals I was not able to afford ATM, so once again, a BigThanks, for Such an Amazing Event.) " Got Me Coral Crazy "...
 
      I was good like this for awhile.. but Once I get my D120, then Soon after dropped in some rock, That Fuelled a Cyano Break, and Almost had a Crash, Learned about having Friends over and Leavin' supplements out... - .- ( "Dosing and not testing" ), having someone that poured Just a Lil' too much, bringing me to over 800 ppm of Calc. lol. Never had a Snowfall while getting it back down... ( Lucky, huh? lol ).
   
  
10362185585_bc7e6af118_c.jpg
         I have at this point, installed a 15gallon to act a Refugium/ Sump, so got it Plumped to the 55, and not Dosing Anytthing ATM. Just feedings and changes... May start dosing, or at Least Purp-Up or something similar. 10353358624_9cc69707b2_c.jpg  
       
           This tank, has gone through many phases, and I Deff' learned and am still learning allot. I will be posting a Video of where It's at now, tomorrow...  Got More Rock in there, More Coral, and More Life...Wooo, We have gone a long way... :)
   Workin' my way to a T.O.T.M., lol. Ohhh I wish I had a Full tank shot right now. lol Got a LONG way to go... But Feelin' Satisfied. :)

Edited by TheyCallMeMr.703
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Nice work here! I would skip the Purple-Up and get the BRS 2-part. They have great calculators that help you figure out how much to dose based off your current test readings, total water volume, and desired levels. It takes the guess work out of it (which is what I need). Plus, it is relatively in expensive; you will get more bang for your buck than with buying Purple-Up. 

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