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Ok first off let me say this. I love this specific thread. I love seeing how everyone has started and finished their build. With that being said I wanted to do my own thread even though my tank is almost a year old.

 

So to start I bought a 40B, stand, canopy, Coralife skimmer, and some dry live rock and live sand as well as a 2 bulb T5HO light. I also bought a used spectra pure RODI unit.

 

My original plan was to use this equipment and by the extras as I needed them.

 

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Originally I didn't use the canopy. This was my first attempt at aquascaping and getting the tank wet.

 

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This was one of my first inhabitants. I bought 3 originally not knowing they are best in pairs. 1st mistake lol. I also didn't know to expect a algae bloom mistake number 2. I never thought to get a clean up crew until this happened. Then came the big mistake. A purple psuedochromis. This fish was an assassin. He killed everything I placed on the tank after him. I had 3 chromis and a six line that he killed. So because I was new I assumed it was because of poor water quality. I later figured out that it wasn't. So I started adding a few easy corals after 2 months or so. They died lol. I thought maybe it was my light was under powered. So I upgraded to a 36" power compact unit.

 

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In addition to killing the corals I was growing algae like crazy. So I decided that maybe adding a sump with chateo algae would help. This is where things changed.

 

I contacted the guy that sold me the tank. He had ran a sump with it but the skimmer wouldn't fit inside his homemade stand. So I decided to buy it anyway and build my own stand.

 

I over engineered the heck out of the thing but here it is before paint.

 

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No 2X4s here all 2X6s. The only plywood I used was on the doors the top and bottom. The sides were even made with 2X6s. Then I decided to hard plumb my cpr over flow with schedule 40 pipe. Not a bad idea but the only way I can get it off is to cut the pipe :(

 

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Here it is all set up after the build.

 

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I was happy with the set up for the most part. I added some chaeto afterwards and then added a BRS GFO/Carbon reactor. This greatly helped my algae problem. However it was the middle of winter and driving this big rig along with working full time cut into my husbandry.

 

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So after the winter was over I was able to use my snow money to buy a LED fixture. I now have a IT2080 evergrows. I love these lights.

 

As of now I have bought a new used skimmer which is a euroreef RS-80 I believe. It skims way WAY better than the coralife ever did. My psuedochromis has found a new home and I was able to give my wife and 2 year old their "Nemos" lol.

 

In conclusion I wish I knew about this site before I started. I can't even begin to tell you guys how much I have learned from your posts. It is wonderful for new reefers like myself to have a place like this to learn and get advise when we are stuck. For this I must say a huge THANK YOU!!!!!

 

Oh and I know how much you guys like full tank/ recent pics so here ya go.

 

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P.S. Sorry for the crappy cell pics but it's the only camera I have.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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tank looks great, my 1st tank was a 40B I loved it, welcome aboard I have learned a lot since becoming a member, not to mention saved a ton of money on coral and equipment from local vendors. I have probably saved a couple of hundred dollars just for paying a $20 membership fee.

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They are neat. But how am I going to get that to work with a cell phone?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

have no idea but for $2-$3 I'll take a chance and let you know, I hate the way my pictures turn out 

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tank looks great, my 1st tank was a 40B I loved it, welcome aboard I have learned a lot since becoming a member, not to mention saved a ton of money on coral and equipment from local vendors. I have probably saved a couple of hundred dollars just for paying a $20 membership fee.

Thanks! I paid my fee yesterday and realized I should have done that a while ago!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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  • 1 month later...

New pictures!!!!

 

My scarlet leg hermit

 

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Begining of my zoa garden

 

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My crazy lobo I got from ERC.

 

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One of my clowns I got from flooddc (Chuck)

 

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Full tank shot

 

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New phone was ordered yesterday so I'm going to get a olloclip soon!

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  • 2 months later...

Been over two months since I did an update so I figured I would give one. Not much has changed except I built a new sump (thanks Marcos) to accommodate my new psychadelic mandarin. Anyways here are the pics.

 

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Here's a acro I got from the frag swap, it was brown and looked dead when it went in. Now it looks like this, it's my first sps and it's apparently alive and well.

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FTS

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Lol. Chuck maybe soon. Marco I'm glad you like it. I was worried it wouldn't be a fancy as some of the other sumps on here. You can't see them but 2,500 pods went into the system to give it a huge boost to the population I already had.

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  • 2 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

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This was a few months ago and has grown to this.

 

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Apparently I can grow sps and they do like LEDs.

 

On another note I realize I learn stuff every day in this hobby. A month ago I got a beautiful coral banded shrimp. It was my first one. Today I came home and saw his lifeless body laying on the sand bed against a rock. I couldn't believe he died. They as I was looking around the tank I saw him, sitting behind his favorite rock. Lol I guess I forgot that they molt and shed their skeletons.

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