trustychords's 32g rimless build

[trustychords]

Hi! My name is trustychords and I want to share my 32 gallon rimless build. First, the brass tacks:

 

Tank

Landen 32 gallon rimless (23.6" L × 17.7" W × 17.7" H). The glass is low iron and 8mm (0.31") thick.

 

Water Movement

Aqua Illumination Nero 5 powerhead and a Reef Octopus Varios-2 DC pump.

 

Lighting

Aqua Illumination Hydra 64 HD on a HMSSA single arm mounting kit. 

 

Overflow and Filtraion

Modular Marine 800 gph low profile overflow box and one 200 micron filter sock on main drain. The overflow is a bean-animal setup.

 

Stand

Custom built stand by WAMAS member Ben A. He did a great job and I highly recommend him. Nice guy, good communicator, and easy to work with. Most importanly, I love the stand he built!

 

Sump

Aqueon 20 gallon high with 0.25" baffles. Total water volume is about 15 gallons and the center refugium is about 5 gallons. I have a generic 16w LED grow light over the refugium.

 

Skimmer

Skimz SN127 Monzter mini DC protein skimmer

 

Livestock

Fish:

• Pajama Cardinal
• 2 Ocellaris clown ( 1 standard and one black/white)

Coral:

• Various SPS frags 
• Zoas
• Two unknown  LPS
• I will take better pics and hopefully better IDs as things grow. Most are small frags right now.

Macro Algea

• Chateomorpha

 

Feeding

Omega One flake food once a day and occasional spot feeding of coral with Reef Roids.

 

Additives

Twice daily 2-part of calcium and alkalinity.

 

Background

I grew up in Florida and always loved the ocean. I was not a big fan of sitting in the sun, but I loved the smell, beauty, and calm it brought. When I was in high school, a friend of mine kept freshwater tanks, so I went with him to local fish stores. On those trips, I was exposed to saltwater fish and corals---I was mesmerized. The colors, biodiversity, and complexity stole my imagination. That feeling has always stayed with me. As I moved around the East Coast, I had various tanks, but nothing that I would call serious. I have settled in the DC area for the time being and I knew that I wanted to setup a new tank.

 

Motivation

From the beginning, I wanted a smaller tank. I know the common adage in the hobby is to go big, but I wanted something that would 1) fit nicely into my apartment, 2) be easy to move if I needed, and 3) keep costs down by not needing more equipment. I also wanted this tank to be a learning experience for me and that is easier to do with a smaller tank, in the sense that the mistakes tend be less expensive. I do plan on upgrading to a larger tank in the future, but that is down the road. 

 

 

Edited May 14, 2020 by trustychords

[Pedro]

Nice set up. Thanks for sharing.

[Ben A]

Love the tank!

[sethsolomon]

Dang that's a lot of light for such a small tank!

[WheresTheReef]

Very nice!

[trustychords]

2 hours ago, sethsolomon said:

Dang that's a lot of light for such a small tank!

 

Yes, it is! I am running it about 75% of the capacity and it is 13" off the water. I had considered different options but decided this would be more than enough and fill the tank with light. Of course, with all the discussion about the benefits of LEDs and T5s together, I am already wondering if I should have went with a hybrid fixture. But I do like the clean look of the HMS mount.

 

Overall I am very happy with the light.