Nburg's Red Sea Reefer 450 in DC

[nburg]

I've been putting off creating a tank thread here, but the time has come. I have a full thread on R2R, but I will post the abridged version here, and update from here on out!

 

First off, I was a member here many years ago, like 2013-2015 (?) before moving back to my homeland of Columbus, Ohio.  My wife and I didn't like living there... its a lot different moving back to the the place you grew up and trying to live there as an adult. So anyways. This tank started there, but we moved back in January 2020, just in time for COVID, and I set it all back up. 

 

System right now:

Tank: Red Sea Reefer 450 with stock sump and stand
Lighting: 2 ATI Straton LED fixtures over the DT and a Noopsyche K7 over my frag tank section of my sump
Flow: Two Vortech MP40qds
Return pump: Current eFlux DC return pump
Skimmer: Deltec 1000i
Filter: BRS media reactor with 0.8 ROX carbon
ATO: Tunze Osmolator
Controller: APEX EL
Backup: Vortech Battery
Dosing: Neptune Apex DoS - ATI 2 part
Testing: Neptune Apex Trident
Misc: CO2 scrubber since it’s impossible for me to run a line outdoors in my building.

 

Build history

2018: Started in Columbus Ohio with a ATI Power Module Hybrid... god I hated that light. The controller never worked right. 

 

First time filled with the coral i got from trading in my old SPS colonies and rock from my old 40g breeder:

 

The tank right before I sold most of the coral before moving back to DC. It was really filling in nicely. soon I hope to be back to this point. 

 

When I moved, I ended up spending 2 months with my parents in Ohio before moving to DC... house sold way faster than I thought. Then when I came to DC, I ended up living with my brother for almost 6 months due to the pandemic slowing things down significantly. I kept all my rock, a few small fish, and whatever coral could fit in a 20g Long. Everything was moved in 2 brute trashcans from Ohio to Alexandria, then to DC when we moved 6 months later. 

 

Somehow, everything thrived in this tank for 8 months... maybe it was the high nitrates. Even a few SPS pieces grew and stayed colored up. I ended up selling a few rounds of frags out of this as some coral were over growing. 

 

Finally, setting the big tank back up as an SPS tank in its current location in DC. I don't have a good FTS, but here is the left and the right as I was growing mostly acros for the last year and a half... needless to say, some grew, some didn't but I wouldn't call it a total failure... I just lost the drive to baby an all SPS tank:

 

Not to long ago, I sold about 80% of my acros, and bought many leathers and some brain-type LPS to make a true mixed reef. I want to get back to where I had it before I moved, and then let it really fill in like the famous MikeC softie tank before he exited the hobby.  

 

Here is my tank as of today. Everything is really doing well now. 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 10, 2021 by nburg

[JJKK]

Very nice.  Where did you get that long polyp toadstool in the 1:15 mark of the video?  Thanks.

[nburg]

35 minutes ago, JJKK said:

Very nice.  Where did you get that long polyp toadstool in the 1:15 mark of the video?  Thanks.

Directly from Biota’s online store. Not a true weeping willow, but has pretty long polyps with white tips. They call it white willow toadstool. It’s a very nice piece. 

[YHSublime]

Sweet tank. I like how everything is organized from a full tank shot perspective, but you lose it in the closeness and it’s going to turn into this giant floating  fruit stand of coral once it grows out. 
 

nice job!

[howaboutme]

Good to see this! I'm "nursing" a few of your acros from your sale..

[JJKK]

12 hours ago, nburg said:

Directly from Biota’s online store. Not a true weeping willow, but has pretty long polyps with white tips. They call it white willow toadstool. It’s a very nice piece. 

I thought it looked familiar.  Thanks for confirming.  I got 2 of them from Biota(To qualify for free shipping) and one is "fluffier" than the other, but both are great specimen.

 

[RW09903]

How do you like using the ATI Straton LEDs? 

[nburg]

2 hours ago, howaboutme said:

Good to see this! I'm "nursing" a few of your acros from your sale..

I hope they are doing well! Any luck getting them to color up a bit more?

 

39 minutes ago, RW09903 said:

How do you like using the ATI Straton LEDs? 

I absolutely love them, and I have used a lot of lights in my close to 15 years of reefing. There is no app for controlling them, and you have to be on the same WIFI network to connect, but I am not one to fiddle with lights. The have amazing coverage like T5s but doesn't have that dull office-like feel to the lighting. You can do color/spectrum tuning like any of the other great LEDs out there, but no disco effect of color separation, while retaining a light shimmer. One thing I also like is there are no harsh shadows like with point LEDs, looks very similar to T5 and MH in terms of spread and shadowing. Lastly, which is a huge deal, there are no fans so they are 100% silent and have a really awesome like design. I picked all my equipment with noise generation in mind, so everything is virtually silent except when my ATO and trident are operating. 

[nburg]

12 hours ago, YHSublime said:

Sweet tank. I like how everything is organized from a full tank shot perspective, but you lose it in the closeness and it’s going to turn into this giant floating  fruit stand of coral once it grows out. 
 

nice job!

Thanks! I spent a long time thinking long term on how things would grow and how the nearby corals would also grow, while still making it look somewhat natural. I have a Tracey Morgan Gorgonian in the back, behind the torches, that should look awesome and fill in the back left corner once it grows out. I may buy a corky-finger gorg for the right side too. 

[howaboutme]

6 hours ago, nburg said:

I hope they are doing well! Any luck getting them to color up a bit more?

 Well...they're not brown.  Just teasing.

 

The bohemia is now a deep green with a hint of red and red (mostly under blues) polyps. I took it off of your plug and has now started to encrust the new plug. To be honest, I like that deep green but from pictures, it needs to lighten up.

 

The nasuta is now a purplish/red. There is some lighter skin at the base which I'm not sure if it's STN or just it starting to lighten up. I'm enjoying the challenge. Will try to post some pictures at some point.

Edited December 11, 2021 by howaboutme

[nburg]

Nice, I’m glad they are doing something for you! lol. 

[nburg]

My torch needed a haircut and you can barely tell anything was fragged off the colony… good problem to have!

 

 

[roni]

Glad to see the build on here.  Was so tempted my the stratons.  If they'd been more available I might have gone that way.  The install looks really sleek and the tank is settling in.  The sniper acro i got from you is coloring up nicely!  

[VA Reefdog]

Tank is looking great-- love the movement/flow.   That torch is beautiful!

[nburg]

On 12/16/2021 at 11:04 PM, roni said:

Glad to see the build on here.  Was so tempted my the stratons.  If they'd been more available I might have gone that way.  The install looks really sleek and the tank is settling in.  The sniper acro i got from you is coloring up nicely!  

Glad it’s doing well. I love that coral.  

[nburg]

We’ll, the reef Junkie I am, I can’t deny the seductive draw of SPS and I’ve pulled most and soon to be all my softies from my Reefer 450. I decided to focus on keeping my pH higher and stable and within a week or two, I went from dosing 28ml of 2 part to now 75ml a day an still can’t get alk back up to 8.5. Needless to say, I can see daily growth and colors in my acros I have never seen. 

 

But I’m going to try something a little different this time. Instead of loading it full of random acros that may take a year to start to sprout, I’m going to start with some easier and classic varieties that have a long track record of toughness. I’ve already added a few new acros, stylos montis and a truest unique birds nest, I’ve also ordered some old school SPS as well. Things like ORA Red Planet, ORA Hawkins, PC rainbow, ORA stylo, and 3 types of plain old ORA Monti digitatas. They may not be as exciting as the latest and greatest but are still just as colorful with e much better track record. Once those fill in space, I’ll start replacing them with fancy pieces little by little unless I fall back in love with them like I did my first SPS go around in 2009. 
 

Now, I can’t part with my softies because I do love them as well, so I set up a 20g cube. Instant tank since about half the rock came from my system. Needless to say, this tank has been up 1 week and already full. Still have 2 more toadstools to add too!

New layout- added more rock to both sides: a new shelf on the left and more caves on the right. Also moved the torches from the corner to prime time real estate in the top right, visible from out dinner table. 

 

and the 20g water box - I’ll start a new build thread for this one soon. Props to @roni for some free dry rock and mortar. 

[roni]

that rock scape looks good!  I definitely put it together well and you were right that you would have an insta reef.  Did you move over some sand/rock from your system to mix in with the dry? 

 

I'm a big fan of the old school SPS.  I think they tolerate a lot more in terms of mistakes/fluctuations and at least personally, I find them more visually pleasing under the 14-20K spectrum I'm used to.   You should have told me you were doing that when you were over, I have most of those

 

I've also had a surge in demand, to where I was wondering if my kalkreactor or ca reactor weren't working.  However, slowly adjusting daily I think I'm meeting demand again.  Hopefully this portends more growth though we'll see. 

[nburg]

I used about 5 pounds of stax rocks that's been in my system for a year in the display and some rubble in the back chamber, along with some two little fishies live sand. I didn't realize it was live sand until I unpacked it and it was full of water. I think I'm pretty much cycled as I already have GHA and film algae growing, lol. I won't add fish for another week or 2 but I do need to add a small CUC. 

 

Lol, next time I will check with you! If you have any other old school sticks, let me know. I ordered from Boom Corals which has pretty decent pricing, so I didn't pay too much. I also like a little more light in my tank so the tenuis and other 'rainbow'; SPS corals don't look as good in my tank until night time when only the blues shine. 

 

Speaking of which, I found my first SPS tank from 2008/2009. CaRx for a few sticks, lol and an old Neptune Systems AquaController 3... but the Digis were just as colorful as some fancy coral today. Looking back, there is a hammer coral in there that I still have today, and the palys on the bottom right my brother still has on that same rock in his system now. 

 

FTS Circa 2008/2009

 

Digis from reef systems coral farm in Central Ohio circa 2008/2009

[roni]

That tank looked great, and I'm with you on digis being nice.  I have forest fire digi, green stylo, red dragon, yellow porites, pink pocillipora, mint pavona, rainbow nasuta, pink birdsnest, tyree purple dragon eyes, starburst cap and the lazy's blue zing birdsnest outside of some that you mentioned.  Lots of things are still in the mini colony stage so not necessarily ready to frag yet.    Most of them are on my "old school" island in the center of the tank.  I'm at the stage where I don't really have any space for more sticks without replacing pieces and my plan will actually be to see what grows well and then get rid of pieces that either don't thrive or don't fit the aesthetic over time.  I'm hoping to have the majority of the colonies in the 8-10" plus range.  

[nburg]

I am sitting on the couch enjoying the view so I thought I’d snap a pic of both my systems. 
 

[howaboutme]

Have you taken a shot from the across the street at street level looking up? I bet your apartment glows nicely.....Looks great!

[nburg]

52 minutes ago, howaboutme said:

Have you taken a shot from the across the street at street level looking up? I bet your apartment glows nicely.....Looks great!

Yes, very visible from the street. My entire wall facing the street is glass  so it Glows bright blue and doesn’t help I have huge plants in the windows well. 

[Apcoleman]

16 hours ago, nburg said:

I am sitting on the couch enjoying the view so I thought I’d snap a pic of both my systems. 
 

Tanks looks great!

[nburg]

Here's a quick vid of my tank today under a whiter spectrum. I put a mild filter on to wash out some of the blue, but I think it dulled out the colors a little... and the iphone vids look like poop when you upload them to youtube for some reason. Looks much better on my phone, lol. have a few more sticks to add, and need to find out what I'm going to do with some of the LPS on the sand, as i like a nice clean and clear sand bed, but getting close to my final setup and then its grow-out stage. As you can see, I added another shelf on the left and made a large cave structure on the right. 

 

 

[nburg]

 

 

from @roni settling in and I think it’s starting to grow.