Another Seth Build... Traded my 150g for a 225g :D

[sethsolomon]

Shelf made for my master flex pump right above my CaRx.



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[Sctip]

Looking good, can't wait to see this stocked up.

 

[timnem70]

I did the same. Moved to east coast, several times,(PA. CT. NJ.) always came back to CO.

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[sethsolomon]

And here is what it looks like when you dump 140 lbs of sand into a tank



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[sethsolomon]

Woke up to a crystal clear tank this morning.

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[sethsolomon]

Tank cleared up, Fixed one of my halide reflectors, and evened out the sand.

[video=youtube;U0J1zF1gTJQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0J1zF1gTJQ[/video]

 

[sethsolomon]

Got some new gems cooking in my 70g waiting for this tank to be ready!

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[sethsolomon]

So update time!



Tested the TDS in my RO/DI reservoir and it was at 185 TDS. So decided to change my filters as this is probably what was causing my Diatom problem. While I was changing my filters I was thinking about how the hobby has changed and how I have changed how I participate in the hobby and I realized I was getting too caught up in the "high end corals" and trying to make money from the hobby. This is causing me to skimp on focusing on making my display all that it can be instead making room for storing frags.



Over the next month or two these are my goals for my tank:

• Rehome the devil wrasse lurking in my sump (Scarlet pinstripe wrasse: free to anyone who wants it. PM me if you're interested. Would be a good addition to a tank with puffers and the like)
• Clean up and sell/trade my zoa grow out disks
• Move my skimmer into the chamber that is currently housing my zoa colonies
• build a reactor for growing gracilaria to supplement my tang's diet
• get my tank to a rock solid 7.8-8 dkh constant (Currently at 7.2 and slowly rising)
• start culturing phyto so I can get some of the NPS gorgonians and a feather starfish. I still need to figure out an efficient container to grow phyto in. If anyone has any ideas post here.
• get acropower on a dosing pump so I can get a consistant addition to the tank. I have always done the glug methodology on this but I think if I get it more consistent I will get much better results. PM me if you have a BRS 1.1 ML/M doser that you would be willing to trade for coral/some other equipment I have.
• Swap my garbage DA float switches out for my Hydor ATO. My floats keep getting stuck causing my ato to over fill.

But over the years I have lost touch of what this hobby is really about. Providing the best care we possibly can for the creatures we bring into our lives. I used to give frags of corals I liked to people I was close to in the hobby in case I had something happen to my tank but I have not done this in the last 3 years. I need to start doing this again.



And video update and some pictures.




[video=youtube_share;_8QAi9j1X-k]https://youtu.be/_8QAi9j1X-k[/video]



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[SynDen]

Very nice, glad you have done some soul searching on the subject. Imo highends does not necessarily equal better. I approach the tank like a landscape painting and fill in colors and growth formations to fit the paitning. I could care less if its a named designer coral or one that has been in the hobby for ages. If it fits the landscape, then its good
What do you mean by more efficient phyto container? Thought you were a fan of carboys? what containers have you tried before and what were the issues with each?

 

[MuralReef]

What you said really spoke to me as well. I'm tired of chasing the high end stuff too and really want to focus on growing successful colonies.

 

[sethsolomon]

I think what hit me the most was I was thinking about all my designer zoas that I was going out of my way to collect that I never even put in my display but to be put on the frag rack to grow out and sell. I got caught up in trying to make money off my coral instead of focusing on making my display somthing I could be proud of like my 120g I had back in Colorado. I was sorta doing it with my 70g but I never really was putting my heart into the tank and making it somthing I could be proud of. My 120 I meticulously tested, did scheduled water changes, daily dosing of phyto and acro power, tested a minium of weekly. I would make sure all my fish were getting food and if they were not eating I would go out of my way to make a custom food that they would eat untill they could be transitioned over to what the rest of the tank was eating. I have lost that passion and love for the creatures. And I want to get back on the path of healthy tank versus expensive high end tank.



As for phyto, I would use carboys but no one home brews out here so I can't find used ones like I can out in CO. And at $40 new for then it would add up quickly just to get started. And plastic containers are a nightmare to clean and work with. I was thinking of building some reactors I could mount inside my stand and grow phyto in but have not found anyone out here that sells acrylic.

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[halmus]

Have you ever considered Erlenmeyer Flasks? Local lab supply or amazon has them. I have some sitting on the shelf for when I can start making phyto again. I like the flat bottoms for use on magnetic stirrers (DIY stirrers). I have seen them as big as 2L. I don't know how big your batches are. I don't know how easy they will be to clean but they don't look like they will be a problem. It's just an idea.

 

[MuralReef]

Plus it will add the mad scientist look to your place.

 

[sethsolomon]

That might be a good option on the flasks.

 

[sethsolomon]

So had my RO/DI reservoir solenoid fail last night. Thankfully I had the rubber lined bottom of my stand. All of it was in the stand and not on the floor. Apparently my stand holds about 15 gallons of water

going with a 24v solenoid this time and see how it goes.

 

[neil82]

So had my RO/DI reservoir solenoid fail last night. Thankfully I had the rubber lined bottom of my stand. All of it was in the stand and not on the floor. Apparently my stand holds about 15 gallons of water

going with a 24v solenoid this time and see how it goes.

It's a bummer, but disaster averted thanks to your good planning.

 

[sethsolomon]

Well my qt is up and running. Sick of loosing fish to them not eating. So now they get a month of monitoring before they go into the big tank. Making sure they are eating.

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[timnem70]

You're a beast brother. Keep it up.

Galaxy S7 Edge

 

[sethsolomon]

Stats on the Qt system:
~72 gallons: 3x Aqueon 20g long aquarium displays and 1x Aqueon 20g long aquarium Sump 2 chamber
Reef Octopus Varios-6 DC return Pump
Bubble Magus Nac 6 Skimmer with neck cleaner
Hydor Smart level Ato
150w Ehiem heater
3x Rw-4 Powerheads
3x Finnex Planted+ 24/7 LED lights

Going to try and track down an Apex PM1 to have a backup for the heater and hook it into the apex on my reef.

 

[kane4fire]

I love the aquascaping you have in there!