Time for an upgrade...55g micro-budget build

[fox2589]

how are you feeling about your flow?i would be tempted to add another koralia 3 or a couple more....tank looks great though well done!..-drew

[Salty O'Shen]

Thanks drew, finally got things mostly dialed in and now I can focus on livestock.

counting the return flow i'm moving around 2300-2400 gph. With the sand bed already having issues with creating dunes, i'm not sure how to get more flow, also, all the polyps are getting so much flow they look like they're in a tornado at times.

i do have some minor issues with detritus around the base of the rocks whick requires a bi-weekly attack with a turkey baster to get it back into the water column, I also have a minor issue with some algae on glass and sand surface which I think could be related to a phosphate issue...i've never bought a test kit as i've read a million postings that they're aren't reliable anyway. i've been running PhosBan in a filter sock at the end of the overflow pieps, but it might not be effective at all. it might be something I can resolve with some rock-lifts, but i don't like the look of systems with them, so i'm not sure if I'm going that route or not

i hope to resolve with a new water source. I've been using R/O water but it's not distilled, so that could be my problem...

[gouch]

hey salty i like your light im looking at one right now on ebay, and it looks excactly the same.
where did you get yours?

[Salty O'Shen]

Originally Posted by gouch

hey salty i like your light im looking at one right now on ebay, and it looks excactly the same.
where did you get yours?

i got mine on Ebay as well. it was 149 w/ free shipping. the guys gets them in every once in awhile. i had a problem with a ballast on mine mine about a month after i bought it and i e-mailed the guy and he sent me another one. the only "drawback" to the light is that it doesn't have individual parabolic mirrors for creating an intense light in the tank. so i have been told that i am loosing a little of the light because of this, but my softies are all doing GREAT under it. i'm very happy with the light...3x switches, one for the 12k, one for actinics, one for the moon lights. has a great hinged attachment to make it easy to get to the bulbs...

here's a link to the guy's Ebay listing i got mine from...he ships kinda slow (10 days to cali) and didn't send me a notification that it had gone out, but he replaced the fixture when i had a problem so i'm 1,000,000% satidifed with my choice.

http://cgi.ebay.com/48-T5HO-T5-Aquarium-Light-Cichlid-T-5-Reef-Lighting_W0QQitemZ330337950282QQcmdZViewItemQQptZL H_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item4ce9ad1a4a&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=65%3A12|66%3A2|39%3A1|72%3A1240|240%3A13 09|301%3A1|293%3A1|294%3A50

[gouch]

hey is that a damsel with the blue and yellow tail? i like the look of it.
does it pick on anything in the tank? or does it behave?

[Salty O'Shen]

yes, it's a yellow tail damsel. it is actually quite well behaved. he gets pushed around a little by my ocellaris pair. he has always been a good tank mate, but people say they get more cranky with age. i've had him about 7 months and he's never been aggressive.

[Loverotties]

Clown can be bad too and maybe he knows he's out numberd.

[gouch]

haha out numbered huh? well thats good to know. i was so dissapointed when i found that damsels had the reputation of a bully because they really are a beautiful fish.

oh and rotties........today i stuck a kitchen knife in my tank to scrape some coraline and my clown decided he was gonna have it out with his reflection.....lol
he didnt even care that my whole hand was in the tank holding the knife. he was gonna get that intruder clown.

[Salty O'Shen]

clowns are so much fun. i think that they're the best combination of personality, markings and hardiness...especially when you've got a pair of them, they're total comedians

[gouch]

Originally Posted by Salty O'Shen

clowns are so much fun. i think that they're the best combination of personality, markings and hardiness...especially when you've got a pair of them, they're total comedians

i agree. im gonna get a pair for my 55g the 10g is to small.

[Salty O'Shen]

i seem to remember that you can get a couple o them and they'll change sex if they decide to become a pair...or you can buy a mated pair

[gouch]

ya all clowns are males and after a while the most dominant one will become a female.

[fox2589]

ya i recently added an onyx clown with my percula i have had since i started(the other one died)and they have bonded from the start(i think the perc was lonely LOL)and they truly are comedians.. strange fish LOL,by the way the tank and especially your stand looks great..if you dont mind pming me how you coated your stand to water proof it that would be great..thanks-drew

[schmnr]

When you build your stand, you could always make it wide enough for a standard 75 gallon, that way in the future WHEN you want to upgrade, you will be able to with fewer problems. Also I would check CL for an already established 55 reef setup. I know that, here at least, you can find a fully established 55 gallon reef tank for what your looking to spend. If you find something like that you will have one 55 to experimentally drill on and one for a back-up.

[Salty O'Shen]

Well, i haven't given any pics out for this build in quite awhile. Plus, I've had a couple of major incidents to report...

First about 3-4 weeks ago I was sleeping peacefully then at 5am my peaceful slumber was tron out of my grasp by a horrendous sound from the living room. it was my return pump sucking nothing but air. My protein skimmer had gone nuts overnight and pulled about 5 gallons of water our of my tank by skimming super wet. I had to remove the water from the waterproofed sump trough...good thing TRT had taught me how to build it watertight.

Just a week or so ago my longspine urchin decided to move to the top of the water line and spawn for like 15 minutes. the result is a nitrate spike to 50 ppm! two 30% water changes later i'm down to 20 ppm and still have more water changes to go...thankfully my corals are all doing fine with the spike in 'trates and we've got an end in sight...

pics in the following post, got some new pieces and photos i'm looking forward to sharing...