Barbizon School Tank Upgrade

[rigleautomotive]

Here are a couple shots of a school tank project I have been working on.I Have been taking care of it for a bit longer then a year now and NCPARS has donated a awesome LED lighting system for it.I installed it today and took some before and after pics but there will be more on this system on www.ncpars.org

The lights are on here,lol.thats how dark it was prior to upgrade

old lighting

and the new LED's

and the construction work

 

[rigleautomotive]

 

[somethingphishy]

the leds look great....any fish or plans for some in there?

 

[disturbed]

nice work Dan:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[viper3166]

Very Nice Dan!!

 

[rigleautomotive]

the leds look great....any fish or plans for some in there?

Yes,there are a couple blue damsels and a yellow tang in the tank currently but you will be hard pressed to see one in these photos,they scurried and hid from all the activity in the tank.I plan on getting a few fish and corals in the near future.First off,the tank has no filtration except for the live rock and my persistent water change regimen so a skimmer and a couple PH for flow would be my priority.

nice work Dan:thumbsup::thumbsup:

TY

Very Nice Dan!!

TY,making time to do this was the most challenging part and with the club,auto biz,family etc... my time is getting very thin.I am glad the tank is now doing well.Previously it was a tank of death with no living fish or fauna for that matter.All that lived in the tank previous to my intervention was some killer cyano bacteria.Really glad to see coralline algae growing,fish surviving long term, and snails spawning,which are all good indicators of its health.Prior to NCPARS helping fund this project I personally took care of the system with strong maintenance and big water-changes due to the lack of equipment and funding.

 

[somethingphishy]

thought I saw a blue/yellow damsel in the first pic with the old lights

 

[JW65]

Those LEDs do look pretty good on that tank. Any coral? Or plans for some? I'm curious to see how it does under those lights.

 

[rigleautomotive]

thought I saw a blue/yellow damsel in the first pic with the old lights

Yep a couple of the yellow tail blue damsels in there which were used to kick start the cycle when I did the clean out.Hardy little devils and great for this purpose.

Those LEDs do look pretty good on that tank. Any coral? Or plans for some? I'm curious to see how it does under those lights.

In person it was a striking difference but unfortunately the sun was shining in the front which is all open and no blinds so very challenging to get a decent photo depicting the color,brightness etc...
Yes the plans include some corals also.I have been testing these fixtures for a few months now and the par is very much the same as a 20K metal halide(250 watt halide same as 120 watt LED).I have also successfully grown acropora frags and LPS etc... under these with great results.SPS frags encrust as quickly under the LED's as the tanks with Halides so there very promising.

 

[somethingphishy]

if there is plans for a skimmer...is there a sump or will u do a hang on?

 

[rigleautomotive]

if there is plans for a skimmer...is there a sump or will u do a hang on?

The tank is drilled and there is a sump with some rock in it.The skimmer will probably be mounted inside

 

[somethingphishy]

i was trying to work an angle there i have an extra hang-on skimmer sitting in the garage

 

[tbundy]

I have a couple of skimmers I would be willing to donate one. I will look through the basement but I'm pretty sure I have a red sea Berlin skimmer bnib only saw water when the basement flooded awhile back and ruined the cardboard box

 

[psusocr]

Dan,

Im pretty sure i can dig up some powerheads as well for this tank. Let me know and i can make a donation as well.

 

[disturbed]

Hey Dan,
I have a few things i can donate to the tank.Just let me know whats needed.

 

[rigleautomotive]

I want to thank all of you.I appreciate the support.This tank is just a small part of our large school program and our mission as a society is to conserve and educate.Donations to the school project and fees collected at our events solely fund this operation.Our sponsors,members and the BOD make it all possible and I am very proud to be a part of this.I will let you guys know if I need any of the items you offer and thank you again for the support

 

[Finsanity]

Looks great

What size tank is that by the way?

 

[rigleautomotive]

Looks great

What size tank is that by the way?

Thanks.Its a 75

a new fish will be going in soon if it makes Q time ok.A blue Hippo