Build log: My 360G Mixed Reef [56k beware]

I built some DIY Royal Blue LED Spotlights. They turned out pretty good!
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http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2399362

Here is an updated photo of my anemone prop tank as well as some par numbers. I am up to 23 different BTAs.

tkeracer619 said:
The two LEDs are 15" off the water and 19" apart from each other. They are tilted inward at a 45deg angle. The halide is a 17" square DIY hammertone luminarc copy and the bulb is 18" off the water. These numbers were taken in the middle of each basket in a few inches of water.

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This is what I am lighting.
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Click to expand...
 
Sorry, but it doesn't seem natural to have all those bubble-tipped anemones and no clown fish in them. Do you plan on adding any?

Dave.M
 
I agree. I am probably going to add a pair of ORA Black Snowflakes.

I'm waiting on Divers Den to have the combination I am looking for so I can buy them all at once. Looking for the pair of clowns and a specific surgeon.
 
So I have a quick question for you.. I'm setting up an bubble tip anmeone tank for sunburst/Lemon drop anmeones and it's going to be a 20gallon long with 10gallon sump. Is that to small? I have a 100gallon display that I have a rainbow bubble tip but the tank is huge.
 
If the tank was mature it would probably work but anemones can pollute the water so the more volume you have the better. A 40 gallon breeder would be a better fit. Can you use the 100 gallon display tanks sump for the 20g and tie the two systems together?
 
I really wish I could but I woods have enough room as my future nem tank is up in my room and my display is all the way down in my dining room. What about 20long with 20sump?
 
Wow, imageshack is no longer free and it looks like they have decided to purge most of my photos... awesome. Really makes me want to pay for their service! Said no one ever.
 
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I added the two spot tang and queen angel to the display a month ago. I think the queen may be a hybrid. It has a lot of blue in the face for its size (anyone have ideas?). I'm still looking to add a juvi Purple Tang, a juvi Yellow Tang (already have in qt), a copperband, a longnose butterfly, and a diamond goby.

The frogspawn frags are doing well, the BTAs are enjoying a 4th 250w radium, and I have been refreshing the pumps/electronics. In an effort to improve water quality (overfeeding) I did 3 200g water changes. Coraline growth is ridiculous.

Up until now I haven't had anything to stir the sand but two nassarius snails and I only did it once a few weeks after pouring it in. I picked up a sand sifting cucumber a few weeks ago that is starting to process sand at night around the rocks, it's small so I don't anticipate it starving anytime soon :). The angels have been picking at the microlife/rubble so I figure that there is no rush to net it out... the goby will have fun with the rubble anyways :fish1:.
 
The Queen Angel eats BTAs... go figure, I knew she would at some point but hoped I would get lucky :debi:. She's too awesome to get rid of... So far she only ate one but I have removed 95% of the btas from the display and put them back into my 50g frag tank. This time around I went the more natural way with live rock and no separations. Not wanting to deal with shredded BTA's I plumbed in an 8 output Reeflo Dart closed loop. So far so good, they all seem happy.

This past weekend I added 20lbs of live sand, refreshed the carbon reactor, refreshed my calcium reactor, and added an additional 400ml of bio pellets.

I added a few new fish as well :D.

Copperband butterflyfish
Yellow longnose butterflyfish
Seychelles butterflyfish
Blonde naso tang female
Purple tang
Yellow tang

They all seem to be getting along for the most part and the Seychelles has made short work of any aptasia. The foxface has been enjoying the bubble algae that has been safely hidden in the larger aptasia clusters. I have been feeding heavily and will likely feed as much as levels allow for the time being. They don't seem to mind :)

Unless something falls through in about two weeks I'll add a blonde naso male. Other than a potential Acanthurus tang I will be laying off the fish additions for a while. Even though I have been overfeeding for a while the bacteria will probably need some time to catch up.
 
That's what the clown fish are for, to fend off angels and butterflies who who otherwise chow down on your BTAs.

Dave.M
 
What an incredible thread.
Now that there is a little time passed, I wonder if you can go a little more into the reason for the crash during the move. Exactly what happened? Where was the ammonia came from?

I certainly know how you feel. I had a 420 gal crashed and lost almost everything due to a kalk top off mishap. Beautiful thriving tank to dead waste overnight. This send out of the hobby for almost 5 years.
 
It boils down to an rodi malfunction.

I had purchased a bunch of filters from BRS and it turns out they were too short for the housings. The carbon filters were not doing anything and i was dumping heavy chloramines into the tank with each waterchange. I tested for ammonia but it made no difference because the ammonia was bound with the chlorine. I can point fingers but ultimately it was my ignorance assuming the water was good which killed my tank. Hard to stomach.

Now when I make water I treat it as a serious happening.

1st i run the unit for 10 minutes down a drain, i then test ro waste for chlorine and production water for ammonia before and after the 1st di stage. I make between 150gal to 400gal each time. The water is then retested for chlorine and ammonia before it is cleared for use in the tank. I run through their hc maxcap di setup before my storage tank. The storage tank uses an eheim 1260 with plastic screws (no metal allowed) to recirculate the stored water through a 3rd di to get and keep as close to 18megaohm water as reasonably possible.

I purchased a new spectrapure rodi this christmas and will be using them as my filtration supplier from now on. They have been very helpful tracking down and resolving the issue even though at the time I wasn't using any of thier product.

Most hobby kits won't register the ammonia component of chloramines. The cheepo jungle brand ammonia test strips from wally world will. Many reefers in the area were shocked to find out how much chloromine was making it through their single carbon block systems.

One of my buddies just test filled his tank with tap and the next day his better half made him drain the thing. The off gasing was burning her eyes.
 
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