Sport507
~Just a Farm Boy~
Disclaimer: For those new to the hobby I strongly discourage trying this until you have had much reefing experience.
This tank is a 46 bowfront I picked up with stand, glass hood, and single bulb light for $100. Added 60 lbs. of Nature's Ocean Aragonite Sand (pre-washed) and 21 lbs. of dry reef rock soaked each piece in a bucket with 3 gallons of water and ½ gallon of white vinegar for 5 minutes. This will remove unwanted debris that can cause a heavy cycle. I do not want that is this quick build. Then added the dry rock and filled with RO/DI water at 1.026 SG. At this point the water was so cloudy you could not see 5 inches inside the tank. I then cleared the water column using a diatom filler show here.
I ran this filter for 4 hours to strip the water of all free-floating debris and the water was crystal clear. First order of business is CHEMISTRY, this is pentacle to a successful Reef Aquarium don't forget that every. Magnesium was 1170 PPM I raised it to 1350, Alkalinity was 9 dKH now this is fine but because I will have a strong up-take on alk with coralline growth I raised it to 11 dKH, Calcium was 408 PPM now this too is ok but for the same reason I raised it to 450 PPM.
I then fired up the Marineland 400 HOB filter. And added about 20 pounds of completely cured pristine live rock, one piece had a pincushion toad stool on it. I ran the tank this way (no ghost feeding) for 4 days.
On day 4 (11-14-12) when I got home from work I added my prized pair of bounded Black Ice clownfish their flowerpot and spawning slate.
On day 7 (11-17-12) I added 3 frags of orange plating Monti caps and one green one.
Week 2 (11-24-12) I added 1 RBTA, 2 hammer corals, 1 plate coral and one open brain.
Week 3 (do you own math for the date LOL) I added 3 frogspawn, 2 candy canes, 2 duncans, 1 pink Stylophora and replaced the open brain with a hairy mushroom rock.
Week 4 I added 1 purple stag horn Acropora, 1 green stag horn acropora and a rock with 3 Ricordea mushrooms. Note all corals added are frags from my DT.
Week 5 I added some pick Zoanthids, some green small polyp Zoa's and a small frag of birds nest cream with green polyps. I also added a Reef Octopus BH-2000 HOB protein skimmer between weeks 4 & 5. Everything is looking great but the duncans which I will remove today.
I now have to use extra saturated Kalk/Lime water in my auto top off to keep up with coralline and coral growth.
Week 6 Video
Only thing I added this week was a lobed brain. I have the reef where I want it for now and will just let things settle in and grow.
Chemistry Matters.:reading:
This tank is a 46 bowfront I picked up with stand, glass hood, and single bulb light for $100. Added 60 lbs. of Nature's Ocean Aragonite Sand (pre-washed) and 21 lbs. of dry reef rock soaked each piece in a bucket with 3 gallons of water and ½ gallon of white vinegar for 5 minutes. This will remove unwanted debris that can cause a heavy cycle. I do not want that is this quick build. Then added the dry rock and filled with RO/DI water at 1.026 SG. At this point the water was so cloudy you could not see 5 inches inside the tank. I then cleared the water column using a diatom filler show here.
I ran this filter for 4 hours to strip the water of all free-floating debris and the water was crystal clear. First order of business is CHEMISTRY, this is pentacle to a successful Reef Aquarium don't forget that every. Magnesium was 1170 PPM I raised it to 1350, Alkalinity was 9 dKH now this is fine but because I will have a strong up-take on alk with coralline growth I raised it to 11 dKH, Calcium was 408 PPM now this too is ok but for the same reason I raised it to 450 PPM.
I then fired up the Marineland 400 HOB filter. And added about 20 pounds of completely cured pristine live rock, one piece had a pincushion toad stool on it. I ran the tank this way (no ghost feeding) for 4 days.
On day 4 (11-14-12) when I got home from work I added my prized pair of bounded Black Ice clownfish their flowerpot and spawning slate.
On day 7 (11-17-12) I added 3 frags of orange plating Monti caps and one green one.
Week 2 (11-24-12) I added 1 RBTA, 2 hammer corals, 1 plate coral and one open brain.
Week 3 (do you own math for the date LOL) I added 3 frogspawn, 2 candy canes, 2 duncans, 1 pink Stylophora and replaced the open brain with a hairy mushroom rock.
Week 4 I added 1 purple stag horn Acropora, 1 green stag horn acropora and a rock with 3 Ricordea mushrooms. Note all corals added are frags from my DT.
Week 5 I added some pick Zoanthids, some green small polyp Zoa's and a small frag of birds nest cream with green polyps. I also added a Reef Octopus BH-2000 HOB protein skimmer between weeks 4 & 5. Everything is looking great but the duncans which I will remove today.
I now have to use extra saturated Kalk/Lime water in my auto top off to keep up with coralline and coral growth.
Week 6 Video
Only thing I added this week was a lobed brain. I have the reef where I want it for now and will just let things settle in and grow.
Chemistry Matters.:reading:
