meinestrasse
New member
I already ordered ROWAphos based on great reviews but will take note of the ChemiPure.
CADlights 39g Pro build thread
- Thread starter ArtC
- Start date
reeftivo
Skim junkie
Great choice as well.
I've used the Rowa for a long time until I tried the elite. The Rowa is a true phosphate eater. The Chemipure is not as aggressive and holds pH along with better buffering capacity. You can also use it at higher flow rates without reducing phosphate and silicate removal.
If you want quick PO4 removal then the Rowa's the choice.
I've used the Rowa for a long time until I tried the elite. The Rowa is a true phosphate eater. The Chemipure is not as aggressive and holds pH along with better buffering capacity. You can also use it at higher flow rates without reducing phosphate and silicate removal.
If you want quick PO4 removal then the Rowa's the choice.
SPotter
Active member
fellow cadlight 39g pro owners....
fellow cadlight 39g pro owners....
I need your opinions. I just got my tank up and running and need some open and honest opinions about my rock design. I have a feeling I have over done it with the amount of rock that is in there. I am only planning on having 3-5 fish and mostly soft corals and an anenome or two much later on down the road. Dont worry about hurting my feelings so let me have it. The picture with the water in it was taken just hours after filling it on saturday. The has since totally cleared up and I will post an updated picture later on tonight when I get home.
No Water
A few hours after filling
Thank you in advance for your suggestions.
fellow cadlight 39g pro owners....
I need your opinions. I just got my tank up and running and need some open and honest opinions about my rock design. I have a feeling I have over done it with the amount of rock that is in there. I am only planning on having 3-5 fish and mostly soft corals and an anenome or two much later on down the road. Dont worry about hurting my feelings so let me have it. The picture with the water in it was taken just hours after filling it on saturday. The has since totally cleared up and I will post an updated picture later on tonight when I get home.
No Water
A few hours after filling
Thank you in advance for your suggestions.
SPotter
Active member
I was hoping a really strong CUC would be able to handle it but that is one thing that is concerning me as well as knowing when I have a dead fish. I have a Koralia Evolution 750 in the tank now and it seems to push the water around.
I am leaning towards taking some of the rock out now before everything gets too settled.
I am leaning towards taking some of the rock out now before everything gets too settled.
i would strongly advise against relying on a CUC to take care of stagnant water.
evolution 750 pushes some water, but i've got a tunze 6025 (~660gph) AND a vortech mp10 running at 100% reef crest (~1600gph) plus my return pump (~275gph) in my 39g pro, with less rock, and i still have trouble with dead spots/detritus collection in the back corners.
evolution 750 pushes some water, but i've got a tunze 6025 (~660gph) AND a vortech mp10 running at 100% reef crest (~1600gph) plus my return pump (~275gph) in my 39g pro, with less rock, and i still have trouble with dead spots/detritus collection in the back corners.
reeftivo
Skim junkie
It will look nice with softies and nems. As you may know, nems will tend to move around now and then when they dont like the light or flow and eventually find their own spot.
Like timdanger says, you will have some flow issues with that amount of rock but it is still doable. The thing to consider is; Do you want the extra maintenance? If you keep that amount of rock, IMO you will need a vortec (again like timdanger said) and/or multiple powerheads to eliminate dead spots. You would also need to baste the rock frequently to blow off detritus that the pumps won't push. If you stick with the scape as seen, then (if possible) place a small stream pump (koralia or tunze) behind the structure close to the bottom. If you direct the flow upward it will help with a roll of current behind the structure and help alot with detritus. The trick would be to have it situated so you can remove it periodically for maintenance.
Bottom line = It's doable and if you like it, go for it. It's just more maintenance and if not performed regularly, it can cause problems with water quality and overall system asthetics.
I have around 50 lbs of rock in my system and it "is" alot but I like it and I'm not a fan of the minimalist look. I like the big branching coral reef with lots of nooks and crannys for critters to suddenly apear from. I have had a few fish go MIA over the years and vanish into the rock scape. If that happens then it is always a god back up to have at least a couple of nassarius snails. Those suckers will eat anything that dies in your tank that you can't get to. They are the most efficient carion (spelling?) eaters around (in or out of the substrate).
Happy Reefing:wave:
Tivo
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SPotter
Active member
I really appreciate your feed back. I have found this thread to be so helpful especially with the Cadlights tank. I have saved some copies of the tank shots that you and some others have posted here to show my wife so we can work on it together. She really liked the look because it hid the overflow box nicely. I will do some work on it and post some new pics when its done. Fortunately the tank is only 4 days old so I dont have to worry about upsetting any of the water params. My ammonia is already at 2.0 ppm.
reeftivo
Skim junkie
Great! and Welcome!!
You'll figure it out! Just make sure you put your base rock at glass level on the bottom and work the sand around the structure. If you put the rock on the sand, the weight of the rock will clog those areas of the sand bed and could limit the efficiency of the sand bed.
I love setting up a new tank!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm jealous buddy!
Tivo
You'll figure it out! Just make sure you put your base rock at glass level on the bottom and work the sand around the structure. If you put the rock on the sand, the weight of the rock will clog those areas of the sand bed and could limit the efficiency of the sand bed.
I love setting up a new tank!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I'm jealous buddy!
Tivo
SPotter
Active member
new rock design.....
new rock design.....
Worked on the redesign last night. I couldnt believe how much stuff came off of the LR when I started moving it around. I now have a lot of base rock available for my next tank :spin3:
Original design
Revised design
The corners are open now and I cant believe the flow difference in the entire tank. I could see some of the sand in the corners swirling a little bit.
new rock design.....
Worked on the redesign last night. I couldnt believe how much stuff came off of the LR when I started moving it around. I now have a lot of base rock available for my next tank :spin3:
Original design
Revised design
The corners are open now and I cant believe the flow difference in the entire tank. I could see some of the sand in the corners swirling a little bit.
SPotter
Active member
Reeftivo,
You ever have any problems with the sump pump? I have only had mine running for two weeks and it won't start right up after I have turned it off for a water change. I have to take it out of the sump, run water thru the impeller and the plug it and unplug it a few times before it starts back up again.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
And now, my new pivoting light fixture suspension system! it's rough and definitely improvable with some more effort (e.g. painting with appropriate paint, adding hooks instead of just using loops to suspend the light, finding better suspension hardware...), but the concept is all there, and it is working perfectly. it's originally based on the concept from the DIY from the April 2009 Reefkeeping Magazine, but the pivoting arm is (as far as I've seen) a new improvement.
first, I made the necessary bends for the tank dimensions (harder than i anticipated because of the small tank dimensions -- actually had to make multiple smaller bends in order to get the second 90 degree bend fully in place). then, i spray-painted it black (with marginal success, but it was a rush job in high humidity, so it came out pretty well considering that):
now, here's what it looks like when it's pivoted out of the way for maintenance, feeding, dosing, fragging, or other hand-in-tank mischief!:
from the side, you can see how the pivoting works. basically, i took a 3/4" piece of electrical conduit and slid it into a shorter piece of 1" electrical conduit.:
up close, you can see that i added a piece of rubber to stabilize the two pieces. i bought a rubber end-cap from Lowe's (same one i used as an end-cap on the top suspension bar -- it's the type you'd see on the end of a walking cane), cut the end off, and slid it onto the 3/4" conduit so that it fit snugly into the 1" conduit.:
you can also see here that there are just 2 brackets that fit over the 1" conduit to hold the entire thing in place. it's very sturdy (though for a heavier fixture, i would definitely encourage going with a thicker conduit). the brackets hold the 1" conduit tightly in place so that only the 3/4" conduit will slide. as a sidenote, it was all sorts of tricky to screw the brackets in place without moving the whole tank. there was only 2.75" of clearance between the wall and the stand!
and, here are a couple other pictures to show the pivoting. it moves smoothly and sits wherever you want it to.:
Yes?
first, I made the necessary bends for the tank dimensions (harder than i anticipated because of the small tank dimensions -- actually had to make multiple smaller bends in order to get the second 90 degree bend fully in place). then, i spray-painted it black (with marginal success, but it was a rush job in high humidity, so it came out pretty well considering that):
now, here's what it looks like when it's pivoted out of the way for maintenance, feeding, dosing, fragging, or other hand-in-tank mischief!:
from the side, you can see how the pivoting works. basically, i took a 3/4" piece of electrical conduit and slid it into a shorter piece of 1" electrical conduit.:
up close, you can see that i added a piece of rubber to stabilize the two pieces. i bought a rubber end-cap from Lowe's (same one i used as an end-cap on the top suspension bar -- it's the type you'd see on the end of a walking cane), cut the end off, and slid it onto the 3/4" conduit so that it fit snugly into the 1" conduit.:
you can also see here that there are just 2 brackets that fit over the 1" conduit to hold the entire thing in place. it's very sturdy (though for a heavier fixture, i would definitely encourage going with a thicker conduit). the brackets hold the 1" conduit tightly in place so that only the 3/4" conduit will slide. as a sidenote, it was all sorts of tricky to screw the brackets in place without moving the whole tank. there was only 2.75" of clearance between the wall and the stand!
and, here are a couple other pictures to show the pivoting. it moves smoothly and sits wherever you want it to.:
Yes?
i don't want to answer for tivo, but i'm fairly certain he never had the pump you have. neither did i. in fact, i believe cad has changed return pumps at least twice since we got our tanks.
your problem could be a bad pump. if i were you, i'd just reach out to Eddie about that and see if he'll replace it since it's so new still.
if you find that you're unhappy with the return pump, i personally recommend upgrading to the Tunze Silence 1073.040 or 1073.020 return pumps (which one depends on your sump flow goals).
CalmSeasQuest
Active member
Lights setup looks GREAT Tim!
