Coral Tank from Canada (1350gal Display Tank)

[nineball]

peter and the crew, thank you very much for this tank, not only have your produced in my opinion the best private reef tank in the world you have:

1. kept me entertained during hours of crap tv what mrs dmb watches
2. provided reading during my dinner hours at work
3. provided me with a valuable insight in reef keeping

cudos to you and your team Peter.

Thank you very much. Having you folks out there is a sure fire motivator for the entire team. Hopefully there is a lot more coming soon so you will have more material to keep you connected to this community.

Peter and mr. Wilson

 

[mr.wilson]

I am thinking more along the lines of Apocalypse Now............

I am going to get him......I am going to get him.....I am going to get him......

Some day this hunt will end.....

Peter

I was thinking Lawrence of Arabia... "No prisoners!"

 

[mr.wilson]

peter and the crew, thank you very much for this tank, not only have your produced in my opinion the best private reef tank in the world you have:

1. kept me entertained during hours of crap tv what mrs dmb watches
2. provided reading during my dinner hours at work
3. provided me with a valuable insight in reef keeping

cudos to you and your team Peter.

I hope the thread has inspired readers to work hard and isn't detracting too much from productivity

 

[mr.wilson]

Hmmm, I guess I missed the shots that were posted on the 14th.... Probably not a whole lot changed...

Anyways, I was curious if you, Wilson, and the crew were planning on attending MACNA this year again? (I know it's still months away!) Hubby and I would love to grab a drink or two with ya'll!

Christina

I'm not sure if Peter can get away from the tank, but I will be at MACNA again this year. We added a bunch of zoanthids and palythoa and some blue light pics will be easier with our private photography lessons. Stay tuned for some ugly Eucinid worm pics.

 

[jdarr]

killer set up. well done

 

[007Bond]

The basic rule of thumb is to have at least 200 PAR on the substrate. SPS will do well in the top 2/3 of the tank and LPS & soft corals will dominate the lower 1/3. Tanks that are deeper than 3' (1 metre) will have very high PAR for the first 12" but by the time the light reaches the reef structure it will be reduced to a safe intensity.

LED fixtures with focused optics (lower than 90˚) may cause corals to burn. Some LED manufacturers use optics as narrow as 40˚ in order to score high in PAR tests. The trade off of narrow optics is spotlighting, poor coverage, and burnt corals. Raising the light will spread the light better, but at the cost of PAR.

The LED fixtures over Peter's tank have 90˚ optics. They also offer 120˚ lenses for tanks that are 24" or shorter. You really need to look at spectral graphs, CRI and colour temperature in order to establish the PUR (photosynthetically usable radiation) value. PAR is less important as it is only a measurement of photosynthetically available radiation.

Mr. Wilson, I moved over here so as not to get off topic on Chinchai's thread. You answered my question on best to try for a PAR that you Want at mid tank, and let the top and bottom adjust. My question is my tank is 42"d. top of sand to top of water + 9" more to top of hood. I would think I would need optics to hit say 300/400 PAR mid tank ? What optics would you suggest with my tank? Also I would assume I would need to put the leds closer together when using optics? What should the spacing be? One more, my tank is 96x35x42d. How many leds do you suggest I use? I'm thinking Cree XP-G's CW. and XR-E's RB. with ELN-60-48P power. Any input will surly be appreciated! Bond

 

[007Bond]

The basic rule of thumb is to have at least 200 PAR on the substrate. SPS will do well in the top 2/3 of the tank and LPS & soft corals will dominate the lower 1/3. Tanks that are deeper than 3' (1 metre) will have very high PAR for the first 12" but by the time the light reaches the reef structure it will be reduced to a safe intensity.

LED fixtures with focused optics (lower than 90˚) may cause corals to burn. Some LED manufacturers use optics as narrow as 40˚ in order to score high in PAR tests. The trade off of narrow optics is spotlighting, poor coverage, and burnt corals. Raising the light will spread the light better, but at the cost of PAR.

The LED fixtures over Peter's tank have 90˚ optics. They also offer 120˚ lenses for tanks that are 24" or shorter. You really need to look at spectral graphs, CRI and colour temperature in order to establish the PUR (photosynthetically usable radiation) value. PAR is less important as it is only a measurement of photosynthetically available radiation.

Mr. Wilson, I moved over here so as not to get off topic on Chinchai's thread. You answered my question on best to try for a PAR that you Want at mid tank, and let the top and bottom adjust. My question is my tank is 42"d. top of sand to top of water + 9" more to top of hood. I would think I would need optics to hit say 300/400 PAR mid tank ? What optics would you suggest with my tank? Also I would assume I would need to put the leds closer together when using optics? What should the spacing be? One more, my tank is 96x35x42d. How many leds do you suggest I use? I'm thinking Cree XP-G's CW. and XR-E's RB. with ELN-60-48P power. Any input will surly be appreciated! Bond

 

[007Bond]

Sorry--Double Post!

 

[msr224]

Blue light pics are very difficult too do as I have recently discovered. Here are two of mine that turned out well. I probably took 50 shots for each usable one at first. Playing with camera settings and all.....

The first is a forest fire digi.

And second is mushroom on the sandbed.

 

[chingchai]

I'm fine thank you Chingchai. Mr. Wilson and I have been very busy with various aspects of the aquarium and improvements to the fish room. We have been working 6 days a week non stop. This is beginning to feel like a full time job. The reef is really starting to take shape.

Mr. Wilson has just picked up the DT frozen oyster eggs. Can you tell me how much you feed your display tank and how often. We also got the Liquid Ocean Nutrition Oyster eggs.....are you familiar with them. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Peter

It's good to know this hobby turns to be your full time job.
I really envy you.

I daily feed DT frozen oyster egg about 20 cc.
For Liquid Ocean Nutrition Oyster eggs, I never use them before.

 

[mr.wilson]

If we follow the instructions on the DT's Oyster Eggs, it will cost $30 per week and it looks like it will just be a "treat" judging by the volume (4tsp/day). Of course, a lot of this will go straight to the filter bags and protein skimmer.

I tried sourcing oyster eggs a few months ago. I looked all over the globe, and couldn't track down a direct supply. Ironically, DT's oyster eggs are a "product of Canada" as it turns out. I'll have to ask around on the East Coast reef forums.

 

[chingchai]

If we follow the instructions on the DT's Oyster Eggs, it will cost $30 per week and it looks like it will just be a "treat" judging by the volume (4tsp/day). Of course, a lot of this will go straight to the filter bags and protein skimmer.

I tried sourcing oyster eggs a few months ago. I looked all over the globe, and couldn't track down a direct supply. Ironically, DT's oyster eggs are a "product of Canada" as it turns out. I'll have to ask around on the East Coast reef forums.

Yes, I agree with you.
Most of coral food will go to filter bag and Protein Skimmer.
But the rest of them would be beneficial to the coral.
Cost is something we shouldn't think about.
It hurts our feeling. Right?

 

[dave.m]

Another well-known food for inverts is Golden Pearls pellets, available in several sizes from 5 - 1000 microns.

Why wouldn't you turn the sump pumps off for twenty minutes to feed?

Dave.M

 

[mr.wilson]

Another well-known food for inverts is Golden Pearls pellets, available in several sizes from 5 - 1000 microns.

Why wouldn't you turn the sump pumps off for twenty minutes to feed?

Dave.M

First off, I'm not sure of my schedule so I will have to get back to you about meeting at Peter's.

I believe oyster eggs are 50 microns in their natural state. Corals prefer food between 50-150 microns, but larger polyp species can accept much bigger food. Dry food is the most convenient and cost effective but it tends to float and bypass the display. A direct feed into the return pump will both hydrate and deliver food. Some pumps like our Abyzz have a feed mode that allows the food to recirculate throughout the tank, rather than getting trapped in the filter bags or protein skimmer.

We haven't used the feed mode yet because Peter feeds manually. Of course I could show him which buttons to push, but that may be giving him too much potential to turn them all off

Automated and semi-automated feeding systems are the only way to provide a steady flow of organic nutrients. You must devise a way of turning off your waste treatment plant (filtration) while carrying out frequent small feedings throughout the day. As Chingchai mentioned, we can't look at cost for these very important details. Small investments in better lighting, water movement and feeding systems is the key to success and cost effectiveness.

Companies like Ocean Nutrition and DT's offer a wide range of feeding options that were formerly limited to aquaculture. You will see a large growth in this sector of the reef industry, much like what you currently see with LED lighting.

 

[uhuru]

Dry food is the most convenient and cost effective but it tends to float and bypass the display. A direct feed into the return pump will both hydrate and deliver food.

For dry coral foods, I'm really pleased with the results I get from Fauna Marin line of foods as well as a product called Coral Captive-E by Sea Slug. I haven't been using Coral Captive-E for too long but Fauna Marin is a proven winner IME.

 

[mr.wilson]

Good quality food is seldom cheap. Take a close look at the ingredients to assure that you are getting all the amino acids, lipids, protein, bio-pigmentation and essential fatty acids. Avoid over processed foods containing fillers like fish meal, krill meal, soy, and wheat.

Premium foods are of the right size, stay in solution without dissolving for 24hrs, and are palatable (yummy).

When it comes to frozen foods, a common problem is previously thawed foods. LFS freezers fail, get unplugged or doors left open, and food can thaw in transit. Some LFS are too cheap to throw out or use compromised foods.

 

[nineball]

Some practice shots from our Photo School homework!

Some practice shots from our Photo School homework!

 

[nineball]

Peter

 

[dave.m]

Peter, that's cheating! How could you take a bad shot of such a magnificent tank?

Dave.M

 

[nineball]

Peter