Cpllongjk's Red Sea Reefer 170

[cpllongjk]

Hello,

A bit about me first. I've been in the hobby for 18 years. Started at the young age of 14 with a FOWLR. I got into reefing while in the military with a 7g minibow. My forte has always been nano tanks, if it isn't hard I don't want to do it. In fact, every time I dabbled in larger tanks or setups I lost interest or couldn't care for them the way they needed to be cared for. My last setup was at our last house, a 50g (36x18x18) with a 40g breeder sump and 40g breeder frag tank. The build had so much potential however we moved last year after my father passed away and I took a break from reefing.


Ok... On to current build set up. This will take weeks/months to get water. Since this is probably my last build I'm going to make it good and not miss a beat. I'm covering all my bases before moving on. My plan is to go mostly, if not all, SPS on this tank. I my have a few LPS and softies in low light areas but mostly SPS.

Coming Soon:

1. I really would like your advice or help in designing a rockscape. I would prefer to NOT do the typical rock wall scapes. I am very fond of the BONSAI style scapes however I am not very artistic.
2. I plan on getting 20lbs of Fiji Pink Sand for a shallow sand bed and 20-30 lbs of dry reef saver rock.
3. I cannot decide on whether or not to keep the T5/Reefbrite setup. My wife does not like the overspill in the room. The thing that sucks is T5/Reefbrite cannot be compared to anything IMO.
4. Still trying to decide on SALT. I've used many salt brands in the past and my favorite is ESV but it is very expensive and not worth the cost IMO.
5. After bringing my tank home, I noticed that my return bulkhead was missing the nut on the bottom of the tank. I contacted RedSea and much to my surprise they cannot just send me a plastic nut. I guess they are sending me a whole new tank, LOL!
6. Once I get my APEX base unit and EB8 back from Neptune Tech Support I need to figure out way to house all my electronics so they don't have the same problems in the past of salt water damage.

If you have any questions or comments please leave them or message me.


Happy Reefing,

Jared


My equipment list is as follows:
Tank - Red Sea Reefer 170 (24x20x20)
Skimmer - LifeReef VS2-24 w/ Jebao DC pump
Return - Eheim 1260 (May have to replace depending on space in sump)
Lighting - ATI Non-Dimmable Sunpower 6x24w (4 blue+, 1 purple+, and 1 coral+)
Lighting Supplement - Reefbrite All Blue XHO 24"
Top Off (Using Reefer 170 1.5g for the time being until I calculate my evap)
Flow - Going to be using MP10WQD
Heating - Eheim 150w
Dosing Needs - BRS 2 Part Dosing (When the time comes)
Controlling - Neptune Apex (Had to send in the base unit and eb8, not working)

 

[Cabo2008]

Interesting, ...... Your parts list looks very similar to mine now (after trying darn near everything under the sun). So that's pretty cool.

Couple of things I might suggest:
- Relocate the output from the skimmer to either right over the black sponge between the skimmer chamber and the return pump chamber or have it just flow directly into the return pump chamber. This way your output isn't flowing right on top of the input pump for the skimmer. I did it and it did make a difference in how the skimmer was working (for the better it seems). The only caution I'd give you is that you have to be careful to not get micro bubbles in the DT. I just moved my return pump a little further away from the skimmer output and that got rid of mine.

- Dump the ATO tank that comes with it. It's just too small. I'm using a 6 GAL bucket with a Tunze 3155 for mine and it still only lasts about a week (sometimes less). I'm getting ready to pick up a 7 -10 Gal acrylic ATO tank just so it looks better in my living room.

It' looks good though, I think you'll dig it!

 

[cpllongjk]

Interesting, ...... Your parts list looks very similar to mine now (after trying darn near everything under the sun). So that's pretty cool.

Couple of things I might suggest:
- Relocate the output from the skimmer to either right over the black sponge between the skimmer chamber and the return pump chamber or have it just flow directly into the return pump chamber. This way your output isn't flowing right on top of the input pump for the skimmer. I did it and it did make a difference in how the skimmer was working (for the better it seems). The only caution I'd give you is that you have to be careful to not get micro bubbles in the DT. I just moved my return pump a little further away from the skimmer output and that got rid of mine.

- Dump the ATO tank that comes with it. It's just too small. I'm using a 6 GAL bucket with a Tunze 3155 for mine and it still only lasts about a week (sometimes less). I'm getting ready to pick up a 7 -10 Gal acrylic ATO tank just so it looks better in my living room.

It' looks good though, I think you'll dig it!

I know, I saw your build. It was funny because I've had many of these components for years and through trial and error only kept the very best of my experiences. The lifereef is something I will never part with, its that good.

I am going to modify the flow on the skimmer, I need to do some adjusting on things still.

Im a bit worried that my eheim 1260 wont fit in the back chamber. I am cleaning everything still and if it doesnt fit I guess Ill have to look at another option. I love my eheim 1260, its been in my tanks for the past 4 years, a true workhorse, never fails me.

For now Im going to keep the ATO in place only because Im going to devote my entire energy and wallet to getting up and running with as little money as possible. Once I determine my evap Ill have something made for the side of my tank. I have a nice 4" space between my desk and stand that I can put an ATO. The right side of my tank will house a chiller down the road if needed. Ill wait till this summer to see if I need a chiller. Im on the fence because my office gets hot but we run the AC all summer so I dont know.

After turning my lights on last night my wife complained about the light spill over so I need to address the light spill. Im thinking of having a black acrylic hood made to just slip over the light and create a floating canopy. It will save me the trouble of spraying my sunpower black as well.

 

[Cabo2008]

I tried an ATI dimmable 6x24 over my tank to see how it looked. The light bleed was pretty noticeable, but no terrible. It's much more annoying now with the Nanobox Duo.....I need to do something about it. I was running a Kessili A360 for the longest time and I had no light bleed issues with it.

 

[cpllongjk]

I tried an ATI dimmable 6x24 over my tank to see how it looked. The light bleed was pretty noticeable, but no terrible. It's much more annoying now with the Nanobox Duo.....I need to do something about it. I was running a Kessili A360 for the longest time and I had no light bleed issues with it.

Ive been eyeing the nanobox retrofit kits to turn my sunpower into a led/t5 hybrid.

I'm just not sure yet on whether or not I want to take that step.

One of the reasons I like LEDs is that theres isnt much bleed. However, my wife and I had bad experiences a few years back with AI Sol Blues. Ive been reading reviews on the XR30 Pros and I just dont think LEDs are a the point yet of being used in my tank. Many people have success but the coverage of t5s is very important, especially when the tank grows out. IMO current LEDs are great with new tanks but might be lacking with established tanks. I like the nanobox kits because they dont have reflectors which means a more diverse spread of light. The retrofit kit would make my fixture much like the Giesemann LED Hybrid.

 

[GSMclowns]

Nice looking tank.
What is the dimension of the Overflow box?
How long is the usable space between the overflow box and the front glass?

Thanks

 

[cpllongjk]

Thanks.

The overflow is approximately 10.5"x4". I would say the usable space for SPS is about 17x17. Ideally you wouldn't want any rock closer than 2-3 inches from the front or sides. The rock can rest on the overflow but you need room for a scraper and cleaning magnet.

 

[cpllongjk]

While this is not the best aquascaping job I've ever seen it is the best I could do with what rock I had. I ordered 50 lbs of Fiji dry rock and ended up only using about half of the rock. Many of the pieces were football sized and shaped. Because of this, I had to break a lot of them in order to get the exact shape I wanted. This left a lot of rock that looks unappealing and a lot of rubble.

All rock was soaked in acid twice, once for 20 minutes and again for 1 hour. I then soaked the rock for 2 days in RODI and changed it out daily. I now aquascaped and am filling the tank with RODI.

My plan is to add flow to the tank get things running then do a few complete water changes with RODI only. Once the sand arrives I will exchange water once more and then add salt and start cycling the rock.

 

[cpllongjk]

Update to List:

I wasn't able to do the bonsai look, I don't feel I had enough space to work with. I literally had a 15x15 area and I dont think bonsai would lend itself to having many sps.

I ended up going with FIJI Dry Rock as per my wife's instructions. Because of that I ended up with the aquascape above.

I was able to get a really good deal on a 250w Reefbrite Hybrid light on R2R. In the coming months I will see which one I prefer. I feel that I may need a chiller no matter what because the room I am in gets sun all day long and is quite hot in the summer.

For now I went with IO salt, at 39 dollars per 200 gallons who could pass it up for at least 1 box. I think once I get SPS (months down the road) I will switch to Tropic Marin Pro Reef.

RedSea is sending me a new tank for a 2 dollar part. Well, oh well. New tank should be here next week sometime. Now that aquascaping is over, luckily I didn't scratch the tank, I can choose between the new tank or old. Better yet, I'll take out the part I need and keep the new one crated and stored incase my kids scratch this one.

Got my APEX Base and EB8 back and wow lots of corrosion. I guess there was water damage even though they were both setting in a dry box in my garage since my last breakdown. The cost to fix both units was almost as much as I would have paid If I were to sell them or buy them on the forums. I'm quite disappointed but they are fixed and it beats paying 500 for a new unit.

More to comes soon!

 

[sahin]

Good to see you're back in the game. :beer: Will be following with interest. I see you went with safe and proven lights.

 

[cpllongjk]

Good to see you're back in the game. :beer: Will be following with interest. I see you went with safe and proven lights.

Yeah, I have the option of t5 or MH. We will see. I'm very happy that I am able to start up again. I was smart enough to keep all my old equipment and not sell it off. My wife liked the idea of only having to buy a few things rather than a whole new setup.

 

[daelie]

Love these tanks, I set up a 250 about a month ago. Went t5 on the lighting as well. Will be following along, looks like a great start.

 

[cpllongjk]

Love these tanks, I set up a 250 about a month ago. Went t5 on the lighting as well. Will be following along, looks like a great start.

Thanks.

I went a visited a friend tonight and saw his BB frag tank. While I love the looks of a tank with a bit of sand, since I am going nearly full SPS I worry that the flow will kick a lot of the sand up.

I ordered CaribSea Reef Special Grade. It is a bit larger than Fiji Pink however I am just wondering if I should go Bare Bottom. The benefits of BB are good especially with the Nutrient Transport Mode on the MP10s.

 

[doradosteve]

I always liked the look of the RS tanks!

 

[yellowRubi]

Looks great, can't wait to see some pics with the water in it

 

[cpllongjk]

Looks great, can't wait to see some pics with the water in it

YellowRubi,

I was thinking of doing a build thread with all imaginary corals. That would be funny if someone had a year-long build thread of an empty tank.

BTW. I have water in it now but I have 1 more day of soaking rock in RODI, then I'll do final exchange and add salt.

My wife decided for me to do BB for now and cycle the tank/rock. Since I plan on cycling the rock/tank for a month or two there is time to decide if I want to place sand in the tank. I ordered live sand so that shouldn't make my tank start over if I decide to add in sand later down the line. I just want that bacteria to start populating the rock asap.

 

[cpllongjk]

I always liked the look of the RS tanks!

I agree. Honestly though, I wished they would have made it 24x24x18 or 24x24x16. I think there is a huge market for shorter and deeper tanks. Also, their design for plumbing is very convenient for new plumbers. Very plug and play. I have done a lot of plumbing in the past so I know what Im doing but this was so simple compared to me doing it myself. Best of all, no leaks at all.



On another note, I have had water in the tank for 2 days now and was dialing in the siphon valve. The tank is ULTRA Quiet! Honestly the noisiest thing in my tank is my return pump "EHEIM 1260." Honestly that really tells you how quiet this thing is!

 

[malupoo]

Will be following closely I'm 90% sure I'm getting Red Sea 170 as well of if I can stretch the budget 250

 

[rehype]

Looks really good Jared! Ill be following closely.

 

[cpllongjk]

Will be following closely I'm 90% sure I'm getting Red Sea 170 as well of if I can stretch the budget 250

Its a nice tank. It can be challenging to set up an aquascape with a layout this small. Even though the tanks outside dimensions are 24x20x20 you really only have a 16x12 area to work with. I assume you don't want any rock on the outside 3" around the front or sides.

At first I didn't like the overflow in the middle of the tank but after thinking about it and watching my mp10 I wouldn't have it any other way. I really do think I will have to get a second mp10 though. Even with the QuietDrive MP10 I don't like how noisy it is at 100%. I would rather have 2 running at 50-60% for better coverage and less noise.