Jadette's IM Nuvo SR-60 AIO Build

[jadette]

Everyone kept telling me I'd be back. I knew I eventually would, but I actually didn't think I'd be back so soon.
Little history. I started my 140g build ~9 years ago. My build thread is here:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2030311
I tore down my tank about 2 years ago and there were many reasons for that. Mainly because I wanted to remodel the room and redo the floors. Little sad that I lost all those photos in the build. My youtube videos are still up though.

Here's what my 140g looked like in 2013:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Y-gNr7n6POo" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

And here's what my tank looked like at its heaviest bioload:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dud19Q6cYEA" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So now that I'm back in the game, one would think I would go bigger, but I'm actually going in the opposite direction with a 60g AIO.

Why an AIO? Fellow reefers (Ahem"¦ Toan"¦) are telling me that I should go with a sump. So many more possibilities with equipment, etc. I know this is true, but I will tell you that I HATED MY SUMP. It was a detritus trap for me and maintaining it was such a major pain for me in my 140g build. It didn't help that I completely oversized it. I custom ordered my sump before receiving my custom built stand "“ sizing everything just based on specs. I didn't know that my stand would have a center brace. I also made assumptions on the space available in the stand and I was a good 6" off. This made removing equipment a real pain the rear for me. Had to unassembled my skimmer in my stand before removing for example. So the right answer is to be patient and buy equipment serially to make sure everything fits properly in the sump/stand. But I'm a stubborn person and all I can remember is "œI HATED MY SUMP" so I'm going with an AIO. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

So why the SR-60? My brother picked up a Nuvo 25 Lagoon and in the process of discussing stocking options with him, I got excited about the prospect of starting a new tank. It would have to be small though, since I only have a 37"x30" space to work with in our computer/office room. Old location of my 140g is now filled with my husband's bass collection. So I ordered a Nuvo 50 lagoon from Aquacave. Two days later, they tell me that it's OOS. So I did my extensive 30 minutes of research for an alternate option and ordered a Waterbox 50 from Liveaquaria.com. The next day, they tell me that it's OOS. At this point, I had a strong suspicion that the Reef Gods were mocking me. I was half tempted to order a 200 gallon just to spite them. Because, if less is more, imagine how much more more would be! So after much contemplation and 2 Whiskey Sours, I finally settled on the Nuvo SR-60. Innovation Marine called me this morning to confirm that my tank is ready to be delivered.

Yes, it's true. I am finally returning to the reefing world and picked the SR-60 simply because it was in stock.

Yay me.

 

[hersheyb]

welcome back! wow ur last tank was gorgeous... that's a lot of fish for a 140.. AOI tanks will trap detritus in the back, it's just going to be out of sight out of mind kind of thing.. and even harder to clean up since space is limited.. can't wait to see what you do with a 60!

 

[jadette]

welcome back! wow ur last tank was gorgeous... that's a lot of fish for a 140.. AOI tanks will trap detritus in the back, it's just going to be out of sight out of mind kind of thing.. and even harder to clean up since space is limited.. can't wait to see what you do with a 60!

Thank you! Yes, I realize that it will be a pain to clean an AIO. I anticipate me cursing the Gods frequently on that one. But I had it much worse with my 80 gallon sump that I had no top clearance on and a center brace in the way with my 140g build. If I set up my equipment right, I should be able clean out the AIO fairly easily and routinely.

One rule/lesson learned that I am applying to this build is to not buy any piece of equipment without establishing a maintenance schedule for it that I can stick to. If I can not easily service it, then I should not buy it.

I focused on the fish on my last build, but I got the anthias bug out of my system and I just want to focus on SPS corals in this build. Another lesson learned is to be more selective with my livestock. So no zoas, GSP, blue cloves, monti caps etc that will potentially choke out my slower growing corals.

So many lessons learned from my first build. Curious how disciplined I will be this time around.

 

[solitude127]

Welcome back Shirley. What kind of lighting are you going to use? Let me know when you're ready for some SPS. Have you been keeping up with the SPS lately? Colors of acropora tenuis have been insane as well as the prices. Probably a good time to get back into SPS too since the finally lifted the Indo ban.

 

[minus9]

Nice! Welcome back!

 

[jadette]

Welcome back Shirley. What kind of lighting are you going to use? Let me know when you're ready for some SPS. Have you been keeping up with the SPS lately? Colors of acropora tenuis have been insane as well as the prices. Probably a good time to get back into SPS too since the finally lifted the Indo ban.

Thanks Mike! So glad to see that you're still in the hobby. So hard to tell nowadays since no one updates their build threads anymore. *poke*. Feel free to hijack my thread with your FTS photos! *hint hint*

Haven't extensively researched corals yet. Still looking at equipment. But boy, have things changed in 2-3 years! I guess I totally just missed the Indo ban and the crazy prices. Coral frags selling for $200-$300 a frag with fancy names that have more syllables than that Mary Poppins song. S2K is now telling me that torches are all the rage. Funny how those things were my "test" corals when I started the hobby in 2006.

I'm really excited to getting into a SPS only (or at least predominately) tank. I want to try something different and see if I have the discipline to go ULNS. Never really had that option with my bioload of 40+ fish in my previous tank! This time, I'm thinking of about 2 medium sized fish, and 1-2 nano fish and calling it a day. Looking for a small, healthy roaps butterfly to showcase my tank. This is a risk as they are considered "mostly" reef safe. Some reports of nipping out of curiosity. I may have to think this one through as the last thing I would want is no polyp extension on my SPS tank.

Tenuis coralite structure is one of my faves! I've been looking at the battlecorals website and everything just looks beyond crazy in coloration. Acropora microclados, granulosas, and efflos are my other must haves.

I'll be sure to hit you up when I'm ready! It'll be slow going though. With new responsibilities at work (another reason why I slowly faded out of the hobby starting around 2017), I really only have the weekends to get my tank started up and rolling. Will really need to rely on auto-water changes and dosing for this one. A bit of a space challenge with an AIO, but I have some ideas.

I still have my AI Hydra 52s from my previous build so I'm going to use 2 of them to cover the 3 foot tank. Should be plenty. One of my brothers took my 140g, but he's going freshwater with it so he didn't need the lights. I still have all of my previous settings stored on my AI director, which is nice. I've noticed a trend towards more of a cooler spectrum in tanks, but I was always more of a fan of the warm whites. So happy that the Hydra allows me to achieve this with LEDs. Are you still using T5s?

 

[jadette]

Nice! Welcome back!

Thank you! It's crazy how it's only been 2-3 years, but the coral, fish, and equipment worlds are totally different now.

$280 Gem Tangs? W T H ??!?!?!?!

One change for me is that I really really really did not want to go with a wooden stand. I had a slow leak in one of my return bulkheads that caused damage to the wood at the corner of my tank. Every single time I put my hand (or head- it was a 30" deep tank and my arms couldn't reach the back) in my stand, I had a fear that my tank would collapse on top of me. The new Nuvo stands are aluminum and this is what sold me on their tank setups.

I wish they came in white though. The black will clash with my office furniture. Got quotes to powder coat it white for $300-$400. I would have done it if it was a used stand that needed a refresh, but the though of painting something brand new just didn't sit well with me. Going to just redecorate the room a little bit to make the black not look so out of place.

 

[minus9]

Those tanks are nice. Yeah, aluminum or powder coated steel stand is the way to go. I have a nuvo black 25 lagoon that I haven't set up yet, but will probably make a stand from 80/20 t-slot. When you're ready for coral, lmk and I can give you some stuff.


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[solitude127]

Thanks Mike! So glad to see that you're still in the hobby. So hard to tell nowadays since no one updates their build threads anymore. *poke*. Feel free to hijack my thread with your FTS photos! *hint hint*

Haven't extensively researched corals yet. Still looking at equipment. But boy, have things changed in 2-3 years! I guess I totally just missed the Indo ban and the crazy prices. Coral frags selling for $200-$300 a frag with fancy names that have more syllables than that Mary Poppins song. S2K is now telling me that torches are all the rage. Funny how those things were my "test" corals when I started the hobby in 2006.

I'm really excited to getting into a SPS only (or at least predominately) tank. I want to try something different and see if I have the discipline to go ULNS. Never really had that option with my bioload of 40+ fish in my previous tank! This time, I'm thinking of about 2 medium sized fish, and 1-2 nano fish and calling it a day. Looking for a small, healthy roaps butterfly to showcase my tank. This is a risk as they are considered "mostly" reef safe. Some reports of nipping out of curiosity. I may have to think this one through as the last thing I would want is no polyp extension on my SPS tank.

Tenuis coralite structure is one of my faves! I've been looking at the battlecorals website and everything just looks beyond crazy in coloration. Acropora microclados, granulosas, and efflos are my other must haves.

I'll be sure to hit you up when I'm ready! It'll be slow going though. With new responsibilities at work (another reason why I slowly faded out of the hobby starting around 2017), I really only have the weekends to get my tank started up and rolling. Will really need to rely on auto-water changes and dosing for this one. A bit of a space challenge with an AIO, but I have some ideas.

I still have my AI Hydra 52s from my previous build so I'm going to use 2 of them to cover the 3 foot tank. Should be plenty. One of my brothers took my 140g, but he's going freshwater with it so he didn't need the lights. I still have all of my previous settings stored on my AI director, which is nice. I've noticed a trend towards more of a cooler spectrum in tanks, but I was always more of a fan of the warm whites. So happy that the Hydra allows me to achieve this with LEDs. Are you still using T5s?

Yep, still using T5s. I recently had my old school Powermdule rebuilt by Clear Choice distribution so it's as good as new.

 

[Jamie1210]

your 140 was my inspiration for getting into anthias years back!

Excited to see what's to come!

 

[BeanMachine]

Welcome back! Looking forward to updates.


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[bullitr]

Jadette's IM Nuvo SR-60 AIO Build

Welcome back
I was talking to Jaime about you not too long ago and you're back!!! I am excited to read your updates[emoji12]my tank looks like crap more crappier than usual as my kids are super super busy. Let me know if you need anything. I don't go to wholesaler that much anymore but we still have a lot of open accounts if you need to use it.

 

[bullitr]

Jadette's IM Nuvo SR-60 AIO Build

Duplicate

 

[jadette]

your 140 was my inspiration for getting into anthias years back!

Excited to see what's to come!

Thanks! Did you have a favorite anthias? Since I'm going ULNS, I won't be able to keep a large group of anthias in this tank. If I do get an anthias, it would be a solo one. Perhaps a sunburst or borbonius.

Welcome back! Looking forward to updates.

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Thanks! Probably not as many updates as my previous thread, as there's not as much to explore with an AIO. I went with custom everything on my last build, but I just don't have the energy or patience for that anymore. It took me quite some time (several months) to get my tank, stand, and lights going on my first build. With this tank, I was able to have it in my house about a week after I decided to get back into the hobby!

Welcome back
I was talking to Jaime about you not too long ago and you're back!!! I am excited to read your updates[emoji12]my tank looks like crap more crappier than usual as my kids are super super busy. Let me know if you need anything. I don't go to wholesaler that much anymore but we still have a lot of open accounts if you need to use it.

Hey Lawrence! I got REALLY busy too, which is why I think going with a smaller tank is the way to go for me. So nice to be able reset the whole tank in 1 day if I wanted to.
Going to the wholesalers again sounds really nice. I think more for the fish than the coral though. When was the last time you went?
We'll have to catch up one day!

So the tank came in last Thursday. Had to build the stand myself. It was a bit of a pain b/c the videos made it look like the locking mechanism to connect the aluminum extrusions just click in place - but I had to put a bit of muscle to get them to lock completely. Took a little bit of adjusting to get things lined up as well. After finishing it up though, I was happy with the results. Thrilled that it's a stand that I can carry by myself. The tank only required 1 other person to carry (~140 pounds). That was really important to me, and a big factor in deciding on a tank that was under 75 gallons.
So here it is all assembled:

The tank tucks nicely in a corner of my home office. Hard to tell from the photo, but it will not obstruct the window at all once pushed closer against the wall. The window faces north with several large trees in the way, so it never gets direct sunlight.

The tank itself is of exceptional quality. I've had custom tanks built from Visio (pretty crappy) and Leemar, and I would have to say this looks nicer than my Leemar tank. Seams are perfectly straight and flawless. The glass is very thick for its size (2/5"), which makes it deceptively heavy.

Just ordered the rest of the equipment for it today, so I should be ready to get it wet by next weekend.

Now I can start seriously thinking about livestock options... hmmm....

 

[bullitr]

Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Baby gem tang


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[s2k]

Meh

 

[Jamie1210]

I loved your purple queens! I was always so amazed that you could not only just get them eat, but were able to keep them for so long. I think you are one of the few ppl I know who could do that. I tried to keep them took, and I tried SO many different foods. They would only sort of peck at it, never really ate with gusto. Eventually withered away and died.

I think you also had luck with Evans's, right?

Aww "¦ group of purple queens >>> single borbonius

 

[KWoo008]

Welcome back!

 

[jadette]

Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Anthias
Baby gem tang


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Not going to get any fish that requires 4+ feedings a day. So over that! But a baby gem tang is on my short list.

Meh

Bah. I'm not giving in to peer pressure and getting a bigger tank.

I loved your purple queens! I was always so amazed that you could not only just get them eat, but were able to keep them for so long. I think you are one of the few ppl I know who could do that. I tried to keep them took, and I tried SO many different foods. They would only sort of peck at it, never really ate with gusto. Eventually withered away and died.

I think you also had luck with Evans's, right?

Aww "¦ group of purple queens >>> single borbonius

The problem I had with Evansi anthias is they rarely come in healthy. I ordered a group of 7 from a vendor who was QT-ing them for me. Never got the shipment because they all died on the vendor within a few days. I finally acquired a group of about 8 or so that arrived alive, but half of them were so skinny, that they withered away quickly. The remaining 4 I kept long term. They were my favorite - I daresay more than the purple queens. The easiest anthias to keep though by far for me were the dispars and ignitus. They would get so fat!

Welcome back!

Thanks Kelly! Good to see you're still active on this forum!

So I just went ahead and bought all my equipment from Aquacave:

Tunze 9012 DC Skimmer
IM Minimax Pro Reactor
MP40ES Quiet Drive Upgrade
Autoaqua AWC All-in-one
Neptune APEX-EL

Going to try Zeovit because it's affordable for a "nano" and it's something I haven't tried yet. Getting into a hobby isn't fun for me if I'm not learning or trying something new.

Really looking forward to having an auto water changing set-up. Was thinking about using the Neptune DOS for this, but I really wanted a completely redundant system for the AWC and ATO. Will be using the Autoaqua to control them both, and the APEX as a backup to shut off the Autoaqua if it ends up failing in the on position (read some reports that this has happened). Little concerned that the pumps that the Autoaqua comes with will not have enough head to work for me. It advertises up to 6.5 ft. My planned set up would have my water supply outside, 6.2 ft below the top of my tank. If it doesn't work, I plan on retrofitting the Autoaqua with DIY peristaltic pumps. Wanted to avoid anything custom or DIY with this build, but it's hard to for me to not totally nerd out on these things.

May pick up a Neptune Trident if I ever find one in stock that's not marked up above retail.

Giving the rocks a nice soak now (thanks Toan!), and should be ready to get my tank wet this weekend.

 

[ChefZilla]

Heyyyy there. Awesomeness to see you back in the game. I wish I had pieces to start you out but just lost almost everything to dinoflagellates. A few laps here and zoas there. Uhggg. When I'm all stocked up and growing corals like no ones business again I'll hook you up Welcome back