"Let there be light!" - Kay Tickle's Seahorse Tank Build

Kay Tickle

New member
I haven't posted any of my tank build yet, so now that my dad came to town and helped me build a light fixture to accomodate the awesome PAR 38s, I figured I'd show off the progress. (No seahorses yet!)

Added a top to the stand since it had to be a little bigger than the tank to have room for the sump underneath.

DSCN1593.jpg


Prepping the tank (29 gallons drilled)

DSCN1591.jpg


Installing the baffles in the sump

DSCN1594.jpg


The drain (I have a overflow box with teeth from Gl*******s) and return line.

DSCN1602.jpg


Added the sand and water

DSCN1606.jpg


Some live, some not so live rock

DSCN1645.jpg


So, at this point, I was at a standstill until I figured out what to do about lighting. I intend on having some corals (mostly zoas and rics) with my seahorses, so I don't need crazy lighting. However, the PAR 38s are very attractive, so I purchased one bulb and a stunner strip.

Dad came into town and we started to build.

DSCN1648.jpg


Ta-dah! (I have room for 2 LEDs, but only have the one bulb so far). We put square dowel rods under the rim of the light fixture, where I will mount the stunner strips. The dowel rods are lightly screwed in, so they swivel to different angles -- quite awesome!

DSCN1650.jpg


Close-up. What do you think?

DSCN1651.jpg
 
Looks very nice.. don't forget some hitches in the tank before you put your horses in......

Thanks, Peka! I am planning on gorgonians, maybe a mangrove and some seagrasses. I'm going to wait a few months before I get the seahorses, so the tank should be pretty well stocked with hitches by then. I have some tonga rock, but I can't figure out where and how I want to place it (it's currently residing in the fuge).
 
I would caution against making your gorgonians the main hitches. I have had lots of them and they end up being stressed by the horses hitching on them... Tonga rock is great. The horses like it...... Aquascaping is one of the hardest parts when you set up a tank. Try not to leave too many hiding spots for them so that you can keep an eye on all of them and check their health daily....
 
I would caution against making your gorgonians the main hitches. I have had lots of them and they end up being stressed by the horses hitching on them... Tonga rock is great. The horses like it...... Aquascaping is one of the hardest parts when you set up a tank. Try not to leave too many hiding spots for them so that you can keep an eye on all of them and check their health daily....

Thanks! I didn't know that about the gorgonians. I'll keep it to only 1 or 2. What do you recommend as far as seagrasses go?
 
Kay Tickle's Seahorse Tank Build

Kay Tickle's Seahorse Tank Build

Here's an update!

Since I last posted, I got my other PAR 38 bulb. My camera doesn't capture the LED very well, but I've read that seems to be the case.

I've also added some things for hitches: tonga branch rock, dead acro coral, caulerpa. The caulerpa should fill in pretty nice during quarantine.

So now I'm setting up the quarantine tank, waiting for a sponge to colonize in my sump, and then I will order my seahorses!!

DSCN1910.jpg


Accidentally, snapped the pic when the pump was off, so that's why the water level is so low.
 
Also, moved the heater to the sump as suggested! Will need to get some type of mesh or something for my overflow teeth, and I may get one more powerhead.
 
Thanks! I got the bulbs from ecoxotic (ordered one myself, and my LFS got the other one from them). My dad helped me build the fixture and we used regular pendant light fixtures (see 7th picture down) and just pulled the long cord all the way through. The PAR 38 bulbs can screw into any standard light socket, making them extremely versatile. It looks way better in person, as do most setups :)
 
Kay,

Nice job! And kudos for being patient, researching, and QT-ing! More folks should follow your example, for sure.

I think the C. prolifera will look great once it fills in, and your SH will love the stuff.

And the DIY pendant looks super as well. We're toying with lighting our upcoming 210 gal project with PAR 38's in ceiling cans (the vented style).

Bravo!
 
Wow, Greg, thanks! That means A LOT coming from you!

I had to slow down for a minute because I had a minor flatworm issue. I took care of it with Flatworm Exit before it got way out of hand (60-70 of them), and I've done a couple of water changes and carbon change-outs, and I'm going to start over colonizing my sponges in the sump for my QT tank. So, it will still be maybe a month before I order, but I'm excited! One of the most important things I've learned on here and through the little experience I've gained is to be patient. "Nothing good happens fast". I'm glad the flatworm incident occurred, because it made me realize that I may be feeding my tank too much, and that I need to pay more attention to my husbandry. I feel that I do well with my weekly water changes and siphoning, but I know the SHs need close-to-perfect water quality, so I'm stepping it up.

Thanks again!
 
Nice looking build, I like the housing for the lighting, and the LED's look even nicer now you got the other one in there, seems a bit of hot spotted in the middle but that might just be the picture
 
Yeah, the pic doesn't do it much justice. I have a really white piece of dead acro in the middle and it is picking up the white and blasting it for the picture. I just have a point-and-shoot so I don't know if I can play with color balance, etc.

...and thanks!
 
Back
Top