My 55 gallon Cleair Aquatics Reef Tank from a newbies point of view.

KMS.Kyle

New member
Hello,

It's been a while since I shared any updates about my tank so I thought I'd create a thread and hopefully in doing so, have an opportunity to answer any questions of any newbies based on my experience starting a marine tank.

My tank was a transfer from a married couple that had a baby and had no more time for the tank. I transferred 50% of the water, 50% of the sand and the fish - everything survived the 2 hour drive/bucket adventure (while I did recycle the water in the buckets with a cup to keep the oxygen up).

My build:
Fish:
-Sleeperhead Goby, Firefin Goby, Melanarus Wrasse, Pair Clowns, Lawnmower blenny, Pajama Cardinal, Coral Beauty Angel, Coral Hogfish, Coral Branded Shrimp, Fire Shrimp, Urchin (and hermits/turbo snails).

Coral: Goniopora, Button Zoa, Hammer Corals, Bubble tip Anemone, Assorted mushrooms, Star Polyps, Green Glove coral, Pink/Green Montipora, Sun Coral

Tank: 55 Gallon Glass Cleair Aquatics (Black) - This tank was not meant to be a saltwater tank - clearly. I couldn't turn down the deal this couple was giving me for over 200 pounds of live rock and coral/fish - so I went with it and with some work modifying it - It's not an impressive under water world.

Light - Kessil 360N - I choose this over the W(ide) because my tank is long and narrow and it's been absolutely incredible in every aspect - the shimmering on the water is an added bonus that I couldn't imagine living without.

Pump - Fluval 360 Canister FIlter (70 US Gallon)
I have to say - this pump has really made life easy and was worth the investment - turning it off and on is a breeze as well as cleaning - because you never need to re-prime it. Though with that said - If you're on your first startup - Priming a pump has never been easier with its amazing little pump lever on the top to create the vacuum for you. Also - Cleaning it is as easy as 123.

Skimmer - ESHOPPS | PSK-75 (75 US Gallon) - Hang on back skimmer.
I have a 55 gallon tank and when I started I decided to cheap out on the skimmer and buy a Tunze Nano DoC 9004 (sits inside) - It was a pain in the butt moving it around and adjusting to the water level or if I left for a couple days the person watching my tank would always have to watch the water level/remove and empty its super small cup.

I recently purchased the Eshopps (a couple weeks ago) and for the SAME PRICE as the Tunze Nano - I can safely say that this has been the most impacting upgrade both to my tank and my personal life. First off, the cup has a great little hose at the top that allows you to send any excess to a bucket (say.. Under your tank) - so you never really need to worry about emptying it right away.

It's been pulling stuff out of my water that my Tunze Nano NEVER did and it's REALLY easy to use, install and adjust - Did I mention its INCREDIBLY QUIET.

My tank is in my bedroom and I don't even hear it - not even in the slightest bit (especially compared to the tunze - which mind you was supposed to be the quietest one on the market (I was told).

Power Heads - 2x Sicci 50 Gallon adjustable heads - Nothing exciting here - run of the mill power heads, easy to clean - not TOO expensive and lots of head modes.

System/cpu - Apex JR - Friends, let me first start by saying that when I bought this device, it sat unopened for many months because I was just terrified of setting it up - but let me tell you, now that I have - I couldn't imagine being in this hobby without it. It allows you to setup your lighting, pumps, everything - including even an auto feeder - all into this lovely little digital device - which you can then link to a wifi adapter and run from your phone. Their customer service is TOP NOTCH - They actually run a team viewer program to your computer and if you have any issues will completely walk you through everything OR - they will set it up for you - right in front of your eyes. They respond incredibly quickly as well.

Also - it's great for dosing or feeding your tank as you can just power things off at the click of a button or on a timer.

Since picking up my tank I've learned that there's always something new to learn about it - but over time I've found that nothing on the internet can tell you how to be the more successful than listening to your tank - I don't mean putting your ear to it - I mean watching it, each day - the corals, the fish, their behaviors - you eventually start to build a relationship to it that over time becomes like your own body.

Note: In my pictures you'll see quite a bit of algae - that's because I had an AC unit in my room and it broke down and I thought it would be Ok for the weekend but the temperature sky rocketed to 29 degrees Celsius and killed my Tiger Cowrie Snail - Which then rotted a couple days before I noticed it was dead - Sad, but a lesson well learned. I've since added a Lawnmower blenny who's been putting in work and its slowly going away. (Any other advice here, welcome!) Also - The anemone is about 3x the size of that picture - I had just fed it before taking this picture so it's pretty closed up. :)

If you have any questions - I may not be the MOST experienced reefer but coming from someone who's only 9 months into the hobby - I may have a ton of answers for anyone that's starting out and would love to help the community as many here helped me.


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Good to hear your feedback on the skimmer; I'm thinking of one for my 55. Neat tank you have there! I've never seen one with those dimensions before.
 
Thank you :)

You won't be disappointed with the skimmer.. It's blown every expectation I had out of the water. It's a quiet beast.
 
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