nbd13's 275g Kaleidoscope Lagoon Tank

[nbd13]

Hey everyone,

I have been asked by many people for pics of my tank and details on my setup...well I finally have some time to document my tank and the changes it is going through .

This is not a "new tank setup" thread, but sort of a makeover if you will. This tank was setup in August 2006, to make a very long story short one "product" that is supposed to take the place of LR was used in the initial setup...unfortunately after losing thousands of dollars worth of coral and doing some research I found out this "product" was the cause of the problem . I do not wish to go into details about the "product" in this thread as this is not the purpose of the thread...if you think you know what "product" I am talking about and have questions/concerns please feel free to shoot me a PM .

So, this is where the makeover starts and where the thread comes into play. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to start documenting my newly made over tank .

My goal with this makeover is to have a kaleidoscope of SPS in a "Japanese Style" tank... Meaning no powerheads visible and a very clean look. Granted I do not have the "rimless" tank, but I think you will be surprised with what I come up with .

Let me start with the tank specs:

- 275 gallon main tank (60" x 44" x 24") made by James and the crew at Envision Acrylics. It is made out of 3/4" acrylic with a black back and black central overflow.

This is a pic of the initial sketches James sent me of my tank:

As you can see there is 3 1.5" bulkheads in the overflow, 2 for drains and 1 for the return. There are 5 holes drilled in the bottom of the tank for 4 of them are for closed loops through the bottom. The 5th one (the one right infront of the overflow, the 2" one) is the intake for another closed loop that goes through the back of the tank. There are 4 1.5" bulkheads on the back wall of the tank, all centered in terms of height, for the output of the closed loop.

- The sump was custom made, the demensions are 48" x 34" x 18". I will just attach the 3D sketch and top view sketch. I think the pictures can explain in better, haha .

3D view

Top View

More to come...

 

[nbd13]

- The stand and canopy for this tank were custom made by myself. I wanted to do something unique to make the tank stand out. I still need to get the doors on the stand, but the pics will give you an idea of the "look" I was after. I even mixed up a custom stain for this.

Stand:

Canopy:

- The skimmer for this tank is a Bubble King 300 internal, it sits nicely in the big chamber in my sump. This skimmer is a beast, by far the best skimmer I have ever owned...this says a lot because, I have owned a ton of skimmers.

Here is a pic, this is 24 hours with a skimmate :eek1:

- The lighting for this tank has been switched multiple times....but I think I have finally found the best combo . Right now it consist of 4 Lumenmax 2 reflectors with 400w 20k XM bulbs all run off a bluewave 2 ballast. Also there are 39w t5 bulbs over the center brace running back to front, these are over driven by an Icecap 660. The bulbs consist of 2 UVL actinics and 2 12k Giesemann. This elimantes the "dark spot" that was in the middle of the tank. Finally, I have 4 URI super actinic VHO's run off an Icecap 660 along the perimeter.

More to come....

 

[nbd13]

- All the pumps on this tank are sequence darts, I have a total of 5 running, 1 for the return and 4 for closed loops . I have 3 of the pumps for the closed loops running wide open (these are the ones that the bulkheads were drilled for in the first drawing of the tank). I have one more closed loop that I added after the tank was setup. This has an Ocean Motions 4-way running off of it. I have 4 outputs coming through the top of the tank, which you will be able to see in later pictures.

To hold you over here is the pic of the unit behind the tank:

This will show you some of the plumbing:

- I also have a frag tank attached to the system, the demensions are 60" x 18" x 9", perfect for growing out frags. It is shallow enough to allow me to use t5 lights over it and still get good color and growth. I made a matching canopy to match the main tank's stand and canopy. I still have not had time to get the stand for the frag tank done, but it is on my list of things to do.

The lighting for the frag tank consist of 4 t5's running off an Icecap 660, the bulbs are 2 UVL actinics and 2 12k Giesemann.

Here are a few pics:

Showing the canopy:

Showing the lighting:

More to come...

 

[nbd13]

Since you have the background specs of the tank, let me take some time to show you my fish collection . I love corals, but I also have a passion for fish. All of these fish will still be in the tank after the "makeover".

Sorry for some of the bad pics.

I thought I would start with my pair of Hawaiian resplendant angels, obtained through Frank @ RCT Hawaii. These were produced by the pair copps has now (resplendens x fisheri). Curently these are in my 6 foot frag tank for "conditioning", basically until they get big enough to go into my display tank. They are both tiny at about 1 3/4" - 2".

Larger one:

Smaller one:

Black Tang (Zebrasoma rostratum), I have had this one for about 8 months. I got him when he was a tiny 2" specimen, he is now about 3". This guy is about to make the transfer from my frag tank to my main tank .

Another favorite angel of mine, C. joculator, I got this guy when about a year ago when he was a tiny 2" specimen. He is now about 3" and is still growing by the day. Hopefully I can get a smaller female to pair up with him....

Here is an older shot to show how much he grew. This is when I first got him, that's why his fins are a little torn up.

More to come....

 

[nbd13]

My other pride and joy, my male C. interruptus angel. He has been with me for over a year now and is doing great. I am hoping to find a female or two for him soon.

This is the "puppy dog" in my tank, my 6" blueline angel (Chaetodontoplus septentrionalis). This guy will follow me around begging for food and attention. He will even let me "pet" him .

Next up is my mitratus butterfly (Chaetodon mitratus), this guy have been a model citizen in my tank. I also got him when he was a tiny 2" specimen about 6 months ago. He is now almost 2 3/4".

More to come...

 

[nbd13]

Not really "rare", but I still love my male red sea regal angel (Pygopllites diacnthus). I might try finding a small female for him as well (sorry for the bad pic).

Not rare either, but I still love my goldflake angel (Apolemichthys xanthopunctatus).

More to come...

 

[Stoneyscoral]

Nick, nice setup. Your fish collection is killer!!

Can't wait to see more pics.

 

[nbd13]

Now to explain the "makeover" that will take place...I need to
re-aquascape my tank due to the "product" mentioned in the first post. I am trying to go for the "Japanese look", you can probably guess from the title of the thread, but I am shooting for the lagoon look. Since I am after this look, I am hoping to use around 150 pounds of LR. I have had 150 pounds of Fiji LR curing now for a few months and it is ready to go finally. I decided to use Fiji LR because it is cheap and easy to work with, plus I figure it is going to be covered with coral in a few months anyway, so why spend more than needed, haha .

I am planning to re-aquascape the tank Sunday, so look for pictures late Sunday or Monday. Hopefully everything goes smooth and it is not too much work. I plan to use crate/tote type containers under the LR to make it easy to aquascape and give me a good foundation so no LR slides happen. I think this will make the re-aquascaping easier too because, I plan to drill the LR and attach the pieces to the crates/totes to make it easy to put in the tank and for security purposes like stated above.

I plan on doing a few more "updates" to the tank in the next few days to complete the transfer. I will post about them as soon as I get them done .

That's it for now, if you have any questions or comments please feel free to post.

I will continue to update this thread and I hope people will join in for the ride. I am hoping that through this thread people can learn from my mistakes and get some ideas for their own tank. Plus, this will provide a spot for people to go that have been asking for pics of my tank .

Nick

 

[nbd13]

Stoneyscoral- Thanks . I have a few more things up my sleeve in terms of fish...If everything pans out it should be an interesting bunch of fish. If you are ever in the area Todd, feel free to stop by , BTW keep me posted on the big tank of yours. If you need help moving it or anything shoot me a PM over on MR .

Nick

 

[invincible569]

Great post nick. I always wondered about your tank. Now i have a good visual. I didnt know you had carpentry skills either. I love that interreptus!! How much do those run?

 

[nbd13]

Hey Edward,

I didn't know I had carpentry skills either, haha, I just planned it out and took my time and it turned out like you see it .

Hopefully by Sunday evening the makeover will be complete and I can finally get back on track with this tank. I hope in another 2-3 weeks to add some nice SPS to the tank to see how they do. If everything goes well, by the end of April I should be done stocking the tank.

The interruptus have been going for about $800-$1,000 lately depending on where you get them. A nice 4" wild male sold at a LFS for $1,400k last week....

I am hoping to find 2 females for my male ...it should be sweet to see 3 interruptus swimming around...

I will get new photos up by tomorrow. I am installing one of the "updates" today, so look for more pics tomorrow.

Nick

 

[nbd13]

Hey everyone,

Well, I forgot two pieces of equipment...

- My calcium reactor for this tank is a Deltec pf500, it has been running pretty well for over a year now. With little problems.

- For top off I am using a Sentry dosing pump made by reefdosingpump.com, this is a simple, reliable solution for top off for me. This will be feeding my kalk reactor which will be talked about later on in this post...

Now a little more info about the "makeover" that is going to take place. I have used zeovit in the past, yes it is a system that works...But it was not for me. I feel I can get the same results with what I used to do pre-zeovit. Plus it will save me about $160 every 6 weeks. I originally set this tank up to be a "zeo" tank, with a BB, big flow and a big skimmer.

Since all of the problems have taken place, I have gotten back to "basics". This means me bring in my scienctific background. I have always been a big fan of simple tanks.

Now, I am not saying other methods such as zeovit, prodibio and so on cannot work. In my mind there are many, many ways to have a successful tank. It's like the old saying, "there are many ways to skin a cat". Everyone has to find their own "method" for a successful tank.

I am trying to go back to "basics" meaning, how I always used to setup a tank, with a few twist.

Here is my game plan:

- Reaquascape the tank with 100% LR

- Install a 3" sandbed in the tank. I have tried to adjust to the BB look, but it is just not for me. Hence the reason for going back to sand.

- Keep the same over sized skimmer.

- Keep the same amount of flow, adjusting the outputs of the closed loops for the new reef structure.

- Keep the same amount of lighting.

- I am going to be adding a kalk reactor into the mix as well. This is for multiple reasons, but I have always had good luck running a CaRx and a kalk reactor in conjunction. I am going to be making the kalk reactor myself from my old zeo reactor. I figure I mind as well use it than throw it out. I will post pics of the conversion. I should be able to start it this weekend.

- I am also going to try a remote deep sand bed (RDSB). Again for multiple reasons, but I feel this will only help the tank. It also allows me to change the sand every few years, so I do not have any issues with it, such as a tank crash from it. This is what I was installing today, I am waiting for one more piece to come from premiumaquatics (should be here tomorrow) and then I can fire it up and get some pics posted.

- I also setup a simple refgium in a chamber of my sump today. It is simple like with 2 24" t5 bulbs, both 12k Giesemann. I am exclusively cheato macro algae in there.

I think that is pretty much the game plan. Like I said by Sunday I should be done with the "makeover" and will get some pics up.

For now, I will post some pics of some of my favorite SPS that I lost because of the "product":

My absolute favorite piece that I lost ...

I am hoping to be able to obtain even more spectacular pieces for the newly made over tank .

I will try and get some pics tomorrow of the refgium and RDSB.

Nick

 

[TandN]

Nick sounds like its gonna be awesome cant wait to see it

 

[EnderG60]

why not just use some 1.5" acrylic for the sides and 3/4" for the bottom and go rimmless?

BTW your fish are simply amazing...more pics please

 

[nbd13]

EnderG60- The tank is already built....I have had it setup for over a year now. This is just a "makeover", re-doing the aquascaping, taking the bad "product" out. That's why I said in the first post this is not a new tank thread . I just have been asked by a lot of people about my setup and thought this would be a good time to document it. I love my fish too, I will try and get more pics for you .

Tanya72806- Thanks .

Nick

 

[nbd13]

Hey everyone,

Well...I am DONE with the "makeover". It took about 6 hours to do the complete makeover.

It turned out great! It looks 100 times better than that stupid "product".

As soon as the water clears up by this evening or tomorrow, I will get some pics up!

Nick

 

[glassbox-design]

looking forward to pics. your fish collection is great!

eric

 

[kmmcgra]

looking good. taggin along

 

[Solitaryensis]

Great tank nbd. Have you had any problems with the blueline nipping at corals?

 

[nbd13]

kmmcgra and Flint&Eric- Thanks .

Solitaryensis- Thanks you, I have not had any problems with the blueline, perfect citizen .


Alright, well the water still has some particle matter floating around, but clear enough for some shots.

Now, I SUCK at taking pics...It is very hard to capture the true depth and the different aspects of the rock structure, but here are my best attempts. ALL the pics came out much darker than it really is in person.

It should look good once I get corals in there and everything grows out. I am planning on having a clam valley in the very center.

I also still need to add the sand bed, 2-3", but that will happen this week.

Also, the rest of the crates that I used under the LR, will be covered once I place corals in there. They are the white pieces you see here and there, but for the most part they are covered. Just a few patches here and there need to be covered, which will be done with corals .

So here it is, let me know what you think:

These are all from the front:

More to come...