one month after the upgrade to an 850gal reef

A few responses....


dgasmd..... I currently use (4) Dolphin 5600's for the closed loop. Those compression fittings can be had from any online outfit that carries Aquadyne accessories. I spend about an hour a day just doing little things like..cleaning the glass,cleaning the skimmers, hand feeding aneomes, replacing reactor media, etc. I don't do all these things everyday; but, a little here and a little there... it all adds up to about an hour a day. I don't mind, at all, doing the maintenance.

Matt....I'm not a DSB fan. The sand you see is only about an inch deep. I regurlarly turn and vacuum the sandbed as well as replace what is lost though the monthly (or more often) vacuuming sessions with new sand every six months or so.

Gary... I have about 12 RBTA's in the tank. I gave them their own little section in the upper right hand corner where they can multiply and not bother any of the corals. It is a pretty large section that I've allotted for them. It should be spectacular in 6 months or so.

mothra.... I'm not concerned about the weight. The way that the load is distributed is that the house's foundation takes half the load and the garage floor takes the other half. The house's foundation load is neglible compared to the normal roof and floor load. When I poured the garage slab a few years ago, I poured it thicker than normal in anticipation of a tank like this someday. I'm not sure what the operating cost is... power, though, runs about $200/month.

platapus...never had a website. I'm not terribly tech savy.

xyzner....I have no idea about the total livestock cost. But, the tank upgrade cost was in the $6K -$7K range since I reused all my old equipment.

matt..... I've seen that pic before and have always liked it. I wouldn't say that my tank was inspired by it though. It seems that when most tanks get big that they expand in length and a little depth. To me, they just become larger versions of smaller tanks. I wanted to do something different that yielded a perspective that we seldom see ... even in large tanks.
 
Steve - If you would'nt mind, it would be really kewl to see a picture of a top view of the tank, ( standing up with the lide slide over and looking into the water surface.

Just a suggestion! :)
 
steveweast said:
Gary... I have about 12 RBTA's in the tank. I gave them their own little section in the upper right hand corner where they can multiply and not bother any of the corals. It is a pretty large section that I've allotted for them. It should be spectacular in 6 months or so.
Click to expand...
Ah-HA! Now I see red anemone tentacles up at the right hand corner. Good spot for them. Only in a spectacular tank like yours could a dozen RBTA's get lost in the colorful kaleidoscope of coral!
 
Just an awesome display. I bet it is amazing in person.

What is your procedure for keeping the sandbed so clean and white?

eric
 
That absolutely smokes any tank i've seen!! INCREDIBLE!! i literally broke into a sweat looking at those pics..wanted to dive in and cool myself off! new tank of the month coming up right? prime candidate, you did an incredible job on that tank!
congratulations on your new baby.
 
More pictures

More pictures

:rollface: :rollface: :rollface: :D :rollface: :rollface: :rollface:


I feel like a junkie! I would like to see a picture of the tank from your living room and one looking into the tank.

Please, Please, Please!


You have done a great job!

Steve
 
Grafxguy..... I'm not a DSB believer....and as a result, I only have a thin 1" layer of sand for asthetics only that is frequently stirred and vacuumed.

Sterlruth... here's a photo of the frame. The tank does not look into the living room. It looks into a small room that we use as a den/reading room. I hate these types of photos because all the depth/detail of the tank is lost...but, nevertheless, here it is.....
 
Steve, that is an amazing tank you have. I love the way you have it aquascaped not to mention the colors of your animals. Kudos to you Steve that is hands down the most stunnig tank I have ever saw. Maybe one day I could see it in person.:eek: :eek: :jawdrop:
 
Truely Amazing

Truely Amazing

Can I come over and swim in your tank? :bounce1: I have been reading about your 500, which has shown me a lot of what is missing in many reefs. I did not think it would be possible to improve on what you had created. Alas, I was wrong. That really is a work of beauty. Thanks for all the great pic's along the way. Is there any chance of getting a pic of the top of the tank with the light pushed aside? I would love to see the layout from the top let alone the custom tank that you had designed. You have made many of green with envy. I know have BIGGER dreams for my own. I have a 90 gallon that I seem to be running out of space in. So what happened to the old tank. Is that now the jacuzzi on the back patio? Or was there someone already waiting for it? Keep up the inspiration. I hope you don't mind, but like many others, I will be asking you question. Thanks again
 
Hey Steve,
Are you trying to win tank of the month again? JK, GREAT WORK!!! WAY TO GO!.
What are the dimensions on this tank?
 
curlybear

[welcome]


<b>Steve<b>, how do you feed your tank? I'm surprised, it appears that you must do everything from the garage side, as there is no access whatsoever to the tank from within the house?

Thanks for showing that shot, I was very curious how it was viewed from inside. I hope to see a couple of top-down shots, from about 6' away to give us yet another perspective. Seagull-view, that is. :D
 
Steve, your tank is tank of the year, in my book!
It's something for all of us to aspire to. Thanks for sharing it. It's weird how I keep checking here, hoping to see more photos. (seems to be a common theme).
What do attribute your success to?

Thanks,
Mark
 
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