Pirate's Reef
- Thread starter CoralFiend
- Start date
CoralFiend
New member
Ha! I figured you did, but didn't want to just explain the acronym.
Honestly, the DSB is not necessary in a nano tank. Regular water changes alone should keep nitrate levels within a manageable range. But, I thought that the aragonite sand would at least add some buffering, since I used the black sand. Also wanted to experiment with the idea to see if I wanted to add one to the 140. Space is an issue there though.
CoralFiend
New member
Ok, for those that like to look at pictures - and have a little free time - I put up a photo diary of the building of Pirate's Reef. Some of the pics you have already seen, but there are probably a few that you haven't. Enjoy....
http://members.cox.net/piratesreef/PiratesReef1.html
http://members.cox.net/piratesreef/PiratesReef1.html
CoralFiend,
No I did not mean that he lived in LC. They went and got her parents and her crazy grandmother and let them stay in their house in Austin for a month. He probably would have been better off in LC rather than Austin. That is a funny thought though.
No I did not mean that he lived in LC. They went and got her parents and her crazy grandmother and let them stay in their house in Austin for a month. He probably would have been better off in LC rather than Austin. That is a funny thought though.
CoralFiend
New member
Hi KafudaFish,
Ha! I guess I misunderstood you. If they went through Houston coming here and going back to Austin, that alone could have made it an experience to remember. Major grid lock there during the evacuation.
The fact that you designed and built this ia areal testament to you, However for me, its a little too much wood and and not enough tank. And I hope I dont get slammed for this ...... A little on the tacky side, I mean its no style icon.
That 140 is much more up My street.
Thanks
That 140 is much more up My street.
Thanks
CoralFiend
New member
Updated FTS taken today. The tank is now three months old. Still have a ways to go before I am satisfied with it, but it is beginning to look like a reef tank. There are a lot of small frags of zoos and mushrooms in here that you can't see very well in the pic. Hopefully someday you will. 
CoralFiend
New member
Thanks! If it were any bigger though I personally wouldn't consider it a nano tank. That was the goal. I have a much larger tank in the works.
I meant to include this shot also in the update.
I meant to include this shot also in the update.
Last edited:
CoralFiend
New member
Well, I tried to plan for easy maintenance. Everything is pretty simple to get to. I can do a water change in about 3 minutes and the skimmer collection cup can be removed in about 10 seconds. The sump is easily cleaned. What problems in particular do you forsee? Maybe I am missing something.
russ49merc
New member
wanna see pdated pics of the sump and refugium and stuff
CoralFiend
New member
No problem! A couple of changes. The remote DSB has been removed - for now. Didn't set it up right and did not have enough flow on top of the sand. I may add a smaller version in the future. Don't really seem to need it at this time anyway. I do two 1.5 gallon water changes per week as it is, so I may not ever really need the DSB for nitrate reduction. We'll see.
I also got rid of the CoraLife 96 watt fixture and went with an Orbit T5 fixture. I love the new light. The actinic bulbs on the CoraLife is no where near what these T5s are. Same goes for the daylight bulbs, but the biggest difference is the actinics.
Here's the pics (click on the thumbnail)
Open front of the stand.
This is the divided water reservoir. Fresh salt water on the left and top off reservoir on the right.
The ER skimmer kicking butt.
The sump & mini-fuge. Growing chaeto. Lights on 24-7. Great place for acclimating and holding new specimens - or suspicious hitchhikers.
The new T5 fixture. The light sits 1" above the tank with a 1/8" acrylic shield below the fixture. Don't want any salt spray on the fixture. And no, there are no heat issues with the ventilated canopy setup. I had to actually buy a heater.
Under the canopy. Fans & moon lights.
I also got rid of the CoraLife 96 watt fixture and went with an Orbit T5 fixture. I love the new light. The actinic bulbs on the CoraLife is no where near what these T5s are. Same goes for the daylight bulbs, but the biggest difference is the actinics.
Here's the pics (click on the thumbnail)
Open front of the stand.
This is the divided water reservoir. Fresh salt water on the left and top off reservoir on the right.
The ER skimmer kicking butt.
The sump & mini-fuge. Growing chaeto. Lights on 24-7. Great place for acclimating and holding new specimens - or suspicious hitchhikers.
The new T5 fixture. The light sits 1" above the tank with a 1/8" acrylic shield below the fixture. Don't want any salt spray on the fixture. And no, there are no heat issues with the ventilated canopy setup. I had to actually buy a heater.
Under the canopy. Fans & moon lights.
CoralFiend
New member
The tank is now 4 months old. I have been adding more corals. A lot of them from trading with local reefers. This tank is seeing double duty as a nano and as a "nursery tank" for the 140. Trying to collect some nice specimens for down the road in the big tank.
I tried to get the "big tank look" by using smaller pieces of live rock and stacking as you would in a bigger tank. I created caves and such and still have about 10 pounds of rock in the tank. That combined with using smaller coral additions make the tank look a little bigger than it's actual size. A lot on nanos that I see have only a few bigger rocks in them and it limits what you can do with the aquascaping. This tank is only 20" long.
Anyway, here are a couple new FTSs.
I tried to get the "big tank look" by using smaller pieces of live rock and stacking as you would in a bigger tank. I created caves and such and still have about 10 pounds of rock in the tank. That combined with using smaller coral additions make the tank look a little bigger than it's actual size. A lot on nanos that I see have only a few bigger rocks in them and it limits what you can do with the aquascaping. This tank is only 20" long.
Anyway, here are a couple new FTSs.
russ49merc
New member
it looks like everything is working out ....... it is hard to believe from that picture that it's oonly 7.7
mr. bojangsjang
New member
Are those SPS corals?
CoralFiend
New member
Yeah, everything is going smoothly for now. Still early on though. My goal was to have a small tank that looked much larger than it's physical size. Glad you think it looks bigger than it is.
There is one frag of an orange monti cap. I actually think it is getting too much light, because I have it high in the tank. It is a little lighter in color than it should be, but it is growing. It is only a few inches underneath the T5 lights. There is also a Blue Maxima clam on the bottom. He has been with me for about six weeks now.
CoralFiend
New member
Just an updated pic of the tank at 7 months. Sorry all of my other pictures have gone away. The image hosting site I was using just disappeared one day and never came back on line.
drummereef
Team RC
Wow! Beautiful.
