ReefWreak's 29g SPS Biocube Adventure!

[ReefWreak]

It's choking me up a little looking at the pics, but here's one out of the freezer. Comparing an older 10k Reeflux to a 20k Radium, both on 250w electronic coralvue ballasts (I believe this would be underdriving the radium, hence the deeper blue, but that's how I ran them for a few years).

 

[strummerfan]

Yep, still running the RapidLED kit, with a few tweaks to the LED selection (which was one of the reasons I went with the DIY kits, simple to replace LEDs to try out new/custom combinations and add new LEDs when the technology updates).

Radium and UVL SAs? That's a lot of 420! I only used my 4x110w UVL SAs when running 10k XMs and 10k Reeflux bulbs on my old 120. They did make the tank glow like nothing I have seen to date. I remember that with just the VHOs, the tank was actually pretty dark blue (even with 4 bulbs on), but all you would see is GLOW from the corals.

With my Royal Blues on (I believe one of the darker blue LEDs) only, it is still pretty bright blue, but with plenty of actinic pop. You can tell it still has wider spectrum than the old SAs because you can see everything in the tank in "medium blue". I've heard some zoanthid-nuts or other actinic-addicts will run their tanks on ONLY Royal Blue LEDs. I don't think you could even do that with the old SuperActinic bulbs, there just wasn't enough non-blue for things to survive, where as with LEDs, Royal Blue are the primary PAR providers (something different than any other lighting source).

Anyway, good luck with the new build, if you have any questions or ideas you'd like to bounce off of me, feel free to start a thread and PM me the address, or just PM, or comment here. Thanks for stopping in!

Personally back in the day the best looking tanks were lit with Radiums and one UVL SA and one UVL 454. You would think it would be super blue, but those 250W Radiums would blend beautifully.

 

[ReefWreak]

Probably doesn't look much different, but since I finally decided to clean the glass pretty well (where I could reach it, I can't reach all of the areas due to coral growth!) and do a water change, thought I'd share an update pic.

 

[DustanT]

Man that looks awesome! I hope mine looks half that good someday!

 

[soulpatch]

where is your gold torch you picked up at RAP last year? Am I missing it?

 

[ReefWreak]

It's the tiny mostly white looking torch just to the left of the green and purple frogspawn in the bottom right. It's had a rough year. It constantly gets knocked over by the clownfish (I have glued it a dozen times, epoxied it three times). They just keep kicking the base with their fins, and it breaks the glue, and this is after it has set and hardened and whatnot. And there really isn't much room anywhere else to put it.

I'm planning on cutting a bunch of acro frags for RAP, so for anyone I communicate with frequently, let me know if you're coming to Reef-a-palooza, and I'll bring some frags for you. Coral growth is great, but it's a pain when they're all growing on top of each other.

It's also a bit of a pain that the LEDs don't distribute light broadly enough and the bases of many acros are dieing off and it looks bad and diseased, even though it's not. Kinda frustrating, but no choice in the biocube. I guess I could go really nuts and add a few T5s in... hmm....

I've actually considered maybe lightly sandpapering my splashguard to diffuse the light a bit more, and if I screw it up and everything turns brown, I can boost the lights more (they're still only at maybe 70% on RBs and 50% on color channel), or replace the splash guard for $25-30 before shipping, so not the end of the world.

 

[soulpatch]

I think I might still have my splash guard left from my hood I can bring up to RAP. I will have to look and seein my pile of parts and such.

Sounds like that gold torch should make its way into my tank. HA HA.

Let me know what you are looking to frag and I will let you know what I can fit into my tank's scheme. there is a slight chance I might have enough growth to give you a small frag of oregon tort if you wish in payment...

 

[ReefWreak]

That would be awesome if you had it floating around. The gold torch I'm hanging on to, but the minute it grows another head (or if the single head outgrows the tank), it's yours.

Probably the corals to frag are the Berlin Acro (shading my ORA pearlberry, my #2 favorite coral), ORA Stuber Stag (Grows like crazy, too big for a nano), ORA Hawkins (about to hit the glass cleaning magnet, even with how low profile it is), lots of small pieces of Ponape Birds Nest, nice green/purple M. Spongoides, and actually I could cut back the ORA Frogskin too.

Tons of nice corals that I'm sure people would appreciate. I should sell frags, but it's a hassle in NYC, and you get so many people flaking out it really turned me off from selling frags. I don't even want to give them away because of all the flakes, it ends up screwing up my schedule and stressing me out, so I'd rather just let the corals fight or break them off and let the frags blow around. I know it sucks to say, but it's the reality in a small tank filled with corals.

I'd like to trade away my colony of Purple Bonsai. It doesn't get as purple as I'd like in my tank (though it can and does get more purple), and it's taking up a lot of room that that I don't have. I'd like to start back at a small frag again and let it grow out again.

I probably shouldn't take a frag of OT even if you have one, I've just been having too many issues recently and losing anything "fancy" (I've tried Tyree Pink Lemonade 3 times now from Cherry Corals, all with failure).

The tank is definitely going through some weird spurts. Probably my fault for doing too much. What I really need to do is get vodka on a doser to do .5mL every other day, get 2x10 gallon reservoirs for 2 part so that it doesn't run out three times a year and disrupt everything when it runs dry, and I'm going to go back to prodibio and see if it gets more colors out of the corals. I'm also bumping the lights up a bit. I freaked out last time the tank had a downturn (due to the running out of 2 part, everything went bad and brown) and turned the lights down, but I think it would be helped by keeping the lights high again, until I see some negative impact.

 

[soulpatch]

Well let me go over that list but the bonsai is a definite if you want to remove it. It would be interesting to see how it colors up under my kessil t5 lighting.

You probably shouldn't take the tort but you know darn well if I bring up a small piece you will be in heaven to add it to the tank. It grows slow so you would have time for it to outgrow a spot in the tank and the deep blue it gives is worth it. I dont know for sure if I will have enough for a decent frag by end of June but we shall see.

I have not had the need to start dosing of anything in my tank due to the low stock nature of my corals. I think I can hold it off even more once I set up the AWC station. I have all the equipment to do so though and would probably get faster growth but at this stage no need. If I take a decent amount of your sticks and buy more at RAP though I might suddenly have a need to power up some more equipment!!! Exciting.

 

[ReefWreak]

I do want to remove it, so it's yours lol. OT, we'll see where it's at by then. In my old tank, I used to half jokingly take a single polyp or corallite knowing full well that almost 100% of the time, they would end up encrusting and growing without any problem. With this tank, I definitely do NOT have that confidence any more. But we'll see. Some of my last pickup from Cherry Corals are doing great (LPS looks fantastic, haven't shared pics), Vivids Rainbow is doing okay, no color, slight encrusting, rainbow monti barely has color, but no room closer to lights either, but pink lemonade, reason of the order, is almost dead).

Must be nice not having to dose. I'm still helping a friend work into his Reefer 250, and he's started dosing manually, and will be setting up his DOS soon, and mine are pretty well locked in. I really just need to have 2 part solution ready to roll before it runs out, and keep the 1 gallon jugs topped off. I have b-ionic for this next batch, and I'm hoping it lasts twice as long since it is supposed to be almost double the concentration of BRS 2 part, but we'll see once I switch over how it goes.

Don't worry about the growth, worry about the color. Though the problem with that, is that if you don't feed the growth with calcium and alkalinity, your colors die out. So you almost need to keep the crazy calcium/alkalinity train going to promote good colors, even if you don't necessarily want more growth.

Google some of the corals I listed, let me know which you want (or any other friends who are going to RAP, let me know if you'd like some cuttings). I need a frag rack... and somewhere to put it...

 

[Kolkri]

Your tank looks amazing.

 

[ReefWreak]

Man that looks awesome! I hope mine looks half that good someday!

Your tank looks amazing.

Thank you both! We're all just hobbyists trying to crack the code to keep our inhabitants as healthy and colorful as possible. You'll both get there, and are well on your way!

 

[zoobie88]

Very nice tank. I love the flame angel.

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[ReefWreak]

Thanks!

I just posted in someone else's tank thread asking how they like their nano frag rack, and then boom, one shows up at my door. I forgot that when I ordered the dog's meds I also ordered the thrive frag rack, and it just took a few weeks for the meds to clear and ship, and they all came together.

Also ordered some prodibio, so I'll add that again, and get some frags cut and growing out. Also lets me baby new frags, in the case that I get any.

Of course it just means more temporary homes for new corals that become permanent... Woops..

 

[soulpatch]

Reef - Looked up those corals last night and I can find places for all of them to compliment the colors of some of my acans. I will probably need to pick up some more red things or rainbow items at RAP but I should be able to make it all work.

I need a frag rack for in my tank though as I have the IM one but it is too large for the 150. I bought it intending to have the nano be a frag tank that is not currently happening.... Though I do need to replumb for the new sump coming so I guess this would be the time to make any edits should I wish. I just need to empty and clean it and use the HOB overflow Cabo gave me and tap into the current return nozzle.... hmm Or better yet just drill my one 20 long tank I have and make that into a frag tank on its own stand. That way I have more length for frags....

 

[ReefWreak]

Also remembered I need to trim back the Chili Pepper Monti. Cap.. Plating montipora that is bright green with red polyps. Kinda cool, grows quickly, killed my poor ORA Chips acro, one of my old-school favorites from shading.

I just need to get around to getting my hands in the tank and getting everything settled on their plugs.

 

[soulpatch]

if you frag it, I will take it. LOL. Seriously though between me, Tim, and Jason amongst others in my town I can find a good home for it.

 

[ReefWreak]

Ughhh between the new Philips CoralCare LEDs coming out and the new Apex units, I'm getting upgradeitis. Fortunately I have a firm boot down on any hope of upgrading until I move....

Tank is doing well still, growing nicely, doing my M-W-F vodka dosing, and adding the prodibio every other week (3 supplements one week, 2 supplements the next week, and I don't feed the coral food oily stuff). After feeding the Prodibio Coralvits, my skimmer went crazy for about 4 days, so I'm starting to get green algae on the glass, since I can't skim out the bacteria.... So I may hold off on Coralvits for a while and just do their bacteria/carbon then stronti/Iodi supplements.

Can't interrupt skimming on a nano tank, or else nutrients and algae explode quickly.

 

[soulpatch]

Buy me the new apex and you can have mine... That way I get the orange/grey and you can have an apex. LOL

 

[zoobie88]

Great looking tank

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