Solana tank owner thread.

I have a pretty large BTA in my Solana, it sits at the top of the rock work in prime real estate (of course that is where it decided to stay put after roaming about). I tried to get it to be happy in the lower left corner in the front to leave the rock work for some corals...no go. Unfortunately my clowns have virtually ignored it for 6 months. I figure some day they will dive in... I am okay with it as this tank is just for zoos, the RBTA, the clowns, and whatever other LPS I throw in over time.

The clone RBTA from the nanoreef is in my SPS 120g cube. It did the same thing, roamed to the top of the rock work and took the nicest prime real estate as well. Think hard before you do it ;). If my RBTA in the SPS tank ever starts moving I will take it out and get a different anemone for my clowns in that tank, something that stays more in the sand...or maybe none at all. The Picasso Clowns in the SPS tank took 7 months to dive in but now are completely enraptured with their RBTA.

What is your lighting? Might have moved to get to higher light.
Sucks that it is taking up prime sps real estate...

I'm hoping to change around my rock somewhat to separate the nem from my sps. Maybe give it its own little rock island towards the front of the tank. That is if I decide to get one. Still up in the air.

Roush- your tank looks great! Love the nems. No problems with having the corals and nems together that close?
 
I put a bag of Chemi-Pure elite in my solana tank in place of the blue sponge in top 2nd chamber. I have had it in tank for just 4 days now. Today the water in my tank started to rise do to water not passing through the Chemi-Pure fast enough.

Should i be rinsing the chemi every few days or something?
 
Roush- your tank looks great! Love the nems. No problems with having the corals and nems together that close?

Thanks!

Well they haven't moved yet, but it's only been a little over 2 months. From past experience, the rose have never moved in my other tanks. Once they put there foot down, that's where they live until they split and then the clone wanders a few inches off but stays pretty close.

The green bubble tips wander a bit, but when they find a spot they like they usually stay put. At least in my tanks, lol.

No stinging yet, but when things start to grow out more I will have to rearrange or remove a few things.
 
I love my solana. It is everything I need it to be until I can go bigger again. The clean lines and ease of maintenance is great. Plus it's a great little size. Finally decided to pick up an apex for it and I'm glad I did. Everything fits underneath and works like a charm. It's dominated by LPS with inverts.
 
I put a bag of Chemi-Pure elite in my solana tank in place of the blue sponge in top 2nd chamber. I have had it in tank for just 4 days now. Today the water in my tank started to rise do to water not passing through the Chemi-Pure fast enough.

Should i be rinsing the chemi every few days or something?

You should put the chemipure in the bottom of chamber 2 and put filter floss in place of the blue sponge at the top of chamber 2. Chemipure clogs easily if too much detritus flows through it

Thanks!

Well they haven't moved yet, but it's only been a little over 2 months. From past experience, the rose have never moved in my other tanks. Once they put there foot down, that's where they live until they split and then the clone wanders a few inches off but stays pretty close.

The green bubble tips wander a bit, but when they find a spot they like they usually stay put. At least in my tanks, lol.

No stinging yet, but when things start to grow out more I will have to rearrange or remove a few things.

Ah that is good then. Glad they stay put for you. Hope I have the same good luck when I eventually get a BTA for my Solana.
Good luck with yours. Looks awesome!
 
I have set up my solana and have just filled with water to make sure all is working as expected. Right now everything seems fine, but the skimmer pump is a bit louder than I would like - seems like the pump itself, not the air intake. Any ideas on how I could quiet it down a bit? Is there a safe way to dampen the vibration? Or could I replace the pump with something like a mj400? I have read about the tunze replacement, but would rather not go that route yet if there is another way.

This is my first saltwater tank, so I read this thread start to finish, and it was VERY helpful in deciding on the additional equipment. Thanks to all that contributed!
 
Folks who have the disco-ball light: Is it possible to remove the lamp from the socket?

I've got a dent in the aluminum cover, and I'd like to take it apart without wrecking it to try to fix the dent.
 
Hey Guys!

Joining the club tomorrow! I found a used setup without a light. Looking for opinions for lighting the cube. I will just be housing zoas and lps, no SPS. 24'' 4 bulb T5 fixture sufficient?

Thoughts/concerns?

Thanks!

Brad
 
Folks who have the disco-ball light: Is it possible to remove the lamp from the socket?

I've got a dent in the aluminum cover, and I'd like to take it apart without wrecking it to try to fix the dent.

I can't edit my post, so I am posting again to say I solved my problem by hanging the light so that you can't see the dent. :lol2: I don't think I can fix it.

All the more reason to upgrade the light soon.
 
Hey Guys!

Joining the club tomorrow! I found a used setup without a light. Looking for opinions for lighting the cube. I will just be housing zoas and lps, no SPS. 24'' 4 bulb T5 fixture sufficient?

Thoughts/concerns?

Thanks!

Brad
First congrats!

Next, you have answered one of the big two questions for a light choice recomendation... the second is what is your budget? If I was in your situation and had enough start up cash I woul definitely go for a ecoxotic Panorama LED fixture. Is pricier at ~$620, but you'll come out ahead with no bulb changes and lower power use. Next up is a decent 6 bulb T5 fixture. T5 gives you nice control over color choices and is still pretty efficient. SPS would also not be a problem if you go to that in the future. MH are great for high light needs but I personally have not gone that route. My SPS is going well under my T5's so you'd be good as well.

Just some initial thoughts and opinions.
 
Thanks! This is not my first rodeo as far as setups, just with a Solana of course! :)

Would the Maxspect 60w led fixture work on this setup? Like I said no SPS. Zoas and LPS.

The website says that the 60w fixture is comparable to a 75w mh lamp...

My budget is about $200 right now....

Thanks Michael!

Brad
 
The Tunze 6045 is a nice powerhead for the Solana and half the price of the MP10's. On sale at premium aquatics right now too.
 
Hey guys, what filter floss are you guys using in chamber #2? I just picked up some some from MediaBaskets.com since I was getting a cup for a Tunze 9002 anyway, but it's super thick (1"+) and water seems to run down to the bottom of chamber #2 instead of running across the floss. I'm looking for something a little thinner than will work.
 
mvlk in your title at the bottom i see you say you have uvl bulbs coming soon are the bulbs going into the nova extreme pro?if so where do you find the bulbs?
 
Yep. They are on order from Nano Tuners and will go into the NEP. Hopefully arriving soon. Probably is time to send an email to get an updated ship date.
 
Just picked up a Solana. Few concerns tho:

1) Stock return pump is apparently hot to run. Mine runs very quiet but I decided to try other options. I tried to get my Eheim 1250 in there but jammed in that small space (even wrapped in hose to dampen sound) it was louder than the stock was. Now I have a MJ600 in there I had kicking around. 160gph which still means I fall into that ideal (in my head) 3-5x sump turnover. See any issues? It's about the same as the stock was in terms of noise but uses less power and makes less heat.

1) Stock Skimmer is SO LOUD. When I plug it in it totally doesn't matter HOW quiet I got the return to be...I could easily toss the Eheim back in and you'd never hear it over this skimmer. What can I do to make it quieter? Should I just upgrade to a quieter skimmer?

Thanks!
 
Any of you running a GFO reactor on a sumpless Solana? I was wondering how you might mount the BRS reactor to the back of the tank.
 
Any of you running a GFO reactor on a sumpless Solana? I was wondering how you might mount the BRS reactor to the back of the tank.

I'm considering ordering a Bulkreefsupply filter. I was just planning on screwing it to the upper part of the back of the stand and maybe ordering a couple extra 90's to make the transition over the back edge of the tank neater.
 
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