Svynx's biocube 29 thread
- Thread starter svynx
- Start date
I'm building my Biocube 29 too. I have a build thread in the nano forum but since this is my first SW aquarium mine is a combination of a build thread as well as asking lots of questions.
Regarding the pump, mine is not noisy at all. I did have to adjust the return because it was pointing straight at the surface and I was getting lots of water splashing. Fixed that an now I only hear the water pour over from chamber 1 into 2 (very soft sound since I added water to chambers 2 and 3) and the fans when they are running. I'll be following your progress.
svynx
New member
The fans didn't quiet down any over night, so I turned one around (they are both blowing out, forcing all air to enter the front central vent) and slowed their rotation down to about 50%. Much better.
Here's a pic of the tank as it sits now. The lights are just starting to come on. Because of my choice of LED drivers, I am able to use the blue/royal blue channel on the puck as my moonlights. The drivers are able to take them below 1%. I have things set to ramp up over one hour, and end around 35-40% on the white/blue channels and 25-30% on the color/uv channels. Nothing in the tank right now to give me any clues as to if this is ok as of yet. There is one small piece of live rock in there, and I started ghost feeding yesterday. I'll toss in a little more food today around lunch and then test for ammonia this afternoon.
Now for the waiting game.
Personal note: surgery went very well. I only remember a fleeting moment of them working on the bottom teeth. No complications. No stitches. And here's the big thing: no pain. Things are healing very well. I have a checkup on Thursday with the surgeon. I was given a prescription for Penicillin and Vicodin. I only used the Vicodin before bed, and only half a pill each time, as a precaution.
Here's a pic of the tank as it sits now. The lights are just starting to come on. Because of my choice of LED drivers, I am able to use the blue/royal blue channel on the puck as my moonlights. The drivers are able to take them below 1%. I have things set to ramp up over one hour, and end around 35-40% on the white/blue channels and 25-30% on the color/uv channels. Nothing in the tank right now to give me any clues as to if this is ok as of yet. There is one small piece of live rock in there, and I started ghost feeding yesterday. I'll toss in a little more food today around lunch and then test for ammonia this afternoon.
Now for the waiting game.
Personal note: surgery went very well. I only remember a fleeting moment of them working on the bottom teeth. No complications. No stitches. And here's the big thing: no pain. Things are healing very well. I have a checkup on Thursday with the surgeon. I was given a prescription for Penicillin and Vicodin. I only used the Vicodin before bed, and only half a pill each time, as a precaution.
svynx
New member
Welcome to the subforum. I'll help as much as I can, but obviously I'm new to the nanos as well. Only lucky thing for me is I had 3 other SW tanks before this one so I have some idea as to what to expect.
Most of my questions have been answered by three people: Soulpatch, ReefWreak, and Clownfish. Check out their build threads as well. There is a good amount of information in them.
homer1475
New member
I found with the fans in the hood, if one is flipped over to blow in, I had real high heat in the hood. Almost to the point of not being able to put my hand on the front vent. So I switched them both to blow out and force air through the front grate. Much better cooling this way.
soulpatch
New member
Weird. I have almost the opposite effect where my fans facing different directions cool better then when they faced same direction.
That said the fans only cool inside the splash guard and with LEDs not much heat anyway so almost a non issue.
homer1475
New member
yeah see I still have the t5's in there and they throw a ton of heat. With one in and one out, the front grill was almost so hot the plastic was a little mushy.
svynx
New member
Diatoms have started to show up. Little patches everywhere. I found a few pods crawling over the rock this morning. I'll test the water during my break today. If the tests show all good, I'll do one final ammonia spike to be sure. The CadLights tank has inverts only in it. I think it would be a good idea to get a fish or two in the BC before I transfer things over. I could even transfer the existing coral over since they are nothing special (a few rics, zoas, and GSP). Might make the transition easier for the inverts if there is a bioload already.
svynx
New member
Definitely. I'll contact you when the wife and I know when we will be out your way to go to Aquarium Specialties.
svynx
New member
Not much to report. Ammonia seems to be gone or almost gone. Nitrites are definitly coming down. The test kits are fairly old, so I take them with a grain of salt. I tossed the GSP in yesterday around this time, just to see how it reacted to the new tank/water/lights. It was fully open withing half an hour, and is still open this morning. I might move one of the zoas over today as well to see how it fairs over the weekend. I also kicked the skimmer on so it get's the proper gumminess inside it to operate properly.
Future plans: mix up a few gallons this weekend and do a 2 gallon water change in the Cadlights tank. I think I'll toss the waste water into the Biocube along with 3 gallons of new water. Other than that, things are in cruise mode until the BC is stable and ready for inhabitants.
Future plans: mix up a few gallons this weekend and do a 2 gallon water change in the Cadlights tank. I think I'll toss the waste water into the Biocube along with 3 gallons of new water. Other than that, things are in cruise mode until the BC is stable and ready for inhabitants.
I think bacteria generally do live in the water column of an established tank (or are at least mixed in to a degree). They primarily reside not in the water column, but I think there's a lot of bacteria in the water column.
I would only put the waste water from one tank into another for a reason, whether it be cost savings or to feed the other tank, but you're usually better off doing clean water, even on a newer tank. You'll also move a lot of bacteria over with the frags (and mostly their attached rocks) if that is your intent.
I would only put the waste water from one tank into another for a reason, whether it be cost savings or to feed the other tank, but you're usually better off doing clean water, even on a newer tank. You'll also move a lot of bacteria over with the frags (and mostly their attached rocks) if that is your intent.
svynx
New member
Nothing really to report. If my test kits are even remotely accurate (and who knows if they are), then I am almost ready to put a fish or two in. Remind me: nitrite and nitrate are an instant read test and ammonia is a "wait a few minutes" test. Either way, ammonia is gone. Instant read on both nitrite and nitrate shows zero or nearly zero. After waiting a few minutes, both showed higher levels. The GSP and zoas are looking great. The single ricordea I have wasn't great looking to start and may or may not like where it is. I have one piece of macro algae in there too, but it's too soon to tell how it likes the new lights. I'll give the tank until Wednesday before I do a small water change. I'll test again on Friday to see where things are.
