TDB's 320 SPS Rebuild

[tdb320reef]

Thanks! A lot of the color comes from how the corals are situated and placed with color compliments and the rule of thirds.

1. Leds are mainly for accent, They are situated in a way were they get the front bottom and offset center back. They provide under 200 par at the shelf but do make things glow nicely. I don't rely on them for growth or color.
2. The T5 photo-period encapsulates Dawn, midday and Dusk they flood the tank with 200ish par all day this is the main ingredient in the lighting.
3. The radiums provide the Midday power that simulates the peek of the day this gets the par up to 800 in some spots, I actually dialed them back to 7 hours.
4. Acropower - I dose based on the recommendations and calculated it to auto dose it every hour.

As for Color, Turn your skimmer down and blast them with high quality light.

Unreal Tom! The superman Hyacinthus and that Plana are out of this world! I'm floored at how you can get the combination of rich color without it all being dark color. I'd love to hear any more insights on how you achieve this.

Some questions based on your last update details:
1). You have the LEDs on for 14 hours- what would you ballpark the Par that these deliver alone?
2). The T5s are on for 12 hours- same question about Par with the combo of these and the LEDs- I believe you previously said approx 300 par. How did you arrive at this photoperiod?
3). And the final par question, what is it when the Radiums are on for their 8 hours?
4) how much Acropower do you dose per day?


There is something very special going on in there, any insights you can pass along would be much appreciated

 

[M007]

Stunning acro-scape but where are the fish?

 

[tdb320reef]

Stunning acro-scape but where are the fish?

Sleeping in the hollow of the shelf. They usually go to bed around 9.

 

[sahin]

Wow, looking great. So so many nice colonies. Awesome work. :beer:

 

[Moser]

+ 1

WHat phos nitrate levels are you running?
What are you feeding the corals?

Do you run Mh/T5/Led all at the same time at any point?
Are the LED mainly for aesthetics, or do they blast par too?

Cheers
Mo

 

[MichaelW]

I would also love to know your n and P levels. I would also like to know how long it takes before you need to wipe the glass down because of algae film? Tank looks awesome.

 

[C.Eymann]

Incredible, simply incredible. TOTM worthy for sure.

 

[rovster]

Awesome update Tom. If you wouldn't mind indulging us, what are your top 3 acros in this tank and would you mind showing a close up of each? I know you have a tank full of collectibles, but I'm curious as to which are your personal favorites!

 

[Bpb]

Shoot this is tank of the decade worthy

 

[mhucasey]

Thanks very much for the info Tom. You are really nurturing an amazing tank and the simple approach is a very good lesson for us all.

 

[tdb320reef]

Wow, looking great. So so many nice colonies. Awesome work. :beer:

Thank you!

+ 1

WHat phos nitrate levels are you running?
What are you feeding the corals?
I feed the fish Nori, mysis and pellets. I have a few large tanks and they love to poo under the mp60 which adds ton of food. I like acropower and have it on a dosing pump. I dropped oysterfeast and instead turned down the skimmer which is much cheaper.

I tested today the Nitrates were clear or 0 and Phos were .04 - I think the large population of corals are filtering nitrates and dose it once a week

Do you run Mh/T5/Led all at the same time at any point?

Yes they run all at the same time.

Are the LED mainly for aesthetics, or do they blast par too?

They do help in some areas like the fronts. Originally I had 60 degree optics and the par was very high but I took those off and put 90. They are on all of the time but mainly for accent.

Cheers
Mo

I would also love to know your n and P levels. I would also like to know how long it takes before you need to wipe the glass down because of algae film? Tank looks awesome.

Today N was 0 and Phos were .04

Incredible, simply incredible. TOTM worthy for sure.

Thanks, I was going to run it on my old version of this tank but got too busy. I will on this one for sure.

Awesome update Tom. If you wouldn't mind indulging us, what are your top 3 acros in this tank and would you mind showing a close up of each? I know you have a tank full of collectibles, but I'm curious as to which are your personal favorites!

I have a ton of pcs but my favs Id have to say are the PC superman, TDB ultra SSC and blue matrix or TDF are tied. I get some pics later

Shoot this is tank of the decade worthy

Thanks!

Thanks very much for the info Tom. You are really nurturing an amazing tank and the simple approach is a very good lesson for us all.

Yes I said it a while back, If you look at the TOTM in past years >5 they were amazing with tried lighting, calcium reactors and inefficient skimmers or nutrient removal then something happened and everything shrank and went to minimalist approach or many others have tanks full of bleached corals or evolved to frag tanks and a lot of new tech that is cool but missing results. If history can teach us something here, these corals like quality light, systems with nutrients and stable Cal, alk via CARX.

 

[mhucasey]

Thank you!





Today N was 0 and Phos were .04



Thanks, I was going to run it on my old version of this tank but got too busy. I will on this one for sure.



I have a ton of pcs but my favs Id have to say are the PC superman, TDB ultra SSC and blue matrix or TDF are tied. I get some pics later



Thanks!



Yes I said it a while back, If you look at the TOTM in past years >5 they were amazing with tried lighting, calcium reactors and inefficient skimmers or nutrient removal then something happened and everything shrank and went to minimalist approach or many others have tanks full of bleached corals or evolved to frag tanks and a lot of new tech that is cool but missing results. If history can teach us something here, these corals like quality light, systems with nutrients and stable Cal, alk via CARX.

I'm hoping to get a calcium reactor going next year. It's very true that a large amount of the best tanks I see use them. Sometimes simple is best- one of the advantages of simple is that there is an easy baseline to return to if your tank starts to drift in the wrong direction. What is hard is precisely determining how much skimming is "just right" or how much light is not enough vs too much. That is where a bit of intuition is really valuable

 

[glaukos]

you always leave me speechless and "jawdropped"
Variety of corals,colors,sizes...stunning!

 

[markalot]

Thanks for the pics and all the information, very cool stuff.

 

[reefmutt]

Thank you!





Today N was 0 and Phos were .04



Thanks, I was going to run it on my old version of this tank but got too busy. I will on this one for sure.



I have a ton of pcs but my favs Id have to say are the PC superman, TDB ultra SSC and blue matrix or TDF are tied. I get some pics later



Thanks!



Yes I said it a while back, If you look at the TOTM in past years >5 they were amazing with tried lighting, calcium reactors and inefficient skimmers or nutrient removal then something happened and everything shrank and went to minimalist approach or many others have tanks full of bleached corals or evolved to frag tanks and a lot of new tech that is cool but missing results. If history can teach us something here, these corals like quality light, systems with nutrients and stable Cal, alk via CARX.

Your system continues to astound me with the color and growth you get.
Just stunning..
I agree with what you say above but I don't really consider you system as one that is nutrient rich.. Actually, I would consider it to be nutrient poor compared to many tanks that fall into your description above.
The key (I feel) is that your corals, living in the generally nutrient poor water, are getting their sustenance from your additions of oyster feast and aminos and no3 additions when needed..
It's seems to me that your very keen eye (or tingling Acro sense!) for when the corals need food is what is keeping them so happy.

There are many crazy nice tanks full of beautiful growing but pale (Deborah, pawel, lunar etc) corals who have very similar nutrient numbers to you.. I guess they may be using products to keep the corals looking that way.. It's definitely a look- not saying it's bad.. I love looking at the photos and drooling. But you have added richness of colours despite the low nutrients..

You have achieved the ultimate sweet spot: low nutrients but high nutrition..
And of course nutrient and chemical rock solid stability..

You are a master in my books!!

 

[tdb320reef]

Your system continues to astound me with the color and growth you get.
Just stunning..
I agree with what you say above but I don't really consider you system as one that is nutrient rich.. Actually, I would consider it to be nutrient poor compared to many tanks that fall into your description above.
The key (I feel) is that your corals, living in the generally nutrient poor water, are getting their sustenance from your additions of oyster feast and aminos and no3 additions when needed..
It's seems to me that your very keen eye (or tingling Acro sense!) for when the corals need food is what is keeping them so happy.

There are many crazy nice tanks full of beautiful growing but pale (Deborah, pawel, lunar etc) corals who have very similar nutrient numbers to you.. I guess they may be using products to keep the corals looking that way.. It's definitely a look- not saying it's bad.. I love looking at the photos and drooling. But you have added richness of colours despite the low nutrients..

You have achieved the ultimate sweet spot: low nutrients but high nutrition..
And of course nutrient and chemical rock solid stability..

You are a master in my books!!

Thanks for that, Yes your right intuition and placement etc all are part of the equation. What I was trying to say earlier is that this tank was overskimmed for the longest, As the acros grew the corals competed with the skimmer for nutrients especially nitrates. Even though my reading is 0 I am barley skimming, you might as way say I am not skimming at all as i get about an inch of skim-mate a week with this tank.

Furthermore, I have resorted to dosing Sodium nitrate once or twice a week. Otherwise cretin corals will suffer. Considering all of this and even though my nutrients are not registering I consider the system rich in that it has enough food to consume and still keep parameters low. Another thing is that I ran out of Oyster feast a wile back and decided just to turn down the skimmer. So that is one less expensive product that I am throwing in there.

 

[teebone110]

Awesome, as usual!!

What are your water change schedule like and how much? Have you ever considered automated changes?

 

[reefmutt]

Thanks for that, Yes your right intuition and placement etc all are part of the equation. What I was trying to say earlier is that this tank was overskimmed for the longest, As the acros grew the corals competed with the skimmer for nutrients especially nitrates. Even though my reading is 0 I am barley skimming, you might as way say I am not skimming at all as i get about an inch of skim-mate a week with this tank.

Furthermore, I have resorted to dosing Sodium nitrate once or twice a week. Otherwise cretin corals will suffer. Considering all of this and even though my nutrients are not registering I consider the system rich in that it has enough food to consume and still keep parameters low. Another thing is that I ran out of Oyster feast a wile back and decided just to turn down the skimmer. So that is one less expensive product that I am throwing in there.

This seems like the ultimate balance. Testing low nutrient but the corals are fully satiated.
Love it!

 

[lcj2046]

Truly Beautiful setup and interesting method.

 

[lcj2046]

Where do you get your sps from??