"The Cavernous Reef" - A 180G Build

[jmifland]

I was just thinking about how that would be the perfect place for some dendros! Wish I was this creative!

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[rickcasa]

Well done in taking your vision all the way through. It's going to look great.

I'm just scratching the surface with this vision. Planning the lighting is the next challenge. Thanks for the encouragement!

this looks so cool. very creative and great execution so far. I was wondering could you maybe, or have you thought of using one of the small underwater leds to place maybe down at the bottom or back of the cave. Might give it an interesting look with neat shadows and whatnot.

LEDs really have made illuminating the tank so much more interesting hasn't it. I will likely use these strips I bought off ebay awhile ago that will add that precise blue glow I want from the top inside of the cavern. I'll check out several offerings out there as what I'm trying to achieve goes beyond the norm but I think mainly the way i plan the shadowbox should give add the wow factor.
Thx for your advice.

Very interesting build.. Leaves me with one question : What are your plans on coral placement, it looks like allmost all of the light will be blocked by the caves..

That's right. I'm going for a contrast between light and dark. I still hope to shine light in front of the cavern but inside it should be a shrouded mystery....haha. how do like that fancy description.

I love corals but I like fish and movement even more. That's why there'll be plenty of nems, euphylias and gorgs swaying with the flow pattern. The plan is to establish a very statuesque sps bonsai on the left side that's is starkly lit in contrast with the cavern. I guess if we were to toy with describing my end result it would be to compose the perfect marriage of hard and soft, light and shadow.

 

[joshlawless]

Really nice, can't wait to see it wet.

 

[rickcasa]

There are lots of NPS (non-photosynthetic) corals out there that would work great. They ca be seen growing in natural caves & under overhangs in the ocean.

I have no critiques for this build, I think it looks great!

Let's just say as a novice keeper I will be extra careful choosing the my inhabitants but I think most of what I dream of acquiring are the more difficult NPS. Im creating another rock column on the cavern side that have more shelves for dendros. Do you have any fav nps that may be easier to keep alive?

nicely done, cant wait to see it set up

I was just thinking about how that would be the perfect place for some dendros! Wish I was this creative!

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Love, love, love dendros and tubestreas...I can see why some keep just these species exclusively. I'm definitely going to find space for a few choice colonies.

 

[rickcasa]

Really nice, can't wait to see it wet.

Consider it done Josh! ! :twitch: I'm putting extra pressure on myself in the next 2 weeks to do just that believe it or not. We're heading for a cruise first week of May and I really want to start my cycle before then. Crossing my fingers.

 

[somosomo]

nice to see some planning ahead in terms of aesthetics ..not that I am dogging them but so many builds are all about the technology behind the system.

 

[SushiGirl]

Sorry, I've not kept NPS so I can't help you there, but there are some threads here of all NPS tanks you could search for.

 

[rickcasa]

nice to see some planning ahead in terms of aesthetics ..not that I am dogging them but so many builds are all about the technology behind the system.

Ultimately, the success of a build is determined how well it supports and sustains life as close to nature as possible. Technology can only help but I'm also aware how diligent husbandry practices are even more important. I'm excited though to start researching the Aquatronica controller that came with the tank. Geez I sure hope everything is there and functioning. I haven't bothered even hooking it up yet. I'm counting on it to help me deal with the monotonous regular tasks. With 3 babies I'll use whatever aid necessary to avoid failure.

 

[wlatino30]

first off i love the scaping.

as for the caves and the light that might come in from the top... just a quick thought and might i add, it might not work. all depends if you plan on a tank canopy.

a small light mounted in side a Squirrel cage fan mount so the light passes through the fins of the fan as it rotates above the cave holes creating a sort of light show that can be controlled by a rheostat or fan dimmer kind of like a shimmer affect the sun rays casts on the ocean floor on windy days.

 

[Cac986]

Wonderful rock work, way to think outside the box!!

 

[shiladitya1991]

That's right. I'm going for a contrast between light and dark. I still hope to shine light in front of the cavern but inside it should be a shrouded mystery....haha. how do like that fancy description.

I love corals but I like fish and movement even more. That's why there'll be plenty of nems, euphylias and gorgs swaying with the flow pattern. The plan is to establish a very statuesque sps bonsai on the left side that's is starkly lit in contrast with the cavern. I guess if we were to toy with describing my end result it would be to compose the perfect marriage of hard and soft, light and shadow.

I am not sure how an SPS bonsai will look since it will create two distinct portions, a heavily lit portion and a feebly lit..But only time will tell.. Keep the updates coming.

 

[Nando-Italy]

Great job!

 

[rickcasa]

I am not sure how an SPS bonsai will look since it will create two distinct portions, a heavily lit portion and a feebly lit..But only time will tell.. Keep the updates coming.

I shouldn't be showing these photos yet as the lighting is not even close to being set up properly. You can see only 1 Razor above which I mounted so I can see what I'm working on but, the idea is a natural fade into the shadow. My real concern is leaking too much light in the cavern. btw, I removed the cavern's massive rock column to work on it so currently it looks very uncavern-like.

 

[rickcasa]

Work on the Bonsai left side has begun. Aiming to hide the CL intake, or more precisely, incorporate its plumbing to become the second bonsai structure. You can see the first one here on the left.

This undertaking is not as straightforward as I also need to hide the plumbing from behind the tank once I peel off the black vinyl backing. Remember, this will be a shadowbox backdrop.

I'm playing around with ABS fittings to knurl around and hide the return plumbing as well as form a really cool structure for sps corals. Once I'm happy with the form, I will remove it and cover it with spray foam and dry rock and hopefully end up with a masterpiece bonsai I would hate to cover with corals.

I'm hoping not to use the eggcrate as I really dont want to make a rock wall. I just want to create a structure in front to obscure the very obvious external overflow and the plumbing that's attached to it. Good thing is I haven't plumbed the overflow yet so the creativity may extend outside the tank with the pvc. This is as close to playing with smoke and mirrors as you get.

 

[jaydashare]

Nice job! Its going to look great.

 

[Adam G]

Wow, just wow. What a work of art. Hats off to you.

 

[Jamie9169]

This is fantastic already. I can't wait for the finished product. WTG! Tagging along.

 

[rickcasa]

first off i love the scaping.

as for the caves and the light that might come in from the top... just a quick thought and might i add, it might not work. all depends if you plan on a tank canopy.

a small light mounted in side a Squirrel cage fan mount so the light passes through the fins of the fan as it rotates above the cave holes creating a sort of light show that can be controlled by a rheostat or fan dimmer kind of like a shimmer affect the sun rays casts on the ocean floor on windy days.

Hey I almost missed your post. I like your idea if I was setting up a canopy. I want a clean looking top free of cables, plumbing, just the light source above.
But I'm thrilled you understand what effect I'm going for. So a low voltage fan that's slim enough to fit under the eurobrace would work. And I think the fan should move as slow as possible. As for the blades, well they should be replaced with a disc that have random shaped cutouts for the light to pass through.

 

[lotusstar]

I love that idea!

 

[Aquatron]

I know you have your lighting already which i have never seen your kind of fixture in person, but it would be cool to see what a Kessil 360w would do on your build since they put off so much shimmer
What a neat idea you had hope it works great for you long term as i am sure some will follow with there builds if it does!