Tim's 75 Gallon reef build

[carey]

I lose over a gallon a day on my 125g so yeah, seems normal.

Might be time to invest in a cheap ATO.

 

[spoonman]

You read my mind! Does BRS have them by any chance......?

 

[carey]

Yep. Course they do. lol Not sure if theres a discount on em though. You can usually find the JBJ one for about $80 if you find a sale. You just need the JBJ box and a small pump to get the water from the reservoir of ro/di to your return compartment. I use a mini jet on one tank and an aqualifter pump on the other. Both are under $20

 

[spoonman]

So, an issue has come up that I didnt anticipate. I have a friend that is upgrading from a 90 gallon tank to a 180. His 90 has that same footprint as my 75 I think and he is willing to give it to me. It is reef ready. It is in better shape than mine and has less scratches in the glass. Problem is I wont be able to have it for about a month until he gets the new tank and gets everything switched over. I am well into the cycle for my 75. What should I do? Finish the cycle but don't buy any livestock until I can switch out the tanks? or buy stuff and switch it over? Going to be hard not to buy anything once the 75 is cycled, but I will be much happier with the 90.

 

[Hondatek]

Did you buy your lighting allready? Remember it's deeper so I think the lights would need to be stronger. Me personally I would take the 75 over a 90 since it's taller and I like to keep my armpits dry when I stick my arm in a tank

 

[spoonman]

I have a 48" 8 bulb T5HO fixture. I think it will be good on either tank. I see what you are saying about the depth though. I had a 110 fw that was even taller than the 90. I would actually work on it after a shower so that I didn't get deodorant in the tank....LOL! The 90 would be ok for me I think because I am a tall guy with long arms. All things being equal, I would stay with the 75, but I didnt see alot of the scratches on it until the LFS cleaned it up and did the drilling. There are several scratches in it that you can see even with water in it. I am afraid that if I get a little algae in there they would really show up. The 90 is in way better shape. It is also a center overflow that I will have to redo all my plumbing since mine is a right side overflow.

 

[spoonman]

Well, as of today my levels are 0,0,40ppm. I have to do a water change and I am cycled! Took a total of 6 days. I guess having the 100 lbs of rock that was curing in the garage helped. One problem that I do have that I think I know the cause for is lots of brown stuff. I expect a diatom bloom, but this is happening in both of my salty tanks. I have 28ppm out of my ro/di unit. I just ordered a new di canister today. Will be here later this week. I think I am going to add a fish this week too. I am just going to keep dosing small amounts of ammonia until I am ready to get the fish. Here are a couple pics to show the extent of the brownness....

 

[carey]

Perfectly normal. They should fade away in time. Congratulations on your cycle!

 

[fort384]

Jonathan suggested autotopoff.com for my build and I couldn't be happier - the price is definitely right and it works like a champ. I have 1 of their double switch sump mount units running with a 10 gallon reservoir and an aqualifter to move the water... easy install, and lasts me about 2 weeks of evaporation before requiring refill on a 57 gallon tank.

 

[spoonman]

So, I am cycled and need to do a big water change. I am however, waiting for my replacement DI canister from PWC. I guess I will just keep dosing ammonia unit the unit gets here and then flush and make about 40 gallons of SW. Then I can get my first fish. I hopefully will be going this weekend and picking up a Kole Yellow eye tang and a Foxface Lo. Maybe some CUC also!

 

[spoonman]

Got my DI unit from purewaterclub. Installed and back to 0ppm TDS. Filling my 44 gallon brute for a big water change and will get fish on friday. I think I will be buying the ro/di unit from BRS in the next group buy. Wont be able to buy it on this one since I will be spending the money on fish and really dont need it right now. Getting excited to get this tank running.

 

[spoonman]

Got the big water change done this morning and are going to be heading off to the LFS to get a kole tang and foxface lo if they have them. Will post later when I bring them home. Also have alot of hair algae going on right now. Should I pick up something else too?

 

[spoonman]

Got the Kole yellow eye tang and a bunch of turbo snails and hermits.

 

[carey]

Very cool. Where are our pictures!!! lol

 

[spoonman]

Ask and you shall receive! Floating now but will take more when he is in the tank. What do you guys think about a small yellow tang in this tank for the next year or so until I make my 140G saltwater? My daughter wants a yellow really bad and I know that I am going to upgrade in the next year.

He is about 3-4 inches and beautiful! My first tang (small teardrop falls).

 

[TLTGF]

Awesome fish!

 

[carey]

Love the tang!

Not sure i would get the yellow now, I was in the same spot, I knew i was upgrading and really wanted one but decided to wait til I actually got the big tank up and running. Glad I did.

 

[spoonman]

Thanks carey! At my LFS they have a black tang. I am not considering getting it, but it is only $169 and they are on LA for $899. My lfs ships too, so if anyone is interested I will PM the name of the shop. I am also looking at a pair of black saddleback clowns at the same shop for $129 for the pair.

 

[spoonman]

Tank video

Took a video of the tank up and running. Couldnt get a shot of the Kole, since he still hides out quite a bit.

M4H04207 - YouTube

 

[spoonman]

Any comments/suggestions??? I am hoping that water changes and the CUC take care of the algae problems. I think it all stemmed from the DI unit needing to be replaced. I know the snails and crabs are making a dent in it though.