Zer0's 17.3G Shallow Rimless Cube

[Zer0]

Hello ladies and gentlemen. It would seem that I am back. I probably won't updated this thread as much as my thread on N-R, but i will update it none the less. Still, i'll answer any questions you guys have and I will try and provide as many pictures as I can.

I don't have any plans on livestock yet, but as far as equipment goes, I will try to have as little as possible. Like my last 25G cube, this one will have a sole fuge, no sump, no skimmer, no reactors. Just a refugium with a 5-6" deep sand bed, and probably just some rock rubble and some chaetomorpha. Probably some grape caulerpa though since again, I plan to keep my refugium on a 24/7 light cycle like last time.

On to the pictures.

Delivered:

On a temporary stand:

Random Shot:

Nice Teeth. But in all seriousness, I just found out my camera had a macro setting and this was the first picture I took with the macro mode on. It's a pretty nice feature and i will be using it more often when taking pictures of my livestock.

Beautifully finished edges:

The aquarium is 20x20x10 with a built in external overflow. 1" drain and 1/2" return



Anyways, I'll answer any questions you guys have and like I said, i'll try and update as much as possible. Tank most likely won't see water until the end of my school semester because really, I just want more time to work on it during the summer, and I would like to keep my main focus on my studies and have zero distractions. And this tank would most likely be a huge distraction

Hope you enjoyed so far, many more pictures to come. Thanks for viewing.

P.S. Couldn't fit 10 pictures in the thread so i had to double post...

 

[Zer0]

Here is the stand and light tree being built:

It's 3/4" thick Red Oak plywood

Finished stand. Light tree and door still being finished at the time this picture was shot:

Another:

My doggy:

 

[classklown90]

wow looks fantastic, cant wait to see it filled!

 

[Zer0]

Thanks! I can't wait either.

 

[mr_X]

that looks very cool. have you decided on lighting yet?

 

[iDream]

YESSSSSS! !

ive been waiting for you to come back! the 25G cube was so awesome! you should link the NR thread so i can watch it there too, this is gonna be sick!



i know im a stalker but thats not the point LOL

 

[Zer0]

that looks very cool. have you decided on lighting yet?

Thanks Doug. Well, right now, i'm pretty sure i'm going with a 150w Halide again. I would have loved to run all T5's but i'm having trouble finding anything reliable with a 20" fixture. The bulb selections for the 20inchers pretty much sucks, and the new UVL bulbs are 17" instead of 18" and require the modification of the fixture itself for them to be used, so i figure its not worth my time. Especially for the sucky amount of bulb combos. I also would have loved to go LED but it's a little too expensive for my budget. So i don't really know what i'll be doing just yet, but like i said, it's probably going to be halide. Any suggestions/ideas would be great though.

YESSSSSS! !

ive been waiting for you to come back! the 25G cube was so awesome! you should link the NR thread so i can watch it there too, this is gonna be sick!



i know im a stalker but thats not the point LOL

Haha yeah i've missed AA. I've just been tankless for a while now so i had no real reason to show my face around here or N-R. Now that i do have a tank, i feel i should be visiting both. Glad you are following. It's going to be exciting, just watch.

Oh and here's the link if anybody else wants to see it on N-R:

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=260724

 

[iDream]

yeah im glad you atleast posted it on here or i wouldve had no idea, and when i read the thread title/saw the pictures i thought of rehypes rimless (which i think is totally awesome myself)

 

[Zer0]

Rehype's tank is amazing. I was just chatting with him and we're going to be doing some frag swapping once my tank is up and running. That's the second thing i'm most excited about other than getting my tank started, since he has some of the nicest corals ever.

 

[mr_X]

how high did you have the 150 watter positioned over the tank?

what about one of these? you can buy one of these for under 250 i think.
ECORAY TM 60 HIGH PAR LED LIGHT

 

[Zer0]

Funny you should mention that Doug, my main focus this time around is Zoanthids. I don't care about rare ones, just whichever ones look nice to my eye. Anyways, i had my last halide about 3 or 4 inches from the water surface lol, and that's what contributed to some of my zoas melting away i'm pretty sure. This time around, since i have that light tree which is easy to adjust and goes all the way up to 25" i think i will be able to better adjust the light according to the needs of the zoas. What do you think?

I'll check out that LED fixture, any comments on it? Have you used one or know anyone that uses it? Would it give my 20x20 tank good coverage?

 

[tyspot1000]

I know this isnt the usual section I post in, but Im following!
Ive heard of The marine land Double Bright LED lighting system being able to support corals, but Never really seen it done. I do have one on my Moderate light planted tank though and its doing great.

 

[Zer0]

Cool. Thanks for following along Tyler, and i will give the marine land LED's a look, but i do believe they aren't strong enough to support high light coral.

 

[mr_X]

i haven't checked the ecoray unit out yet, but i can get them pretty cheap. they have PAR numbers on the site. you are just going to have to google them and see what you think. i think the main problem with them is the spread is not very large. they put out a ton of PAR, but the main focus is a 13 x 18 area. the price is right though.

back to your situation, what i was thinking was a 250 watt halide in a pendant that doesn't allow a lot of light to be lost out the sides, hung about 24" or so above the tank, with a 20k lamp in it. this way you are going to get plenty of PAR, great color, and an uninterrupted top down view.

 

[Mitchell0605]

ABOUT TIME!!!

I'll follow you here and on nano reef.

 

[Bige]

Something about cubes. They are so complementing to a reef for some reason. IMO anyway. Id like to see how bright that 150 is on that tank.

 

[Zer0]

i haven't checked the ecoray unit out yet, but i can get them pretty cheap. they have PAR numbers on the site. you are just going to have to google them and see what you think. i think the main problem with them is the spread is not very large. they put out a ton of PAR, but the main focus is a 13 x 18 area. the price is right though.

back to your situation, what i was thinking was a 250 watt halide in a pendant that doesn't allow a lot of light to be lost out the sides, hung about 24" or so above the tank, with a 20k lamp in it. this way you are going to get plenty of PAR, great color, and an uninterrupted top down view.

Well, idk about the 250w. That seems like a little much to me over a 10" tank. I believe at 12" from the surface of the water the 150w's cover a 2ftx2ft area, and i know they have great PAR readings. And i'm not looking to do only SPS so i don't want to burn any of the softies and lps i intend on putting in there. Also, 20k is too blue for my taste, i've seen it in person and i like the crisp white light with a tint of blue, which is why i've always gone for the 14/15k bulbs.

ABOUT TIME!!!

I'll follow you here and on nano reef.

Yeah i know right? It certainly is about time. Glad you'll be following Mitch. I'm following your nano as well.

Something about cubes. They are so complementing to a reef for some reason. IMO anyway. Id like to see how bright that 150 is on that tank.

I think it's because of the depth of the tank. It's like cutting a small square out of an actual reef, instead of having a long tank. At least it's like that to me. Tbh, i think the 150 is going to be just right. As long as i suspend it to about 10-12" off the surface of the water i should get good coverage throughout the tank, and great PAR readings. At least that's what i've been told. But i'll be the judge of that once i get the light.

 

[iDream]

going for the FNI pendant again?

 

[Zer0]

Haha yes i am.

 

[Aquarium1]

Following! Again! haha.