Start of the 125 reef

[kdogg85]

I am finally able to start the 125 that has been sitting in my basement for 2 months. It has a nova extreme t5ho light 468w. I have ordered my base rock(100 lbs) to add to the 85lbs of live rock I have already, plus a 4'' deep sand bed. Under this light, would only medium and low light corals work, or could I try my hand at some high light corals as well? I plan on getting a squamosa clam as well. For filtration, I am going sumpless. I am going to use the xp1000s I have already and a couple powerheads. In the future, I would like to try the turf scrubber, but that is a lot of reading and planning away. The fish will be a mandarin(after a year), 3 anthias, 2 clowns, my mccosker's wrasse and my powder brown tang. Plus the cuc, and 2 cleaner shrimp. Everything sound okay?

 

[iDream]

idk about your current set up but liveaquaria says for powder browns use caution on reefs.

how many bulbs does the nova have?

 

[mr_X]

you could keep anything you want under that fixture. i would change out the bulbs to high end lamps like ATI, and giesemann, but you are fine. i've kept powder browns and found them to be quite peaceful. i guess it's up to the fish.

btw, if you are wanting any sort of filtration below the tank (like your turf scrubber) i would drill the tank now. one 1.5" bulkhead is all you are going to need. 4" from the top and 4" in from the corner.
you can't safely use 2 pumps to transfer water out and in, and HOB overflows are unreliable.

 

[kdogg85]

I have the powder brown now and he doesn't bother a thing. I have a flower pot, mushrooms, and polyps. The bulbs are tru lumen(12-39w). My other fixture has icecap bulbs, it is an odysea fixture( not the best butit works). A guy at a lfs told me that to keep any high lights or maxima clams I would need halides or led's. Which I did not want to hear, but it showed he was out for more than just a sale.

MrX, I seen a post you had put up about where to get a make your own overflow kit, do you care to repost that on this thread so I can check it out?

 

[mr_X]

thats not true. i know many people, including myself, that's kept acropora, clams, and anything else i wanted under t-5 fixtures.
i would swap out the tru lamps for ATI lamps. they are the best. let me know if you need a bulb color lineup.
good deal drilling the tank! it's easy as heck and you'll love that you did.
Glass-Holes.com dope aquarium stuff

 

[kdogg85]

Doug, thank you very much. I will use the tru lumens for now until the tank settles in and the parameters become workable for corals. As far as a color look goes. I like a white look. The actinic blue doesn't do anything for me. Nothing against it, just don't care for that look. What Kelvin rating would do the job(around 12000k or so?) As far as that not being true, even though he may be wrong, and I hope he was, I thought very highly of him trying to at least steer in a safe direction instead of just making a sale. I guess the high light corals will need to be at the top of the rock pile?

 

[abdhalim2]

blue light been choosing because of its nearest colour to the moonlight and make corals growth...but as far as i concern, the light isnt the factor but the gravity from the moon itself...JMO
u may like the light colour but every living creature need time to rest...can u imagine your life without night...??? LOL ....

 

[mr_X]

you'll have to swap out different bulbs until you get the right color for your needs, but ATI aquablue special are nice daylight bulbs i think you'll like.
you'll want a mixture of them and ATI blue plus, and possibly a few others.

the key is to make the corals "pop". to bring as much color out of them as you can. i agree, a super blue tank is a bit much for me too.
moonlight doesn't make corals grow as far as i know, abdhalim. i'd like to know where you read that.
corals that are photosynthetic, like plants, grow from nutrition gained from photosynthetically active radiation, or PAR. this is in daylight, not moonlight.


i'd start all corals out low kdogg, and gradually raise the ones that seem to need it.

 

[abdhalim2]

that is what i said.....'moonlights' lights isnt the factor of corals growth....but most of local aquarists that i know here, thinking that moonlight can get the corals growth instead of color itself...because they see their coral open or else (dunno what the word) at night....LOL
i know they need photosyn process which they need less light...that is why u switch off the white light at night.....sorry if u dont understand me and correct me if im wrong...this is what my sis told me...she worked as biochem lab asstant here...so i trust her a lot....LOL

 

[kdogg85]

As far as starting out low, is the major sign to look for is overextension? The bulbs in it now are 6 10000k and 6 460nm actinics. Its not as blue as the actinics that came in the odysea fixture but maybe around 30% less blue for the lights. I guess around the 16-17k mark would be okay for me. If such a combination existed.

 

[kdogg85]

Before I do any drilling, do any tank makers temper the side panes of glass? There is no manufacturers label anywhere. The only thing I have to go on is around the center brace, there is a sheet of glass that goes about 18 in either way. Everyone I talked to when I bought the tank says this is a trait of an oceanic tank. Is this true or do others install this sheet?

I am worried about whether or not the side panes are tempered.

 

[abdhalim2]

before u drill your tank, try to search any other info such on how to drill it...im sure Mr X had the link for u...be carefull on drilling or u might lost your tank....

 

[melosu58]

I`m pretty impressed Kdogg. That`s a nice looking tank. You`ll really like a 6 ft tank. Looking forward to the updates.

 

[kdogg85]

Thanks Mike. You, Larry, and Doug are kinda gonna be the benchmark tanks for me. I have checked everyone's out and you guys tanks are the one's that stick out the most. I am going with a 2 island theme. Each island will be topped with a crown of 3 clams if that doesn't cause some biological mess. I have to find a center piece for each island, but that will be down the road.

BTW, the tank, stand and light, I am in it for $450 right now. The base rock was $150. $600 for the start isn't too bad, I wouldn't think.

 

[melosu58]

Not for that size tank. Sounds pretty reasonable.

 

[mr_X]

yep..sounds good. i would call oceanic and ask them if you are concerned with it being tempered. i bet you could call glass holes too- they probably ran into this issue once or twice.

the number for oceanic: 800-255-4527 or 414-421-9670 (8:30-4:00pm cst)

 

[mr_X]

that is what i said.....'moonlights' lights isnt the factor of corals growth....but most of local aquarists that i know here, thinking that moonlight can get the corals growth instead of color itself...because they see their coral open or else (dunno what the word) at night....LOL
i know they need photosyn process which they need less light...that is why u switch off the white light at night.....sorry if u dont understand me and correct me if im wrong...this is what my sis told me...she worked as biochem lab asstant here...so i trust her a lot....LOL

yes, i agree that corals need a day, and night. but i'm not sure about all photosynthetic creatures. some folks run their refugiums 24/7 and still get good growth out of their macroalgae. i don't do this (i run my refugium lighting opposite the DT lights to keep the PH stable), but i wonder how this is possible if the theory is correct.

 

[abdhalim2]

yes, i agree that corals need a day, and night. but i'm not sure about all photosynthetic creatures. some folks run their refugiums 24/7 and still get good growth out of their macroalgae. i don't do this (i run my refugium lighting opposite the DT lights to keep the PH stable), but i wonder how this is possible if the theory is correct.

yes....i also noticed about that....there is a lot of people had good growth on their algae when running the lights 24/7....but what did u mean when some corals split, it is because of stress..??? my sis said this, the matter is how healthy is your algae not how much it can growth...either way, it is just human theory....it is out of our thinking......LOL

p/s:u can still walk while u are sleeping.....j/k

 

[mr_X]

some corals split because of stress? when did i write that? anemones can and do, but i'm not understanding the correlation.

the macroalgae in those 24/7 refugiums is exactly as healthy as the ones in the night/day ones.

 

[Floyd R Turbo]

If you're going to do a turf scrubber at some point, I would work on the basic design now. Just trust me on this one. You need to know what is going to be needed so that you don't run into a headroom problem in your cabinet. You can also do a top-of-tank design, if you don't mind the exposed ATS box (you can enclose it) but that might not jive with the placement of your light fixture.

Also as far as drilling the tank for the purpose of future ATS, I would think that pretty much mandates the need for a sump, because you have to figure in drainage due to power outage and have to size the sump appropriately - lost likely a 30 Long or a 40 Breeder, if you can fit it in the base cabinet.

Just think ahead about what you want to do before taking any steps, you don't want to end up a year down the road and not be able to do what you want without draining the tank!

If you need some advice on some ATS options I might be able to help. Running one and working on 2 or 3 more designs.