46 Gallon Reeftank Setup Journal

[szaijan]

Hi Folks,

just thought I'd document my experiences here as they happen, in case the information is useful to other newbies or veterans have helpful advice.

June 1-23

Broke down my freshwater aquarium and cleaned everything thoroughly (white vinegar and hot water.) Threw away my used crushed coral substrate. I previously kept African Cichlids.

My gear to start with consisted of:

All-Glass 46 gal. Bow Front Aquarium (36"x20"x9/13&quot
Eheim Canister Filter (mid-range)
550 Power Head
200 Power head
Under-Gravel Filter
2x30W All-Glass Florescent Hood
EBO-Jaeger 150W Submersible Heater

I plan on a reef tank with about 8 clowns, angels, goby/blennies, a carpet anemone, some corals, and plenty of invertebrates.

I knew I needed a protein skimmer and did not want to set up a sump (space issues in my stand.) I was advised against using a wet/dry system along with live rock, and was told my canister filter might also be unnecessary.

* Aqua C Remora w/MaxiJet 1200 pump

I decided to go for a hang-on-the-back model, and selected the Aqua C Remora with the MaxiJet 1200 upgrade. It was the best reviewed system of it's kind for the price (~$160) and the company was very responsive when I called to get their input. I had some issues with the setup instructions, as their directions were poor, but they responded within 30 min. to my request for support and I would use them again. I ended up buying this on EBay and paid $150 for a brand new one, a decent deal.

The skimmer is quite loud, but I am told it will quiet after operating for a while as slime builds up. The directions say you only need to hook up the pump, hang it on the back of your tank and plug it in. They do not mention the drain elbow joint in the collection "cup" which you must either plug or connect to 5/8" DI tubing and direct into a bucket to catch overflow. I am doing the latter, since I should see at least a few high collection days after I put my live rock in the tank.

This arrived Monday (5/21) and has been running fine since in a salt water filled aquarium.

* Aqualife PC Hood, 96W 10k PC/96W Actinic

The cost of Metal Hallide was simply too high, and several articles suggested that PC penetrates better then other VHO. Since I have a 20" deep tank and wanted 4W per gallon or better, I selected a dual 96W 10K PC and 96W Actinic. This cost about $170 at Captive Reef , $20 more expensive than the same lighting as a retrofit kit. Since my current hood had no lens and may not have been heat rated for lights that powerful, I simply bought the full hood. That gives me just over 4W per gallon. Hopefully it will be enough for a carpet anemone. I know clams, polyps and some hard corals are out.

Captive Reef also proved to be an excellent buying experience. Fast, excellent prices, good selection, and great support from Darin at Captive Reefs on this forum. I also picked up a digital thermometer with warning alarm and some other items.

This arrives tomorrow (5/24.)

* Live Rock

I decided on Fiji live rock, since the pacific rock is known to be less dense and more porous than Atlantic LR. The pictures of the Fiji were gorgeous. There was no good LFS who sold live rock in Santa Cruz county, so I was stuck with on-line purchasing. After looking at many options, I narrowed my choices to Aquacon and Premium Aquatics.

Both claimed to have excellent curing facilities and shipping practices. Both claimed to hand pick and wrap the LR. Both claimed to ship net weight (as opposed to wrapping the weight of the wet box into the quantity purchased.) I chose Aquacon because they claimed to wrap the LR in bubble wrap and not to include any rubble in the package. In addition, they had free shipping on orders over $120.00. Their price would have been about $50 higher, but the shipping costs ended up at more than double that. Unfortunately, they had a delay of a week or two before they could ship, nominally due to high volumes.

I ended up ordering 50 lb. of Fiji LR from Premium Aquatics. They processed my order very quickly and shipped exactly as I specified. They did not, however, respond to my phone calls or e-mail to discuss piece selection. I got my shipment at the scheduled time. The paper wrapping they used was a pain to get off and there was a significant amount of unusable rubble. The rock itself was a mix of nice and bare pieces and I am not impressed. Since this is the only shipment of LR I've ever gotten, I have nothing to compare to, but their pictures led me to expect much more.

I had seen on another website that the quality of Fiji LR has been going down of late, perhaps this is just an example of that.

* Live Sand

I will be ordering Live Sand tomorrow, giving the rock a few days to cure and settle, even though it appears well cured. I'll be ordering about 40 lbs. of live sand from somewhere other than PA, someone who seems reputable and who gives free shipping.

I plan to buy an invertebrates package through Reeftopia.

==> More to come as I observe how well all of this works.

[Matt Rogers]

Michael this is great! [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]

Let me know if that skimmer noise is still bugging you, I saw a mod for it that used foam to dampen the sound.

[szaijan]

Thanks Matt! The skimmer is still too noisy, but I'm told it will quiet down after a few weeks as it "slimes up". If not, I'll be asking about that mod.

Day 1-2

My lighting arrived, as did timers, and the digital thermometer from Captive Reefs, who delivered exactly as promised.

The lighting is lower than my All-Glass hood, seemingly well cooled and very bright compared to what I had (dual 30W Fluorescents.) The light is a bit bluer than I'd like, especially since it's only using a 10k PC, but it looks great.

I tested the water for Nitrite, Nitrate and Ammonia on both days. I must have missed the Nitrite spike, because it read zero with ammonia at 0.25 ppm on Day 1. This shows that the Premium Aquatics rock is VERY well cured. There has been no trace of smell from my tank or from the protein skimmer.

I have only emptied my collection cup once, as the foam in the cup has been completely clear and odor free since midday Day 1 when I emptied the cup of a teaspoon or so worth of proteinous foam. I do not know if this is due the the skimmer needing more than the 5 days it's had to break in, or if there's simply that little protein to skim. The water quality suggests the latter.

I ordered 30 lb. of Keys Live Sand from here. It should arrive next week and I suspect the ammonia will be down to 0 ppm by then.

The 50 lbs. of Fiji live rock from PA covers about 70% of my tank floor space in two porous peaks about 9" high. I could easily accommodate more, and expect to put at least 20 lb. more in.

==> More to come when the live sand goes in.

[szaijan]

It turns out I was wrong... this is a 46-gallon tank, not 47 gal.

I broke the glass on my Versa-top because I was using the Coralife hood without the lightings rails that should be used with this hood on an All-Glass bowfront. The hood itself has no cutouts to insure it rests solidly on the lip of the aquarium. I ordered the rails from my LFS, which will ensure I do not repeat the breakage incident and will also lift the lighting 1" above my tank. Make sure you buy the rails if you are going to use a Coralife hood on an All-Glass or similar tank. This is important because...

Yesterday, the temp in my house hit 83 F, and the temp inside my tank hit 82 F. I believe these lights are over heating my tank. Turning down the heater to heat to 75 F allowed the temp on the far side of the tank to drop as low as 68 F overnight with the light off. This was not an especially cold night in my house, so I'm concerned.

In a non-reef tank, I know it's good to have a gradient of temps across the tank so fish can go where they're most comfortable, but it seems a reef tank would be better off with an even temp across the whole tank, given that the fish and inverts will tend to pick static territories. My 150 W Ebo-Jager heater SHOULD be sufficient up to 75 gal. according to the box and the LFS. Is it?

Do I need a heater at both end of the tank?

Would it be better to turn it horizontal and move it from one end to the center back of the tank?

What non-chiller heating setups have worked for folks who live in temperate conditions. My house temp ranges from 60 F to 90F.

I really don't want to spend another $500 on a chiller. Any input would be welcome.

[omard]

Hi Michael...

You "Ca" Reefers have much more to worry about with over heating then we do here in PNW...

Other options you may want to consider besides buying a "$500" chiller are:

Move to a more temperate climate. ( )

Get a small air-conditioner just for tank room (or add to existing) for those times external temps go way up. - is what I did for those few days a year we get here up in PNW when it warms up. -

Then you get to enjoy also...

Another option is to reverse your lighting schedual (gradually) so that your high lighting period occurs when external temps are lower (night, late evening or early morning) - another thing I do in summer. - fish/inverts don't seem to care...

Good luck,

Scott D.

[szaijan]

June 26-30:

Live Sand
------------
The Live Sand from the company I ordered from never arrived. They did not charge my credit card and both of their phone numbers are disconnected. Do not order from http://aquarium-live-rock-saltwater-...-supplies.com/. You'll be left high and dry.

I bought a 20 lb. bag of live keys sand from one LFS, and a bag of "live" crushed Aragonite from another. I put the sand down first and the Aragonite second on June 28, planning to mix the two as I sift out any chunks and bits of seaweed. This was a mistake. I should have skipped the Aragonite completely... it is too fine and prone to clumping. I also should have run the sand, along with some tank water, through a strainer several times first as it would have made it a LOT easier to get a pristine sand bed.

40 lbs. is only about an inch deep in my 46 gal. tank. I'am almost thinking another 20 lb. would be good. I'd definitely go with more of the Keys sand this time.

Temperature
----------------
It turned out I was reading my digital thermometer incorrectly. The OUT reading is the temp of the water and the IN reading is the room temp. This seems backward to me, but it's good news as far as water temp stability goes. I still need the rails to suspend my lights an inch above the tank, but keeping my temp in the 72-78 F range should be easy.

Chemistry
-------------
The nitrate and nitrite levels in my tank are undetectable. Ammonia is near zero (~0.05 ppm.) PH seems a tad low, at about 8.1, but with the level of buffering the sand is providing it would be hard to move.

My specific gravity reads at 1.023 on my hydrometer. I am told that these are calibrated at 60 F, and that an adjustment of about 0.002 needs to be added to account for ~75 F temps. That would put it at 1.025, which is within the range I was targeting.

Protein Skimmer
--------------------
My Remora skimmer is quieter, but still too loud. It is collecting protein and looks to fill up at about 1 cup every 5-6 days. I empty it daily, for now.

Isolation Tank
------------------
I bought and set up an Eclipse 3 acrylic 3 gal. tank to serve as my isolation tank. The light bulb in it was defective, but my LFS replaced it immediately and I've always been happy with these little tanks. I used water and sand from my display tank to set it up, and soaked the filter in the display tank for 3 days before putting it into the Eclipse, along with a small piece of live rock. That tank is now cycling, but should be ready next week. When the nitrate, nitrite and ammonia levels reach zero, I'll get my first fish.

Invert selection
--------------------
Here's my planned invert population:

Scarlet Hermit Crab: 10
Blueleg Hermit Crab: 10
Turbo/Astrea Snail: 20
Nasssarius Snail: 5
Brittle Star: 2
Coral Banded Shrimp: 1
Emerald Crab: 3
Conch: 1
Peppermint Shrimp: 2
Serpent Star: 1
Bubble Anemone: 1

I was planning to buy a package and a few extras from saltwaterfish.com, but it's sounding like I might want to spec. out my own package and get fewer Turbos and Blue Leg hermits in favor of more variety. I plan to order them in the next few days. Any comments on population composition or the vendor would be greatly appreciated.

I really want an Anemone for my clowns, and am told that the bubble anemone needs less light and doesn't sting nearly so hard as the carpet anemones. I'll wait on ordering the anemone until the clowns are just about ready for transfer from my isolation tank to the display tank. Any input as to anemone types would also be appreciated.

Fish Selection
-----------------
I'm looking at a target population of eight or so small fish. Current candidates are:

2 True Percula Clowns
1 Flame Angel
1 Green Mandarin Dragonet
1 Orchid Dottyback (or Springers)
1 Royal Gramma
1 Six-Line, Exquisite or Fairy Wrasse
1 Orange Spotted Blenny

Suggestiong for alternatives or fish I should consider are welcome. My plan is to get either the clowns or the gramma/dottyback first and slowly add 1 fish every 2 weeks or so. I'll add the anemone and the clowns at the same time to assist with acclimation.

[szaijan]

July 1-2:

My water chemistry appears perfect, my isolation tank is setup and identical in chemistry. My live rock is burgeoning with life and green algae is springing up all over my tank. Time for a cleaning crew and to get a first fish into my isolation tank.

There are no good invert stores in Santa Cruz county, so I once again went with on-line ordering. After looking at many options, saltwaterfish.com had the best combination of policies (free shipping, excellent shipping practices and a 6 day guarantee), selection and low prices.

I ordered a 30-90 Gal. Reef Clean-Up Package for $89.95.
Scarlet Hermit Crab: 20
Blueleg Hermit Crab: 20
Turbo/Astrea Snail: 20
Nasssarius Snail: 5
Peppermint Shrimp: 3
Emerald Crab: 3
Coral Banded Shrimp: 1
Feather Duster: 2

I added:

1 Brittle Star
1 Serpent Star
5 Nassarius Snails
5 Cerith Snails
1 Fighting Conch

1 Royal Gramma (my first salt water fish)

The total came to $154.99. They verified my order and that everything was in stock within minutes of my order being placed. They shipped it the next morning, along with a confirmation of shipping and a tracking number. The free shipping was Fed-Ex Next Day Air. There was a $10 S&H charge. It arrived Friday morning, 7/2, about 36 hours after I ordered. To me, this is perfect customer service.

Each type of critter was in it's own sealed bag and none of them were deflated. Out of the shipment, it appears that about 5 of the tiny hermits may have died and 1 of the mythrix crabs. Everything else was in perfect shape. They warn of inverts staying in shock for more than 24 hours and appearing to be dead... I'll get to check out their guarantee tomorrow when I collect those that truly didn't make it.

The Royal Gramma is absolutely beautiful, appears completely healthy and ate well only 4 hours after acclimation. It's going to be hard keeping it in my tiny 3 gal. isolation tank for two weeks.

Everything went to work almost immediately. I am very happy with my purchase, to this point, and would use Saltwaterfish.com again in a second. I likely will use them to stock most of what my poor LFSs don't have.

==> More in a few days when I see how things hold up.

[omard]

I have always had great luck and service from Saltwaterfish also...Almost everything I have is from them...That "free shipping" >$75 order is best in industry.



Scott

[szaijan]

Well, it has been many months since my last post and I had enough problems that I considered getting out of the hobby altogether. Having decided to tough it out, I could use a bit of help.

My water chemistry seems fair, but I appear to have an overabundance of nutrients. This has caused a green hair algae bloom in my tank which is quickly overgrowing the wonderful coralline growth on my live rock. I also get an oily scum at the surface which makes me think the protein skimmer is insufficient.

I have already decided to put my Eheim 2026 back into the mix to add mechanical and carbon filtration. I took it out because many here felt it was unnecessary with live rock, but I definitely want the cleaner water mechanical filtration brings.

Will this be enough? Do I need to replace my Aqua C Remora skimmer with something more powerful?

On another note, my Ebo-Jaeger 250W Heater died after only six months and may have destroyed my Titanium chiller by forcing it to run constantly, as it continued to heat regardless of water temp. The heater is only 6 months old and should not have failed. I've replaced it. Does anyone with some experience with chillers have some maintenance recommendations for an overworked unit which is only about 4 months old? It came with no instructions whatsoever. As it's winter, I've turned it off, but will need it again in a few months.

[eejjrr]

What is your lighting schedule like. Are your Nitrates high. Could you be overfeeding? Have you thought about a refugium? Have you considered upping your rock content tp 1.5 lbs/gallon. If you want to not use your mechanical filter you will need more, less dense, live rock to do the job for you. And how are your cleaner critters holding up. I read that you had several die during shipping. You may need more to help keep your reef rock clean and "functioning" properly.

Just a few ideas from another "newbie"...Good luck to you and Karma for your patience!