Neal's Cube

[pallobi]

Hello everyone... Welcome to the newest version of my favorite hobby...

This will be a custom 85g acrylic cube style tank... it features eurobracing and an external 1" dual drain overflow, and 3/4" return... it will have a 40g sump...

it will be a mixed reef with more focus on SPS corals and wrasse species of fish... i will keep my beloved purple tang & orchid dottyback as well as a few other cool small fish mixed in... the bioload of this tank will exceed that of my last...

this tank will also exhibit a small island style sps reef made of what i believe is fiji rock... two large peices stacked directly on top of each other... allowing from great flow around the island and the outer region of the tank, all the way around...

i will also be using reef grade aragonite and will no longer go barebottom... it will be a shallow sand bed...

i will use 2 vortech MP40 esW's and i will also be switching from t5's to LEDs... at this moment, i have an older EVO 120 20k... i will be purchasing a new fixture in the next couple weeks, i am currently undecided on which, and as of now i am researching ... one of my goals is cheap and efficient lighting... so i am going with a tank that will allow me to use a single led fixture... yes, i am finally following suit, lol, and the best part is a 1/3 the wattage and NO MORE BULBS

my goal here is simple... to jus get better results than the last one... that's about all i can ask for... with that said, im really looking forward to this one, the changes i have made, and with the things ive learned...

any thoughts or questions, feedback or constructive criticism is welcome...

here we go ...

 

[jason401]

i beleive the generation 1 radion is designed for 24" x 24" area. what are the dims for your cube?

 

[pallobi]

i beleive the generation 1 radion is designed for 24" x 24" area. what are the dims for your cube?

36 x 30 footprint... i am only setting to light the middle area of the tank... the spillover will work for anything i put along the outside walls...

 

[pallobi]

A nice clean canvas

 

[pallobi]

Tank is in place...

 

[jarrodsanborn]

have you looked through the bonsai style aquascaping thread on rc? Its kinda along the lines of what you mentioned. It would be amazing in a tank like this. Lots of work, but very little rock touching the sand, and great flow.

 

[Andy V]

I have pretty much exactly what you are thinking of going on in my 60 cube. Looking forward to this.

 

[GobyWanKenobie]

Looking forward to watching your progress. Is this replacing your other tank with the tiles or are you adding to your collection?

 

[jason401]

awesome! your last tile setup was beutifull ! cant wait to c what you do next

 

[Matt W]

What is going on the right side of the stand?

 

[pallobi]

have you looked through the bonsai style aquascaping thread on rc? Its kinda along the lines of what you mentioned. It would be amazing in a tank like this. Lots of work, but very little rock touching the sand, and great flow.

Yes, a great idea and well done... But I'm jus stacking two rocks... That's a great idea for down the road though

 

[pallobi]

I have pretty much exactly what you are thinking of going on in my 60 cube. Looking forward to this.

I'll have progress pics up today as I have time... Sorry to lag guys... But I'm really liking the look so far...

 

[pallobi]

Looking forward to watching your progress. Is this replacing your other tank with the tiles or are you adding to your collection?

It's a complete overhaul using the same stand a new look...

 

[pallobi]

What is going on the right side of the stand?

At this point I don't know... Perhaps nothing, but I thought a nice planted fuge would be cool... My first project after a get a new light first, will be a larger custom sump and a new skimmer...

 

[pallobi]

 

[pallobi]

the sps i have mounted are...

Swanny's BLue Prostrata
Tyree Pink Lemonade
ORA Pearlberry
Pro Corals Sunset Millepora
ORA Red Planet
ORA California Blue Tort
ORA Joe the Coral
Green Bali Slimer... cuz its my favorite green acro

I have enough room for 3 to 4 more pieces... i am undecided as to which i would like to add at this point... But I have a few in mind

 

[Andy V]

How are you liking the flow with the two MP10's on the back? I have a 60 cube with them on each side, one towards the back on the right and on towards the front on the left. I have a pillar in the middle just like you. I have them run in sync.

My thought was to get flow going around the pillar. It seems to work well, but aesthetically I would rather have them on the back. I would love to know how this works out for you.

 

[pallobi]

Those are mp40's... I have them tuned down to about 57% to keep the sand reasonably in place... Started with them on the sides, one on front left, the other on back right, but I went with aesthetic's sake and put them on the back... I'm not as caught up on flow in this display as I have been in the past...