Been a while since I’ve posted/active on the the forum, mostly cause I broke my phone. The old iPhone 4s I had to use couldn’t handle Tapatalk app.
Last June I had to move my old 40 gal reef tank to a new apartment and then ended up moving it again in November, it sucked! Things went south with excess nutrients/algae and coral decline. Moving that much certainly didn’t help things but I Mostly attributed it to my DIY sump and overflow setup. Not researching enough about pvc diameter and flow led me to not having enough turnover to properly feed my in sump skimmer while carbon dosing, leading to nutrient buildup.
With another move in February to Portsmouth NH I began planning my upgrade, a 65 gallon. I liked the footprint of my 40 but the height didn’t allow for the rockscape I wanted. A 75 gallon was to big/long but had the height, but the 65 gave me the best of both worlds, extra height with roughly the same 40g footprint.
Stand was built with 2x3 boards and 1/4 side paneling, 3/4 inch plywood for the doors and the hood. The back is open for good air flow and the two sides have hinges panels for easy access under the stand. Also allows for removal of sump for maintenance/cleaning.
Having time for my move to Portsmouth and move out, made it much easier and less chaotic. Come move in I setup the new 65 gal, and got everything running. then the next day I broke down my old 40g moved livestock and rock to new tank and it’s been pretty smooth since then.
Gear:
-65g deep blue
-eshopps eclipse overflow (800gph)
-jebao dcs-3000 return
-reef octopus 110int skimmer
-2x jebao rw-8 powerheads
-20gal long sump
-2x AI prime HD
-jebao 4 channel doser (alk/ca/mg/C)
Livestock:
-coral beauty
-candy hogfish 10/01/19
-lawnmower blenny
-Occe. clownfish
-orchid dottyback 09/19
-dersea clam 08/19
-rbta/gbta
-tiger tail cucumber
-purple pin cushion urchin
-Valentini puffer traded
-lantern basslet traded
Corals:
-Green/purple/neon monti
-green star polp
-finger leather
-sinularia leather
-blue cespitularia
-purple torch
-purple frogspawn
-frogspawn
-octospawn
-bubble coral 07/19
-Duncan
-blue mushroom
-orange zoa
-green paly
-blue & green candycane
-waving hand Xenia melted
-toadstool leather Traded
-galaxea Traded 08/19
Base frame:
Test fit with canopy
Trim work and siding
Stained and plumbing
Finished product
Sump with light installed
Side panels
As for the future of the tank I am going to sell the hydra 26 HD and put in another prime HD. They have a different look/spectrum when linked, prime is more purple and 26 more blue. The 26 is to powerful for what I need as well. Can’t seem to make my monti caps happy under the 26. They have been severely bleached for months but some how holding on and growing.
Algae left over from the 40g has been decreasing with vinegar dosing which works much better with the more efficient sump/overflow. Having a bigger sump is awesome, extra rock and frag rack fit nicely.
dosing vinegar and traces has mostly replaced water changes. Have only done two 5 gallon changes since moving in February, and things have never been better, overall maintenance time is way lower too!
Also Planning on trading/selling big Xenia rock in the future and likely pick up bta once things have settled in more.
Will update with tank/livestock pics from dslr soon
Glad to be back!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Last June I had to move my old 40 gal reef tank to a new apartment and then ended up moving it again in November, it sucked! Things went south with excess nutrients/algae and coral decline. Moving that much certainly didn’t help things but I Mostly attributed it to my DIY sump and overflow setup. Not researching enough about pvc diameter and flow led me to not having enough turnover to properly feed my in sump skimmer while carbon dosing, leading to nutrient buildup.
With another move in February to Portsmouth NH I began planning my upgrade, a 65 gallon. I liked the footprint of my 40 but the height didn’t allow for the rockscape I wanted. A 75 gallon was to big/long but had the height, but the 65 gave me the best of both worlds, extra height with roughly the same 40g footprint.
Stand was built with 2x3 boards and 1/4 side paneling, 3/4 inch plywood for the doors and the hood. The back is open for good air flow and the two sides have hinges panels for easy access under the stand. Also allows for removal of sump for maintenance/cleaning.
Having time for my move to Portsmouth and move out, made it much easier and less chaotic. Come move in I setup the new 65 gal, and got everything running. then the next day I broke down my old 40g moved livestock and rock to new tank and it’s been pretty smooth since then.
Gear:
-65g deep blue
-eshopps eclipse overflow (800gph)
-jebao dcs-3000 return
-reef octopus 110int skimmer
-2x jebao rw-8 powerheads
-20gal long sump
-2x AI prime HD
-jebao 4 channel doser (alk/ca/mg/C)
Livestock:
-coral beauty
-lawnmower blenny
-Occe. clownfish
-orchid dottyback 09/19
-dersea clam 08/19
-rbta/gbta
-tiger tail cucumber
-purple pin cushion urchin
Corals:
-Green/purple/neon monti
-green star polp
-finger leather
-sinularia leather
-blue cespitularia
-purple torch
-purple frogspawn
-frogspawn
-octospawn
-bubble coral 07/19
-Duncan
-blue mushroom
-orange zoa
-green paly
-blue & green candycane
Base frame:
Test fit with canopy
Trim work and siding
Stained and plumbing
Finished product
Sump with light installed
Side panels
As for the future of the tank I am going to sell the hydra 26 HD and put in another prime HD. They have a different look/spectrum when linked, prime is more purple and 26 more blue. The 26 is to powerful for what I need as well. Can’t seem to make my monti caps happy under the 26. They have been severely bleached for months but some how holding on and growing.
Algae left over from the 40g has been decreasing with vinegar dosing which works much better with the more efficient sump/overflow. Having a bigger sump is awesome, extra rock and frag rack fit nicely.
dosing vinegar and traces has mostly replaced water changes. Have only done two 5 gallon changes since moving in February, and things have never been better, overall maintenance time is way lower too!
Also Planning on trading/selling big Xenia rock in the future and likely pick up bta once things have settled in more.
Will update with tank/livestock pics from dslr soon
Glad to be back!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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