Barry's 120 Gallon Reef

[Zakk]

Clean up crew will keep it under control, but that isn't tackling the reason the HA is there. 

To my dying day I will list ferric oxide as as absolute 'must have' for any reef aquarium. 

I've moved my two mexican turbos out, and only have maybe 15 hermits as cleanup for a 125.  No HA of any kind.  Here's a couple of photos from maybe 8 months ago, and today I have a thriving SPS tank.  Cleanup crew wouldn't have let me grow SPS in a tank like this, no matter how big the cleanup crew.  I'm not trying to tell anyone what to do, I'm just saying I wish I had known how simple it was to have an algae-free tank.

 

[Blob-79]

To my dying day I will list ferric oxide as as absolute 'must have' for any reef aquarium. 

...I dont run gfo.  His hair algae problems date back to his last system, he now has a working skimmer, getting quality rodi water. the hair algae is dieing off now. Alot of the issue i think is his rocks were leaching p04.

 

[Zakk]

So how are you extracting PO4 from your system?  Out of curiosity how old is your tank?


Using tapwater is one way to get HA, but for years, it seemed the solution to 'old tank syndrome' was to break it down and start over.  I think the berlin system was an attempt to keep PO4 buildup to a minimum, but I've always been a fan of the DSB.  I would always have a good tank for -maybe- 5 years, and I saw that cycle repeat on 3 tanks, including the one I have currently.  5 years and HA would inevitably start up (I believe the slime issue I had in this tank had a lot to do with using water with TDS readings of ~150 instead of 0).

Like I said, I'm not an expert, but I did stay in a holiday inn last night.  15 years and 3 tank crashes, and then bringing the worst one back to life.... I'll never run a tank without GFO again. 

 

[phi delt reefer]

Rocks are phosphate sinks. If you started out with bad husbandry your system will penalize you for years until its all leached back out.

Removing po4 before.it has a chance to be absorbed is the ideal scenario. Blob runs biopellets which can reduce phosphates if there are sufficient nitrates in the system (hence the.need to feed heavily when running them).

You can also solidfy and mechanically (filter sock or protien skimmer) remove the phosphates by running your pH higher.

 

[Siderjan]

Thanks for the info Zakk.  There was hair algae on the rocks when I bought the very old 55 setup Oct. 2010.  They used straight tap water for their water changes.  I've been trying to kill it off since.  I was using RO water that was suppose to be 1ppm of a year, until Blob tested it and it came up way higher then that.  Since setting up the 120, I've been using straight RODI water, I have a way better skimmer and now rinse my brine before I feed it.  Like Phi says, a lot of people have told me it's the phosphates leaching out of the rocks that is keeping the algae growing.  Once the rock quits spitting it out, or I remove it from my tank, I will have it growing.

 

[Siderjan]

I'm going to say my Hawkfish is dead.  I moved all the rock around to find him today and came up empty.  So being bummed out, I headed to the only store that can cheer me up.  LFS!!  The last of my birthday money is now all gone. (sad face)  But I did come home with a few things.

I went for it.  I bought the foxface.  I'm not sure on it's name yet, but I'm leaning towards Face since I'm from the A-Team era.

A Sea Hare to take care of the hair algae I have growing.  I called it Harry.  Man does this thing poop a lot.

A couple Cardinals.  I named them Card and Nail.  I have no clue which is which.

Some Neon Green Mushrooms and I think a Kenya Tree.  20 bucks for both so I didn't really care what it was.

Used a big bucket this time to drip them in.

Here they are in the tank.

Took me forever to point harry out to my kids.  They thought it was a rock til it shot out a bunch of poop.

 

[Siderjan]

Spot and I are about to come to blows if he doesn't stop burying my Superman mushrooms.

He did that in a half hour. 

 

[Siderjan]

Holy  oop:!!  i haven't updated this since Feb.!!! Wow...were to start with everything that's been going on?  Hmmm....bought a foxface and stuff....ok.

So my Watchman Goby had some personal issues that he just couldn't find help for and committed suicide.  I found him on the floor behind the stand nice and crispy!

My seahare had way too much food to eat and just didn't know that Gluttony is one of the 7 deadly sins and died.

I came home from work a few weeks ago and went down to check on my tank like normal and low and behold...my recycled glass sump is leaking water all over the place.  I've removed it in the picture but you can see the water stain on the wood.

 

So I went and fixed a patio door for trade on a new 29 gallon.  The biggest tank only I could find in Tillsonburg.  So I built a little sump that I totally hate out of it.

A couple weeks ago, I took Kim to Incredible Aquariums cause she likes to get out of the house & I was hoping she'd like the Strawberry Basslet Bill had on sale and would let me get one...so I bought it and a bunch of other stuff that "Yes honey, I really do need this stuff."

Barney. Our newest member of the family.

Last week and this week have been pretty good weeks with my business making a little extra cash, so I visited Lyle's to buy a dying Candy Cane and a dying Anemone of some kind.  They are both slowly coming back to life.

 

[Siderjan]

Oh yeah, I forgot to post before that I bought another Diamond Watchman Goby to replace the one that died.  This one doesn't bury my mushrooms.

I went to Blob's this week to get water since there's something magical about his water that makes all my algae disappear and ended up getting 3 Jugs of water, and a bunch of frags.  Picked up my first SPS.

Then last night I go back over for something I can't remember and end up walk out with a lighter pocket again.  (I'm gonna have to stop going over there.)

There's still a few more things he's going to frag for me and I'm hoping I can get them tomorrow. (Hint Hint!!)

Things to look forward to with this build....RODI unit, DIY LED Fixture, More corals, More Rock, a bigger sump, and a wave box!!

 

[Siderjan]

Woot Woot!!  My Flame Tip Bubble Anemone showed up tonight along with a new piece of rock.

My Frogspawn.

And lastly...the new piece of rock.

 

[Siderjan]

Picked up a 50 gallon short on the weekend to turn into a bigger sump.

Sump is finished.

 

[davesolo29]

nice...looks good. 
im gonna be changing my sump setup this weekend for sure now.  needs a few improvements

 

[Siderjan]

nice...looks good. 
im gonna be changing my sump setup this weekend for sure now.  needs a few improvements

  Thanks Dave.  I'm hoping this is the last one I have build.

 

[unibob]

All these builds makes a larger tank so tempting. Looks real good. That flame tip looks sharp too.

 

[Blob-79]

That flame tip looks sharp too.

Theres more where that one came from

looks good barry

 

[Siderjan]

All these builds makes a larger tank so tempting. Looks real good. That flame tip looks sharp too.

  Thank you.  Bigger is better!!  Blob has a few more if you REALLY want one...

 

[Siderjan]

looks good barry

Thanks Rob.  Can't wait for Saturday. 

 

[Siderjan]

I took my youngest son and a couple of his friends to London today on a fish store run.  One of his friends, Braydon, has a 10 gallon saltwater.  He's just starting out so I thought the trip would be good for him.  First stop on our trip was Pet Paradise.  They have a really small saltwater section but usually have some nice corals for cheap, but today they didn't have anything.  So we headed to Sealife central.  Linda & Gary have a great store.  Lots of frags.  Linda fed the lionfish and eel so the boys could see them eat.  She gave Braydon a Duncan head.  I pick up a really nice clam below normal price.  From the side it's blue on blue and looking from the top it's green on blue.  It opened within 20 minutes of me putting it in my tank.

After spending way too much time looking at everything, we headed to Incredible Aquariums.  Bill had ordered me a Tunze Wavemaker Nano.  I picked it up, 6 cerith snails, and he gave me a little frag of blue clove polyps for one of my overflows.  I forgot to take a picture of the polyps.

Here's a couple pictures of my BTA's.  They are nice and big today.  The FTBA climbed halfway up the corner of the tank today.  Looking really good.

Bill sold Braydon a few frags for a good price.  He got a couple zoa frags and a really cool mushroom.  The kids was like a little kid that just came from Disneyland having met Mickey Mouse.  He talked about it all the way home.  We were 2 1/2 later then I told his Dad we would be so they were rushed when we got back.  I put his corals in my tank until tomorrow so I can teach him how to acclimate things properly.  The duncan in the centre and the 2 zoa frags to the left are his.

The little mushroom to the left is his.  I'm going to give him a couple green tipped mushrooms, a green stripped mushroom, a red mushroom, some waving hands, and a superman mushroom for some more colour in his tank.

 

[Siderjan]

New tank video.

http://youtu.be/sO-kGaSGo54

 

[Siderjan]

Woot Woot!! Clowns are finally hosting an anemone!! The big one has taken over it and chases the littler one away. I was amazed with the site I saw yesterday morning so I had to snap a picture of it.