3.4 build

RIreefGuy · Mar 3, 2019

Hello all!

I have been out of the hobby for a while and I'm dipping a toe back in. I'm trying to figure out what I want to do for a big(er) tank but in the meantime I'm going to start a lil nano/pico. Very much inspired by drakocat's 2.7. Planning on easy/pest soft coral and definitely zoas. Maybe 2 shrimp and 1 fish (small goby perhaps)

Equipment:
3.4 Penn plax glass tank
Aq70 fuge modded
Bare bottom
Still figuring out light
Smart micro ato
Reef saver dry rock (orderd 8 lbs but won't prob use all)

Got wet today. Not very exciting but here is fts.

All comments/advice/flames welcome =)

(Tank on left is a brackish Opea ula in case anyone is wondering =))

Mastiffsrule · Mar 3, 2019

Welcome to the club. Glad you are here.

That’s a pretty cool set up. Add pictures as you go along. There’s tons of stuff you can do. And any tanks can be exciting

RIreefGuy · Mar 3, 2019

Ty!! Yes I'll be using the thread to document everything. I have missed salt so much and cant wait to get rolling. That being said I'm gonna go slow and try to do things right. Rock arrives on Thursday =)

NY_Caveman · Mar 4, 2019

Looks like a good start. Have you been to Biomes near you? Great place to visit. I spend a lot of time in Narragansett with family. Love that whole area.

RIreefGuy · Mar 4, 2019

Yes! Biomes is super cool. I love Narragansett too, my family had a house in Bonnet Shores when I was a kid. It's a great area!

RIreefGuy · Mar 5, 2019

A few updates. I completed the ac70 fuge mod. Clearly should have done a second (or 3rd even lol) coat of paint. I will have to pull it off and hit it again. I'm also thinking of adding a piece of acrylic painted black over the filter return as a shield to further limit light spillage.

This is the light I'm using on the fuge. Reverse cycle. I just duct taped it to the filter

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01LX1EO3W?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_pd_title

I am also thinking about going sand on the bottom now. Still up in the air. Thoughts welcome.

Rock and light arrive on Friday. More to come.

-

Bob

RIreefGuy · Mar 8, 2019

Quick update! I decided to go with a sand bottom after all. Used caribsea fiji pink live sand. My order of 8lbs of reef saver dry rock also arrived today. Super happy with the pieces. I think the rockscape picuted below will be the final design. Added some floss to the ac70 fuge to help with the sandstorm! It seems that my new heater quit. As the song goes: the lights are on but you're not home. More to come over the weekend!

-Bob

Mastiffsrule · Mar 8, 2019

Like the rock. That is super cool what you did with the hob filter. Put up a pic once the rocks in.

RIreefGuy · Mar 10, 2019

Ok, we have lift off!

The tank is all cleared up and is starting to cycle. I added a vial of biodigest and 14 drops of Dr Tim's ammonium chloride yesterday. I tested ammonia yesterday and sure enough, 2ppm. Today's readings were:
NH3/5 1PPM
NO2 .5 PPM
NO3 0 PPM

On we go!

I think this is going to be the final design of the rock work. I wasnt able to bridge the 2 towers like I did when I dry fit them. It would be too tall. I also went to Ocean State Aquatics (my LFS) and grabbed a small piece of live rock to seed the reefsaver stuff. Also grabbed another chunk of Chateo for the fuge. Really nice store and can't wait to grab some stuff from him in a few weeks.

I am using this light: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LWP37SD/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The color is awesome and I am very happy with it so far.

I also ordered a smaller impeller for the AC70. As you can see in the pic, its blasting my sand bed lol

Last order of business is to set up the Smart Micro ATO.

More to come!

Emmanuel Zamora · Mar 11, 2019

Following along! Looks Awsome!

monkeyCmonkeyDo · Mar 11, 2019

Man a lot of ppl running the par38s over these lil tanks. I did two over a 20L with good success in the past.
D

RIreefGuy · Mar 11, 2019

Emmanuel Zamora said:
Following along! Looks Awsome!

Thanks for tagging along!

monkeyCmonkeyDo said:
Man a lot of ppl running the par38s over these lil tanks. I did two over a 20L with good success in the past.
D

The light is really stunning. Pics dont do it justice. It's in an adjustable desk lamp so I'll be able to play with the height really easily.

I got the ATO done today. Really impressed by the Smart Micro unit.

I also swapped out the original fuge light with some grow spectrum led strips. The original was way too bright! Still need to get another coat of paint on the ac70 but this setup is much better. Used these LEDs. I just used one of the strips and taped it to the back of the fuge.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07H3WXTJF?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_pd_title

Tested again today and detected NO3 for the first time. Cycle away little tank!

Bob

RIreefGuy · Apr 9, 2019

Long over due for an update. Tank has been fully cycled and haven't seen ammonia in weeks. I was seeing nitrates in the 30-40s for a while but I think the filter sponge was the culprit. I have been swapping those at least weekly and they are ~5 now. I have been consistently changing a gallon a week of water and my system makes it quick and easy. The next project on the build was to make some changes to the ac70. I thought the flow was too much for fuge-e-ness. I ended up making some baffles to create a section with lower flow. Pretty happy with how it came out. In the first picture, you can see the holes are larger to divert more flow that way. In the second picture you can see the smaller holes to regulate the flow going in to the fuge section. I am going to add another piece of plexi in the back to hold the chaeto and rubble in place when I pull the caddy out to change floss or trim chaeto. The AC 70 provides all the flow for the tank.