afboundguy's 25'ish cube build from 2011

[afboundguy]

I removed 2 of the 5 rocks that I knew the Orchid Dottyback was not hiding in as there were no holes big enough for him and put them in a bucket and I let the old tank settle and then as I was checking the 3 rocks in the tank once it settled I saw a purple flash and saw him! I quickly took the other two rocks and placed them in the bucket on the floor. I was ultimately able to get him out by keeping the hole he was in under water and the other hole to the cave above water and I used a baster to gently put water in the top hole and he came out!

 

[afboundguy]

Had been thinking of trying to keep the HOB fuge on the sump and thanks to some words of wisdom I did it!

I also washed 3 of the 5 rocks and scrubbed them in old tank water and took the cheato out of this section and put it back in the HOB fuge and added the rocks to that area as they had tons of turf algae and I was able to get off most of the bubble algae and cheato that had gotten attached...

 

[afboundguy]

Softies and the duncan colony had already started to open up a few hours left. Didn't have the orange filter so it's a tad blue!

 

[afboundguy]

Was looking to purchase some anenome/fish guards for my SLW-20's but they were about $15 shipped each so I just ordered a roll of PETG resin for $13 and made my own!

 

[afboundguy]

Also tried chiseling the two rock anenomes and got one easily but the other one the rock split right in the middle and ripped it in half. Threw that back in old tank to see how it looks tomorrow but first one is doing well and already opening up a bit...

 

[afboundguy]

Also programmed the RKE on my laptop and made a mess but found a board I plan to paint and mount stuff to. Need to adjust a few outlets and move some of the larger plug ends to the 4th outlet that has extra space

In the process of doing that I think I figured out where the electrical shock I kept getting when I would have my hands in the tank and hit the legs for the light! This is the InkBird plugs ‍

 

[afboundguy]

One of the main reasons the tank took a back seat was because I started a large HO scale train layout in the basement back in early 2021! Here is the 117 page build if you are bored! Every few months I re-read the whole thing especially when I think nothing has happened and it reminds me how far I've come!!! https://www.modeltrainforum.com/threads/and-so-it-begins-my-1956-prr-mainline-ho-build-thread.193163

Here's my YouTube channel that is mainly focused on the layout as well! https://www.youtube.com/@davem1956PRR

My layout is based in the year 1956 and it is of the Pennsylvania Railroad from Philadelphia to Horseshoe Curve! It's not an exact to scale model of Horseshoe Curve but it is super unique as typically everyone models Horseshoe Curve where you are standing and looking at it from inside the Curve but mine is from the outside!

Here are some highlights

Custom kitbashed 3 kit roundhouse

Overall messy view (Horseshoe Curve is on the right)

Good video of Horseshoe Curve (made it back 10+ pages in the layout build and couldn't find a good picture and this video is better anyways!)

 

[afboundguy]

For this video I ghetto rigged up my Wyze camera to a battery puck and pushed it around... Not the best quality but cool video until I can get a better camera!

This one has some great shots of Horseshoe Curve! Love how my F3 ABBA unit can pull so many cars that the engines are out of sight around Horseshoe Curve while cars are still coming from below just like in the real world!

 

[afboundguy]

Did a NSW water change and tank seems to be doing better. Today I tackled finally breaking down the old tank. I tried for a 2nd tume to get a rock anenome off old rock and it ripped again but I got most of the large part to detatch so hopefully that will make it in the new tank!

After I drained old tank I started scooping out the sand. As I was doing that I kept noticing something moving very fast along the outside of the tank by the glass. Ended up pulling out a bobbit worm

 

[afboundguy]

Needless to say that guy didn't get placed in the new tank! I took out the SLW-20 powerhead and I ran it in a vinegar bath to give it a deep clean before adding it to the new tank tomorrow

Also transferred the Reefbreeders light from the old tank!

 

[afboundguy]

The corner of the office looks weird almost empty! Wife asked what we should do there and I said I could do an anenome only tank up there! Needless to say she said no to that offer.

Left the tank outside as it was a tad stinky and too hot to try and clean it so I'll wait until tomorrow when it won't be so hot! I played almost 4 hours of softball this morning so I had had enough of the 90+ heat with 90% humidity!

 

[afboundguy]

Took apart the Aquarium Pump Extender V2 battery back up that died and ordered some replacement batteries for $55. Slightly better than the $140-$150 plus shipping for a new one

 

[afboundguy]

Started tackling the Reefkeeper mounting/organization efforts. Cut out templates from cereal boxes Spray painted it black after I cut out the wholes and it's sitting outside to air out overnight

 

[afboundguy]

Added the SLW-20 from the old tank and on the side panel opposite the other SLW-20 and put it on the lowest speed and it helped get rid of two dead spots on the sand that the food kept settling. Definately won't be an issue once I get a CUC with the two powerheads

 

[afboundguy]

Love the blue ambience just opening the basement door and looking down from the 1st floor

When I leave the basement lights off it looks great too especially since you can't see the mess everywhere else

 

[afboundguy]

So the plywood board looked horrible painted so I wanted to look for other options..

 

[afboundguy]

Found a 2'x4' MDF chaulkboard panel at Home Deopt for $9 bucks and picked one up this morning and redrilled the holes and it looks way better

 

[afboundguy]

Tank is looking good and the fish are starting to eat like their normal piggy selfs! The male clown looked like he was getting something on his scales so I startes soaking the food in garlic and it's made a big difference over the past two days. Also the tyree toadstools seemed to have made it after I had to cut out all the softies that were getting black...

Here's a quick video from this morning's feeding

 

[afboundguy]

Tackled basement redo/clean up this morning and spent about 5 hours in the basement Was a tad messy

 

[afboundguy]

After