Another 40 Breeder

ChaseS10 · Oct 23, 2023

Two kids and 10 years later, I have been reminiscing about my old 90 gallon reef tank. I have been digging a little over the last few weeks and the hobby has come so far. LEDs have dropped substantially in price. It was all DIY years ago. AIO tanks are more common then ever, and nano tanks are the norm.
I decided to dip my toe back in with a easy breeder setup. I'm a DIYer at heat. I plan to add a HOB overflow and plumb for a simple sump and skimmer later.

Rockwork is mostly done. I'm being very selective of what I add. Going for a specific look to allow for coral placement. I have made the mistake of not keeping zoas contained.

I plan to keep this tank simple. A small zoa garden and some LPS. Love hammers and torches.

fishface NJ · Oct 23, 2023

Congrats!

ChaseS10 · Oct 24, 2023

Tank was started sterile with CaribSea rock. I plan to add a few small peices on the top to add some height for more light demanding corals. Clean up crew should be here tomorrow. The ugly stage started yesterday. I'm probably running my lights too long, but I can't help but enjoy the tank.

ChaseS10 · Oct 24, 2023

Had a little time this evening to think about the sump. I built these cabinets years ago, and I got lucky the tanks fit just perfectly. The 20L will be my sump. Had to remove the center brace to get it in.

No to decide if I can trust a HOB overflow. Anyone have any experience with one?

larryl · Oct 24, 2023

Off to a great start.

ChaseS10 · Oct 25, 2023

Ordered a 10 gallon reef cleanup crew from salwateraquarium.com, and another clown fish for the tank yesterday. Cleanup crew arrived with extra inverts as a bonus.

Clown fish didn't arrive today. Being help up at the local hub. Fingers crossed for safe arrival tomorrow.

Gumbies R Us · Oct 26, 2023

Following along!

ChaseS10 · Oct 26, 2023

All the cleanup crew made it over night, and started work when the lights come on this morning.

I can already tell they have made a difference. One of my HOB filters started to make a noise late last night. That's next on my list this evening.

EricR · Oct 26, 2023

Following as I have a 40 gallon running HOB equipment also.
*no room for sump but am interested in how your HOB overflow ends up working out once you get that going

Good luck...

ChaseS10 · Oct 26, 2023

After two days in the mail my second clown fish arrived. Came home to a noticeably cleaner tank, thank you CUC. Ammonia is all but gone. Another few weeks and the cycle should be done.

Had an issue with my Tidal 75 HOB filter. Came home to a awful noise. Disassembled the pump and cleaned impeller. Glad that was an easy fix. Another reason I'm ready to go to a sump with a DC return pump.

On another note I'm really enjoying the AI Prime 16 HD light. The app is easy to use, and easy to quickly change colors for photos. I plan to order another when funds allow, or I'm accepting sponsors now. Lol. Cheers

ChaseS10 · Oct 29, 2023

As the weather blows in this weekend, I found some time to build my sump.

Just a simple 3 chamber setup in a 20 gallon long. Years ago I make my sump way to complicated. Keeping it simple this time. Left plenty of room to run a skimmer or a fuge if I decide to.

On another note I noticed some "stringy" poop coming from my clown fish. It eventually fell off. It usually eats like a tank, but was a little lazy today. Any help would be appreciated.

ChaseS10 · Nov 2, 2023

Not much to report. Just watching the cycle finishing up. The clean up crew is killing it. They have cleaned my two HOB filters and rock work well.

I went with the 10 gallon CUC kit from saltwateraquarium.com. I figured that would be plenty for now being a new tank. The large clown fish is back to normal now, and eating like a tank.
A few of my next upgrades will be a DC return pump for my sump, and a nero 5 just to help clean up the display some. I'm also looking for some very specific rock shapes to add to my scape. I plan to add a small island in the front for zoas as well.

AustinBabler · Nov 3, 2023

Scape looks great!

ChaseS10 · Nov 19, 2023

The cycle is complete. It's been a slow few weeks, but the water test came back zero today. I used the instant ocean beneficial bacteria to jump start the process, and I am happy with the outcome. I need a better glass scraper to get the corners. I did a 4 gallon water change this evening, and will start my search for my first coral this week.

dcreasy9880 · Dec 20, 2023

i have a 40 breeder set up as well with a single tidal 75 hob filter, i currently have 2 smatfarm lights and my tank has been doing great even with me neglecting it these fast 4 months due to work and camping trips with the family. What power heads are you using? i have a sicce voyager 2 (800gph) power head along with a current usa smaller power head.. i get great flow from my voyager but i think i may need to do away with the smaller power head and get something different its not putting out enough.. im very interested in seeing your tanks progress here is some pics of my tank in its current state.... Ps pulsing xenia spreads like a wild fire and can be annoying to remove im struggling getting mine removed..

ChaseS10 · Feb 29, 2024

It been a while. Lots of changes. I finally added the 20 gallon sump. The added volume is nice. I was suprised by how well the HOB over flow works.

The DC return pump is a big upgrade from the AC. The control is much appreciated.

Wire managed with drip loops placed in the sump.
The next upgrade was flow. I added an AI Nero 5 to the display, and the random flow control is a game changer.