First reef Boyu TL550

[Eds Reef]

Hello
I'm new to the hobby and have consistently researched on reef keeping. With good background knowledge of science and chemistry I felt I was ready to get a reef tank up and running.
So here's my set up so far.

Tank: TL550 with the basic hood
Lights: the basic pl T5 tube lights and 2 LEDs. (Want to upgrade to LEDs in the near future but working out ways to mod the hood for an affordable light)
The return pump and wave maker? Are basic Chinese products that came with the tank and have so far performed well but no idea of the GPH of the products.
I have an Inkbird hooked up to my heater that sits in the last chamber of the sump(have a back up heater just incase)
Most of the sump is cured live rock with ceramic hoops, a large filter sponge along with some Fluval Carbon mixed with a small amount of phosguard(struggling to bring down PO4 that I believe is leaching from the rock possibly from ghost overfeeding during the cycle)
Skimmer: Boyu WG428(doesn't seem to do much most days even when wet skimming)

I had a blue spotted puffer thinking I could tame him but he munched my shrooms and ate my shrimps so I took him back.

I have a couple of paired clownfish and a royal Gramma with a new cleaner shrimp to replace my old one and 5 mixed hermit crabs.

As for corals I have a leather toadstool, finger leather, green star polyps. And some kind of mushroom they came on the rock with the toadstool. My unidentified zoanthids that have been very unhappy since the blue spotted puffer tried eating them hasn't made an appearance in a week but holding out as it still seems healthy and eating.

My parameters have all been stable except phosphate that is at 0.5ppm but with the phosguard put in yesterday I'm hoping it will reduce it eventually. I am only putting in 30% of the recommend amount of phosguard in mixed with Fluval Carbon. They will get changed once a week untill phosphates are down to 0.02. unfortunately I am only using API test kit for all my parameters but will eventually get the Hanna checkers for KH and PO4 .

 

[Ruben's Reef]

Nice tank Ed. About the test kit, yes definitely you will need either Salifert, Hanna or Red Sea. Do you have an ATO?

 

[cracker]

Hello & welcome Ed ! this is a great place for beginnersto learn. Please don't hesitate to ask (what You may think) is a simple question . We have "all" been there !
Set up & display is lookin good !

 

[Eds Reef]

Nice tank Ed. About the test kit, yes definitely you will need either Salifert, Hanna or Red Sea. Do you have an ATO?

Are API reasonably accurate in most parameters? I don't have an ATO I haven't properly looked into it yet. I'm guessing it is advisable even with a 30 gallon?

Hello & welcome Ed ! this is a great place for beginnersto learn. Please don't hesitate to ask (what You may think) is a simple question . We have "all" been there !
Set up & display is lookin good !

Thank you Cracker

 

[jtietz]

Looks great so far. Id stick with the t5 lights just add some supplemental leds just for coral color.

 

[Ruben's Reef]

I have a 40g and I made a gravity ATO. Water evaporate daily so in my case I have a 5g ATO that I have to refill once a week. When water evaporates, the salt don't so you if you test salinity you will see higher everyday causing a lot of issues and death of fish and inverts. At the beginning I didn't think about an ATO but got tired of adding RODI water everyday so with the ATO I don't need to worry anymore keeping my salinity stable and of course other parameter too.

 

[Eds Reef]

I have a 40g and I made a gravity ATO. Water evaporate daily so in my case I have a 5g ATO that I have to refill once a week. When water evaporates, the salt don't so you if you test salinity you will see higher everyday causing a lot of issues and death of fish and inverts. At the beginning I didn't think about an ATO but got tired of adding RODI water everyday so with the ATO I don't need to worry anymore keeping my salinity stable and of course other parameter too.

I don't seem to get much evaporation at the moment but I'd imagine in the summer it will increase alot. But even with the TL550 hood will it evaporate much? I haven't noticed much change. Maybe 5 days after my water change my salinity will go from 1.026 creeping to 1.027 but I then perform another WC 2 days later and it corrects itself.

 

[hdsoftail1065]

Tank looks nice Ed!

 

[NY_Caveman]

Welcome to the forum! Although most people recommend very low Phosphate levels, many people run successful systems at your level (0.5 ppm) and even higher. It is certainly not a danger level. Bringing it down slowly, as you are, is a fine plan, just be careful not to go too far. For my system I got it down to about 0.2 ppm using a similar chemical method (Lanthanum Chloride) then stopped using the chemical to see if it would continue to trend lower (which it did). That way I was not forcing it to 0 ppm chemically, but seeing if it would drop from there naturally.

 

[Eds Reef]

Welcome to the forum! Although most people recommend very low Phosphate levels, many people run successful systems at your level (0.5 ppm) and even higher. It is certainly not a danger level. Bringing it down slowly, as you are, is a fine plan, just be careful not to go too far. For my system I got it down to about 0.2 ppm using a similar chemical method (Lanthanum Chloride) then stopped using the chemical to see if it would continue to trend lower (which it did). That way I was not forcing it to 0 ppm chemically, but seeing if it would drop from there naturally.

Thank you. I'm hoping the small packet of phosguard will be adequate. It is down to around 0.25 today but with this API test I'm absolutely second guessing myself.

 

[najer]

Nice start, as above don't drop the phos to quickly, 0.25 is fine just let the system mature.

 

[Eds Reef]

Here's my new aquascape. My clowns are still hosting in the left hand corner of the tank. Can I change that when I get an anemone in the future or will they stay hosting in the same spot for asking as I have this tank?

 

[IslandLifeReef]

You definitely need to be adding plain RO/DI water to account for evaporation. What are you using to measure SG? An ATO makes this very easy, but you can manage it manually.

I would recommend Salifert, Red Sea, or Hanna for test kits if you are going to keep coral.

@BRS just did a segment on nutrients and recommended levels in a new tank. A lot of good insight there. Here is a link

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/vide...althy-reef-tank-the-brs-wwc-system-ep9-brstv/

 

[najer]

If that is 1 piece of plate rock that will take some flow to keep the behind area flushed!

 

[Eds Reef]

You definitely need to be adding plain RO/DI water to account for evaporation. What are you using to measure SG? An ATO makes this very easy, but you can manage it manually.

I would recommend Salifert, Red Sea, or Hanna for test kits if you are going to keep coral.

@BRS just did a segment on nutrients and recommended levels in a new tank. A lot of good insight there. Here is a link

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/vide...althy-reef-tank-the-brs-wwc-system-ep9-brstv/

I'm using a refractometer and measure once in the morning and once in the evening. I follow BRS guides like a Bible it's such a shame they don't ship to the UK

I will definitely be getting a Hanna tester for phosphates next week, corals seem to be doing great other than my Zoas.

If that is 1 piece of plate rock that will take some flow to keep the behind area flushed!

I have aimed half of my return pump to go straight down the back of the shelf will this be adequate or should I add an extra flow pump and make the return flow purely for my surface tension?

 

[najer]

I'm using a refractometer and measure once in the morning and once in the evening. I follow BRS guides like a Bible it's such a shame they don't ship to the UK

I will definitely be getting a Hanna tester for phosphates next week, corals seem to be doing great other than my Zoas.



I have aimed half of my return pump to go straight down the back of the shelf will this be adequate or should I add an extra flow pump and make the return flow purely for my surface tension?

It is hard to tell as all tanks are different, can you explain your pumps and flow a bit more?
That sounds fine as long as there is some flow it should be fine.

 

[Eds Reef]

It is hard to tell as all tanks are different, can you explain your pumps and flow a bit more?
That sounds fine as long as there is some flow it should be fine.

I couldn't actually tell you without taking them out and checking them.
The only problem I'm encountering with the return is this big patch of protein? Sitting at the top. I'm thinking I should get some extra flow to be on the safe side to run from the back of the shelf up to the top of the tank?

I have my one flow pump aimed from the back of the tank slightly up for gas exchange and just covering some of my rock.

 

[Eds Reef]

This little guy seems to be doing great but once a day he will close up for about half hour, is this normal?

 

[Eds Reef]

Hope everyone doesn't mind me triple posting lol.

Can anyone ID this. I have had alot pop up on the rock that the toadstool came on. Also found a little clam tucked away on the rock too!

 

[NY_Caveman]

Can I change that when I get an anemone in the future or will they stay hosting in the same spot for asking as I have this tank?

Your tank looks to be 32 US gallons. Just an FYI, for your clowns, it may not be feasible to get an anemone for them that is a natural host. Some people have success with Bubble Tips, but no guarantee.