Geeked Out & Modified 29 gal BC

TinpanVA · Dec 26, 2013

Thanks guys, she's been cruising along on auto pilot for months. Added a few new high end frags about 6 weeks ago, some kind of green slim cyano junk grew on all 4 frags I bought, a week later it exploded inside the entire tank. Covers every square inch of bare rock. I don't like using chemicals so I'll try all the normal stuff first to battle it.

On the bright side, frags are doing great, some of the browned out ones are getting colors back and gr9wing like crazy

JMSKI333 · Dec 26, 2013

Wow That tank looks fantastic! In a year that thing is going to be lush!

TheGrimmReefer · Dec 26, 2013

Very well done, awesome pictures too!

Sgchick · Jan 2, 2014

Wow! Beautiful tank. I have a biocube also, but it doesn't look like that...yet.

Very nicely done!

FLipp · Jan 15, 2014

eace:nice!

MrDJeep123 · Jan 15, 2014

Can I assume you didn't mod the lid and removed it entirely? If so how is the noise?

TinpanVA · Jan 15, 2014

MrDJeep123 said:
Can I assume you didn't mod the lid and removed it entirely? If so how is the noise?

Well my bio cube is the HQI version so it didn't have a hood, it came with a glass top and the halide lamp and arm. The glass top was never used and still sits behind the tank on the floor. I made a screen top with the kit from BRS. Super easy and looks great. As far as noise goes, most of the noise comes from the rear chambers and the water director specifically. I should mention I also removed the rear covers after using them for about a month. I like the trickling water sound and the open look from the removed covers. They also wouldn't work with the HOB skimmer and ATO.

MrDJeep123 · Jan 15, 2014

I see. I thought if you did use the hood you might have hacked it up a bit to make things fit.

I was just curious. I have the hooded one. Thanks for the reply.

TinpanVA · Jan 29, 2014

Update: apparently after you stuff 60+ corals into a relatively small tank, you reach a point where you can only dose by hand so much before the corals get stressed. I reached that point about 6 weeks ago. I was doing a 12ml dose twice a day for alk and 10ml a day on calc. Those swings and perhaps the high alk that mixes with red sea coral pro, sparked off STN on 80% of my SPS. Just to be safe however, I brought in some help and we dipped a large tri-color looking for AEFW. That test was negative so the clubs best guess was alk swings. So last week I hooked up a pair of BRS 1.1 ml pumps to my reef keeper and started dosing every 4 hours for both calc & alk. I staggered the doses 2 hours apart so every 2 hours something is squirting into the fuge. I'm double checking parameters with daily water tests this first week. So the good news is I'm finally auto dosing, bad news is once STN has started, it's likely to continue until the coral is gone. I'm going to frag what I can off the corals this weekend, but most have only the tips left and they are trying their hardest to hangon.

I guess the only silver lining here is the fact that most of those corals we very easy to come by in the local club here and we're considered easy or beginner corals so this will give up some room for some of the nicer frags that are out there. Right now the plan is to pick up a frag or two of something in a few weeks when the dosing has really stabilized and see how it does. I'm still working on the sump of the new tank upgrade while I try to decide between a 60 or 93 cube. The fact that I knew I was about to swap tanks anyway and Jack things up in the tank has lessened the blow of this little debacle. I was already prepared to have corals stress during the move and possibly lose one or two.

I'll do a new FTS this week, there's still plenty of color and stuff in the tank, all the softies, zoas, Monti caps, and digi are doing great.

Cheers!

Lovge · Jan 29, 2014

Im going to miss your BC29 but good luck with your new tank. If you break down the BC and wish to unload any of the equip send me a message.

TinpanVA · Feb 3, 2014

Couple of shots during my last water change

Low Tide

TinpanVA · Mar 12, 2014

On the road to recovery, updated FTS

vlangel · Mar 12, 2014

Lookin' good! Glad corals recovered.

Keithcorals · Mar 12, 2014

Amazing work
That six line picture is unreal,you take some great shots. What Camera are you using?

revhtree · Mar 12, 2014

Great job!

FLipp · Mar 12, 2014

that frogspawn looks awesome out the water!
sweet picture.

TinpanVA · Mar 12, 2014

Canon T3i, 100mm macro lens, tripod, remote release and remote flash. 218 pictures taken that day, that was the only keeper lol

TinpanVA · Mar 21, 2014

Once things settle down and I manage to get a few pics I'll post them, but I'm super excited with a few frags I just picked up. A fuzzy watermelon milli, rose milli, some other rainbow milli, a cornbred Aces Wild, & a WWC Ignition chalice. Picking up a few other goodies next week. Here we go again with a stuffed tank.