JBJ 45 G Rimless Build (KCV)

[Bob Escher]

They're really funny fish, and I think they have a big personality (especially for their size). I've already caught him once in the filter socks. He then stayed on the sand in the open for two days before disappearing again. He's not in the sump (I've taken almost everything out to check), so hopefully he's finally found his place to burrow.

Does yours disappear sometimes, or did he when he was first was getting used to the tank?

He does disappear but normally not for very long most a day. Same with the diamond watchman goby who is the biggest fish in the tank, he is the biggest at least six inches mu problem child is one of the cardinal pajama and one pr two of the fire fish that I may not see for two or three days even if I go looking for them

 

[KC V.]

And he must be reading this forum because when I went to feed tonight, he popped his head out only just long enough to snag a bite before going back into hiding. Unfortunately way too fast for me to grab the phone and get a picture!

At least he chose a place that is in the middle and center of the tank to camp out.

 

[Bob Escher]

That’s where mine hang out center and front stage under a rock overhang always. Most of my videos and pictures you can see him

 

[KC V.]

So let's try writing a detailed update. It's water change Wednesday--10% here we go!

Pre W/C params:
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 5 ppm (down from 10 ppm on 01/21/2019)
Phosphate: 0.04 ppm (down from 0.04 ppm on 01/21/2019)
Salinity: 1.0255 sg
Temperature: 77.1 F
pH: 8.20
KH: 11.2 dKH
Ca: 440 ppm
Mg: 1400

Finally here I can place details about the refugium. After looking at a lot of lights and suggestions (thank you!) we wanted to go with a submersible light. We are trying out the Tunze 8821 (it's an all spectrum rather than the more $$ upgrade, but maybe that's in the future?), which we have under a sponge filter to keep the chaeto together (there has been a lot of chaeto spitting by the pumps this past week).


I have the chaeto and the light in the third compartment when looking L-R from the front. Water flows from tank through a sock, through a biological filter container before passing through the chaeto.


This is how it's sitting right now (although the chaeto was pushed down for this photo so that I could minimize the amount that would get thrown into the DT).

Now for the NO3 and PO4 decrease. It's been a rather dramatic decrease from the peak of 20 ppm and 0.1 ppm. To be honest, I did not expect to see any response for at least a week or two, rather than me reach/approach targets. This was because this is an all-spectrum light, and it seems that it takes a little while for the tank to respond. I did notice that the green hair algae outbreak has really subsided, but I thought maybe it was more of the CUC and probably no growth? I currently have the light set to the full opposite of any blue or spectrum light on the DT, so it's on 21:00 until 06:00 next day. I'll probably start decreasing that now rather than having to abruptly change in the future. So I've decreased from 9 hours to 6 hours--does that sound like a good decrease for now? I'm just worrying about depleting the nitrates and having other problems.

Additionally during the water change, I decided to try cleaning the return pumps. One of the cleanings went fine, but the other pump had a shaft break. I didn't get a picture, but I had an extra powerhead laying around (same as the broken one), so I was able to have a replacement. But now I'll have to seek out another backup :-o.

Let's just leave with a full tank photo, and happy Wednesday!

 

[Bob Escher]

Have you looked at the intank baskets
Theses may work for the cheato and stuff, the dividers can be pulled out and they are much larger than the ones that come with the tank
https://intankaquatics.com/jbj-nano-cube/rimless-nano-cube-45/


Looking good

 

[KC V.]

Well with good news there is always bad news. It looks like there was a major fish war last night in the tank.

The cardinals have been one of the longer inhabitants of the tank, and they hang out together in the back and come over the rocks during lights out together. One of the cardinals is a smaller one who really eats only enough during each feeding and then returns to the spot. The other one is more boisterous and comes to the front of the tank during feedings and to check things out.

Last night I saw the cardinals do their journey together during lights out and explore the tank. Everyone else was settling to their usual spots. This morning, I counted two fish missing during the feeding. One was the royal Gramma, and the other was the submissive Cardinal. Well I found them both. The Gramma was missing its tail and had a lot of physical injury (of which it likely succumbed), sorry I just couldn't get myself to take a picture. The submissive Cardinal was hanging out at the return. When I freed him from the reserve, he couldn't really control his swimming and was moving more with the current of the tank. The other Cardinal was following and trying to guide him to their day spot, it appeared. I notice damage to the pectoral and pelvic fins on one side, along with a little scale damage under the pectoral fin. I moved him to the QT, and he just went for a hiding spot (after exploring the tank).

These pics were taken just after dropping him in before he settled. Breathing was normal, so will a recovery even be possible? What else should I keep an eye on for this one? I know he's a little on the skinny side, but he's always eaten and done his thing.

I noticed that the Gramma has recently changed his location in the tank just a few inches lower, so maybe there was a nighttime freakout that caused this? Anything else or any disease to look for?

 

[Bob Escher]

I believe he will recover but what do you think happened to him. What do you mean reserve

 

[KC V.]

Well compared to the other cardinal fish who travels around the tank all day (front/back, side/side), this one prefers to chill in the back and swim back and forth. During eating time, the "reserved" one would eat a bit, but then just pass on any extra food while the others would just keep eating until their stomachs would explode (maybe). Definitely, when the other fish were in after lights out, I would see both cardinals going all around the tank and swimming around, so I was thinking that this fish really just didn't want to be with the other fish.

As to what happened? There are a few theories I am trying to float:
1) I am not 100% convinced that my firefish is peaceful. I think that he is on the spectrum of being meaner than your average fire fish, especially since he turned on the bonded mate and appears to boss everyone. I do not know the firefish's sleeping place because he swims in and out of the rocks in such a way that I lose track when he decides to turn in.

2) The royal gramma had recently changed living spots, so potentially there could have been an inadvertent fight over territory at night if the gramma felt that the smaller cardinal was trying to move in. Maybe there was a battle royale between the cardinals and the gramma

3) One cardinal may have turned on the other if they were not a bonded pair exactly.

Unfortunately the injured cardinal did not make it and now is swimming in the big fish tank/ocean in the sky. I think the cardinal experienced a lot of trauma throughout the night, and it was definitely too much for it.

I am starting to think that the combination of personalities in my tank may be leading to more aggression than expected, and there may be fights despite plenty of space left and plenty of food. Animals have their own individual personalities, just like people, so the aggression information is really just a set of guidelines of what to expect. Needless to say, I'll be very like to stick to inverts/coral for a little while the dust settles and everyone gets back into equilibrium.

 

[Bob Escher]

My pajama cardinal cardinal ( more colorful with red eyes) stay in the rock or in the back of the tank. The two are among four of the longest living in the tank at over four years and have been through a lot. The smaller one tends to come out ( or is it the larger one) more than the other. But still stays at the back. My sons two in his 125 gallon. Tank does the same as well

 

[KC V.]

Once I finish this generation of cardinals, I may look at the pajama cardinals next. I think when I was looking at the bangai and the pajama side by side, it was under whites and I went for funky over color. I wonder what it is about the cardinals liking the back of the tank against the black wall--maybe less motion seen through the glass?

I am excited to say that I have done enough freelancing (and had an expiring coupon), that I will now be adding on another AI Prime to the tank!!!! I was going back and forth over just replacing the whole system with the hydra or another light source (like a Kessil), but when push came to shove I really like the AI interface and having a separate head will allow me to spread out the light over the tank to spread.

So aquarium equipment-wise I am doing pretty well on my goals for the year. I already completed the refugium (goal for the first three months of the year) and I will be adding the light (goal for April - June). If only the fish would have cooperated and some of my other non-reefing goals would be as efficient .

 

[ReefyB]

Your system is coming along nicely! Sorry bout the fish though. Any chance they got pulled into a wavemaker? Sounded like a lot of damage for the type of fish in the tank, and to happen so quickly.

I’m in the process of upgrading the lights on my JBJ too. The single LED puck works OK but I think I’ll get much better growth on SPS if I can hit them from all angles. Right now, even though my sticks are encrusting/growing, when lights are out the parts that don’t get direct light are white and don’t really grow. I’m thinking about trying the Aquatic Life T5/LED hybrid fixture. Have you considered that? We can keep our LEDs, and add T5’s, supposedly providing the best of both worlds and being able to provide light from every angle.

 

[Bob Escher]

Your system is coming along nicely! Sorry bout the fish though. Any chance they got pulled into a wavemaker? Sounded like a lot of damage for the type of fish in the tank, and to happen so quickly.

I’m in the process of upgrading the lights on my JBJ too. The single LED puck works OK but I think I’ll get much better growth on SPS if I can hit them from all angles. Right now, even though my sticks are encrusting/growing, when lights are out the parts that don’t get direct light are white and don’t really grow. I’m thinking about trying the Aquatic Life T5/LED hybrid fixture. Have you considered that? We can keep our LEDs, and add T5’s, supposedly providing the best of both worlds and being able to provide light from every angle.

I have a Radion XR15 pro which is a single ouch on mine and you’ll be surprised at my growth. I’ll admit at the very edges at the sides of the glass I don’t get growth but here look.
This is with a yellow filter

 

[Bob Escher]

Once I finish this generation of cardinals, I may look at the pajama cardinals next. I think when I was looking at the bangai and the pajama side by side, it was under whites and I went for funky over color. I wonder what it is about the cardinals liking the back of the tank against the black wall--maybe less motion seen through the glass?

I am excited to say that I have done enough freelancing (and had an expiring coupon), that I will now be adding on another AI Prime to the tank!!!! I was going back and forth over just replacing the whole system with the hydra or another light source (like a Kessil), but when push came to shove I really like the AI interface and having a separate head will allow me to spread out the light over the tank to spread.

So aquarium equipment-wise I am doing pretty well on my goals for the year. I already completed the refugium (goal for the first three months of the year) and I will be adding the light (goal for April - June). If only the fish would have cooperated and some of my other non-reefing goals would be as efficient .

You can barely see the pajama’s against the back of the tank other than the red eyes

 

[ReefyB]

I have a Radion XR15 pro which is a single ouch on mine and you’ll be surprised at my growth. I’ll admit at the very edges at the sides of the glass I don’t get growth but here look.
This is with a yellow filter

Nice tank! That’s what I have on mine currently too, g4 with the diffuser. I do get great growth on lps/softies, and even monti’s, but most of my sticks that aren’t directly under the puck are only growing/encrusting on the side where the puck is. I’d still say that’s decent growth because on the “light” side they are really starting to take off. I’m about to try one of those grow out challenges though so I want to see how much a difference the t5’s will make.

 

[KC V.]

Delayed update because I was on calls last night. So here we go for the weekly water change! (I did all of this last night, but just didn't summarize).

Temp: 77.1F
Salinity: 1.0255 SG
pH: 8.20
Phosphate: 0.02
Nitrate: 5 ppm
Mg: 1600 ppm
Ca: 440 ppm
KH: 9.5 (I forgot to do my Carbonate dosing last week)

There is a little more of the diatoms breaking out again, which isn't surprising because I needed to change one of the return pumps last minute last week. It's already going down, so it will probably continue to do so over the next few days.

Nitrate is dropping like crazy, which has been exciting. There is definitely still a retreat in the green hair from the tank. I'm watching to make sure that it doesn't go down too far. Other than that, this is a standard check in update.

Full tank picture under the blues:

 

[neoGeorge]

I've been mostly reading on this forum trying to learn as much as I can. I decided it's time for me to finally put in my own experience (I'm about a week behind, but I took a lot of notes and wrote a lot down during that time). I'm new to this hobby, and I decided to go for an all-in-one tank since I am uncomfortable with having an external sump and all the plumbing at the moment. 45 gallons AIO sounded like a great fit for me, and the JBJ was the right shape/price during a blowout sale. So here is what I ordered and I am going to try to catch up from my notes:

- JBJ Rimless Flat Panel 45 Gallon Tank
- JBJ 45 Gallon Tank stand
- AI Prime HD light (black) + flexible arm
- Cobalt Neo-Therm Heater (150 W)
- Hydor Aqamai KPS Wavemaker
- Autoaqua AWC + ATO system
- Tunze Comlime Reefpack 250 (because it was on sale for $20 more than the skimmer alone--emergency filtration probably)

With RO/DI and a few other items, here is all the boxes!

If you were able to buy JBJ 45 from Drs Fosters and Smith, that was a great deal, and congratulations! I placed an order for the tank and was informed 4 days later that they cancelled my order because new ones wouldn't arrive before they closed their doors - talked to Customer Support and they were really friendly and helpful in spite of the fact their jobs have been eliminated.

 

[Bob Escher]

That’s where I got mine many moons ago. Mar of 2015 to be exact. Still running strong, although the stand needs to be replaced

 

[neoGeorge]

That’s where I got mine many moons ago. Mar of 2015 to be exact. Still running strong, although the stand needs to be replaced

@Bob Escher Sorry to hear about the stands - they aren't inexpensive! I ended up buying two JBJ 65 gallon rimless tanks with white stands - should be delivered in a week or so. Any suggestions for extending the life of the stands?

 

[Bob Escher]

Well what I did was took 1x3 slats and put them all around the inside of the stand deformed more support.
But I took away the middle support as I converted my tank to have a sump inside the stand. My problem is the doors aren’t equal anymore and the stand bottom has flaked away in places from water.
Waterproof the stand bottom some way

 

[KC V.]

If you were able to buy JBJ 45 from Drs Fosters and Smith, that was a great deal, and congratulations! I placed an order for the tank and was informed 4 days later that they cancelled my order because new ones wouldn't arrive before they closed their doors - talked to Customer Support and they were really friendly and helpful in spite of the fact their jobs have been eliminated.

What a shock when I saw that Drs. Foster and Smith were shuttering up. :-(. I really have appreciated their products and services over the year. To be honest, their association is why I felt comfortable ordering from Live Aquaria because of their top notch customer service. They are totally a company that supports the customer to the best of their ability.

Well what I did was took 1x3 slats and put them all around the inside of the stand deformed more support.
But I took away the middle support as I converted my tank to have a sump inside the stand. My problem is the doors aren’t equal anymore and the stand bottom has flaked away in places from water.
Waterproof the stand bottom some way

Bob is definitely emphasizing many of the stand setup strategies that are repeated on the forum. The braces are good for a peace of mind for holding something that is so heavy. They're not cheap stands, but of course everything has a limited life.
Also, make sure to use the mat that comes with the tank. I remember initially thinking it was packing material, but I am glad to know that item is in place for the tank.