Jono's 220 Gallon Upgrade

[ScottD]

Its weird with camera's, they seem to pick up the blues heaps more than eyes.

When you look at a tank normally they dont look blue at all - its just the lens on the phone camera, if i use a filter its a lot better.

My son has a DSLR that looks way better (just a lot more work to get the photos on-line)!

It’s probably the white balance setting the phone is using. Some third party camera apps allow you the change the white balance along with other setting and make it more like a dslr.

 

[JonoH]

Few updates from the last couple of weeks.
The Turbo Snails have been spawning - not there are literally hundreds of little snails cruising around the rocks (its funny as i have never bought Turbo Snails, just inherited them on some live rock).

Image below of them spawning - you could see them spraying and everything!

My eldest 3d printed a little hat for the Urchin in the tank (Urchan has been a bit of a menace lately stealing coral frags!)

I added in a frag of Strawberry Shortcake Acro

My Pink Birdsnest is growing really well, however its looking a little white, so maybe i have the lights too bright? Weird as its sitting in around 300 PAR from memory.

Probably hard to tell - i need to stop taking pics at night when the blues are a lot higher!

Finally - it begins.... My RBA has split, i reckon my Urchan was hanging around near it, which may have triggered it. At the moment its on a rock fairly isolated from the coral, but if it starts moving around then i will take one out. I have this Nem for over a year now and this is the first time it has split, so i dont mind if its only once a year.

 

[DarkReefer]

Love the nems and yours look great. Miss having them for their colour and vibrancy but absolutely hated how they moved around the tank destroying anything getting in their way.

 

[JonoH]

Love the nems and yours look great. Miss having them for their colour and vibrancy but absolutely hated how they moved around the tank destroying anything getting in their way.

Yeah, these will be evicted pretty quick if they start doing that!
Thankfully staying in their zone at the moment!

 

[Johnd651]

@JonoH Tagging along for the build. These are the exact tank dimensions I am thinking of for a spot between two doors.

 

[DarkReefer]

How's the tank been going mate? any updates?

 

[JonoH]

How's the tank been going mate? any updates?

Tank has been going good, everything fairly stable.
Had my biggest hammer just decide to bail out all its heads but one the other week - still have no idea as to why it did it as all the others have been fine!

Started a Goni Garden about 2 weeks ago -

Also got given a Joker Torch for nothing, so that was a win!

Have been struggling to keep SPS alive though, probably need to do an ICP test to make sure theres not something lurking, but its frustrating, other than Red Monti Cap - that's growing great!

Got given some Psammocora to try, but it doesnt seem to be doing that great either!

 

[DarkReefer]

looking good mate, the goni garden looks cute!
Hope they grow in really well for you!

My 2nd goni isn't far off dying off. Hoping trying to sort the water parameters stops it receding and dying off.... but I reckon it's gone lol

 

[Stevorino]

Great build @JonoH - Do you still have those MP40s straight along the upper back of the back glass, and have you had any issues with dead spot/major sand movement?

I think I'm going to give this a whirl in my updated aquascape/build, but not sure if I want to stagger or not... and I also have a gyre collecting dust I may put on one side if the MP40s aren't enough.

 

[JonoH]

Great build @JonoH - Do you still have those MP40s straight along the upper back of the back glass, and have you had any issues with dead spot/major sand movement?

I think I'm going to give this a whirl in my updated aquascape/build, but not sure if I want to stagger or not... and I also have a gyre collecting dust I may put on one side if the MP40s aren't enough.

Yep still all across the back, no issue with dead spots or sand movement, just have to dial them in right otherwise they do suck up sand from underneath them.

Gives it some softer flow on the outer edges which is good for LPS corals.

 

[Stevorino]

Yep still all across the back, no issue with dead spots or sand movement, just have to dial them in right otherwise they do suck up sand from underneath them.

Gives it some softer flow on the outer edges which is good for LPS corals.

Thanks - I'm definitely going to give it a try!

Am I reading your posts correctly that having them all on one wall creates a circular motion, sucking in the water along the back glass? Sorta like a gyre?

 

[JonoH]

Thanks - I'm definitely going to give it a try!

Am I reading your posts correctly that having them all on one wall creates a circular motion, sucking in the water along the back glass? Sorta like a gyre?

It pushes the water forward, hits the glass then creates a circular motion that way.

But it really depends on what you have the pumps set at - i have mine on reef crest, you could run them anti-sync which may work to pull the water through also?

I havent really played with them too much since it just worked well from the start.

 

[JonoH]

Been a while since i have updated on here, so a bit has happened.
Lost all my hammers and almost all my torches, my Joker Torch has hung in there thankfully.
Lost all my Trachy's and my one Scoly.

After letting this sit for a while, and checking levels which are all still fine, maybe my Nitrate is a little high, but it doesnt seem to change, i finally ordered some new corals from on-line (first time doing an on-line order).

Corals all came in fine, so have introduced them into the tank finally, they spent a few weeks on a frag rack before i glued them all in.

Red Polyp Dallas Acro

Lace Coral - something a little different (meant to be hard to keep though so stay posted)

Left to Right
Red Dragon Acro
Pink Digitata Montiopora
Blue Digitata Montiopora
My Plating coral below died off a bit (gone green with algea on it, but some of it is still alive so fingers crossed it comes back)

Stack of Zoa's added in that i got from a local grower (Oasis Coral) - he has some amazing stuff and the colours of these are wild - dont ask me their names though

Goni Garden is going well (except for one of them!)

Also picked up a Coral Margin Butterfly from a local reefer - got bullied by my Yellow Tang for a week, but now its integrated great and eating like a pig - even seems to eat pellets (as well as frozen and nori)

 

[Janci]

Nice new additions.
Did you find any indication why you lost the torches and trachys?

 

[JonoH]

Nice new additions.
Did you find any indication why you lost the torches and trachys?

No idea, i am thinking now though that it may have been low light - have upped it recently with the addition of the SPS coral, and everything is looking much better.
But i have started dosing trace also, so that could have helped.

I have an ICP test here that i need to send off so will let you know how that goes!

 

[The deepwaterhorizon reef]

Awesome tank and build thread! Is the high flow area of your tank still at the top of the rock work where you would normally keep acropora? Also what is the flow like where you are keeping your lps and zoas. I'm thinking about putting the powerhead on the back wall of my tank as well since it looks better. Also how does your flow interact with your rockwork? Is flow minimal right in front of the rockwork? Pretty much I'm looking for as many details as possible about this setup of powerhead so I can try and replicate it with the best success. (planning to have a four four 75 gallon) thanks

 

[JonoH]

Awesome tank and build thread! Is the high flow area of your tank still at the top of the rock work where you would normally keep acropora? Also what is the flow like where you are keeping your lps and zoas. I'm thinking about putting the powerhead on the back wall of my tank as well since it looks better. Also how does your flow interact with your rockwork? Is flow minimal right in front of the rockwork? Pretty much I'm looking for as many details as possible about this setup of powerhead so I can try and replicate it with the best success. (planning to have a four four 75 gallon) thanks

Yea it gets great flow across the top, which then bounces off the glass and returns along the bottom also - I find i need to put my LPS closer to the ends of the tank (where i keep my large leather at the moment) as it tends to be a little less intense there.

I need to check my settings, but i'm fairly certain i'm only running at about 40% reefcrest on all the units, so potentially could be dialed up a lot more, but you would need to be careful as to how much sand it pushed around.

The only downside is it does seem to trap a bit of junk across the rear wall (mostly empty shells, not detritus), but that could easily be solved by putting a small powerhead on the overflow facing back in if i had to.

 

[The deepwaterhorizon reef]

So at the sides of the tank there is less intense current flow and at the top there is turbulent flow. Does the front of your rockwork/tank also have more turbulent flow and can you keep lps and softies there successfully? Thanks

 

[JonoH]

So at the sides of the tank there is less intense current flow and at the top there is turbulent flow. Does the front of your rockwork/tank also have more turbulent flow and can you keep lps and softies there successfully? Thanks

Front and top there is turbelent flow - the front isnt too bad for LPS, i have some hammers and zoa's there now and they are doing well, but they are strategically placed in places where the rock shelters them a little.

I also have a Goni garden at the front just off from the centre and the flow seems perfect for them also.

Have good polyp extension on my Red Dallas Acro so it seems pretty happy, has good growth showing also!

 

[JonoH]

Quick Update - no pics on this one yet.
Lost the copperband about a month ago - not sure what happened as it seemed to be eating fine, but found it on its side going down rapidly. Funny thing is that my Yellow tang was getting really beaten up by something, big bite marks on its fins and all - since the copperband has gone, its all back to normal.
Strange how one fish can cause so much tension in a tank! (My son reckons it was one of my Blue Tangs that was beating it up, and the Yellow was beating up the Copperband on and off)

Added in another Acro - not sure what type, my Son bought it for me from the LFS, he also bought me a Duncan and a Small Green Torch which was nice!

Just placed an order for a stack of Favia, so will be nice to add some more colour into the tank with those - just need to figure out placement.

Lost my Red Dragon acro as my Urchan knocked it off the rock, and my Son decided to glue it back on while i wasnt home...needless to say, he covered it in superglue and it bleached overnight...

The urchan also snapped the top off my Blue Digita Montipora...so now i have 2!