Maroon Lagoon V3.0

[gig 'em]

I feel like a tremendous weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I finally installed a header and removed the column and studs in the wall. I finally have an opening and can move forward!

 

[gig 'em]

It’s funny the skills we pick up due to the hobby. Plumbing, electrical work, drywall installation and floating/texturing, structural engineering....

Ok, I’m making the very thread I can’t stand where it’s just construction pics for pages and pages. I’ll try and hurry up and finish this thing so it can get water in it.

 

[gig 'em]

Water! Doing a little leak test to make sure all is good before filling it with RO. May as well conserve water and use the RO waste water to start off the test

 

[dbraun15]

Looking good...nice work on the header and sheet rock!

 

[gig 'em]

The cabinets are in place, despite the IKEA doors not wanting to fit with my stainless soft close hinges, but I made it work (for now).

The Radions and T5s have been attached to the light rack. I left room for my BML actinic strips, which are currently being used on the old DT.

I was admiring a local hobbyists build thread and was inspired by his tablet bracket on the wall. I decided I could take advantage of my low ceiling and attach an adjustable swivel bracket for mine to control the Apex and music in the room. It’s nice because it can swivel 180 degrees so I can flip it around to control the Apex when standing at the frag tanks too. Geeking out about this addition pretty hard right now

It’s almost 2020 and I had set a personal goal to have the tank full of water by 1/1/20. It probably won’t be full by midnight, but at least RO is starting to fill the tank!

 

[FactoryKTMmotocross46]

Looking amazing! What's the status of the 2.0 and all of your livestock?

 

[gig 'em]

Looking amazing! What's the status of the 2.0 and all of your livestock?

It’s not great. I’ve done several water changes and parameters are all in line, but acros keep slowly and randomly dying. My independent frag tank is doing just fine, so I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve just neglected the tank at this point. The fish are plenty healthy and happy though.

 

[inletfish]

love it, planning on a similar build this year. right there

 

[gig 'em]

Things are getting salty!

 

[dbraun15]

It’s not great. I’ve done several water changes and parameters are all in line, but acros keep slowly and randomly dying. My independent frag tank is doing just fine, so I don’t know what’s going on. I’ve just neglected the tank at this point. The fish are plenty healthy and happy though.

Hope the nems are doing ok.

 

[gig 'em]

Hope the nems are doing ok.

Thanks! All of my gig carpets are doing well. I lost one of my mags after the move when it came in contact with a heater and burned the bottom of its foot off At the rate my acros keeping disappearing in my DT, this may be a 7’ gig dedicated tank... which honestly would still be a pretty cool looking tank when they get big

 

[dbraun15]

Been there, done that...after years of the ups and downs with SPS, I changed to a nem/softie dominated tank and couldn’t be happier. 7’ of carpets would be awesome! Either way, with your track record, any way you choose will be awesome! Keep up the progress!

 

[gig 'em]

The march of progress continues steadily on. Plumbing is complete, only two minor leaks that will be fixed later this week.

The tank is filled all the way and most of the sand has been added. The water never has cleared since mixing salt into it. I’m hoping running the return pump will help clarify the water.

 

[gig 'em]

To my wife’s pleasure, I got the frag tanks moved out of the living room and into the fish room. Took me a whole day, but all the tanks are now plumbed together.

I also got the Radions hooked up to my Apex, so I will be working on programming those lights soon.

I seeded the tank with new rock that has been sitting in a brute for the past month and rocks from my frag system to get the cycle going. Turned the lights on tonight to get a quick photo

 

[CoralWealth]

Looks of progress!!

 

[gig 'em]

The frag tank and anemone tank have settled into their locations and the water has cleared. Starting to feel more complete

 

[dbraun15]

Looking good...if I recall, you have more than one Gig, correct? If so, where are the others going?

 

[gig 'em]

Looking good...if I recall, you have more than one Gig, correct? If so, where are the others going?

That's correct, I have 4. A green one (you see in the 50 gal rimless tank), 2 blue ones (they are in the black basket in the frag tank), and a purple one (it is in a white colander in the 50 gal rimless, you can just see the edge of it in the picture above.) The 3 gigs that are in holding containers didn't like the move from my old house to the new house very well and I went ahead and put them all through a treatment of cipro just in case. With anemones like these, you don't take a risk when they start looking poor. I'm keeping them in the containers now just for observation, they are devilishly difficult to get off a rock once they are anchored down.

 

[gig 'em]

A quick break from the build photos, I snapped a few photos from the frag tanks to keep it interesting

5 species of montis growing into each other

Ok

 

[gig 'em]

Well unfortunately I think I’m going to need to install a mini split AC unit in the fish room. It’s been one of those periods of the year in Austin where it’s not cold enough outside to make the house cool, but not warm enough for the central AC to run.

I insulated the fish room pretty well, so when the ambient temperature isn’t cold enough and there’s no air being pushed through the AC vent, heat is building up pretty well in there. I walked in this morning and it was a balmy 84 just from the few pieces of auxiliary equipment and the dehumidifier running. I’m thinking if it’s this warm when it’s in the mid 60s outside, what’s it going to be like when the garage temperature is reaching triple digits?

It might be different in the middle of summer when the AC is running most of the day and pushing cool air into the room, but I’m wondering if it’ll be enough once all the equipment is in there and running 24/7. Also I don’t want these temperature spikes in the spring and fall when the house temperature is in this limbo. Probably better off just biting the bullet now and installing a unit.

I wonder about putting a window unit in a wall and venting the heat into the garage, but that bothers me. I feel like the unit won’t be efficient that way and will just burn itself out when it only has a garage to dump heat into. A mini split will require more money and work, but probably the best solution here.