NeveSSL's 180g Mixed Reef

schooleyosis · Jun 21, 2014

Nice.

bknapp · Jun 21, 2014

How are you controlling the auto water change?

NeveSSL · Jun 21, 2014

I just have it running on a timer on the Apex. Runs for 30 minutes twice a day at a gallon an hour. I have two peristaltic pump heads on the same motor and I set them up to each move the same amount of water. If its on, its taking freshly mixed water out of the tank you see right under the pumps and placing it in the tank (right in front of the return pump) while simulaneously taking water out of the opposite area of the sump and sending it down the RO/DI drain line.

Brandon

TankedNTn · Jun 23, 2014

Great build Brandon. Don't why I haven't seen this till now but finished reading through the whole thread. Kent Tech M and peroxide took care of my Bryopsis fairly quickly.

NeveSSL · Jun 23, 2014

Thanks, Dave!

How did you go about it?

Also, check my new thread on the club forum about lunch next Tuesday.

Brandon

Dowtish · Jun 26, 2014

Brandon-

Where did you source your pumps for the AWC?

NeveSSL · Jun 26, 2014

eBay. I purchased the motors and pump heads separately and combined them to make them do what I wanted. I have an extra motor.

I would recommend the 7014 pump heads as the tubing they use will fit RO/DI tubing perfectly without anything else to add, plus its a good pace for water changes at about 1g per hour with 12v on the motor I'm using.

Brandon

NeveSSL · Jul 8, 2014

The tank is doing well! I added a magnificent foxface and he is decimating the hair algae on the rocks, which is perfect. He is rather shy for now (even though he wasn't when I first got him in the tank?), but I can sit in my chair and be still for a bit and he will come out. Gotta fatten him up a bit!

Now that he has been in the tank for over a week, I'm starting to dose Tech M to try to get rid of the bryopsis in my tank. My mag is low, though, at 1140 (according to my Salifert test kit), so its going to take a LOT to raise it up to 1800 with my 220 or so gallons of water. I stopped my automatic water changes for now so I'm not taking mag out.

I'm thinking of adding more tangs soon! I also still need to finish my tank stand, get my third and final LED fixture, get my T5 supplements, install the utility sink, etc., etc., etc. The list never ends, but I enjoy it.

Brandon

pickupman66 · Jul 9, 2014

Hmmm. A foxfsce... that's a good idea.

DaveMorris · Jul 9, 2014

Looking good, my man. I would love to have an auto water change system, just don't know how I could do it with the tank being where it is. Looks like a nice setup.

bknapp · Jul 9, 2014

It was cool to see your tank yesterday, no matter how briefly, it really is coming along. Now that you've got most of your lighting situated you can really start turning into a big bad Reef!

NeveSSL · Jul 10, 2014

pickupman66 said:
Hmmm. A foxfsce... that's a good idea.

I thought so, too.

DaveMorris said:
Looking good, my man. I would love to have an auto water change system, just don't know how I could do it with the tank being where it is. Looks like a nice setup.

Thanks! Its slowly coming together.

bknapp said:
It was cool to see your tank yesterday, no matter how briefly, it really is coming along. Now that you've got most of your lighting situated you can really start turning into a big bad Reef!

Thanks, man! That is definitely the goal.

Brandon

NeveSSL · Jul 26, 2014

Last night I realized I haven't had to scrape my front glass in a few days. Then it hit me... I'll bet my bio pellets are finally seeded. Perfect! I think its been about 6 weeks since I put them in, too. So with that, I'm planning on adding the rest in today, probably seeding with some Special Blend, and start feeding more heavily. I may also look into getting one of the automatic feeders for my Apex to feed while I'm at work... hmmmm...

Brandon

Volitans67 · Jul 26, 2014

Awesome man, so crazy when they finally kick in!

NeveSSL · Jul 26, 2014

Definitely is! Now I've got to get them rolling hard so they can work the way they're supposed to.

For some reason, I now feel like I can do everything else with my tank... add a lot more fish, get my parameters up, build the rest of my stand out, etc.

Brandon