Stressing over Aquascape

[sdt11]

this is my most stressful part about setting up the tank. the tank is 6’x2’x2’. any suggestions or is this ok.

 

[JGT]

this is my most stressful part about setting up the tank. the tank is 6’x2’x2’. any suggestions or is this ok.

Think it looks OK. Unless the piece under each arch is supporting the arch, would think about removing. Give fish 2 nice swim throughs.

 

[sp1187]

what's your livestock intent?
are you adding gyres or powerheads for flow?

 

[ReefBeta]

If you want to put time to use cement to build out some arches and negative space, it can be a lot better.

If you don't want to play with cement, at least make the two pile not equal in size, and spread more back to front.

 

[sdt11]

Here is what I was thinking

2 clownfish
2 fire fish
1 Midas blennie
1 orange spotted goby
2 Banggai Cardinals
Reef safe wrasses
Blue hippo tang
Yellow tang
Niger trigger
Royal geramas
Pajama cardinals
Flame angel

 

[Jeffcb]

Looks great!

 

[nanonøkk]

you could make arches and don’t forget you can also aquascape with your corals as well but i’d make some arches for some nice swim throughs for fish but it looks great as it is now as well

 

[sp1187]

fish only or adding corals? if so what?

 

[sdt11]

what's your livestock intent?
are you adding gyres or powerheads for flow?

I posted my fish list below and i will be using power heads

 

[sp1187]

I posted my fish list below and i will be using power heads

saw the fish list. are you adding corals or just fish only?

 

[sdt11]

saw the fish list. are you adding corals or just fish only?

I will be starting with some easy Zoas and LPS but down the road getting some SPS

 

[nano_ryan]

this is my most stressful part about setting up the tank. the tank is 6’x2’x2’. any suggestions or is this ok.

I would space them out more. Flow needs to pass through the rocks, keep that in mind. Watch this brs video on nsa aquascaping. Making the rock go all over the place, while keeping it balanced, makes the tank much more appealing to the eye. Instead of just a pile of rocks. Good luck

 

[sp1187]

so my suggestions are:
right now you are working up/down and right/left but not front/back.

Left Hand Structure go higher on the side glass side. looking straight down rotate it so the center is closer to the front glass. add more rock low off of that going towards the Right Hand side.

Right Hand Structure looking straight down rotate side glass side towards the front and the center part towards the back.

now you would have a slope on the left side and a wall on the right side behind the lower rock from the left.
gives depth perception. if all that makes sense?

 

[sp1187]

and you may want to rethink adding the trigger. not safe for your other choices.

 

[Sailfin11]

I learned this the hard way with my first few aquascapes - try to minimize vertical rock surfaces. When you're placing corals its much easier to do it on a slight slope than on a "cliff". You'll also have lots of shadowing later on. I found this picture online, it has a good balance of different heights but also creates lots of space for coral.

 

[Weasel1960]

so my suggestions are:
right now you are working up/down and right/left but not front/back.

Left Hand Structure go higher on the side glass side. looking straight down rotate it so the center is closer to the front glass. add more rock low off of that going towards the Right Hand side.

Right Hand Structure looking straight down rotate side glass side towards the front and the center part towards the back.

now you would have a slope on the left side and a wall on the right side behind the lower rock from the left.
gives depth perception. if all that makes sense?

If I understand @sp1187 correctly that means you would have open sand center front. Great place for small flat island or a center piece coral. Make sure swim holes big enough for large fish + growth and plenty of hiding places. It’s on the right track just some thoughtful adjustments.

 

[ReefBridge]

I think it looks good. It looks a lot like my Red Sea Reefer when I set it up in June. One thing I did which has made me feel more at ease is that I set up my rocks so they would rest naturally with gravity (like you have there) and then used JP Waterweld to connect a couple of them so that one wouldn’t come loose, especially as corals start to grow on it. I did it in such a way that I can still remove rocks but I have to remove a couple at a time as their epoxied together. They fit together a little like a puzzle.

 

[sp1187]

If I understand @sp1187 correctly that means you would have open sand center front. Great place for small flat island or a center piece coral. Make sure swim holes big enough for large fish + growth and plenty of hiding places. It’s on the right track just some thoughtful adjustments.

not quite. the low rock of the left side goes toward the center.
it does leave open sand in the left side front corner for an island rock.

 

[sp1187]

I learned this the hard way with my first few aquascapes - try to minimize vertical rock surfaces. When you're placing corals its much easier to do it on a slight slope than on a "cliff". You'll also have lots of shadowing later on. I found this picture online, it has a good balance of different heights but also creates lots of space for coral.

yep, why I'm suggesting the sloping left side.

 

[ID-Reefer]

My tank is a little bigger than yours but not much. I would highly recommend watching that BRS video posted above. I think Aquascapes are a matter of personal taste. For me I just wanted to avoid the look of a stacked pile of rocks or a wall along the back which Ive done before.

Look at a lot of photos and find something you like. Since you are using dry rock, take it out of the tank and work with it on a table where you can adjust, rework etc. with ease and without fear of scratching or breaking the tank. If you want to be a little more creative consider breaking up some of the rock. Build. Experiment. Making it yours. I really enjoyed creating my own aquascape - probably my favorite part of my build to this point. Once you have it the way you want use super glue to hold it followed by reef mortar so it doesn't come tumbling down. Build it modular - so that its manageable.

I did mine over a weekend after looking at many photos. I also looked for inspiration from actual ocean reef photos. I wanted to create depth and negative space. Its really difficult to photograph but love how it looks in person. Cant tell from photos but there are large cantilevers and bridges/arches with space behind. Biggest thing is to get it right for you - you don't want to stare at it and hate it for years.

My 220 lbs. of rock for my 192 gal. display