Where in Montana..

oceaninabox12345 · Nov 4, 2018

Hey guys, i just wanted to start this topic to see how many of us on R2R are also in Montana [emoji4] i thought we could post pics of our various aquariums here, and see where each of us are from in Montana, to perhaps even trade with each other as it isnt always easy to find fish, rare coral, or coral at all. Im from Bozeman, and i have 2 120 gallon tanks, and a 45 gallon. Lots of coral i will soon be getting ready to sell, but nothing too rare yet.

jsker · Nov 6, 2018

lets see

Jerome Woodward · Jan 14, 2019

I'm in Kalispell. I am running a 120, 180 and a 40(frag) on one system. Lots of coral here!

Finner84 · Jan 23, 2019

Hey Nyke73. I am in Bozeman. Do you have some stuff to trade

oceaninabox12345 · Mar 20, 2019

Finner84 said:
Hey Nyke73. I am in Bozeman. Do you have some stuff to trade

Hey. This is Nyke, i just got locked out my old account and it finally let me make a new one. Im going to be a coral retailer in Bozeman. Ill be making an order soon, and i absolutely have things to trade. What are you looking for?

cracker · Mar 20, 2019

Come on guys your holding out on us. How about some pics !

corpsman_mann · Jun 22, 2019

I'm all the way up in boring ole Havre. 65g display 30 gal sump. Fairly new tank, has been up about 4 months now just have some clowns yellow tang, zoas, scans, and monti so far, will be looking to trade with you guys in the future when I roll through your areas.

ParadiseReefMT · Mar 21, 2020

Wondering if anyone is still around Montana and reefing? I know this is an old thread....

ZooMontana88 · Apr 21, 2020

East Missoula here! Setup 74g tank in January, added live sand and rock w/ polyp colony. Have added new fish and coral every 2-3 weeks. Loving this!

BruceLeeroy · May 3, 2020

oceaninabox12345 said:
Hey guys, i just wanted to start this topic to see how many of us on R2R are also in Montana [emoji4] i thought we could post pics of our various aquariums here, and see where each of us are from in Montana, to perhaps even trade with each other as it isnt always easy to find fish, rare coral, or coral at all. Im from Bozeman, and i have 2 120 gallon tanks, and a 45 gallon. Lots of coral i will soon be getting ready to sell, but nothing too rare yet.

Missoula here, just getting back into the hobby after an almost decade hiatus. It’s AppleTVs fault. They started this dang coral screensaver and now I’m screwed. Started cycling a 28g nano I had from A decade ago, once that gets up in a month or two it’ll be time to dig out my 60g and get it going.

ZooMontana88 · May 3, 2020

Welcome back to reefing! Also in Missoula and loving my new reef experience. Why did you take a hiatus? Can't wait to see your tank builds!

BruceLeeroy · May 5, 2020

During an exceptionally bad fire season we lost power for 36 hours and the house got 96 degrees, the tank crashed hard and I got demoralized. Got everything cleaned up and just kept “tomorow”ing it to death. Switching to a Radion x15(overkill) instead of the MH I used to use, hoping to use this as a launching pad to a much larger project in the next 6 months or so.

ZooMontana88 · May 5, 2020

Bfruacikned said:
During an exceptionally bad fire season we lost power for 36 hours and the house got 96 degrees, the tank crashed hard and I got demoralized. Got everything cleaned up and just kept “tomorow”ing it to death. Switching to a Radion x15(overkill) instead of the MH I used to use, hoping to use this as a launching pad to a much larger project in the next 6 months or so.

I have a feeling that this year might be a bad year for fires around here. We barely got any snow all winter, yet the recent rains might be promising. I'm looking into purchasing a backup power supply. Any recommendations?

BruceLeeroy · May 6, 2020

Tough question and I’m by no means an expert... being in Montana it’s tough to plan for outages due to seasonal variation... if it’s summer then you may need a chiller on the backup to keep the tank from hitting high 80’s, in winter you need a heater to keep it from hitting 50. Lights are unnecessary as if your tank is going to be out of power long enough to kill things from lack of light then you likely have larger problems. A relatively inexpensive backup like a CyberPower from bestbuy (50$) will run your recirculating for a few hours and bridge reasonable gaps but for something larger if you want real peace of mind I’m wondering if a two system approach isn’t a good idea... standard computer backup as the initial bridge to give you time to realize the problem and then a secondary longer term solution. For the second solution I think perhaps a large truck battery with dc inverter would probably give you up to a day or two with minimal pump usage. I run a 28g nano so honestly not worth it for me but for those running larger more comprehensive tanks where livestock losses could total thousands it’s not a bad idea. This is by no means expert advice and simply stream of consciousness at 7 am

ParadiseReefMT · May 6, 2020

My plan for power backup is a reasonably priced PC battery backup system from Amazon and if I need more than a couple hours I have a 2000watt portable generator I use for camping:

APC UPS, 600VA UPS Battery Backup & Surge Protector, BE600M1 Backup Battery with USB Charger Port, Uninterruptible Power Supply

ZooMontana88 · May 6, 2020

Thanks y'all! I will definitely take your suggestions into consideration. I'm not worried by loss of lighting due to my tanks position. It gets plenty of ambient light from 2 different rooms. Am pre noon and pm after 5... I do have ice packs on hand and ready. Do you suggest those in my 75 gal during the summer or should I just opt for cold water in a closed bottle? Luckily for the winter, we have a gas stove so hot water won't be an issue to obtain for keeping the water temp up. Do y'all suggest plastic or glass for bottle materials?
As for backup power needs, I'm running a Fluval FX4. I'll have to look into its specs to see what wattage it requires before purchasing. I have considered a generator yet I know they can get pretty pricey...

SamMule · Jul 14, 2020

Another newer reefer up here in Bigfork, MT. Set up our first tank (biocube 16) in Feb.

Then, bought and "restored" a Red Sea Max 250 from a friend in April.

Really enjoying both tanks so far and learning a ton! I don't have much to frag/trade yet, but would love to get in contact with more local reefers.

BruceLeeroy · Jul 14, 2020

Welcome!

Jerome Woodward · Jul 15, 2020

SamMule said:
Another newer reefer up here in Bigfork, MT. Set up our first tank (biocube 16) in Feb.

Then, bought and "restored" a Red Sea Max 250 from a friend in April.

Really enjoying both tanks so far and learning a ton! I don't have much to frag/trade yet, but would love to get in contact with more local reefers.

Welcome. I'm in Kalispell. I always have loads of frags!. Good to see some local reefers.