Mat's Reef - 4x2.5x2 Peninsular - FOR SALE

[GRK-351]

Introduction:
Hi guys, my name is Mat. Been into breeding freshwater fish for a while but always had an interest in marine tanks since I was a kid so I'm finally taking the plunge!!

System Objectives:
A nice and healthy mixed reef tank to be the focal point of the house.

System Type:
Mixed reef

Display System:

Strike up Date:
Been gathering bits and pieces since February, hopefully start cycling by the end of July/August.

Display Tank:
4x2.5x2 Starphire, single piece euro brace, bevelled and polished edges by Dave at Extreme Reef

Display Lighting:
2x GHL Mitras LED in Black

Stand:
40x40mm matt black steel. Clad with matt black poly. A-justa feet.

Hood:
Open top.

Sump:
3 chamber - intake, skimmer, FBF's - live rock - return, heater, dosing - roughly 4x2x2.

Refugium:
none

Refugium Lighting:
LED Strip lights.


Support systems:

System Water:
Tunze Reef Excel ASW, 200L per fortnight (30% total system volume)

Display Water circulation:
2x MP40WES

Return Pump:
Laguna 7500lph

Skimmer:
Bubble Magus BM-NAC220-CS

Evaporation Top Up:
Tunze Osmolator


Chemical Support:

Calcium Addition: Kamoer Dosing Pump
Randy's recipe

Alkilinity Addition:
Randy's recipe

Other Chemical Maintenance:
Randy's recipe - magnesium
Reef Octopus BR110 with Vertex bio-pellets
TLF 150 with RowaCarbon
TLF150 with Rowaphos

Current Water Chemistry: n/a
Nitrates:
Phosphates:
Alkalinity:
Calcium:
Salinity / Specific Gravity:
Magnesuim:


Images:
coming soon......

[GRK-351]

Here are some progress pics.

Need to finish the stand and quarantine tank setup over the next couple of weeks. I will upload pics as I go.

[parrdog]

Gonna be awesome, methinks .

Jamie.

[GRK-351]

Thanks Jamie, fingers crossed!! I was supposed to start with a nano-tank to learn the ins and outs of a reef tank, but one thing led to another and I ended up with this monster!!!

Here are a few renders of the planning stages and a quick shot of the quarantine tanks. Still a work in progress. I need to work on the plumbing and designing the cabinet. Will also need to chat to the tank builder about weir size and bulkheads etc.

I'd love to hear any suggestions/tips if anyone can see anything I can do better.

[parrdog]

Wow, cool .

I know what you mean about starting a bit out of your depth. Our tank is our first reef tank too, after many years of keeping freshwater.

Lovely renders, looks great .

Jamie.

[parrdog]

The only thing I'd recommend is going a bit wider and cutting your height back to 600mm.

The extra width will give you better scape options and more swimming room for your fish. The shallower depth will make your tank stronger, improve your lighting penetration, and thus cost you less money, and save you the frustration of having to reach too deep into the tank.

All this and you can keep your tank volume. My tank is 4.5x3.5x2. You can check out my journal to see what more width and less height looks like.

Your choice of course, just some food for thought .

Cheers,
Jamie.

[parrdog]

Whoops, scrap those ideas .

I just noticed you have built your stands.

Sorry mate,
Jamie.

[GRK-351]

yep, already have the stands, bought it as a package. im thinking that I will expand it down the track to a 8x2.5x2.5, or 4x5x2.5

[GRK-351]

Not much to update as yet, still ordering parts and equipment. There has been a small change to the tank, Dave from Extreme Reef has advised that I go with a 4 piece euro, he isn't confident with the single holding the pressure at the corners.

I have finally got rid of all my freshwater gear and will have some weekends off work in the next month, and the wife is getting the [censored] with a big empty stand in the living room so I'll have to pull my finger out and get this thing setup.

Will be posting a thread in the the fish discussion forum, trying to sort out a fish list. I'll put it here aswell. For some reason, I think I won't be able to get everything in comfortably!!

6-8 dispar anthia
Fire goby
decora goby
2 Ocellaris clown
1 bicolor blenny
1 royal dottyback
1 Blue tang
1 Yellow tang
1 Naso tang
Foxface rabbitfish
Moorish idol
Copperband butterfly fish
Cleaner wrasse
plus shrimp and other clean up crew

[ssbk23]

Progress is looking great

With your fish list I would leave out the naso tang, they grow very large.
Moorish idol are best left to more experienced people as they can be very tricky to feed.

[GRK-351]

Hey mate thanks for the reply. I know the naso gets big, as does the blue tang. This tank will be a 2-3 year max before I move to a much larger setup.

In saying that though, I have been speaking with the LFS who will source the fish and I will be getting the tangs at the size of a 50c coin, maybe slightly bigger. And they are more than happy to take them back and swap for smaller ones if they get too large for the tank.

I plan on going for a bonsai setup, so it should leave a decent amount of swimming space. My main concern is compatibility of all the fish, and the stocking level for the tank?

In other news, I tidied up the laundry and the quarantine setup, and I also installed my ro/di unit from psi. Will get pics up soon, I promise!!

[fishwhisperer]

Great sketch up skills!!!

[GRK-351]

Thanks mate, I use it basically everyday doing architectural visualisation so it was pretty easy to whip this up!

I am planning to use bread crate to line the bottom of the display tank, and the sump compartment holding live rock to protect the glass. Does anyone see any issues with this? I cant see how it will be any different to the expensive light diffuser stuff?

Better yet, I might put a plastic tub in the sump to hold the live rock, that way I can remove it easily to clean it out and give it a quick wash to clear detritus and algae etc....

[Dribs]

Your first reef tank looks like it will be a pearler! Looking forward to more pics of when it's set up.

[GRK-351]

Few pics as promised, abit delayed but better late than never!!

New RO/DI from PSI. Tidied up the laundry abit and installed a new cupboard for fish related goodies!!


Quarantine and hospital tank setup


Tank Location (still a few more renos to go, namely blinds and kitchen):





NEWSFLASH!!! The wife is hurrying me up to get this think started so I will have to make a move. Hoping to have it we by end of September, fingers crossed!!

[GRK-351]

Also, any suggestion on which way to orientate my sump and what to have in which compartment? I will be running intake, skimmer and fbf's in one, live rock in another, heaters and return in another. Not sure which order to run them in to maximise efficiency with the compartment sizes I have.

[priscacara]

Your making good progress, its going to look awesome in that spot.

[GRK-351]

Thanks mate, still a very long way to go. Will hopefully get abit more work done on the stand and LED lighting for the sump and QT tanks this week.

Also, having second throught going 2.5 foot high, I am considering going 2 feet high. Here are some pics for reference:



edit: have decided to go 2 foot high so changing these pics to thumbnails due to the massive width

[King Venom]

Nice.

[lexbomb]

I would go 2ft you will get mighty sick of wet armpits mighty quick!

[Chow]

Hey Mat, looking good. I see your getting a new tank made, what happened to the original?? Also where are you getting the new one made?

[GRK-351]

Hey Caio, still got the old tank. Got a small chip on the top near the centre brace when I was moving it, but im going all out with everything else i thought i may aswell get a new tank all in starphire. Getting dave from extreme reef to build it if i ever make up my mind!!!!

[Chow]

Hey Caio, still got the old tank. Got a small chip on the top near the centre brace when I was moving it, but im going all out with everything else i thought i may aswell get a new tank all in starphire. Getting dave from extreme reef to build it if i ever make up my mind!!!!

Awesome, I'm planning a new tank and am getting Dave to build it too. Looking forward to your build.

[GRK-351]

So I have decided to go with a 2 foot height. The main reasons were proportions and a sexy one piece euro!!!

Hopefully have the tank in about 2-3 weeks (nice bday present), just in time to finalise everything else and start cycling when the GHL LED's turn up.

[GRK-351]

Been a while between updates, so just a quick one to say tank is ordered with Dave at Extreme Reef and should be on the way in 2-3 weeks, just in time for the GHL Mitras!! Received my a-justa feet for the stand, should be installed this weekend hopefully. Also got my LED's and drivers for the sump and QT lighting, may set these up this weekend.

Edited a few things in my original post. Decided to go with Tunze ASW instead of NSW, just a whole lot easier in an apartment, also changed to a Laguna 7500lph return pump over the aquabee.

Just took delivery of abit more gear, big thanks to Ben at AOA and Paul at Reef Direct!!

Now I need to finalise the QT tanks, and start setting up the sump, stand, and plumbing......

[John.c]

Looks great I cant wait

[siddr20]

Please check your pm

Cant wait to see the progress on your tank!! Any more updates?

[GRK-351]

Hey Sidd, pm replied mate.

Not many updates so far. I have fitted legs to the stand and put foam under the sump. Might clean the sump out and start putting some equipment in and start plumbing and setting up shelves/cabling etc.

Dave has had a small delay with the splashback guys doing the black glass so hopefully have the tank in 2-3 weeks, along with the r/o top up tank.

Very slowly getting closer.......

[axela]

I love the setup mate, you've prepared very well! - keep it up man!

[imf]

A really nicely planned and thought out setup.

As a matter of interest, are you running the skimmer in the sump that you were testing it in?