Tanks First Birthday

[EnglishReefer]

Hi

My little 3x2x2, setup roughly this time last year.

Over run with algae and aiptasia due to my dislike of regular maintence :whistling: :whistling: :whistling:


http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted2-1.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted3-2.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted1-2.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted5-1.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted6-1.jpg

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/2004erposted4-1.jpg


New year resolution? must remember to change my rowaphos :blush:

[jamie reefer]

Hi Englishreefer

Wow your tank looks really nice,how many clams how you in your set up and what types have you got?...Do the clams use alot of calcium how do dose calcium?....

cheers Jamie

[simon garratt]

i dunno. I quite like the natural (let it do its own thing) look in some systems. It obviously works, everything looks incredably healthy IMO.


Keep it up i say

:thumbsup:


Si.

[EnglishReefer]

Hi Jamie

Thanks, looks ok if you dont look too close :D

I have 9 clams - 4xDerasa 1xSquamosa 1xHippopus and 3xMaxima.

I use kalk in my topoff and a deltec calc reactor to try and keep up with them and the sps bits I have.

[Cudders]

Looks good to me mate. Doesn't look overrun and like Simon says, I'm a fan of the not pristine look as it seems more natural.

Very nice and healthy looking tank :thumbsup:

Mark.

[EnglishReefer]

Thanks for the comments guys, will post up some specs later if anybodys interested.

A new year sort out is in order, have a frag tank to sort out so I can clear my sandbed of extras - got a few frags to milliput to the rockwork and the cladellia (sp?) on the right will make way for a rescued piece of blue ridge coral I have got - a few of the many jobs :D :D :D

[mariusz621]

Beautiful corals you've got there :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

m

[NewMan]

http://www.ultimatereef.net/uploads/w00t.gifNice looking tank. Another of my favourite dimension 3x2x2 :P

Your green digita looks alot similar to mine :)

Your acros looks healthy & growing. Are you using 400W MH? Find that your acros is on the very low side of your tank.

I will be interested to see your sump & equipment setup :)

:cheers:

Nick

[EnglishReefer]

Hi, thanks for the comments :blush:

Some specs...

Main tank is 3'x2'x2' drilled in base with wier, with 24"x18"wx15"d sump.

Return pump is an ocean runner 3500, was a 6500 but it proved too noisy (pipe vibration).

Lighting consists of 1x400w halide with a 10k blv bulb (approx 9 months old due for changing) and 4x39w T5 tubes. Tubes are Arcadia actinticx3 and 1 marine white, all are a year old and need changing.

Circulation pumps are 1xtunze 2002, 1x8000lh stream with single controller and 1xmaxijet 1200.

Skimmer is a Deltec ap850 fed from sump by ehime 1250. Deltec rowaphos reactor. Teco ra240 chiller fed from sump by or3500.


NewMan

Keeping the rockwork quantity (and height) low in the tank was an aim of mine for this tank, IMO tanks look better with less rock - I am losing some of the colour from the sps as a result but I think the benifits of more open water and growing space are worth it - hopefully the coral will grow upwards and get more colourful as they get nearer the top of the tank :lol: :lol:
This is one of the most underlit tanks I have had, I've run a couple of 4x2x2 with 2x400w and some tubes and they were nice and bright, unfortunatly I cannot afford to run tanks like that now so I had to try and make the best of what I can afford :blink: :blink:

I'll see if I can do some sump pics but they will only be vga 640xwhatever, I had to borrow the digicam to do the main tank pics - as you can see I just point and click till I get something thats almost clear :lol:

Ps nice tank, hows your powderblue?

[withoutabix2002]

do u know how many gallons in total it is

cheers neil

[NewMan]

Originally posted by EnglishReefer@Jan 2 2005, 12:52
hows your powderblue?
Suffer a series of ich but finally recover and eating well. :D

Has been doing a much better job than my purple tang on cleaning the brown algaes on my glass and liverock.

Hopefully she will survive long in my 'space limited' tank :P

Your chromis looks fat. Will try my hands on chromis when I order my APF600 :rolleyes:

:cheers:

Nick

[EnglishReefer]

withoutabix2002

Not sure on total gallonage, somewhere between 70-80 I would imagine.


NewMan

"Hopefully she will survive long in my 'space limited' tank " - I wasnt having a dig about your rockwork :) This is my 6th tank, some have had loads of rock one has had glass platforms/pipework structures and rock and one has consisted of mostly big coral branches. I have found that having the least rock possible is my personal taste.

I have used the deltec 600 on another setup and found it to be a good skimmer, if you were going to have a very heavy fish load you maybe better getting a model up from it.

Chromis are great fish and add a lot of movement to the tank, once settled in they will eat almost any food you put in.

[sharktale]

:thumbsup: like the look of your tank,very natural looking.
keep it up :thumbsup:

[richturd01]

Hello EnglishReefer,

I see that you use a Teco ra240 chiller fed from sump by or3500.

Have you anything else coming from your or3500 on the vreturn besides your chiller?

Cheers,

Rich

[EnglishReefer]

Rich

The or35 just feeds the chiller and nothing else, theres nothing hooked up to the return pipe from the chiller.

I might swap the OR for a 1060 to slow the water going though it, with the small capacity of my sump the chiller cycles on and off a lot more than is good for it. I also have a couple of clip on fans that I put on which slows down the chiller cycle a bit. I'd rather have the chiller running for a bit longer and pay the extra electric rather than have to replace/repair the chiller because of excess start up wear.

HTH

[Elliott89]

looks really great

love the sailfin tang :wub:

i have the same size tank as you and i would love to add a tang how have you found having a tang in a smallish tank?

[EnglishReefer]

Hi Yellowtang89

Can be a bit of a touchy subject keeping tangs in smaller tanks :wacko:

Personally I love tangs and wouldnt have a tank without one at least, your best bets to buy a tiny fish of a type that doesnt get huge and thats not too skittish and grow it up.
You must be prepared to move it on should it get too big tho - and when you do its heatbreaking :(

If you do buy a small fish make sure its eating prepared foods and have been caught without chemicals, I personaly have had some bad luck with tangs lately - symptoms of which point to the fish being chemicaly caught. The fish came from a large and well known importer who claim not to ship in such fish.

HTH

[Elliott89]

does your sailfin swim end to end of your tank really fast or is he a slow graceful swimmer? just asking as i once had a powder blue that swam up and down like a torpedo in my 3x2x2

[marc]

Si,

Bloody hell..all the years ive known you and this is the 1st time ive seen one of your tank.



AND VERY NICE IT IS TOO :)

Great selection of clams, keep it up ;)

[EnglishReefer]

yellowtang89

The sailfin cruises around all over the tank, he only rushes if theres food involved or something makes him jump - he does like to swim fast in the current from my stream, often tries to pick the algae off of the outlet guard.

I've been pretty lucky with him, hes not agressive (unless you put another tang in) - feeds from my hand on whatever I've got and constantly picks round for algae.

Somebody I know at one of my LFS had one that was a right b*stard, the aggression seems to be down to the personallity of the individual fish and the tank mates its kept with.


Marc

Your right, must be the first time I've ever put any pictures up of anything!! (must buy a digi cam!).

Thanks for the comments :)