180 Gallon Mixed Reef Living Room Build

[TheWB]

I’m running a submerged screen as well in the overflow of my AIO tank, under an InTank filter floss holder, lit by the IM Cheatomax light. After 3 weeks it’s starting to develop some algae. This can work but I’m not ready to call mine successful yet. I’m going to make some adjustments.

 

[backdraft_reefer]

My concern for you is that often it’s hair algae growing on those screens and if that would give it a betyet chance to spread to your display from inside the fuge? Often it’s macro algae that’s submerged.

I definitely get what you are saying and have considered it. I will be watching to see how this goes the next few weeks and what changes both positive and negative it may have. So far, I have started seeing a little bit of algae growth in the screens already And the PH has risen up to 8.3-8.2.

 

[backdraft_reefer]

I’m running a submerged screen as well in the overflow of my AIO tank, under an InTank filter floss holder, lit by the IM Cheatomax light. After 3 weeks it’s starting to develop some algae. This can work but I’m not ready to call mine successful yet. I’m going to make some adjustments.

Starting to see a little algae attaching to the mesh screen tonight. Going to monitor and see how it takes the next few weeks. As of right now, the biggest difference I am seeing is the PH is been stable between 8.3-8.2. Here are some pics:

 

[TheWB]

Starting to see a little algae attaching to the mesh screen tonight. Going to monitor and see how it takes the next few weeks. As of right now, the biggest difference I am seeing is the PH is been stable between 8.3-8.2. Here are some pics:

Yours is taking off better than mine is. This is mine after 3 weeks. It’s coming but slowly. I also might need to rough up the surface if the mesh more than I did originally.

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Update coming tonight (finally)! Will post some updated pics of the tank as well as an overview of the refugium (which is working great).

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Apologies for the long time between updates! Will try to do better!

The tank is doing great! No real problems or issues to that are pressing. I have added some new coral. Mainly some acro and month frags that I have picked up at my LFS. The biggest news is the update with the refugium. Overall, the fuge has been a great addition to the filtration. It has been growing algae steadily everyday. The fuge light runs for 12 hours a day starting at 5am and shutting off at 5pm. My PH stays stable between 8.0 and 8.2. The only drawbacks is the amount I have to clean the fuge out and remove some of the algae. Every three days I take out a hand full of algae that has grown. I started doing this so that not so much algae grows and kills the algae below it.
Hope everyone still enjoys this build! It has really settled in and hit its stride. Simple bi-weekly water changes and regular maintenance is keeping everything going smooth. Here is some eye candy!!!

 

[backdraft_reefer]

 

[backdraft_reefer]

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Did some quick fragging last night after the water change

 

[backdraft_reefer]

It’s been a hot minute since an update! Got a lot to go over and some events to share that are coming up.

First and foremost, the tank is doing great! Almost all the corals are looking well and getting good growth in my acros. I’ve been getting all major maintenance doing including cleaning the powerheads, UV sterilizer (which I will cover in a little more depth), and clearing out the back overflow box. In the past few months I have had a few more additions of fish and a couple of frags to the tank. 4 torpedo gobies were added to help the single one and they all started schooling immediately. I also got a few small frags of acros through trades that are doing well. The only real issue that I am going against is a small outbreak of aptasia again. They are no where near plague portions, but I am actively working to keep them in check and in low numbers. I think some peppermint shrimp will be on my order list in the near future. Until then, I just use Tunze Coral Gum and super glue to smother them. I have found this method works the best for me.

I recently left the tank for 3 straight weeks from January to February. I am very interested into diving and marine conservation. I was very lucky that I got to spend 3 weeks in Belize diving with a non-profit organization called Reef Conservation International. Long story short, it was amazing!!! Got plenty of dives in and killed many invasive lion fish in one of the marine protected areas. For anyone interested, I will be happy to answer any questions via messaging. while I was gone, a local company called Aquatic Creations visited my tank once a week to complete a water change and do weekly testing. This company was great and I highly recommend them for anyone in the Charleston area that needs aquarium service.

Like I said above, the tank is doing well and I have been doing some more in depth maintenance. This maintenance included replacing the UV bulb and cleaning the quartz sleeve. Luckily, I had an extra sleeve that was sent to me after the original broke. An additional one was also sent to me by the company. When I pulled the bulb out, I was shocked to see how much the quartz sleeve had become caked in calcium deposit. It was so thick, I’m pretty sure that no light was actually going through. I place a new sleeve in the sterilizer and cleaned the old one to swap out in about 6 months. I also placed a new 25 watt bulb that I will replace annually. If you have a UV and have not cleaned it in a while, I highly recommend placing it high on your priority list!

Lastly, this weekend is Reef Dreams in Charleston, SC. I have been holding off buying anything new to save some $$$ strictly for this event! Hope to see you guys there!

Also, here are some additional pics of the tank and the trip, enjoy!

 

[backdraft_reefer]

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Update from the last few weeks:

First and foremost, Reef Dreams was great!!! Picked up some really great coral and won some frag packs in a few raffles. The event was well done and there was a good amount of corals this year. So far, I have only placed about half of the corals in the tank, the rest are still in my frag tank (update coming on that soon). Highlights of the show were a new Golden Torch, some new acro frags (already forgot the names), a photosynthetic Gorgonian, multiple flower anemones, and some good looking zooanthids. Also picked up some good looking LPS that I am still deciding where to place.

The tank is looking good overall. Still dealing with the usual aptasia pop-ups here and there, but I have definitely got it under control. All corals are happy except for a few acro frags that are dull. I think I may need to add some for fish to up the nutrients. The refugium is working well also. Every week I pull one or two giant handfuls of algae out. PH pretty much stays between 8.1 and 8.3.

The only equipment issue I had was this past week. My temp probe finally bit the dust. Temp reading were jumping all over the place from 72 degrees all the was to 85 degrees. Luckily I found one online and it was here in only a days. It looks like the tank didn’t even notice it. Lastly, I cleaned the top skimmer cup today. I have found I can go about 3-4 months without doing it because of the automatic neck cleaner from Avast Marine. Definitely highly recommend it!!! Hope everyone is doing well and staying safe!

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Happy 4th of July weekend! Just doing another update that is well over due. Overall, tank is doing well. Still dealing with popup aptasia here and there. My game plan is to try F Aptasia to see if that will knock back and kill more of them. Right now, I am still using the Tunze Coral Gum and super glue method to smother them. However about half seem to always find a small opening to pop back out with in a week or so.

The past few days I have tried to do some deep cleaning of various equipment. First being the quartz sleeve of the UV Sterilizer. I have decided that cleaning it every 6 months will be my goal to keep it running clean. Bulb replacement will be once a year. Additionally, I removed the Nyos skimmer for a deep clean. I place it into a small cooler with citric acid and ran it for 24 hours. I then broke all pieces down and gave a good final scrubbing. It seems to be running far more efficient after reassembly. During the acid bath, I decided to place both Finnex Heaters in to be cleaned also. After almost 2 years of running, both heater are in good condition. I also try to clean them both every 6 months to keep any growth and build up off them.

Right now, my attention is being shifted to a new custom frag tank that I ordered from CDA a few months ago. In order to light the new tank, I will be using the old Kessil A360‘s and replacing them with the new Kessil A500x over the 180. After seeing the reviews and specs about them, I feel like 3 would be great coverage and give a sleeker look to the overall system. I also think it would reduce the amount of heat that transfers to the tank during the day from the T5’s. During the summertime in Charleston, my tank has been reaching temps of 81+ degrees. I would like to try to keep that number under 80 if possible.

If anyone has been able to get their hands on the A500x, let me know what you think. As of right now, I pretty much have my heart set on them.

Happy 4th and Happy Reefing!

 

[mattgsa]

I'm loving all the new corals, your tank is looking amazing. I too love diving, it looks like you had an amazing trip.

 

[backdraft_reefer]

I'm loving all the new corals, your tank is looking amazing. I too love diving, it looks like you had an amazing trip.

Thank you! Diving has definitely become my passion outside of work. Hopefully this coming year will have more trips and dives around the world!

 

[backdraft_reefer]

Did a much needed water change after working a ton of OT the past few weeks! A big update coming soon, going to cover my experience with F Aptasia, the new frag tank build, and some new equipment upgrades coming for the 180 (see picture below for the hint)

 

[backdraft_reefer]

They are up and running! Placed all three Kessil A500X on the tank a few days ago. I did have one complete screw up though. I though I had ordered 2 of the K-Link cables, but instead ended up ordering 2 K-link extension cables. If you end up ordering these, make sure you order the correct one. I ended up finding that Amazon now carries Kessil stuff and the link cables got here in two days. Once everything came in, I took the only lighting system down. There is nothing wrong with it, but I need lights for the frag tank build. So instead of buying new ones strictly for it, I decided to upgrade the 180 and place the old A350We (which are still running strong almost 6 years later) on the frag tank when it comes in.

As many of you can tell, I am a huge Kessil fan! And these lights do not disappoint! The spread and spectrum of these are great! For mounting, I took my old 90 degree brackets and attached them to the wall. The brackets are just large enough to fit one power cable and two K-Link cables through it. Right now, the mounting height is about 22 inches off the water and I decided to use the 55 degree attachment on the bottom. I decided to use just the standard mounts, and not the extensions on the brackets. This is because my scape keeps the majority of my corals in the back third of my tank. I also mounted the 90 degree brackets closer to each other and have the two end ones angled out. I figured it would be easier to adjust the spread of lights rather than be in a more fixed position, or have to turn them inward if the spread could not overlap.

One of the best features of this light is the reduction in cords I have to deal with. With the old fixture, I had 6 power cords, 4 power bricks, 4 link cables, and one moonlight set from the Apex. With this new set up, I only have 3 power cords, 3 power bricks, and 3 link cables. The back of my stand no long looks like a giant spider web! I used a metal basket I got off Amazon an mounted it to the back of the stand using old magnets. The excess cable length went in there. It was far easier than trying to string them up into some fancy loops and hook them somewhere. The power brick I decided to mount under the stand. These are much larger than the A350 bricks, but did come with predrilled holes which made mounting much easier!

As for control goes, I decided to get the X Spectral Controller and mount it to my controller board. Unfortunately, the A500’s can’t be controlled by the Apex. But I will say that the X controller has much better features than its previous version. There is no additional power cord for this controller. The K-Link cable powers it, which means one less cord to deal with. Additionally, it’s very easy to set up and navigate. I went with the controller over the WiFi dongle for simple ease of use. If I need to change or alter the lights, not having to log into an app seems far easier to me.

Lastly is the time and intensity that I am running these. I unfortunately did not take any Par measurements before switching the lights, so everything is going off my eyes and how the corals react. I tried to stick with the same light and intensity level my old light system was. Lights turn on at 8:30am and ramp up to 100% intensity with 30% white at 12. From 12-4pm they stay on that same spectrum and intensity. After 4, they begin to ramp down until shut off at 10pm. For the spectrum, I based mine off of BRS video and tweaked it to lessen the red during the peak hours. Since these have only been running for four days, I still do not have a solid review in growth or coloration. I will say though that these lights produce great shimmer and the corals look fantastic under them. One extra benefit for me especially is the reduced heat on the tank. Being in South Carolin, the extreme heat of summer can easily transfer to my tank. While running the T5’s, my tank would go over 81 degrees almost everyday. I would have to run my A/C longer and much cooler to help cool the tank down. Since placing these new lights on, the tank has yet to go above 79.5 degrees. This will definitely same me some money in the long run by not running my A/C all day long!

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment or reach out if anyone has any questions. More updates and a new thread on the up and coming frag tank should start soon! Happy Reefing!

 

[Mjl714]

As a long time Kessil user, I’ll be interested in your thoughts on your switch from 360we’s to A500’s.

Tank is looking fantastic, really nice work and documentation of your processes.

 

[backdraft_reefer]

As a long time Kessil user, I’ll be interested in your thoughts on your switch from 360we’s to A500’s.

Tank is looking fantastic, really nice work and documentation of your processes.

Thanks! I will definitely post updates with how they do

 

[Mark]

Nice to see someone else using the A500's. I switched to them from AI Hydras. Mine are 31" above water line with the narrow reflectors, and I had to reduce the intensity to 60% to match the PAR of my old lights. These suckers are intense!