Brian916
Community Member
Background
This iteration of my reef tank with some of the livestock and liverock started in ~2012. The basic materials have move three houses, 4 tanks and two semi-catastrophic crashes (First complete tear down for total pick/brown mushroom invasion and a second crash related to BCP Fenbendazole medication failure). The current iteration was setup January 2024 as part of a house move. The tank moved with me, but I dramatically cut back my LPS, rehomed all soft corals and a few branching SPS.
This current build is focused on a lower effort "pretty" tank (as my wife would put it) that guests will enjoy and I can spend less effort to maintain. The current tank goal is to gradually grow out my BTAs to the point where they take over the LPS real estate and let the tank become a BTA clown focused tank with some nice areas of encrusted SPS and maybe a few other hightlights on the edges.
Basic Equipment
Red Sea Reefer 200 w/ OE understand glass sump - Bare bottom
Neptune APEX EL w/ 2 power banks and PM1 and FMM modules
pH, temp, ORP probes
Neptune COR20 Return
Neptune DOS (2 pair)
Neptune ATO w/ LLS
RedSea RSK 300 Skimmer
IM Desktop Reactor w/ either tropic Marin NP Pellets or BRS BioPellets
IceCap Gyre 2000 (2) with Hydros WE for sync control
Vortech MP10 on Icecap battery backup
ReefOctopus OctoPulse4 (runs 1 hour per day to stir up the rock areas and clean the bottom)
Currently running 1 filters sock and 1 media cup with GAC (which I rarely change the GAC but rely on biologically activated recharge)
Dosing:
All for reef powder w/ DOS - Mixed in 1 gallon batches (may decide to implement a partial daily Kalk dose because I feel like the Coraline algae and pH elevation is more effective)
Biopellets (as above)
Auto Water Change w/ DOS (2000 ml / day)
H2O2 w/ DOS (20 ml per day for water clarity)
Other things I have but I am not currently using:
IceCap Turf Scrubber - It works, but it is bulky taking too much space in the stand and generates too much heat
Avast Marine Kalk Stirrer - Great, but takes up too much space and really needs drip containment because kalk leaks and spills are corrosive/messy. I may end up cutting this down and make a mini version a bit more usable for augmenting my All for Reef
Klir Auto Filter - Great when it works, but the level measurement point for the optical sensor is finicky. I found that mine would stick open or closed. In either case it didn't do the job and the roll was a total pain to replace
This iteration of my reef tank with some of the livestock and liverock started in ~2012. The basic materials have move three houses, 4 tanks and two semi-catastrophic crashes (First complete tear down for total pick/brown mushroom invasion and a second crash related to BCP Fenbendazole medication failure). The current iteration was setup January 2024 as part of a house move. The tank moved with me, but I dramatically cut back my LPS, rehomed all soft corals and a few branching SPS.
This current build is focused on a lower effort "pretty" tank (as my wife would put it) that guests will enjoy and I can spend less effort to maintain. The current tank goal is to gradually grow out my BTAs to the point where they take over the LPS real estate and let the tank become a BTA clown focused tank with some nice areas of encrusted SPS and maybe a few other hightlights on the edges.
Basic Equipment
Red Sea Reefer 200 w/ OE understand glass sump - Bare bottom
Neptune APEX EL w/ 2 power banks and PM1 and FMM modules
pH, temp, ORP probes
Neptune COR20 Return
Neptune DOS (2 pair)
Neptune ATO w/ LLS
RedSea RSK 300 Skimmer
IM Desktop Reactor w/ either tropic Marin NP Pellets or BRS BioPellets
IceCap Gyre 2000 (2) with Hydros WE for sync control
Vortech MP10 on Icecap battery backup
ReefOctopus OctoPulse4 (runs 1 hour per day to stir up the rock areas and clean the bottom)
Currently running 1 filters sock and 1 media cup with GAC (which I rarely change the GAC but rely on biologically activated recharge)
Dosing:
All for reef powder w/ DOS - Mixed in 1 gallon batches (may decide to implement a partial daily Kalk dose because I feel like the Coraline algae and pH elevation is more effective)
Biopellets (as above)
Auto Water Change w/ DOS (2000 ml / day)
H2O2 w/ DOS (20 ml per day for water clarity)
Other things I have but I am not currently using:
IceCap Turf Scrubber - It works, but it is bulky taking too much space in the stand and generates too much heat
Avast Marine Kalk Stirrer - Great, but takes up too much space and really needs drip containment because kalk leaks and spills are corrosive/messy. I may end up cutting this down and make a mini version a bit more usable for augmenting my All for Reef
Klir Auto Filter - Great when it works, but the level measurement point for the optical sensor is finicky. I found that mine would stick open or closed. In either case it didn't do the job and the roll was a total pain to replace
