The Warelock’s Tank

[The Warelock]

Hi R2R. I think my first build thread post was removed/deleted?

Anyways, here’s my first aquarium. It’s a 25 gal lagoon tank. It’s been running ~6 months-ish.

I watched YouTube BRS video series to learn how to start a tank, posted on reddit to get feedback, and of course prefixed any google searches with “reef2reef” lol! Goal is/was to have a small marine reef tank that doesn’t cost me too much time, money, and maintenance. Decided to stick with soft corals and inverts.

Here’s a nice picture I took by accident when my BTA decided to hide and this was the only angle I could see it from:

Here’s what it looks like when the BTA is front and center:

Here’s what it looks like when BTA was hiding:

Here’s my tank stand. Used 8020 15 series with basic anchors and height adjustable wheels to keep everything level. The slotted aluminum is great for hiding wires, there’s only one wire visible (power strip cable) and even that could be hidden better with an extension cord. The random bucket is just being used as an ATO reservoir.

Tank is very low maintenance. I do a small weekly water change about 3-5 gallons depending on if I need to vacuum any spots. After the water change I will add a couple capfuls of nitrates and chaetogro and swap out the filter fleece I cut from a large roll. And that’s basically it for the week. No skimmer/doser/pumps/uv/scrubbers/etc. just filter fleece. If I do put my hands in the tank to add/remove/change anything, then I’ll put a small bag of carbon in the tank for a week to make sure chemical warfare isn’t an issue. I don’t have any fish. It’s still a new tank and I swapped out one large rock with a new piece so phosphate levels can still do whacky things. If they get too low I will spot feed some reefroids. Otherwise I don’t feed anything regularly. Also have trochus snails in the display and a mexican turbo snail in the rear chamber that eats any random little pieces of macroalgae that may get to the return pump filter.

Happy to answer any questions. Also happy to receive any criticism or concerns to be aware of.

 

[Tahoe61]

That's wonderful!

Is it the IM 25 gallon lagoon?
What lighting are you using?
Is the roller fleece the IM drop in?

My IM nano is on wheels as well. I love being able to move the tank around as needed.

 

[The Warelock]

That's wonderful!

Is it the IM 25 gallon lagoon?
What lighting are you using?
Is the roller fleece the IM drop in?

My IM nano is on wheels as well. I love being able to move the tank around as needed.

Yes it’s an IM 25 lagoon. Using AI Prime light. No roller fleece, I use the IM media caddy and cut squares from a large roll of filter fleece to put at the top of the caddy. Yes the wheels were good for the setup and I haven’t had to move it yet but nice to have the option!

 

[The Warelock]

Mushroom corner, it appears to be maybe splitting right now, it has gotten really flat and huge and there’s a hole opening up!

Bubble-tip anemone, it has walked around the rock island but never crossed sand (hopefully never will!)

 

[The Warelock]

As I keep some macroalgae freely floating in my tank, I had to take my mexican turbo snail out of my display area. While looking to rehome the snail, I decided to place it in my back chambers. This turned out to be an amazing placement and my turbo snail now lives in my back chambers permanently.

Even though my macroalgae is no longer dying and shedding like a golden retriever in summer, there are still bits of it that may be in my water column (I suspect the hermit crab likes to rip it up sometimes). The turbo snail keeps my back chambers clean and gets the occasional macroalgae snack, with the added bonus of keeping this debris out of my return pump filter

 

[kevgib67]

Wow, looks great, well done!

 

[twentyleagues]

Nice tank!