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Thread: 180 gallon reef tank update 3-28-15

  1. #1
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    180 gallon reef tank update 3-28-15

    Hey all!
    This is my most recent update video shot with an iPhone 6+ using an old polarized lenses from sunglasses I can't wear anymore.
    Unfortunately my MH's tend to wash out colors towards the top of tank.
    for more specific details on my tank setup, etc follow my build out "saga" lol at:
    http://www.o-r-c-a.org/forum/showthread.php?t=19344

    Enjoy:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Drkie8sjA4Y
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

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    ORCA Forum Member SaltWater's Avatar
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    Hey acronuts, Congratz the tank is starting to look amazing!!!

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    good, very good. In a few more days those little frags will grow and they will look even better.
    Good Luck,
    Cesar Campo
    ORCA Web Admin 2009-2017

    My 210g Journal

  4. #4
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    thx saltwater!
    its taken a lot of effort but we are on our way!!
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  5. #5
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ccampo View Post
    good, very good. In a few more days those little frags will grow and they will look even better.
    thx ccampo!
    I am still in the stage of figuring out how much dosing I need to provide. So still dialing it in!
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

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    Recently i have settled at about 90-100Ml, and 6 ml MAG in my mixed reef 100 system i take about at length not too long ago. heavly stocked. low nutrient. its also 100% Kalk top off.

    The stability of the Ph is great at 7.9-8.0 and i run the ML up n down a bit +/- 2 ML each week now. but I'm holding about 465 CA and 11.2 DKH ATM. I'm letting that fall off slowly as its higher than i want. i had a real hard time getting over like 400/9.0 at first. i kept over shooting the daily needs and it was precipitating a bit which was only evident by the non increase in ca/alk Numbers when i increased the amounts i had one period at almost 200 Ml/day and it was just wasting onto the walls of the sump and on pumps to some degree and the number were actually staying low. once i dialed back they increased over a few weeks.
    Four individual systems Right now.
    30gal red sea 130d lps/softies/anemone tank, kalk ato, reef bright led strip.
    40 softies set up.
    550 total gallon marineland 300 DD main system 18 months old now and stabilized. T5 VHO lights/ BLUE led strip, Fully custom built LIFE REEF sump and FUGE, AWESOME 60" tall skimmer, and 1000+ gallon rated custom Ca reactor, 3 50 gallon attached SPS frag systems lite with a combination of HM and LED and T5 fixtures.
    A 200 gallon MARS quarintine with UV system/ medication for new arrivals.

    Still lots to learn about the hobby but I have amassed a great collection of real beauties. I have broken past the stage of keeping things alive and now there actually growing out. Which is a big hurdle for many beginners I must admit. Good information and advise is hard to get sometimes and the club has done wonders with respect to quality advise and help in the hobby.

    THANKS Orlando Reef Educators Organization!!!!

  7. #7
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim28fl View Post
    Recently i have settled at about 90-100Ml, and 6 ml MAG in my mixed reef 100 system i take about at length not too long ago. heavly stocked. low nutrient. its also 100% Kalk top off.

    The stability of the Ph is great at 7.9-8.0 and i run the ML up n down a bit +/- 2 ML each week now. but I'm holding about 465 CA and 11.2 DKH ATM. I'm letting that fall off slowly as its higher than i want. i had a real hard time getting over like 400/9.0 at first. i kept over shooting the daily needs and it was precipitating a bit which was only evident by the non increase in ca/alk Numbers when i increased the amounts i had one period at almost 200 Ml/day and it was just wasting onto the walls of the sump and on pumps to some degree and the number were actually staying low. once i dialed back they increased over a few weeks.
    I can see that the sweet spot does not come easy. Can i ask why the need for alk to be 11/12 dkh? I ask because like in tanks that run zeovit the alk is best at about 7 dkh.
    Just curious.
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  8. #8
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    The reason for high ALK n CA is I like/ wanna follow RED SEA recommendations for now. There literature directed me to a higher ALK CA lvl for accelerated growth. I may drop it to get color on SPS. ATM things look good, grow good. neither would i say is GREAT. i have found a stable spot finally "where i wanted it" so I'm dropping off the amounts bit by bit a ML or two each week, till i see steady decline week to week.
    I would; say I am heavy stocked now and still low nutrient. I do suspect SPS will do better at lower values. I'm just not experienced enough to choose a direction yet. ill stay with what RED SEA suggests till i am sure i like something different. and there is a lot of variables. Right now my tight closed up house and continuous water changes are additional factors i have to weight out. i stopped the auto water changes for a month to let nutrients creep up and really only saw regression. water never got "more dirty", and the trace's got out of whack/ depleted i think. I may try leaving off the skimmer for a few hours every day instead.
    Four individual systems Right now.
    30gal red sea 130d lps/softies/anemone tank, kalk ato, reef bright led strip.
    40 softies set up.
    550 total gallon marineland 300 DD main system 18 months old now and stabilized. T5 VHO lights/ BLUE led strip, Fully custom built LIFE REEF sump and FUGE, AWESOME 60" tall skimmer, and 1000+ gallon rated custom Ca reactor, 3 50 gallon attached SPS frag systems lite with a combination of HM and LED and T5 fixtures.
    A 200 gallon MARS quarintine with UV system/ medication for new arrivals.

    Still lots to learn about the hobby but I have amassed a great collection of real beauties. I have broken past the stage of keeping things alive and now there actually growing out. Which is a big hurdle for many beginners I must admit. Good information and advise is hard to get sometimes and the club has done wonders with respect to quality advise and help in the hobby.

    THANKS Orlando Reef Educators Organization!!!!

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by ACRONUTS View Post
    I can see that the sweet spot does not come easy. Can i ask why the need for alk to be 11/12 dkh? I ask because like in tanks that run zeovit the alk is best at about 7 dkh.
    Just curious.
    When you run ULNS (zeovit) your acros cannot handle the high alk and the tips burn.

  10. #10
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Update 5-4-2015
    Things are going super well in the tank. My parameters are staying really stable.
    The doser works really really well!
    I am so far dosing 30ml a day of ALK to maintain a level of 8.4 - Red Sea test kit
    Mag doses 35ml 3 days a week to maintain a level of 1400 - Red Sea test kit
    Calcium 45mg a day to maintain a level of 425-450 - Red Sea test kit

    Use kalk to top off evaporated water once a week.

    I purchased a second hand Digital Aquatics controller from a fellow reefer who bought a Neptune and wanted a little of his investment back. My aqua controller Jr. while working just fine the LCD display light was barely seeable in daytime and at night was not viewable at all. This light went out almost 1 year after I purchased it. Never really had help from the rep and I just said ya know they just lost another customer.

    Anyhow pics will follow soon. Just transferred and installed the PC4's, probes, and I do have to say the setup is way better than the aqua controller ever was!

    Known issues:
    Some acros are pale in color.

    Not sure if it's a water parameter issue or lighting one. Checked mh bulbs, they need to be replaced so ordered three new ones and will be here tomorrow.
    I will slowly acclimate my corals by starting with 3 hours and increase the source every week by adding an additional hour per week till I get the 5 hours per day of intense 250 watts radiums.

    If I see that the coloring is improving then I won't do anything more. If it is not improving then I am going to take off the bio pellets. Will research how to successfully take these guys off a system.
    If you all have suggestions please feel free to chime in!

    Now for the fun part! New additions!!!

    Strawberry shortcake
    Got another because the one I do have while doing really well seems to be a look alike, lol!


    Unknown but seems to be some kind of lower light acro. The mother colony was about a year old in lfs growout tank and it has a blue/purple body. The growth is definitely different from garf bonsai.


    Frag off of a Golden basket millie. This pic does not do it justice and it has not acclimated to my tank yet. But under actinic it coloring is gorgeous! Can't wait to see its growth!



    Beautiful acro mariculture piece. Correlates are really light green with blue tips


    This acro will be hard to imagine and the pic is bad and it is not acclimated to my tank. a lower light acro, body base is green tips are mauve, the polyps are pinky/red and the outmost coralite area is white.


    After dipping this maricultured colony is NOT a happy camper. Lets hope for the best and see what happens once it starts cooking!


    Next week I get a frag pack from BSA corals. Will keep you all posted!
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by ACRONUTS View Post
    Update 5-4-2015
    Things are going super well in the tank. My parameters are staying really stable.

    Use kalk to top off evaporated water once a week.
    How much is your salinity swinging if you are only topping off once a week?

  12. #12
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    eg8r210 sorry I was not clear enough. Kalk is only dosed once a week. The rest of the days of the week the evaporated water is replaced by dosing RO water with an ATO that is connected to a 10 gallon tank.
    My salinity is very stable. I measure it with a fractometer and it consistently measures 1.023 or 35ppm.
    I do however with the addition of the DA reef keeper elite plan on adding a salinity probe to monitor changes if any throughout the week.
    Thanks for noticing my error!
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  13. #13
    ORCA Forum Member Chip's Avatar
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    Great pictures. Thanks for the update. I keep my tanks between 1.025 - 1.026.

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    Can't wait to see all the acros grow.

  15. #15
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Chip View Post
    Great pictures. Thanks for the update. I keep my tanks between 1.025 - 1.026.
    Chip do you have a lot of Red Sea animals? The typically have a higher salinity. But I know consistency is key.
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  16. #16
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by eg8r210 View Post
    Can't wait to see all the acros grow.

    I know I know!!! I am seeing lots of encrusting which is great to see and shows me they are liking where they are at and I am meeting their needs for growth.
    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  17. #17
    ORCA Forum Member Chip's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ACRONUTS View Post
    Chip do you have a lot of Red Sea animals? The typically have a higher salinity. But I know consistency is key.
    No, I have been told to keep my reef salinity between 1.025 - 1.026. I kept a salinity of 1.023 for fish only tanks.

  18. #18
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    Well update 5-17-2015

    Installed the DA controller and setup was fairly easy. The PC4's are labelled and I need to secure wires so that I have a neat setup.Will post those pics as soon as I finished that part of the project.

    He is a pick of the controller showing current conditions:


    A funny thing happened the other nite! I happened to wake up in the middle of the nite around 3am to a beeping sound. Immediately I knew it was coming from the reef tank. I got up out of bed and opened the cabinet door to find the dosser at work letting me know at 3am that I was out of AlK and needed to add more lol!! Well needless to say I turned the alarm off and now I monitor the jugs and and so far it takes two weeks to go thru the jugs. I may still opt to turn the alarm back on or I may have DA controller monitor it but I will need to add another PC4. Currently researching stuff about the new DA device called "Archon."

    Anyhow the halides came in I went ahead and labeled them and started the process of acclimating the tank corals and fish to the new radiums. Started with 3 hours and am in the 2nd week and added an additional hour this week to 4. I plan on staying at around 5 hours total for metal halide photo period. I may opt for 6 hours but depends On how the corals are colored. In my past experience 4 hours was just enough and I had a colorful tank. But with all the new acro's I have acquired I am excited to "cook" them as sps aholics say lol!

    As I had stated in the last update I had ordered some acro's from BSA corals. I came across this guy thru Facebook and those that have ordered from him are very satisfied customers.The corals came in and were packed very well.




    After acclimating and dipping they were placed in tank. i will go ahead a dip again in 5 days. First dip revealed nothing the frags were very clean. But will do it again.







    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  19. #19
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    More from the coral shipment
















    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

  20. #20
    ORCA Forum Member ACRONUTS's Avatar
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    A few more lol!






    180g mostly sps, 3 250 wt radiums w lumenmax reflectors, 9 superbrights actinics, 2 MP 40ES Vortex, Reef Octopus SRO 3000, Bubble blaster 10,000 all controlled by an ACJR

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