I Have Made The Jump To The Salty Side

[woodyofcastle]

Hello all, i have been read this forum for a year or so, and i had to move my FW tank, but as i did it, it sprung a leak, so i needed a new tank, and thought oh well time to move to the dark side...

I had to buy a new tank, i did well on the deal but i never knew how expensive moving to marine's was, once i have the general setup i know it wont be so bad then...

anyway here are my tank spec's



Woody’s marine tank information sheet

The tank is a BEETA lifespace 1000

Tank size 39” L x 22” W x 22” H

Water volume 300 litres, 68 gallon uk, 80 gallon usa.

Sump size 33” L x 15” W x 16” H (empty)
33” L x 15” W x 8” H (water level)

Empty volume 129 litres, 28.5 gallon uk, 34 gallon usa.
Water level volume 64 litres, 14 gallon uk, 17 gallon usa.

Equipment

TMC V2 600 skimmer
2x 300w heaters
3000 LH return pump
1x koralia 3
1x resun wavemaker


Contents

20kg of CaribSea reef sand (00790)
30kg of ocean rock (base rock)
35kg of live rock

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is where i am upto at this moment in time, and i plan to fill the tank tomorrow, i have ordered a RO unit but it did not arrive on time, so i will have to buy the RO from a LFS, at £2.50 for 25 litres

Anyway here are some pictures

The tank was delivered

I have painted the back of the tank black

I have started to put the base rock in

And this is where i am upto until i fill the tank tomorrow (30/01/2008)

my plan as of now is, fill the tank tomorrow and heat the water, then on friday (01/02/08) add the salt, and on tuesday buy some live rock, i just have to sit on my hands lol...

Any comments are welcome, good or bad lol.

 

[SkiFletch]

Wow, really sharp lookin tank, I like it . What are your plans for it as far as livestock goes?

 

[xxBarneyxx]

Looking good so far I really like the betta lifespace tanks.

 

[woodyofcastle]

Wow, really sharp lookin tank, I like it . What are your plans for it as far as livestock goes?

Hi,

well i would like about 30kg of live rock (£300) but i think the tank needs 40kg to work properly, its just so expensive, and i want it as a reef system, i can't think what fish i want as of yet, i am fond of a brissletooth that i have seen in my LFS, and i do like yellow tanks (but the tank is too small to keep the yellow tang) and i dont think that a brissletooth and a yellow tang would get on.

other than that i have no idea yet, any ideas?

 

[woodyofcastle]

Looking good so far I really like the betta lifespace tanks.

HI,

yes i must admit when i saw it i just had to have it, the tank is the best made tank i have ever seen 12mm bevelled glass and rounded corners, but there is always a down side, the connectors from the return pump to the tank are cheap and nasty and i had to silicone the return pipe on for my own peace of mind, also because the sump is hidden away underneath it is not made to the same standard of the main tank, other than that i am very happy with it...

 

[SkiFletch]

For the LR, remember, you can suppliment with some Base Rock if you want to save some cash and fill out the space in there

 

[woodyofcastle]

For the LR, remember, you can suppliment with some Base Rock if you want to save some cash and fill out the space in there

Hi,

i have put 30kg of base rock in, so i will just have to buy £300 worth of LR and live with it lol, its the only proper way to do a marine tank, and it will look nice when it is done.

i have filled the tank and got it upto temp, the water was fine and clear until i hit 78f and now the water is going milky, is that bleed off from the base rock...

 

[SkiFletch]

Could be a lot of things, is there salt in it yet?

 

[woodyofcastle]

Could be a lot of things, is there salt in it yet?

the salt was not in, but i have put it in now, its still cloudy, it must be down to not much filteration in at the moment

 

[SkiFletch]

Is it like so cloudy you can't see the back wall of the tank? Or just a little murky. A little murky indicates more filtration is needed in the short-term. So cloudy you can't see the back of the tank indicates a calcium carbonate and pH problem.

 

[woodyofcastle]

Is it like so cloudy you can't see the back wall of the tank? Or just a little murky. A little murky indicates more filtration is needed in the short-term. So cloudy you can't see the back of the tank indicates a calcium carbonate and pH problem.

its murky, its clearing slowly, all i have in the sump at the moment is 2 piece's of foam and a white filter pad, because i cant make my mind up of what to put in the sump, these are my thoughts of what to put in my chambers....

1, foam or bio-balls
2, live rock rubble or jst piece's of live rock
3, miricle mud and seaweed or just cheato on its own (no mud)
4, sump pump and phos remover

what do you think?

 

[woodyofcastle]

Aquarium update

i have added the water (RO) and added the salt, i have run it for 36 hours and the temps are stable and the salinity is stable at 1.024
so i have now added the live sand (caribsea live sand #00790)

i am buying 20kg of live rock on monday

 

[nanocubeking]

VEry beautiful tank. And I think a small yellow tang could thrive for a good year in that tank.

 

[woodyofcastle]

At what height should the halide be from the top of the water?
is there a set rule?
i have a 150w 20.000 halide bulb

 

[SkiFletch]

If its really easily adjustable, closer to the water surface. If adjusting is difficult, just set it highest and leave it. Make sure you don't touch the bulb with your arm when cleaning in there, they burn your skin quick