NickFs Reefer 350

NickF

Well-Known Member
Water is clearing & the heater is bringing the temp up:

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There’s 30 kg of sand in, I’ve got another 10kg bag unopened but I might leave it as is, I just need to level it out from where I added the water.
Hopefully tomorrow I’ll add the Denitrol and add a couple off fish :)
 

NickF

Well-Known Member
Cheers Pat, I’ve just set up my Maxspect Gyre & that’s kicked up another sandstorm :mad:, I didn’t have the nozzles pointing in the right direction.
Just got it on constant speed at the mo, 40%. It’s extremely quiet, I’ll try out the other settings when the tank clears I can see what it’s doing.

I’ve put the ATO in and that looks like it’s working ok, the water level had dropped about an inch overnight in the return chamber and it’s just over the 6 inch mark now and holding steady so hopefully I won’t have to mess around with that.
 

NickF

Well-Known Member
Got my first fish yesterday. I poured 2 bottles of Denitrol in the tank then added the fish a couple of hours later.

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I was planning on getting a couple of black and white clowns but I saw this mated pair together in another tank and they were a lot bigger then the black and whites and look really healthy.

The skimmer will stay off for 2 weeks and no water changes for 6 weeks while the bacteria develops but I can see it on the rock work already after 24 hours.

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I can add another fish after 14 days & might add a couple of coral to see how they react to the lights but I’m planning on taking it slow while the tank goes through it’s ugly phase.

Ordered some pods today and I’ll be trying to build the population up while the tanks still almost empty.

Still need to install the UV steriliser, had to get a reducer for the pump. I’m going to use the one I had in the 130, Eheim compact 600.

I also need to work out what I’m going to do with all the wires, going to be difficult to make it look neat. I’m thinking of getting a cabinet next to the tank to hide everything but a couple of the leads are pretty short.
 

NickF

Well-Known Member
Got my UV set up, I’ve stuck it to the back with the heavy duty Velcro I got and it’s on there solid. I’ve started running the skimmer today, I’ve got both valves fully open but it’s still overflowing at the mo. It was sitting too low down in the sump, I ordered a stand so I can raise it up which was supposed to arrive today but I got an email to say it will be delivered on Monday (when I’m in work)

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I lost one of my clowns a few days ago, he’d jumped out and I found him the next morning, I was gutted. Didn’t think clowns were known for jumping. I’ve got the Red Sea net cover but it’s a bit late now for that fella. It was a bit more fiddly to make up than I was expecting, I thought most of the rods would have been the right size. Took quite a while to put it together but at least now I’m not going to lose any fish that try to jump.

I’ve Sacked off the “one drip per second” on the ATO, it had stopped working so I opened the valve so it’s more of a constant trickle. I don’t think this should be a problem, it’s still going to shut off when it gets to the right level.

Bought a strip of LEDs for inside the cabinet so I can see what’s going on when it’s dark. They’ve got a motion sensor on them so they’re only on when the door is open and a USB connector to recharge them.
 

Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
Sorry to hear about the Clown, but they do jump. I once had both of my pair jump on the same night. Came down in the morning to find them both on the floor.
 
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NickF

Well-Known Member
I got a replacement Clown, smaller than the one I had so there were no problems at all when I added it. He did his little submission dance for a while and now they are getting on great.
I’ve added a Wheeler’s Goby and pistol shrimp pair, they’re a blast to watch. When I first added them they went straight for the Goby cave I’d put near the front of the tank. Great, I thought. Couple of day later after they’d dug that out they went on the move, they’ve dug a few homes now with little channels to move from one to the next.
I’ve also added 3 Lyretail Anthias. I was a bit concerned that I didn’t have enough fish when I originally added the Denitrol so I added the Anthias and re-dosed the tank with Denitrol.
Got a couple of corals so I could check out the light settings and the flow from the Gyre, they are doing well so far.
I’ve raised the skimmer and I’m very impressed with it now I’ve got it dialled in, it’s working great and is very quiet.
Still need to work out the Gyre, I’ve got it set on 10% most of the time, when I raise it to 20% it ends up moving too much sand around.

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I’m planning on doing my first water change next week, I’m going to drain the sump out so I can give it a clean and change 70l water.

I also need to do something with these :confused:

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NickF

Well-Known Member
I think I’ve got my skimmer working ok, I have the bubbles breaking just at the top of the neck:

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This is 4 days worth of gunk and it’s very stinky. Should I lower the bubbles or does that look ok? I’m not used to these skimmers, it’s a lot different then the one I had in the C130,

Did my first water change yesterday, turned everything off and drained the sump. There was lots of sand in the bottom, think it was a combination of the goby stirring it up in the DT and me not noticing the socks had got blocked.

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A quick clean later:

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Not sure if I’ll do that once a fortnight, I’ll probably just change 50 litres and drain it out every couple of months. I want to have a go at the Triton method when the tank is a bit more established, minimal water changes :).

I’m going to start dosing NOPOX to keep my nitrates and phosphate in check. The Red Sea website recommends phosphates of between 0.08 to 0.12 in a mixed tank, seems high to me. I used to try and keep mine under 0.03 in my old tank. Do you think I should be ok just using the NOPOX or should I use something else as well for the phosphates?
 

SPR

Well-Known Member
I would keep your phosphate locked down at around 0.03ppm otherwise you risk algae outbreaks and I know this from when I first used NoPox on its own. The phosphate level Red Sea recommends is about the only thing I now ignore from my own experience.

Try NoPox for a while but just keep an eye on the phosphate level and if NoPox can’t keep it under control then use something like Rhowaphos in a reactor. This is amongst the best things I ever did with my system.

And it’s fine to use GFO with NoPox despite what they say if you need to.

On the NYOS you really want the black air screw fully open for best performance (looks like it’s screwed down a bit from the picture) and you set the bubble height depending on wether you want wet or dry skimming and it looks at the moment like your on a more dry skim. If you want it wetter just close the main valve a bit more and that will bring the bubbles slightly higher up the neck and you will get a wetter skim.

If you start using NoPox you need to wet Skim so the skimmate looks like a weak tea colour.

Also a bit of a tip for you. Get some food grade silicone and smear it around the skimmer cup we’re it locks into the body as it makes it much easier to remove over time.
 
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Nobbygas

Well-Known Member
NOPOX works differently in different tanks. For me it keeps both Nitrates and Phos down. Others find that it doesn't keep their Phos down. Good product though.
 

NickF

Well-Known Member
So the tank’s been running a while, no major problems and the Aquaroche is looking more natural now. Ive got quite a bit of hair algae at the mo but it’s mainly on one rock. I’ve increased my clean up crew and recently got a tux urchin so hopefully they’ll take care of it.

I got 2 of the new filter media cups today, constantly cleaning out the socks was a pita. I’ve got filter floss in both at the minute, though I think I might put some PhosEx I’ve got knocking around in one of them.

I’m not sure about the big black sponge, do you guys use it, I was thinking of leaving it out?

I’ve also got the Kamoer 4 channel doser going, I’m dosing Nopox and Red Sea foundations.

Fish in the tank are:

Bi-Colour Angel
Starry-Eyed Blenny
6 Line Wrasse
3 Blue/Green Chromis
Pair of Clowns
Wheelers Goby/Tiger Shrimp pair
Royal Gramma
Lyretail Anthia

Still not managed to get a decent pic of the Angel or the Wrasse yet, they are very camera shy. They will be swimming right in front but as soon as I go to take a pic they disappear round the back.

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& Here’s a few pics of some corals:

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