29G - A New Beginning!

chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Hello all!

I finally moved out of my parent's place and got myself a modest condo in the Bel Air, MD area, and of course I couldn't not have a tank :) I had some trouble leveling it out, but after I got a nice sheet of 3/4" wood (not ply, a nice finish-type wood for furniture) it's shimmed, leveled, and ready for duty.

Before, I either never had the money, time or dedication to keep a reef tank well.. I could get things to survive, but just barely. No more. Now, my resolve is stronger. I'm done with school, have a pretty good gig doing application development for the largest healthcare network in the DC area, and am ready to make an aquarium one of the most attractive decorations in my living room :)

So, without further ado, specs and info:

29G AGA
Petsmart Stand (aside from the Chinese directions, it's not bad)
150W Via Aqua Titanium heater
DIY ATO - Coming soon
130W PC fixture (you know it'll be replaced by LEDs when I have the budget :))
2x Koralia Evolution Nanos 425gph - Coming Tuesday (just a Maxijett 400 for now)
Aragonite sand (which I didn't rinse well, if you can tell from the cloudiness :))
Dry rock (will culture some from my pico to get some pods going)

Livestock plans - 2 grade B's from Woodstock :)
A single or few frogspawn/torch corals for the clowns to host
Maybe some rics or zoas? Nothing too showy for the foreseeable future

Pics, boring as they may be:

2aequdv.jpg


oro0gm.jpg


kehi1h.jpg


Much much more to come. Stay tuned :hallo:
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Thanks everyone, I think I'm most excited for the LEDs too :)

I'm gonna update my leveling thread in case anyone else runs into the same issue. I'm not very mechanically inclined so it seemed a little daunting, but it wasn't too bad.
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
A little progress...

I forgot to paint the back of the tank in my haste/stupidity :( so I got some poster board from Walmart and made a shoddy, but adequate backing.

I ordered 2 Koralias and got the wrong product (the 265gph model, it was advertised as the 425 model), and I got the proper pumps yesterday. I got 2x Koralia Nano 425gph, which are the newer Evolution model and are supposed to be on par with the older Koralia 1's. I had 2x Koralia 1 in my old 29 and this seems like much less flow. They're smaller, but I wouldn't have thought that would have anything to do with it if they were rated for the same flow. At a total of 850gph, I'm at 29x turnover, so I should numerically be okay, but we'll see how I like the flow with some inhabitants in it.

Has anyone had any experience with the Koralia Evolution pumps? I was a little wary of the new design and I guess they're okay, but it just feels like the older ones moved more water. Maybe I'm insane?? :confused:
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Well after the dust settled, it looks like the 2x Koralia 425s actually do move a good bit of water. Where the streams collide, there's a good bit of turbulence, and while more flow is never bad, it looks like there aren't any dead spots, which is good.

I cleaned the glass and took another pic:

vxohg.jpg


The Maxijett is just for decoration, it's getting removed shortly. The GF and I are going to the not-so-local fish store to get a piece of live rock to culture the dead stuff. More to come :)
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
You got PM Catran :)

There actually have been a LOT of updates, life and work has been keeping me busy!

1. I ordered 2 grade B picassos from Doni's Reef (aka Woodstock :)). I honestly couldn't be any happier. The health and temperament of these fish couldn't be much better. They've been eating like little piggies from day 1! The one was probably a little shy of 3/4" and the one was a little larger, probably closer to a full inch. This made the pairing easy, within the first 10 minutes of being acclimated the smaller one was already doing the "don't hurt me seizure dance" that signifies it is submitting to the dominant larger one. The larger one looks like a standard clown but with a "beauty spot" on its right cheek and the smaller one has an additional weave on the back of it's middle stripe, as well as some serious mutton chops going on. A vid from the day they were added:

[video=youtube;p9Prz03jT3Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9Prz03jT3Y[/video]

I skipped the quarantine process (a no-no, I know..) but it was a calculated risk. I knew I was getting high quality specimens from a breeder who sincerely cares, so the risk of disease would be lower. These were the first (and most likely only) fish to be introduced to the tank, so if they did come down with ich or another illness, they wouldn't infect any other inhabitants. If they did come down with something, I had a QT tank at the ready for the first few weeks just in case. The tank had a STRONG cycle and regular testing confirmed the cycle was over. Risky? Slightly. I wouldn't recommend skipping the QT process in almost all situations, but it was a calculated risk that I am satisfied with and everything worked out.

2. I built a screen to protect my investment following this guide and the results are very impressive. The screen looks slick and overall it was easy to make. One mistake I made was I bought a very think mesh and it was incredibly difficult to spline into the frame. If you do this project, open the mesh in the store and make SURE it bends easily! Either that or get out the hair dryer/heat gun and get ready for a loong day.

3. I added a piece of not-so-live-rock from my not-so-local-fish-store and at first was very unimpressed with the quality, but all I needed was one piece. Now, I must say things are looking up. There are copepods and amphipods galore as well as some colorful algae (it seems more like nuisance algae than coraline but it's better than white :D). Hopefully with time and a seed rock from my pico, I'll get some nice coraline going.

4. I got some media bags and started running carbon. I debated whether or not to use a reactor, but for a tank my small I just loaded up a small bag and tied it to the mesh screen.

5. I got the float switch portion of my ATO setup (another DIY like the one in my sig) and it works, I just have to find a more robust pump than the Aqualifter to pump the water from the stand to the tank. More to come on that.

6. I'm working on a robust battery backup system that can be used to run any type and brand of pump (as well as heaters/chillers, should you want to scale up a little :)) and will post more details on that when I'm finished working things out. Keep an eye out for the DIY :)

7. I know this was mostly lame-sauce text and no pics, but I'll try to take some tomorrow.

Thanks for following along, I'll try to get pics up tomorrow! :hallo:
 
chipmunkofdoom2

chipmunkofdoom2

Well-Known Member
Forgot 2 things:

8. I've budgeted for an AI Sol, but until I can save up the dough, it's gonna be PCs :(

9. I am in the process of switching from straight IO to Reef Crystals. The tank was cycled with IO but every 2 weeks or so I'm swapping 3-4 gallons with Reef Crystals. There aren't any corals yet, but I'm preparing :)
 
Robzilla

Robzilla

Active Member
Great start. I would trust Donni over anyone else and your little guys look happy! Go slow and cotinue to do as great of a job as you have been doing!

Risky, yes... But I have no doubt you will be just fine.

Cant wait to see that Sol come in....kinda weird sing the king of LEDs with PCs lol. In Time! I had to wait too!
 
GlassMunky

GlassMunky

Active Member
Nice start man. I love my 29G, its been a GREAT starter tank. I've also got 2 of those Koralia 425's and i like them. i have them hooked up to my Reefkeeper Lite on the wavemaker mode, with an additional tunze nano 660 and all my SPS LOVE it. so far ive had no issue with the koralia nano other than my 265 (which is the same make) the ball socket is a cheap plastic that breaks easy meaning you cant angle it, only straight on.
 
Richard 1

Richard 1

New Member
I've been thread lurking here as I have a 29g also and I'm using 2 koralia 550's and 1 AI Sol Super Blue module over it and you will love it when you get it
 
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