datahoe New Red Sea Max 650

[datahoe]

OK Here are a couple of when I finally got the stand together. I luckily didnt break too many of the stainless steel screws. But YES THEY WERE a beast to use!

Another

For anyone just starting out putting their 650 together I recommend not only watching the videos first but also reading the manual and other users experiences with the 650. Helped me out tremendously!

 

[datahoe]

OK I finally got the aquarium on the stand. if there was ever a doubt how heavy this thing was.....I will confirm....IT IS HEAVY! Took five of us to get it from the garage onto the stand! And I mean not any small guys either. We used suction cups to help with the lift onto the stand.

Another

One more

Sump going in......this was easier

 

[merdel]

wow cant wait to see more posts!

 

[David Shaw]

Great pics, thanks for posting. I will be tagging along to see your progress.

 

[DianaKay]

WOW, going to be an AWESOME journey, I'm going to enjoy your pictures also. Happy Building! :chair::lurk:

 

[nanoreefing4fun]

Great pics - love the white - that sump is really big, don't think I have ever appreciated how big it was before, whole tank big & beautiful ! S Series are Cool !

 

[byronredsea]

:redcar::redcar::redcar::redcar:that's fast going good to see:bigbounce
Jason

 

[prsrock]

congrats on the tank seeing your pics brings back some memory's of building mine
there were a few points the air was blue and my oother half retreated to the
kitchen lol

 

[datahoe]

Ok so here are some more pics i failed to upload:


This one is the completed tank:

Another view....that is a love seat couch next to it for comparison!

 

[datahoe]

This was the water test.....went well except for the bonehead mistake of not fully tightening the down pipe.....very small leak but I had the wet vac ready

 

[datahoe]

This was after the water test and filling with saltwater. My first attempt at aquascaping.....not the best but I will get better

 

[datahoe]

Decided to stay with this scape:

 

[datahoe]

Now I have seeded the base rock with some live rock. Using the Reef Mature System from Red Sea to cycle the tank:

 

[datahoe]

So I thought I would throw a couple pictures of the sump in.....not many pics of the 650 sump out there. As you can see I marked the 6 and 8 inch marks with tape :

 

[Nob35]

Looks like your on your way, now comes the waiting. It's hard to tell how the scapes are going to be until you start adding corals and the coralline starts growing.

 

[DianaKay]

Looks so AWESOME! Seems like Your water cleared up much faster than mine did. Just be warned, adding only "one more rock" can turn into a re-scape. I thought my arms were going to have permanent salt damage
Are you going to put in a deli-shrimp to rev-up your cycle? The wait isn't much fun, but posting your "test scores" here will help. That's what kept my patience in check. Thanks for sharing your journey so far, keep it going with pictures :spinner:

 

[datahoe]

Thank you Nob....yes now begins the wait. I had the biggest scare when I had my diatom bloom. I came home to a tank that was completely brown! I was like WHAT DID I DO WRONG!!! But a little more research I found that is a normal progression. Ive since added a clean up crew and 6 green blue chromis and a lawnmower blenny to help with the green algae. My base rock has taken on this bright almost florescent color on them. I'm attaching a couple pictures that maybe you or someone would be able to tell me what it may be. Some people say algae and some say green coralline. I'm just confused! But it doesnt look bad and it doesnt seem to be spreading more than it has. Levels are ok except my nitrates are high now. But I will continue with the water changes. I've also added some cheato to the sump to help reduce the nitrates (picture attached). I have a 6500k bulb and clip on light from home depot. That was the cheapest route I was told.....not sure yet how they will do but time will tell.

This was after the diatom bloom. I didnt take pictures of the bloom because it just scared me and I wasnt thinking!!

A snail and hermit crab on one of the live rocks after the bloom

Its amazing how just a few days ago the entire gravel and rock was covered with brown diatoms!

 

[datahoe]

OK so here is my next scare, if it really is a scare. My live rock has this bright green color to it now. Anyone with an idea what it might be? Its not fuzzy and cant be scraped from the rock. The crabs dont make a dent in it neither the snails. Not sure what kind of algae it maybe. Is this the prelude to a doomsday??

Pic of the green something on base rock. Its not on any of the live rock

 

[datahoe]

Here is what the tank looks like as a whole:

 

[datahoe]

This is a pic of the back glass. it has small patches of a different type of algae. I didnt scape it off because I watch a turbo snail devour a couple of them whole and figured the lawnmower blenny might want to snack as well. the small white dots are pods.....i have a bunch OF THEM IN THE TANK AND THE SUMP!