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15 gallon Kessil lit.


miniwhinny

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FTS 8.3.2012(see page 7 for details)



 

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EQUIPMENT

 

Aqueon 15 gallon tank

Vortech MP 10

Via Aqua 100w heater

AC 110

 

LIGHTING

A150w Kessil 15,000k

 

 

 

LIVESTOCK

 

 

Frogspawn

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After working on a 20L and a 40B at the same time I've learned a lot of what I like and what works (and what doesn't!) I'm taking all of that knowledge, equipment and livestock and downsizing both tanks into a 15 gallon build. Time to simplify life and time :)

 

It's going to be a slow build because I want to do everything correctly the first time. The tank is going to be sitting on my breakfast bar where the 20L was. I love being able to see my tank from so many rooms at once and as the breakfast bar seems to be a gathering place when folks visit I think having the tank there will be a good focal point.

 

First thing I'm planning is to paint the black trim with a stone spray paint that matches my solid surface countertops. Heading to Lowes this morning to see what color choices they have.

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They are awesome but I lost it to my son. He had a tank crash a couple of weeks ago so I took everything that looked like it had a chance to survive and used my 20L to house it all. He works and goes to university and just doesn't have the time (or funds) to do all the care needed to rescue a tank.

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Rounded up some sand that had been used in previous tanks (yup, I've attempted to have sand before lol)

 

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It was full of unwanted "stuff" so I cleaned it really well and now it's into the oven for a few minutes to dry it out.

 

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Baked sand, lol

 

That's because I'm too impatient to sit while it dries on it's own lol :lol:

 

...and poo-ey! Even after washing and bleaching it my oven has the lovely aroma of rotting fish emanating from the slightly open door !!!!

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Getting closer :)

 

Leak test came out perfect - no leaks !

 

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I haven't seen too many 15 gallon tanks around before but I'm really loving the dimensions. Can't want to get more of this project done :D

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and now the fun part...

 

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This is the start of my false sand bed. I've always run my tanks BB, this one won't be any different but I'll be the first to say that BB tanks don't look too natural.

 

I'm making a false sand bed and then a partial rock wall.

 

Fngers crossed :)

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The fake sand bed came out AWESOME! It's still tacky and takes 3 days to fully cure but it looks no different than a normal (wet) sand bed. I made sure I left in little shells and bits so it looks like a real sand bed.

 

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Following Minni!I I like the idea of a fake sand bed, I was going bare bottom on my pico and couldn't do it...I like the look of sand too much and the critters that live there.

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Thanks everyone :D

 

I just love the ease of maintenance with a BB tank and they work for me - never had an issue with them but looking at a bare glass bottom didn't cut it visually. I even tried painting the underside a sand color but it just didn't look natural. I'm really hoping that this will make the difference I've been wanting. I also think it will be easier to glue frags to the epoxy than it is to glue on glass.

 

So far so good. There's no way to tell by looking that it's a solid bed (pity the poor worms trying to dig in lol)

 

Now to start work on my fake rock wall :)

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Came over from the DIY thread on this. Looks good once you get the water in there you will not be able to tell that there is a false SB. I will tell you that by mixing the SB right into the tank you will never get it out. I did this with a 5 gal I built and only did half the tank plus I use wax paper between the tank bottom and the Faux SB thinking I could get it out of the tank. I was able to remove it but I was afraid I was going to break the tank in the process.

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Came over from the DIY thread on this. Looks good once you get the water in there you will not be able to tell that there is a false SB. I will tell you that by mixing the SB right into the tank you will never get it out. I did this with a 5 gal I built and only did half the tank plus I use wax paper between the tank bottom and the Faux SB thinking I could get it out of the tank. I was able to remove it but I was afraid I was going to break the tank in the process.

 

I posted on that thread hoping you'd be looking :) I made this right in the tank crossing my fingers it looked good because I knew I'd be buying a new tank if it didn't! Luckily it looks awesome. It's a very thin layer, just enough to cover the bottom. I figured as it's not real and nothing is living in it then just enough to cover the glass would be perfect. It's going to be hard waiting to put water in - I can already picture the shimmer my Kessil is going to be making.

 

Thanks for posting your results in the DIY section. Nano-reef rocks - you can search for anything you need :)

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Cool build so far, I have the same tank and I really like the dimensions. Good luck

 

Thanks. I love the dimensions too. It's a really solid little tank. I like that they used the thicker glass. Oh, I've seen your build - it inspired me to get this tank :)

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This is cool! I've never seen anyone do a "Fake" sand bed before. Can't wait to see how this thing turns out :)

 

Thanks. There are a couple of others that have done it too and are having success with it. It's pretty wierd right now. It's still in the curing stage. Visually it looks like wet sand but when you touch it it's solid. Strange lol. I can hardly wait to get water in :)

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Made a rock island last night from 3 different rocks I had. This is going to be the new home for my mini carpet nems. I'm going to round them all up from the different rocks they are on in the tanks I'm taking down and see if I can get them to like this new "home". Looks a bit unstable from one angle but it's not. I think it will look pretty cool covered in colorful nems :)

 

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Okay guys I need your advice.

 

I'm thinking about going completely filterless, no HOB, no skimmer, no fuge, no sump. Just high quality live rock, good water movement and religious 30% weekly water changes. The only livestock that I'm moving over that I feed are a small dendro, a porcelain crab and my hermits (and they don't need to be added)

 

What do you think about running a coral/nem only tank with just rock and water changes?

 

I know someone is going to ask "why" so here's my reason...this tank is sitting on my kitchen counter and I honestly just don't want the detraction of having a bunch of equipment and wires hanging off such a small tank. I'd like to avoid having to paint the back or a side so that I have all 4 sides clear and open (apart from where my MP10 will sit)

 

I'd love opinions on if you think it can be done sucessfully. Thanks :)

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You could do that easily. It's called the berlin live rock method. However, why? If you want something clean for a countertop I'd suggest a peninsula style with an AIO compartment on one end. It would keep things clean and make the tank much easier to maintain.

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