vangvace Posted June 29, 2016 Share Posted June 29, 2016 Innovative Marine 10 gallon 5 years in the making? How you ask? Well about 5 years ago I ordered some Marco's rock, 20 pounds of it to be precise, for a new build before being whisked overseas for a couple years in Greece. Yes it was awesome in the summer, but also kinda sucked in the winter, but I digress... So I had this rock and taken it there and brought it back with me. (maybe I should have grabbed some from the Med while I was there? Hmmm....) It sat in the dark recesses of my closet almost forgotten about until I started a frequent drive past a fish store and the reef bug started to bite again. Did a little research and here we go... Equipment IM 10g Jebao RW-4 50W Cobalt heater Nanobox Tide Plus M 28June So this is the first time I epoxied the rocks together and dealt with dry rock in general . I like how the scape came out, plus the liverock I picked up after gluing seems to compliment. For stocking I am thinking LPS heavy with Hammer corals in the back, Acans on the sandbed, and Duncans mixed in. The right zoas and rics will be in there too. My first hammer is a bicolor green and blue head frag. C'mon cycle! For fish, I am debating on a clown pair or shrimp/goby with possum wrasse for now, but still am undecided. Link to comment
vangvace Posted June 29, 2016 Author Share Posted June 29, 2016 Diver's Den has a Yasha Goby pair and pistol shrimp. Thank goodness for a cycling tank to avoid an impulse purchase! Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 1, 2016 Author Share Posted July 1, 2016 Still trying to decide on fish, but saw and awesome Duncan, Maxi Mini, Acans, and Chalice at the LFS. Also picked up some red macro, cheato, and a cup of live sand from local reefers. Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 4, 2016 Author Share Posted July 4, 2016 InTanked media basket and filter floss is installed. Waiting for chemipure, purigen, and AutoAqua Micro ATO also coming from InTank. Debating a controller and skimmer, but that is a ways off still. I have decided on a shrimp/goby pair and might be getting coral on Tuesday or Wednesday from a local reefer. Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 12, 2016 Author Share Posted July 12, 2016 Man what a busy week it has been... So I ended up getting a surprise hammer coral in exchange for the macro, but life got in the way and I couldn't get it home to my tank. It really upset me that I killed a coral because I couldn't make it back to my tank. Anyways.... So this happened Along with my order from ReefCleaners. The box was a little beat up, but everything made it just fine. I made a run to Ikea for a stand. I am going to double door the bottom. One side will hold the ATO reservoir and maybe dosing pumps down the road... The other will be for the electrical. I have to move some furniture around in the living room to make a home for the new stand, but for now this is the setup on the kitchen island. I've cleaned up the cables more since then too. They were bothering me. So cruising through the lfs I found these guys and couldn't resist. Pigpen and Pearl I think are appropriate names. I also picked up a shrimp/goby pair from the lfs. I was worried because it took a few days for them to find one another. I am worried though because they have gone into hiding again after being active. Last night during feeding I noticed a large bristleworm came out of the same rocks they call home. Trap is on order and they better be ok. Let's see... then there is the matter of these guys that magically appeared. Pearl's home! (Ok maybe not Pearl... needs some more thought.) The maxi didn't like where I wanted him so it decided to put its foot to the glass. Could it have a Brit personality? Last but not least the full tank shot and top down shot Sorry for all the cell phone pics. Nikon is out on the tripod and I am fiddling with a macro lens throughout the week. When I get them into lightroom is a completely other story... Additional fish are still up in the air, but I am thinking a Possum Wrasse, Randall's Assessor, or Darwin Ocellaris (pair?) for the tank. Maybe 2 of the three? I am thinking about getting an Apex System and trying to decide needs vs wants; Jr vs Classic vs goodbye all the money. I know I dream of a larger tank down the road and monitoring multiple systems would rock, especially if they can be remotely monitored wirelessly from one control module. Once I have my mind made up I am going to get the NanoBox controller module from Dave and either the Jabeo control module or more on to a Vortech. My wallet sobs already. Also debating MAME vs Ghost skimmers as the bioload increases. Oh... and I have no idea what to do about the frag plugs so I need to look into that. They really were just starting to become a thing last time I was in the hobby. Link to comment
DaveFason Posted July 13, 2016 Share Posted July 13, 2016 Great start! Looking forward to seeing new frags! Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 14, 2016 Author Share Posted July 14, 2016 So... bad weather cancelled frag purchase plans. Many reefers around St Louis are still without power to include 3 LFS. Winds knocked down trees and even so brickwork signs O.O In better news though I picked up a used Apex classic. Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 17, 2016 Author Share Posted July 17, 2016 Latest to down during feeding... Fish! More to come later, my Duncan is really not happy for some reason. Link to comment
vangvace Posted July 20, 2016 Author Share Posted July 20, 2016 Breaking out the Macro lens a little bit. These guys were on sale from the lfs because they came out of a local reefer's tank and lost quite a bit of color. I look forward to following their progress over the next couple weeks to see how they recover under Dave's lights. Tyree Red Planet Link to comment
teenyreef Posted July 21, 2016 Share Posted July 21, 2016 The tank looks great so far! I like the scape and the coral selections, and of course you can't go wrong with a shrimp/goby pair. On the Apex, just haunt the equipment for sale section here on N-R. Somebody's selling an Apex setup usually every month or so, and you can usually get a complete setup for way less money. And it's not like Apex has a lot of moving parts to wear out. Link to comment
vangvace Posted August 2, 2016 Author Share Posted August 2, 2016 Awwww man. So quite a few updates.... Replaced the Jabeo with a MP10. I bought a used 10 from a local reefer and the wetside was broken. It turned into a bad deal and money lost. So I picked up a new one from the lfs, plugged it in and thought it was DOA with a bad power supply. I tried multiple outlets and was about to give up when I remembered I had another dry side! Turns out it was the cord that goes from the wall outlet to the power supply was bad. Crisis averted. I ordered a Sea Side Aquatics SL1 protein skimmer. It seems like it was an early, better version of a ghost and the price seems right. Still fiddling with the lights. I talked to Dave briefly about them and moving closer to the settings from his thread. I've started installing my Apex and awaiting the wifi controller to arrive tomorrow. So far I am going to monitor pH and Temp. pH won't really matter more than a baseline until I start dosing; which brings up a concerrn I have had a alkalinity issue. My Red Sea Coral Pro salt is mixing at 20 DKh! I've emailed them and bought some IO to bring down the levels to something safe. It is weird because except for my SPS not extending polyps everything looks good, at least in the short term. The other night I noticed this when watching the tank in the moonlight. He was very curious about the line of snail eggs. Sadly the little guy has stopped having out on my maxi mini and is annoying my acans. DSC_0318 by Keith D, on Flickr Soon I am going to have to break out the macro lens again and take time for better pictures, but... my new Strawberry Shortcake Aussie Acro taken with a poor white balance. It looks amazing in normal light. DSC_0332 by Keith D, on Flickr Lastly when I was at the LFS today I was looking for a fish or two, thinking maybe a tailspot blenny or a B&W clown. I did pick up a Black Snowflake clown, but have yet to get a good picture of the little guy and I brought home this gorgeous critter... DSC_0330 by Keith D, on Flickr He does eat frozen shrimp and I am going to watch closely that he eats like a pig. Looking forward to them both to finish acclimating to the tank and considering it home. Next up sometime soonish... gluing of corals and tweaking placement of things. Link to comment
Tamberav Posted August 2, 2016 Share Posted August 2, 2016 Really great start! Following along Link to comment
drgibby Posted August 2, 2016 Share Posted August 2, 2016 Looking good so far. Out of curiosity what is IO and what kind of water are you mixing with the red sea pro salt to get dkh of 20! Link to comment
vangvace Posted August 2, 2016 Author Share Posted August 2, 2016 Looking good so far. Out of curiosity what is IO and what kind of water are you mixing with the red sea pro salt to get dkh of 20! Instant Ocean. When in doubt return to a staple salt. I'm using fish store RO/DI water and they are one of the better stores in the area, so it should be good. I've verified my levels with a Salifert and Hanna test kit. I have some IO ready now so I am going to test that water before doing a change. Link to comment
vangvace Posted August 4, 2016 Author Share Posted August 4, 2016 Woke up this morning to find the dry side of the MP-10 had fallen off the tank. I also noticed that the rock I hadn't glued down yet had fallen... and crushed the ruby red. I think it was because I didn't use the shim on the MP10 and it vibrated free. Link to comment
reefernanoman Posted August 5, 2016 Share Posted August 5, 2016 Woke up this morning to find the dry side of the MP-10 had fallen off the tank. I also noticed that the rock I hadn't glued down yet had fallen... and crushed the ruby red. I think it was because I didn't use the shim on the MP10 and it vibrated free. Sorry to hear that. The only time my MP10's have come off is when I hit them accidentally. I do use the spacer on them. Link to comment
StrainedSky Posted August 5, 2016 Share Posted August 5, 2016 The rubber space isn't needed on the Fusion 10 since the glass is 6mm Link to comment
vangvace Posted September 15, 2016 Author Share Posted September 15, 2016 So, long time no update. I took a month holiday with my kiddos. My tank sitter did well, but I lost my hi-fin and contributed to high nitrates. This past weekend I attended ST Louis' local reef clubs fragfest and won an Apex! I also finally started removing frag plugs from corals and making everything look mo'betta. Pics later... Hopefully Link to comment
vangvace Posted September 16, 2016 Author Share Posted September 16, 2016 So... I work in IT so the random cable mess was killing me. I tidied it up and it looks so pretty. The Nanobox comes with a pretty darn long cable already and I might have wished it were a smidge longer. Cleaned up Apex by Keith D, on Flickr Acan frag islands before gluefest began. 2016-09-15_03-44-26 by Keith D, on Flickr Top down just before gluefest. Top down 12Sep16 by Keith D, on Flickr Enough things are still pissed about the glue yesterday to not take pictures. I think I am going to like the new layout. Tomorrow I am going to try to trap the pistol shrimp for a local reefer and a better home. Maybe I will try another and Yasha down the road. Link to comment
teenyreef Posted September 16, 2016 Share Posted September 16, 2016 Congrats on the Apex score! The neat setup looks...well,,,neat How'd the glue up go? Is everything on the rocks or do you still have some stuff on the sand bed? Link to comment
vangvace Posted September 17, 2016 Author Share Posted September 17, 2016 Thanks. I think a wxm module is the final apex piece I'll want until I need to dose. The corals are doing well post gluing. I should have thought out the acan color placement a little better. I am left with a new and small blasto colony in the sand bed along with three frags. One acan was a jerk and didn't get along with the others so it was banished to a back corner. I should get some pictures up Sunday night and might try my hand with gel filters too Link to comment
vangvace Posted September 19, 2016 Author Share Posted September 19, 2016 As promised... a photo update First some macros and the blastos that has recovered very well since I brought it home. DSC_5379 by Keith D, on Flickr Along with my newest blastos. I wasn't looking but the colors on this one. DSC_5388 by Keith D, on Flickr Some ORA Gonipora DSC_5385 by Keith D, on Flickr Red Planet and Roving Rock Nem. I am going to be worried once it starts growing unless I can get it to move. DSC_5407 by Keith D, on Flickr This acan always seems to have its feeders out... DSC_5398 by Keith D, on Flickr so I decided to feed! Before and after of the same coral. DSC_5392 by Keith D, on Flickr DSC_5441 by Keith D, on Flickr And a few more... DSC_5452 by Keith D, on Flickr Help me!! DSC_5470 by Keith D, on Flickr Big Mouthed Blastos DSC_5461 by Keith D, on Flickr Finally, a top down shot DSC_5428 by Keith D, on Flickr Corner shot DSC_5368 by Keith D, on Flickr and the mone... FTS DSC_5365 by Keith D, on Flickr LFS has a possum wrasse coming in this week. I have to decide if I want to keep the pistol shrimp or remove it. There is a Yasha at the store too... Link to comment
fishguy122 Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 Really nice scape and pics - I love it! Link to comment
DaveFason Posted September 19, 2016 Share Posted September 19, 2016 Looking really good! Do you mind if I use a few of these photos for FB and IG? I would personally move the duncan much lower than the very top. Link to comment
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