25g Rimless Cube

[HiImSean]

a little intro first, i've been keeping FW for the past 4 or so years. my addiction started with a 10g betta tank, that soon developed into a 55g with cichlids. a local LFS doesn't help when they run a 50% off tank sale once a year so i picked up a 125g having no room. that was set up with more cichlids finally i upgraded my 55g to a 75g. i grabbed a 36g corner tank which was planted with you guessed it, cichlids lol. i've been through a few 10gs and 20gs growing out fry along the way

 

ive always been fascinated with reefs but people have discouraged me with the costs and maintenance. i decided to take the plunge to the dark side, i sold off my 36g stock and am in the process of selling it.

 

i had an old 20g laying around and decided to use that as a sump and i went to the petco sale and bought a 29g for my DT. im in the "collection" stage of getting parts. i have a mag5 for a return pump and im still looking for a skimmer and light before i get going

 

this was the plan anyways i was cruising a local forum while at work, like i usually do, and found someone selling a 40g, stand, sand and 2x koralia 2s. i hope to have the setup next weekend. i'll be now using the 29g as my sump instead of the 20long. i might have to put the setup on hold for a while since i ended up buying a group of pretty rare cichlids. they should be large enough to go in my 125g by mid december and then i hope to have everything ready for the reef to go into effect.

 

supplies

DT - 25g

Sump - 15g

lighting - AI Sol Blue

skimmer - BM NAC6

return - mag5

circulation - MP10ES

 

[HiImSean]

just to get some pics in the thread, here are my freshwater tanks and my planted tank i took down

 

[HiImSean]

here's the upgrade : gonna get a water and vinegar bath today

the to be sump

[HiImSean]

finalizing the details on my light fixture and should be here on saturday or monday

[WorrBaller]

Great start! I love 40b (I have one of my own). You'll really like the 29g for the sump. I have the 20 long and I need to fill the dang thing every other day so the pump doesn't run dry.

 

Good luck on the parts hording! One piece of advice: use this time to research what it is you want the tank to be/look like so you make the correct first decisions instead of impulse buys.

[HiImSean]

thanks, i've done that with most my freshwater purchases, there have been a few impulse buys but nothing that did not work out

[nanoreefsurf]

holy crap those planted tanks are scaped awesome

 

co2 and the works?

[HiImSean]

no CO2 just T5s and some fertilizers, quite low tech.

[Lalani]

40br tanks are the best!

[HiImSean]

we'll im pretty pissed off now. i made my first big reefing mistake, not remeasuring a 4th, 5th, or 6th time i yanked out my my corner tank to slide in the 40g breeder and low and behold, it doesnt fit. the place designated for the tank was the last free room i have in the apartment for a tank. my tv/dvd player is on the other side then the door so i scooted as much as i could and i was about 2" too short the crappy thing is i just bought a nova extreme pro that is shipping out today i guess its time to start over, good thing i still have my 29g and 20long

[pyronus]

Who needs TV?

[Naturalreef]

I have learned long ago when something doesn't work,fit right to STOP......take a breather and come back to it with clear thoughts. You may be able to find a different corner that it fits it, swap the room around with the TV etc. Seriously, before you scrap the whole deal....think it through with a calm mind. By the way, good choice in tanks! My next tank will be a 40 gallon breeder built under the stair wall in the basement.

 

 

we'll im pretty pissed off now. i made my first big reefing mistake, not remeasuring a 4th, 5th, or 6th time i yanked out my my corner tank to slide in the 40g breeder and low and behold, it doesnt fit. the place designated for the tank was the last free room i have in the apartment for a tank. my tv/dvd player is on the other side then the door so i scooted as much as i could and i was about 2" too short the crappy thing is i just bought a nova extreme pro that is shipping out today i guess its time to start over, good thing i still have my 29g and 20long

[danthenewreefman]

put that TV on the wall man!!!

 

newegg.com has really cheap TV mounts, I got mine for like 35$ while ago.

[HiImSean]

its not a flat screen

[jdl]

why watch the boob when you have such awesome tanks

[HiImSean]

I have learned long ago when something doesn't work,fit right to STOP......take a breather and come back to it with clear thoughts. You may be able to find a different corner that it fits it, swap the room around with the TV etc. Seriously, before you scrap the whole deal....think it through with a calm mind. By the way, good choice in tanks! My next tank will be a 40 gallon breeder built under the stair wall in the basement.

 

 

thanks, yeah i just go upset since i spent about 2hrs draining and moving a ton of crap around. my wifes being cool and we're gonna look at it this weekend when we have a free minute and try and make it work. i was a little worked up since i was suppose to sell the other tank this weekend.

[HiImSean]

since i bought the lights before the fiasco with the tank happened i received them on monday and they look awesome I went with a nova extreme pro 6x39watt setup. it came with 4 Blue+, GE 6500K, and a KZ Fiji Blue. i was able to move some stuff in my apartment so the 40g is still an option

 

all bulbs

 

1set on

 

other set on

[the_gats]

Good to hear you get to go with the 40B. Now you just need some rock and some water.

[HiImSean]

well it looks like the 40br isn't going to work unfortunately. i didnt feel like completely re-organizing the furniture in my apartment. on sunday i ordered a Mr. Aqua 25g rimless cube, 18x18x18. im really excited after seeing a few peoples progress with the tank. i'll prolly end up with a FNI 24" light for a while until i can build a DIY LED fixture. sump will be a 15g-20g high tank. still gonna use my mag5 but may go with a NAC5E hob skimmer on the sump since it will be smaller than i would like. im still on the fence about that though.

 

anyways, the tank will be here on tuesday next week. im hoping to find some good deals on black friday online for a skimmer or MP10 ES

[HiImSean]

well i finally got my tank last night. it looks great and im pleased with it. it will be a little while still before it's up. still looking for a skimmer and a sump. hopefully after christmas i'll have more equipment and get started on this sexy beast

 

[gulfsurfer101]

All your tanks look good, I'm shure this one will too. Bummer about your other tank not working out for you, I ran with the 40br for a while and wasn't too happy with it at all. I'm much more happier with my current tanks. I have a spare 150w metal halide pendant I'm getting rid of pretty cheap and I never got too use it so it is still brand new. I also have a remora nano skimmer that was supposed to be used for the tank I bought that pendant for that is now just taking space in my reef stuff closet. If you want to do a trade for the nep I will throw in both the pendant and skimmer along with what other spare reef items I might have to get you started.

[HiImSean]

thanks but i ended up selling the NEP already. im not sure if i want to do a MH, im still thinking of doing a DIY LED

[WorrBaller]

That is a really nice looking tank. It'll look sick with a sleek looking LED fixture. Good luck making it.

 

I love square tanks, I think that is my subtle OCD coming through though (everything has to be even and symmetrical lol).

[gulfsurfer101]

No problem, just throwing it out there. I bought it to set up a 30g cube that is sitting empty in my garage and now I don't see it coming to light(pun intented). I decided to go pico and I bought the 12" mr aqua tank and decided to use a boost par 30 and am quite happy with the outcome. Looking back at these larger tanks I wish I decided to go large since I already have almost everything I need to start up new tank. I really like these tanks and for the price they go for who can complain. Good luck to you on your biuld and hope things come together nicely for you.

[HiImSean]

thanks, im hoping to get a skimmer soon and a RODI unit