Help with 54G Corner Reef

[dasstheboss]

I want to scratch my 46Bow idea and move to a 54G Corner instead. I need any opinions on this. I have enclosed below what i will most likely get in terms of equipment and livestock.

54 Gallon Corner Marine Reef Aquarium

 

Tank:

54 Gallon Corner All-Glass Aquarium

All-Glass 54 Gallon Corner Aquarium Stand

54 Gallon Corner Aquarium Canopy

Light(s):

Aqualight Advanced Series HQI Metal Halide 150W Clamp-On Fixture - $240

Aqualight lunar Blue Moon Glow LED Light Fixture – 2x - $25

13W Galaxy Light II Refugium Clamp-On Light Fixture - $20

Filter(s):

Bio-Wheel Emperor 400 Power Filter w/ refugium - $45

SeaClone 150 Protein Skimmer - $88

Power-Head(s):

Aqua-ball 172gph Power-head 1212 – 2x - $21

Heater(s):

Visi-Therm 200W Heater - $20

Equipment(s)/Additive(s):

Saltwater Master Liquid Test Kit - $22

Reef Success Coral Kit - $30

Sea Squirt Feeder Stick - $22

Kent Marine Essential Elements - $11

SeaChem Reef Buffer - $5

DeChlorinator - $10

Aquarium Wipes - $10

Portable Refractometer - $42

Salt Bucket - $50

Timers – 7x - $5

Live Rock/ Sand:

Fiji Premium Live Rock 45lbs. - $115

Fiji Premium Live Rock 22lba. - $75

Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand 40lbs. - $35

Fish(s):

Royal Gramma Basslet – 1x - $10

True Percula Clown – 2x - $20

Blue Tang – 1x - $30

Hi Fin Red Banded Goby – 1x - $17

Blue Neon Goby – 2x - $16

Clean Up Crew ($60 w/ Shipping from etropicals.com):

Dwarf Red Tip Hermit Crab – 10x - $1.75

Scarlet Reef Hermit Crab – 10x - $2.50

Blue Leg Hermit Crab – 15x - $1.20

Nassarius Snail – 15x - $1.40

Bumble Bee Snail – 4x - $2.50

Cerith Snail – 20x - $1.00

Jumbo Cerith Snail – 1x - $2.50

Astrea Turbo Snail – 15x - $1.20

Green Lettuce Nudibranch – 1x - $6.50

Emerald Crab – 1x - $3.75

Invertebrate(s):

Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp – 2x - $18

Hawaiian Feather Duster – 2x - $10

Electric Flame Scallop – 5x - $20

Coral(s):

Pom-Pom Xenia - $30

Euphilya - $32

Yellow Colony Polyp - $19

Starburst Polyp - $25

Bubble Coral - $27

Hairy Mushroom - $20

Devil’s Hand Leather - $20

Pipe Organ Coral - $60

Colony Polyp – 3x - $20

Candy Cane Coral - $30

Tube Coral - $35

Toadstool Mushroom Leather - $40

Pagoda Coral - $28

[dasstheboss]

Come on? No one? I know there are some smart people there

[Jefe12234]

I'm in the process of setting up a 54g corner. The 150w light you're planning will work for the corals you listed. But if you want to keep more light demanding corals (SPS, etc), then you could get a 250w pendant for just about the same price. As for the filters, are these going to hang on the back of the display tank? If they hang out too far then the tank is going to stick out that much further from the wall which might look a bit awkward with a corner tank. This is the reason I went with the reef ready version with a sump. I would forget most of the supplements (especially the trace element stuff) and just buy or make a 2-part calcium and alkalinity supplement. Judging from the dechlorinator on your list, I guess you'll be using tapwater. This may work fine if you have good tapwater, but many people are not so lucky and end up getting an RO/DI unit to eliminate algae problems. The animals all look fine except I think a tang deserves more space than a 54g. I've never kept one though, so I can't say for sure. Also, do you have seven timers on your list? What could you possibly need all those for? Oh, and I would get some bigger powerheads. 172gph is not much in a 54g. The new Hydor Koralias are supposed to be pretty good and fairly cheap for the amount of water they move.

 

Ok, I think that's about it.

[dasstheboss]

Thanks for the reply and i have several things to clarify:

 

I am going ot get two powerheads so its like 350GPH, and with the emperor, its like 750, so i dont think i will have a problem there. But you might have more experience so you can fill in.

 

I was quite skeptical on the blue tang as it is not only ig, it is easily suseptible to disease, i just cant find another fish like it that's blue and all, maybe another idea would help here...what fish do you think can replace it?

 

With a 250W pendant, could i possile "burn" some of the lesser demanding corals like mushrooms and xenia? Also, i didnt like the idea of drilling through my wall but if i NEED to, tell me so i can do it.

 

I might revert to RO/DO water from my lfs that i can buy, this will trick me into thinking its cheaper this way...

 

And btw, i didnt know why i put down 7 timers for, must have been high or something...

 

Anyways thanks for the input, i was actually more worried about overstocking this tank but it doesnt see a big concern to you, so it shouldnt to me either

[Jefe12234]

Well, your flow rate will be fairly low, but it's probably alright for the corals your planning. 750gph on a 54g tank is about a 14x turnover rate which is fine for most soft corals and fish. My 54g will probably have a similar turnover rate because it's going to be a lagoon tank for seahorses and soft corals. A lot of people shoot for higher flow rates which are more beneficial for stony corals, esp SPS corals. My reef tank for instance has about 2350gph in a 40g tank.

 

As for your fish, I'm not really sure what else to suggest. Sometimes I like to go on http://www.liveaquaria.com/ and look for fish because they have a large selection of commonly available fish with quite a bit of info on them.

 

A 250w pendant will not burn any corals as long as you acclimate them properly. I usually start new corals on the bottom sides of my tank and gradually move them closer to the light. The only downside to a pendant is you need something to hang it from ( the ceiling, a shelf, or a canopy).

 

And by drilling, I meant that most larger tanks including the 54g corner come in two versions. A standard version, and the reef ready version which has an overflow and holes drilled in the bottom. This way you can put a sump in the stand and run pipes into it from underneath the tank. Then all your equipment is in the sump instead of hanging off the back of your tank. It just depends on how you want to manage your equipment.

 

And the RO/DI is a little expensive initially, but cheaper in the long run. I think my replacement filters cost about $50 per year. I might make about 1000 gallons of water per year which means it costs me 5 cents per gallon. I think most places charge around 30 cents to a dollar per gallon. But if you don't use a lot of water then it may be cost effective to just buy it.

 

Good luck with everything.

[coral_addict]

I think everyone left out the portion where a single MH light will only provide a good 24" of light coverage. He will need at least 2 MH light to provide the light coverage for the length of that tank.

[dasstheboss]

I WANT some places where the lights dont get to for shady parts, althought these parts wotn be that big, considering the tank is only so big. I wanted some ther type of light but nothing seems to fit on top of a corner tank except a pendant.. and i hate pendants, not that i question their effectiveness, i just dont want to go through the hassle of drilling my cieling. If some type of PC or Hang on fixture would be good for a corner let me know since the MH 150W isnt much and i know but i cant find anything bigger on a hang-on tank.

[snommisbor]

I have 2 Emperor 400's on my 75 and they dont stick out too bad but I think with your configuation you wont have anywhere to clip you MH. Which I have that same light on my 12NC. I think they make a 250W as well that clips on back of tank.

 

Are you set on a corner tank only reason I am asking is because although cool looking you do limit yourself to certain things you can do. And you have a lot of stuff you want to put on the back of your tank that I dont think will fit. I have the SeaClone 150 too. I wanted the Remora C Pro but it was too big to put on my 75. But the SeaClone is working for me it is pulling out black stuff everyday so I am happy with it. But a Emp 400 Bio Wheel 16 inches, Sea Clone 6 inches, MH Light 4 or 5 inches (I am sitting around looking so these are guesses) So 30+ inches of stuff on the back of a tank that is I bet not that wide.

 

Also I take it you may be getting some this stuff from Petco online. Why not go with the MaxJet 1200's or 900's they have a higher gph rating and I have never seen a bad review with them. I have 3 1200's 1 will come with your Sea Clone anyway so I like my pumps to all match. Just a personal opinion.

[dasstheboss]

Thanks for your input, but i dont think i will be hanging most of it on the back, i might get a RR one and have a sump with everything.

I saw a 36 Corner that was RR, and I might go with that, everything would seem perfect on that, then the only thing i would need ot clip would be the MH and LED.

And btw could you pls. link me to a 250W HOB halide fixture?

Are you sure aqualight makes one like that?

[fewskillz]

I think everyone left out the portion where a single MH light will only provide a good 24" of light coverage. He will need at least 2 MH light to provide the light coverage for the length of that tank.

 

a 54 corner is not a very long tank. If you think of it as a 1/4 of a circle, the circle has a 27" radius. It's 39" from front corner to front corner, but a 36" light won't fit. 24" of coverage is perfect for a softy filled 54 corner.

 

I'm moving all of my stuff from my 46 bowfront to a reef ready 54 corner next tuesday, so I'll give my opinions after that.

[dasstheboss]

If i were to move to a 50G breeder since its cheaper and easier to scape and have things hang on, will this lighting do?:

 

http://www.hellolights.com/361xhqimeha21.html

 

I would like some places that are shady so i can put my lower light corals in there like the mushrooms and all.

[fewskillz]

Yes, that light would be awesome over a 50b.

 

Got the RR 54 corner setup and I love it. Now I just have to decide on my final lighting. Right now I just have all of my extra light fixtures sitting on the tank. Will post pics when everything settles and I get the first temporarily-permanent aquascape finished.

[AMichael]

Might want to ditch the Electric Flame Scallop – 5x - $20 and save yourself some trouble as they have a very poor track record.

[dasstheboss]

Yeah, im not going to get the scallops. I will for fish include only a Blackfoot Lionfish.

[Sea Slug]

Here is mine 5+ years running , 150 watt MH , Coralife Aqualite Pro 24" .

[Choadmeyer]

Definitly get the 250w upgrade. It will initially be expensive but totally worth it from what I've heard. That's what I plan to run on my 29g, so I'd think you'll need at least that much.