My new 180 SPS build, in the grand scheme of things, it is still a nano

[filefish949]

I recently lowered the pillars, originally they went almost to the top of the tank and even though I loved the effect, that was a LOT of real estate that I was giving up,

 

if you click on the FTS photo, it will give your a bigger picture which you can click on for a bigger one yet. you can see the shelf rock on the top 2 layers of the 2nd pillar from the left, I drilled a bunch of 3/8" holes in them so that they hold frag plugs

[lakshwadeep]

Beautiful setup that isn't the standard and often ugly "rock wall" or "pile of rocks" formation.

[filefish949]

Beautiful setup that isn't the standard and often ugly "rock wall" or "pile of rocks" formation.

 

TY, it was actually a bit better, but this is post "quake-scaping" i was trying to do something between the "pile of rocks" and the "empty tank" look,

 

I should do a top down FTS

[Pili]

thanks, give it a year ot two dang I was looking at your flicker account and you have mad photo skills

 

lol thanks, just takes a lot of patience and some decent equipment.

[filefish949]

here are a few newer photos

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

 

By filefish

[SeeDemTails]

Nice pics, that confusa is pretty sweet.

[Sexy Shrimp]

Gorge pics! I like number 4 best - dont have a clue what it is though!

[TheNorthernLight]

The only thing I would plan for, is for your overflow cup, Figure out a way to put a float valve on it. I've had my overflow up... overflow... which sucks, 'cause it stinks and stains badly. That's mainly if you go away for more then a few days, rather have it backup into the collection cup and back into the sump, then onto your floor. The best idea I've heard is drill another L angled elbow near the top of the collection cup, and put a float (even something like a ping-pong ball), in the capture cup. If it backs up, it fills the collection cup, if it gets near full, it spills into the sump, no mess, no worries.

 

Just an idea.

 

Oh and... if you have all that equipment, and you still use cheap hydrometer for measuring??? Trust me, they are NO WHERE NEAR as accurate as a good quality prism hydrometer.

end of suggestions...

 

Positive: Your tank kicks friggin a$$ ! There simply is no other word for it. I am planning a 120 gallon now (apartment building, no room for a tank longer then 48"... ) So seeing your thread is inspiring.

 

Cheers,

 

Spyrule

[filefish949]

Gorge pics! I like number 4 best - don't have a clue what it is though!

 

thanks, that is what I call a Christmas chalice, I am sure it has some LE name, but I cut 2 frags from it and now I am just going to let it grow

 

Nice pics, that confusa is pretty sweet.

 

funny thing about 6 that confucius, I got it at a swap, i was real tired and just set it there, about a week later I found the perfect place for it, but it said hell no, I am encrusted here, it is doing well with a lot of light

 

The only thing I would plan for, is for your overflow cup, ~snip~

 

Oh and... if you have all that equipment, and you still use cheap hydrometer for measuring??? Trust me, they are NO WHERE NEAR as accurate as a good quality prism hydrometer.

end of suggestions...

 

Positive: Your tank kicks friggin a$$ ! There simply is no other word for it. I am planning a 120 gallon now (apartment building, no room for a tank longer then 48"... ) So seeing your thread is inspiring.

 

Cheers,

 

Spyrule

 

yes, the 2 liter collector is a problem, more than once it has overflowed due to skimmer spasms, new filter sock, aquamend, etc, other than that it fills every week like clockwork, wed the trash comes, that is the day i put a new bottle. we will be going to hawaii for a few weeks soon and I guess I will have to get a tank sitter. i built a curb along the back of the stand about 1 1/2 inch high, the whole stand is urethane / silicone and holds about 5 gallons of water before any hits the floor.

 

I may buy another refracto, but not a cheep one, I get pretty good results with my hydrometer

 

now I am off to be banned, see you all in a month

[brshriver]

Still looking great. I just started putting together a 210 (same footprint as the 180 only a 30 inches tall). I am looking to do something very similar to what you are doing. It all has to fit under the stand and be pretty automated. Since it is in the living room and there is a finished area of the basement beneath it, everything has to fit in that stand space - fuge, sump, skimmer, ca reactor, etc... just like yours. I'll be reading and re-reading your thread for ideas! My 110 in the basement has the luxuray of running equipment in the furnace room. Not so on this one.

 

Any tips on the acrylic rod stacks? That is more or less what I wanted to try. Do you think acrylic is better than PVC for that? Any problems with the rock cracking and crumbling during the drilling? Did you pre-drill frag plug holes in the rocks?

 

How 'bout those tangs? Any fighting issues in the 180 yet? Seems like a potentially caustic mix with the purple and the sohal. I am thinking of a naso and achilles for mine. Plus maybe a powder blue or sohal.

 

Keep up the good work and nice eye candy updates! We enjoy them!

[Cali-girl]

File

 

This tank is absolutly beautiful!! I love the pillars as well as the mountain on the other side instead of being a mirrored effect. If i set up a bigger tank, i'll have to use yours as inspiration!

 

by the way! the frags i got from you at the swap are growing like crazy!! my clown is hosting the now giant hairy mushroom

[The Propagator]

Lukeen guud mane !!!!

[filefish949]

thanks all, I have been neglecting this thread. I have been struggling with ALK problems in my tank and have lost several large caps, the purple rimmed green cap and most of my 8" 3 leveled Idaho grape, both were grown from 1-2" frags. the heart of the problem was a sometimes faulty SP3000 dosing pump, that combined with stepping up my lighting/growth/demand. the good news is that things have turned up for the last few weeks after 2 months of feeling sick every time I look at my tank

[filefish949]

well I got out the camera today. I had been running 3 tunze 6100s with a aquasurf for flow and was not very happy with the results. many do get good results with that setup, but I decided to give the wavebox a try, I kept 3 6045s and a maxijet, but the bulk of my flow is from the 6212 and I love it, if you have ever been free diving, this is about as close to natural flow as I have seen in a aquarium

 

 

[Rocket]

sweet deal. I like.

[filefish949]

I cleaned up and recalibrate my 2 part dosing pumps today. I am starting out at ~ 20ml of 50% diluted part 1 and part 2, aver a week I will test again and adjust accordingly

 

 

ok a few recent photos

 

 

Here are 3 chalics, the blue with red eyes on top is a real fast grower. I got it about 6 months ago free from a local LFS to try and save. the small red one in the middle was a hitchhiker on a piece of rubble i bought from a local reefer. and the last one is actually a bright lime green, i bought it as a frag and won't be chopping it... I have never seen anything like it

 

here is a blue polyp green cap frag that is coming along nicely. it survived my last tan calamity

 

 

random side shot with everything out of focus

 

 

dark purple acro... super slow grower. I got it as a vrown colony over a year ago and it has not grown much at all

 

 

so so photo of my frag rack, I drilled 3/8" holes in those shelf rocks so they hold frag plugs

 

 

 

I bought this birds nest as a 3" colony over a year ago, it is now about 11" around. the green pocillopora was a hitchhiker I did not know about, it is at least 5" in diameter now and they get along great. when it first popped up, I thought it was a galaxia

 

[BKtomodachi]

Nice growth shots FF. Finally, another person willing to let their corals just grow.

 

I like the frag racks also- wish I had room for real rock racks.

[chriz]

Nicelyy done! and great shots!

[filefish949]

Nice growth shots FF. Finally, another person willing to let their corals just grow.

 

I like the frag racks also- wish I had room for real rock racks.

 

TY I only have one tank and i don't want a bunch of frag racks in it..

 

think I will be updating this thread more, I just picked up a new skimmer (well new to me)

 

WOOT!

 

[yellowslayer13]

nice you a balla

[Kraylen]

Holy crap I had no idea.

[GrandpaFeathers]

Nice!

[PSYS]

Wow.... tank looks amazing!! I love the purple acro...

[filefish949]

thanks for all the props but, it may all be over soon as I am very seriously considering adding one of these... a small one but none the less

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ThiefofAlways]

thanks for all the props but, it may all be over soon as I am very seriously considering adding one of these... a small one but none the less

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Firstly, awesome tank, I like how well thought out everything was. Awesome coral as well.

 

A Clown Trigger? Really cool fish to interact with. Does color changes when its hungry and will come right up to you. Kind of aggressive, but you have a large tank. go for it, but getting fish out of a 180 might suck.