Our Aquapod Turbid Adventure SPS/LPS

[Angelo99]

pics of setup

 

new livestock pics:

RBTA

purple acro

bad pic of pink/green birdsnest

unknown acro

yellow watchman goby

pink pocillopora

clown goby

valida

updates:

this little tough acro January to now healing

bali slimer feb and march

i love these blues

acro crab

 

angle shots:

[danktank]

beautiful tank!

[Angelo99]

thanks danktank, I'm working hard to keep everyone happy. I've put some chaeto in the main tank to combat some hair algae as the cuc cleans them. I think I need more hermits though.

 

here's some pics of new additions under 10k and supplemental actinic

does anyone think the red/green might be a red planet? i got it for $15

heres the green torch

[Angelo99]

before and afters:

too bad this stag is brown, maybe a future change to 14k will change that

purple monti turning pink to purple, 20k to 10k light

why is this sunset monti turning purple? grrr...

galaxea growing fast near edge

blue stag getting ready to branch, yay!

about to frag a piece of this

one of the only pieces I have that is more than 1 color...that is about to change

here's my new addition, sold to me as a strawberry polyp monti for $15

here's a shot of the frag rack after fragging the purple monti and moving other frags that I plan to sell back to LFS.

no protein skimming, so some hair algae in certain parts of tank..i've been feeding less, and also put some chaeto in main tank to compete with hair algae with nutrient export.

I plan to change my current 10k bulb to a phoenix 14k in a couple months. hopefully, i'm happy with growth by that time and can focus on bringing the best colors to corals.

btw if anyone is in NJ and needs chaeto...shoot me a pm b/c I have to trim some chaeto in my compartment refugium.

[skh]

Nice tank Angelo! How does that 24" outer orbit fixture fit on the aquapod? Is there a significant overhang on either side? I'm thinking about getting the same setup for my AP24 but am not sure how it would fit.

[Angelo99]

Nice tank Angelo! How does that 24" outer orbit fixture fit on the aquapod? Is there a significant overhang on either side? I'm thinking about getting the same setup for my AP24 but am not sure how it would fit.

 

thanks skh

there is a 2" overhang on both sides, plus both t5's on each side are directly overhead the compartments or the last 2" of the front of the tank. However, the t5 reflectors are pretty good b/c they light up the tank pretty nice after the metal halides go off.

Pros - hqi+t5 all in one, can use 1 bulb as 6.7k or 10k for cheato in back compartment, use t5's for viewing purpose and halide bulb for growth, can use for future tank upgrade, can wire icecap 660 w/ bulbs to overdrive unit, nice made unit

Cons- 2" overhang on both sides is unsightly to some people

fyi - it might look better hung, but not an option with cat...maybe no heat issues if hung. i'd change the 420nm current bulbs to better brighter actinics

heres a pic

[skh]

That's definitely a beefy light, but you can't argue with the awesome results you're getting. 250W is a lot of juice but the corals are obviously digging it.

[SmittyCoco]

You do have a nice tank there ! How does the gcg get along with your sps ? Does he nip at all?

[Angelo99]

thanks smittycoco,

I have never seen the gcg nip at any corals, but I only get to see the tank for a few hours. my guess is that he does nip at the corals b/c I only feed fish every couple days, and i see every now and then a polyp here or two that looks missing or disturbed..but not enough to drive anyones health down. If I were to do it again, I wouldn't buy him.

[Angelo99]

2new additions, green frogspawn, pink zoos...great part is i only paid for the frogspawn, i traded my galaxea and brown/green chalice and some sps frags for store credit.

a pic of some of the frags I traded, minus the orange monti i'm growing

 

What are these spots on the snail? they are currently on several snails and on some LR...I did witness my astrea snails release some sperm a couple weeks back..are these babies? please id

 

look at this sweeper tentacle from the brain...it must have traveled 2" to that purple tip acro

 

our little kitty has the life

 

last, I'm tired of this stock 10k current bulb...it looks too yellow. I can't wait til after vacation so I can splurge on a 14k phoenix or 20k helios..as it is, you can barely enjoy the green acro at the top. I think the 20k or 14k will make things pop and color up more, as long as I keep up with the water .

ph 8.2, NO3 undetectable by api, kh 9-10, salinity 1.025, fluval carbon...dosing tech ca, reef builder in infusion pump top off, essential elements/vitamins/amino acids 2x weekly..and I have to frag a monti confusa/spongides as it's growing fast and about to hit my purple monti on 1 end and the green acro on the other so wish me luck hehe...and yay for getting rid of the 1/2 frag rack...only 1 more to go, i just have to get my butt moving on placing the frags on the rock

[Angelo99]

Okay, we're back from vacation at Cape May NJ, I'm a pessimist and I've been nervous on what I'm about to walk into...so I walk into the door and...no water on the floor, and I look toward my tank and I still have a decent reef tank!

Whew, Murphy's Law missed me on this trip! Thank you flexiflo companion pump for being a dependable ato! Calcium was at 380, nitrates ~0, and dkh at 8 when I came back. I lost half of a tenius-like acro frag b/c a turbo snail must have knocked it off the frag rack...between a brain coral and an acro, the brain wins without any damage.

I've made some big changes...I traded in 1/2 my tricolor frags, some of my lime green acro, my green chalice, and galaxea. The acros were bigger colonies and didn't mesh well with my mostly frag acros, the galaxea was just too aggressive (had over 2" sweepers for a 2x2 frag), and the chalice is not representative of the colors I am now ready to spend. I've added a frogspawn before vacation, and he turned from a dark green to a light green color. My purple rim cap has been bothered by some hair algae. My blue stag has continued it's base very slow STN as seen from the pic below...not sure on the cause. I'm about to buy a Phoenix 14k bulb.... And enjoy the pics below of the dolphins from a boat at Cape May.

Tank after getting back from Vaca

blue stag base STN from the growing like mad monti cofusa/spongides

Trio of Dolphins wake surfing

Single Dolphin wake surfing

Dolphin family

[Angelo99]

can't wait to see the tank again after 7 days gone. here's a couple growth pics. blue tort slower grower

 

growth shots 4 months

[colgan10]

i can already tell your colors of the sps are starting to look better and really starting to pop mine did the same when i added a 250 keep up the good work

[Angelo99]

Thanks Colgan!

 

I definitely want the colors to pop more, so I ordered the EVC 20K bulb today! It's one of the highest par 250w 20k bulbs, so I think it will work out. The colors should pop more, and growth should still be good since water parameters are stable and I still have 250w, albeit going to be 20k, over this shallow tank. I decided not to get the phoenix due to some complaints of having the blue wash out some colors. I definitely like the color of the xm 20k and how it enhanced the colors when I had a 150w mh. The LPS should be happier with less par lol.

 

I've only been home once a week the past 2 weeks to feed the fish/corals, fill up my ato, and add Ca/Alk, aminos, trace elements. I hope the next 2 weeks goes like the first 2.

[colgan10]

yea i actually want to go to a bluer spectrum, right now i just have a cheap 10k bulb in there right now w/ actinic supplement. it came with the fixture, my ballast is a 250watt icecap ballast and i love it. I would love to frag any of my corals anytime and trade some, just let me know. You will have to let me know what you think about that new 20k you are getting i'm going to have to decide between a 20k or 14k? haven't made up my mind yet

[Angelo99]

Great news: EVC 20k bulbs will be installed tomorrow when I finally get home.

Bad news: Will be moving the tank in a month and a half ..time to prepare. Wish I had the loot to upgrade to a 50 gallon short cube diy aio in that time..since I'll be moving the tank.

 

Here's the last pics of the tank before the 20k light I've always wanted. Crossing my fingers for an even more colorful future for the corals. pics not the greatest imo

 

t5 actinics only 1 marine glo, 2 460nm current, 1 10k current

 

rest of pics stock 10k

the maze brain totally destroyed that coral in front of it..good thing I have a healthy growing identical one in front of that...using the dead coral as a shield from those long @ss sweepers.

 

last, colgan, just let me know if you like any corals and i'll frag em. I'll let you know how I this new bulb goes. I'm like a kid waiting for christmas.

[Angelo99]

excuse the camera phone, here it is with evc 20k 5 mins after install!

 

Pics don't do it justice, previous pics were from p&s or SLR camera. I love the blue/violet color! It makes the greens, yellow, and my RBTA stand out! can't wait for the final color after burn in

[Angelo99]

I love the EVC 20k bulbs!!! It gives a crisp bright violet color, I think these pictures show more of a dullish blue, but I can't get wysiwyg even after messing with all sorts of white balances.

 

[Jacobnano]

Wow that tank is packed! And yea the new bulb looks much better. I love all those corals, they look awesome.

[music10v3r]

man thats a AHMAZING tank!!!! how old is it?

[Angelo99]

Thanks for the kind words. It is 8 months old, and a great adventure so far.

 

for all those who want a maze brain coral, it is aggressive with long @ss sweeper tentacles.

[reefboy]

Crisp baby!!!!!!!Thats what I'm talkin about. How do the Mhs compare to the t5s. I have 4-24w t5s & havent been abale to get that crisp,realistic, & deep coloration Ive been lookin for. I have a Mh/t5 fixture on the way ( with radium 20ks).

 

Ron

[Angelo99]

I think you'll be happy with the radiums, from the feedback I've heard from people. I would have gotten the same bulb if they made one for 250w de. The t5's I have are good for sunset/sunrise, is nice for viewing time when I had a 10k de bulb, and made the tank viewable when the 10k bulb shifted to yellow..but I agree it's harder to get the color you want from 4 t5's. I think the 6 bulb combo is better to fine tune...2nd to mh and t5

 

the outer orbit is a magnetic ballast, so i think the violet color comes from being over driven. what type of ballast does your new fixture come with? I want to see pics when you set up the new light

[reefboy]

My fixture is a 36" outer orbit pro 150wx2/ 4-t5s

I recieved my radiums today & popped them in to see the difference. Much whiter than I expected, but awesome just the same. Much better color in every single coral that I have ( & I currently run 4-24w t5s, #3 Ati Blue plus , #1 kz New generation ). Im looking @ 2 blue pluses right now & The colors still pop more with the halides on alone. I am having a starphire 36" 18" 20" eurobraced tank built from Miracles....will post pics went its up & running.

 

Ron

[Angelo99]

Unfortunately due to external OCD issues, everything in this tank must go.

 

All equipment and livestock (hardware, live rock, fishes, corals, inverts) for $300 firm. Yes thats the tank, light, canister filter, scwd...everything!

 

or

 

All livestock and no hardware $150 firm.

 

Also, I have a 1 week window to sell else you can look at nearby lfs for the livestock b/c all unsold livestock will be donated.

 

No Shipping. Just for pickup in lawrenceville, nj. Please look at page 1 for list of everything. ask me any questions. OBO's on individual livestock, first come is first served.

 

Just as the tank was peaking...what a bummer. i'm sad.