16Gal Biorb Life 60 converting to Marine

[KevKapawski]

any recent pics kev,anyone else

 

'Max Power'

 

Your tank looks good. Good choice with the sand and your LR looks good quality, plenty of holes and loads of coraline.

 

As for stocking the tank, all I would advise is no more than 3 to 4 fish for the 60ltr tank. certainley no tangs ect or fish that grow bigger than 3-4". The Royal Grammar is an amazing fish, next on my list, just waiting for it to arrive in my LFS. They are quite lively fish and get along with most if not all fish. Only problem is they have huge mouths and if they get peckish could eat a small shrimp ie Sexy SDhrimp in one

 

Crabs...most will advise killing or throwing a crab hitchiker away. I have three and are supposed to be the most aggressive type, but none have ever bothered anything in my tank. They even hide from my Banggai Cardinal So I would just advise keeping an eye on it.

 

CUC, I would suggest 2x Cleaner Shrimp, 2x Turbo Snails, 2x Hermit Crabs, and maybe a pair of Sexy Shrimp. This is what I have and there is plenty of Algae and detrious to keep them all happy. Once you water parametres are stable and you have had an ammonia spike(cycle) then I would just add the lot. CUC let of very little ammonia. the only worry when adding CUC is when the tank is new, as there is very little alge or detrius for the Snails, Crabs and Shrimp to eat. I would suggest getting a small handful of algae of eBay(about £3). this will absorb ammonia and other toxins from your water and will also offer a good food source for both fish and CUC.

 

Also, a good tip is to 'Google' anything your thinking of buying for your tank. this will give you all the info you need to assist you in deciding whats right for you and your tank.

 

I will add some pic's and updates tonight when I get home

 

Good luck mate and keep updating on this thread.

[brandon429]

using an airstone in a reef tank is so incredibly helpful if you can catch, and manage, the salt creep. If you don't have salt creep issues, having constant air refreshment via airstones is much more healthier, chemically and physically, than not, on several levels of reason. woot woot for the airstone.

B

[KevKapawski]

using an airstone in a reef tank is so incredibly helpful if you can catch, and manage, the salt creep. If you don't have salt creep issues, having constant air refreshment via airstones is much more healthier, chemically and physically, than not, on several levels of reason. woot woot for the airstone.

B

 

Brandon,

 

I agree that airstones are a good idea, especially for airating the water...

But, I can assume from your love of airstones that you are not a biOrb Life owner!?

 

The reason for the removal of the airstone is that it gets blocked over time, causing a reduction or even a total loss of air to the tank. It is difficult to change when these tanks are empty and almost impossible to change one once stocked with fish, sand and rock.

 

If you look carefully, Live Rock and small rubble frags have been dropped down the air tube, this breaks up the larger bubbles and gives all the airation you need.

 

Thanks for your input mate and nice tank too

[SparksReef]

so, you are using the stock led light? what corals are you keeping under them? how long have you had them? and how healthy do they look? im thinking about doing this with my biube

[KevKapawski]

so, you are using the stock led light? what corals are you keeping under them? how long have you had them? and how healthy do they look?

 

1.Using the standard biOrb ILED's and have done since setup in Nov 2009

2.Corals are as follows: Mushroom corals x15, green Polyps x4, Pulsing Xenia x4. Also have a few white and black small sponges growing of some LR

3.all have been in tank for approximately 6-8months.

4. They all look pretty healty. growing well and new Mushrooms have spawned on LR.

 

With the standard ILED I would suggest anything that requires moderate to high amounts of light should be placed at top of tank, approximately 5" from the light. this way you will have good light. any deeper and the light is not strong enought.

 

Good look with your setup

 

(also, ensure you set your ILED timer to 14hours not 8 if you decided on keeping any soft corals)

[SolInvictus]

now following this thread. very curious to see how you all are doing.

 

To be honest I never thought these were well suited to salt water, but I am always happy to be shown otherwise. i respect you ingenuity as it seems to be paying off rather well.

 

p.s. would love some new FTS when you can get around to it.

[KevKapawski]

now following this thread. very curious to see how you all are doing.

 

To be honest I never thought these were well suited to salt water, but I am always happy to be shown otherwise. i respect you ingenuity as it seems to be paying off rather well.

 

p.s. would love some new FTS when you can get around to it.

 

Thanks m8,

 

Some pics will arrive tomorrow as I have a new addition to my tank! a young 2" Royal Grammar, yet to name it.

Also, I have bought a Leather Coral.

 

[KevKapawski]

Bad news is: My tank scape has changed and my beloved air tube has been snapped off!

Good news: The scape looks excellent, and the air tube was hated by most of you anyway

 

Here is what I did,

 

Last week I bought a new fish, a young 2" Royal Gramma called 'Purlow'... As my scape didnt give very many hiding places, I decided yesterday afternoon to add another 2 pieces of LR and change my scape to give my fish some space they can call their own.

 

I added a pint glass of LS from my other tank, then began removing all the LR into my backup tank. I then broke off my air tube at the base leaving about 2cm of tube coming from the filter housing...dont ask why but it just felt like it was getting in the way. I then took an empty large tube worm shell shaped like a piece of dog crap and plugged the hole. The air now comes throught at irregular intervals and fine air bubbles come throught the sides at a constant flow. IMHO it looks pretty cool

 

As I have a narrow but tall tank, I decided to use its height and create a reef wall up one corner of the tank.

 

I then built the reef wall and ensured all the rocks were secure, placing my 'K1' and heater down the back to stop dead spots and circulate the water from behind the rocks. The rock wall is hollow with loads of spaces and looks like there is more rock in the tank than there actually is. I think there is about 7kg in plus a few small coral pieces and then about 1kg of LS. I then added some rubble to the base for my Jawfish and then placed various dead corals to create a reef look. Also, I bought a new Toadstool Leather Coral and already had various Mushroom Corals, Polys and Pulsing Xenia... Altogether its created this:

[mdannyg]

that looks great! very unique.

[KevKapawski]

that looks great! very unique.

Thanks mate! just the response I was looking for

To be honest it was more luck than delibrate...it just looked good at first attempt.

 

Your tank is amazing, just had a look- WOW!!!

[KevKapawski]

Update

 

All still same as last post above, the only difference is I added a pair of 1-1.5" (percula clown's) and attached a new 24" high sea background and external digital thermometre.

 

Parametres still stable...Nitrates on the seventh day (my weekly water change) shows=15 to 25ppm and nitrite & ammonia=zero

 

Already thinking of buying a Red Sea MAX 130 as im past my stocking level and starting to get bored of the weekly water changes. Thought about a sump to stretch the maintenance out, but dont think it will be worth the effort.

Although, Im going on holiday/vacation for 14 days soon and im a little worried as I still dont have a reliable person to feed and water change my tank

 

Not got recent pic to hand so will give you a link to my video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1g4HKVjIw1M

 

Any suggestions or constructive advice?

[BigBad82]

You're in a tough spot mate. I would cut back on feeding a few days prior to your holiday then do a water change right before you go away and again just get whoever it is to feed sparingly every 2 - 3 days. Surely it could maybe go 2 weeks without a water change?! how often do you normally have to top off and how much?

[mdannyg]

i think you'll be ok without a water change for 2 weeks. but i would always plan on doing a water change once a week normally, even if you upgrade to a larger tank.

[KevKapawski]

You're in a tough spot mate. I would cut back on feeding a few days prior to your holiday then do a water change right before you go away and again just get whoever it is to feed sparingly every 2 - 3 days. Surely it could maybe go 2 weeks without a water change?! how often do you normally have to top off and how much?

Thanks pet!

I dont usually have to top off as there is almost no evapouration. I do a 15% water change every seven days, sometimes on the tenth day depending on the weather.

I have since found a reliable person to do a water change on the tenth day and feed the tank every other day. My only worry now is the fact I cant keep an eye on things for two weeks

 

i think you'll be ok without a water change for 2 weeks. but i would always plan on doing a water change once a week normally, even if you upgrade to a larger tank.

Thanks, that was my only motivation for the upgrade to be honest...probably going to upgrade to the RSM 130 to give my fish some more leg room, but will probably be xmas time before I will get permission.

 

Thanks for the input chaps...

[BigBad82]

Doesn't it suck that us reefers need permission from the missus!! I try and use the "it's for the kids" angle but she's not buying it as i'm after a NanoCube 28g CF Quad.

[KevKapawski]

Doesn't it suck that us reefers need permission from the missus!! I try and use the "it's for the kids" angle but she's not buying it as i'm after a NanoCube 28g CF Quad.

 

I feel you, its been like that since day one for me! thanks to the film 'Nemo' I managed to convince her it would look nice...They should feel lucky that we have a hobby in doors and not out on the lash every night!

 

Anyway, things wont change

[BigBad82]

haha mint, so true. Looking forward to your RSM130 thread whenever that happens. Enjoy your holiday mate.

[wsuran]

STEP TWO

 

Due to the fish I want and my attempt to make it as natural as possible I will be trying to get some Live Rock and some Live Sand in there but still manage to keep the BiOrb Marine Filter setup...

 

Going to be hard but here is my plans so far. I am removing the ceramic media(stones), placing a modified plastic bowl around the filter to block the sand but still keep some Ceramic Media. (See below)

 

This will also allow the water to be sucked bown through the LR that will be positioned on and around the bowl of Ceramic Media and eventually into the Marine Filter.

 

 

Hi there! How did you get the bowl to fit around the filter base ( where it's attached at the base of the tank )? did you cut a hole in the bottom of the bowl and cut a slit in the side of the bowl and then fit it around it? any help would be greatly appreciated as i'm trying to do the same thing to the same tank. Thanks in advance! Sincerely, William

[KevKapawski]

Hi there! How did you get the bowl to fit around the filter base ( where it's attached at the base of the tank )? did you cut a hole in the bottom of the bowl and cut a slit in the side of the bowl and then fit it around it? any help would be greatly appreciated as i'm trying to do the same thing to the same tank. Thanks in advance! Sincerely, William

 

If you already have water in tank then its a little harder...

 

Basically you need to make sure you cut the bowl as straight as possible to allow it to sit on the bottom of the tank without any gaps. I didnt use any putty or glue to secure it, all I did was place the bowl around filter then bought a bag of larger grain sand and some ceramic media and placed that on the base of tank, then the finer sand about 2cm off the base of tank. I then put rubble and ceramic media in the bowl. This keeps the the water flowing throught and gives you a base to put rock on.

 

Hope this helps and good luck!

[wsuran]

If you already have water in tank then its a little harder...

 

Basically you need to make sure you cut the bowl as straight as possible to allow it to sit on the bottom of the tank without any gaps. I didnt use any putty or glue to secure it, all I did was place the bowl around filter then bought a bag of larger grain sand and some ceramic media and placed that on the base of tank, then the finer sand about 2cm off the base of tank. I then put rubble and ceramic media in the bowl. This keeps the the water flowing throught and gives you a base to put rock on.

 

Hope this helps and good luck!

 

Ahhhh! now it makes sense...I had thought you were using the bottom half of the bowl, not the top. Thanks so much for getting back to me! the tank is brand new and has no water or anything so it should be easier. BTW, i love your tank. This will be my first salt water tank since endlessly staring at my fathers as a kid. Your thread here has a lot of great info that I am feeling much more informed after reading through it. Thanks again, William

[KevKapawski]

Ahhhh! now it makes sense.... Thanks again, William

 

No problems mate...will message a very useful bite size 'marine tank setup guide' I put together recently.

Keep me posted on progress and possibly some pics if you get time. You can even continue on this thread as I am pretty much done with my thread now!

[wsuran]

Hey thanks so much for the quick set up guide....yours is much more clear/concise than the many others that have been making me slightly dizzy. I'll definitely keep you updated with my progress. My girlfriend and I can't wait to get it goin', but I am doing my best to exercise patience and restraint I'm aware that this will take some time to get it looking as nice as yours and the others on this post. Best regards from Brooklyn, NY!

[wsuran]

No problems mate...will message a very useful bite size 'marine tank setup guide' I put together recently.

Keep me posted on progress and possibly some pics if you get time. You can even continue on this thread as I am pretty much done with my thread now!

Hey again,

 

I was able to get my bowl cut and fitted around the filter...will be filling it up and getting all my levels correct next. One question: Did you continue to use the stock filter cartridge ( round sponge thingy ) with a marine setup or is there a different one required for salt water? Thanks in advance for your time. Sincerely, WIlliam

[KevKapawski]

One question: Did you continue to use the stock filter cartridge or is there a different one required for salt water?

At first I started using the biOrb marine service cartidges and binned the filter sponge as sponges just clog up with salt and dont work as marine. I have since learnt that the marine cartridges are only needed if you are not using Live Rock or Live Sand in your tank and going for the empty tank look and only keeping fish. Personally I would save yourself some money and just remove the sponge and leave it empty, or if you can still access the filter base once you have all you rock in and setup, then I would put a bag of activated carbon in there(Google the benefits and decide for yourself)...

 

Also, one tip would be to remove the airstone from base and just allow the larger bubbles throught. Reason I say this is it gets clogged after about 5 months and will need replacing. plus, if you intend on putting Live Rock rubble and ceramic medion down air tube then you will end up with the finer bubbles anyhow.

 

These are just my preferences, but they do help make things simple in the long run.

 

Good Luck

[BigBad82]

Guys, can I just chip in here with a suggestion because I had a BiUbe before my current tank. Why not buy a roll of filter floss like this http://www.charterhouse-aquatics.co.uk/cat...oss-p-3074.html and use the stock filter sponge as a template to cut the floss to size to fit (you could prob cut around 16 min from that roll). This way i'm guessing you could probably get 2 - 3 months worth out of that one pack based on replacing it every 3 days, i'm finding the same filter floss in my HOB filter is lasting around 5 - 6 days before I need to get rid. Also this way you're not going to be creating nitrate factory and it's gonna be keeping your water really polished. This is all depending on you being able to access it like KevKapawski suggested.