geezers11 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Hello all, Been mighty impressed with the various postings, reviews and pics of their JBJ 28g LED tanks. So much that I traded in a 7yr old non-drilled freshwater bowfront for credit to get one. Was tempted to make the FW a reefer (especially after I cleaned it up to sell) but wasn't comfortable using an HOB overflow. I already have a 12g DX so was familiar with the setup. Don't worry, plenty of pics to follow. Initial thoughts. Bought the tank from the local lfs (gave me same online pricing!). Upon opening, found several scratches and messy silicon application. Bummed. Being OCD I couldn't stand it. If its gonna get scratched up, I want to be responsible. Also, looked like it had been refurbished as it was wrapped in saran wrap. Not pleased at all. Fortunately, the lfs came through big time and re-ordered the tank. Next one was perfect. This one was wrapped well in factory bag. Now I know the first was a refurb. Kinda cheesy from JBJ rep if you ask me--but maybe he didn't know. Anyway, took it home. Checked for leaks, made sure the lights worked and tackled the free stand. Stand. Not bad for this type. A little narrow for my taste but love the raised height (32 inches). As others have mentioned, several panels were mislabeled; meaning I had to reassemble it. Looks fine where I have it in the corner of the man cave. Will look hard at other's tanks to clean up cords, ballast, etc. Tank. I toyed with buying the BC29 with the wider stance but wanted the LED setup. Am liking the taller tank now. Leaves me lots of room for corals at the top. Glass is nice, the silicon was applied well (no messy drips) and the hood has a solid feel. The back chambers are interesting. Very small for even normal hands to get to. The two pumps work fine and I have them hooked into the included wavemaker while it cycles. One pump is very quiet, the other not so much. Tried wiggling the noisy one but didn't help. Should I send it back for another? Seems from other posts that its a fairly regular issue. We'll see. I'm not ready to upgrade until livestock is added. Added a media basket from Urbaneks (he's a good guy to deal with--he threw in some scrap acrylic to clean back wall). Definitely works better than the smaller stock one. I do recommend shoving some cut filter floss pad behind it to keep it locked in. The flow is good and the tank is very clear. Threw in some liverock and sand (got some existing water from the lfs display tank to speed it along) and might be ready in a week or so (no ammonia and nitrates already!) to slowly add some corals (maybe from existing 12g?). Left all glass and back wall accessible to clean--love how a coraline-free back wall looks. Should help with circulation and dead spots. Might add a Koralia pump or MP10 later if needed. Lighting. Love it. The 2 moonlights are bright enough but not overly so. Great shimmer. Almost purplish. Very cool. The Dusk/Dawn lights are bright, add shimmer and cast an excellent color. Have read some had burnout issues keeping them on too long. Guess I'll find out later as I only have them on at night when I'm home. The LED's are super bright. Bet I don't keep them on longer than 6-8 hrs a day. Never done the SPS bit but looking forward to the adventure. Summary. Would I recommend this tank? So far, YES. I like the clean look, the family likes it, its built well (besides the small back chambers) and the lighting is worthy. For $650 I find this a good buy. More to follow including promised pics. Thanks much. Link to comment
rdahlke1105 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Did you have any issues with building the stand and those stupid little dowels? I ended up having all 6 of mine break at once. Ended up using "L" brackets to put the thing together. Sounds like you are about at the same stage as I am. I ended up having to put in a table shrimp to get my cycle going. What color sand did you end up using? I went with black since the LEDs are so bright. Link to comment
geezers11 Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 The dowels were no worse than others used on this type furniture. Just glad I didn't glue them due to the reassembly. Went with the whiter fine sand. I understand the LED's brightness (do wish they were dimmable) but have seen it in other LED setups and it looks fine. Remember, the overall look should darken up as corals, shadows etc are added. Link to comment
rdahlke1105 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Mine was just a personal preference since my tank is in the living room. Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.