Dagon138's 55g Rimless

[dagon138]

Hi guys, so I finally decided to post my tank here.

This is my 1st larger tank, and I went a bit nuts..

My other is a 10g nano at work.

 

The images are thumb-nailed BTW.

 

 

Equipment list

Elos System 70

Mr Aqua 33.6 for Sump

Vertex Illumina SR260 12'

CAD lights Light Stand

Vertex Alpha 170 Skimmer

Tunze 1073.040 Return Pump

Avast Marine MR5 18' Reactor

Vertex Biopellets

Elos Digital ATO

Apex Neptune Controller

3x Ecotech Mp10w w/ Battery Backup

52lbs Live Rock from LFS

CaribSea Dry Aragonite Fiji Pink Reef Sand

 

SUMP

This was on backorder forever, but it fits like it was made for it.

Typical 3 baffle setup: Skimmer/Return/ATO

Decided to experiment with biopellets and didn't put in a Fuge partly due to inadequate space. The skimmer was huge already, and b/c it was rimless I knew I would need a large ATO space. I was expecting way more bubbles than what's actually materialized. Barely Any!

 

 

Cut-up an acrylic trophy thing to make the legs for raising the skimmer.

I now have some live rock under there as well.

 

I have egg grate along the bottom of the tank, and got the rock from a LFS. It's okay quality, and I've since re-arranged it. Also obligatory sand storm picture. I'd say it's about 1 to 1.5 inch depth. That's car tint on the back glass and on the overflow sides.

 

 

Here is my cable management pictures. I've already shorted out that lower ecotech power brick when the skimmer went nuts after the bacterial bloom. I've moved the skimmer away as much as possible, but I need to make a shield or something.

I'd also warn others that the mp10's barely hang-on, but yeah they work. I really just should have just got 2 mp40's.

 

 

 

Live stock

 

Bi-color Blenny

Cleaner shrimp

4 Blue Chromis

Purple Lobster

Purple Firefish

2 Turbo Snails

5 Scarlet Hermits

8+ uhh generic hermits

4 Narcissus snails

 

 

This is probably the 5 or 6th week, and things are going "ok". Tank cycled super quick with the biopellets and MB7, but I'm still getting some Phosphate readings (.54ppm last week). Probably the live rock, and the fact that I've been lazy and haven't been rinsing the food. The Bi-color blenny is my favorite so far, he's getting really freaking fat though. Apparently this somewhat normal for them.

 

I also bought some SPS frags to test the coral waters and the Acro's are hanging on barely. Pocillipora are so easy to care for compared to Acro's. My dKH is also 11 which is too high for ULNS tank, so my goal will be to get down to 7-8 dKH and I'm hoping the SPS does better then.