Unique reef ideas

[steely185]

Just a conversation starter here but if you could do something new with your reef or a unique style of reef what would it be? Unique is harder to find. NPS, SPS dominant, and LPS dominant are all becoming common. What would you do?

 

If I could do another tank it would be a rimless cube specializing in deepwater sps corals.

[21093r53]

Just a conversation starter here but if you could do something new with your reef or a unique style of reef what would it be? Unique is harder to find. NPS, SPS dominant, and LPS dominant are all becoming common. What would you do?

 

If I could do another tank it would be a rimless cube specializing in deepwater sps corals.

 

 

This would be cool they have a lot of colour for what they are

[Deckoz2302]

I'm doing a big rimless 4ftx4ftx18inches cube mixed with mostly sps. more then likely one larger island full of sps. Another larger anemone(bubbles) island. A pilar of maxi minis. A group of euphyllias. And a garden of blastos and acans. With a outcropping of clams. I normally go against the grain with livestock and try to find fish that not everyone has...

 

So far the idea for fish are the current fish

helfrichs fire fish

Sun tail goby

gold assessor

red mandarin

black ice pair

 

And the new fish will be

Blue spot leopard wrass pair

Mauritius Gem tang or Achilies tang

Pacific red strip hog fish - maybe

A cares Reef Chromis - school of 8

 

Lol enjoy my lame contribution to the thread

[brandon429]

The only functional sealed reefs that didn't require topoff are half gallon and 2.5's

 

I wish someone would do a larger sealed sps reef now, w chiller, I don't have $$ for any more reefs...

 

No topoff, no ato 60 gal sps/led w chiller would be sick sick totm material

[banshee]

I'd love to be able to do a 200+ gallon cat/bamboo shark tank.

[krackerjacksna]

I would love to do a long shallow system split in half with a rock wall, mangrove wall, and keep one half full reef, the other a trigger and butterfly fish

[Onebaldman]

If I could do anything, and had the space for it, I would do a 6 foot long, 4 foot wide, 18" deep tank (Roughly 245 gallons). I would do an island in the middle like we have seen before (I forgot who did it) that actually comes out of the water.

 

Now, you might ask why so long and why so wide? I would want to keep a blue dot stingray in the tank. I know they have the potential of eating my other fish in the tank, but...you asked if we could do something, what would we do...and that would be it.

[malawian]

I would love to start with an endless tank (something like that?) which were tanks that were rimless and overflow onto the walls of the tank to a collector under the tank. They're amazing, like a giant brick of water with no glass holding it together. I would probably put mostly LPS in there to avoid needing much flow, then the surface is also clear and you can look down into the tank as well.

 

the small mountain in the center of the tank, with water flowing over it for some small tidal pools is a really cool tank, I love the guy who did that here and have always wanted to do one since I saw it.

[Jacob042426]

I would do a wide ,somewhat shallow tank with little rpckwork and mostly mangrove roots. I would just set up the tank, wait a couple years and let the mangrove roots get thick enough to mount corals on. That is my dream.

[Onebaldman]

I would love to start with an endless tank (something like that?) which were tanks that were rimless and overflow onto the walls of the tank to a collector under the tank. They're amazing, like a giant brick of water with no glass holding it together. I would probably put mostly LPS in there to avoid needing much flow, then the surface is also clear and you can look down into the tank as well.

 

the small mountain in the center of the tank, with water flowing over it for some small tidal pools is a really cool tank, I love the guy who did that here and have always wanted to do one since I saw it.

 

That would be cool and did a quick search on the interwebz to see what company is already doing it (http://zeroedgeaquarium.com/). They show salt water aquariums but there are no power heads to "move" the water...which made me think, how would you keep the tank happy without the proper water movement?

[JoelRHale]

Upside down tank:

 

 

Mainly soft coral when I pictured it but encrusting montiporas would work too, cleaner shrimp (since they hang upside down it would add to the illusion), fiddler for the top, mangroves, bare bottom, either lit underneath stand, from two sides, or from two sides angled down reflecting off a high quality mirror.

 

The rock would be DIY, drilled in the center and would be suspended via braces.

[vash028]

Id like to do a shallow reef about 10" deep very simple about 20 gallons and do just inverts and macro algae like a fuge but hardly any rock and cool crabs like arrow and what not. I like how crabs act and would be cool to have a shallow tidal pool type tank maybe even wood like a dock in the ocean.

I would also like to do a tank no rock just sand and mangroves and macro algae everywhere a jungle of the sea and just small fish.

[glennr1978]

cuttlefish.

[Veng]

I would do something large with tides or crashing waves. I'm talking 1' crashing waves.

[altolamprologus]

Pacific barreleye fish. That is all.

[Veng]

Oh, I'd do a top glass tank as well, perhaps a top only view tank. I love the view from the top, but it would be a VERY impractical tank as reaching inside would be extremely hard. I have considered a giant seal on the top glass and then raising the water above it. A 40B like that would look AMAZING.

[nimavafi]

That would be cool and did a quick search on the interwebz to see what company is already doing it (http://zeroedgeaquarium.com/). They show salt water aquariums but there are no power heads to "move" the water...which made me think, how would you keep the tank happy without the proper water movement?

 

 

After living and maintaining one of these for a year I would advise against them. MP10-60 are out of the question because the water overflows - the only option might be to place a wavebox in the corner or some koralias (or other full wet assembly powerhead) but that would detract from the 'zero' quality of the look.

 

Algae is a whole other issue. Forget about having a mag-float, unless you like water on the floor. And tyou have to scrub both sides with acrylic friendly sponge or scraper. The outside acrylic wall (overflow part) essentially turns into an algae scrubber. Cleaning both sides of glass is never fun. If the glass is not absolutely clean, it will cause the waterfall effect to ripple and distort your view into the sides of the tank.

 

My last gripe is the fact that this tank is noisy. You have to put sponges in the overflow boxes to prevent the gurgling/slurping sounds because there is no room for the other overflow options and you still get a water-falling sound (some people like it, I hate having it the bedroom). Also those sponges must be cleaned religiously or else there will be water on the floor when they get clogged with algae, or just happen to sink into the bulkhead in such a way to effectively clog it.

 

 

I think the idea for this tank was a good one, but it is just not practical for a reef keeper. This 'style' of "endless water" should only stay with the infinity pools.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

tl;dr

[duoc9119]

I like the idea of a mangrove forest.

 

Something interesting would be like a saltwater pond. I saw it on youtube once, but it was basically an indoor, in ground, reef.

 

Another idea would be a raceway in wall and goes around the whole room. Now talk about your fish room! Lol One fish tank, visible on all four walls of the room.

[PinkDamsel]

A small tank with just one animal that I saw at the lfs: a green long tentacle plate, about 6" long. Looks like a creature from Mars, or a wierd brain in formaldihyde. Would name it Einstein and make it the company mascot, maybe bring him to meetings . . . .

[brandon429]

I will Co develop a glass see through purse for you to tote it around! wth did I just get myself into this could take away from drone time o no

[seabass]

Top Sump:

 

The display tank is below the sump. A hidden external (or internal) pump would push the water up to the sump.

 

The return and supply are hidden behind the rocks. This would be awesome for an in-wall setup. It might also be cool to put the sump in an upper cabinet (with the display on a desk).

 

The sump would maintain the level waterline, so you wouldn't need a baffle for a skimmer.

[PinkDamsel]

I will Co develop a glass see through purse for you to tote it around! wth did I just get myself into this could take away from drone time o no

 

Like a pet toy poodle!

 

Only unlike most tanks where you want to hide the equipment, this one you'd flaunt stuff. Like a Borg-Coral: YOU will be assimilated, lol.

[redhawk45]

If I had the time and money, I'd actually take it back old school and create a reef tank that is specific to particular area. No one is really trying to do regional tanks anymore, like Indo-Pacific, or Caribbean, or some sort. Me, I'd do a Indo-Pacific, but from deep water to shallow (it'd have to be a very tall and long tank), stocking it just with critters that'd live in that particular ecosystem...to be exact as possible.

[awpong]

I want to have a really really long tank, similar to a 20L, but much longer (and more than 20G). I'm talking about 15+ feet long, but shallow and narrow; something that would span the entire length of the wall.

[altolamprologus]

I want to have a really really long tank, similar to a 20L, but much longer (and more than 20G). I'm talking about 15+ feet long, but shallow and narrow; something that would span the entire length of the wall.

That would be incredibly awesome.

 

I've always wanted to turn an indoor swimming pool into a reef.