evanski Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 It's been awhile...got the itch again and started a 2G Fluval. Just started cycling this evening. Will be following a smattering of other Fluval and selected Picos...please have a look and let me know what you think. SETUP ------------------ Fluval Spec 2 gallon inTank media basket running floss, Chemipure Elite, and Purigen in that order top to bottom 2.2 lbs. premium Fiji live rock 1.5 lbs. dry course crushed coral 10W Aqueon heater Boost LED Par30 bulb w/clamp Minijet 606 pump to replace stock pump STOCKING ----------------- CUC Scarlet hermit Blue leg hermit Astrea snail Nerite snail Dwarf Cerinth snail Z&Ps Pink and Gold Palys Glimmer Pink Palys Eagle Eye Radioactive Dragon Eye Tubbs Blue Zoanthids Purple Hornets Red Hornets King Midas Purple Deaths Red Deaths Pink Zippers Red People Eaters Lunar Eclipse Green Bay Packers Ring of Fire Magicians Oxides Others Teal Trumpets Purple mushroom Pom Pom Crab with two large white poms! Red Monti cap Purple Monti cap GSP back way (in progress) Plan on running a mixed reef, zoas/palys, LPS and a smattering of robust SPS. FTS 28 Feb 2014 FTS 8 June 2014 14 July 2103 Link to comment
ninjamyst Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 where did you order mini-jet 606?? i thought that pump has been discontinued. Link to comment
Snow_Phoenix Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 Agreed with 1.0 Reef. That rock looks very nice. Link to comment
evanski Posted December 2, 2013 Author Share Posted December 2, 2013 Wow, that was fast...thanks for the comments! Got rock from Your Reef in Roseville, CA, chose three small pieces and epoxyed them together. ALL of their Fiji rock is completely purple! I highly recommend them. They have crazy livestock in terms of health and variety, and are very nice and knowledgeable. Also, on my build, I pre-ordered the Fluval media basket from StevieT at inTank along with Chemipure Elite and Purigen. Will run floss on top of that. where did you order mini-jet 606?? i thought that pump has been discontinued. Google it, Bro. Got mine for $17 plus shipping on Amazon. Link to comment
antsypants Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 As others have mentioned, that rock is perfect. I love the little crevices Can't wait to see it stocked Link to comment
evanski Posted December 2, 2013 Author Share Posted December 2, 2013 As others have mentioned, that rock is perfect. I love the little crevices Can't wait to see it stocked You and me both! I have a test kit on order...cannot even monitor cycle right now, but I am in no hurry. The rock is very irregular, caves on one side and extended horizontal surfaces for coral on the other. Will post side pics soon. Link to comment
Gramophone Posted December 3, 2013 Share Posted December 3, 2013 Sweet! Any fish plans yet? Link to comment
evanski Posted December 4, 2013 Author Share Posted December 4, 2013 Sweet! Any fish plans yet? Naso Tang. All kidding aside, I am kinda torn right now in terms of fish. Part of me will enjoy the quiet simplicity of coral only...but fish are so very compelling little critters. Clown gobies seem to be the only fish that fit the small profile...as much as I would like to have a small clown or firefish, they are likely too big (bio-load and size) and active for such a small footprint. To make it worse, I REALLY want to have a high diversity which includes SPS, which the smaller gobies like to nibble on. Any thoughts from such a successful aquarist would be appreciated! Link to comment
jjaro Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 your water level, did the pump raise it? or did you not plug that hole at the bottom? let me kno im interested, if i can get that 606 then id be happy as hell to fill my void of water!!! Link to comment
evanski Posted December 5, 2013 Author Share Posted December 5, 2013 Haven't received the 606 yet...stock pump does not seem to affect the water level. I have the inTank media basket and skimmer attachment on order (just shipped...thanks StevieT!) and will let you know how it goes. I did not plug the lower hole because I wanted to make sure that the media basket fits, but have plans to glue a frag of GSP over it when I start adding corals. Link to comment
jjaro Posted December 5, 2013 Share Posted December 5, 2013 Haven't received the 606 yet...stock pump does not seem to affect the water level. I have the inTank media basket and skimmer attachment on order (just shipped...thanks StevieT!) and will let you know how it goes. I did not plug the lower hole because I wanted to make sure that the media basket fits, but have plans to glue a frag of GSP over it when I start adding corals. okay gotcha, understandable, i repaced the biomax on mine with actual bioballs from an 8 gallon i had set up, and kept the carbon at the bottom slot, and bioballs at the top, and once you plug your hole the water level will subside by 3/4'' to one inch from where it is now, im curious to see if a stronger pump will affect it. i actually dont mind the stock pump, it does a pretty good job, i dont have any sps demanding high flow, id say its moderate at best. and will work for a lot of things, i have a mjority of softies, and one trumpet coral and a chalice for lps. and everything is thriving im sure you saw the pics. what livestock do you plan on putting in there(other than corals)? shrimp or a fish? or something else? Link to comment
evanski Posted December 7, 2013 Author Share Posted December 7, 2013 New pics from sides and front, with Boost LED Par30 (3RB, 1CW, 1NW). Struggling as you can see with color balance issues with iphone using Aperture as my editing software. Any advice appreciated! http://s1093.photobucket.com/user/evanski1/media/Fluval/Fluval2008.jpg.html'> http://s1093.photobucket.com/user/evanski1/media/Fluval/Fluval2007.jpg.html'> http://s1093.photobucket.com/user/evanski1/media/Fluval/Fluval2006.jpg.html'> Link to comment
Cameron6796 Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 Looking nice, how close to being finished the cycle are you Link to comment
evanski Posted December 8, 2013 Author Share Posted December 8, 2013 Looking nice, how close to being finished the cycle are you No clue...my test kit is still on order. The live rock is VERY clean...no hitchhikers that I can see. However, there are small pods on the glass as well as perhaps a little brown algae, which I take as a good sign that the cycle is progressing. I will test as soon as I get the kit, which will probably be next week. Tiny pictures Fixed it. The final picture I attempted to make color correction, using a white point on the live rock where it fractured and hasn't been covered up with coraline yet. Link to comment
waldoz Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 Looks sweet! Looking forward to the filter setup. Link to comment
gena Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 Looks fantastic already! I can totally see some SPS filling in that upper empty area of the column, softies LPS below. Definitely looking forward to watching this progress. If you really want a fish, I'd go for a green-banded goby or something similar to that. Clown goby would be taking a chance with SPS in the tank. Definitely not a clownfish or a firefish...I'd speculate that they'd be miserable. Link to comment
evanski Posted December 8, 2013 Author Share Posted December 8, 2013 Looks sweet! Looking forward to the filter setup. Me too! I ordered from the first production run for Fluval from StevieT at inTank and am very excited to see how it goes. My plan is to spot feed judiciously, do regular water changes, and run high quality filter media (CPR/purigen/floss) to keep params in order. Think StevieT sent it via sled dog, because the tracking info shows it still in WI several days later! Looks fantastic already! I can totally see some SPS filling in that upper empty area of the column, softies LPS below. Definitely looking forward to watching this progress. If you really want a fish, I'd go for a green-banded goby or something similar to that. Clown goby would be taking a chance with SPS in the tank. Definitely not a clownfish or a firefish...I'd speculate that they'd be miserable. Thanks for the thoughts...you and I are of one mind re: coral and distribution. Going to keep to easier SPS as mentioned like montipora and birdsnest. Elegant corals but hardy. Still on the fence about fish. LOVE clown gobies, but do not want the heartache if they start munching. Will have to research a little more about smaller gobies...I know some are temperate and do not do well in tropical temp tanks. Agree with not going to clownfish or firefish. They are among my favorites, but too big for my pico. Link to comment
gena Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 Thanks for the thoughts...you and I are of one mind re: coral and distribution. Going to keep to easier SPS as mentioned like montipora and birdsnest. Elegant corals but hardy. Still on the fence about fish. LOVE clown gobies, but do not want the heartache if they start munching. Will have to research a little more about smaller gobies...I know some are temperate and do not do well in tropical temp tanks. Agree with not going to clownfish or firefish. They are among my favorites, but too big for my pico. Oh...definitely birdsnest . Avoid Catalina Gobies...they need the colder water. Neon gobies, green-banded gobies, masked gobies, maybe trimma gobies, are a few that would be good. I'm thinking of going strictly with invertebrates in my pico. However, if I didn't have another tank with fish, I would definitely be looking for a small fish to put in the pico. Link to comment
evanski Posted December 8, 2013 Author Share Posted December 8, 2013 Oh...definitely birdsnest . Avoid Catalina Gobies...they need the colder water. Neon gobies, green-banded gobies, masked gobies, maybe trimma gobies, are a few that would be good. I'm thinking of going strictly with invertebrates in my pico. However, if I didn't have another tank with fish, I would definitely be looking for a small fish to put in the pico. OK...now, what color of birdsnest? I have had the pink before, which is awesome...but the green is also striking. Will have both green and pink zoa/palys, so will have to try to balance color distribution when the time comes for SPS. I also have my eye on RED, purple, and green monti caps, as well as Superman/Tyree sunset encrusting monties. When the time comes, will be looking for input from the peanut gallery. Thanks for the Goby primer. I REALLY want a fish but am worried about bioload and feeding. Will have interesting inverts, with Pom Pom crab and/or cleaner or banded shrimp high on the list. Link to comment
Pinner Reef Posted December 8, 2013 Share Posted December 8, 2013 Do the flaming prawn goby!!! (Griessingei Goby) Pricy skittish lil buggers but if it can be only one fish. might as well be epic! Link to comment
evanski Posted December 9, 2013 Author Share Posted December 9, 2013 Note to those with a Fluval Spec and a Boost LED Par bulb. Because the opening in the back on the lid is offset and the clamp on the Boost LED fixture is so wide...you will have to trim the lid about 1/16" to make it fit. I think the lid is made out of polycarbonate, so I was afraid to try to cut it because I thought it would shatter. Instead, I used a dremel tool with a rough grit sandpaper barrel. It did not actually sand the material away, but rather melted it bit by bit. I just removed the excess material with my fingernail. Do the flaming prawn goby!!! (Griessingei Goby) Pricy skittish lil buggers but if it can be only one fish. might as well be epic! VERY cool...expensive but as you say an epic choice for such a small tank. Will keep my eyes open for one when my tank is a little more mature. E Link to comment
tibbsy07 Posted December 10, 2013 Share Posted December 10, 2013 Get a tang In all seriousness, this looks great! I wish my rockscape was a bit more like this. You like the fluval so far? Link to comment
evanski Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 Get a tang In all seriousness, this looks great! I wish my rockscape was a bit more like this. You like the fluval so far? Tang Police! Tang Police! Thanks for the kind comment. Just three small pieces of rock epoxied together...and was fortunate to be able to locate really good stuff locally. LOVE the tank, but then the cost of the tank itself is only about 10% of the total I have spent! Wanted something clean (minimal exposed wires, quiet, etc.) and easy to maintain. Will see how it goes when the coral starts going in. Link to comment
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