burtbollinger's Red Sea Reefer 170 (converted to planted)

[burtbollinger]

14 hours ago, squamptonbc said:

Are you still using Nanobox Duo M as your light?

 

I have this tank but have hydra 26 HD light, but not really happy with it, and thinking about getting a new light, just have to decide on what to buy.

yeah, I love the Nanobox..the color is really something that I never am not amazed by...I have a diffuser on it currently which made it even better.

as a caution i would say...i love it but i dont have anything to compare it to....but dude, that last hour as its fading down....it is really, really just unbelievable.  and yeah 'unbelievable' is an overused term, but im using it correctly here.

 

I think if i were in your position, I'd go nanobox duo...OR if I could hang something, I'd get the nanobox-t5 hybrid he does.

[squamptonbc]

1 hour ago, burtbollinger said:

yeah, I love the Nanobox..the color is really something that I never am not amazed by...I have a diffuser on it currently which made it even better.

as a caution i would say...i love it but i dont have anything to compare it to....but dude, that last hour as its fading down....it is really, really just unbelievable.  and yeah 'unbelievable' is an overused term, but im using it correctly here.

 

I think if i were in your position, I'd go nanobox duo...OR if I could hang something, I'd get the nanobox-t5 hybrid he does.

 

Thanks.

 

After watching videos and where possible tanks in person, I narrowed it down to a Kessil but then remembered nano box but nobody local to me has one and I could not find too many videos but the lighting in your videos just always looks so great.

 

I have tried 20 or so pre sets found online for the Hydra 26 and experimented with random settings but overall not impressed with the Hydra and visual it creates so now just need to make a final decision. Lol

[specore]

6 minutes ago, squamptonbc said:

 

Thanks.

 

After watching videos and where possible tanks in person, I narrowed it down to a Kessil but then remembered nano box but nobody local to me has one and I could not find too many videos but the lighting in your videos just always looks so great.

 

I have tried 20 or so pre sets found online for the Hydra 26 and experimented with random settings but overall not impressed with the Hydra and visual it creates so now just need to make a final decision. Lol

I swapped my Kessil A360's for a Nanobox unit and haven't regretted it for a moment.  I will say though, those new 360x's look pretty badass.  

[DaveFason]

1 hour ago, squamptonbc said:

 

Thanks.

 

After watching videos and where possible tanks in person, I narrowed it down to a Kessil but then remembered nano box but nobody local to me has one and I could not find too many videos but the lighting in your videos just always looks so great.

 

I have tried 20 or so pre sets found online for the Hydra 26 and experimented with random settings but overall not impressed with the Hydra and visual it creates so now just need to make a final decision. Lol

Check my Instagram out. I post customer photos and personal tank photos. No staged tanks. The proof is in the pictures! I am also working on much better videos for Youtube and Vimeo. 

 

3 hours ago, burtbollinger said:

yeah, I love the Nanobox..the color is really something that I never am not amazed by...I have a diffuser on it currently which made it even better.

as a caution i would say...i love it but i dont have anything to compare it to....but dude, that last hour as its fading down....it is really, really just unbelievable.  and yeah 'unbelievable' is an overused term, but im using it correctly here.

 

I think if i were in your position, I'd go nanobox duo...OR if I could hang something, I'd get the nanobox-t5 hybrid he does.

Thanks Burt! 

[squamptonbc]

6 hours ago, DaveFason said:

Check my Instagram out. I post customer photos and personal tank photos. No staged tanks. The proof is in the pictures! I am also working on much better videos for Youtube and Vimeo. 

 

Thanks Burt! 

Ill almost certainly be buying one of your lights. I really like the look of light they produce.

 

Which gooseneck is best for the red sea 170? I see there are 2 choices.

 

 

[burtbollinger]

On 9/14/2018 at 10:35 PM, squamptonbc said:

Ill almost certainly be buying one of your lights. I really like the look of light they produce.

 

Which gooseneck is best for the red sea 170? I see there are 2 choices.

 

 

15"

[burtbollinger]

 

[debbeach13]

Dam that tank is looking sweet! Taking your time and your coral choices has really paid off.

[WV Reefer]

11 hours ago, burtbollinger said:

 

Looks great!! 😁

[DaveFason]

@burtbollinger UNREAL. The space invader is by far my favorite. 

 

Killer work. 

-D

[burtbollinger]

unfortunately, my RFA moved on me last night....moved off the sand and sorta up and to the back...where he was touching the frogspawn.  I think he was kinda scrunched where he was.

 

Because I couldn't move the RFA, I ended up bisecting the branching hammer and moving half of it to where the green stylo was....otherwise the RFA and the full sized hammer would be touching all the time.  The green stylo had a lot of shading in the back so trashed it, but not before I took a nip of it and replanted it for a new potential grow out.  

 

 

 

 

[debbeach13]

Creatures of the night. Sounds like you remedied the situation. Hope it all works out.

[burtbollinger]

 

 

 

 

bought the polyp labs iPhone filter and a yellow-gold branching hammer recently. (its pearly, with a yellow/gold hue...ZERO green)...anyway, I might toss a few more rastas and bam bams...and an orange fungia to go with the green...then im stopping.   the branching hammer was obscenely expensive, but it was the last coral I'd been wanting to put in there since i started this tank, and sometimes you just have to bite the bullet.  LFS guy was also feeding me goofball scare tactics about coral bans, which helped in my decision.

 

lots of issues with fish.  the single tank inhabitant, a very mean royal gramma was finally caught via hook and line...returned.  I bought a yasha goby, midas blenny and a court jester goby.  

 

the midas was a bully and liked to eat space invader tentacles.  he was returned.  the court jester liked to nip at chalices?!...he was returned.  

the yahsa dissappeared.

 

so now, there's a filamented flasher wrasse and a bangaii cardinal and that's it....hopefully they'll survive long term, and hopefully the yasha will magically reappear.

[burtbollinger]

 

 

at this stage, i'm basically done and in a waiting game for grow-out.

I do want to add more bam bams and rastas and sunny d as filler...put in an orange fungia in the bottom left.  

I like where the tank is going but it all still feels uneven until it grows in a bit more.  i think if i can keep the tank going for a few more years, barring disaster, it should be pretty darn nice.

 

 

[debbeach13]

Glad to see your still reefing. Tank looks great. Getting grown in. How are the coral wars going?

[burtbollinger]

17 hours ago, debbeach13 said:

Glad to see your still reefing. Tank looks great. Getting grown in. How are the coral wars going?

thank you.  planned this from the get-go not to have anything messing with eachother coral war wise.  I also am not ever gonna sit here and watch two corals fight it out.  I do have hands in the tank, adjusting, nudging and moving things...the biggest challenge is the torches, and making sure they dont touch anything....and the space invader.  The space invader has its own corner...and needs 6"+ due to its sweepers.

 

i guess the plan is keep them wide spaced apart and let everything grow in, and then use nice zoas for filler (rastas and bam bam), Because they are filler, I am not too interested in their survival vs. LPS.  I look at the tank as an LPS tank, period. (one one chunk of stylo).  

 

 

[Christopher Marks]

On 3/14/2019 at 7:18 PM, burtbollinger said:

 

 

at this stage, i'm basically done and in a waiting game for grow-out.

I do want to add more bam bams and rastas and sunny d as filler...put in an orange fungia in the bottom left.  

I like where the tank is going but it all still feels uneven until it grows in a bit more.  i think if i can keep the tank going for a few more years, barring disaster, it should be pretty darn nice.

You reef is looking spectacular @burtbollinger, a great collection of LPS. I’m seriously captivated by that Stylophora colony as well, it has such a slender connection the base rock, so sculptural! 

 

I agree it’s well set to grow out and fill in, keep us posted!

[burtbollinger]

2 hours ago, Christopher Marks said:

You reef is looking spectacular @burtbollinger, a great collection of LPS. I’m seriously captivated by that Stylophora colony as well, it has such a slender connection the base rock, so sculptural! 

 

I agree it’s well set to grow out and fill in, keep us posted!

Thank you so much.  I certainly will!  Although...Now I’m panicking about the fragility of that stylo base 😉. I guess if it broke there I could just reglue...

[burtbollinger]

Just bought a Hanna Salinity tester as well as tested my calibration solution and refractomer at the LFS.  Both indicated my salinity is at 1.024.

 

should I be worried or just bring up slowly via water changes?

[DSFIRSTSLTWATER]

On ‎3‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 6:15 PM, burtbollinger said:

Just bought a Hanna Salinity tester as well as tested my calibration solution and refractomer at the LFS.  Both indicated my salinity is at 1.024.

 

should I be worried or just bring up slowly via water changes?

Tank looks so good

I would just bring it up a little with top off. It's not too bad and I would think that you will be fine. Just my 2 cents

[DaveFason]

On 3/16/2019 at 6:15 PM, burtbollinger said:

Just bought a Hanna Salinity tester as well as tested my calibration solution and refractomer at the LFS.  Both indicated my salinity is at 1.024.

 

should I be worried or just bring up slowly via water changes?

Bring it up with top off. 

 

Tank looks amazing, great job. 

 

-Dave

[burtbollinger]

My space invader is living up to its name...i swear its gotten 10% bigger in the last week...its tentacles are now sweeping 7-8" inches...

A small re-scape on that side is in progress...as I have literally painted myself into a corner at this point.

[billygoat]

Holy cow... the color on that RFA! Could we get a close-up shot of that one? It's got to be one of the prettiest I've seen.

What a lovely tank. Your careful planning definitely shows in the results.

[burtbollinger]

slight re-arrange.  ditched the fungia and a branch of gold hammer...not looking to be on 'brown jelly' watch.

also moved some stuff out of the way of the space invader.

 

frag swap tomorrow....planning on more yellow ricordea for the bottom of the tanks and some rasta zoas for filler.

 

 

[burtbollinger]

Clearview Lid arrived.  I had not purchased because I was afraid netting would be done badly...they assured me it would be good.  very happy with the results.