Ryley's IM Nuvo Fusion 20 gallon Round 2

[Ryley]

I decided to restart my Fusion 20 which I originally purchased about 5 years ago. It had been up and running for ~4 years but due to a move and some renovations had to be shut down. It has been about 6 months now and with all the covid restrictions boredom has won and the reef tank itch has taken hold. I have gathered all the equipment and supplies I have accumulated over the last 8 or 9 years of reef keeping in hopes to set up a tank with as minimal cost as possible. Here is a list of all the goods I was able to put together and am currently using to run the tank:

• IM Nuvo Fusion 20 gallon tank
• AI Prime (original, not HD or 16) with mounting bracket
• MP10QD circa 2015
• Tunze Osmolator ATO
• Sicce Syncra return pump
• 2x 100w Heaters (can't remember the brand)
• Little buddy RO/DI 50gpd (I had to buy this one)

Once I gathered my equipment I had to take a look at what I had to put inside the tank. Luckily I had stockpiled a good 40lbs of live (now dead) rock from previously builds and I could take my pick of what to use. I decided to try something a little different and went with one single structure protruding from the sand with a long arch that sweeps across nearly the entire length of the tank. I achieved this by gluing, epoxying, and reef welding my choice pieces of rock together as best I could and then attaching the structure to a piece of acrylic as a base which sits under the sand and acts as a counterbalance. As for sand, I had a friend recently set up a tank and he was kind enough to give me the leftover live caribsea aragonite. This gave me a 1.0" to 1.5" sand bed throughout the tank. The tank is sitting on an old stand that was repurposed from a previous 65 gallon build, but is likely a temporary solution because it isn't exactly the prettiest set up. 

 

I set up everything February 7th and then began by dosing with MIcrobacter Quikcycle and Aquaforest Bio S on the 8th. All my test kits were expired at this point so I opted to go the cheap route until the cycle is complete and picked up the basic API starter test kit. As of February 9th my Ammonia was reading ~0.75 and pH was 8.0 with all other levels undetectable. I am still waiting on my calibration fluid for my ATC refractometer but I am sitting at ~34ppt give or take 1 which should be fine for the time being. After a little cable management the tank looks pretty good in the office and I can't wait for the cycle to get in to full swing. One mistake I have already made from the reading I have done is not completely cleaning my old live rocks of detritus. If you see any others I would love to hear about it so I can make things better going forward. I has been quite a while since I was fully involved with a reef tank as the last one was sort on auto pilot the last few years with minimal attention.

[debbeach13]

Welcome back. That is a great scape. Good luck with the tank.

[dwdenny]

Welcome back tank is looking good sand looks a little on the fine side no sand storms with the flow?

[Ryley]

1 hour ago, dwdenny said:

Welcome back tank is looking good sand looks a little on the fine side no sand storms with the flow?

So far the sand (oolite sized) seems to be staying in place but I don't have the flow cranked up very high on the MP10. In the previous set up I had the sugar sized and that stuff looked really nice but drove me nuts with how much it moved around. If this stuff starts giving me grief I will likely pull it out and swap for something a bit coarser. That being said I will definitely do that before any livestock goes in the tank.

[Ryley]

While the cycle continues to truck along I have been trying to come with a stocking list for my tank. The plan is to make it a mixed reef with a modest amount of livestock. My current plan is as follows:

Fish

• Hi Fin Red Banded Goby
• Captive bred True Percula or Onyx Percula Clownfish
• Tank raised Mandarin Dragonet (if I can find one that is eating prepared food)

Invertebrates

• Candy Stripe Pistol Shrimp
• Skunk Cleaner Shrimp
• 2x Scarlet Hermit Crab
• Spiny or Fighting Conch, whatever I can happen to get at my LFS
• 2x Nassarius Snail
• 2x Astrea Snail
• 2x Cerith Snail
• Possibly a Rose Bubble Tip Anemone, I'm not sure I want to take the risk but I really like the added movement to the tank

Corals

• Montipora Cap
• Montipora Digitata
• Several varieties of zoa
• Neon Green Torch
• Green Star Polyps (I intend to try and cover the back wall with them)
• Dendrophyllia
• Several Chalice
• Trachyphyllia (Open Brain Coral)

This will be my first real foray in to any SPS corals and I am looking forward to the challenge. In the past I have kept clownfish with and without anemones. I found the interaction with an anemone really cool, but the anemone split and moved around quite frequently making it difficult to have any certainty it wouldn't destroy other corals. When I kept them without an anemone, they hosted my Euphyllia corals and literally loved them to death. I am hoping that by keeping one clown rather than a pair it will limit the amount of harm they can do should I decide to go without an anemone. 

[Ryley]

I am one week in to the cycle at this point and my parameters are as follows:

Ammonia - 0.50

Nitrite - 1.00

Nitrate - 10.00

ph - 8.00

Salinity - 35.0

I started the cycle with Microbacter Quikcycle and have been dosing Aquaforest Bio S as my nitrifying bacteria. This is my first cycle using chemical methods and it seems to be moving along quite nicely. Has anyone else cycled their tank with Bio S? What have your long term results been?

[Ryley]

So a bit of a weird cycling update today. As of about February 20th the cycle seemed to have stalled a bit and parameters were sitting at ~0.2ppm Ammonia, ~5ppm Nitrite (bright purple on the API test kit, tough to tell), and ~20ppm Nitrate. After about 5 days seeing these same results I took a water sample to a local fish store to get a second opinion. Their results showed ~0.6 Ammonia and they just told me Nitrates were high, not the best experience at that place unfortunately. So after a bit more research in to the nitrification process I found that elevated levels of Nitrite could stall the process a bit so I decided to do a water change. This would help reduce levels as well as lower the salinity a bit to promote bacterial growth. I did a ~40% water change and got my salinity down to 31 ppt but my new levels don't make any sense. Ammonia read ~0.35ppm, Nitrite and Nitrate both read 0.0ppm. The math of this isn't quite adding up for me so if anyone has any input or thoughts on what might be the cause of these weird results I'd appreciate it. 

[dwdenny]

I would try and get another test kit to check results unless you have another LFS to take a sample to. I use API for my cycling but looking at other test kits once I finish cycling. API has notoriously read high from my experience and what other have noticed. Not saying their bad but compared to say Salifert they do read high. 

[Ryley]

10 hours ago, dwdenny said:

I would try and get another test kit to check results unless you have another LFS to take a sample to. I use API for my cycling but looking at other test kits once I finish cycling. API has notoriously read high from my experience and what other have noticed. Not saying their bad but compared to say Salifert they do read high. 

Yeah I was definitely planning on making the switch to higher quality test kits once the cycle was over but I figured API would do the trick for now. Unfortunately my fish store options are quite limited where I am, but I am making a trip next weekend and I might bring a water sample with me and have a fish store I know and trust check it out. Still a bit confused how my results could go from really high to zero with only a 40% water change. 

[Ryley]

Bit of an anticlimactic update today. After getting my water tested at a more trusted saltwater only fish store a few weeks ago I decided it was time to add a bit of life to the tank. We have a whopping 2 snails now haha. No fish yet, but hopefully I'll be able to add one in the next couple weeks. Diatoms are in full bloom with the lights running their full cycle daily so the snails should have plenty to munch on until a fish enters the system. I'm thinking now might be a good time to seed the tank with some pods so that is probably my next purchase. 

[Zer0]

Looking good! I know it’s kind of a moot point now, but if ammonia or nitrites go above 5ppm, it can stall out the cycle, and it’s recommended to do a partial water change to lower the levels. So it’s possible that’s what could have happened to you.

 

Seems like you’re past that now though! I’ll be following along, I love that scape!

[Ryley]

2 hours ago, Zer0 said:

Looking good! I know it’s kind of a moot point now, but if ammonia or nitrites go above 5ppm, it can stall out the cycle, and it’s recommended to do a partial water change to lower the levels. So it’s possible that’s what could have happened to you.

 

Seems like you’re past that now though! I’ll be following along, I love that scape!

I totally agree, my nitrites were through the roof and everything stalled out. Once I did my water change the bacteria were able to process everything down quickly and that's why it appeared to drop so drastically. A little surprised my nitrates are still very low, almost undetectable now at this point (diatoms could be sucking up what was left I suppose). Thanks for the comment on the scape, I need to get a lens for my phone so I can get a decent video and show it off from different angles. I can't wait to see it once corals grow out!

[Ryley]

At bit more life has been added to the tank and things are starting to take shape. I came across a local reefer who has a frag shop he runs out of his basement and decided it was time to give the tank a test run. I ended up picking up a frag of these Purple Monsters. 

Later that day I got a message from another fellow reefer I had been in contact with who had offered to give me a chunk of GSP to help start me out and add a little colour to the tank. Unbeknownst to me he decided to throw in a couple zoanthids frags as well which I couldn't be happier about. 

I am not sure on the names of the zoanthids (maybe someone can help me out) he was generous enough to give me but either way I am happy to have some more coral in the tank to brighten things up. A few days later my copepod order from Canada Copepods showed up and I added them to the system so hopefully that will add some stability to the system and a good food source for future inhabitants. With my order I also got a bottle of phytoplankton which I plan to dose 1ml of every second day to keep the pod population going as well as help add nutrients for the new corals. I will be adding a few more members to the clean up crew hopefully tomorrow and I will throw up a full tank shot once they arrive. 

[dwdenny]

Awesome they look good and already trying to open up. I am sure thing will be good. Thinking about buying some frags tomorrow still a little nervous about adding corals. I know my parameters are good but still always makes me nervous adding corals for the first time in a tank. 

[Ryley]

4 hours ago, dwdenny said:

Awesome they look good and already trying to open up. I am sure thing will be good. Thinking about buying some frags tomorrow still a little nervous about adding corals. I know my parameters are good but still always makes me nervous adding corals for the first time in a tank. 

I'm the same way, when I'm at home I go and stare at them every few hours paranoid they'll have melted away for some unknown reason. Logic says they will be fine but you never know with a fresh tank.

[Ryley]

I added a few more members to the clean up crew today in the form of 2x Ring Cowries and 2x Cerith Snails. They are all pretty tiny but they should be more than enough to handle the very minimal bioload that the tank currently has. The plan now is to wait until I see the current corals are happy and starting to grow before adding any more (is that even possible?) and once they are looking happy and in their permanent locations I will try and track down a first fish to add to the tank. I know it isn't good practice but I don't have the space or means to set up a quarantine tank so I will be relying on the quarantine practices of whichever store I end up finding the fish at. Here is a full tank shot, hopefully by the next update there will be some noticeable growth on the corals since they are all softies.

Of course the Purple Monsters decided to close up on me before I could take the pic. They have been a little bit finicky since I added the pods and started dosing phyto to the tank but hopefully they catch their stride in the next few days.

[Ryley]

I added a few new zoas/palys today which I think will more or less round out my softie collection for the tank. Time to move on to the LPS! My pictures are terrible but I added a frag of fire and ice, petroglyphs, and beauty and the beast. The only picture that is even somewhat close to accurate is of the fire and ice so sorry about the quality on the others.

I have been working on a new stand for the tank and should hopefully have it polished off by the end of the week which allow me to drain the tank down, swap out the stand, and refill this weekend. If all goes well the system will have a much cleaner look and I look forward to posting some better pictures for you guys. 

[Ryley]

So after picking at it for the last few weeks while I had some spare time I have finally finished building my new stand. I got the tank transferred over the other day and other than a couple zoas being a little pissed off everything seems happy.

I have a bit more cable management to work out and possibly another shelf to add but I think it turned out pretty well. The plan is to mount the controller board at the top but I don't think the magnetic mounts I purchased have enough strength to keep it in place. 

One final update, I have finally added a fish to the tank. My LFS got in several Tailspot Blennys the other day and I couldn't pass him up. He is still pretty shy but I managed to get him to eat a bit of mysis today and hopefully he will start being a bit more adventurous in the next couple days. My wife has dubbed him Gilliam Riker (she is a bit of a Star Trek nerd).

[Ryley]

So work just after my last post I started a new job which has had me working away from home a fair bit and I haven't had a lot of opportunity to make updates on the tank. A few things have changed in the last year. Some good some bad.

 

The Bad:

• Unfortunately the tail spot blenny passed about a month ago, almost exactly a year after he was added to the tank. There was no real apparent reason for his demise but from what I have read they don't have the longest life spans. It could also have been a lack of nutrition, he never did fully take to the vegetarian pellets I was feeding him and mostly stuck to mysis.
• A couple weeks after Gilliam bit the dust, my conch also decided to go with it. No other inverts were effected, but I suspect because of the lack of food and fish poop to clean up there just wasn't enough detritus in the tank to sustain it. The worst part of the conch dying was that when I went to remove its shell I poured conch soup right in to the tank. Luckily I was about to do a water change and was able to suck out most of what was left. 
• The conch soup then exacerbated the cyano problem I have been having over the last little while. My feeding has been reduced significantly and water changes have been weekly but I seem to still be developing a bit of a cyano mat on the sand by the time the next water change is due.
• Coral growth on my soft corals has been relatively limited and I'm not 100% certain why. Maybe a lack of fish poop for them to feed on and the cyano is sucking up whatever nutrients is left in the system from feeding? Colouratiion has become much more dull over time as well.

The Good:

• The cyano problem has been slowly but surely becoming less of a problem over the last few weeks.
• I have had the time to keep up regular maintenance and I think this has been beneficial for the tank.
• My hollywood stunner chalice and green acan have been growing like crazy, if I could get other corals to grow like them, this tank would be full in no time.
• I have been able to keep a monti cap happy and growing (slowly) the last couple months, this has been my first real SPS experience so it's good to know they are an option.
• I have hooked up a Kamoer X1 Pro 2 which is currently dosing 1 ml of all-for-reef daily

My current tank parameters are as follows:

• Temperature: 77-78°F (give or take a half a degree)
• Salinity: 1.026
• Alkalinity: 7.3
• Calcium: 440
• Magnesium: 1550
• Phosphate: 0.03

I don't currently have a reliable means of testing pH or nitrate but buying a NYOS Nitrate test kit and a pH probe of some kind are on my to do list. 

 

I was all lined up to get a nice Onyx Picasso Percula and a regular Percula from CanadaCorals but unfortunately someone in store scooped it up before my online order was processed. I'll be adding an Onyx Percula as soon as one becomes available to see if I can't get some more nutrients in to the system and brighten up the corals. 

[Ryley]

It was a big day for the nano tank today. I local reefer was good enough to drop off some zoa frags as well as an amazing flame bubble tip anemone I purchased from him this morning. To my surprise he also threw in a chunk of white leather, neon green Kenya tree, and the tiniest pink toadstool I have ever seen. Later in the day a shipment I purchased from fragrackcorals.com arrived and I added a bunch of life to the tank including 5 nassarius snails, 1 scarlet hermit crab, 1 blue legged hermit crab, 1 skunk cleaner shrimp, 1 trochus snail, a frag of pink birdsnest, and most importantly a pair of clowns. I had anticipated receiving 2 picasso perculas but unfortunately there was a bit of a mix up and I received a picasso and a snowflake occelaris. The company was good enough to refund the cost of the one of the clowns and all is well in the world. I may end up giving the snowflake to a local reefer and attempting to find myself another percula but I'm in no rush. 

[debbeach13]

Those are some great additions. I will be surprised if you don't end up loving both of those clowns.  I hope you post some pictures after everything settles in.

[Ryley]

Still a ways from everything settling in a finding a home in the tank but the clowns and anemone seem to doing well in their new environment. I rented a PAR meter (well an Apogee Sensor hooked to a volt meter) and took some measurements throughout the tank. Some of the values were a little lower than I hoped up top but I think overall I should be able to stick softies and LPS pretty well anywhere throughout the tank and some lower requirement SPS in a select few locations. Quite a few of my zoas seem quite flat so I did expect some of the values to be a little higher but oh well. Here are the results! The values are at peak time which I run for 4.5 hours with a 3 hour ramp up and ramp down with a little bit of blue on either end at sunrise and sunset. 

[Ryley]

So I finally got myself a proper Hanna nitrate test kit (previously API) and it turns out that my nitrates are 0.0. Combined with my phosphates being 0.02 (also Hanna checker) this probably explains my slow growth, pale coral colouration, and troubles with cyano. With the fish and anemone added to the tank and increased feeding I am hoping those levels come up a bit and things start to fall in line on their own. If not I plan on picking up some brightwell neonitro and neophos. Does anyone have good experience with these products? From everything I have read they seem to be a solid option for maintaining desirable nutrient levels.

[Ryley]

Got myself some new goodies for the tank. Hopefully this can help me sort out my nutrient issues and colour up my corals!

[Ryley]

Well it's been a long overdue update. The tank has had some ups and down and I think I'm starting to get everything dialed in. I've lost a couple softie frags for some reason but other than that everything seems to be doing alright. My anemone had been struggling a bit, but I think adjusting the flow has got it starting to puff back up a bit. 

 

Over the last 8 months I went from cyano being all over the place, then cyano being replaced by turf algae. I added an Urchin and it seemed the worst was behind me. Unfortunately the Urchin couldn't keep up and the the turf algae bottomed out my nutrients. In comes the dinos. Currently I simultaneously have dinos, turf algae, and a bit of cyano. I've been slowly raising up my nutrients and manually removing the turf algae to give the Urchin an assist. 

 

All three pests seem to be slowly but surely receding and I think things are starting to look pretty good again!