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Nuvo 38 with Custom Stand


shughes38

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Hi everyone!

I've been in the hobby for the past 10 years, and about 2 years ago I converted one of my freshwater tanks to saltwater. Shockingly, I have outgrown my 20 high, and it was time for an upgrade. Here's a shot of the old setup:

oldfts_zps36ac990d.jpg
(the Xenias paid for most of the new tank)

 

Of all the corals I've kept, LPS have been my favorite (like that Wellso above)

So, for the new setup I decided that I want to have a setup that focuses on LPS (mainly Wellsos and Acans) and Zoas. I also decided that I wanted an AIO for the simplicity and quiet operation (noise from the DIY plumbing on the last tank was a problem). After quite a bit of reading, I decided that the IM Nuvo line was the way to go, and since the 38 has the same 24" width as my old setup, I am able to reuse my old light...a huge plus, and a decision maker.

I was not a fan of the stand, so I decided to build my own. I built the frame out of 2x4s and covered the whole thing with stained birch plywood and a granite top. Here are a few images of that build below:

 

IMG_0592_zpse3fc662a.jpg

IMG_0637_zps58590232.jpg

The thick black line on the left is not a gap, it is part of the birch ply that took the stain differently.

 

IMG_0645_zps0ebf02d5.jpg

First Fill:

 

IMG_0646_zps95fa9894.jpg

Clearing up:

 

IMG_0662_zpsf1dece2d.jpg

Unfortunately, there was nowhere to run both tanks at the same time, so everything had to be set up and transferred in one shot. I took as much water as possible from the old setup and acclimated everything for at least an hour before introducing anything into the new tank. The only casualties were 1 Bar Goby and 1 Emerald Green crab.

 

Fast Forward to 6 months later.

 

Within the past month, there have been a few upgrades to the tank. The inTank media baskets have arrived and are a HUGE upgrade over the stock baskets.

IMG_10401_zps2b9fdc30.jpg

I also added the fuge basket with submersible light

IMG_10411_zps08c7b91e.jpg

I also added the Tunze 9004 skimmer. It fits beautifully into the rear compartment, and made tea like skim by the second day. It runs so quietly that it it barely noticeable, and there is no ugly collection cup poking out of the rear compartment to ruin the sleek look of the tank. My one and only criticism is that when replacing the collection cup, the magnets aren't always strong enough to hold the skimmer in place. As long as you are gentle, you will be fine.

But the biggest upgrade is that I FINALLY replaced my outdated t5 bulbs. The Deep Blue bulbs were just ok when they were new 2 years ago, and the 10k/actinic color combo really didn't do much either.

The new ATI bulbs just came in the mail this morning. The brightness of the tank has pretty much doubled, and the whole tank looks much nicer with the new color. The setup is 2 Blue Plus, 1 Coral Plus, 1 Purple Plus.

Before:

IMG_10871_zps5c94b133.jpg

After:

IMG_10881_zps36dd9574.jpg

For those who are not sure, the camera exaggerates the blue. The below pic is just with the daylight bulbs on, however, it is a much better representation of what the colors look like in person.

IMG_10901_zps097e3a02.jpg

I am still in the middle of battling a hair algae outbreak that started about a month ago and it is slowly improving. The recent filter upgrades are helping, but I will most likely have to start using a toothbrush if I want to see any real progress.

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I really endorse the Nuvo series aquariums. Great choice and very nice setup. I manually removed the hair algae with a toothbrush for a week and noticed a tremendous reduction afterwards. Within about 10 days of manual removal, the algae disappeared all together. Have been hair algae free ever since.

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Thanks for the kind words! Still battling the algae, but the coral is immediately responding to the new bulbs. The ATI bulbs may be $$ but they're worth every penny.

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I love the color of those bulbs, great choice and definitely worth the money!

 

Thank You! They look awesome in person!

 

 

man that stand is nice!

 

Gracias! You are going to love the newest addition:

 

I have seen posts about a power strip that had switches for each individual outlet. It's intended for DJs to switch lights on/off. Conveniently, there is a music store right across the street from my work. Here it is mounted in place:

 

image_zps2b20a981.jpg

 

Probably the best $30 hardware upgrade. I suppose I should do something about all those wires now...

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Noticed you have an urchin in the aquarium. It should do a heck of a job eating the excess algae in your aquarium. You may want to cut back on your photoperiod a bit which will also reduce the growth of unwanted algae. Have you noticed an increase or decrease with your new light?

 

Like the organization of your powerstrip and cords. I am always battling to create a clean look to my electrical panel and instruments.

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Good idea on the urchin! I gave him to a friend after I got tired of him picking up shells with critters and moving my corals all over the place. I can get him back very easily.

 

I did restock my cleanup crew with various hermit crabs (hence the bucket). 5 cortez and 10 blue leg. Previously there were only 2 red leg, and maybe 4 blue leg. This should be a big help.

 

The new lights haven't been in place long enough for me to notice a difference. I will be keeping an eye on it though.

 

Thanks for the advice!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Where did you get that submersible light for the fuge basket? I have this same aquarium and am trying to set up a fuge with the basket as well. Also, what kind of light is that?

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Nuvos are the nicest looking tanks, i can wait to upgrade my 28 gallon to the 38 gallon nuvo. Nice tank too! The rock scape is awesome, it kinda looks like mine.

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Where did you get that submersible light for the fuge basket? I have this same aquarium and am trying to set up a fuge with the basket as well. Also, what kind of light is that?

 

I bought it along with my fuge basket from InTank. The main light on the tank is the 4x24w T5 from Deep Blue.

 

 

Nuvos are the nicest looking tanks, i can wait to upgrade my 28 gallon to the 38 gallon nuvo. Nice tank too! The rock scape is awesome, it kinda looks like mine.

 

Thank you, I have been very happy with the nuvo so far. You will enjoy yours too! I have played around with my scape several times. I am still debating removing more rock, but I haven't made up my mind yet.

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You,sir, do excellent work. I love the stand, and the tank looks amazing! Great work, can't wait to see pics of what you add from your local drug deale.....errr, fish store. lol. Love the Welso, I have an all white and peach colored one, with metallic green flecks, love them!

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  • 4 weeks later...
Coolhandreefer

Hey shughes, any updates? I had to take out the Tunze 9004 after about a month of running it, it just would not stop making millions of micro bubbles no matter what I did to it. I decided to just take it out and do water changes every week religiously.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Can you tell me where/how you placed your tunze skimmer? I currently have the hydor slim skim in the back right chamber (stock media basket was moved to the other side to double up, will be upgrading to InTank basket soon). It has been a great skimmer in my old tank, but I am having a heck of a time getting it fine tuned enough in this tank to do much of anything. Need to tweek it more, but I am quickly considering upgrade.

How are you liking the Tunze skimmer? I am debating between that and the cadlights pipeless nano.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey shughes, any updates? I had to take out the Tunze 9004 after about a month of running it, it just would not stop making millions of micro bubbles no matter what I did to it. I decided to just take it out and do water changes every week religiously.

Quite a few changes actually... Stay tuned.

 

I'm surprised to hear that your micro bubbles never stopped. For some reason, mine stopped after just a few days... wierd

 

Real good job with that stand. I did a ikea mod for my 38 to match some other things in my living room. Your skills just hurt my feelings!

I really like that ikea stand... a lot. Since it's ikea, the assembly time was probably about the same as mine :D

 

Can you tell me where/how you placed your tunze skimmer? I currently have the hydor slim skim in the back right chamber (stock media basket was moved to the other side to double up, will be upgrading to InTank basket soon). It has been a great skimmer in my old tank, but I am having a heck of a time getting it fine tuned enough in this tank to do much of anything. Need to tweek it more, but I am quickly considering upgrade. How are you liking the Tunze skimmer? I am debating between that and the cadlights pipeless nano.

The skimmer is placed in the back right compartment, with the front of the skimmer facing towards the middle. i.e. the mounting magnets on the outside right of the tank. In order to get it dialed in, the air line in mine has to be almost completely closed with the adjuster. Otherwise the collection cup will fill in a matter of seconds. The CAD lights looks like a very nice skimmer, and I was considering that one too. What made my decision was the sleek profile of the tunze. There are certainly some great options for skimmers.

 

Love the stand. Did you put a piece of plywood under the granite or did you just secure it directly to the 2x4 frame?

Thank you! The granite is positioned directly on 4 of the 2x4s that run the full height of the stand. I used shims (paint mixers cut into pieces) and drove a screw through them and into the 4 main load bearing pieces to make it perfectly level. Everything else in the stand is to support those pieces.

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