Fat Al's 93 Gallon Reef Cube

Redid some of the rock work, and applied epoxy. The changes are subtle, but I think everything flows together better. I tried to play with lines like I would do when I was doing art in some of my art courses in college. I tried to use the lines to move your eye over the whole aquarium. I dunno if the effect will still be there with the corals, but I think it'll be a good base.

Left side of the tank:


Front side of the tank:




Right backside of the tank. I think this will allow for me to even add corals for an interesting view when viewing the tank from the back.




Sand should be here Monday. I'm going to start getting the water ready. Hopefully there will be no problems. When I purchased the tank, Seth had the tank full of water. So I am hoping for no surprise plumbing issues. The next thing will be to decide on the proper powerhead for the tank, and then the lights. I dunno if y'all can tell if I'm excited about this tank or not. Lol

 

Ok, I'm researching powerheads. It looks like the Vortech might be the way to go. What I like is that there are no wires in the tank, and there are so many different settings you can create with flow. But I'm not sure if I which one I would need, or how many. Any suggestions? If I go with two, I'll want the wireless ones so they can communicate.

 

My tank is a 30" X 30" X 24". I have also read that purple tangs will do good in a tank this size. They are just about 3 times the price. They had one at the Fish Bowl for like $150. Do yellow tangs swim strictly in a straight line? My tank is open on all sides. And the way my rock work is setup, the "Front" is actually towards the lefthand corner, which kinda gives 60" of open space with a little bend right at the corner. I will either try a kole, purple, or yellow. If I do try a yellow, it might be a trial, knowing that I might have to get rid of him if he gets too big.

And I'm kind of weird about my fish. I really only like those with a bulkier shape, kinda like a tang or angelfish. The wrasse is too long and skinny shaped. I had a coral beauty before, but it jumped out before I could see if it was truly reef safe. And I'll for sure keep a lot of LPS, so that does concern me.

 

Quick question. I'm working on filling up my tank and hope to have it running by tomorrow. This may be a stupid question, but when I get my water level to the point where it drains down to the sump, does this back corner section also fill with water? Just want to make sure I'm doing it right:



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Thanks David. I got the tank full of water, and it is running. No floods when I turn the return pump off, and I haven't noticed any leaks. So hopefully I'm ready for my cycle now. The next two things to decide is if I need one MP40 or two MP10's for this tank. And then the lighting. I think I've got it narrowed down to the Hyrda 52 or Radion Pro, but not sure which.

 

I'm also looking at the 360WE Kessil lights as well.

 

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Kim, right now I've got some cheap power heads in there. I'm saving up for the vtechs. Dunno if I need one mp40, or two, or a pair of mp10s. Right now I've got two bulkheads (I think that's what you call them) for surface agitation.


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Sump question. I'm trying to make sure everything in my sump is running correct. The optimal water level for my protein skimmer is like 6 inches. So I've got the water level in the main chamber of the sump at 6 inches. I plugged in the sump, and it seems to be running correct. I've seen where you can put the skimmer on a stand, but that might make the skimmer too tall for under my tank. If I add anymore water than 6 inches, the skimmer overfills.


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I have 2 used mp10s that I'm not using if you're interested.

 

Yes John, I am. Just let me know how much you want for them. Do you think these two would be good enough for this size tank? But if they are, that'd be great!


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Picked up a pair of MP10's from John. He gave me a really good deal.



I've got them on the back wall right now. Not sure if this will be the best placement, or not. But I'm going to try it and see.




I believe that I have a diatom bloom in the tank now. I've been so busy with work, that I haven't had time to test my water to see how the cycle is going. I'm hoping to have some time to do that tomorrow.


I'm hoping to purchase lights with in the next week or two. I wish I would've had my money together, b/c there is some good Black Friday deals going on right now. I'm having a hard time to find the proper lights to light the dimensions of this tank. I'd like to only have to purchase one unit, if I could get by with it. I'm looking at Kessils, Radion, and Hydras. If I purchased the Kessils, I would probably buy two units. I just don't want to spend more than the $800 neighborhood, if I can get buy with it. I think what I like the most about the Kessils is their shimmer effect.

 

Been researching for a few hours. Really considering the radion xr30w pro gen3.


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I think you'll get the coverage you need in a cube tank with one radion light. For about $30 more you can get the lens to add on to widen the coverage.

 

I emailed Kessil to see what they recommended for my tank. I like the look of the lights, & the shimmer. If I can't find something reasonable, I'll go with the Radions. A reefer in Jonesboro has the same tank, & is using a single radion.


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Finally got around to testing my water.

My ammonia is 1.0 ppm
Nitrite is 0ppm
And Nitrate is 0ppm

Do I need to do anything at this point? Or just wait?
I also had added a piece of shrimp to start the cycle. Do I need to leave it in or remove it?


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