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by **Len** » February 21st, 2005, 7:32 pm

hclh2ofish's official thread:
Use this thread to document updates to your Nano Reef Buildoff project.
Please note: this thread is reserved for the entitled registered member only. Open discussion about ideas or specific entries should be posted in the Nano Reefs forum or the General Reef Discussion forum.

by **HClH2OFish** » February 23rd, 2005, 7:04 pm

Well, I'm slowly planning what I want to put together.

Gonna be a standard 10gal from Walmart (sitting in the laundry room right now)

Lighting will be delivered sometime this week. Went with a Jebo 110w PC, 55w actinic and 55w 10k (I think that's what's on it)
Not sure yet if I'll go open top..gotta research some more.

Going to probably use a Tetra 150 for filter...mainly for it's surge feature, and the fact that it has an integrated heater..keep the main tank cleaner looking. I'm thinking of building a DIY riser into a corner, where the pump intake will fit into...sort of a reverse durso...something to help skim the top...not too sure yet.

Since I'm not sure what I'll have in this tank, I'm not quite sure what kind of powerheads I'll use. I'm thinking of poss. 2 MJ400's, one with a spraybar across the near bottom and the other across from it directed across the back glass.

Lotta thinking gonna be involved in this one....

by **HClH2OFish** » February 26th, 2005, 2:36 pm

Just got the lights and I must say, for the price they aren't that bad. I don't like the fact that they have no endcaps, just wires going to the posts, but *shrug* it was only a tad over $50. Light looks really good, but it extends about 2" over each side of the tank (24" light) I'll live with that

TetraTec 150 came in also...not sure if I'll need a heater on this tank with the heat the lights will put out.

Still unsure of what else I may be needing. Looking into some kinda HOB fuge. I'd DIY, but I'm mechanically inclined...I screw up everything I touch! lol

Still trying to figure out where to put this darned thing.....

by **HClH2OFish** » March 2nd, 2005, 3:47 pm

Well, got the tank filled yesterday and setup the Tetra. I really like the flow with the surge portion the tetra has. Have a couple of filters from when I changed out from my 25 to help cycle it. Added some old sand sitting around from the move.

Bad news -- this AM, my Jebo lights just flickered and wouldn't turn on.
Taking the light off the tank, it looks like there's a lot of splash on the acrylic light cover. I don't think anything actually got into the lights, but I'm stumped as to why it's stopped working.

I took the light off the tank and checked all the connections - they're tight. It now seems I can get the actinic to fire about 2/3 of the time, but the 10k bulb just won't light up at all. Gonna post a question in the GRD area to see if there's anything I can do or if I need to return the light....crap

by **HClH2OFish** » March 4th, 2005, 7:02 pm

Got a 28w Corallife over the tank right now until I get a new bulb for the Jebo. Also got in my 65w Sunpaq yesterday and put it over my 25h. I love that light! Only problem is now I can't fit my canopy over it (good excuse to get another tank..lol)

I'm picking up some LR/sand/whatnots hopefully tomorrow so I'll post pics once I've got em in the tank!

by **HClH2OFish** » March 5th, 2005, 12:50 pm

Well I got the blue bulb working...looks like a loose cable. Can't get the 10k firing for the life of me. I'll be picking up some replacement bulbs today.
Gonna get LR, maybe some sand, gotta get food for the fishies, and we'll see what else I can come up with

Pics to be posted as soon as I can get my feshoogenuh (sp?) camera working again...

by **HClH2OFish** » March 8th, 2005, 5:01 pm

W00t!
Got a Corallife 10k in there and all is working well. Got a 22" bulb instead of the 21" and had to remove the light endcap to fit the bulb in, but it all went well.

I pulled all the LS and water this morning...seems somewhere in the move, I threw out a good bucket of sand and had a bucket that was infested with dog hair?!?!! Ick..

Anyway...tank now has about 5-10lb white sand, some nice pieces of LR, and should be settling down today. If I can get my Vivicam to cooperate long enough, I'll get a pic up...

by **HClH2OFish** » March 15th, 2005, 8:41 pm

Got the zoos on the rock. Opening up fully and doing very well.
Only prob. is algael bloom. Fed the tank some coral food..one drop and next day I've got algae all over the place.

Will be getting some clean up crew probably this weekend...couple of snails and maybe one or two hermits.

Got a friend who works at Best Buy that will be sending my camera in for me...stupid camera..

by **HClH2OFish** » April 5th, 2005, 12:38 am

Been a while since I posted...life calls ya know.

Got some kind of red macro algae that's doing really well and growing fast on one of the rocks with zoos.

Money is tight right now (g/f is between jobs) so haven't been able to get any new critters,etc. Pods are doing well, and there are lots of white flatworms.

Really need to get some snails to help with the light coat of algae and something to help stir the sand and take care of the detritus on the bottom.

Probably going to pic up a power head as well. I thing there isnt' enough flow on the bottom of the sand.

More as it comes

by **HClH2OFish** » May 4th, 2005, 12:32 am

Crap!!! Gotta find a digicam to borrow!!!!

by **HClH2OFish** » May 12th, 2005, 4:26 pm

<snip> dupe posts

by **HClH2OFish** » May 12th, 2005, 4:28 pm

And much thanks to Len who gave me a bit of an extra extension since my Vivicam bit the dust

by **HClH2OFish** » May 13th, 2005, 2:34 am

<snip> more dupe posts

by **HClH2OFish** » May 14th, 2005, 3:57 pm

Okay...finally got a few pics

This is the tank - it looks very barren right now, but there is actually a lot of life in it. Brittle stars, bristleworms, featherdusters, pods, zoos of diff sorts and a mushroom that hitchhiked in.
Pic1 - looks all baren

2 diff. zoos on a rock and some kind of algae

Rock on the left - more zoos and coralline

And finally the main rock -- zoos are withdraws (it was 2AM when the pics was taken and lights had been off for awhile. Also shows the little shroom that hitchiked in.

by **HClH2OFish** » May 14th, 2005, 3:58 pm

Here's a pic of my upside down jelly....you can't see him either can you? :lol:

by **HClH2OFish** » May 14th, 2005, 3:58 pm

<snip>

by **HClH2OFish** » May 17th, 2005, 2:37 pm

Got my BakPak installed yesterday on my 25 so I'm using the Prizm on this one. I also painted the back of the tank black (note to self: do this with the tank EMPTY dummy)
All inhabitants are doing nicely. Chaeto is growing well in a hole in the LR, zoos are expanding fully.

by **HClH2OFish** » May 29th, 2005, 11:22 pm

Went to the LFS today to look for a snail for the tank and maybe some new corals. Wound up bringing home a red reef lobster. He's about 3" and *very* pretty. I'll post pics soon as I can.

by **HClH2OFish** » July 8th, 2005, 8:08 pm

A few more pics...haven't added much recently as Lyle likes to move things around quite a bit. The zoos are doing really well and spreading out well on the rock where I glued them. Getting tons of little feather dusters and some kind of strange stick like algae growing on one rock.

http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/lyle.jpg
http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/lyle2.jpg
http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/nano1.jpg
http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/nano2.jpg
http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/nano3.jpg
http://myweb.cableone.net/dcrowder/nanodusters.jpg

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