Started a about 2 months ago.

Theres the Stages it went threw:










Current.








Finally starting to appricate the tank.
Not just hate on it cuz of the work/time put into it.


Have a good one.

So, I had to go to Europe for 3 weeks. My tank is 4 months new and, of course, most of the corals, fish are new as well. I had to leave the tank in the care of my neighbour who has zero experience dealing with saltwater tanks ( or any tanks for that matter) Fortunately, this man is very meticulous and truly admires and loves the aquarium, so it is very important to him to take care of the reef as best as possible. However, I have read countless threads of people coming home after only one week to disaster, or the people who were looking after their tanks messing around and killing everything, or algae taking over, etc.

So, after 3 weeks guess what i came home to?............happy fish and growing corals!!:pompom: that includes a recently added RBTA that was finally hosting my clowns the morning I left! It hasn't moved an inch since i put it in and it has bubbled up and grown noticeably (it wasn't bubble in the tank of the person I got it from).

Now, I spent a LOT of money on the best equipment I could afford and took the advice of Tom and Joe at ORG, ad well as members here to try and do things right. You can see my build thread here: http://www.aquariumpros.ca/forums/sh...ad.php?t=40442

I just feel that there is something to be said about doing things right the first time and getting quality gear. Just thought I would share a GOOD story about coming home to contrast all the horror stories usually posted.

Here's a pic (sorry for the quality, i'm waiting for my new camera, coming soon) of the two sides (it's a peninsula) at the 4 month mark.

Cheers!

Hi all

I have been a member here for a number of years but my old tank was rather lack-luster. I shut down the tank when I moved to a new house.
Luckily, I have spent the spring and early summer collecting what is needed for a more current setup.


I want to thank the following AP members for their help in getting all the required equipment; Colin D for the refugium, Go Reef for the lights, Kevin for the MP10w, Kevin for the RO/DI unit, Jamie for the sump, Samiam for the Gen-X pump, Tom/ORG for the great tank and stand and Universal for the fabulous rock!

The tank sits in our main living room, plumbed to crawl space under front door, about 15" up.

I got the tank (finally) last Sunday, got it plumbed and filled with water on July30th, temperature and salinity brought up to specs on Sunday Aug 1st, and live rock later that day.

I estimate that I am pushing just a tad under 400gph through the tank, supplemented with a single MP10w (for now). Seems like plenty of water movement.





Yes, the protein skimmer still needs some work :hi1:


Please let me know what you thing of the new tank.

Any and all suggestions / recommendation will be greatly appreciated.

I will update my profile shortly.

Hi everyone. Just thought I'd post a pic of my rhinopias. Let me know what you think.
Thanks

If any of you know me, you probably have heard me ranting that I wanted one of these puppies since they first got introduced at Interzoo a few years back.

I was able to get this tank and stand for a steal. They regularly retail taxes in close to $2000, something I could never see myself paying for, but when a good deal comes, you have to jump on it, and I did.

For those that are not familiar with the Red Sea Max 250, this is all in one 66 gallon turn key system which has everything you need to get your aquarium going mechanically. Just add sand, rocks and water and you're set.

The Red Sea 250 comes with the following (taken from Red Sea Fish.com):

An adjustable height surface skimmer (a) takes water from where the highest concentration of waste materials is found.
The turbo air injection skimmer developed specifically for the MAX circulates the water volume through the skimmer more than 3 times per hour at an air/water ratio of 1:3 providing ideal skimming specifications for a hard coral (SPS) reef aquarium. The unique foam adjuster (b) ensures that foam can be produced in all water conditions.
Mechanical filtration removes the large organic substances while Phosphate-free active carbon acts as a large chemical sponge; absorbing dissolved organic carbons from the water. Highly porous bio-media provides a huge surface area for nitrifying bacteria.
Additional equipment such as a chiller or an external filter can easily be added with the Accessory kit (c) supplied with each unit.


MAX 250 filtration & circulation unit

1. Accessory Kit (inlet/outlet ports)
2. 1200 lph circulation pump with adjustable direction outlet
3. Compartment for accessory pump
4. Thermostat controlled heater
5. Mechanical filter sponge
6. Adjustable protein skimmer with a turbo aspiration pump
7. Highly porous ceramic biological filter media
8. Activated carbon chemical filter media
9. Cartridge for fine (water polishing) filter material
10. Sponge bubble trap
11. 2400 lph circulation pump with adjustable direction outlet




Complete lighting system

234W T5 linear (1 watt/ litre)
117W 10,000K/117W Actinic
Electronic ballast
High polish textured aluminium reflector
8 Blue LED moonlights
Fan-cooled hood for extended life of electronic components
High transparency, polished lens

Anyways, since renovating my basement, I have been trying to set-up an aquarium but due to crazy schedules, I have not had the time. In fact if it was not for the ease of an all in one aquarium, I might have passed.

Right now I have it filled with sand and dry live rock from my past systems. Very shortly, I will begin to fill it with aged aquarium water from my tank upstairs and by-pass the cycle.

For now, here are some intro pics of the look of the system. Will update as I go along.

C



A look with the lid folded back. There are grooves in the lid for when doing water tests.



Here is a pic with the hood opened half way.



And a pic of the hood opened all the way



One of my favorite aspects of the system. Wires are all hidden with a very nice clean look. Here is a little panel to access the switches.



Here you can see the top of the hood where there are 2 access flaps for the skimmer and the other for mechanical timer and fan and moonlight switches.



And last but not least, a pic of where the system is positioned in my basement.