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The Return 20 gal Peninsula


LarryD

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After my move to Yuma a little over a year ago I have finally found the time to setup a new aquarium. I started with an Innovative Marine 20 Gal Peninsula and 20 pounds of pukani (only used about 15), after a 2 month cure on the pukani I set to putting the aquascape together. I wanted to get something the would look good from both sides but also would not just be a solid wall of stone so out came the chisels to carve some caves into the rock which can be seen in the photo.received_10203280813818283.jpeg

With the rocks in I added 10 pounds of special grade live sand and added some water. Since I live in Yuma and it is entirely to hot here I decided to replace the stock return pump with a sicce syncra silent 1.5, which I then in an attempt to reduce the amount of heat put into the tank I plumbed in a very convoluted way outside of the tank by running it up and over the rim of the tank.received_10203276306745609.jpeg

It is not perfect and I will probably end up redoing it at some point but it works. The tee at the top of the return is so that I can prime the pump since it is not able to start a suction by itself.  For lighting I am running my AI Prime which is looking like I will be able to put whatever I wanted lighting wise.received_10203338851069178.jpeg

I waited 3 weeks wile running the red sea reef mature kit to cycle it before I made a trip to the phoenix area because there are no aquarium stores in Yuma, while there after visiting with a friend from college I stopped by a store in scottsdale and picked up a pair of ORA black snowflake clowns, and a couple margarita snails.

Black snowflake clowns.mp4

For the ato I got a Smart ATO micro which is super nice since the tank has a tiny sump, the ato is really important because since it is so dry here the tank has to get 3ish gallons of top off in a little under a week. 

Moving forward I want to get an anemone for my clowns and once that has stopped wondering I will start putting in some coral, I also want to swap out my protein skimmer with a external and to get an aquarium controller.

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Just realized I can not spell nor find the edit button can I get someone with powers greater than mine to change that m at the end of return in the title to the n it is supposed to be?

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2 hours ago, Isaac said:

title and post spellchecked :)

Thank you.

 

1 hour ago, JamesL said:

Nice looking tank!

Thanks it is getting there I need to pick up something to clean my sand bed bad because the tank is so narrow that I can not get my gravel vac past most of the rockwork. What part of SoCal are you in?

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11 hours ago, LarryD said:

Just realized I can not spell nor find the edit button can I get someone with powers greater than mine to change that m at the end of return in the title to the n it is supposed to be?

One feature in the new software that isn't intuitive. To edit the title just mouse-click and hold on it, it will change to edit mode.

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1 minute ago, mFrame said:

One feature in the new software that isn't intuitive. To edit the title just mouse-click and hold on it, it will change to edit mode.

Good to know, thanks.

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4 minutes ago, JamesL said:

I am south of LA (Mission Viejo exactly).  Moved out here 2.5 years ago from Austin.

I know some people in the LA area, I was hoping you would be in San Diego so I could hit you up for some fish store recommendations. San Diego and Phoenix are roughly equal distance from yuma so it is the other option for going to get livestock.

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8 minutes ago, Jimbo662 said:

Very cool little set up

 

Thanks, I do kind of wish I had listened to my gut and gotten something like a 25 or 30 long and built the sump because while I do really like this tank the sump olis microscopic and finding properly sized equipment is difficult.

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Looking to place an order for a reef octopus classic 90 protein skimmer and some new carbon blocks. I am planning a trip to phoenix area for fish store adventures next week and was contemplating picking up a tester zoa or something plus something to clean up my sand bed (open to suggestions) and maybe a decorative shrimp. Since I am contemplating corals I was wonderingif I should also order some coral dip while I was at it from brs.

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1 hour ago, jolt said:

My own opinion is you should always dip corals.  It's way too easy to get pests!  @FarmerTy has a dipping video somewhere up here on ARC ...

What do you usually use for dips? I know alot of people here tend to use bayer.

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I do use bayer, and interceptor, and flatworm exit.  But my regimen is very toxic.  I think you should research and decide for yourself.  I have used CoralRx in the past, but it let some acro redbugs slip past so I decided to go extreme.  Ty's video has good information for you to consider.

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2 hours ago, jolt said:

I do use bayer, and interceptor, and flatworm exit.  But my regimen is very toxic.  I think you should research and decide for yourself.  I have used CoralRx in the past, but it let some acro redbugs slip past so I decided to go extreme.  Ty's video has good information for you to consider.

I have heard of a lot of people using the bayer and interceptor for sps but does it work well for softies and lps? I do not know if I am going to put any sps in the tank since it is so small.

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New toy, I picked a reef octopus classic 90. I will be the first to say that it is overkill for my tank but it keeps options open for future upgrades.

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The cup on it has almost the same volume as the entirety of the old skimmer.

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I was limited in selection by the tiny sump in the pennisula and my wish to keep the pump outside the tank.

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