Juiceman Posted May 26, 2016 Author Share Posted May 26, 2016 It's windy as crap in Manor and I'm leaving the top gap there so along with the vents it should ventilate very well. I'll monitor and see what it does Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted May 28, 2016 Author Share Posted May 28, 2016 Nice fit! Drilled it to match where the window pipes are Bulkheads in between to keep water from leaking in! Matches the fence! I have vinegar inside for tonight to let it get a good cleaning, then I'm going to pump it all out and connect the tank tomorrow! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 There were some small leaks once everything was running... Tightened a few things and were in business. Just in time for all the Rain! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 OK SAND PEOPLE! I've never ran sand before... what CUC and or special fish do I need to keep it nice!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BornToHula Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 I like Nassarius snails and Conchs to turn the sand over. I still give the sand a quick vacuum every time I do a water change to get any detritus out too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christyef Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 My goby filters some sand.. Not a whole lot, but some Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christyef Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 My goby filters some sand.. Not a whole lot, but some Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sascha D. Posted May 31, 2016 Share Posted May 31, 2016 The most reliable thing to do is stir the sand when you do water changes. If you don't do water changes or don't do them often then you can manually stir it on a regular basis. Mike Paletta turned me on to stiring and he does it in his tanks. If you want to incorporate some sand dwelling organisms, then you'll have to make sure that there are enough of them in the tank. Also, you'll want to make sure that they can't burrow under the liverock. I have had the most success putting the rock directly on the glass, but some people use a barrier in between the glass and the rock. The important thing is to put the rock in first and then the sand. Sand Sifting Gobies have a tendency to bury rocks and frags with sand. Nassarius Snails will bury in the sand, but you would need a ton of them. They will normally starve to death and your Christmas Wrasse will eat them. Dwarf Certith Snails will also bury in the sand and they don't typically starve to death but the wrasse eats them. Sand Sifting Starfish will deplete the sand bed quickly and then starve. Goat Fish and Sea Bream will deplete the sand of all organisms, but they are hardy and will eat prepared food. Sea Cucumbers (Depositing and not filtering species) will keep the top 1/2" of the sand clean but you would need big ones. I have two small ones in my tank and they're barely noticeable. Most are nocturnal and hang out in the rocks most of the time. Edible Sea Cucumbers and Black and Pink Sea Cucumbers will forage throughout the day. Stuff goes into the mouth and comes out sparkling white. There is that threat of nuking the tank, but I've never personally known anyone that has had any problems with them. I had one go through my return pump once and didn't lose a single fish. Fighting Conch are going to be your best bet at keeping the sand from clumping. They're cheap, long lived and more hardy than your average snail. They'll stay buried most of the time but they will surface every so often and clean the surface for a week before going back under. Depending on how much open sand you have, you'll likely need a minimum of 6. I wouldn't count on them to keep the sand white, but they'll keep it from becoming a rock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted May 31, 2016 Author Share Posted May 31, 2016 The most reliable thing to do is stir the sand when you do water changes. If you don't do water changes or don't do them often then you can manually stir it on a regular basis. Mike Paletta turned me on to stiring and he does it in his tanks. If you want to incorporate some sand dwelling organisms, then you'll have to make sure that there are enough of them in the tank. Also, you'll want to make sure that they can't burrow under the liverock. I have had the most success putting the rock directly on the glass, but some people use a barrier in between the glass and the rock. The important thing is to put the rock in first and then the sand. Sand Sifting Gobies have a tendency to bury rocks and frags with sand. Nassarius Snails will bury in the sand, but you would need a ton of them. They will normally starve to death and your Christmas Wrasse will eat them. Dwarf Certith Snails will also bury in the sand and they don't typically starve to death but the wrasse eats them. Sand Sifting Starfish will deplete the sand bed quickly and then starve. Goat Fish and Sea Bream will deplete the sand of all organisms, but they are hardy and will eat prepared food. Sea Cucumbers (Depositing and not filtering species) will keep the top 1/2" of the sand clean but you would need big ones. I have two small ones in my tank and they're barely noticeable. Most are nocturnal and hang out in the rocks most of the time. Edible Sea Cucumbers and Black and Pink Sea Cucumbers will forage throughout the day. Stuff goes into the mouth and comes out sparkling white. There is that threat of nuking the tank, but I've never personally known anyone that has had any problems with them. I had one go through my return pump once and didn't lose a single fish. Fighting Conch are going to be your best bet at keeping the sand from clumping. They're cheap, long lived and more hardy than your average snail. They'll stay buried most of the time but they will surface every so often and clean the surface for a week before going back under. Depending on how much open sand you have, you'll likely need a minimum of 6. I wouldn't count on them to keep the sand white, but they'll keep it from becoming a rock. The aquascaping will be done prior to adding the sand. I was leaning towards the Conchs already... You make that decision easier. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 4, 2016 Author Share Posted June 4, 2016 Rock will be here Wednesday! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo662 Posted June 4, 2016 Share Posted June 4, 2016 I've decided to re-home my yellow diamond...crazy little sucker would collect shells and small frags / plugs from all over the tank and stack them at the entrance of his cave! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 6, 2016 Author Share Posted June 6, 2016 Almost ready! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bpb Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 Back on the topic of sand sifters. Yes, gobies can bury sand frags if you have them too low, but if you're careful with how you do your sandbed, and don't use the sand as a "frag rack" for new arrivals, and are able to keep low lying corals mounted on rubble off the sand a bit, they work so well. My sleeper goby has kept my sand looking brand new right out of the bag. Fluffy never compacted. Completely sparkling white all over and brand new looking. Even on a 2+ year old tank Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 6, 2016 Author Share Posted June 6, 2016 Back on the topic of sand sifters. Yes, gobies can bury sand frags if you have them too low, but if you're careful with how you do your sandbed, and don't use the sand as a "frag rack" for new arrivals, and are able to keep low lying corals mounted on rubble off the sand a bit, they work so well. My sleeper goby has kept my sand looking brand new right out of the bag. Fluffy never compacted. Completely sparkling white all over and brand new looking. Even on a 2+ year old tank Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Just took a look at the sleeper goby.... Looks promising. I'm going to turn the sump 2nd chamber into a frag area... No more racks in the tank! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 6, 2016 Author Share Posted June 6, 2016 Ok, advice from those who've plumbed water tubs into tanks... Anything special I should do/not do when I set the tubs up Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 Ok, advice from those who've plumbed water tubs into tanks... Anything special I should do/not do when I set the tubs up Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Depends how you are planning to set it up. Are you going to use a pump to pump water into it and let it drain into your sump? Or are you going to use gravity to let it drain into the tub and then drain into the sump?I did the drain from DT to drain to sump initially but found it a bit temperamental and the possiblity of overflow a bit scary. I then went with a pump pumping from the sump to the tub and letting it drain back into the sump. I liked this configuration better and there wasn't a giant tube running from my DT down to the tub. I had to elevate the tub to allow it to drain properly into the sump. I took two cheap ottomans that I had laying around and threw a 3/4" thick piece of plywood over it to make a makeshift elevated platform for the tub. Worked perfect. I'm sure you can do the same with a couple of cinder blocks. When you first start, make enough water to fill the tub and match it as best you can to your DT parameters. I'd definitely add ball valves to the drain line into the sump so you can tweak the flow rate to match the incoming water. Also, leave both drain tubes above the water line. I've had it overflow twice on me because of a submerged line. Causes pressure issues if there is ever an interruption of the incoming flow and the drain flow siphon will sometimes not restart with water already sitting in the tube if you have the effluent side under the water line. Good luck. Hope it works out for you. I still think you're crazy but I guess most people think a lot of the things I do are crazy as well so I'm in good company. [emoji4] 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 6, 2016 Author Share Posted June 6, 2016 Ok, advice from those who've plumbed water tubs into tanks... Anything special I should do/not do when I set the tubs up Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Depends how you are planning to set it up. Are you going to use a pump to pump water into it and let it drain into your sump? Or are you going to use gravity to let it drain into the tub and then drain into the sump?I did the drain from DT to drain to sump initially but found it a bit temperamental and the possiblity of overflow a bit scary. I then went with a pump pumping from the sump to the tub and letting it drain back into the sump. I liked this configuration better and there wasn't a giant tube running from my DT down to the tub. I had to elevate the tub to allow it to drain properly into the sump. I took two cheap ottomans that I had laying around and threw a 3/4" thick piece of plywood over it to make a makeshift elevated platform for the tub. Worked perfect. I'm sure you can do the same with a couple of cinder blocks. When you first start, make enough water to fill the tub and match it as best you can to your DT parameters. I'd definitely add ball valves to the drain line into the sump so you can tweak the flow rate to match the incoming water. Also, leave both drain tubes above the water line. I've had it overflow twice on me because of a submerged line. Causes pressure issues if there is ever an interruption of the incoming flow and the drain flow siphon will sometimes not restart with water already sitting in the tube if you have the effluent side under the water line. Good luck. Hope it works out for you. I still think you're crazy but I guess most people think a lot of the things I do are crazy as well so I'm in good company. [emoji4] So my plan is to elevate the tubs on wood stands, then oveflow them into the sump via bulkheads, and use return Lines from my manifold. I have valves on the return lines so I can hopefully dial them into a safe overturn. The display will be empty once all this is setup so no siphons Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 6, 2016 Share Posted June 6, 2016 Well if you're emptying the display, you don't really have to worry about making new water then and matching it so that eliminates one variable. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Time to cure some live rock! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Of course my day started off yelling at FedEx for messing up...! The live rock was supposed to be held at the hub for me to pickup.... Of course they put it on a truck.. Smh Tracked down the driver at about 2 nod here we go! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Lots of cool pieces! A few hours of scrubbing and sweat later.. Let the cure begin Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted June 8, 2016 Share Posted June 8, 2016 So on Friday, will you be in love? [emoji4] (obscure Cure reference) Rock looks good man. You're still crazy but it's fun watching from afar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Ended up with almost 42lbs of rubble. I contacted Saltwaterfish.com and they said they waiting to be approved but they're going to send me another box of Rock for Free. We'll see what happens Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 8, 2016 Author Share Posted June 8, 2016 Done... Saltwater fish.com is sending me another box of Tukani rock free to replace the rubble! Nice! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juiceman Posted June 9, 2016 Author Share Posted June 9, 2016 Post 1000!!!!!! First 3 hrs of skimmate Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.