Tank Entry

I figured I'd create a short blog about my past tanks. Unfortunately, I can't find most of my pictures. If I come across them soon I will add more, but for now this is all I have.

I started my first saltwater tank in college. It was a 55g with a 40g sump. The sump had a Vertex IN-100 skimmer, a small section with a DSB and cheato. I had a Mag 9.5 return with a SCWD. The display tank had a Koralia 2 and two Koralia 4s. My lighting was a 6 bulb Current Nova Extreme pro T5 fixture. This ...

Howdy Reef Addicts!

I have finally completed the fish/equipment room in my basement! I built a 6' x 8' room that will hold my sump, filtration, water top off, chemicals, etc. All reef related items. I will also have a 10gal quarantine tank set up here.

I thought that the room was going to be plenty large, but now I find myself wishing it were larger, and there isn't even anything in it yet! I ended up using a high-gloss white paint for durability, even though I didn't want ...

... but the refugium is still lit up, it's easy to grab my Nikon and get a few more pictures for the night.

Feather caulerpa fills the refugium from end to end.

These sponges are growing on the back wall, so I moved some plants out of the way to inspect them. I spy some red feather dusters, lots of spirorbid worms, and some amphipods scurrying around.

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Every three months, I refill the poly tank to the top with RO/DI water. This upright container is rated at 265g, and I have a small float installed to stop filling it at 250g. This provides enough room to add salt to the water.

For the past three years, I've used Sybon Reef Blend salt. It takes two cases of salt to mix up 250g at 1.026sg, so I got four cases of Fritz salt last year and am finally getting around to using it. Right before the cold front hit my area on Sunday, I ...

The most frequent question I get is "What type of macro algae is that in your refugium?" It's feather caulerpa (C. Sertulariodes), and I've been growing it for at least 8 years. I've used a few others, but this one has been the dominant one. From time to time I'll pull a few handfuls out, usually when someone needs some. I thought I'd clean it up but noticed the tiny pods, bugs and other items so instead I grabbed my camera.

Here's a close ...