The budget SPS tank

[NeoReef]

Hello fellow reefers , I will be starting a new thread to track the progress of my new up coming tank , to share my insights with the reefing community as well as to recieve valuable advice from all the experienced reefers out there. A short introduction of myself , i started a simple all-in-one redsea max 150 back in 2014 keeping mainly softies and lps corals. It was a second hand tank that was handed over to me by my uncle , whom was also the person that introduced me to the wonderful world of reefing. Being young , impatient (actually still am , working on it) and unknowledgable , i made many mistakes in the past which i will rectify and improve on in the following build. The name of the thread suggests a few characteristics of my tank . Firstly , most of the equipments that ill be using are mid tiered equipments and some of them are second-hand. This is to cut the cost of setting up the tank and to see if it is really neccessary to spend a ton of money on equipments.

So without further ado , these are the equipments : 

Tank: 

-5x2x2 display tank , single euro braced , 12mm, front side crystal glass

-4x2x2 sump tank normal glass

Custom Made by aquarium artist

Lightings:

-4x grassycore LED lights

Skimmer:

-Skimz Oval 257 skimmer

Return pump:

-Ecotech Marine Vetra L1

Calcium Reactor:

-Skimz 157 dc calcium reactor with secondary chamber 

-2x 3L CO2 cylinder

-intense solenoid 

-MC122 ph controller

Auto-top off:

innovative marine auto top off

Wavemakers:

-2x gyre xf250 with advanced controller

RO/di unit:

-Zero RO/di 5stage 

-216L water drum with float valve

Salt:

-3x Skimz PUR reef salt

Redundancies (might be planning to add more):

-Caperplus ph and temperature monitor 

 

I will upload more pictures when the tank arrives this coming saturday , so stay tuned! 

 

 

[NeoReef]

The tank , as the name suggests will be predominantly filled with SPS . Hopefully with proper husbandry , ill be able to successfully keep a couple of tangs , angels and other fishes as well.

[NeoReef]

As for replenishing trace elements , i will be sticking to a regular water change schedule ( once every two weeks) and utilizing dead corals in my calcium reactor for the time being , until otherwise neccasary . 

I will also be testing out the pappone / blu coral method in this build to see if it really does increase growth and intensify coral coloration. 

[alexcyf]

Looking forward to see more, especially photos!

[Jeebusai]

Waiting for pics too! 

[Uask4it]

2 more days.

[NeoReef]

HAHA sorry guys for disappointing!! The tank itself will be delivered on Sunday instead of today ... but the cabinet came!!! Heres some pics of just the cabinet alone . I had vincent include a dry area to put all my power bars and controllers to keep the sump nice and tidy

[NeoReef]

I also purchased some cord hooks and cable ties from daiso today to help with cable management , as I always believe that a sump should be just as aestetic as the main display.... anyways looking forward to setting up all the equipments tomorrow (most enjoyable part about reefing) and will definitely update all of you while doing so

[Nick Liu]

Cant wait for more updates ! mine just started cycling day 1 !

[sandagen]

Can't wait to see the finished tank!

 

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app

 

 

 

 

[Jeebusai]

10 hours ago, NeoReef said:

HAHA sorry guys for disappointing!! The tank itself will be delivered on Sunday instead of today ... but the cabinet came!!! Heres some pics of just the cabinet alone . I had vincent include a dry area to put all my power bars and controllers to keep the sump nice and tidy

Nice cabinet. I like the dry space for Controllers. I’m using double side tape to stick at the side which is protruding, not very sightly.....lol. Are you going to add cabinet doors or the sump is open concept?

[NeoReef]

3 hours ago, Jeebusai said:

Nice cabinet. I like the dry space for Controllers. I’m using double side tape to stick at the side which is protruding, not very sightly.....lol. Are you going to add cabinet doors or the sump is open concept?

Thanks jeebusai bro , it will be an open concept . Personally i think it makes the tank look very advanced and hi-tech!!! Something to boast and show relatives when they come for a visit

[MarCal]

It also pressures one to make an effort to maintain the sump 

[NeoReef]

4 hours ago, MarCal said:

It also pressures one to make an effort to maintain the sump 

Yes this is so true bro !! 

[NeoReef]

So its finally here !!! Here are pics of what happened through out the day , really like how the tank turned out.. kudos to Mr Vincent for coming down on a Sunday to set it up despite injuring his fingers , it just shows how dedicated he is to his job. If you noticed , there are no cross bracing fir this tank , the reason for that is because i wanted to create an open look similar to a rimless design , but excluding the hefty price tag , that is why i opted for a single braced tank.

[NeoReef]

Heres a pic of the incomplete sump , didnt have the time to finish up the piping and set up the equipments as i had to rush to book in today ... so have to wait till next weekend to set everyhing up !!

[sklego]

Nice! Have a good week training n update us again next weekend. 

[Jeebusai]

Nice! Waiting for next update. Lol

 

[Nick Liu]

bet you cant wait to book out ! jiayou in your training !!!

[Imjawy]

Sent from Singapore Reef Club mobile app

[NeoReef]

Hello guys , just a small little update for this weekend , just finished the pipings last tuesday as well as recieved my LEDs and wavemakers 

[NeoReef]

Things left before filling the tank:

-Fix up the compressor (sourcing various people to get the cheapest possible price) 

-Settle the method of hanging the LEDs 

 

For the compressor , i actually purchased a brand new non-inverter aircon compressor and im trying to get a guy to modify it and install it for me at a lower price . Currently waiting for my  contractor’s friend to give me a quotation next Monday.

As for the lights , the design that i have in mind is an elevated hood concept which i am getting Vincent to fabricate for me. It’ll look something like this:

[NeoReef]

Hopefully all will be complete next week !!!  

[NeoReef]

On 08/07/2018 at 8:41 PM, sklego said:

Nice! Have a good week training n update us again next weekend. 

Thanks bro!!

[NeoReef]

On 08/07/2018 at 11:22 PM, Nick Liu said:

bet you cant wait to book out ! jiayou in your training !!!

Yah... this weekend still need do guard duty sian!