JoJo's office tanks

[JojosReef]

I keep a pretty active build thread over on R2R but figured I'd like to have one on here as well to show everyone what's happening in my office tanks. Quick background: I started in Oct 2022 with an Evo 13.5g tank that I bought for my son's birthday. Cycled dry rock and sand and added two clowns. Son lost interest rather quickly, especially with all of the maintenance, and it was a rough start. All the difficulties you can imagine. But, I was hooked. That same Xmas, I got an IM Nuvo 10g AIO setup for my office desk in Irvine. To that tank, I started with 100% TBS premium gulf rock and gulf sand. It was a dream. Most living things I added to that tank thrived. Had an AI Prime HD over it, and it took off. Eventually, I decided it was too small for my wants and was overgrowing itself, so I purchased an IM Nuvo 40L AIO and transferred all of the 10g and the 13.5g at home (except the shit dry rock) into the 40. It has also been an amazing tank. Mixed reef. I also became a wrasse addict and currently have a leopard, a yellow Halichoeres chrysus, a hiding pencil wrasse and two pinkies. Along with a firefish, a recently deceased tailspot blenny, and a yasha goby + candy cane pistol shrimp. The clowns became a problem, so I restarted the IM 10g as a softie/BTA tank for them by themselves. Now I have the 10g on my desk and the 40 behind me. For reference, here are my tanks:

Problem: I have no more space. And I want more fish and corals. Solution: A bigger tank!

So now I am in the process of setting up an upgrade for the 40g to an 83g. And this one isn't an AIO. It has a 29gal sump. I don't think I can go much bigger than this at my office. It comes with the sump, a 9 gal ATO container on a shelf with a gravity/float switch release. I also picked up a CurrentUSA (the tank is from CurrentUSA) 1900 gph DC pump. Dimensions are 48"x20"x20".

I've been working on various aspects of the tank like a lid, light mounting, control board, etc. Goal is to have it up and running within the next month or so.

I plan to use the sump as a half macro, half cryptic refugium. So working on a shade for the cryptic zone and placed an order with Mosaic Macros for a bunch of macros that will sit in the 10g until time to transfer.

(boxes represent ~2" sand bed)
Here is the macro plan

(note: this is not for nutrient control--my system already runs low nutrients; I'll likely be feeding to system to maintain the refugium, but it is meant for display, reverse light cycling, and for growing herbivore treats.)

Started making a water resistant pegboard-based control panel. Plastic pegboard, aluminum standoffs, and aluminum bolts/nylon washers.

Starting to work on the layout. Will also have a Helio heater, the return pump controller, an MP40 controller, and probably will get another Hydros wifi strip.

Build plan:

Tank: Custom CurrentUSA 83 gal tank, 48"x20"x20"
Sump: Custom CurrentUSA 29 gal
Plumbing: Custom CurrentUSA drain and return plumbing; VCA 1" RFG
ATO: Custom CurrentUSA 9 gal gravity ATO reservoir with float switch
Return: CurrentUSA 1900 GPH DC Loop-whatever
Powerhead: MP40 with Nem guard
Lights: 4x Noopsyche K7 Minis (5 would be ideal)
Mounting Arm: T-slot aluminum
Lids: DT lid from WalterLids; black plexiglass lid over cryptic sump zone
Heating: IM Helio 200W + backup Finnex Ti 300W on an Hydros control
Cooling: USB fans on an Hydros control--looking into a DIY "chiller"
Control: Hydros Minnow, Temp sensor, leak detector, float switches, control board
Dosing: Hydros Minnow for AFR, Reef Outfit Smart Dosing Container for AFR, Reef Factory X3 for liquid Reef Nutrition food
Sand: Special grade, to be seeded with Fiji Mud (Aquaforest LifeSource)
Rocks: 40gal rocks + extra Fiji/Marshall Islands dry rocks
Feeding: Avast Plank + Mini Fridge with Reef Factory X3 doser for Reef Nutrition liquid food


Stocking:
1. Female Blue star leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitis)
2. Female Yellow wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus)
3. Male Splendid pencil wrasse (Pseudojuloides splendens)
4. Female Pink streak wrasse (Pseudocheilinops ataenia)
5. Male Pink streak wrasse (Pseudocheilinops ataenia)
6. Yasha shrimp goby (Stonogobiops yasha)
7. Exquisite firefish (Nemateleotris exquisita)

Upcoming:
8. Replacement tailspot blenny (Ecsenius stigmatura)
9. One spot foxface (Siganus unimaculatus)
10. Copperband butterflyfish (Chelmon rostratus)
11. Radiant wrasse (Halichoeres iridis)
12. Black leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon negrosensis)
13. Royal pencil wrasse (Pseudojuloides severnsi)
14. Blue flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus cyaneus)
15. Royal flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus angulatus) OR yellowfin flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus flavianalis) OR filamented flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus filamentosus)
16. Exquisite fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus exquisitus)
17. Rhomboid fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rhomboidalis)
18. Hooded flame wrasse (Cirrhilabrus bathyphilus) OR splendid pintail fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus isosceles)
19. Blue mandarin dragonet (Synchiropus splendidus)
20. Yellow eye spotted kole tang (Ctenochaetus strigosus) OR tomini tang (Ctenochaetus tominiensis)

There may be some drop-outs to this list, particularly #18 and #20, but the overall tank is wrasse-dominant with some beautiful utilitarian fish like the foxface and CBB.

RE: corals, it will continue to be a mixed reef. I would like to get a few more meaty corals, zoas and an elegance. Perhaps a clam if I can get one to survive (may have a clam predator in the tank), perhaps in the refugium.

That's the plan, at least!!

 

[Tangwich]

Nice tanks! Congrats on the upgrade. I just saw this on my feed. Just sharing in case you want another option besides filter socks or filter floss.

 

[JojosReef]

Nice tanks! Congrats on the upgrade. I just saw this on my feed. Just sharing in case you want another option besides filter socks or filter floss.

Thanks! I forgot to mention. This is a no filtration tank! I've got 3 Red Sea filter cups in the sock slots, and I plan on just putting some carbon in them and letting the rest flow through. I may put a clam or even oyster(s) in the refugium. We'll see! I currently run only a bit of floss that I occasionally change out, but I still get very low NO3 (~1ppm) and PO4 around 0.06ppm. No algae problems in the tank except for some bubble algae that CUC ignore (RIP pitho crab).

 

[StanD]

I've seen these in person .... very nice setups Joe

 

[mescobar]

Thanks! I forgot to mention. This is a no filtration tank! I've got 3 Red Sea filter cups in the sock slots, and I plan on just putting some carbon in them and letting the rest flow through. I may put a clam or even oyster(s) in the refugium. We'll see! I currently run only a bit of floss that I occasionally change out, but I still get very low NO3 (~1ppm) and PO4 around 0.06ppm. No algae problems in the tank except for some bubble algae that CUC ignore (RIP pitho crab).

Woah nice, pH won't be an issue in the office without aeration from a protein skimmer?

"just don't breathe so much" /s

 

[Reeferkcp]

Beautiful tank!

 

[JojosReef]

I've seen these in person .... very nice setups Joe

Thanks Stan!

I have some interesting macros arriving next week:

We'll see if they grow out.

 

[JojosReef]

Woah nice, pH won't be an issue in the office without aeration from a protein skimmer?

"just don't breathe so much" /s

I don't run a skimmer on my current IM 40L AIO, and it's pH, last time I checked, was 8.something. So I don't think it's a problem. The reverse light cycle in the refugium will help with nightly pH swings.

 

[JojosReef]

Beautiful tank!

Thanks! Can't wait to get it all set up. Fearing the "Massive Tank Transfer" day, because this isn't a situation where I can set up the tank, get it all running and ready, and then casually transfer everything over. The tank is going in the same spot as the current IM 40L tank, so transfer day will be:
1) drain IM 40L and remove all livestock to holding tubs;
2) remove IM 40L tank to warehouse;
3) Move 83gal tank behind desk;
4) plumb it + fill it with water + leak check it + drain it again
5) Add pre-seeded sand and fill partway with water;
6) Move rocks from IM 40L to 83g;
7) Do all sorts of rearranging/troubleshooting;
8) Fill it with water and turn on pumps
9) dial in the flow;
10) let it go for a bit to stabilize;
11) transfer fish from tubs to 83g tank;
12) pray everything survives!

 

[joseserrano]

Thanks for sharing

 

[Reeferkcp]

Thanks! Can't wait to get it all set up. Fearing the "Massive Tank Transfer" day, because this isn't a situation where I can set up the tank, get it all running and ready, and then casually transfer everything over. The tank is going in the same spot as the current IM 40L tank, so transfer day will be:
1) drain IM 40L and remove all livestock to holding tubs;
2) remove IM 40L tank to warehouse;
3) Move 83gal tank behind desk;
4) plumb it + fill it with water + leak check it + drain it again
5) Add pre-seeded sand and fill partway with water;
6) Move rocks from IM 40L to 83g;
7) Do all sorts of rearranging/troubleshooting;
8) Fill it with water and turn on pumps
9) dial in the flow;
10) let it go for a bit to stabilize;
11) transfer fish from tubs to 83g tank;
12) pray everything survives!

That is a major undertaking! All that took me a whole week to accomplish moving from the garage into the house.

 

[Jimbo327]

Thanks! Can't wait to get it all set up. Fearing the "Massive Tank Transfer" day, because this isn't a situation where I can set up the tank, get it all running and ready, and then casually transfer everything over. The tank is going in the same spot as the current IM 40L tank, so transfer day will be:
1) drain IM 40L and remove all livestock to holding tubs;
2) remove IM 40L tank to warehouse;
3) Move 83gal tank behind desk;
4) plumb it + fill it with water + leak check it + drain it again
5) Add pre-seeded sand and fill partway with water;
6) Move rocks from IM 40L to 83g;
7) Do all sorts of rearranging/troubleshooting;
8) Fill it with water and turn on pumps
9) dial in the flow;
10) let it go for a bit to stabilize;
11) transfer fish from tubs to 83g tank;
12) pray everything survives!

Wow, that's very ambitious. You should probably plan to do this over 2-3 days (over 1 weekend). I would leak check ahead of time, so it can fixed easily while you have room and time.

 

[mescobar]

Thanks Stan!

I have some interesting macros arriving next week:
View attachment 119723

We'll see if they grow out.

No sponges? They might complement the macro algae once the fuge is established

 

[JojosReef]

Wow, that's very ambitious. You should probably plan to do this over 2-3 days (over 1 weekend). I would leak check ahead of time, so it can fixed easily while you have room and time.

Yes, unfortunately not much time. But, I will get all hands on deck at the office to help. Tank was leak checked once, but then moved, so I'll probably just fill it, give it a once over and then proceed. Not ideal, but I'll try to have everything ready for staging.

 

[JojosReef]

No sponges? They might complement the macro algae once the fuge is established

The cryptic zone will be full of pineapple sponges and other white sponges. I have a few sponges in the DT. But yes, was also thinking of getting yellow ball, orange ear and red finger sponges from live-plants.com.

 

[JojosReef]

Visited Channel Islands this weekend. Highlights below:

Really cool tidepools and kelp forests! I might try bringing a wetsuit next time!

 

[dontavo27]

I keep a pretty active build thread over on R2R but figured I'd like to have one on here as well to show everyone what's happening in my office tanks. Quick background: I started in Oct 2022 with an Evo 13.5g tank that I bought for my son's birthday. Cycled dry rock and sand and added two clowns. Son lost interest rather quickly, especially with all of the maintenance, and it was a rough start. All the difficulties you can imagine. But, I was hooked. That same Xmas, I got an IM Nuvo 10g AIO setup for my office desk in Irvine. To that tank, I started with 100% TBS premium gulf rock and gulf sand. It was a dream. Most living things I added to that tank thrived. Had an AI Prime HD over it, and it took off. Eventually, I decided it was too small for my wants and was overgrowing itself, so I purchased an IM Nuvo 40L AIO and transferred all of the 10g and the 13.5g at home (except the shit dry rock) into the 40. It has also been an amazing tank. Mixed reef. I also became a wrasse addict and currently have a leopard, a yellow Halichoeres chrysus, a hiding pencil wrasse and two pinkies. Along with a firefish, a recently deceased tailspot blenny, and a yasha goby + candy cane pistol shrimp. The clowns became a problem, so I restarted the IM 10g as a softie/BTA tank for them by themselves. Now I have the 10g on my desk and the 40 behind me. For reference, here are my tanks:
View attachment 119688
View attachment 119689

Problem: I have no more space. And I want more fish and corals. Solution: A bigger tank!

So now I am in the process of setting up an upgrade for the 40g to an 83g. And this one isn't an AIO. It has a 29gal sump. I don't think I can go much bigger than this at my office. It comes with the sump, a 9 gal ATO container on a shelf with a gravity/float switch release. I also picked up a CurrentUSA (the tank is from CurrentUSA) 1900 gph DC pump. Dimensions are 48"x20"x20".
View attachment 119690
View attachment 119691
View attachment 119692

I've been working on various aspects of the tank like a lid, light mounting, control board, etc. Goal is to have it up and running within the next month or so.

I plan to use the sump as a half macro, half cryptic refugium. So working on a shade for the cryptic zone and placed an order with Mosaic Macros for a bunch of macros that will sit in the 10g until time to transfer.
View attachment 119693
(boxes represent ~2" sand bed)
Here is the macro plan
View attachment 119694
(note: this is not for nutrient control--my system already runs low nutrients; I'll likely be feeding to system to maintain the refugium, but it is meant for display, reverse light cycling, and for growing herbivore treats.)

Started making a water resistant pegboard-based control panel. Plastic pegboard, aluminum standoffs, and aluminum bolts/nylon washers.
View attachment 119695
View attachment 119696

Starting to work on the layout. Will also have a Helio heater, the return pump controller, an MP40 controller, and probably will get another Hydros wifi strip.
View attachment 119697
View attachment 119698

Build plan:

Tank: Custom CurrentUSA 83 gal tank, 48"x20"x20"
Sump: Custom CurrentUSA 29 gal
Plumbing: Custom CurrentUSA drain and return plumbing; VCA 1" RFG
ATO: Custom CurrentUSA 9 gal gravity ATO reservoir with float switch
Return: CurrentUSA 1900 GPH DC Loop-whatever
Powerhead: MP40 with Nem guard
Lights: 4x Noopsyche K7 Minis (5 would be ideal)
Mounting Arm: T-slot aluminum
Lids: DT lid from WalterLids; black plexiglass lid over cryptic sump zone
Heating: IM Helio 200W + backup Finnex Ti 300W on an Hydros control
Cooling: USB fans on an Hydros control--looking into a DIY "chiller"
Control: Hydros Minnow, Temp sensor, leak detector, float switches, control board
Dosing: Hydros Minnow for AFR, Reef Outfit Smart Dosing Container for AFR, Reef Factory X3 for liquid Reef Nutrition food
Sand: Special grade, to be seeded with Fiji Mud (Aquaforest LifeSource)
Rocks: 40gal rocks + extra Fiji/Marshall Islands dry rocks
Feeding: Avast Plank + Mini Fridge with Reef Factory X3 doser for Reef Nutrition liquid food


Stocking:
1. Female Blue star leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon bipartitis)
2. Female Yellow wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus)
3. Male Splendid pencil wrasse (Pseudojuloides splendens)
4. Female Pink streak wrasse (Pseudocheilinops ataenia)
5. Male Pink streak wrasse (Pseudocheilinops ataenia)
6. Yasha shrimp goby (Stonogobiops yasha)
7. Exquisite firefish (Nemateleotris exquisita)

Upcoming:
8. Replacement tailspot blenny (Ecsenius stigmatura)
9. One spot foxface (Siganus unimaculatus)
10. Copperband butterflyfish (Chelmon rostratus)
11. Radiant wrasse (Halichoeres iridis)
12. Black leopard wrasse (Macropharyngodon negrosensis)
13. Royal pencil wrasse (Pseudojuloides severnsi)
14. Blue flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus cyaneus)
15. Royal flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus angulatus) OR yellowfin flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus flavianalis) OR filamented flasher wrasse (Paracheilinus filamentosus)
16. Exquisite fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus exquisitus)
17. Rhomboid fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rhomboidalis)
18. Hooded flame wrasse (Cirrhilabrus bathyphilus) OR splendid pintail fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus isosceles)
19. Blue mandarin dragonet (Synchiropus splendidus)
20. Yellow eye spotted kole tang (Ctenochaetus strigosus) OR tomini tang (Ctenochaetus tominiensis)

There may be some drop-outs to this list, particularly #18 and #20, but the overall tank is wrasse-dominant with some beautiful utilitarian fish like the foxface and CBB.

RE: corals, it will continue to be a mixed reef. I would like to get a few more meaty corals, zoas and an elegance. Perhaps a clam if I can get one to survive (may have a clam predator in the tank), perhaps in the refugium.

That's the plan, at least!!

How do you like the Noopsyche K7 lights?
I bought one but I have yet to set it up.
my current fixture(Kessil a80) seems to be doing a good job at full intensity.
I see you posting over at R2R on Franks thread, they’re all great peeps, had a good time with them at the GlassCages event last year.

 

[JojosReef]

How do you like the Noopsyche K7 lights?
I bought one but I have yet to set it up.
my current fixture(Kessil a80) seems to be doing a good job at full intensity.
I see you posting over at R2R on Franks thread, they’re all great peeps, had a good time with them at the GlassCages event last year.

I like the Noops. I give the K7 Minis a half star over the AI Primes. 60W on the mini vs 55W on the Prime with no wasted wattage on green and red LEDs. For a shallow/narrow tank they are perfect. Next tank is 20" W x 20" H, which is more than the current ~16" W x 12" H on the 40, so I will have to bump them up from ~50% power to maybe 100%. Will phase them out for the K7 Pros eventually. Cafe has some great people.

 

[JojosReef]

New macros just in from Mosaic Macros:

Got them all cleaned up and mounted:

@StanD quite a selection if these guys actually make it!

Hoping this Orange Galaxy (Augophyllum wysorii) makes it. It's a sensitive macro and was half-withered when it arrived:

 

[JojosReef]

Still a lot to do for the new build. Started making saltwater, though, so goal to have 100gal by end of next week. Still working out how to set up an extra support base and support braces for the stand. Stand is well-made with marine grade plywood and center load-bearing support, but I'm thinking of an extra T slot support in the center. Thinking about eurobracing the bottom, but then again a small piece of 16"x4"x0.25" glass for the sump cost me $25, so no idea how much 4 pieces of glass for a bottom eurobrace is going to cost...