24g Aquapod

[jeffro]

Well' after lots of freshwater tanks I have decided to give a nano reef a try. I picked up a used 24g Aquapod with 150w MH and stand a few weeks ago, and started working on getting it all set-up. I went to Phenomenal Aquatics and picked up 35lbs of live rock from Ed(unbeatable price), then picked up a 20lb bad of live sand and some other things I needed from AD which Jason gave me a great deal on.

Pic before sand
http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00857.jpg

[jeffro]

Here's a couple pics of the tank after 2 weeks of running. You can see some diatoms kicking in now. Still needing to buy a few pounds of LR rubble for the chamber in the back, but I want to find some that's been in an established tank. I have a JBJ ATO on the way, and waiting to get some more funds to get a reef lite controller. Going to try without a skimmer, and just doing weekly water changes since I have read a lot of posts where people are being successful with that method. I'll post more pics as things progress.

http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00861.jpg

and a side shot
http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00860.jpg

[Gilbert]

man with that light you can grow anything, my only suggestion would be to move the rock farther away from the glass so it can be easier to clean

[Big_Pun]

good start you will be glad u did your research first, and weekly water changes will keep you from needing a skimmer

[ballardjr2000]

watch the heat with that light, its close to the water. i got a 70w on my 12g no heat issues but its about a foot above the water line.

[dmweise]

Why is there grating on the bottom?

[ballardjr2000]

the grating helps distripute the rock weight so it adds a bigger "foot print" to say.

[RayAllen]

Tank looks great

I am assuming

He used grating on the bottom to distribute the weight also preventing any weak spots in the glass from a single point of a rock, not to mention it distributes the impact if he ever has a rock slide. A safety precaution

[lakers10]

what u mean by bigger foot print??

[jeffro]

Thanks all! The temps so far are sitting at 81 with the light on, so I'm gonna look for a fan to mount to the back that will run on the timer with the light. The grating at the bottom is egg crate, and it is to help distribute the weight of the rocks across the bottom and not allow any pressure points. It also seems to make them more stable, so future sand sifters won't cause an avalanche.

[Crazyeyes]

Looks great so far, keep us posted. I agree you can grow anything you want in that tank.

[lakers10]

how much did those light cost??

[diego]

I enjoyed my Aquapod when I had it. Great looking tank.

[Mr Cob]

I like the rock work. I like the back top piece reaching up to the surface. Looks cool.

When I had my 120 reef, I had some pieces imerge out of the water. It was a cool effect and looked very natural. Crabs and snails would go up there and chill.

[jeffro]

Thanks all! The light was a part of the package with the aquarium, but I believe new the fixture goes for around $250 or so. Thanks for the comments on the rock, I'm pretty happy with it. I think my next tank I'm gonna go for the bonsai look, those are very sweet.

[aggman]

hey jeffro nice tank so far.

for the fan, you can pick up a nice clamp-on fan from marinedepot made by azoo. very inexpensive [~$24] and it is a nice streamlined black fan that runs pretty quiet.

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem.aspx?idproduct=AZ71021&idCartRow=17018327&isKit=0&child=AZ71021

~alex

[Gseclipse02]

hey jeffro nice tank so far.

for the fan, you can pick up a nice clamp-on fan from marinedepot made by azoo. very inexpensive [~$24] and it is a nice streamlined black fan that runs pretty quiet.

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem.aspx?idproduct=AZ71021&idCartRow=17018327&isKit=0&child=AZ71021

~alex


that fan doesn't blow much air ... its nice looking tho ... but i dont think it does much ... could be that i have it on a lot larger of a tank

[jeffro]

That's the fan I was looking at, but I was afraid it might be loud. I have a 4 fan untit that came with the tank, but it's way too loud for me. I think the one I have is a Jebo brand.

[Bugroago73]

the only one I have owned is the aquapod and I love it. You need to upgrade the return pump and lighting. But when thats all done Its a great tank.

[jeffro]

A little update. I had a bout with cyano, but found it to be the bulb I was running. I was wanting a new one anyway, because the one that it came with was too yellow for me. I ordered a 14k Pheonix and couldn't be happier. Nice blue color, and has also made the corals happier. Most of the cyano is gone now, and the snails are finishing off the rest. I still only have a few corals, but I did pick up one of the Scubasteveo Euphyllia Hybrids that Bill had for sale. Awesome coral, looks great, and was nice to meet Bill. I also picked up a clownfish and a goldhead goby from Ed at Phenomenal Aquatics. Here's a couple pics. My camera sucks, so these aren't that great.

http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00946.jpg
http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00957-1.jpg
http://i949.photobucket.com/albums/ad336/jeffro3967/DSC00955.jpg

[corruption]

Looking good! Is this what you downgraded to, when you sold me your 75? I like the rockwork -- all the rock activity centered on one side.

I'll get a thread going for what I've done with your old tank here in a month or so -- almost getting to the picture-worthy part! :)

-Corruption

[jeffro]

Good to hear from you, ya this is what I have now, and so far am loving it. Just taking my time getting it stocked. Would love to see pics of the 75g.

[corruption]

Its coming along, albeit slowly. The actual moving of the tank is pretty much reliant on my friend (wheelchairs + 140 lb tanks don't mix ;) ), but I'm down to just plumbing it up and getting it running. Drilled the back, painted it and hung an overflow that Ace made for me -- shouldn't be more than a month now :)

-Corruption