Tank of the month - October 2002

[Skipper]

This month we are featuring Chuck Fiterman's (MtnDewMan) awesome 75 gallon reef:

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-10/totm/images/full_tank_iso_afar_1.jpg (http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-10/totm/index.htm)

More details can be found here (http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-10/totm/index.htm) or by clicking on the picture above.

Congratulations, Chuck!

[Josh125]

Chuck,

A very deserving tank! I think my favorite was the black maxima, what a beautiful clam!

Congrats!

[Yellotang]

Nice, a real gem to try to achieve. Congratulations.

[rbaker]

Congratulations Chuck!

Great article, you have an awesome set-up...

Ryan

[scubadude]

I knew your day in the sun was coming soon.....Chuck you have been providing us with some awesome EYE candy lately and I for one appreciate your time you put into your tank as well as your presentation of it! Definately well deserved! Thanx for being a inspiration :)

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks everyone. I try to make it a nice tank to show off in my living room. I have learned everything about reefkeeping here on Reef Central just about, so everyone here has helped me put it together. I hope that I give back some of what I learned here :)

Thanks again ...

[mia1974]

I knew this one was going to be TOTM at some point!!! Very, very beautiful! I cannot belive how much amazing color you have in that 75...I always thought it was a larger tank to have all those nice looking corals and color, I guess you just pick them right :) I only hope that someday my acros look like yours!

Congrats!

[JazzMan]

Great Job Chuck!

I love the tank. Great sump too!!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[JB NY]

Sweet tank Chuck, I've always liked your setup. Congrats!!

[sven]

This one was easy to predict. Great choice, great tank.

[Project Reef]

Very nice tank chuck, I think this should be a sticky for the rest of the month.

[K. Lee]

Wow! I'll have to check out the tank in more detail. :)

[kevinpo]

I've had the privilege to see Chuck's tank several times in person and I can tell you it's always looked perfect :) Congratulations Chuck and very well deserved.

Best regards,
Kevin

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks guys for all of the nice words. As always I continuously try to improve on it. I just today added a 2nd chamber to my calcium reactor (from MyReef) ... will see how that does in helping my Calcium and pH levels ....

Kevin, you not only have seen my tank, but you also have little pieces of my tank there with you :)

[Mushroom Boy]

I too have had the privilege of watching this tank progress in person. It's a well deserved honor. Keep up the great work Chuck!!!

Paul.

[Flame*Angel]

Beautiful setup. A lot of thought and planning obviously went into this. Great colour! A very well deserved award.

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Flame and MB ...

Special thanks go to Mushroom Boy for helping me get all of the plumbing together and installed when I set it up ... He helped a lot along the way ....

[Jade]

Great Tank!! This really shows what time, and effort can accomplish. Great article about the tank. Keep up the great work.
:beer: JADE

[tentacle]

First off, CONGRATS CHUCK! Like Rocky said, it was just a matter of time before you got the honors. :) And I too thank you for all the absolutely amazing shots you have taken for us to drool over (especially all of the Harlequin pictures).

Secondly, a moderator needs to pin this thread to the top!

Keep up the great work Chuck, and don't ever stop taking pictures. But most of all, enjoy your tank. Good luck with everything.

[original-reefland]

Nice tank! Love the clams.

[FISH]

AHH !!! Way to go mntn man, you've come a long way since the 29. What's next ? I bet you upgrade in a couple years :)
Congrats again.
[\[\ark



http://community.webtv.net/MarkPelski/INTHEWALL120GAL

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks everyone ... yes I would love to upgrade, if I only had a bigger house with a good sized wall to put it in ... new house will definately be big enough for a much larger tank, but for now, my 75 gallon is doing nicely and of course less viewing acrylic to clean than a larger tank ... haha ... Trust me, I basically know what I would do with it, but to be honest, the systems I have on this tank would find it's way on the new one, I really am happy with the way the setup I have has turned out for me.

[MIKE NY]

Beautiful tank Chuck, a well deserved honor.

Congrats
Mike

[Playfair]

Very nice, MtDewMan! Obviously a lot of love goes into that reef...

One Q: Are those plants fake on the sides of the tank? :lol:

[6-line]

Chuck, awesome setup...

On your lighting, is that a PFO reeflector (the mogel base MH) you're using? If so, did you ever mount it perpendicular like recommend or has it always been parallel? The reason I ask is that my pair of Iwasakis are mounted perpendicular in their PFO reflectors and it's tough as all get out to mount more than two VHO actinics under my 90 gallon hood and i was curious if I sacrificed the extra 'refelctive' capability of the perpendicular mount for the ability to add another pair of actinics, if it would be worth it.

thanks,

6

[cvye]

*************

Not nice :( Go sit in the corner.
Skipper

[plankton]

Chuck,

Congrats!

No doubt your SPS love all that water motion.

Any new projects planned? :D

Scott

[susieQ]

Beautiful tank! Congrats!
One question---how do you keep the sand so white and sparkly? :)

Susie

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks again everyone ... Nice to get such positive comments ... It is quite the honor ...

Playfair ... Ummm ... yep, those are fake plants. You got me. Hey, I never claimed to have a green thumb, just a wet one :p

6-Line ... I have thought about a perpendicular arrangement, but like you I was too limited on the VHOs I could fit in. So elected to go the parallel route and have not regretted it. I get plenty of light in my tank (as some that have seen it in person can attest to). If anything I would like to be able to put in maybe one more VHO actinic bulb ... hehe ... I have about a foot between the MHs, wonder if I can get a true actinic PC bulb to fit in there???

Plankton ... No new projects planned. I did install that 2nd reactor chamber from Myreef and it is working like a charm. I had thought about setting up a frag growout tank in my garage, but have not made that committment to myself quite yet. I may get a treadmill in there instead ... haha

SusieQ .... I do nothing special to the sand ... I have very little algae growth in my tank except for some nuisance spots of bubble algae. I do have Nassarius snails that help the sand bed as well as a couple of cucumbers that enjoy grazing on the sand as well.

[Zander]

Great looking tank!!

I have a question regarding your closed loop. I noticed that you only have (1) 1.5" bulkhead with a 1800gph pump? Is this correct? How much suction is comming from this bulkhead? Do you feel you would have been better of with (2) 1.5"bulkheads? I ask this because I am in the process of setting up a CL with a mak4 (1200gph), and am contemplating 1 or 2 bulkheads. Would be easier if I could get away with only one. Just don't want to suck down any unexpecting creatures. thanks

[MtnDewMan]

You are correct, I only have one bulkhead (1.5") going to the closed loop pump. I have never seen any critter getting sucked onto the strainer. I have seen fish swim by it with no problems either. I am not sorry I did it this way at all. To me the less holes I had to put in the back of the tank the better. Would I do it differently on the next setup? Probably not, the only thing I would do different is to design the plumbing a bit differently so that the pump is in a better location for easier maintenance (removal and replacement). It is awkward in the present location, if moved to the right about 1 foot, it would be a whole lot easier :)

Hope this helps.

[Newreeflady]

Sa Weet!

Very nice tank, Chuck. As always, keep up the ultimate reefkeeping!

Angela (who never misses a pic of the dewman's tank:D )

[Zander]

Thanks for the quick reply! Just what I wanted to hear :) Once again, Congrats!!

[melev]

I love your clams. The one vivid blue one in particular. Does it show that color because you have it facing toward the front of the tank rather than pointing it upward?

Beautiful tank, and your sump is so impressive that I don't even get it. :D However, I did like your computer to protect your tank from overheating.

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Angela ... I try to keep the pictures coming ... but it gets old taking pictures of the same ole' stuff though huh?

Glad to help sdg ...

melev ... that clam shows it's color like that because ... it IS truly that color :)

[becca]

niiiice! a very well deserved honor, i think:)

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Becca :)

[Mushroom Boy]

Originally posted by MtnDewMan:
if moved to the right about 1 foot, it would be a whole lot easier Hmmmmm.... I smell a project :D

[MtnDewMan]

haha ... somehow I knew you would say that MB ... :eek2:

[Mad Scientist]

Great tanks, congrats

So those clowns are 10yrs old, pretty impressive.

[MtnDewMan]

Yes, I would say getting closer to 11 years now actually ... they RULE the tank in my mind ....

[Newreeflady]

Originally posted by MtnDewMan
Thanks Angela ... I try to keep the pictures coming ... but it gets old taking pictures of the same ole' stuff though huh?

Glad to help sdg ...

melev ... that clam shows it's color like that because ... it IS truly that color :)

I don't think it could ever get old, Chuck! I mean, with the growth you get, it's always new:D!

Angela.

[cisco]

G'day Chuck
I just wanted to let you know that I have read your hold
set up and I think that it is a great looking tank and very
well planed out, the pumps,lights reactor the works really
neat and very impressive, hope it keeps going well to the
future. thanks for sharing your pics and lay out.
cisco

[spsphreak]

Chuck,

I just wanted to say, congratulations on tank of the month!!!!!!!!! I have been impressed by your tank since the first day I saw it, and being that I have a 75 gallon sps reef also, your tank has definitely been the inspiration for mine. Way to go!!

Scott

[ReefDream]

A beautiful tank!

[MtnDewMan]

Newreeflady ... you know I will keep taking pictures ... I can't resist ... hehe

cisco ... thanks for the great complements, I do try to do my best :)

spsphreak ... wow, that is a nice thing to say, thanks.

ReefDream .... Thanks :)

[ROBZ]

Congrats MtnDewMan! amazing tank!!! :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks ROBZ :) :)

I took a look at your website, the tank and pictures are great.

[TimsReef]

Excellent Reef Tank and well deserving of the recognition. I enjoyed the detail of the maintenance-free aspect of your set-up. I too travel a lot and am looking to make mine as low maintenance as possible. Congratulations.........

Tim

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Tim ...

I always strive to make things easier if possible, I could really use an automatic acrylic scraper for optimal viewing ... hmmm, anyone come up with one of those yet? I guess I will have to dig my arms in the tank each week still huh?

Thanks again

[jonaslee]

Great tank!
Just a short question.
Where is the Closed Loop bulkhead located?
ie. how many inches from bottom of tank and is it
dead center?
Also if you have to do again, would you put it at
the same location?
Regards,

[MtnDewMan]

I wanted to make sure the closed loop intake is relatively accessible as the strainer requires periodic maintenance (removing and cleaning). Therefore I located it approximately 12" from the right hand side and approximately 10" from the bottom of the tank, meaning it is about 6" from the top of the sand bed. I figured if sand piled back there for any reason there would still be at least 4" between the sand and the inlet.

So far I have not regretted the location one bit, but as things grow more and more in the tank, it is increasingly more difficult to get access to the strainer for cleaning.

[kedd]

Great looking tank!

Kedd

[jonaslee]

Thanks for the reply.
A few more questions.
I noted that you have two sea swirls mounted on left and
right of the tank.
How far are they mounted from left and right end of the tank?
Which direction is the sea swirl pointing at end of motion?
Is it 45 degrees left and then right of center?
Or at a different angle?
Considering that you have stong circulation pumps
how do you deal with sands being blown in the tank?
Also did you modify the outlets on the sea swirls?
Best regards,
Jonas

[MtnDewMan]

How far are they mounted from left and right end of the tank?

The left one is about 12" from the side, the right one is about 6" from the side. The overflow box on the left prevents me from putting it 6" from the side.

Which direction is the sea swirl pointing at end of motion?

On the right hand side, the end of motion is along the back of the tank on one stroke, right at the front of the tank on the other end of the stroke.

On the left side it is different because of the overflow box, so it is positioned at 45 degrees instead of 90 degrees

Considering that you have stong circulation pumps, how do you deal with sands being blown in the tank? Also did you modify the outlets on the sea swirls?

In order to use the full capacity of the pump, I had to remove the nozzle outlets from the sea swirls. They force a jet of water against the front glass that inevitably creates a sandstorm as the water moves down the glass. Instead of the nozzles, I installed 90 degree PVC elbows to the outlets instead. I now utilize the full pump output with the dispersion through the sea swirls less of a jet effect.

Hope this helps.

[MtnDewMan]

Thought I would provide an updated picture as of Oct 14, 2002 ...

http://www.fitermania.com/75gallonreef/images/10-14-02_full_tank_view_1.jpg

[Green Lantern]

Congratulations Chuck, the honour is well deserved.

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Troy ... Hope you can come down and see it again sometime.




If anyone is interested, I pulled together pictures of my tank taken over the last year since this particular tank has been running officially 1 year this month. I was pretty surprised to see the growth of everything since that time.

http://archive.reefcentral.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=120709

[joeychitwood]

Elegant design and function. Your tank is gorgeous and obviously very well conceived and constructed. To have a tank that beautiful with a minimum of maintenence is real science.

The clams are awesome. Congratulations on rising to the very top of the hobby!

[Just Fishing]

Very nice !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Guys :) :)

[reefnovice]

Beautiful setup. May I ask where do you acquire the black maxima clam?

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks reefnovice,

I got that clam from a local store here in the Seattle area about a year ago.

[bowfront]

Congrads, that tank is looking better every time I see it.

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks ... These days I just let it grow out ... do some trimming here and there but love to just watch the growth.

I am starting a new project soon. I will be removing my nurce and setting up my RO unit to run through a Spectrapure level controller system for my autotop off ... should be a neat little project and hopefully one more way to keep things hands free :)

[Ironreef]

didn't you have a bubble tip? Or that's in your sump?

[JSM]

Beautiful tank!

Janna

[MtnDewMan]

Ironreef, I had one nestled in the rockwork that the clownfish enjoyed. Not sure if it is still there or not, I never see it. I am willing to bet it isn't there anymore. I have a rose long tentacle from Mushroom Boy in my Refugium, however it has found it's way amongst the caulerpa, I hope it resrufaces sometime.

Thanks Janna