16 gallon bow reef wall biotype - dialup beware

[MAreefer1]

OMG THATS AMAZING...do you have any updated pics. ?

[Cluckr7]

What a great idea and cool lookin tank. I like the equipment too. Perfect for a little tank like that.

[masterswimmer]

MAreefer1
OMG THATS AMAZING...do you have any updated pics. ?

Thank you MA. That's as updated as it can be. I just did that yesterday. It's a wonderful thing when we get 12" of snow. Not much else to do, except ski, board, tube, build snowmen or igloos, snowball fights.......well I guess there is a lot to do, I just chose this!



Cluckr7
What a great idea and cool lookin tank. I like the equipment too. Perfect for a little tank like that.

Thank you Cluckr7. Took awhile to research the equipment to find the right fit. Thanks for noticing.

Russ

[kamla]

sweet... nice wall....

[NewSchool04]

That really is going to be a nice little nano masterswimmer! I'm impressed for sure!

[masterswimmer]

Thanks NewSchool. A lot of time went into the thought and preparation of this project.

Was great looking at the tank tonight under my red LED's. I've got only the LR in there. I saw hundreds of pods all over the place. I saw bristleworms, emerald crab, strawberry crab, spaghetti worms and I'm sure I've missed some things.

Thanks again,
Russ

[shouldabenacowboy]

That is an impressive setup...Do you have any concerns about dead spots behind the eggcrate? Or livestock getting stuck behind it? I would hate to have to tear it apart because somebody got stuck and couldnt get out....

SBC

[masterswimmer]

Thanks SBC. Both powerheads, one for the skimmer and one for flow are behind the rock wall. It creates flow back there just from that (and there is one on each of the 'covered' walls of the tank).

If it's not enough flow and something dies back there, believe it or not, I still have enough room to get back there with my 24" tongs. Besides, the skimmer, SEIO and heater all come out really easy.

Thanks for looking and I appreciate testing my forethought. I know somebody is going to say........yada yada yada and I'll say OH DARN IT, I did forget something!!! lol

Russ

[masterswimmer]

Just wanted to update showing the sand I just added.



Will hopefully be looking to add a coral or two within a few days.

Russ

[NewSchool04]

what type of sand is that masterswimmer?
I think you are going to have a very hard time with corals shading lower corals on that wall. I see outcrops but I'm not sure that that will really make a difference. I may not be getting a good 3D look though.

[brainiac]

ok now i see the shelves..... man that is crazy looking.... i love it! Im sorry but i just may have to copy you.

[TippyToeX]

Russ, that is freaking awesome!!! Well thought out, and it's going to be just amazing when it's stocked!

[masterswimmer]

brainiac, thanks. Feel free to copy, no patent here .

Amy, thank you. That means a lot coming from you. And I'm stoked to stock! I want to see some pix of your garage!!

Everyone, have a Merry, Happy ChristmaKwanzikah!!

Russ

[TippyToeX]

I need to finish the garage first! Then show off. Right now it's just a mess of parts strewn all over the floor.

So are you expecting cycle with this nano (I know you fear a minor one, but are you seeing it?)? Or are you getting ready to add livestock?

[masterswimmer]

Hey Amy, I cured the LR for about 2 - 3 months while hand picking each piece and then storing it with a heater and PH. I got the last few pieces the week before I put everything together. That was uncured, so I am getting a mini cycle.

I did add 3 Astrea's, 6 Nassarius & 1 Coral Banded Shrimp the other day. All look good except the CBS. He might be ok, I just haven't seen him since yesterday. Might have been a week too early for him. Time will tell.

I won't add any coral or fish for a few weeks though. I'm patient in that department.

Russ

[cmondo]

That is a very unique setting, I always love to see new rock structures. Nice job with the wall too. As was mentioned before the light looks a little shaded in the middle of the tank towards the bottom, and i think a nice sun polyp would go great there, and seeing how much attention to detail you have taken it seems like you would have no problem feeding it everyday. Another way to go with livestock would be seahorses, i think they would look great hanging on the wall. And if you go that way u could put a small branching rock as an island too. Just my thoughts...amazing tank, I look forward to seeing what you do with it. happy holidays.

[bigbenji]

AWESOME!!! I must have missed it somewhere, but how did you mount the rock wall to the tank? How is it being held in place so that it doesn't just fall forward?

[masterswimmer]

cmondo, thanks for the uplifting comments. My wife really wants me to do seahorses. I've got a Fu Manchu Lionfish in mind though. Hey, anything could happen right now. Always open for suggestions. The sun coral is also a nice idea. Would add a nice splash of color right there in the middle.

bigbenji, the rock wall is just about self supporting. The right hand corner makes a 90 degree to the back wall. The right side LR almost (about 1/2" away) touches the front glass. So if it did fall, it wouldn't go very far. Besides, the precaution I took was to add a couple of 'cable tie mounting bases' to the back glass and cable tie through it and around the light diffuser.

Here's a pic of the mounting base:



Hope this helped.

Happy Holidays,
Russ

[Rurouni Kenshin]

Looks amazing, I might try it in my 29G, but I have a question for you.
How did the wall go from this:

To this:

If you cant see what I mean, I can not see hardly any Egg crate in the second pic, but I can in the first. You said you changed the lightbulb to a 20k, did that make that huge diffrence?

[rizkeeper]

darm cool...i'd like to see that on a larger tank....that is greatness

[VinnyTheIcepick]

I just started to set up my Aquapod 24 and I am sooooooo going to do a reef wall. I have lots of LR and Figi branch cooking so I am going to order up a dremel and take a shot at it. It looks too good to not give it a try.

[masterswimmer]

Rurouni Kenshin, thanks for the compliments. The whole difference in the pix is the first one was using a flash. This created light being directed straight at the wall. The second pic was with the tank light only (same 20k bulb) shining from above.


rizkeeper, again, thank you too. The thought of doing that on a larger tank does not thrill me! I'm not sure you can imagine the work it took to do a tank that size! Ooooohhhh, my aching back.


VinnyTheIcepick, make sure you have a lot more LR than you think. Also, I hand picked every piece over the course of three months. I had a mental picture drawn of what I wanted to do. There are no large pieces in there. A 29 however could use a little larger LR pieces to stay in proportion. Thank you for even saying you want to do it also. Very nice compliment.

I do have some frags in there now. A coral banded shrimp, some Nassarius Snails and Astreas.

The five frags I have don't do much for filling up the tank so pix don't really do it any justice.

Russ

[cmondo]

Very nice job with the wall, and I like your dedication and all the work u put into the tank. And as you stated pictures will not do ur tank justice, they would still be very nice to look at...hint. And I and most reefers know that pretty much all pics don't do it justice, but i would really like to see how the tank progresses. Thanks

[masterswimmer]

Ok cmondo, you convinced me.

Here's some of the livestock I've added so far. Remember, the frags are small and they don't do justice to the wall.

This first one is a Steve Tyree LE of an Acro (sp?) Shaggy Chuuk Blue. Color hasn't shown itself too well yet. But it is getting better daily:



Here's another Steve Tyree LE. This one is an Echino Lamellosa Challice Blue:



This frag was given to me from my friend Jim. It's a green with purple rimmed monti cap:



Here's a shot from the top down of my green slimer. Sorry for the MH reflection in the pic:



Unknown Acro (sp?), just loved the color. Pic, once again, doesn't do it justice:



And finally, my coral banded shrimp:



I hope you all enjoy.

Russ

[shouldabenacowboy]

Everytime I see your tank I like it more and more....I can't wait to see how it grows....keep up the good work


SBC