can I see some pics of bare bottom tanks?

[clkwrk]

my sps bb nearing a year


my sofite/stony tank near 19 months BB

[trueblackpercula]

all i can say is wow cant wait to get started.

[JimW]

My 180 BB after 7 months.

[MarkO]

Certainly some very impressive tanks, but I got to admit, they look kinda odd without something on the bottom to hold everything up.
Is it just me?

[JimW]

Takes a little getting used to, but sure is easy to maintain!!

[gman0526]

Updated pic of mine:

[ezhoops]

Ok what is the consensus is starboard needed or just a feature? I notice most of these tanks have no starboard and they seem to be fine. Do you have trouble with pockets of dirt trapped in the rocks on the bottom?

[ezhoops]

Ok what is the consensus is starboard needed or just a feature? I notice most of these tanks have no starboard and they seem to be fine. Do you have trouble with pockets of dirt trapped in the rocks on the bottom?

[Fatboy]

Is there any way to avoid the starboard turning purple ?

[poknsnok]

keep calcium out of the water

[Wiskey]

Originally posted by ezhoops
Ok what is the consensus is starboard needed or just a feature? I notice most of these tanks have no starboard and they seem to be fine. Do you have trouble with pockets of dirt trapped in the rocks on the bottom?

I did not use starboard. The starboard protects the bottom of your tank from a dropped rock, and it also reflects light to make your lights more efficant.

In retrospect I wish I had used starboard.

HTH,
Whiskey

[Ky_Yaker]

I just spent the last couple of hours reading through this whole thread(Yep, it's that slow at work!!)and I think I am sold on BB. I am setting up a 75 and I'm glad I read this thread before I bought the sand. I can't wait to get it finished so I can post some pics. Do you think a Euro Reef ES5-3, two Seio 110's and a mag 7 for a return pump will be sufficient for a BB. I was planning on a DSB when i purchased the equipment, I should have researched BB earlier.

[Brandon's Reef]

well bomber youve done it once again. Ive spent all day making my tank bare-bottom. After a recent tank crash from a year old tak im blaming on the dsb I wasnt hesetant of taking out all of the sand. I didnt use starboard I figured it would be to hard for the curve of my 54 corner so it is straight glass.
I have a lot of people watching how my tank will do so they to can go bb I want to know every thing I can to make it do the best.
now I know that the dsb kept my pH at a resonably constant level of 8.3 what do I do to keep it stable in the BB?

[Weatherman]

Originally posted by Brandon's Reef
now I know that the dsb kept my pH at a resonably constant level of 8.3 what do I do to keep it stable in the BB?

Bomber is taking a well-deserved break, so I’ll try to field your question…

You will likely find your pH to be higher and more stable with a bare-bottom tank than it was with the sand. The reason is that all those sand bed critters produce a lot of CO2. This acts to depress the pH. The sand dissolving buffers some of the effect, but not all.

With the sand gone, a major source of CO2 goes with it. As a result, your pH should be higher and show less variability from day to night.

[usafa93]

Here's another idea that; I use this and it works great for me.

Texas Holey rock, as it's called, is a type of limestone from the Austin area of Texas. It's usually used in chilid tanks to keep the pH up. I have a huge hunk (85 lbs.) in my tank, and it maintains the pH perfectly. It's also pretty cool, because it contains alll sorts of cave for your creatures to explore and sleep in.

Be forewarned, I have no idea if this the reason my pH stays exactly at 8.3, but that's where it stays. I use that, a hardcore downdraft skimmer, and about 5% H2O change per week, and everyone is happy and fine; water parameters are perfect.

If you think you want to try this, do a search on eBay (or Google) for "Texas Holey."

[B.PETERSEN]

Recent pic of my BB 125.




BP

[Zedar]

I'm having hair algae issues that im sure is coming form the substrate.
So im going BB.
I have a haddoni anemone. Anyone know how to house one of these in a BB tank? Since they like sand bottoms im worried that he will move around?

[Jimsreef]

Is it necessary to cook live rock if I buy rock uncured and plan on curing it myself in a new bare bottom setup. Thanks Jim

[Jimsreef]

Do bare botton reefers use sand in a refugium? Jim

[javajaws]

Originally posted by Jimsreef
Is it necessary to cook live rock if I buy rock uncured and plan on curing it myself in a new bare bottom setup. Thanks Jim

Yes

[javajaws]

Originally posted by Jimsreef
Do bare botton reefers use sand in a refugium? Jim

Not typically

[NoSchwag]

Jim not necessary (but recomended), just keep up on siphoning. It will probably be ugly for a while.

Also we don't use a refugium at all. Our skimmers keep our tanks clean.

[Jimsreef]

Thanks Whats the best siphon to use?

Would a turboflotor 1000 be a good enough skimmer for a 90 gallon bare bottom? Jim

[PITSTOP]

AWESOME TANK B.PETERSEN!!!! Super SPS growth, well done!

[NoSchwag]

Jim use a piece of 1/2" tubing, prop a bucket up so it's a little lower than the tank, and use your finger on the exit end to stop the flow. Doing it this way I can siphon big piles with minimal water loss.

The siphon with the bigger endpiece (like at petco) is made for cleaning gravel. I just figured this out on Sunday. What happens is you use a lot of water trying to get all of the crap down the tube.