taking a new direction

[eric b 125]

Still waiting on the glass shop to call me, but I've gotten some things done. I removed the old glass holes overflows and picked up the plumbing parts that I think I'll need, but you know how that goes- I'm sure I'll be going back for more. I also removed all the black paint from the back of my tank and I'm working towards getting the inside of the tank cleaned up. Last night I bleached most of my rocks. I used 1 gallon of bleach for between 15-20 gallons of water and let it aerate for 15 hours. It's been baking outside for a few hours but since it's going to rain later (and forecast is calling for rain for the next 2 days) I'm just going to do a few soaks with dechlorinator. I have some pics to post but for some reason my computer isn't recognizing my phone when I plug it in.

 

[snakeblitz33]

You can get the photobucket app on your phone.... that's what I do most of the time when I want to post a pic from my phone.
If it's going to rain, why not just let it sit out in the rain? lol
Eric, I'm sure you are aware, working in the medical industry, that bleach is only effective at a 1:10 part ratio... for killing all microbial life and at least a six minute soak to be effective against endospores.

lol, Just yanking your chain, I'm sure everything will be fine.

 

[eric b 125]

Seth my man, I am glad to see that you haven't lost that southern....um....charm. I didn't want to go too strong on the bleach. It was pretty uncomfortable for me to do that. I'm sure b/w the bleach, the day outside, a few days of various de-chlorinator baths and a few more soaking in the last bath, I'd have cleaned the rock well enough. I live in the city of Pittsburgh, bro- I'm not going to leave my rock sitting outside in a possible puddle of god-knows-what for any length of time.
Heres a few pics of where I'm at so far:
Tank

Plumbing on rear of tank:

 

[eric b 125]

Here's the tank as it sits now:

The rocks that I bleached yesternight:

And the injury that makes working with salty stuff very painful:

 

[snakeblitz33]

I see that... it's coming along nicely.
I forgot you lived there. I can see your point. lol. Besides, never know who might want some free white rock on the curb side, right?
What size sump is that? a 55g?
Are you keeping your SCWD?

 

[snakeblitz33]

Ouch! How'd you hurt your hand?

 

[eric b 125]

I forgot how quickly this hobby turns an otherwise clean and orderly room into a total mess. This was just stuff that I unloaded from inside my stand:

I'm hoping that tomorrow the glass will be in. In the meantime, I'm going to try and make some order out of this chaos because once I really start to sink my teeth into this project it will be a war zone.

 

[eric b 125]

Well, I kept the rock in my back yard, but who knows what kind of pesticides my neighbors use etc etc. I do use the SCWD. I bought it before I had the vortechs and it does provide subtle variations of in-tank flow, though not much. I'm pretty sure my return pump is a mag 18 so with head loss, there's not a ton of flow coming through it.
I broke a bowl when I was doing the dishes and got cut.

 

[eric b 125]

Oh, I don't know if I'm going to keep the SCWD or not. Also, the sump is a 40 L.

 

[eric b 125]

One more thing: stocklist ideas as far as fish? I am embarrassed to admit it, but I still have a yellow tang, blue hippo tang, a chromis, and two clowns. I really thought that I'd be getting this going sooner than I did, otherwise I'd have gotten rid of the survivors. I am going to get rid of the hippo and clowns, keep the yellow tang and chromis (the two fish I've had since the beginning) and pretty much just want to get a bunch of anthias and another mandarin.

 

[snakeblitz33]

anthias huh?
I don't know much about fish. How about a Dr. Seuss Soapfish? I've heard they are cheap this time of year.
There's a lot of different types of gobies and blennies out there that do well if you like the smaller fish. I know having at least one tang in a large tank helps a lot with algae problems down the road. Nothing to be embarassed about though as far as your fish choices.
I would look at getting a few cool tangs for the tank at least. They are larger reef safe fish that do serve a purpose. A few fairy wrasses would be a nice addition as well. I loved my carpenters until he jumped.
Pseudochromis make great additions and add a little color to the tank as well. I also enjoyed my Royal Gramma for a while. I also liked my Orchid dottyback. Very neat little specimens. Though, if planning a tank from scratch, I wouldn't have a single fish or invert that didn't have some special ability. Like six line wrasses are good for flatworms, tangs are good for algae control, blennies and gobies slightly stir the sandbed, etc. etc.

 

[eric b 125]

Dr Seuss Soapfish, eh? Put me down for 3 or 4. If you know anyone else that wants one, just let me know and I'll buy them two! The only thing about anthias is that you have to feed them so often. Oh well, I have plenty of time to think of fish and really, fish aren't really my thing. I was thinking of my CUC. I'd like as much variety as I can get. A handful of nassarius snails, some astrea's, some peppermint shrimp, a couple of cleaner shrimp, some emerald crabs... I want my rocks teaming with life. Once I get a few colonies of SPS going good I'd like to get a few acro crabs, too. I had a single pom pom crab in this 125 and it was so cool seeing it once every 4 or 5 months to know it was still alive and see how much it had grown.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Eric B 125 http:///t/389056/taking-a-new-direction/440#post_3521837
Dr Seuss Soapfish, eh? Put me down for 3 or 4. If you know anyone else that wants one, just let me know and I'll buy them two! The only thing about anthias is that you have to feed them so often. Oh well, I have plenty of time to think of fish and really, fish aren't really my thing. I was thinking of my CUC. I'd like as much variety as I can get. A handful of nassarius snails, some astrea's, some peppermint shrimp, a couple of cleaner shrimp, some emerald crabs... I want my rocks teaming with life. Once I get a few colonies of SPS going good I'd like to get a few acro crabs, too. I had a single pom pom crab in this 125 and it was so cool seeing it once every 4 or 5 months to know it was still alive and see how much it had grown.
I have had anthias...they eat just like any other fish. Seahorses eat 2Xs a day, but that's just because they are spoiled. All info says feed 2 to 3 Xs a day, but in your fish tank with live rock, there is more for them to eat then just the fish food...the tiny amphipods, isopods, copepods and algae are all tasty tidbits.
Anyway....try this book for an idea of what to stock the tank with, they have lots of info, and a picture to help you make decisions.

Here is an example page for you

 

[gemmy]

Do you know why a soap fish is called a soap fish? When they die, they secrete a THICK slime coating that can kill corals and make the tank a MESS!!

 

[eric b 125]

Gemmy! Boy it's so nice to see familiar names still popping up. I think I do remember hearing something like that before.
The glass will be ready today but I'm leaving in an hour or so for the weekend. I'll have something to look forward to about coming home I guess. I got some things cleaned up yesterday, like my skimmer, frag rack, and the inside of the SCWD:

I realized that the magnets on the frag rack were rusted so I'm going to shoot Eshopps an e-mail when I get home, because that shouldn't have happened.

Here's a comparison b/w the wet side that I cleaned and the wet side that broke (so no cleaning needed)

 

[eric b 125]

I'll have the rock rinsing in a fresh bath of dechlorinator water while I'm gone and also have my return pump, skimmer pump, and skimmer cup soaking in a vinegar bath to be scrubbed when I get back. It will be a good week next week

 

[siptang]

Looks like your getting everything together! Welcome back and im following along.

 

[gemmy]

Glad to see this coming along!!

 

[eric b 125]

Thanks guys. I'm glad to have the interest back. I have high hopes for this rebuild. This is the first time I've had to start over from "scratch" but every time I've had to break my tank down and rebuild it I've been happy with the results. The two things I really couldn't stand about my setup before was the noise from the overflows and the heat concerns from the MH in the summer. The overflow and LED's should do more than just remedy those problems.
The glass joint was closed for the holiday, so I'll have to pick it up tomorrow. If I could get the glass holes drilled tomorrow (aquarium and overflow) and start siliconing everything together, I will be pleased. I got a corner and vice clamp from harbor freight so that I could hold the glass at 90*'s while the silicone cures, but I'm only going to do one edge at a time so it's going to take a few days before I'm ready to put it to the tank.

 

[snakeblitz33]

Nothing wrong with taking your time on a build. Glad to see things progressing rather fast. If I remember correctly, you seem to get things done at a relatively quick pace, unlike some other people with large tanks... LOL