Converted Juwel 450 Bow Front
Sorry it's taken so long to post a thread on here, but here are the latest pics of my tank.
Just a few details
Sump Size: 36" x 15" x 15"System Volume: 520 Litres before displacement
The main tank is lit with An ATI Dimmable Powermodule with GHL Profilux II, it has 8 x 54 watt T5 - ATI Superblue x 4 , ATI Blue Plus x 2, KZ Fiji Purple x 1 and 1 x Arcadia Pure Actinic.
My lighting period is as follows:
1 Blue Plus and 1 Actinic on at 11:00am and taking 1 hour to reach 100% brightness then begin to shut down at 9:30pm until off at 10:30pm.
4 ATI Superblue, 1 KZ Fiji Purpleon and 1 ATI Blue Plus at 11:30am and taking 30 minutes to reach 100% brightness then begin to shut down at 9:30pm until 10:00pm.
The gradual increase and decrease of the dimmbar lighting can give some nice dramatic effects and ensure there is no shock from an immediate turn on of the lights and a "cloud cover" and lightning storm section on the GHL is a nice wee touch too
4 x Koralia 4000, 2 x Koralia 2 and 1 x Vortech MP40 W ES for flow and an eheim 1260 return from the sump and 1 x 1000l/hr Juwel Internal Filter pump, so about 70 odd times turnover without including Eheim 1260 return.
Approximately 55kg of live rock and some reefbones in the main display tank. I'm using a Deltec APF600 skimmer fed by an Eheim Compact 5000 which is tee'd off to supply Cleartides Reactor containing Carbon and FM phosphate remover, and into another Cleartides reactor with NP Bio-pellets fed directly into the skimmer.
Three heaters, 1 x 300 watt in weir, 1 x 200 watt in sump. I haven't had a need for a chiller or anything else to cool the tank and the tank temperature remains pretty stable at 25-26°C.
Supplements:
Using the GHL Standalone Doser and FM Balling salts, I dose 400ml of Sodium Bicarbonate daily, 85ml Calcium daily and 45ml Magnesium daily with added strontium, heavy metal complex and iodine. I add Zeo Coral Snow, Amino Acids and Coral Vitalizer once a week.
Monitoring and Control:
All test results are manually recorded with Salifert test kits, FM dKh, Hanna phosphate checker, KZ Potassium and D-D Refractometer. When the tank was first set up I monitored my water quality at intervals of about 4 days until Balling salts achieved the stability I wanted. The GHL Profilux II has it's own temperature probe and Ph probe so I can check at a glance for details.
I record all parameters and test the following:
Calcium, Magnesium, Alkalinity, Salinity, Phosphate, Nitrate, Nitrite, Potassium and dkH although nitrite would only be an occasional thing.
I normally feed two small feeds one day, then one large feed every other day, corals are fed with Coral Snow, Cyclopeze, Artemia/Copepods, Brine and Mysis Shrimp
Maintenance:
50 Litre water change religiously every week. All glass is cleaned on the tank 2-3 times a week. Skimmer cup is emptied and cleaned once per week. Carbon and Phosphate remover replaced every 4 weeks if necessary, I make up the Fauna Marin Balling salts as and when needed. I clean all pumps and powerheads every 6 months and replace T5's every 8 months. The ATI Powermodule has an active cooling system and gives you a slightly longer lifespan on the tubes. I use a filter sock in first compartment of sump and clean every 3-5 days.
Thankfully I haven't had any major problems other than allowing stupid things to happen like frags/corals falling and stinging eachother as I hadn't stuck them in permanently, although I have changed lights from halides, to LED's and now T5's, I've changed Balling salts supplies and upgraded the skimmer with the thought that the polyps extension on some corals wasn't at all good only to find my Flame Angel was nipping at just about everything, once I removed him, the coral polyps really started to show themselves, all in all an expensive lesson to learn but I guess I have done myself a favour in the long run.
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