My tank has been sold. I’ll leave this page up so everyone who watches my old shows knows what I had in my tank. It’s been a great couple of years and now it is time to move on.
Here’s the last video update on my tank
Full tank shot
Birth of Tank: November 2009
Tank: Marineland Corner Flow 90G (48″ x 18″ x 24″), Some scratches on right panel. Noticeable but not deep.
Stand, Stand cover, Canopy:
- All custom built
- Stand has no center brace for easy access (Picture)
- Stand is covered by a skin that slides away for increased access. (Picture)
Sump: Custom built, approximately 20 gallon capacity. 3 chambers – skimmer box, refugium, return pump area.
Tank Automation:
- Neptune Systems Apex (full version)
- 2 x Energy Bar 8′s
- WxM Module (wireless control of the mp40′s)
- PM2 module (measures salinity, includes extra temperature probe for increased accuracy)
- breakout box
- WaterBug water on floor sensor
- pH probe
- temp probe
- ORP probe
Lighting:
- 2 x EcoTech Marine Radion x30 LEDs
- 1 x ReefBrite 36″ Royal Blue LED Bar (I had this on my tank before the Radions so I just kept it)
In-tank circulation:
- 2 x EcoTech Marine mp40′s with battery backup
- Tunze NanoWavebox
Return Pump: Tunze 1073.05 Silence
Water Processing:
- SWC 160 Xtreme Cone Skimmer
- Bulk Reef Supply dual media reactor (GFO in the first chamber, activated carbon in the second)
- 100 micron filter sock
Dosing:
- Bulk Reef Supply Alk, Ca, Mg via 1.1 mL dosing pumps (3 separate pumps)
- Kalkwasser via auto top off
Auto Top Off:
- Autotopoff.com dual switch kit (soon to be replaced by an Apex controlled system)
- Bulk Reef Supply 50 mL/min pump
Livestock
Rock: Approximately 90 lbs of 100% dead rock acquired from a local fish store. Forget paying for live rock, buy it dead instead (Read more here)
Sand: 1.5″ sand bed
Fish:
- Purple Tang (Zebrasoma xanthurum)
- Lyretail Anthias (Female) (Pseudanthias squamipinnis)
- Pink Spot Shrimp Goby (Cryptocentrus leptocephalus)
- Green Mandarin (Male) (Synchiropus splendidus)
- Blue Green Chromis (Chromis viridis)
- Leopard Wrasse (Macropharyngodon meleagris)
- Bangaii Cardinal (Pterapogon kauderni)
- White Stripe Maroon Clownfish & Rose Bubble Tip Anemone (Premnas biaculeatus)
- Bicolor Blennie (Ecsenius bicolor)
- Purple Firefish (Nemateleotris decora)
Corals
- SPS
- California Tort (Acropora tortuosa)
- 6” x 8”
- several branches
- Tubbs Pink Jade
- 4” x 4”
- several branches
- well encrusted
- Northern Lights Granulosa (Acropora granulosa)
- 4” x 4.5”
- several branches
- extremely well encrusted
- ORA Pearlberry
- 4” x 3”
- lots of branches
- Green Tabling Acro
- green in color
- great polyp extension…looks like a shaggy bush
- used to have pink tips before it came in my tank
- Rainbow Acro
- very pretty
- several colors in the coral
- just starting to really branch out
- Icefire Enchinata
- 3” tall
- sprouting a new branch
- well encrusted
- Hawkins Enchinata
- 1.25’ frag
- on plug
- Rose Mille colony
- 5” x 5”
- beautiful color
- very hairy
- Montipora Setosa
- 6” wide, 4” tall
- sits right out in front of the tank
- Oregon Tort
- 7” x 6”
- fast grower
- lots of branches..could make several frags and not tell looking at the coral
- well encrusted
- Purple slimer
- 6” x 6” at least
- several branches
- ORA Frogskin Acro
- 5” x 5”
- lots of branches
- Montipora Undata
- huge…size of a big dinner plate
- metallic green polyps
- purple rim
- Superman Montipora
- fully encrusted on rock
- recessed some 2 months ago during an ALK dip
- is regrowing nicely
- Vivid Ultra Blue Tenuis
- large – 5” x 10”+
- Pink Lemonade Acro
- 1” x 2”
- ORA Red Planet
- 2” x 2” encrusted on rock
- Strawberry Shortcake Acro
- several branched frag on plug
- 2” x 2”
- Jedi mind trick monti
- 4”x3” frag encrusting over onto back wall
- orange polyps
- green body
- purple rim
- ORA purple stylo frag
- 2” +
- several branches
- Other various acros
- small rose mille colony
- green/yellow mille
- unknown acro (blue and brown) with acro crab
- rainbow mille
- LPS
- war paint scolly
- Rainbow trachyphyllia
- 4”
- smaller rainbow trachyphyllia
- 3”
- blue/purple/green brain
- 4”
- pink/purple hammer
- 5” across when fully inflated
- brown/blue/neon green favia
- 4” ball
- dragon eye favia
- 10 polyps
- 3” across
- gates of hell lepenestra
- orange polyps
- light blue body
- encrusted on rock
- green/pink favia
- 3” across
- red/blue acan
- rainbow enchinata
- 6” across
- very pretty..collectors piece
- easter egg denae
- 2” across
- Softies
- toxic orange zoas
- Vivid Aquariums hawaiian tropic zoas
- dragon eye zoas
- king midas (yellow) zoas
- tubbs blue zoas
- Vivid Grasshopper zoas
- all of the above are on 1 rock for a zoa garden look
- armour of god palys
- bam-bam zoas
- Clams
- large – 10” yellow squamosa
- medium – 5” blue maxima
- medium – teal maxima
- small – lighting maxima
- small – gold maxima
Remember: I am a dealer for just about anything saltwater aquarium related. Therefore, if you are interested in any saltwater tank equipment, including the gear below, let me know and I can get you a quote.
{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
What GFO are you running (BRS has a few to choose from)? I’m looking into getting the BRS dual reactor soon.
Hello Mark. I’m interested in how you utilize your in tank circulation. I also have a MP40 in my 90 gal. and just the 1 vortech seems to give me enough flow. Are they all running at the same time or do you alternate them?
I was wondering where did you get your tube holders from for the air line tubing for your top off pump and is the aqua lifter pump to loud to use your opinion and which pump would you recomend I would like to use a pump thats reliable and quiet and resonable price? thanks Charles,
John…I run them in anti-sync mode such that while one is ramping up, the other is ramping down.
How much cal and alk are you dosing in you rtank
Josh…not a lot. I think I use about 10 mL/Ca/day and around 20 mL of Mg
Hello mr saltwater im new to saltwater tanks. I got a 60glthank from a frown
It was up and runing for 9 years. He was moveing out of cali and didt want it. It has a sump in the back of it so nothing under the tank . Do u think that’s a good way or should I make a sump under like yours?? It had a bunch of soft cor in it I think they are they are light brown plants and 20+ mushrooms some look fuzz and some smooth. And some of the rocks had little red worms on them is it beeter to just start all over with new stuff or try and save it thanks for ant info
Friend my bad
Any idea what Auto top off you plan on going to?
Scott…do you mean pump or switches?
You should make a MyTank about your new SEXY tank!
Hey Mark, just curious which salt do you use on your 90 gallon tank? Thanks!
Mark, thanks for answering my previous questions. Do you run GFO all the time? or do you stop when your Phosphates are very low? Just curious as i have read that you want a tiny amount of phosphates.. Is this true? Or should i run GFO in the reactor all the time. Thanks!
Kevin…all the time.
Do you know anything about the ATI bubble master skimmer??????:) I can’t find anything on the internet and was hoping you know anything about it.love the tanks.
Mark, what is the best way to autodose Part A/B solutions. I use 5ML day each to maintain PH/ALK. Instructions state to add separtately in good water flow. would autodrip rather than costly electronic auto-dose system be as effective.. this is a vacation time concern when I cant’ be there to add it?
are you using dosing pumps for auto top off ?? if you are how is it work with the apex controller ??
using a top off – drip with float in sump…no controller. would like to automate the A/B solutions, but don’t want to have drip jugs all around my tank on shelves. thats why I was thinking of a more automated system , but am shy of the cost of some of the elctronic ones. I suppose I could do a temp drip system for vacationing and make sure they drip in different areas of the tank.
just a little more info.. I have mostly soft corals, with a few brain corals and a frogspawn, and a couple leathers. home made light kit, I like things simple. Only other issue I can’t resolve is I was blessed with glass anemones. I’ve gotten rid of all the aiptaisia, but can’t rid those other peskies.. I usually try to do a mass kill off day before water change. Don’t want to introduce butterfly fish because of the nice specimens of feather dusters.. any advice on that is appreciated as well.
Mark,
Question about your return pump… I am about to set up a 90/cornerflow from Marineland as well and plan to use a Tunze 1073.40. Basically same output as your w/slightly less head tolerance and not controllable.
But… I have an Arctica chiller I will most likely need to use and the best way to put it in the system to my knowledge would be to connect it right after the return pump so the water goes through it back to the tank.
The problem is, that the chiller will add significant head, as far as I recall reading somewhere 2-4 feet… So, my question is, do you have a chiller and if so where do you have it in the system. If you don’t – how do you get away with not having one
Keep up the good work and reef junky info flowing
Best,
Chris
Ok, sorry about messed up post above, not sure how that happened – noticed this after I posted it. The intended one starts w/the the last instance of “Question about your return pump…”
Chris
NP Chris, I fixed it
Chris-
I don’t run a chiller and instead use computer fans mounted on the top of my tank blowing across the water’s surface. I also have a fan in my sump that helps cool the system. Even in the heat of summer here in TX, my tank’s daily temp swing is only 1 degree.
And, given your chiller question, I doubt the 1073.04 would work and would be willing to bet the 1073.05 might not work either. There is simply too much head pressure. Another choice to consider would be a Eheim 1262
Thanks for the info Mark, that has been my thinking as well. I already have the Tunze thouhg, was using it on a heavily modified BC29 I turned into a “real” sump driven system and measured about 400GPH at the return nozzle in the tank then going from the sump in the stand through the chiller. Doing the same for the 90 setup would be tougher because there is more distance to the return nozzle and a 90 obviously needs “a bit” more flow through the sump. But… still my thinking was/is that if I get between 350-400 GPH return that’d be within the 3 – 5 X tank capacity turnover. I would obviously not get any significant flow from the return to use it for “in tank” flow and would rely pretty much 100% on powerheads for that. Have an MP40 for that purpose and expect to either get an MP10 to complement or one or two Koralias for dead spots if there are any.
That said I have been (and still am to a point) thinking about getting a 1262 for increased flow as well as in pursuit of quieter pump – I have not been very impressed w/the Tunze being very quiet. In fact I would compare it to the QuietOne 2200, I bought for mixing and water transfer purposes. Not sure if I have a bad one or what but the noise level didn’t even subside after getting a new impeller from Tunze. The only other part would be to replace the whole body but I didn’t even ask about that because I wasn’t sure what level of noise is considered Normal.
Interesting about your cooling setup… how many fans and what sizes do you have set up? I may try that, which if worked would free up the chiller, reduce electricity and add cash to my pocket.
Another question for you… what is your overflow/return plumbing configuration? Have you modified the stock Marineland cornerflow setup in any way or are using the pipes that came w/it? I have modified the BC29 I mentioned above by drilling two 3/4″ holes in the base and set it up w/the so called Herbie overflow (basically a full syphon w/an emergency 2nd pipe) and then had the return coming back over the back rim. I liked that because it was totally silent (as full syphon overflows are). I am not sure about the stock piping which looks like a Durso I think, and of course the 2nd hole in the cornerflow is used for the return, so no emergency 2nd pipe down…
What are your thoughts on that?
i am fairly new to the hobby and due to your videos i love it so far, i’m still cyclying my first 55 gallon tank and i was wondering about carbon…i purchased an eheim 2215 and was told to throw out the carbon pad. Do you recommend i do so?
Tyler…I would throw out the eheim 2215
In your latest friday morning quick tip I see an orange linkia starfish on the front of your tank. Did you add this to your tank recently?
What RO system do you use. I have been using a water staging tank which I made to house my top off water but I need to look into a RO system. Currently I treat the water in the staging tank before it goes in and I play with nutrient flux once in a while.
Dave…bulk reef supply’s 75 GPD Plus unit
What heater do you run? Ive watched all the videos and can’t seem to find it?
you have some great corals and was wanting to know where you got them, it looks like you got alot of your corals from Vivid Aquariums
Being a “born and raised Texan”, I must ask, why the Hell are you leaving Texas?! Did the wifey change jobs?
I am curious of what you have planned with the fish. I know how important the purple tang is to you. Too often us reefers forget that the fish are actually our beloved pets, not the tanks and equipment. I am sure you have great plans for them. If you take them with you, a video of how you transport them would be greatly appreciated and helpful. Oh and i wish my taxes would be here in time what a great deal on a complete system that’s been fine tuned and time tested by a true reefer.
Best of luck selling the tank, and good luck with the move! I’m looking forward to seeing your new tank show up in future videos.
How much for the two radion XR30W
how about the sexy tank ? !!!
Joe..I’m not parting out my tank
John…sexy tank is coming with me.
Are fragging any of your favorite to take with you, or just starting completely fresh. I too am planing a move and really dont the hassle of moving, but at the same time don’t want to loose some of my priced live stock such as my Picasso pair and some colorful acans. If you are setting up a mini system to move any tips or advice is appreciated.
would you know how many inches of fish could fit in a 300 gallon marine tank? my dimensions of the tank are 6′ feet long, 3′ feet wide and 27″ inches high.
do you use b ionic
hi there im a big fan of your show hopefully can keep up the good work I’m very interested on finding out how much you sold your tank because I’m selling my tank and it’s similar to yours let me know thanks.
Do you dose the 2 part that raises or lowers the pH?
Jeff…raises