Some of This, a Little of That and NONE of Something Else (An update on Mr. Saltwater Tank’s 235g Tank)
I’m not coming out of the closet, but my tank is!
In this episode of Mr. Saltwater Tank TV, I update you on my 235 gallon tank including my marine velvet survivors. I’ll show you what’s changed, what I’ve left alone and who I want to give a shout out to.
Links in this show: www.mrsaltwatertank.com/julysale
Browse the Store! Questions?
Your the man Marky Mark
I really like your sump design. It’s very neat and modern looking. Can you have less live rock in the display if you use that Matrix media?
That is the idea Bobby.
And thanks for your mood-lifting comments!
Mark your tank look very clean up top and down downstairs.i see your using some new dosing pumps.do you like them better then the Brs dosing pumps or was it more of i can save some space thing? you have a great tank Mark. i think you should have the tank behind you and add something new and see if anyone ask you about it. i really like my EcoTech Marine Radion too.they run alot cooler then my old T5 did.
Good going Mark, thanks for sharing, I am using Seachem’s Matrix media in my tank for a year my nitrates never climbed above 5ppm, if it does I us AZNO3 for a couple of days to bring it back to ZERO. This media really works wonders for me. I also use a filter sock keeping the detritus issue in mind 🙂
Good job Mark. Loved the update. Sorry to hear your rental has even more issues then previously thought. It was nice to see that even your tank looks as bare as mine did when I first started. Love that Bellus fish too 🙂
Pretty sweet Mark, thanks for the update and a special THANK YOU to all our service men and women. (Past and present)
Mark, why do you have valves on your drain lines?
From across the pond I thank you for the service mention.
Tank is looking good and look forward to seeing a more in depth vid on the sump.
All the best. D
Great update… loved seeing how its all come together again after such a tough time 🙂
Keep on updating us and just for folk that aren’t sure… Take the offer on the guides if your not sure… I have the full set and they have saved me a flipping fortune AND a hell of a lot of time trawling through the internet searching through pointless amounts of maybe right maybe wrong opinions/information and so called ‘facts’ … Go tried and tested and get your own MSWT grade setup on the go… 😀
Cheers Mark… Happy 4th of July (I think that’s right) to all you folk over the pond… 😉
Mark- I’ve been using the matrix media for a year now and it seems to be working perfect so far I’m sure you will likely love it to. ALL of Seachems products I’ve used have worked flawless so far.
Great update, Mark. Looking forward to your review of the Matrix media in a couple of weeks.
Thanks for the shout out to us military members past and present. Great video as well but I do have a question I am setting up a 75g sump/refugium and was going to put bio balls in it. Do u think I should forget that idea and go with this new media or will they still be okay I’ll give u a rundown of how I plan to set up my sump.
75 gallon tank 48″ Wide x 21″ Tall x 18″ Deep
1st Chamber – 2 4″ filter socks with bio balls filled up underneath them
2nd Chamber – Only like an inch thick to bring water under from the first and to the height I want for my refugium.
3rd Chamber – Refugium
4th Chamber – Just wide enough to hold my skimmer/pump and phosban 550/pump
5th Chamber – Return pump
Any suggestions would be helpful thanks again n Happy Independence Day
Hey Mark,
Where did you purchase the real reef rock? I can’t find a supplier online.
Wow Mark you’ve outdone yourself again with a great looking tank, glad all is well again and I’m a huge fan so can’t wait to see more of your tank in the future. Just have one question, is that the same size BRS dual reactor that you had on your 90g ?
“I’m not coming out of the closet, but my tank is!”
Very funny.
This retired vet had to work lol. Great video..thanks for posting it
Happy 4th of July Mark!
What other SPS corals do you have in mind for your tank?
Cheers,
HK
Hon-Kit…I know for sure I want strawberry shortcake and some ice fire echinata. I miss my northern lights granulosa for sure and my oregon tort.
I won’t go as overboard on SPS on this tank as the last one as I’m wanting to diversify more.
Thanks for your service Virgil.
Ralph…correct…exact same reactor as on my 90g
Tom- Depending on how much you want, I can get it for you. If you are looking for small quantities, Dr. Foster’s Smith and Premium Aquatics carry it.
Micheal…Given your setup, I wouldn’t go with any biotype media. I’d also put your skimmer before the refugium and of course check out my refugium show to make sure that’s really what you want to do.
Thanks Jeanette. I need more corals!
Thanks for the input Derek!
Thanks Matt.
Thank you for your service and I’ll be doing a sump video in the near future.
Mark H…the valves are there so I can isolate the tank if need be. I believe you’ve purchased the No-Nonsense Guide Vol 1 and I covered that in the videos.
Thanks Shelly. After we move out I’m sure i’ll have some really great stories to tell. Gather your real estate friends as they’d want to pass on some of the info to their clients!
Chris…I went with the GHL doser partly due to space. I didn’t want to drill holes in the wall to mount the BRS pumps so I went with an all-in-one doser that is also stand alone so if my apex goes down, I can still dose my tank
Finally been waiting for more info on the tank. I have been using seachems denitrate in a reactor. And I have the matrix in a filter bag in my sump. Matrix is for higher flow environments and denitrate is for slower flow. I love them. I haven’t seen nitrates above 1-2 ppm at all it wOrks phenomenally. I’ve had it for 6 months or so and I lowered my nitrates in another tank in 3 days with the stuff it just plain works.
Mark,
I guess Im confused by exactly what real reef rock is. You put it in your tank with RODI but online I get the impression that it’s actually live rock that doesn’t need to be cured. Which one is it and what type of quantities for what price. I have a 72gallon bowfront so I’m guessing 70 or so lbs.
Tom…some retailers sell the Real reef rock as “live rock” as they’ve put it in their holding bins with live rock that came out of the ocean. That makes no sense to me as part of the reason I went with Real Reef rock is to prevent any hitchhikers from coming into my tank.
Real Reef is man-made rock that is grown in a saltwater holding tank. There is some biological material on it, but I always dry it out as I seed my rock with bacteria.
Rough quantities are 200 lbs + to buy it from me. For how much you need the places I outlined would be a better bet.
Very nice tank Mark!!!
Mark, why do you say bacteria won’t stick to smooth plastic? I have koi and so I know the filtration here. Many folks use bio ribbon for bio filtering, which is nothing more than pvc stretched or cut into ribbons. This stuff holds bacteria for us and works well, because as I understand it from pros in my world, bacteria secretes a glue like substance that makes them stick to everything.
Jeff…if you hit the bacteria with any kind of force (like from the falling water from your tank), bacteria gets sheared right off. Most bioball applications have the down pipe from the tank emptying right into a bioball chamber which would knock the bacteria off the balls.
If the balls are in a low flow/low impact area, you would get increased bacteria adhesion, but it still won’t approach the surface area of Matrix.
Great sump Mark, I’m in the middle of building a new one myself. I only find one issue with the new bio media. No matter how much you clean those socks eventually you get growth or other matter on them, then how do you address that. Perhaps if they were in a screen type box that could be lifted out and rinsed it would make life easier. That would be a great Friday Tip because I see people that never rinse or know how to clean that type of media or bio balls for that matter. Saw a tank where he actually had visible gunk on the bio balls…
Its nice to finaly get a look at your new tank. I love how much thought you put in the setup (foresight). I enjoyed the walk through, im sure your new tank will thrive. Ive never thought of a blue throut trigger as a fringe fish as Ive always had great luck in a reef tank with them. Have you looked at a marine betta, I love mine, Ive had him for about 6 months now with no incidences. I look forward to more updates, please keep them comming.
Hey mark awsm tank setup…… you rock….. but just 1 question, where is your refugium?
Mark,
Love your tank.. I’ve recently purchased a 210 that I had my contractor mount into the wall. Easy access on all the way around. I enjoy your posts and videos it’s helping me out a lot.
I wanted to also say Thank you. I’m a 23 year retired USAF vet and it’s always nice to hear folks shout out as you did.
Happy 4th
Scott
Mark, everything is coming along great! For me, this vid along with whatever u have in store for us in the future, tops your previous 90 gal tank videos cause we get to see everything from the start. And the journey is always the best part. Enjoy it!
PS- It’s great to see you in front of a beautiful tank again…just like old times..LOL
….oh, and most importantly, happy July 4th to ALL the men and women serving, as well as all the veterans out there!! Thank you for your service to our great country!
Tank looks great! Welcome to Nashville if I hadn’t said so before. Sorry about the heat. I have the 48×24 Reef Creations sump, so far I love it; no bubbles make it through. I am still cycling so I don’t yet know about the nitrate reduce capablities of the Biomedia; it is however the first time I have seen rocks float which is cool.
I’m seeing a few questions coming up that are covered in previous vids… Have a dig through and enjoy folks… I’m also seeing a lot more that are covered in detail within the guides…
Mark understandably has limited time to answer questions folks… If you have one then its a good idea to either review previous vids first and if your serious about getting your tank up to a higher standard then the guides are just right for you… 😀
http://mrswt.wpenginepowered.com/julysale/
And no… I don’t get paid to say this stuff… I just appreciate Marks hard work and more importantly the money he’s saved me over the last however many months/years I’ve been following his methods 🙂 Thought I’d share my experiences… 😉
To Dave with filter sock growth issue,
I swapped out my reef creations socks which are heavy material for the BRS “Mesh” Filter Sock 7″ x 16″ 200 Micron (w/ Plastic Ring). These don’t require the washing machine to get clean; they are a much lighter material and really only need a rinse in clean saltwater and then pop them back in. If you have one of the new ReefCreation version of the socks which actually snap/lock into place, these don’t have that mechanism, but so far I have no issues. Also, the Biomedia (aka Seachem Matrix) in the reefcreations sumps has no need of rinsing; it is very much like live rock except much more porous to the point where it actually will float on water. I have a really fine dust that makes it through the filter socks, but that doesn’t seem to affect the rocks.
http://www.youtube.com/user/keithhays69/videos
Hi Mark,
I read in few article that Blue throat triggers are jumpers:
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2009-04/fish/index.php
I lost one myself.
Be carefull.
Thanks
Bob
Wow, Tank looks great. Looking forward to watching it through the future. I am surprised and happy to see that you have incorporated the matrix Bio media into your sump. I have been using this matrix and denitrate for about two years now and like it allot. I have found that running a small amount of Bio Pellets in the chamber before the Matrix seems to supercharge the Bio media and provide it with a constant supply of bacteria. Also I do not have the fancy sump, just a 20Gal with two weirs, so I use an egg create/nylon mesh basket to hold all my media along with some chaeto on top. This makes for very easy water changes. Take the basket out, empty the sump, put basket back in and fill with fresh saltwater. Doesn’t get much easier. Also I do not use filter socks so having the basket makes it very easy to get rid of anything that may collect in the sump by simply rinsing it in the water taken out during water changes.
Keep up the good work!
mark,you should re think that 81.5f ,maybe nothing stressed now but not good for long term,higher temp lower O2, lower redox ect.Some of the titanium chillers, 1.5 hp are very efficient .
Amazing tank! Care to share your radion program with us? I have a single radion over my 93 cube, and do t think I’m using it to its full potential.
I am setting up a new sump and noticed that you placed the Seachem Matrix before the protein skimmer. Does it matter which is first? Also, what are your thoughts about Chaeto in a refugium after the Matrix and Skimmer?
Thanks mark great video. I followed your advice on the refugium being points unless it was huge and my maintenance and up keep had become easy and enjoyable with out the added stress of the refugium. Thanks
I built my 180 gallon tank from scratch myself, addled the glass and all. Its rimless with two supports. The open top and leds saved me the cost of a chiller my tank stays at 77. And i think that the new rimless look is the future of sexy tanks.
Live your set up