Please Share Comment & Concerns On MySetup

[www_zionz_com]

Just thought I would ask you guy Please look over my setup and share your comment on what I am missing, what I may need to add, what I may need to remove, upgrade, etc. And please be honest even if it is brutal... Below I have listed a Summary and I will add a picture when I get home this evening from work...

Thanks
Joe


TANK SUMMARY!!!!


- 29 gallon all glass aquarium started 8/21/05 - moved into 55 gallon all glass aquarium on 10/17/05 -

LIGHTING - 36" Coralife Aqualite - total 192w - Power Compact
bulbs include - 1 - 96w 10,000K (10K) high-intensity, purified super-daylight lamp
- 1 - 96w Actinic 03 Blue


SUBSTRATE - 20 lbs CaribSea Argalive Live Reef Sand
- 20 lbs Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Aragonite Reed Sand
- also spread a very little amount of puka shell from previous tank over sand


LIVE ROCK - 50 lbs - Figi & Tunga mix


LIVE STOCK
- 100+ brown button polyps. (aka green eye zoos) on about a 1 pound live rock base
- 1 mexican turbo snail
- 1 emerald crab
- also found a baby crab in live rock looks to be an emerald crab?
- 1 coral banded shrimp
- 1 peppermint shrimp (have not seen in about a mnth hope he is still there)
- 1 ball anemone - not really an anemone - just founf out what it is attached to a piece of live rock
- 3 yellow tail blue damsels
- 3 yellow damsels
- 1 condylactis anemone
- 1 black percula clown
- 1 banded serpant star
- also discover a baby banded serpant star hope it grows to be as big as the other one who knows
- unknown amount of tiny snails - see them all over every once in a while.
- hope they are still there with the move and everything
- 2 blue leg hermit crabs
- unknow amount of aptasia anemone - these thing do spread like wild fire - I will find a way to controll them
- unknown coral growning on live rock - (from looking comparing pictures almost positive is some sort of brain coral)


FILTRATION
- 2 zoo med powersweep 214 - 160 gph power heads rated for 30 gallons
- ( broke the rotating part so I could set the power heads in 1 steady direction)
- 1 CPR Bak Pak 2 Skimmer - running on a rio 800 power head..

 

[TCU Reefer]

Just a couple things I recommend.

Start looking for lighting that fits your 55. How do you have the 36" light situated?

Secondly, more live rock. I would try to get at least double the amount you have currently as this will be your main source of biological filtration.

Third, a little more flow wouldn't hurt. Throw a MJ 1200 in there.

Lastly, what about water params? Do you have test kits? If not, you've skipped a very important step.

Hope that helps.

 

[www_zionz_com]

Thanks so much for the comments... And please continue to share your comments.. Now to answer some of your questions.
1. The 36" Light is dead center the tank leaving about 6" on each side between the light and the end of the tank I do plan on adding another 48" strip behind that one soon.
2. Live rock that is a must just will take some time..
3. Yes I do plan on getting a MJ1200 but will use it to replace the rio800on the skimmer and then I will use the rio 800 as another power head..
4. Test kit absolutly- I test almost every day. as of this morning everything 0. except Nitrates 5ppm

Again Thank keep sharing
Joe

 

[larrycivic]

i would not worry so much about the LR....if you like the way it looks do not try to cram more LR in the tank, that imo looks like crap.

i think you are fine where you are at if you want to keep leathers and lps. the 6 inch gap is no big deal on the lights, i have that gap on my tank on each side...i like it, i put corals that req. less light on the ends of the tank.

your next step is to take pictures and show them to the rest of us