My BC29 HQI Build.....Let the adventure begin

[Dr. Fish]

Three weeks ago I started up my new tank and so far I'm happy with how it’s turning out.

I started with about 20lbs of dry ecorock from BRS, 20lbs of black live sand, and about 2 lbs or so of live rock from my LFS to hopefully seed the tank. Tossed a fresh shrimp in for 3 days to kick off the cycle and three weeks later it’s close to complete.

Still cycling, ugggghh I'm impatient.


As of today:
Temp 79
SG 1.026
Ammonia aprox .15
Nitrite aprox 1.0
PO4 .12, I think this is coming from the LFS rock as there were no measureable PO4's until I added the live rock. I'll slowly pull out the LFS rock when the cycle finishes.
pH probe not hooked up yet
Haven't tested Nitrate, Cal, Alk, or Mg yet. Waiting for the cycle to finish first.

My goal is to house a couple picasso clowns, another undecided fish or two and I want to fill in the rock some nice SPS up top with some zoas and maybe a couple ricordias down low....


Lighting:
Stock 150W bulb, might switch to a Phoenix 14K
--Thinking about adding a MLC for the reefkeeper to add a moonlight

Flow:
Two Koralia nano 425's on wavemaker mode
MJ1200 in chamber 3

Filtration:
Filter floss in InTank media basket
Aquaticlife 115 skimmer in chamber 1
BRS 5 stage 75GPD RODI unit
---will probably add Carbon and or GFO

Controller and misc:
RKL w/ temp, pH, 2 PC4's, SL1
ATO with dual float switches, one setup as an alarm for safety
100W Eheim heater in chamber 2
BRS jugs containing Alk, Cal, and Mg mixes
2 BRS dosers

[ShanePike]

Beautiful tank! Love the rock work.

[Dr. Fish]

I've noticed a problem with my InTank media basket. All I have in it right now is the filter floss on the top level. After about a day the water backs up in the basket and overflows rendering the floss useless since most of the water is flowing over.

The filter floss is not dirty or clogged. Are there different types of floss and maybe the one I have doesn't flow well?

Any ideas?

[mcmyeye281]

Doctor, i have a 29BC as well. my filter floss in in the first chamber. i do not have a media basket. so no the same set up. but i have to rinse my filter floss out daily. if i do not do that, it gets really brown and my flow decreases to the point the level in the second and 3rd chambers drops by several inches. not sure if that helps but what i do is rinse the floss daily.

[Dr. Fish]

When I first saw this was happening I assumed the floss was dirty. I have changed the floss 3 times within 2 days and it keeps happening. The floss comes out looking brand new, not a single bit of grime on it.

[Maelstrom79]

You might have too much floss in there guy. Post a pic.

[Dr. Fish]

Originally Posted by Maelstrom79

You might have too much floss in there guy. Post a pic.

I can post a pic, but I can tell you what it looks like and I'm sure thats not the problem.

A single piece of floss, no bigger or smaller than the square it was cut for.

I just put another piece in after the last one started to overflow less than a day.

I really think the floss cannot handle the water flow for some reason.

[Dr. Fish]

Ammonia and Nitrites have been at 0 for 2 days now...cycle complete. I did a 50% water change and Nitrates now read about 2.5 says Salifert.

I'm going to go get a hardy fish tomorrow and test over the next few days and make sure I don't get another ammonia spike.

[DCReef]

I have the same tank and use an Intank Media Basket and fuge in Chamber 2. I got my filter floss from Intank when I got the basket and have never had a problem with the water overflowing. After 3 or 4 days the floss starts turning brown and the water starts backing up a little and there will be a few inches of water in the top compartment of the basket until I change the floss, but it has never come over the top. The only thing I can think of is that I have the original Biocube pump and I see you upgraded to a MJ1200...so maybe you just have a lot more flow?

[Dr. Fish]

Originally Posted by DCReef

I have the same tank and use an Intank Media Basket and fuge in Chamber 2. I got my filter floss from Intank when I got the basket and have never had a problem with the water overflowing. After 3 or 4 days the floss starts turning brown and the water starts backing up a little and there will be a few inches of water in the top compartment of the basket until I change the floss, but it has never come over the top. The only thing I can think of is that I have the original Biocube pump and I see you upgraded to a MJ1200...so maybe you just have a lot more flow?

I actually had the problem for the first week while cycling before I swapped to the MJ1200.

Everyone has been telling me that they used the floss provided by InTank, so I will go ahead and order that.

[Dr. Fish]

Update with pics to come

I added two fish and a cleaner shrimp and all is well so far, they all eat and seem happy. The Aquaticlife 115 skimmer broke in after a week and is starting to pull some nice crud out, Ill get pics of this later.

This morning I noticed I was getting the infamous diatom outbreak so I ordered a CUC from reefleaners.org which will be here Wed.

All parameters are inline
S.G. 1.025
Temp 80
pH 8.2
Cal 450
Alk 11.4
Mg 1300
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 5
PO4 .03

For the last few weeks I have added 1/2 tsp of kalk to my ATO water and that has kept the chemistry really stable and the pH perfect. I have several frags coming in the mail tomorrow so I'm sure I will need to adjust the kalk amount once they start to grow. I also want to allow the alkalinity to lower to around 9.5 or so and then keep it stable there.

PICS SOON

[RedStang]

Looking forward to the pics. I have the 115 as well and have found it to be inconsistent. I've moved mine to chamber 2 and adjusted the Apex to turn the skimmer on 5 minutes after feeding but I came back from vacation to a clear skimmer cup full of water. Still trying to find that sweet spot.

Good luck!

[Dr. Fish]

Originally Posted by RedStang

Looking forward to the pics. I have the 115 as well and have found it to be inconsistent. I've moved mine to chamber 2 and adjusted the Apex to turn the skimmer on 5 minutes after feeding but I came back from vacation to a clear skimmer cup full of water. Still trying to find that sweet spot.

Good luck!

Have you do the air line mod on the skimmer air intake?

I had to play around with mine for awhile and it seems set now. It constantly is pulling out skimmate that is getting darker each day.

[RedStang]

Originally Posted by Dr. Fish

Have you do the air line mod on the skimmer air intake?

I had to play around with mine for awhile and it seems set now. It constantly is pulling out skimmate that is getting darker each day.

Dangit. Thanks for the reminder. I remember reading about it on NR but never made the time. Now that I'm done with school I'll have more time! I'll have to give it a whirl tonight as I have some airline tubing hanging around.

[Dr. Fish]

Originally Posted by RedStang

Dangit. Thanks for the reminder. I remember reading about it on NR but never made the time. Now that I'm done with school I'll have more time! I'll have to give it a whirl tonight as I have some airline tubing hanging around.

It makes a huge difference. You can really dial in the foam height in the cup. You need a piece of tubing an a air regulator, I think thats what its called.

[Dr. Fish]

As promised


Decent FTS with cleaner shrimp and a shy guy in the background






From left to right:
Vivid Rainbows, Purple Hornet, Rasta, Red Hornet, Ultra AOG


Good shot of the diatoms, CUC arrives tomorrow


I just emptied the collection cup, but you can see the bubbles and the nasty grime at the top of the cone


This is how the rear cover sits with the Aquticlife 115 skimmer in


Another view of the rear cover

[Maelstrom79]

Looks great!