Berlin Style - FO Red Sea tank

[Playdope]

Hey all,

I was hoping some with experience could help me out with setting up my new tank. I am trying to setup a 100 gallon Red Sea fish-only tank with about 100 lbs of live rock and a 3 inch aragonite sandbed (seeded with live sand). The cabinet under my tank is full, because the bioball chamber of my sump (removed the balls) takes up so much darn room. I was hoping to do something with that area of the sump, but a friend told me it would be too much trouble to put a refugium there due to too much downward current. Any ideas?

I currently have a Euroreef skimmer, run by a Sedra internal pump. I also have a topoff unit under the stand to send water to the sump via gravity flow (yes, it's a tight squeeze, heh). I plan to use only RO/DI water.

I plan to keep a janitor crew of hermits and snails in the tank, and plan to add them periodically, since the fish will munch on them. Do you recommend a good way to know how often to replace them, and how many to replace at a time? Also, Would it be better to use a particular type in this type of tank?

Do you recommend a 10% water change a week or a 25% change every two weeks on this tank? Other than that, should the only supplement I should be adding be Bionic to buffer calium and alkalinity if I want coralline growth?

I hope to keep an Emperor Angel (P. Imperator), a mated pair of butterfly- I was thinking 2 Masked Butterfly (Chaetodon semilarvatus)- if they pair up, but IF not, which pair do you recommend?, and a bunch of one small fish of the same color (what do you recommend that will add color and liveliness to the tank? -please NO chromis! :lol: ) I also would really like a Sohal tang but I am not sure if that would be too much. If anyone has Natural Reef Aquariums by Tullock - you could see I got the idea from a tank on pg. 78.

What kind of flow will these fish like? I have an Iwaki 90RLXT pushing the water from the sump through a UV Sterilizer, and then returning it back up to the tank, where the return provides some flow. As far as powerheads, none on there yet. What kind of flow do you recommend for the type of tank this is?

As for lighting, I was thinking that because I will have no inverts it's all a matter of how I want it to look. I was thinking of mounting PC's onto the canopy, unless anyone else could recommend something else. I would think T-5 would be overboard on a tank with no inverts.

...The tank is covered with an oak canopy, which is a little open in the back(typical canopy i guess), but imo doesn't allow for enough gas exchange in the tank. The openings to the tank have acrylic covers on them, which I would take off, but I fear the lights will get splashed. What is recommended for this?

I am open to all suggestions, and really appreciate your personal experiences.

Jon[/i]

 

[Len]

Hey Jon,

The two main problems with putting the refugium directly in the path of the down flow is the water flow will be too fast and it'll kick up the sand. Also, it's not a good design to have the refugium located before the protein skimmer since the skimmer will remove plankton prior to sending the water back to the tank. It sounds to me as if you have very little options in terms of what you can do in the cabinet area, so if it's too much trouble you can do without a refugium, especially for a fish-only.

As for "janitors," replace them if you see a resurgence in algae growth. The reason I don't recommend replacing them as they die is because they could be dying due to lack of nutrition (a natural balancing act of the system). If you see excessive algae, consider more janitors. With the type of fish you intend, you can keep any kind of janitors. A good diversity is best so they aren't as competive for food.

Small incremental water changes aren't effective (if you do the math, it doesn't do much). Do a 25% bi-weekly, or better/easier yet, a 50% monthly. Bionic in a fish only should be fine for coralline growth.

Masked butterflies may pair, but I recommend you buy a mated pair to begin with. They are much harder to find but you're assured a pair that won't kill each other. If not, I recommend just keeping one butterfly. Fairy Wrasses are great haremic fish that are very colorful. They jump though, so you're tank has to be covered (or canopy sealed). Flame Wrasses, Scott's Wrasses, Orange Bar Wrasses, and Red Margined Fairy Wrasses are a few of the many colorful species to consider. Anthias is another possibilty (many many species) but they are not as hardy and require multiple feedings per day. A Sohal is doable in a 100g with your current plans.

Fish aren't as affected by flow as corals are. Just make sure there is ample circulation. A large return pump coupled with some Maxji1200's will be plenty. If you have the money, Tunze Stream pumps offer a even better alternative. BTW, there is no 90RLXT A typo perhaps?

PCs are fine for fish only (anything is). Just be warned that someday, you'll probably want to convert to a full bloom reef tank I'd plan "just in case."

As for your tank's top, I recommending mounting two 3-4" fans on the backside blowing in. It'll help cool the lights and provide gas exchange. You can remove the acrylic. Proper PC lights will come with water resistent endcaps and won't have problem dealing with the occassional splash. If you're going with fairy wrasses, I recommend put some nylon screen mesh across the back opening of the canopy so they can't jump out onto the floor.

If I may suggest some that will help get more responses: break up your questions into several shorter, more specific threads. People get intimidated by a dozen questions in one post and might not answer a few which they have opinions on because they don't feel up to tackling the rest.

HTH

 

[fungia]

i like trochus, turbo, and astrea snails to do my clean up work and i use some scarlets and a queen conch to clean up my sand. i havent replaced them yet in my 29g, i think they pretty live long if nothing eats them.

good skimmer i plan on that one myself. i also have a 100g in the works.

 

[Playdope]

Len,

My mistake on the Iwaki - it's a 30RLXT (960gph). What do you think about the return line from the Iwaki branching off, kind of like this: l]
for the UV sterilizer. I cant remember if I went with the 15watt or 25watt UV, but it was what some more experienced recommended. I want to ensure that the proper gph moves through the UV sterilizer.

As for the janitors... how many do you recommend replacing when I see too much algae for my liking? Should I mainly be looking for too much green algae on the substrate?

I'll stick to 25% bi-weekly water changes.

Right now I am trying to decide which tank will be easier for me to maintain, and which I will be happier with... the full blown reef or the red sea larger fish tank. To be honest, I think I would prefer the larger fish, just because I have always had an obsession with mated pairs and P. Imperators.

Also, it would be great to hear about any of your experiences with the common aquarium butterflies: Auriga (auriga), Racoon (lunula), and Golder (semilarvatus). I have read that these are generally some of the best to keep, but what I am focusing on is that many say they are the "best of the butterfies to keep". Before dropping $100+ on single fish, I want to ensure that I know exactly what it demands, for it's sake - and my pockets sake. I will wait untill the tank cycles, then monitor my pH, alk, nitrates, and salinity from then on (not calcium, because I don't care to have explosive coralline growth, unless you feel it will be really usefull in warding off unwanted algae).

Assuming I keep the water perameters good - it leaves me primarily with focusing on the fishes diet, which seems to be equally important when dealing with butterflies and angels. One place I read said I should offer butterflies clams, krill, shrimp, mysis and vitamin-enriched brine. The ammount of food fed and how often is also a question in my mind to these types of fish.

Jon

 

[Tremelle]

Unless the tank is 6 ft. long, I would skip the Sohal. I had thought of doing a Red Sea only tank. I had planned on stocking a Regal Angel, a Purple Tang, and a Masked Butterfly.