ltkenbo's 55 Gallon Reef Tank

[ltkenbo]

Ok so I decided to compile everything into this thread since I didn't have a build thread yet. So I'll post pictures from the beginning since I only started my tank a few months ago.


55 Gallon Tank, Protein Skimmer, Heater and 2 Powerheads:
(Paid $285 for all this)

RO/DI System:

Making Mounts for the Powerheads:

100+ lbs. of assorted live rock:
(Paid $100!! Craigslist rules!)

Koralia 2 Powerhead:
(Paid $25)

 

[ltkenbo]

2 Sunlight Supply 36" T5 Fixtures:
(Paid $50 for both!)

and made mounts for them:

Eschopps Overflow Box:
($40)

Mag Drive 7 Pump:
($65)

Sump Construction:
(10 gallon tank)

 

[ltkenbo]

Fabricate Light Bracket for Chaeto Light:

Chaeto!!!!!:

Hair Algae Outbreak (Is gone now but didn't go away until I added chaeto):

and it was much worse then that, but it's almost gone now.

 

[ltkenbo]

Button Polyps:

 

[ltkenbo]

More Pictures to come once I upload them.

 

[Smitty]

Very nice!! And detailed

 

[EliWhitney314]

wow, people move much faster than me.

 

[ltkenbo]

Well keep in mind this was over like 3 months I just hadn't compiled it all yet.

 

[Jschoon]

Very nice, well done. Do you have any other pics of your lights and how you mounted them? Where did you get those supports?

 

[ltkenbo]

I made the supports out of L brackets I cut down and some misc. nuts and bolts along with some small boards:

However the ligthts are not longer like that, they are now in the same position but screwed into the hood itself, and soon I will be getting more lights (48" though) to use along with these.

 

[Jschoon]

thanks, very clever.

 

[ltkenbo]

Alright so here's some of my fish. I used to have 2 clownfish and a royal gramma basslet, but one of the clownfish got sick and died and the basslet disappeared and I never saw him again. I still have 1 clownfish, 1 blue spotted watchman goby, and 1 coral beauty angelfish. So some of these pictures are old.

and some other soft corals I got from my friend, they are growing really slow, I'm guessing this is because I don't have enough light?

Kenya Tree:

Star Polyps:

 

[ltkenbo]

Come on now my tank can't be that bad...

 

[Tristan]

Pure beauty.

 

[Bifferwine]

I love your goby and star polyps. Be careful of that kenya tree. I ended up having to boil all the rocks from my 240 when I set up my 90 because of those bastards. They killed all the corals I had in my 240. They are like the plague.

 

[ltkenbo]

Why did you have to boil the rocks though?

 

[dcantucson]

She couldn't get them all off. They are bad news!

 

[Tristan]

are those tree branches in your tank?

 

[Bifferwine]

Tree branches? I don't see them.

Kenya trees spread very quickly, and they grow so fast that they will smother out other corals in your tank. And they are nearly impossible to kill. You can't inject them with anything, nothing will eat them, and you can't just pull or cut them off. They take over really quickly if they like the conditions of your tank.

 

[yote]

+1 Biff
Those kenya weeds can be worse than aiptasia as fas as taking the tank over.
The tanks looking great though.