300 Gallon Reef tank at 2 Weeks

Pump 1 and Chiller (Closed Loop)

40 Gallon Wet / Dry

Skimmer and Pump 2

This is a 300 Gallon Display with a 40 Gallon Wet / Dry Sump, a chiller, 2 mini giant pumps featuring 6 powerheads and a closed loop system to ensure no dead spots.

It was initially picked up from ATM on Sunday, April 5, 2009. Less than a week later it appeared to have run its cycle and was ready for some livestock. A couple days later it appeared to enter another mini cycle. I have used a variety of bacteria products to hasten the nitrification cycle.

The lighting itself deserves some special attention:

• 2 Metal Halide 250′s
• 4 T-5 Actinic
• 9 LED Blue
• 9 LED White

Livestock to date

• 200 lbs of Live Rock
• 150 lbs of Caribsea Live Sand
• Foxface Rabbitfish (lo)
• 2 Cleaner Shrimp
• 1 Yellow Assessor
• 3 Yellow Clown Gobys
• 1 Pearly Jawfish
• 5 Feather Dusters
• Bubble Coral
• Purple flower Polyps
• 50 Blue Leg Hermit Crabs
• 1 Serpent Starfish
• Starter Copepods
• 50 Nassarius Snails
• 30 Nerite Snails
• 1 Scarlet Reef Hermit Crab

A bubble tip anemone has been reserved for the clown fish to host in once water quality has improved. In addition, I plan to add about 150 more lbs of live rock over time. I estimate it will take about a year to complete this tank but I am very much looking forward to the long term project. Many thanks to my good friend David for all his help getting this set up!

Volitans Lion

March 7, 2009 we added a Volitans Lionfish to this 75G tank. We had to wait almost a week to bring him home as he was being weaned from live food and I wanted to see him eat frozen krill or silversides, with my own eyes, before adding him to this tank. The lion has taken to eating frozen food quite well and is in the process of acclimating to the new environment and making friends with foxy, the foxface rabbit fish

In addition to the lion, we added a polyp rock with blue Sponge, some hairy mushrooms, daisy polyps, and a blue rose coral.

Here is a day/night picture of our new Yellow Foxface (lo) Rabbit Fish. You cannot tell he is the same fish when he is asleep or stressed.