Hi Anthony.

I’m JGC (Javier) from TODOMARINO (and now from MARINE DEPOT)

I’m trying to start-up a new tank, and I need any kind of help, so I’m sure to learn more with this fantastic people. (and of course with your help).

The new tank is a 60 Gal. (30”*20”*24”) with a 20 Gal sump. It’s lightened with an 250W MH (14K) an 2x24W Actinic T5. Skimmer is an AquaC EV-120 and water movement is done by a TUNZE 6000, and the sump return (600 Gph). SSB of Nature’s Ocean an LR from my old aquarium (Indonesian an Fidji)

My idea is to recreate a small end of reef, where soft corals and LPS are predominant. Only one or two SPS in the top. A few fishes, (blennys and other small fishes) and a lot of invertebrates.

I need your opinions and ideas to do it.

Thank's  

Javier

Kindly from Mediterranean Sea (Alicante The Spring's Home)

It is wonderful o hear from you, TodoMarinio friend!

I have been travelling and now just come back to the message boards and see your name and post. It is a pleasant find

Regarding your newly propased tank, I honestly have very little critique to say about it. It is very good and quite similar to exactly what I would set up for such system hardware. The MH lamp is appropariate for this tank size, the fluorescents too to add color and aesthetic (blue) that you might like. The skimmer is one of my favorite and recommended brands, and the Tunze pumps are perhaps the most efficienct and best choice currently on the market!

The shallow sand bed (SSB) is safe and sensible for simplicity. But if you think you will have a heavy bioload (messy fishes or many LPS to feed heavily), then you may want to consider adding a remote deep sand bed/bucket (RDSB) to help reduce nitrates.

Aside from that, I look forward to seeing or discussing your species selection. Have you considered what fishes, corals or specific region you will focus on for this tank?

Coral Sea/Solomons... Indonesia, Tonga?

kindly, Anthony

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Anthony Calfo

I know it and I'd being waiting for you (friend and master).

Well about fishes and corals. Now I have in the old tank only 3 fishes. 1 Flavescens, 1 damsel and 1 ocellaris. In the new tank I'd like to have a pair of ocellaris, and maybe 1 Flavescens and .... I really don´t know at this moment. (¿suggestions?)

The corals in old tank (SPS are in AGG (my 13 yars old son) tank) are only a colony of actinodiscus, another colony of Rhodactis Inchoata, a small Euphillya and a red Carotalcyon.

As I like a lot the zebrasoma's family, mainly I want to recreate a reef where this fishes ar the kings. Coul you help me in choosing adecuate corals and fishes ? (I'm sure of it ).

Thank's a lot Anthony and greetings for you.

Javier

Kindly from Mediterranean Sea (Alicante The Spring's Home)

Before we address the tang or corals though, I'd like to suggest that you choose your damsel species very carefully or perhaps not keep a damsel at all. As you may know, most of them are so severely territorial that they will dably restrict your options for possible interesting fishes in the future. If you do not take a peaceful schooling species like most Chromis ssp but you still want a damsel, let me then suggest that you add the damsel last to the aquarium so that other less aggressive fishes have a better chance of establishing.

As for natural tanks choices for the Zebrasoma ssp, you will want to focus largely on hard substrates and less sand/mud for the media to begin with. Ctenochaetus tangs favor (and need IMO) nice soft fine sands to rasp for diatom algae, but Zebrasoma tangs prefer biotopes with more rock and opportunities to graze filamentous algae.

Among coral choice, try to avoid having a dominance of dense finely branched stony corals since the tangs will not be able to magange microalgae as well among such intricate and dense aquarium-scapes.

Instead, do focus on larger and thicket branched corals. The corallomorphs and most soft corals will be fine too for the tangs to work around.

To suggest a fantasy tank perhaps ... can you imagine a large refugium aquarium set up next to your display tank on the same table or plane (same tank height) and you connect the two aquariums with a large pipe and bulkheads (say... 3-4" pipe/8-10cm). The refugium can be empty and expansive to encourage the growth of plants or algae for the tangs to swim too and browse. in this manner they will carry (export) nutrients form the reef tank by swimming into the refugium tunnel/tank and depositing their waste as fertilizer for the plants and algae. In this way you can bank or export nutrients form the system in a most interesting and natural way. With a very deep sand bed in refugia, you can also enjoy many different fish and invertebrate species that will not fare as well in the display with less or no sand (BB)

just a suggestion

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Anthony Calfo

It's a great suggestion Anthony. I like it, but there isn't enough room for another aquarium and my wife

I will get a DSBB as you posted, and maybe some macroalga in the main tank or in sump to keep nitrate levels low.

About fishes, really damsel is quite agressive with other fishes and a I'll give it to a friend who has other damsels and love it. I can get a picturatus or a splendidus, but I'm not sure that this fishes will fed properly in this small tank. Population will be completed with a pair of clownfish and maybe an Ambieletoris Gutatta. A royal Gramma and a pair of Nematelotris will finish vertebrate population.

Invertebrates include a serpent star, some nassarius snails, some nerites snails, some trochus snails, a pair of hermit crabs, a Stenophus and my first animal (who had been with me since I mounted my first reef) an Alpheus sp. (beautiful colored).

Coral need more plannig and I'd like to take more time to select it.

Thank's my friend

Javier

Kindly from Mediterranean Sea (Alicante The Spring's Home)

Anthony Calfo

Another question Anthony. I'm planning the DSBB that you recommended me, but I don't know the size and circulation that would be fine for my 60Gal display. Also I plan to use aragonite as substrate in DSBB, but I'm not sure about to use "normal" aragonite or "live aragonite" (like Nature's Ocean).

And finally (today ) I want to know the particle size of the aragonite sand that I must to use in DSBB.

Thanks and happy weekend

Javier

Kindly from Mediterranean Sea (Alicante The Spring's Home)

Finally this is the look of the tank.

And a pic of one of my favourite animals:

Thanks for your help and patience

Javier

Kindly from Mediterranean Sea (Alicante The Spring's Home)

Very good work

.

Anthony Calfo