Reef nutrition

Eight's 170 gallon in wall LeeMar

So I have been monitoring the salinity on the frag tank and I think you are right about the salinity concern, Tong. I have noticed a slight drift up over the course of a week. I added some fresh RO/DI to the frag tank by hand to bring it back inline. I think an improvement to this system would be to add another float switch and topoff RO for the frag tank. The salinity rise is slow, so I could just add water by hand until I get around to automating the topoff...
 
Very impressive setup jason. I almost purchased that tank but the thought of all the work involved in setting it up was quite a deterrent. Keep up the good work.
 
Jason, while one way water flow from main setup to frag tank let you use it as a quarantine tank, it will make your setup more complicated, harder to balance, and potentially more failures done the road. Also frag tank usually have much smaller water volumn with much higher coral density and more toxin due to higher frequency fragging (at least for my frag tank :)). So for these reasons, I actually think it is better to share the water with main setup to dilute the water issues with frag tank, and setup a separate quarantine tank on per needed base.
 
Tong, I think that you bring up some good points and it remains to be seen how complicated/challenging it will be to maintain this setup as is. So far it's been pretty easy, although the jury is still out on the long term since this has only been up for a few weeks.

The biggest reason I am trying this route is because I wanted to have a QT on hand all the time and *always* put frags into QT first. In my old tank I had a horrible experience with monti eating nudis that wiped out many prized colonies and I don't want to risk that again. The prevalence of pests in this hobby is a problem that seems to have gotten a lot worse over the past few years and dipping, while helpful doesn't seem to work all of the time.

I know for myself that a QT tank on a 'per needed' basis would never get used. I'm just too lazy to setup and take down a QT tank and I tend to buy corals sporadically and often, not just in one big order.

In terms of complication... although it looks/sounds kinda complicated, it's actually simpler when compared to a "Display tank plumbed to Frag tank" + QT setup. (I concede that my setup is more complicated than a straight Display/Frag without a QT.) The only added point of complication is the second float switch in the frag tank. Otherwise, all of the hardware in my setup would be present in a more traditional Display/Frag + QT arrangement. (I actually have less, because I have one less set of lights, one less skimmer, one less CA/Alk additive system, etc.)

To your original point though, I agree this is all theoretical until I have run this system for several months with good results. Your point about water volume and dilution is a valid one. I'll report back periodically and if this turns out to have been a mistake, I'll probably convert into a regular Display/Frag setup.

I appreciate the comments and insight! (For the record, your DBTC Miami Hurricane frag that you gave me is in the frag tank and doing great... ;P)
 
A QT tank is easy...just keep a empty 10g glass tank close the the main tank. ( I have mine in the bathroom) Have a heater and filter or small air pump ready. When you new buy fish, just drain 10 gallons from the main tank and fill the QT tank. Every week or so change some water (3-5g) from the Main to QT ( dump the QT water in the drain). when you rae done with the QT - empty it again. You should not put frags in the Fish QT if you ever plan to run copper in it, this way you really have a stand alone QT. You should/may want a 2nd QT for corals anyways.
 
Actually when I refer to QT I meant QT for corals, not for fish... I think you're right though Arnold, setting up a QT for fish like you explained is quite easy. I could even position a drain with ball valve right over the QT and leave an unplugged heater and filter in there that could be turned on with a switch... hmmm...
 
Jason,

One of the things I did was connect my frag tank to the main system but gave myself the ability to shut the drain and intake off from the main system when I was adding new corals or fish. That way the tank is always cycled, warm etc.
 
I like that idea Bryan. If I decide that this system isn't working and go to a plumbed display/frag setup then I would definitely do what you did to separate the two systems with ball valves.

One obvious drawback that I should mention to the "one way waterchanger" is that your frag and your QT are the same tank... This could be a problem depending on how you use your frag tank, although diagnosing problems, dipping and treating pests is way easier on a frag tank vs a display.

There's no doubt that a fully separate QT system is better from a purely quarantine perspective... I think the question is whether this hybrid approach provides a valuable compromise between quarantine capability/equipment cost/energy cost/hassle.
 
Very true, but as you said if some sort of pest does pop up I can easily treat the frags in the tank as they aren't mounted to rock and easily movable.

The added plus to is while it is operating plumbed into the tank you increase the watervolume in the system and are less prone to crashes.
 
Two quick shots before I go to bed.

Super fluffy acan colony. This thing eats a crazy amount of mysis. Will be hitting the band saw once it comes in.

523957769_6DaWp-L.jpg


Frag of Highlighters from Cherry Corals. I had never ordered from them before and I was nervous about how representative the photo was of the actual coral... but I have to say I am quite pleased.

523957808_9t7cm-L.jpg
 
Yup, it's an acan. It's a pretty nice example of what people call a "rainbow acan". I split a mini colony of those with AJ from Cherry Corals about a month ago.
 
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