New 65g FOWLR underway

[Blinky]

Well, it's done. Thank you to everyone who voted in my poll, your opinons were really helpful. Yesterday when I was cleaning the tank and all the equipment, I had a moment of doubt, wondering if I was insane for converting the tank; I've been working with much smaller tanks both at home and work, and forgot just how tough this tank is to work with sometimes (it's 24" tall, 18" deep front to back, I can't reach the back without a stool and some creative positioning). If I ever get a 200g tank, I think I'll just climb right inside to clean the walls ;)

There are 30lbs of LR and 10lbs of sand (left over from the other tank) in the tank ATM, I'll probably get some more of each soon. I'd like to leave room for the fish to swim comfortably but I think at least 10-20lbs more rock would fit nicely and add to the biological filtration.

The equipment is pretty low-tech, no fancy plumbing, but looks to be working. There's a Rena FilStar XP2 with sponges, bio media and carbon, two AquaClear 402 PHs on opposite sides of the tank and my old Prizm protein skimmer (will do for now, but will be upgraded if needed). I don't plan to stuff the tank with fish, most of the fish I like are small - no tangs, triggers, eels, lionfish or big angels are on my list. I'm thinking of moving my maroon clown into this tank and keeping:
- Maroon clownfish
- Potter's angel (on order at work, may not end up getting it)
- a hawkfish, not sure what type
- a goby or blenny
- maybe a cardinal, chromis or damsel

I'll post some pics tonight or tomorrow when the water clears a bit :)

[wastememphis]

I have two maroon clowns and a yellow eyed kole tang in my 65gallon tank. I didn't move my 6 line wrasse over, becuase I'm not sure if it was fighting with my tang before. If you are considering a blenny, take a look at a Midas Blenny they're pretty cool.

Neil.

[sushigirl]

If you're deciding btwn a cardinal/chromis/damsel: in my personal experience~
a damsel was too bossy;a blue-green chromis is pretty, but nicer in a school of maybe 3, which I have, but they spend ALOT of their time in the caves & crevices and don't swim about much except @ dinnertime.
I would pick a cardinal: I have a bangaii who's pretty cool and just hovers about, staring at things moving around him; but I think a pajama cardinal is just too cute with all those polkadots and stripes too! :cool2:

[dolfans1]

I have 6 green chromis in my 120 g - they were my first fish inhabitants . They are very active and play well with the other fish, and always greet me when its feeding time. They do like to school, so I would recommend at least 3. They're pretty cheap too - $5 at my LFS.

[Blinky]

Okay guys, here are the first pictures, enjoy :D

The tank and stand:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21/ACBlinky/65gstand.jpg

FTS:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21/ACBlinky/65gFTS.jpg

Rock closeup, right side:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21/ACBlinky/65gRS.jpg

Rock closeup, left side:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21/ACBlinky/65gLS.jpg

Thanks for the feedback, It'll probably take me months to figure out which fish I'd like - there are so many choices!

[Mahlhavoc]

Like some intense movie scene with a right of passage I will say..

"Choose wisely my son!"

[Swimfins]

Absolutely a flame angel and perhaps a nice school of 4 neon gobies? or bar gobies?

[sushigirl]

Rock On, Blinky! :dive2:

[Blinky]

Absolutely a flame angel and perhaps a nice school of 4 neon gobies? or bar gobies?
If I get the Potter's then no flame, but if I can't get it then I was thinking either a flame or a coral beauty. I definitely want an angel in the tank; they're gorgeous fish that swim in open water, which is exactly what we're looking for.

Neon gobies are something I hadn't thought of, thanks for the idea. SO much to think about...

We're definitely cycling - last night Ammonia was over 1ppm, Nitrite was 0.3ppm, and the tank smells terrible, lol.

I'm off to the LFS today to grab sand and maybe some more LR, I'll post more pics soon :D

[mrsdorothy]

Looks good so far Blinky. As you can see, I am still following your threads. What kind of lighting do you have on this tank?

Dorothy

[Blinky]

Thanks! I'm glad you're along for the ride again :D
The fixture is a Current-USA Satellite 2 x 96W PC (1 10K and 1 actinic bulb). Any time you want to see any of my tank specs, they're all listed in my sig. link and I try to keep everything as up to date as possible.
I added another 40lbs of CaribSea aragonite sand today, so there's a total of 70lbs. I would have picked up a few more pounds of LR, but couldn't carry all of it!
Now the tank will have to cycle for a while, then I'll start adding cleaners and post some pics :)

[mrsdorothy]

I noticed in one of your posts that you were using tap water for your tank. My sister has well water that I use in my freshwater tanks. The ph is less than 6, nitrates is between 0 and 5 and phospates is somewhere between 0 and 0.5.

My city water has a ph that is at off the top of the chart on a high range ph test. I have to mix 3 parts well and 1 part city water just to get a ph of 7.2 for my freshwater tanks.

Now, my ?'s is, Do you think it would be ok for me to use the well water to cycle my tank instead of buying 50g of ro or distilled water, then purchase water to do the water changes? Since her water seems to have practically nothing in it, would I have to buy water at all? We are at each others house a lot. She brings some when she visits, I get water when I visit her.

Sorry, I didn't mean to hijack your thread.

Dorothy

[Mooch28]

Very nice Blinky!!

Did you ditch your planted tank??

[FreddytheFish]

After seeing what you can do with a nano-tank, I can't wait to see some pix of the 65 when its finished. :clap:

[itstheantitang]

are you planning on getting soft corals since you have the light?

[wastememphis]

mrsdorothy: I would only want to put clean water in my tank, I'd go with buying the RO or Distilled for the initial setup. You might save on buying a unit... I think it would be like $40 for 50gallons of RO water at my lfs.

[Blinky]

I wouldn't want to use water with 5ppm NO3 and 0.5ppm PO4. I only use my tap water because it's so nutrient free, most of the time neither nitrate nor phosphate registers (occasionally I see around 2ppm NO3). I do want to get an RO unit, I just have to wait a little bit until my pockets recover :)

itstheantitang - no corals planned for this tank, but if any outgrow the nano and need a new home they may migrate here unless I end up with fish/inverts that will eat them. I've got a second light fixture sitting idle, the bulbs are 2 years old and since I don't need another 110W ATM I haven't bothered to replace them. If I do put corals into this tank I'll get new bulbs and add that fixture to keep them happy.

FreddytheFish - thanks, lol no pressure! Honestly the tank/rockwork itself won't be flashy, but hopefully the fish will be some nice eye candy.

Mooch28 - yep, traded everything in. After two years with the tank planted and 15 years in FW, I felt like it was time for a change. Everything went to a nice LFS that gave me very decent credit. They're good guys, I know they'll treat my fish and plants well.

I added more rock this evening, for a grand total of only 42lbs. The live sand seems to be doing the trick, NH3 and NO2 barely registered this morning. The new rock is fully cured, so I don't expect a huge ammonia spike. The structure has a few nice caves and is free-standing - nothing is leaning on any of the tank walls. I like that the fish will have swimming room all the way around (and through) the rocks. It's a bit cloudy tonight, I'll post a pic tomorrow when the dust settles again. :D