♥ Alunai's 65G ♥ (1 Viewer)

[Alunai]

Rinsed off the rock yesterday!

I absolutely hate when you get rockwork the way you like it outside of the tank, and then you can't get it even close when you try to move it into the tank! Well, after several minutes of fussing, I got the rock to look better than it did in it's initial phase!

 

[NorthSide Reef]

Looks really good, I think it came out better in the tank. Love the black tape outline of the tank on the towel. That's a pretty good idea.

 

[Kepler]

Looks good. Is that top rock secure?

 

[Omen]

Looking good so far.

 

[Alunai]

Thanks! I agree. I like the new outcome much better than the original.

Kole, it feels pretty stable. I wiggled it around a bit and it was pretty reluctant to move. I also tried to shake the tank a bit and it didn't budge at all. So I'm pretty confident in the stability. I could, and might, put a little silicone in the cracks just to be sure. What do you think?

 

[lr9788]

Ashley, I would put some plumbers putty or epoxy or something in those rocks to keep them firmly in place

 

[Alunai]

Went down to Fragtastic Reef in Mankato with my pup tonight to pick up some salt. Big thanks to Garrett for giving me a deal on some salt for my tank. Now I will be able to get that salt water mixing.

 

[guy9smiley2]

^^ thanks for the invite yo! =)

 

[Kveekx]

Went down to Fragtastic Reef in Mankato with my pup tonight to pick up some salt. Big thanks to Garrett for giving me a deal on some salt for my tank. Now I will be able to get that salt water mixing.

Fragtastic is a great store! Also your scape is sweet! I hope to make mine half as good as that in my 34 solana once I set it up!

 

[Alunai]

Update coming tonight... I'm way behind! :biggthumpup:

 

[Alunai]

So I've actually made a lot of progress on this build, and I'm very excited about it. I'm two weeks into the cycle, and here's how I got here:

The mess of my dining room! And also my beautiful, beautiful Buttons... I hope you are having fun on the other side, my love.

This was an extremely frustrating, upsetting, angry day for me.. I was distraught about Buttons, and then I tried to work through my emotions by working on my tank. Welp. The damn sump wouldn't fit! I tried front and back, I tried pushing, pulling, turning, tilting, twisting. I also tried mumbling, muttering, cussing, yelling, and screaming. None of it worked, needless to say. Many tears of frustration ensued!!

Well, I figured out WHY my 20L wouldn't fit in the stand. The wonderful people at marineland (or whoever manufactured this piece of crap) are complete dunces. The boards that make up the stand were not butted up next to each other, so this caused a gap in the corners of the base. This inch of space took up the last bit of space necessary to get that tank in the stand! See what I mean?

Another thing I noticed... Just above the 2x4 is a 1" gap. Nothing is supporting the length of the tank on the front or back... Is this normal?

So my mom and I and another person took the tank off the top of the stand, all the while my pretty rockwork staying put! Got the sump in through the top of the stand and moved the tank back. In the process of moving the tank back, however, the tank bumped the stand just hard enough to make the top rock fall and hit the front glass. Thank GOD it didn't break or chip the glass! But boy was I mad when I couldn't get the rock back the way it was! (I came back a week or two later and fixed and siliconed it for just a little more stability)

Then there was the issue with silicone... There was a possibility that the wrong silicone was used to put the baffles in place. Long story short, I threw a bit of a tantrum and tore all the baffles out and redid it with what I'm PRAYING is acceptable silicone, because it says that it resists mold and mildew... But it also says it's 100% silicone. Jay told me he uses the same thing all the time (but not in white), so I'm hoping he's right about this stuff.

Got the baffles all put in place.... only to realize that it was not going to dry clear as I had originally thought! :doh: Oh well. I used a razor and painstakingly cleaned up what I could reach (photos of that later. Thought I had one, turns out I was incorrect).

And she's wet!!!!

Derping around.

And finally the plumbing! She's all hooked up now. As you can sort of see I also have egg crate on top of the last baffle. That is because I plan on stuffing the baffles with chaeto and I need to keep it contained within the baffles.

Lastly, I got a wonderful early Christmas Gift consisting of an R/O unit and a bucket of salt. Here it is installed!

LOLJK!!!1

It's secured to the conduit with zip ties, actually. It was pretty funny at the time.


So... Yep. That's about it for pictures. I was way behind. Today I did a waterchange to lower the salinity from almost .030 to .025, and dosed the second round of bioptim and biodigest (stabbed myself pretty good in the process with the stupid glass vial, too. Sucker bled forever!)

 

[scffvariable]

Hope the silicone works out for you, but pretty sure that's the stuff everyone says to stay away from. If the label says anything about mold and or mildew inhibitors I think I would be pulling it out.

Can't see the top of the tube, but iirc ge silicone 1 is ok silicone 2 is bad.

 

[Shibbs]

I'm really hoping this stuff is okay.

Caulk that keeps water out is a necessity in kitchen, bathroom, and plumbing applications. GE Silicone I* Kitchen & Bath caulk is permanently waterproof and it will not shrink, crack, or crumble over time like acrylic. Silicone chemically cures while acrylic is water-based (it simply dries as water escapes). Some acrylics can shrink up to 25 percent, leaving gaps and cracks for water to seep through. Those leaks can lead to water damage and mold growth.

Nothing anywhere says anything about mold inhibitors.

However, the internet has verified that "GE Silicone I (Clear) Window/Door/Attic/Basement" is aquarium safe. Nothing about the kitchen stuff.

100% silicone just means that there's no acrylic in it.

 

[jlpaske]

Going through the top with the sump was smart.... lucky you! I wasn't so lucky when I had a similar thing happen. Your project looks very promising. Nice update - and nice catch on the stand! I'll keep my eye on corners in the future.

 

[mapierce7]

Schnauzers rock!

 

[Alunai]

That's for sure! I grew up with them and have bred them, and they have made me a terrier girl forever (except for the majority of airdales)! I'd like a giant schnauzer some day, but aside from appearance, they're a completely different breed. They have far different dispositions than miniature or standard schnauzers.

 

[mapierce7]

Agreed, my relatives have had several in the past and I got my first one almost a year ago. Great pet. Rode all the way to the swap and back with me so I didn't have to endure it alone ha.

 

[Kepler]

Sounds like this build has literally cost you blood, sweat, and tears. :jester:

The tank is looking good though :biggthumpup:

I hate it when a rock falls off and somehow it refuses to go back to the way it was. :brick:

Two weeks cycling you say? My tank was 100% cycled in 2 days using Dr. Tim's One and Only + a Green Chromis. I then added another fish a week later and all is well.

 

[Alunai]

Yes, I literally have put blood, sweat, and tears into this setup.

I have done a lot of worrying to Jay about the silicone that I used. He's assured me that he uses the exact same kind all the time and has never had issues. I'm hoping that I have the same outcome. Regrettably, the only way to find out is to test it with a fish. I hate to suggest that there is less value in one life than another, but needless to say I will not be chancing the lives of my black ice clownfish pair. Jay said he would lend a fish to me and then I could return it when it survives. I'm glad he's confident!

 

[Pumbooris]

i sense a damsel in your near future! btw your tank is lookin good!