Cris Capp's (cris) Reef Aquarium

Introduction:

"My tank a tank of the month?" My wife was hearing that for a couple of days after I received the e-mail from Skipper informing me that my tank had been selected. I know that I've been admiring the previous tanks of the month for quite some time, and consider it quite an honor to be featured. Every time my parents come to visit, they always tell my wife how sorry they are for installing this "fish bug" into my brain at such an early age. I guess it is true that the "fish bug" has a firm grasp on my imagination. After a full day of work, I love to come home to my family and then spend time tinkering in the fish room. I think I've owned every size tank that has ever been made, up to my current 300 gallon reef. While most of them were freshwater tanks, that is how I learned the ropes of keeping things alive and growing, which has always been my goal.

My current main tank is the progression of my success at keeping animals happy and the ever-growing need for more room. Once again, the corals are growing out of the tank, but my desire for a larger tank has waned with the recent addition of a daughter to our family. Largely due to hobbyists that share information on websites such as Reef Central, I have learned a lot about this hobby and love the advances that have been made in the last ten years. I'm sure that numerous corals and fish have been saved through the knowledge shared in these forums.

My current tank is the biggest that I could fit through the basement window, or should I say the hole remaining after we took the window out! A local company that has since gone out of business custom built the tank. The specifications on the setup are as follows:

When I bought the 300 gallon tank, I had a 120 gallon reef, so moving everything downstairs was very easy. Most of the big colonies were in the 120 gallon which was setup and running for three years prior to the upgrade. The 300 gallon tank has been up and running for two years now. The stand I built myself, and if needed, I know I could park my car on top of it.

Circulation:

I have two Little Giant pumps, each on its own circuit breaker. My thought was that if one of the main pumps stopped working, then the other would hold down the fort until I could replace or repair the broken one. Being on separate breakers was the other reason for two. I've had breakers trip while I was at work and wanted to play it safe by having a backup.

Lighting & Other Equipment:

I've always been a fan of 20K metal halide Radium bulbs and the only drawback is changing them out at seven months. I have tried extending their effective lifetime on several occasions and could really see a difference in the color of the corals. I guess that is the price I have to pay for the colors I want from my corals. I have no problem with growth rates using 20K and recommend them to people all the time.

Maintenance:

My maintenance schedule is an easy one. I make 5 gallons of kalkwasser per day for my top off water. The only other chore that I routinely perform, besides scraping algae off the glass every fourth day, is cleaning the skimmer. The EuroReef skimmer works great but needs a little tweaking to keep running at the best efficiency. I use a small drill bit to clean the airline port that leads to the needle wheel assembly, which tends to get clogged with salt buildup. Also, I let the airline suck up a little freshwater to clean the line from salt. The water is tested weekly and any necessary supplements are added accordingly (rarely). Algal buildup in the grooves of the overflow is removed every month. I had my A. yongei grow to the surface and as the water level grew because of the clogged overflow grooves, it just kept growing. When I finally cleaned them out it dropped the water level a ¼" and every branch was sticking out of the water! Of course, algae seized the opportunity and colonized the new atoll. I am a firm believer in the corals being the "canary in the coal mine." I monitor them closely and when they tell me that something is wrong, I start my investigation.

Feeding:

Heavy! I remember the days that it was recommended to feed every other day… until I tried it myself and starved! I feed the fish a mixture of OSI Spirulina and Marine flakes and Hikari Mysis shrimp twice a day and the phyto mixture at night after the lights go out. The corals and critters get ESV phytoplankton, Cyclop-eeze®, and Golden Pearls (500-800 microns). I'm still not sure what the best secret formula is, but this method is easy and supplies a lot of different sizes of plankton in one shot. Occasionally, I will feed the Ricordea mushrooms, and anything that will grab it, some raw, diced table shrimp soaked in Selcon™.

Inhabitants:

My livestock has been collected over the last six years through various trades with other hobbyists, numerous trips to the local fish store, and a little luck. More than half of my colonies are grown out fragments, mainly due to a limited budget over the years. I now feel more confident in keeping corals alive and healthy, so occasionally I will buy a wild colony. I keep 16 fish in the tank and really feel they are secondary to the corals. I made the mistake of originally starting with a lot of snails and hermits but will try and only add snails from now on. Three cleaner shrimp, one cucumber, one blue and one purple Linckia starfish. I have Bangaii Cardinals and know of fourth generation babies out there. I tried my hand at breeding my clownfish; it was a great learning experience with rotifer cultures but lost focus after I thought I was out of the danger zone and lost all my clowns overnight due to poor water quality. I will try again to raise them after I learn a little more.

The corals are too numerous to list, plus in all honesty, I don't know half of their scientific names. I know that I need to buy Dr. Veron's Corals of the World book series so I can identify and actually sound like I know what I'm looking at. I have always loved the look of a mixed reef and know that I am flirting with disaster, but I keep a close eye on the skirmishes and water quality in an effort to stop a problem before it starts.

Acknowledgements:

I would like to say thanks to the people at Marine Depot. They are my on-line choice for equipment and have been great from the first day I ordered. Additionally, I'd like to that all the local fish stores in the area for the hundreds of times they let me loiter in their store. My thanks also go out to The Rocky Mountain Reef Club which is growing and getting stronger by the month. It is great to have a local resource for questions and problems. I also call it a reef-geek support group.

Concluding Remarks:

I hope you enjoyed my reef and I am always up for trading for corals that I don't have already. What a great hobby we all have! I would hate to lose part of it through our own greed and stupidity. Make it a point to support the local fish stores and suppliers who are doing the right thing by taking the precautions to keep our resources alive for the years to come by offering aquacultured livestock.

Feel free to comment or ask questions about my tank in the forum for the online magazine.