72 Gallon Bow Front - SPS Reef

The water level in the tank is starting to rise! Checked the parameters this afternoon and everything is in check. Thought the PH would be high and it was at 8.2. WooooHoooo

A few updates:

Overflow cover has been curing for two weeks now.....


Starting to cover the frame....


Cover and trim complete...

Welcome back! How was the weather in Poland?

It's good to be back! Poland is way too cold for me! Snowed like crazy one day and was below freezing day. The snowflakes were the size of golf balls! Yikes!

It was great meeting you guys last night, me and my wife Nancy have a great time.
Thank you guys for everything, hope we can all get together again,

Tell Shawna thank you for Nancy and Me!

The new tank and especially the stand look awesome! Can't wait to see it all put together.

Your Welcome!! It was really nice meeting you all finally. We had a great time hanging out with you all. Make sure to stop by whenever you come to Longview.

I got the tank on the stand tonight! It's finally starting to come together now.

Update.....

The bottom is caulked and sealed to keep water from making it to the floor if there is ever an accident.




1st coat of stain...

Last coat of stain....

Getting ready to make the switch....

Wow. Very nicely done!

Got the overflow cover in the tank this afternoon....



The overflow cover....

That looks awesome!!! looks way better with the over flow cover in there, changes the way it all looks.
If I do another tank, I may pick your brain for some layout ideas.

that looks real nice

I have to agree and compliment you on a superb conception carried out so well. Really look forward to seeing this tank as it develops.

Thanks for the compliments.... It's finally starting to come together. I am not sure about the stacked, "bonsia", rock but I am really happy with the overflow cover. I am thinking I should have gone with a complete background cover. I may still make some pieces to fill in the background.

Cornfed1 - just let me know when you are ready. Making the DIY rock is a lot of fun. I am starting to figure out the right mixtures and curing times now.

Well done Billy.

Can't wait to see that beauty finished, its gonna be real nice. I love the way it blends together. Some nice carpentry in that stand too.

looking good sofar cant wait for the final pics

Any update on the tank and it's development?

Update: The tank finally made it through all the nasty cycles. Even though I dipped and quarantined, I still wound up with a nuisance algae and bubble algae. I even found a tiny aiptasia that came out of nowhere. Bottom line, I think all the rage about dipping and quarantining is a load of garbage!! I gave up on trying to have a nuisance free tank. I guess you could quarantine everything for six months if you had the patience; not me. The sump is now mature and the algae in the display is quickly retreating. Some peppermint shrimp should keep any hitchhiking aiptasia in check.

We sold the 125g and stuffed the 72g with corals. We are extremely happy with the progress of the 72g now. It is stocked with anemones, zoas, LPS, chalices and a few sps pieces.

Sum pics:

Very nice! Interesting rock work. I don't think I've ever seen a tank set up that way before. Let me know how the chalices do. That's one of the few corals I've never tried. Let me know if you're looking for some sps I have a few frags you may want.

Nice looking tank! As for the nuisance algae and other stuff, I think it is impossible to keep that stuff out of the tank. Just like my little pico, I used boiled rock, dry sand, water from my other tank and a teaspoon of sand from my other tank and man it is full of pods and I have now seen two bristle worms and some other worms I can't ID and even some sponges growing, I don't know where it all comes from but it does.

Very cool! Loving the anemones too!

I think the extra rock really has added to the reef effect, looks great.

Gabe. I love the chalices. The only down side is the growth. They grow extremely slow but the colors are amazing. They are very hardy and do not like much light. I pick them up when I travel to Chicago and they make the plane ride back home in a canteen. Let me know what frags you have. I definately need to pick up a few pieces.

Same here Donnie - all boiled and manmade rock and I still wound up with some nasty algae. Good thing... I can see it disappearing every day.

Matt - the nems are our favorites. We could almost have a tank full of anemones and nothing else.

I agree... the tank started coming together as we continued to add rock. Still not completely satisfied but it will work for now.