Kitty's 34G Oceanic Cube

[CichlidFan]

No sweat, when you get around to it...smiles

CF

[Kittysnax]

well HOPEFULLY i can get the spouse to bring home some batt-reys from work tonight so I can hopefully get some pics up by tomorrow. My light is scheduled to be here today...it had BETTER BE IN! WRAR

[Kittysnax]

New lights came in! /yay!

I got this fixture http://fishneedit.com/150w-mhl-with-...t-f150222.html

with a 20k MH bulb and 4 blues. I just have the MH on it right now since it was too wide front to back with all 3 fixtures together so I will probably be only using 1 actinic strip for supplimental blues when i get corals. I think the MH is fine for now though as it displays a HUGE blue spectrum, which I like alot!

FTS:


FTS closeup:


Pretty blue-hued sand. It actually has a light dusting of diatoms on it right now. I cant tell as much with this fixture lol!:


Over-exposed pink coralline rock. It has the most diatoms on it right now:

[Airjammer]

Beautiful Tank Makes me want to do a small saltwater.

[Darbex]

Nice so how is the construction on the lights? I have been wondering about there lights.

[Kittysnax]

Thanks Air and Darbex ;3

Honestly the fixture itself seems a bit flimsy, but I have heard nothing but good things about the company so I'd rather spend a tiny bit more than the Odessea (which has had reports of fires over and over again) and get decent quality. Putting the 3 fixtures together is a PITA, but once you figure it out, its not that bad. It is just very wide front to back, hence why I decided on putting them on seperatly later instead of hooked together. It also came with legs as well as ceiling mounts, which seem to be strong quality. I just cant hang it right now >.< Turning it on and off is kinda tricky as sometimes you have to flip the ballast switch twice or so for it to flicker and heat up. Not a deal breaker for me though. The ballast seems to keep a decent temperature as well. It gets warm, but I can handle it with my bare hands. I still wouldnt run it when Im not home for a long time though, just for the possibilty youd have with any high wattage device. All in all I would say it is worth it. A Halide fixture is a Halide fixture to me, it all depends on what you put inside it(bulb). As long as it doesnt have a tendency to burn the house down, Ill give it a try.

I LOVE the spectrum of the 20k stock bulb, but will probably go with a Phoenix 14k DE MH bulb when time comes to change it. Im a blue junkie and would prefer color over growth so I want to stick with a heavy/moderate blue spectrum. I dont want a tank that will become overgrown in a year, cause frankly, I have no idea when the time/money will come for us to move back out of the parents house and I dont want to stress a huge number of livestock out during a move LOL!!!!!! Also the T5HO "blue bulbs" that you get with the stock fixture arent true actinics as Ive seen. they are basically just blue bulbs. Which is fine cause for the price, I wasnt really payin for the bulbs LOL.

[Darbex]

Are you not planning on running the lights very long every day because you said you dont want to run it when your not home for long.

[Kittysnax]

lol well im usually home all day since im STILL unemployed. My time was gonna be noon-8pm maybe 10 at the latest on the halides. I just dont have the desire to setup my timers yet LOL

[Kittysnax]

I think the cycle is pretty much over....

NitrAtes: 0-5 (hard to tell)
NitrItes: 0
Ammo: 0

Guess a waterchange is in store? I also have some diatoms that need to be either starved out or taken care of.

[tang-chaser]

a tang or dwarf angel will eat brown diatoms. Both are pretty hardy fish.

[CichlidFan]

That light really makes a big difference, I love the way its' coming together for you....the blue light on the sand, really looks good.

CF

[Kittysnax]

I might spring for a flame or coral beauty. I want one that stays small. I also saw a jet black midnight angel last time i was at all about fish......i fell in love LOL

[tang-chaser]

The dwarf angels will stay small. My fave is the potters angel. What a beauty! I have a cherub angel that is fun to watch, always moving. Though it does nip a coral every once in a while but its just trying to get poo off them. yes dwarf angels eat poo and decomposing matter too.

[Darbex]

Are they ok in a nano with Clowns?

[tang-chaser]

I would say there less agressive but if you get one the same size as the clown your good. just the tank needs to be some what bigger because these fish act like a smaller version of a tang. They love to swim in and out of rock work feeding on any algae that may be on the rocks. I would say the lowest size i would go with these angels would be 20 gallons.