shawnriv's IM Nuvo 38 Build (photo heavy)

[shawnriv]

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to upload my first build and would appreciate feedback along the way. I recently purchased an Innovative Marine Nuvo 38 used tank. The tank itself was an absolute mess and definitely needed some TLC. I took it home and purchased four gallons of white vinegar and mixed it with tap water for 24 hours. I was impressed how well I managed getting the system clean. The previous owner also sold me the Innovative Marine Minimax Reactor and a Vortech MP10 as well. Here are a couple pictures of the unit the night I purchased it. The first two photos is with the vinegar and tap water:





And here are the new pictures after I scrubbed it down cleaned every nook and cranny:





I also purchased a Kessil A360W with the gooseneck and a Hydor Slim Skim Nano:







I will be updating forum with any changes to my new tank. Please feel free to comment on this forum and I hope everyone enjoys!

Thanks!

[shawnriv]

I received all my supplies from Dr. Foster & Smith (minus the BRS reef saver rock) yesterday evening and set the tank up last night. I am cycling the tank with Instant Ocean's Bio-Spira with Dr. Tim's Ammonia. The instructions say to add one drop per gallon (so of course I added 38) for the initial set up. Here are some photos during the build:

200G Instant Ocean Salt:




Dr. Foster & Smith Box:



40lbs of BRS Reef Saver Rock:



Caribsea Fiji Pink Sand:



Dr. Tim's Ammonia:



Instant Ocean Bio-Spira:



It just felt right:



Sand added to tank:



Aquascaping:



RO/DI and Salt added:

[shawnriv]

The tank cleared up really well when I woke in the morning. Here are also the results after 24 hours of using the Bio-Spira and Ammonia. Ammonia level isn't high but nitrite is very much so. According to Dr. Tim, he recommends only adding more ammonia if both ammonia and nitrite are zero. I will check the levels again after another 24 hours.

[maddmaxx]

Def cleaned up nicely. and you on a good start..what are you visions for this tank?

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by maddmaxx

Def cleaned up nicely. and you on a good start..what are you visions for this tank?

Thanks! I plan on stocking with LPS and a couple SPS. I honestly have no experience with SPS coral, but I'm interested in a pink stylophora and an orange setosa. I'm going to buy everything as frags. And for fish, I plan on doing a pair of true percula clowns (I can't afford the picasso's), one blue reef chromis, and maybe a flame angel. I plan on upgrading to a larger tank within a year (120 rimless).

[Reduck]

Nice start, you are going to love that tank!

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by Reduck

Nice start, you are going to love that tank!

Thanks! I'll be updating this forum win any changes made...so stay tuned!

[shawnriv]

Just to give you everyone an update, I checked my nitrite levels tonight (48 hours after adding the cycling additive) and it looks as if it's decreasing. I really hope this continues so I can add more of the Dr. Tim's ammonium chloride. The instructions say to add one drop per gallon once the ammonia and nitrite are zero.

[shawnriv]

Update (72 hours after adding cycling additive):

Nitrite seems to continue decreasing; it looks like it's reading around .25ppm. I am hoping tomorrow I should have almost zero nitrite. At this time, I will be adding more of the Dr. Tim's Ammonia Chloride.

[jco1856]

Looking good. Hope you enjoy your tank

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by jco1856

Looking good. Hope you enjoy your tank

Thanks! I'm looking forward for this cycle to be over, but I'm aware I probably have another week left. I am itching to add a couple true percula clowns once the tank is cycled.

[Mcgeezer]

You could keep sps like stylophora,birds nest, and montiporas easily. Even an acro close to the top would probably do well (stag horns are very easy)

With all corals, calcium alkalinity and magnesium are very important, but even more so for sps. A simple 2 part additive along with a good magnesium supplement is what you want to maintain the proper levels to match natural seawater and to promote healthy corals/growth.

Definitely look at some LPS that have a lot of ability to fluoresce because that Kessil will make them pop! Trachys, wellsos, blastos, and lobos are all good choices.

And of course....patience is key. Your doing everything right regarding your cycle but just ensure you get to zero on all readings and then add a small amount of ammonia one last time. If your back to zero for everything within 24 hours, you are cycled.

One bit of VERY important info that no one has told you....dry rock leeches phosphates for a very long time. You need to run GFO to keep it in check.

[rvlcf]

Good luck with the tank! I have the same tank and set it up about a year and a half ago. Feel free to pick my brain, I will help you out as much as I can.

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by rvlcf

Good luck with the tank! I have the same tank and set it up about a year and a half ago. Feel free to pick my brain, I will help you out as much as I can.

Don't mind if I do. I plan on housing a few fish and mainly LPS with a couple SPS here and there (I've never had SPS coral before). I have a red/blue brain coral, hammer, and trumpet sitting in my other tank that is full of cyanobacteria waiting until this new tank is fully cycled. I plan on cleaning them with a coral cleaner I have, when should I add them to my new tank? I understand after it's cycled, but could I add them right away? They are doing okay in the other tank, but they are full of that disgusting cyano.

[shawnriv]

I just checked my nitrite parameters again tonight, and it looks like it's finally zero. Yes! Lol. I also just added another 38 drops (one per gallon) of the ammonia chloride and I need to check tomorrow; hopefully the ammonia and nitrate will both be at zero. Fingers crossed!

[leadsinker]

Nice!!!

(I can't afford the picasso's) DO IT, YES YOU CAN!!!

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by Mcgeezer

You could keep sps like stylophora,birds nest, and montiporas easily. Even an acro close to the top would probably do well (stag horns are very easy)

With all corals, calcium alkalinity and magnesium are very important, but even more so for sps. A simple 2 part additive along with a good magnesium supplement is what you want to maintain the proper levels to match natural seawater and to promote healthy corals/growth.

Definitely look at some LPS that have a lot of ability to fluoresce because that Kessil will make them pop! Trachys, wellsos, blastos, and lobos are all good choices.

And of course....patience is key. Your doing everything right regarding your cycle but just ensure you get to zero on all readings and then add a small amount of ammonia one last time. If your back to zero for everything within 24 hours, you are cycled.

One bit of VERY important info that no one has told you....dry rock leeches phosphates for a very long time. You need to run GFO to keep it in check.

Awesome feedback and advice! Since I have the IM Minimax Reactor, I just placed an order BRS for GFO and Carbon and they will be in on Thursday (according to the UPS tracking code). Speaking of GFO and Carbon, when should I begin running them in my tank? Should I wait until I have added a couple fish and coral?

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by leadsinker

Nice!!!

(I can't afford the picasso's) DO IT, YES YOU CAN!!!

Haha trust me, I would totally love to but they're just too expensive. My LFS sells the true percula clowns for $25 a piece and I can only imagine how much they sell the picasso clowns. I've seen online they go for around $80 a piece... $160 for a pair of picassos or $50 for a pair of true perculas...

[shawnriv]

Returned home from work and look what was waiting for me!

Bulk Reef Supply shipment:




BRS loves their popcorn shipping material:




BRS Large Particle Carbon:




BRS GFO:




Innovative Marine Minimax Replacement Sponges:

[rvlcf]

Originally Posted by shawnriv

Don't mind if I do. I plan on housing a few fish and mainly LPS with a couple SPS here and there (I've never had SPS coral before). I have a red/blue brain coral, hammer, and trumpet sitting in my other tank that is full of cyanobacteria waiting until this new tank is fully cycled. I plan on cleaning them with a coral cleaner I have, when should I add them to my new tank? I understand after it's cycled, but could I add them right away? They are doing okay in the other tank, but they are full of that disgusting cyano.

I found that my tank took almost a full year to hit it's stride. One thing you need to do is find a way to create stability. a 38 gallon tank doesn't leave a lot of room for error. You will get Alk and Calc swings pretty easily. I added a doser and it made a huge difference. I would highly suggest one.
As everyone says, go slow, and keep a log book of what your tank is doing.
I had some losses in the beginning but i now have a pretty packed tank. Lps,sps, polyps etc. all doing nicely and growing. After the tank is cycled, try adding one of the hardier lps pieces and see how it does. if it goes well, add another, etc.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[shawnriv]

I believe my tank is fully cycled. This is the second time my ammonia and nitrite are zero (you'll see in my previous posts) and I believe I'm ready to add fish. The only strange this is the nitrite test makes the liquid look almost clear with a tint of blue. It's not quite as dark as the 0 ppm reading as shown on the test kit.

What do you guys think?

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by rvlcf

I found that my tank took almost a full year to hit it's stride. One thing you need to do is find a way to create stability. a 38 gallon tank doesn't leave a lot of room for error. You will get Alk and Calc swings pretty easily. I added a doser and it made a huge difference. I would highly suggest one.
As everyone says, go slow, and keep a log book of what your tank is doing.
I had some losses in the beginning but i now have a pretty packed tank. Lps,sps, polyps etc. all doing nicely and growing. After the tank is cycled, try adding one of the hardier lps pieces and see how it does. if it goes well, add another, etc.

Good luck and keep us posted.

My tank looks to be cycled (take a look at my recent post) so I thought about adding my hammer coral that has been sitting in my older tank. I also have a trumpet coral, but I think the hammer coral might be a little more hardy. What do you think? To be honest, I'm a little afraid to add fish.

[Mcgeezer]

Originally Posted by shawnriv

Awesome feedback and advice! Since I have the IM Minimax Reactor, I just placed an order BRS for GFO and Carbon and they will be in on Thursday (according to the UPS tracking code). Speaking of GFO and Carbon, when should I begin running them in my tank? Should I wait until I have added a couple fish and coral?

I wouldn't worry too much about carbon right now until your bio load increases, but GFO can start right away

[Mcgeezer]

I'd try the nitrite test again. It should always end up the light blue color and not clear. Unless you got a defective test bottle.

But in general, I'm gonna say your cycled....congrats. You did everything the right way. It's a good example to a lot of the newbies

[shawnriv]

Originally Posted by Mcgeezer

I'd try the nitrite test again. It should always end up the light blue color and not clear. Unless you got a defective test bottle.

But in general, I'm gonna say your cycled....congrats. You did everything the right way. It's a good example to a lot of the newbies

I did another test and the nitrite was a better 0ppm blue. But I called my LFS and he didn't have any true percula clowns in stock; I'll have to wait until next Thursday. So in the meantime I just dosed my tank again withe ammonia chloride in order to keep that beneficial bacteria healthy and thriving. By next Wednesday I'll do a small water change to get my nitrates below 10ppm and then add the fish. I have a quarantine tank, but I'm not sure if it's necessary to quarantine clowns since they're typically pretty hardy. What do you think? And I imagine I should use water from my new tank to fill the quarantine. Since I'll be doing that small water change, I planned on using the "old" water to fill the QT tank.

(sorry for all the questions)