My 90 gallon build

Looks amazing! im very jealous!

 

Well, after staring at my tank for hours on end today, i finally noticed all the specks on my glass were moving;D I have PODS! I knew they were coming once i had my diatom bloom, but its still so nice to watch the tank come alive w/ new life!! My cleanup crew should be here tomorrow from reefcleaners, so pics to come!

 

I got my CUC yesterday from reefcleaners I wasnt able to get any decent pics though :/ my CUC consist of 85 dwarf cerith, 30 nassarius, 30 ceriths, 10 limpets and a fuzzy chiton. Everything seemed to have made it ok except the limpets. Im not sure if most of them made it or not, but am giving them plenty of time to wake up before contacting reefcleaners. The chiton is my fav so far. he is pretty cool looking.
I got my tax return today, so of course i had to go spend a good chunk of it. So i have an SWC extreme 160 cone skimmer coming!! I'm super excited about the skimmer. I also have ordered the cabinet doors for my stand and canopy. I will post pics as soon as they get delivered and stained to match

 

Anybody have any tips/tricks for the SWC skimmers? Also, i have been using oceanic salt, but am having trouble keeping my alk up... I was thinking about making the switch to red sea coral pro. Has anyone used both of these salts?

 

Very nice!

 

Ok, i managed to get a few pics of the CUC, but they are not very good.

 

And realized i never posted any pics of my incomplete canopy
The lights slide backwards a couple of inches to give me more room to work in the canopy. The bottom piece of wood below the opening is as small as possible for better access to the tank. I am able to still dig into the tank with the canopy on. I plan on painting in the inside white, adding trim and crown moulding, i have ordered custom cabinet doors for it, and will stain to match the stand.
The first pic is the light "fixture" i built. It slides in through the back of the canopy. I did this so i could easily remove the lights to do maintenance, repaint the canopy, whatever. Also, it allowed me to build the canopy tall, in case i want to change lighting down the road. What do ya think?

 

Well, the limpets that came with my CUC did not make it. Reefcleaners was quick with a refund, and even though i have left 10 dead limpets in my tank since thursday, all params have stayed steady. I have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10 nitrate, 0ish phosphate. I had my diatom bloom, and it is all dying off/getting eaten at a steady pace. So, for valentines day, i get to go to the fish store!! I want to get a yellow watchman goby, a few peppermint shrimp, and maybe a frag or two of some zoas or other hardy coral to start with. My current inhabitants are my 2 clowns, a bubble tip brittle star, and ,my CUC. The clowns and star have been in with no problem for a few weeks now. Do you guys think I'm ready for a few small additions?

 

Nobody, including myself, was screaming NO yesterday, so I got a few new additions!!
I got a very small yellow watchman goby (i will get him a pistol friend later), 5 peppermint shrimps (to hopefully keep aiptasia in check), 3 zoa frags and 1 frogspawn frag. Today, everything looks great. The fish and shrimp are all eating. The frogspawn looks good and most of the zoas are open. Enjoy the PICS!!

 

Bonus! This just came via UPS about 3 hours ago! Its the SWC 160 cone. No skimmate or foam head yet, but it is running smoothly and quietly now, and so far I love it!! Also heres another zoa frag