Hi everyone!
I'm finally excited to start this build thread. I have been documenting the build on Reef2Reef, but figured I could do the same here. I have been in the reefing hobby for about nine years now, but surprisingly, this will be my first-ever brand-new system. In the past, I've always run pre-owned setups or pieced-together builds, so unboxing a fresh tank and starting from scratch is a huge milestone for me. I chose the Eshopps Mariner M130 for its Euro-braced bottom and high-quality setup. I got to see the tank in person at my Premier Aquatics, and it's truly a beast. I was also pleasantly surprised to see that Eshopps has updated the sump to include a refugium, unlike what you see on the floor at Premier. One small issue I am facing at the moment is when Premier received my tank, Eshopps sent the older model sump, which I did not want. Since this was one of the deciding factors in my buying this tank, Premier has stayed on top of getting the new version of the sump, although we are now going on 4 months with Eshopps delaying.
The Goal: Simplicity & Low Maintenance. For this build, my primary philosophy is less maintenance. I love this hobby, but I want to spend more time enjoying the coral and fish and less time siphoning and battling nutrient sinks. I plan to ensure that the Apex/Trident handles the heavy lifting for the elements.
The Gear:
I'm finally excited to start this build thread. I have been documenting the build on Reef2Reef, but figured I could do the same here. I have been in the reefing hobby for about nine years now, but surprisingly, this will be my first-ever brand-new system. In the past, I've always run pre-owned setups or pieced-together builds, so unboxing a fresh tank and starting from scratch is a huge milestone for me. I chose the Eshopps Mariner M130 for its Euro-braced bottom and high-quality setup. I got to see the tank in person at my Premier Aquatics, and it's truly a beast. I was also pleasantly surprised to see that Eshopps has updated the sump to include a refugium, unlike what you see on the floor at Premier. One small issue I am facing at the moment is when Premier received my tank, Eshopps sent the older model sump, which I did not want. Since this was one of the deciding factors in my buying this tank, Premier has stayed on top of getting the new version of the sump, although we are now going on 4 months with Eshopps delaying.
The Goal: Simplicity & Low Maintenance. For this build, my primary philosophy is less maintenance. I love this hobby, but I want to spend more time enjoying the coral and fish and less time siphoning and battling nutrient sinks. I plan to ensure that the Apex/Trident handles the heavy lifting for the elements.
The Gear:
- Tank: Eshopps Mariner M130 / Black stand.
- Lighting: Reefbreeders 48" Photon V2 W/ 4x T5 Supplement
- Flow: 2x DMP-45 Wavemakers
- Control: Neptune Apex Pro A3 w/ Trident w/ DOS for Alk/Cal & FMM ( 2 leak and 2 Optical Sensors
- Filtration: Sump with Refugium / Red Sea Roller 500 Mat
- Skimmer: Maxspect Aeraqua Duo AD600 Skimmer
- Return: Royal Exclusiv Red Dragon 3
- Purple Tang
- Tomini Tang
- 2x Chromis
- Royal Gramma
- Lawnmower Blenny
- Pajama Cardinalfish
- Long Nose Hawkfish
- Solon Fairy Wrasse
- Merlin’s Staff Acro
- Bubble Bath Unicorn Acro
- Pink Cadillac Acro
- Robinhood Acro
- Fruitopia Acro
- Alice in Wonderland Acro
- PC Rainbow Acro
- Green Slimer
- Cornbread Rainbow Monti
- Green/Orange Grafted Monti Cap
- Dragon Soul
- Orange Acan
- Unknown Neon Green Acan ( Seriously, this thing glows)
- Holy Grail Micromussa
- Jack-O'-Lantern Leptoseris
- Green and Purple Brain Coral
- Godzilla Mushrooms
- Radioactive Mushroom
- Rasta Zoa Rock
