Tank of the month: March 2019

Casina Lalli

Hello everyone. First of all I would like to thank those who honoured me with this title of tank of the month, which flattered me a lot and filled me with pride. I give a lot of love, time and devotion to my beloved tank, and this small recognition has brought me great joy... so thank you all.
As for me, my passion for reefs has very deep and genetic roots: my mother has a degree in marine biology and my father is a scuba diving instructor, I live near the sea, so I have salt water in my blood. As a little girl I collected the shells my parents brought back from their travels around the world. Other girls had Barbies, while my brother and I built mini reefs with shells and coral skeletons.
True love, though, struck in adulthood, in 2016, when, walking into an ordinary pet shop, I came across the first reef aquarium I had ever seen (looking at it today it was actually ugly, bare and full of cyano 😅😅😅 but back then it opened up a whole world for me). I was with my boyfriend, and it was with him that this great love and passion was born, which in the end led to this dream of mine coming true.
When we went in and asked for information, the shop assistant terrified us, both about the cost of the project and about the waiting time before we could actually start stocking the tank, so I opted for a small freshwater tank. But I am very stubborn and, since it had been love at first sight, I researched the subject on my own. I read, read, read and read everything. From forums to guides, anything that could help me get started, and that is how I discovered Facebook and this great group.
Like many beginners, I started out thinking I was doing the right thing, with a 90-litre Berlin tank without a sump, but I soon realised the space would not be enough, so I moved to a bigger tank, my current one.
It is a custom-made extra-clear tank, 90x45x45, with a Tunze overflow (the tank could not be drilled); a 55x35x40 Forex sump; a Deltec 600i skimmer; an algae filter loaded with Chaetomorpha; a Jebao DC2000 return pump; 2 Jebao OW 25 pulsing flow pumps and a Tunze 6045 behind the islands; lighting from two Hydra 26 HD, 2 royal blue micro-LED bars and an Arcadia light unit with two ATI T5s (1 Coral and 1 Special Blue). ATI Pro Balling run by an Aquatronica dosing pump. Easy Reef phytoplankton dosed with the third channel of the dosing pump. The whole system is managed by an Aquatronica controller with pH/redox/temperature probes and protected from power cuts by a 1500 VA UPS. Berlin method with a sprinkling of ATI Fiji sand.
I change 25 litres a week with ATI Ocean liquid salt. At the same time, if needed, I replace trace elements with Korallen-Zucht K-Balance, B-Balance and A-Balance. A mixed SPS/LPS/soft coral tank. In the middle of the tank there is a huge Sarcophyton with green polyps, which I got from a friend when it was as small as my fist; collector Zoanthus (I love them), Briareum, Ricordea, Discosoma, Sympodium and a fluorescent green Sinularia. Goniopora, Acanthastrea, Caulastrea and Euphyllia of various species as LPS. SPS such as milka, digitata, Seriatopora hystrix, red, green and purple foliose Montipora, valida tricolor, vermiculata, hyacinthus Red Planet, gomezi Full Blue and some Australians. Finally a quadricolor anemone with its friend, a sexy shrimp, living in symbiosis.
A plentiful fish population: 1 Zebrasoma, 1 flame angelfish (Centropyge loriculus), 1 Halichoeres iridis, 1 Synchiropus splendidus, 1 Ecsenius bicolor, 2 Chrysiptera, 3 Anthias squamipinnis, 2 Anthias bimaculatus, 1 male Anthias cheirospilos, 4 Chromis viridis, 1 Ocellaris Platinum, 1 Ocellaris Darwin, 1 Ocellaris Bullet Hole, 1 classic Ocellaris.
And the ever-present, very useful Lysmata amboinensis, wurdemanni and debelius, Nassarius and Turbo snails. In short, I have tried to complicate my life in every possible way. I have made lots of mistakes. I went through dramatic moments when moving from the small tank to the bigger one. I nearly lost the whole tank because of a violent cycling phase together with heavy metal problems. A very valuable piece of advice I can give to anyone starting out: IF YOU SPEND EARLY, YOU SPEND LESS, meaning that in this hobby you cannot skimp on equipment and on product quality. What looks like a saving at first may turn out to be a bigger expense later. Sorry for going on so long, but I am really passionate about this hobby and could talk about it for days on end. HAPPY REEFING TO ALL