Kessil

Leemar Starphire 290

Man that's even more tempting! Looks like it's just starting to turn there with the pronounced gill/eye colors. My biggest worry would be my yellow tang thinking it's competition... of course I'm also worried that it'll go after the much smaller purple tang (currently separated)
 
So I did a big water change yesterday and cleaned up the tank a bit. I got motivated and decided to take a video. The tank has changed SO much in the past 4-5 months since my last big video. I am very excited about this one. The tank turns 2 years old officially in a couple weeks. Woo HOO! Time flies for sure. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. Thanks.


Oh, and it likely won't play on mobile devices. I uploaded at the highest definition that I could, and that happens sometimes. Sorry.
Your tank is exploding! nice work!!!!
 
Kris,
I am contemplating these Kessils, how many do you think I would need to cover a 6 foot long tank?
Your corals seem to be thriving under them. Are you supplementing with other lighting, or just Kessils?
My wife and I loved that video of your reef!
John
 
Kris,
I am contemplating these Kessils, how many do you think I would need to cover a 6 foot long tank?
Your corals seem to be thriving under them. Are you supplementing with other lighting, or just Kessils?
My wife and I loved that video of your reef!
John
 
Kris,
I am contemplating these Kessils, how many do you think I would need to cover a 6 foot long tank?
Your corals seem to be thriving under them. Are you supplementing with other lighting, or just Kessils?
My wife and I loved that video of your reef!
John

Hey John, thanks.

I don't know the exact dimensions of your tank............mine is 7' long x 31" wide x 26" tall. This presented some issues with coverage. I thought 4 kessil wides would do the trick, but I found the wide wasn't bright enough for such a deep tank. Now the new "E" versions might have enough power, but in the A350 I found the narrow versions to penetrate nicely in a deep tank. I have 5 A350 narrows across the front, and 2 wide's in the back. 1 on each side of the overflow.........Theses were added just recently to help fill in.

I do have supplemental lighting......I have Ecoxotic "marine" fixtures running the length of the tank in two rows....front and back. These were to help some minor shadowing effects, but primarily to give me a "Sunrise / Sunset" mode. They are on a controller that gives me a ramp up of actinic in the morning and down in the evening. That is one of my favorite things, and the A350's were not controllable. So the new ones might do everything you want, and supplementation may not be needed.

I also run a magenta / blue "Stunner" strip next to the marine fixtures.......this just adds a little pop of color. Not really necessary, but I like them.


You guys are more than welcome to come by and take a look. I can tell you what has worked with this tank, and what I might have done differently if starting over. Not sure where you are, but I am in Pacifica, just south of SF.
 
Ok some less-tank related questions, and if these go beyond your knowledge feel free to say so :)

1) I seem to recall your garage space led directly into the fish room space. Am I correct in saying that was all one solid concrete slab and not an addition?

2) You have wood flooring in your tank room, bamboo I think? Solid? Or engineered? or laminate?
2a) Is the floor a floating type of flooring? Or is there a subfloor under it? (I don't recall going up a step or anything to transition into the room).

3) How hard is it to keep nice? Day to day maintenance? Ruin it at all when you had that last big spill issue?
 
Ok some less-tank related questions, and if these go beyond your knowledge feel free to say so :)

1) I seem to recall your garage space led directly into the fish room space. Am I correct in saying that was all one solid concrete slab and not an addition?

2) You have wood flooring in your tank room, bamboo I think? Solid? Or engineered? or laminate?
2a) Is the floor a floating type of flooring? Or is there a subfloor under it? (I don't recall going up a step or anything to transition into the room).

3) How hard is it to keep nice? Day to day maintenance? Ruin it at all when you had that last big spill issue?

Hey Mike, no worries.

1) The tank room is on a sub floor that sits directly on the concrete slab. The floor was an addition prior to us buying the house. I was able to see from the garage side that it sits directly on the slab. The room does slant slightly and I had to shim the tank to get it level once water was in it.

2) We have solid bamboo flooring from home depot. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Home-Leg...boo-Flooring-25-19-sq-ft-case-HL601/202696373

3) There have been NO problems since the incident. The bamboo is so dense, and the flooring has so many layers of sealant, it doesn't absorb ANY water. I am more concerned about the sub floor, but no warping at all so far. I wipe the floor with a towel when I finish tank maintenance. Thats about it. We also have a lab mix dog that is constantly running around. If you catch the floor at just the right angle with the sun shining through, you can see little marks from her claws..........otherwise it looks brand new. Pretty amazing stuff. It is NOT a floating floor. It is quite heavily nailed in. When I remodled my kitchen, I took out some walls and had to match the flooring....it was a bit of a pain, but nothing you couldn't do yourself. It would have been easier had I been starting from scratch.

Had to cut every other board out with a skills saw............soap up the new ones and hammer them into place. Worked.

 
Gotcha. Neat product though, although I'm looking more into a floating product so I don't have to physically attach it a subfloor. I did see two types of bamboo though at Lowes that had identical looks, one had to be nailed down the other could be floated almost a buck per sqft difference in price not sure what is so special about the floated kind but whatever. I'm kind of leaning towards tile a foot or so around the tank and then wood the rest just so I have something "warmer" to walk on.

Thanks for the info though.
 
In preparation for my tank I just put in Trafficmaster Allure vinyl plank flooring. Got it at a buck per sq ft on Black Friday. It's completely waterproof and floats on a slab. Very easy installation with just a knife and a carpenters square and measuring tape. Looks like wood but does scratch easily with our pets. But the quicker it scratches the less time I have to spend tip toeing around it ;p
 
Here's a pic of it going in:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/108008382@N02/11629930213[/url] /]
[IMG]http://www.flickr.com/photos/108008382@N02/11629930213
 
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