From Boston to the South Bay

[wpeterson]

Hi,

I'm Winfield and my wife and I have been big on the hobby for the last few years. We've kept two small mixed reef tanks and been active in the local saltwater club here (Boston Reefers Society). We're relocating to the south bay at the end of the month. I'm sad to breakdown our tanks and find new homes for all of our animals, but excited to start a new tank and meet other folks in the hobby in the bay area.

Here's the last full tank shot from our 29 gal mixed reef:

I'm looking forward to catching the next meeting and getting to know some local folks as into the hobby as we are. I'd also appreciate advice about local fish stores for purchasing a new tank, fish, and where to find the best aquacultured corals.

 

[dswong01]

welcome

 

[HiFidelity]

welcome to BAR

 

[sfsuphysics]

Welcome to BAH! (Sorry... Boston accent joke there )

As to stores can't help you as I don't live in the South bay at all. I mean I know Neptune, CA Reef Co., and Aquatic something (which should show you how little I know about the stores down there), but those stores are in that general area.

 

[gimmito]

Welcome! Neptune's is your best bet in the South Bay.

 

[monkeybiz]

Nice tank! I know it sucks tearing down a healthy system, but setting up a new system is so much fun.


Ps, if you have room, bring some beer! Anything from Maine beer company would be nice Haha

 

[monkeybiz]

Btw, I second neptunes. Awesome owners that are very friendly And helpful plus they have a shiny new location to boot.

 

[Kensington Reefer]

Touchdown!
Welcome to our place in space, and thank you for becoming a $upporting member.
We are well worth the investment.

What is the substrate you used in the 29 you have pictured?

 

[rygh]

Welcome!
Looks good. Interesting substrate choice.
For south bay, +1 on Neptune Aquatics

 

[wpeterson]

Thanks for the warm welcome!

The substrate in our 29 gallon was a deep sand bed (~ 6" deep) of carib sea black sand. I know both black sand and deep sand beds can be contentious choices The deep sand bed was a requirement for the yellow headed Jawfish to have enough room to build a big burrow. The black sand is just esthetics - I thought it helped bring out the bright colors in the tank.

I used a more traditional 2" white aragonite sand in our 22 gallon.

I'm not sure which way I would go for a new tank. When you've got great water quality and nutrient export, that crisp white sand is a great look. Mine hasn't always achieved that

 

[wpeterson]

I use webcams for live feeds on both of our tanks, but also do some projects with timelapse video.

Here's a month of action in our 29 gallon mixed reef from January earlier this year:

 

[HiFidelity]

is it just me or is there an anemone that never stays put?

 

[wpeterson]

is it just me or is there an anemone that never stays put?

The BTA there stays in one place, but there's a Tuxedo Urchin who crawls over every surface in the tank.

 

[Nav]

Welcome to BAR... and South Bay!

What's that red thing that was moving around your tank? BTA? (Video: 2:17)

 

[wpeterson]

Welcome to BAR... and South Bay!

What's that red thing that was moving around your tank? BTA? (Video: 2:17)

There's a green BTA on the left, just above the archway rock. It opens and closes but stays in one place.

The same tuxedo urchin I mentioned is what you're seeing. He covers himself with all kinds of weird stuff. At 2:17 it look like he stuck some red macro algae all over himself from my small in tank refugium. Red grape Caulerpa I believe.

 

[DapG8Gt]

Welcome =).. That video was cool I like the opening and closing of the bta and watching the Urchin scurry around..

And honestly since your moving to the south Bay you are a lot closer to the best stores we have around the bay area vs living closer to sf except Diablo..

 

[wpeterson]

And honestly since your moving to the south Bay you are a lot closer to the best stores we have around the bay area vs living closer to sf except Diablo..

Awesome. I'm looking forward to checking out Neptune in SJC and California Reef Co.

I'm hoping to setup an 80-100 gallon shallow reef, like the Innovative Marine SR or Cadlights Artisan II style tanks. Any advice on which stores I should check out for a good deal on a new tank and possible custom stand?

Are there any club members with big aquaculture operations? In Boston, there were a couple folks with 5,000-10,000 gallons of tanks and frag tanks who had great, cheap frags to get started with. The retails stores all charge a premium in Boston for coral, but had good prices for fish and invertebrates.

 

[Nav]

The two LFS you mentioned are your best bet. There are a few local hobbyists who know the wholesalers and could get you 10-15% discount on retail prices..,

 

[bluprntguy]

Reef Raft (California Reef Co) carries the Cadlights tanks and stands.

 

[650-IS350]

WELCOME TO THE BAY AND BAR !!!

Neptune's Aquatics will be your addiction for LFS in your neck of the woods. Especially now in their new digs, bigger, more space and has awesome prices. Robert will take care of ya there.