Our 75 gallon reef system with Deep Sand Bed (DSB) and 25 gallons in
a sump also with DSB.  Scroll down to view all four pictures.

<=== Beginning               Next Picture ===>

1. The aquarium is a twelve year old, custom sized, 75 gallon Acrylic with built-in overflow.  This first
picture shows how I set up a DSB.  The flat Coquina Rock is placed on top of 1 1/2" PVC.  This
creates a 1/2" gap between the top of the sand and the bottom of the rock.  This is very important
in my opinion and experience.  It allows oxygen laden water to freely flow under the rockwork
keeping the upper layers of sand oxygenated, ie, no dead spots.
 

2. Here, you can see two layers of sand totaling 250 lbs. The lower is Southdown sand bought from Home
Depot.  The upper is 50 lbs of fresh Caribbean live sand.  The live rock is curing in the tank.  Even
though you may buy "cured" live rock it still has to be cured again.  Anytime live rock is removed
from water and moved to another tank it will experience a die off.  Never add fresh live rock to an
established aquarium.  Cure it in another container or you could experience an Ammonia and
Nitrite spike which could take the life of some of your prized critters.  Important fact,
The only thing that happens fast in a saltwater aquarium is disaster.

Patience is called for and will pay off in a beautiful algae free reef tank.
 

3. Just three weeks from the last picture, I have added a sand activator kit, several corals and two
     fish.  This is more livestock than I recommend to new reefers.  My experience level guides me to
do things a little more rapidly than the inexperienced reefer.  Be patient, go slow.
 

4. This is how the tank looks on January 22, 2004, 20 months after setting it up.  Have we lost some
   critters?  Of course.  No one keeps everything alive forever.  But our philosophy is this, "We are
  not successful unless we keep an individual animal alive for one year".  Many of our critters are
     over a year in captivity.  When they reach a year then we extend that philosophy out another year.
We invite you to take on that same philosophy.  Once we did this, twenty years ago, we became
more successful with marine fish and invertebrates.  Today we use the same theory with our reef
tanks.  Begin thinking long term.

Did you notice the lack of scratches on this twelve year old Acrylic aquarium.  If you learn how
to take care of them, Acrylic aquariums are very durable and more beautiful than glass.  For
a report on the advantages of Acrylic over glass click ===> Advantage.

<=== Previous Picture               Next Picture ===>