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Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef
September 2003

Visit Keith's site here:

ReefBum.com

This aquarium is one of the most truly stunning examples of what can be acheived with a mini-reef setup. Keith has truly achieved what most of us can only dream about. The colors are vibrant, the inhabitants are healthy, and the view is spectacular! Keith's aquarium was featured in the July, 2003 Reefkeepers.com website, you can view it here: Reefkeepers.com.

Inhabitants:

SPS Corals:
Metallic Green Millepora sp.
Pink Millepora spp. (2 varieties)
Red Acropora sp. (Table)
Purple Acropora humilis
Yellow Acropora humilis
Pink Pocillopora sp.
Exotic Blue Tortuosa sp.
Acropora yongei
Purple Rim Green Capricornis sp.
Orange Capricornis sp.
Orange Montipora digitata
Purple Montipora digitata
Salmon colored Staghorn
Blue Staghorn
Green Staghorn
Pink Stylophora sp.
Pink Seriatopora sp.
 
Purple Acropora Humilis Blue Tridacna maxima Metallic Green Millepora Orange Capricornis sp.

 

Clams:
Fish:
Invertebrates:
Blue Tridacna maxima
True Percula Clownfish
(mated pair)
Emerald Crabs
Turquoise Tridacna maxima
Anthias (2)
Peppermint Shrimps
Blue Tridacna crocea
Green Chromis (5)
Turbo Snails
Tridacna squamosa
Leopard Wrasse
Scarlet Hermit Crabs
 
Clown Wrasse
Blue-Legged Hermit Crabs
 
Flame Wrasse
 
 
Flame Hawk
 

 
Anthias, Pseudanthias pleurotaenia Leopard Wrasse Powder Blue Tang True Percula (pair)

Aquarium Particulars

Aquarium:
• 120 gallon Starphire glass aquarium
• Dimensions: 48" L x 24" H x 24" W
• 30 gallon acrylic sump
• In-wall design
• Euro-brace top
• 6" x 6" corner over-flow

"Custom made 120 gallon Starfire glass tank (4' x 2' x 2'). Starfire glass is clear... not tinted green as is the case with standard glass tanks. What you see is what you get. The effect is amazing brightness and clarity, similar to acrylic, in a tank not prone to scratches. One drawback, however, is cost. This glass is pricey...ouch!!...but worth it to those who want to splurge for best. My tank is built into the wall."

Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef Aquarium Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef - SPS

Lighting - Retro fit set-up. I built the canopy out of plywood and other scraps I had around the house. The inside is painted with a flat white oil based paint. 2 four inch Icecap variable speed cooling fans and 1 six inch conventional fan over the top of the tank help keep the canopy cool and promote evaporation. The front of the canopy is on a hinge and can be lifted up, enabling me to reach into the bottom-half of the tank. Lighting consists of 3 400W 20K Radium bulbs and 2 96W Power Compacts (1 true blue actinic & 1 full spectrum). The halides are run on a PFO dual HQI ballast while the Power Compacts are also run on a PFO ballast. Spider Light reflectors are used for the halides, which are on for 10 hours a day (PCs are on for 11 hours).

Photoperiod:
• 12:00 Noon - Power Compacts On
• 12:30PM - Metal Halides On
• 10:30PM - Metal Halides Off
• 11:00PM - Power Compacts Off

Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef Aquarium Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef  Aquarium

Heaters - Two Ebo Jager 250 Watt heaters.

Chiller/Heater Controller - Ranco 2 stage electronic temperature controller.

R/O Water - Ultra Pure 2 stage reverse osmosis unit. Liter Meter dosing pump adds approximately 12 gallons of R/O water per week.

Calcium & Alkalinity Additions - Dual chamber MyReefCreations calcium reactor. Additional Ca and Kh are added via an Ecotech Marine Kalkwasser Reactor, which is fed by my Liter Meter. Presently, 10 heaping tablespoons of ESV Kalkwasser are added each week to the 2 gallon chamber.

Leopard Wrasse Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef  Aquarium

Circulation - Return is fed by Mak4 external drive pump. 3 Maxijet 1200 power heads in the tank provide additional flow. Maxijets are driven by a RedSea Wavemaster Pro Wavemaker. Total circulation in tank is approximately 2400 gallons per hour.

Chiller - 1/4 HP Universal Marine in-line titanium chiller.

Filtration - "A 30 gallon sump sits below the tank in my "fish" closet. One GenX Mak4 external pump (1,200 gallons per hour) draws water from the sump, passes the water through a ¼ HP Universal Marine in-line chiller before ultimately returning it to the tank. An identical Mak4 pump drives water from the sump to an in sump ETS 750 Reef-Devil Gemini protein skimmer. I use 250 lbs. of premium Fiji and Marshall Islands live rock for biofiltraton. Approximately 50 lbs. of ESV fine grade sand and 15 lbs. of live aragonite reef sand round out the biological bed. Mechanical filtration consisting of a pre-filter sponge in the overflow box and a filter bag in the sump keep the water crystal clear. Two bags of Chemi-Pure are utilized for chemical filtration."

Salt - Tropic Marin. 5 gallon water change done on a weekly basis.

Monitors and Test Kits - Pinpoint Ph monitor sits in sump. Test weekly with Salifert Ca and Kh kits. Salifert Magnesium and Nitrate kits used occasionally.

Current Water Parameters - Ca: 400 ppm, Kh/Alk: 9.9 dKh/3.5 meq/l, Mg: 1350 ppm, Salinity: 1.024 specific gravity, NO3: 0, Temp: 79-81 0F, Ph: 8.2 - 8.4

Maintenance & Husbandry:
"I perform a five-gallon water change every week using Tropic Marin salt mixed with RO water. Additionally, each week the sponge in the pre-filter box is rinsed clean and the sump filter bag is "de-grunged" in the washing machine (of course, no soap is used). The skimmer collection cup is also wiped clean weekly and the waste cup is emptied every two to three weeks. The front of the tank is cleaned every other day using a pair of algae-cleaning magnets. Every month I calibrate my pH monitor and empty out and clean the kalk reactor. As I mentioned before, the ARM media in the calcium reactor is swapped out every four months. Biweekly tests are conducted with Salifert Ca and dKH kits. Salifert Magnesium, Phosphate, and Nitrate kits are used on rare occasions."

Keith Berkelhamer's 120 Gallon Reef  Aquarium
One last shot... Thanks for the amazing aquarium Keith!



Revised: September 7, 2003









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