ear-fung.us I’m a programmer. I’m also pro-grammar.

Aquarium Setup – Start to finish

This is probably going to be my longest and most photo-intensive post ever. I'm gong to chronicle my aquarium setup from start to finish.

Let's dive into it.

Here's my sump. It's a 10 gallon Top Fin brand (PetSmart's in-house brand). I've got an ASM Mini G in-sump skimmer and a 500gph return pump.

Some of the wiring I put in.

I actually wired this myself. The switch turns on and off the top outlet only. The bottom always has power.

As you can see, the inside of my stand is very spacious.

Here's the stand and empty aquarium the day we got it.

Here's a reference shot as to the height of the aquarium. My wife is 5'2" and no, she wasn't mad about the stand, she just didn't want her photo taken that night.

After adding the live rock and sand, the protein skimmer started chugging away. It's a great skimmer!

Yuck. Closeup of the skimmer.

The entire sump in action.

The water was pretty cloudy after we added the sand.

Another shot of the cloudy water.

...and another.

The cloudiness cleared up the next morning.

Well... that's it for setup, so here's a few pics of the FINISHED tank... well, as finished as a tank ever is. We still need a bunch more fish.
Right now we only have 4 of them: Pacific Sailfin Tang (Zebrasoma veliferum), 2 Percula Clownfish (Amphiprion percula), and a Lawnmower Blenny (Salarias fasciatus).

Now my house looks like a space ship landed in the entryway. Here's the view from the street at night!

I hope you like my new tank. Feel free to comment or ask questions about the setup process, fish, or anything else!