210 Gallon Aqueon Big Fish Mixed Reef Tank

How I Acquired the 210 Gallon Tank

This was quite the find and bargain when I acquired this tank. I’ll write a full-length post going into more detail about how I acquired the tank, but at a regular visit to my local fish store, the lfs owner asked me if I was interested in a 210-gallon reef tank with some great livestock and equipment included. He said the owner is a customer who is facing some personal changes and is looking to move the tank. The price was in the $2500 range. With the equipment and livestock, the price was fair but I wasn’t quite in the market for such a large setup. About 2 months passed and I saw on my lfs’s Facebook page that the guy was still looking to move the tank and there were also some pictures up with the post. At that point, I liked what I saw and asked for the contact information. After some back and forth discussion with the owner, I settled on an amazing deal with everything included for $850. 

Why I Got the 210 Gallon Tank

As mentioned earlier, I wasn’t really in the market for a new tank, not to mention a large 210-gallon tank. After convincing the wife and getting her to sign off, it came down to being such a great deal that I just couldn’t pass up. The tank came with some amazing livestock some nice coral pieces and will allow me to build it up to my dream tank. 

The owner had some personal issues and was busy with regular out-of-town work so reef husbandry wasn’t being conducted on a regular basis. Rehab of the equipment and livestock would be necessary. The fish that came with the tank was incredible specimens, they were very healthy and well feed. The coral was another story. Some of the coral pieces were doing ok but water quality was not at its best as there were both dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria in the tank. Most of the pieces were retreating and dying off. There was a lot of equipment and accessories included in the purchase and some of it needed to be thoroughly cleaned and serviced.

My goals for this tank are to rehab the water quality, equipment, keep the fish healthy, and begin introducing corals to the system that I can grow out into mother colonies and frag out when needed. This system will also provide me the opportunity to tinker and experiment with equipment and other reef-keeping methods.  I plan to try new things like automatic water changes. 

Tank, Stand, Drain, and Hood

The tank is an Aqueon 210 gallon tank with a dual mega overflow drain system. Inside the tank, there are two columns where the mega overflow system is housed. The columns are not my favorite as I do like the cleaner look of an overflow system with a Herbie or Bean Animal-style drain. The mega overflow does do the job though using a Durso style drain and is pretty quiet when draining. Plumbing is mostly hard plumbed with a little bit of flex hose plumbed in.

The stand is a light wood color and the seller said that the stand and hood was a custom build job. Overall the stand is in good shape and has plenty of room for the sump and other gear. The cabinet has a small fluorescent light fixture that lights up the cabinet area well. The hood matches the stand and looks quite nice for a hood. I, however, don’t particularly like hoods and feel like it makes the tank look too old school. The hood was one of the first things I removed. Instead of a hood I went to the hardware store and built my own screens to cover the top of the tank and keep the fish from jumping out.  

Live Rock and Substrate

The tank came with somewhere in the neighborhood of 200-300 pounds of live rock I estimate. Most of the rock appears to be Bulk Reef Supply Pukani rock, base rock, and some shelf rock pieces. One of the rock structures was put together using the acrylic rod and drilling method. My wife and I redid the rock scaping after moving the tank. We used a combination of epoxy and instant super glue to make two more rock structures in addition to the acrylic rod column. 

The tank also had a sand bed. The sand bed was pretty filthy. I disturbed the sand bed as one of the last steps in breaking down the tank. I did keep the sand and thoroughly rinsed it before placing it back into the tank. I also felt that there was an opportunity to have a deeper sand bed and I happened to have an extra 5-gallon bucket of sand from a previous tank that I added to the base bed. 

Live Stock and Corals

This was one of the many highlights of the purchase of this tank. The fish were very healthy and some of them were very large. These fish are very social and seem to be pet-like like a dog, they follow people around the tank and are always eagerly awaiting their next feeding. There were a few coral pieces included, but most of these need some rehab. The fish and coral were probably worth more than the $850 cost of the entire system!

Fish

• Hawaiian Purple Tang- Probably my favorite fish in that came with the aquarium. I have always wanted a Purple Tang, but have been too cheap to fork over the dollars and didn’t feel like I had a big enough tank to warrant the purchase. I’ve also usually had a Yellow Tangs in my tanks and have heard that they don’t play well with Purple Tangs. The Purple Tang is a great specimen and I’ve enjoyed it’s vibrant colors in the tank. The tang seems to be well behaved and spends most of its day grazing the live rock.
• Harlequin Tusk- This is another amazing specimen. I’ve seen these before but never considered purchasing thinking that they are an aggressive predator fish for fish-only systems. When you look at the fish’s mouth, they have large fang-like teeth sticking out. After more research and observation, it seems these fish can be kept in a mixed reef with proper tank size and care. This guy is cool. The owner said he is of the Australian variety meaning he has a bit more vibrant coloring. He doesn’t seem to be any problem and I haven’t seen him be aggressive to any of the other fish including smaller fish like the Blue Green Chromis or the two small Clownfish.  
• Blue Hippo Tang- The tank came with one of the largest blue hippo tangs that I’ve seen live in a home aquarium. This fish probably measures in the 8-10 inch range and is the most active fish in the tank. I would characterize this fish as bold. The fish is the largest in the tank and when needed easily moves the other fish around. Generally speaking, the fish is very tame and doesn’t bother the other fish unless they are in the way of where it wants to go.
• Magnificent Fox Face- Another cool fish. Again, probably one of the largest Fox Faces I’ve ever seen in a home aquarium. This guy likes to keep to himself and is one of the slower timid eaters in the tank. It is quite impressive when this Fox Face puts up his spines, I hope to not get poked by this guy in the future. I did have a bit of trouble getting this guy out of the net as his spikes stuck to the sides of the net. After a few minutes or untangling, I was able to get the fish into the tank without injuring it. 
• Desjardini Sail Fin Tang- This tang is the smallest of the tangs in the tank and appears to be at the bottom of the totem pole. This fish does occasionally get moved out of the way by the purple and blue hippo tangs. It doesn’t seem to be a problem and he still gets plenty of food. Another magnificent fish especial when his fins are up and the full sail appearance is shown.
• Clown Fish Pair- Included were two small Clownfish. These appear to be the classic orange and white variety. I’m happy to have these original clowns as I haven’t had a pair in quite some time. These two guys hang out in a large Duncan that came with the tank. My eight year old affectionately has named them Bob and Tim, with a pending name change when one becomes the female lol. 
• Blue Head Wrasse- Probably my least favorite fish in the tank. This fish is like a torpedo running around the tank gobbling up food. When I feed the tank he is quick to nip my fingers and is very observant and fast. The fish does have a very nice blue color.   
• Flame Hawk Fish- I’ve seen these fish in the store and never really thought much of them as they have a very odd look and large eyes. However, since observing this fish in the tank my opinion has definitely changed. This fish causes the family to laugh more than any of the others. He has such a funny look on his face and tends to sit in awkward positions all over the tank. My kids thoroughly enjoy this fish and his antics. 
• Royal Gramma- The classic reef aquarium fish. This fish has striking purple and yellow colors. This Royal Gramma is one of the widest that I’ve seen and is probably on the obese side ha ha. This fish is the one that hides the most but does come out multiple times throughout the day. 
• Sixline Wrasse- Probably the smallest fish in the tank. This fish is very active and is constantly scootering around the tank and does not seem to mind the larger fish.
• Blue Green Chromis– There were originally two of these fish in the tank, however one was lost in the move. I later found the second fish in the rock bucket not looking so good, and he ultimately didn’t make it. The second one seems to be doing well and has a bold personality fitting in with the large fish. I plan on adding a few more to have a small school. 
• Mandarin Goby- There appears to be a nicely established pod population in this tank has there is a very large Mandarin Goby in the tank. This fish isn’t shy at all and scoots around the rock, eating most of the day. 

Coral and Anemones

There was quite a bit of coral included with the system. Most of the coral was not looking so great as the tank was in need of a bit of rehab. I took most of the coral out of the tank that I could and placed the pieces in my frag tank. As I mentioned earlier in the post the tank did not have a heater on it and I think the temperature was an issue for most of the coral. When I placed the coral in my frag tank which is very stable, the corals perked up quite a bit within 2 days. I plan on stabilizing the 210 and then moving selected pieces back into the 210. 

• Mummy Eye Chalice- a nice looking coral probably about 6×6 inches
• Various Euphyllia- 4 head Mint Green Branching Hammer, single head Neon Green Hammer, single head Purple Tip Frog Spawn
• Anenomes- 2 small Rose Bubble anemones, mini carpet anemone
•  Favite Brain Coral- Two nice sized pieces in the 6-8 inch range
• Green and Red Eye Brain Coral- a 4” piece
• Mushrooms- 5 Orange and Green Ricordea, 8 Red Mushrooms, 10 Green Mushrooms, and 4 Green Hairy Mushrooms
• Green Favia- 1” frag
• Trumpet Coral- 2 head frag
• Duncan- a very nice large piece with 20-30 heads
• Green Button Polyps- 6 inch rock covered piece
• Green Trumpet Coral- 2 head frag
• Hollywood Stunner Challice- This piece was on its last legs, I was able to frag two tiny pieces and we’ll see if it grows out. 

Reef Tank Gear

Sump- Amazingly this tank came with a Trigger Systems Emerald 39 sump. I’ve always wanted a beautiful sump like this but was never willing to fork over the cash to do so. The sump is very nice and has a lot of built-in features. I like the green tint of the sump and it appears to be very well constructed. I enjoy looking at the sump every time the cabinet doors open up. 

Lighting- This amazing deal came with 3 EcoTech Marine Radion XR15w Pro Gen4 led lights. These were by far the best lights that I’ve ever had. They were originally hanging inside the hood. I ended up taking off the hood and replacing it with DIY window screens. For mounting the Radions I built my own light fixture using c-channel aluminum and a Radion Pro Hanging kit. The fixture is very minimalistic and does a great job hiding the wires. These lights are great with excellent spread, controllability, and power. Connecting these to Ecotech Marine’s software was a breeze.

The refugium is being lit by a Kessil Amazon Sun led fixture. The fixture is an LED light on the white side of the spectrum. The cabinet also has a small fluorescent light fixture mounted to the top of the stand that lights up the cabinet. It is rarely used as the Kessil is quite bright and usually on. 

Power Heads- For water movement, the tank came with three large Jabao powerheads. These seem to work well and move the water well. I did take one out and two seem to be doing the job well. These were really dirty and caked with algae when I acquired the tank. I soaked the pumps in vinegar for a day and they cleaned up nicely.

Heater- Amazing the owner of this tank told me he didn’t use a heater and believed it to be just another piece that could fail. I believe in stability and overall felt that the tank water was cold and probably had large temperature fluctuation throughout the year. One of the first things I did was to add a heater to the setup. I went with the good old Eheim Jager 300w heater. I swear just this change caused some of the corals to open up and look healthier within days. 

Chemical Filtration- For chemical filtration the unit came with a Bulk Reef Supply dual stage media reactor running GFO and Carbon. The reactor is being run by a small top fin pump that pulls water out of the sump, through the reactor, and back into the sump. I always run GFO and Carbon on my tanks and this was a welcome piece included. 

Skimmer- For skimming the system included a large Reef Octopus 202-s Classic skimmer. This is a very nice skimmer and pulls a large volume of skimmate from the heavy bioload in the tank. I need to do some tinkering, but it is a bit loud making a slight hissing sound as it pulls air through the intake. 

Electrical- The system also came with a Neptune Apex classic system. Included were, base unit, display, EB8 power outlet, Vortech/Radion module, ph/temp probes, and break-out box. The caveat to this was that the EB8 was defective. I had it sent to Neptune Systems and they replaced it out of warranty for $100.  In addition to the EB8 there was a Belkin 12 outlet power strip surge protector.  

ATO- For the auto top-off, the system came with a JBJ auto top-off unit. JBJ auto top-offs are simple and usually quite reliable. I had an extra RIO 50 pump that I used for pumping the water into the sump. 

Return Pumps- The system employs two return pumps. The return pumps are Danner Mag Drive 7 pumps. These seem to be great pumps as they are magnetically driven, relatively quiet, and reliable. The owner said he only uses these pumps because they never break and have only had to change impellers. They were however very dirty when I pulled them from the sump. A day soaking in vinegar and they cleaned up nicely. 

RO/DI System- For water processing, the system came with a Bulk Reef Supply 4 stage 150 gallon per day RO/DI system. With the 4 stage unit came a 55 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank and a plumbed 55-gallon holding barrel. I’ve never used RO/DI water on my tanks as I’m hooked up to a well with pretty clean water, but I’m excited to hook up this system and test out if there is a difference. 

Miscellaneous Reef Tank Gear

Included in the sale were multiple years of a reefer’s collection of dry goods and equipment. Here is a list of some of the additional items included:

• Neptune Systems DOS– The seller said he has this, but never actually used it. I plan on trying to use this to perform automatic water changes if it works. 

• Various fish food including pellets, flakes, discs, and sheets of nori. 
• Various extra pumps including 4 extra Danner Mag Drive Pumps.
• 2 Marine Land Freshwater led strips
• 1 black box led light
• 2 44 gallon brute buckets, 2 20 gallon muck tubs, a bunch of 5-gallon buckets
• Various nets, coral feeders, glass scrapers, and plumbing supplies

Future Plans for the 210 Gallon Tank

My plans for this tank will be to first stabilize the tank and rid it of the dinoflagellates and cyano that is currently plaguing the tank. Once the tank has stabilized and has good testing parameters I will look to reintroduce more of the corals back into the system. I will plan on dipping my toes in with SPS and seeing if I can have success there. I like all of the fish in the system and plan on keeping all of them. I’d like to add a Goby to clean the sand and maybe a few Blue Green Chromis to make a small school.

With the DOS I want to experiment with automatic water changes to see if has an impact on the system and how much maintenance it might save. At some point I want to redo the plumbing and plumb in a manifold for the media reactor, a plumbed in frag tank, and possibly a Chaeto grow-out tank.

Equipment Plans:

Plumbing- The plumbing is in good working condition, but I’d like to make it look better and have consistent plumbing lines throughout. I also am planning to replace the ball valves with check valves and plumb in a manifold so that I can expand the system in the future. 

The Complete Guide to Hard Plumbing in a Reef Aquarium

Return Pumps- When the budget allows, I’d like to update the return pumps and try to quiet down the system a little with some controllable DC Pumps. I have my eye on Ecotech’s Vortech pumps as potential options.

Upgrading to the Echo Tech Marine Vectra L2 and Plumbing to 3/4” Return Lines

Power Heads- At some point, I’d like to look at adding a Gyre powerhead near the top of one side of the tank and maybe an Ecotech Marine MP40qd on the bottom of the opposite side of the tank. 

Lighting- The Radions are awesome and I don’t have any plans to replace them at the moment. I plan on testing the Kessil in fuge and if it grows the Chaeto well it will stay, however, I do really like the Prime Fuge that I have on my 75-gallon tank’s fuge and will switch if results don’t show with the Kessil. 

ATO- I can’t but help myself and will consider getting the matching Trigger System 10 gallon Emerald ATO container. I also will look to install a couple of float switches and connect them to the Apex breakout box instead of using the JBJ ATO. 

Battery Back-Up- This will be the tank where I will look to protect my assets. I’m going to look at battery backup options including Ecotech Marine’s battery backup system, a computer USB backup, and other options that might be available. 

Overall this was an amazing deal, a lot of work, and hopefully years worth of enjoyment for myself and my family. I plan on sharing the journey of the 210 here on ReefSump.com!