Tank 01
The frag farm (frag Meyer)
45
Gallons
frag/coral farm (mixed with some SPS)
Style
12
Months Old
Deep Blue 45 gallon frag tank
Brand
A Deep Blue 45 gallon frag tank running as a small coral farm, up about a year in St. Louis after a move from Chicago. Equipment-only cost totaled roughly $3,160, lit by three AI Prime HDs plus two T5 reflectors and filtered by an eShopps X-120 skimmer, Marine Pure block, PhosBan reactor, and an oversized custom sump. It holds mostly frags including high-value zoanthids and a little SPS, with clownfish, a tomini tang, and a six line wrasse.
Lighting
Aqua Illumination Prime HD ×3 $42.99in stock, 
Nanotech T5 reflector ×2 $999.99in stock, flood lamp ×1Skimmer
Return Pump
Flow
Dosing
doser
Filtration
refugium + media reactor + biomedia
Salt
Fritz RPM (blue box) $14.44in stockWater Changes
Water changes with Fritz RPM; no supplementation needed during water change since dKH holds around 8
Husbandry & Practices
7
- Buy ~90% of equipment used on Facebook or local coral groups to cut cost dramatically.
- Keep dKH around 8 so no supplementation is needed during water changes.
- Run a deep oversized sump; this one could support two or three more frag tanks.
- Use foam sleeves over hoses to block light and prevent algae in return lines.
- Start small (e.g. Fluval Evo 13.5) and progress up the coral ladder over time.
- Tread lightly with SPS; gain experience on entry-level corals first.
- Grow a frag farm so the tank pays for itself via trades, store credit, and sales.
Target Parameters
Alk
8dKH
Corals
4
Little Shop of Horrors zoanthidsRastasOG Dragon EyesSPS
Fish
3
Da Vinci / Mocha Vinci clownfish pair (grade A and grade B)Tomini tangSix line wrasse
