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SaltwaterAquarium

Mark's Own Tank - Massive 12ft "Step Down" Saltwater Aquarium & Dream Fish Room Walkthrough Tour

1

Tank Featured

44

Minutes

2025

Released

Mark provides an in-depth tour of his impressive 987-gallon custom peninsula drop-off reef tank and the meticulously designed fish room that supports it. He shares the journey of building a house addition to accommodate the tank, including the use of a crane to install it on the second story, and details his filtration, lighting, and livestock choices. The video also covers his philosophy on tank building and maintenance, offering insights into his professional work as a saltwater aquarium builder.

⏭ Skip to a moment

00:00:18Introduction to the 987-gallon drop-off tank 00:01:15House addition and fish room construction timeline 00:04:03Crane installation of the tank on the second story 00:07:44Fish room design and raised/drained floor 00:11:30Aquascaping with live rock and Real Reef products 00:14:44Tank wet date and current dimensions 00:16:46Mixed reef philosophy and aquascape inspiration 00:18:00Favorite and most expensive fish 00:22:51Lighting setup and PAR discussion 00:26:02Fish room walkthrough and filtration details 00:29:49Automation with CoralVue Hydros and Apex 00:30:45RODI and saltwater storage, custom sink 00:32:07Fish food storage and feeding routine 00:32:41Quarantine tanks and protocol 00:36:15What Mark would do differently

The Build

Tank Specs

Every spec, brand, and livestock mention pulled from the host's narration. Click any tank tour above to compare.

Tank 01

Mark's Own Tank

987

Gallons

mixed reef

Style

38

Months Old

Planet Aquariums

Brand

12' x 4' x 30"/48"

Mark's personal 987-gallon peninsula drop-off tank is a mixed reef, built into a custom addition on the second story of his house. The tank features a unique aquascape inspired by his diving experiences around the world. The extensive fish room below houses advanced filtration, automation, and dedicated quarantine systems.

Lighting

EcoTech Marine Radion ×8 $999.99in stock,

Aqua Illumination Blades $42.99in stock

Skimmer

Royal Exclusiv Royal Exclusiv (Germany)

Return Pump

Flow

EcoTech Marine MP60 ×4 $836.99in stock,

Aqua Illumination Gyre $42.99in stock, ×2

Controller

CoralVue Hydros

Dosing

calcium reactor

Filtration

refugium, roller mat, GFO, carbon, UV

Water Changes

200 gallons of RODI and 200 gallons of saltwater on hand for 10% water change at any given time.

Feeding

LRS Herbivore Frenzy, nori pieces

Corals

4

hammer coralsRicordeachaliceLPS

Fish

10

Blonde Naso TangSwallowtail Angelfish (male and female)Bandit AngelfishAchilles Gorim Hybrid TangYellow TangPyramid ButterflyfishRoland's DamselfishLongnose HawkfishAnthiasChalk Bass

Shop the build

Featured products from our catalogue

Equipment mentioned in this tour that we cover in our gear catalog. Click through for full specs, retailer comparison, and where-to-buy.

Abyzz A400

Mentioned as: Abyzz A400

Hydros Control 4

Mentioned as: CoralVue Hydros

EcoTech Marine Radion XR15 G6 LED

Radion XR15 G6 LED

Mentioned as: EcoTech Marine Radion

EcoTech Marine VorTech MP60wQD Powerhead

VorTech MP60wQD Powerhead

Mentioned as: EcoTech Marine MP60

Mentioned as: Royal Exclusiv

ATI T5 Bulbs (Coral Plus / Blue Plus)

T5 Bulbs (Coral Plus / Blue Plus)

Mentioned as: Aqua Illumination Blades

Aqua Illumination AI Nero 5

Aqua Illumination

Mentioned as: Aqua Illumination Gyre

In their own words

Notable Quotes

I want a bigger tank. That means I'm going to have to add on to the house. And it was like no discussion. Like, okay, cool. We're just going to add on to the house. That's what we do when we want a bigger aquarium when you're a reef junkie.

If you ever go to move a saltwater tank or any tank or really anything, crane days are easy days because you say, 'I want that item right here and I want you to put it over there.'

This thousand-gallon tank is going on the second story of my house, which means we had to put steel underneath it.

If you've never had a peninsula, get yourself one. It will change your life because it's three tanks. One, two, three in one.

If you think you want to redo your aquascape and you're like I'm just going to move one rock. You'll never get it back to how it was and then it's like Pandora's box.