This is Part #9 in a series of blog posts about my 225 gallon peninsula tank build.
Minimalistic aquascapes have become very popular today and I am certainly a fan of some of the Negative Space Aquascapes folks have created using dry rock. However, when you do things right with a SPS dominant tank the acros will eventually hide most, if not all, of that rock.
Here are some before and after shots of my tanks. The first is my old 225 gallon tank that was aquascaped with two large islands with a decent amount of space in between. Over time the SPS in the tank grew a lot and covered up all of the rock.
225 Gallon Tank – Before Corals
225 Gallon Tank – Mature Corals
It has been a similar story with my current 187 gallon tank. Two islands in the beginning and then a whole bunch of coral growing and blocking the view of the entire aquascape.
187 Gallon Tank – Before Corals
187 Gallon Tank – Mature Corals
So I don’t think it is necessary to spend a lot of time sculpting and crafting a unique and unusual aquascape. If you do things right you will be seeing coral, not the aquascape.
One reason I went with a 20” tall tank for this new build was to keep the layers of rock to a minimum. I figured two layers would do the trick and make it relatively easy to put the aquascape together without the use of aids like like acrylic rods or mortar to help support the rock.
Creating Space Between the Rock and Tank Bottom
I probably spent about two hours moving and arranging the rock. One goal was to avoid putting flat pieces on the bottom. I wanted some space between the rock and the bottom to make it tougher for detritus to settle and build up.
Anyway, I am very pleased with the way this turned out. It checked a bunch of boxes. It looks natural, is practical and has that minimalistic look, at least until the corals grow out 🙂
Additional Resources
If you would like some help with a new tank build, including help designing a custom aquarium, or help re-configuring your current setup then you can visit this page for more information. And if you are looking to add some equipment, I do sell GHL, Pax Bellum, Reef Octopus Calcium and Kalk Reactors and Royal Exclusiv products, including Dreamboxes, which is the equipment I use and recommend. I also sell Reef Brite metal halide and LED fixtures as well as Maxspect & IceCap Gyres.
As for additional insights and information, please explore my many other reef tank and SPS related articles as well as my YouTube channel. For an even deeper dive into reef tank care you can check out my Reef Keeping Master Class. This online course is an immersive and one of a kind educational tool designed to help reef aquarium hobbyists build and maintain a beautiful SPS reef tank. The course is a series of video presentations with some supplemental video from my YouTube channel. There are also quizzes to help students retain and understand the information presented in the course.
Need some frags…..I can help with that as well 🙂 Please visit my SPS Frag store to see what is available.
