Beauty as relating to aquariums does not have to depend on the size of coral colonies, rarity of fish or even the latest and greatest equipment. A good layout with well balanced rock and coral placement alone can go really far. Ruesai Leelapruht’s system from Thailand might lack massive impressively colored acroporids seen in many of our previously featured systems, but it does have layout going for it.
The placement of the corals and the color balance are undeniably good. Not mindbogglingly impressive, but still a great pleasure to look at and the type of aquarium that novices can aspire to emulate. This Thai reef aquarium is mainly stocked with common corals such as xenids, Euphelia, clove polyps and green star polyps and the fish stock consist mainly of what some would consider “beginner fish”. But this is precisely what makes this system particularly charming.
The display measures 24 by 24 by 15 inches (61 by 61 by 38 cm) and the sump measures 20 by 15 by 15 inches (51 by 38 by 38 cm) which amounts to a total system volume of 53 gallons (200 liters). A Bubble Magus takes care of the protein skimming while a bag with GFO and Carbon take of the chemical side of things. An Atman PH-3500 serves as a return while a Vortech MP10 provides the majority of the flow inside the display.
An Eco lamp KR92 along with two 24 watt T5 lamps provide lighting. Temperature is kept at a steady 77 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celcius) by a Hailea 300A chiller. Two Little Fishies C-Balance is dosed to keep calcium in check. The system is fed a minimum of four times a day with a variety of foods and 10-20 percent water changes are done weekly to keep up with all the waste. The system is furthermore dosed biodigest.
For additional information and pictures be sure to check out his system on the Siam Reef Club website.
[nggallery id=713]
