1/2 blog, 1/2 overhaul thread

[jacksonpt]

yeah, I have... just haven't figured out a good way to do it. I've tried them on my current system and the sock gets sucked into my skimmer.

I've been planning on DIYing my own sump... maybe i'll get a quote on a custom sump...

 

[truebeliever71]

lol... yea, I actually spent a lot of time last night trying to compare the 2 systems, both from a functional standpoint and in terms of cost.

There's a lot of info about what the systems/modules do, but I had a hard time figuring out how to best build a system for me. I definitely want the System Lab 2 to monitor pH, salinity and temp, but can that module be added onto the RKL, or is only the RKE customizable/expandable?

Yes it can. The systems are pretty indentical with the only major difference being the number of modules that can be added to a system. The RKL is limited to 4 modules. I have the RKL and love it. It will even be controlling my LED array that I'm in the process of building.

 

[fatrip]

A good way to secure the filter sock would be to a DIY kinda like this without the PVC in the middle. Just make it the size needed for your favorite filter sock brand.

or this

 

[jacksonpt]

Interesting...

If I ended up going with a media tray, would a poly/foam filter be any different than a filter sock?

 

[fatrip]

They tend to get clogged faster. and if they become impermeable the sump would need to be set so the baffle isn't to the top so that it wouldn't overflow or burn out the pump.

 

[jacksonpt]

gotcha, ok... good stuff, thanks.

 

[jacksonpt]

Parts are being accumulated. Orders from BRS and Glass Holes, along with a couple trips to ABC...

Stand and overflow box (both being custom done, neither being done by me) are in progress.

Next up is a trip to lowes for a sheet of formica... going to use that to cover the inside of the stand and canopy for water/moisture protection. I'm headed back to ABC tonight for a couple more test kits and another T5 bulb (I'm struggling to get good color AND good par).

 

[jacksonpt]

After getting my hands on some plumbing parts, thinking things through a bit more precisely, and talking to someone about building and acrylic overflow box, it looks like my initial overflow plans won't work.

I was hoping for something simple, quiet, and unobtrusive. Turns out I can't get all 3. So the plan now is to go with a version of Bean's overflow design.

I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to do my drains/sump at this point. I'm trying to squeeze too much stuff into too small of a sump, so I'm not sure what I'm going to do.

I think I've got things about as planned out as I can at this point. I need to get things set in place and see how everything fits together, lines up, etc etc before I can do much more.

 

[jacksonpt]

Stand and canopy are done. Canopy is fully lined with white formica, seams are sealed with silicone.

I'm still trying to decide if I want to run the plumbing through the wall and do a remote sump in the adjacent room. If I don't, then I'll probably line the cabinet doors with formica as well.

 

[truebeliever71]

Lookin good Jackson!

 

[reefjunkie42]

very nice! was the stand done by a local ?

 

[jacksonpt]

Yea... a friend of mine did it for me.

 

[reefjunkie42]

nice it looks very good

 

[shawna1972]

Very nice,Cant wait to see it come together for ya

 

[jacksonpt]

I don't know why I plan tank projects for the summer... summers are too busy for this kind of thing.

Anyways, last night was a total rain out, so I got started on the new tank. I drilled 2 holes for a pair of 700gph boxes from glass holes. Depending on how my plumbing ends up, I could be running ~900gph through them. I thought about going with a single 1200gph box, but decided to go with 2 700 boxes because they were smaller and I thought (hope) I could keep them quieter. We'll see.

Painting has begun... I'm using a black appliance spray paint by Rustoleum. It doesn't coat very evenly (maybe it's operator error?), so I'm doing several very thin coats. So far I've got 4 coats down, doing 4 more tonight and then I'll see how it looks.

 

[Dave VG]

Nice update jackson. The stand looks to be very well thought out with the ends opening and all. Have you decided about the plumbing through the wall with remote sump? Personally I think thats the way to go. If you are keeping it on that same wall it would be simple to do.

 

[jacksonpt]

Have you decided about the plumbing through the wall with remote sump? Personally I think thats the way to go. If you are keeping it on that same wall it would be simple to do.

I keep going back and forth on that. I like the idea of a remote sump for all the obvious reasons. I don't think the extra plumbing would end up hurting flow rate significantly, so that's basically a non-issue. The only down side is actually having to cut the holes in the wall. If the housing market ever comes back, I'm going to try to sell the house. Because my walls are plasted/textured, I'm not sure how easy it would be to patch them if/when the time came.

 

[jacksonpt]

Regardless of whether or not I go through the wall, I gotta figure out how to run 1.5" pipes with unions without pushing the tank a foot away from the wall. Them unions are friggin bulky!

 

[jacksonpt]

One thing slightly different...

I cut the teeth of the glass holes boxes. The one I'm using now pulls a fairly thick layer of surface water, it doesn't really take a nice thin skim. Cutting the teeth off should about double the linear overflow. Adding a second box should then double that, so hopefully the surface skimming will be greatly improved.

Pulling a nice thin layer of water also means the water level in the display doesn't drop as far when the return pump loses power, so I won't need quite as much "flood" room in my sump for when the power goes out.

I also found out today that I have helpers. Or maybe just an audience...

 

[jacksonpt]

Painting is done... Up close you can see a couple of spots where the paint went on too fast/thick, but it'll work.

I started laying out the plumbing... just test fitting and mapping out where the pipes are going to run at this point. I'm not sure how the return is going to work at this point... anyone know how to connect loc-line to PVC?