140 Gallon DSA Build

[Frogmanx82]

Sorry to hear about the losses. I feel real fortunate to have some healthy bangaii cardinals. I've never had success with the firefish for more than a few months, I do really like them.

I didn't know you added pods. I should have known with the forethought you are putting into this that you have some experience. Its just hard to slow down when you have so much effort in the tank and its in such dire need of some livestock. It might still be good to go through the exercise of a planned stocking list. A lot of times the order you add things makes a big difference.

Good luck with it. I can't wait to see it color up.

 

[T Diddy]

Update

Update

I haven't posted anything for a while, but everyone is happy thus far. My 100 gallon refugium/frag tank should be plumbed in soon, and I'll be adding a couple of T5 actinics for a little more color. Below is my first video recording ever. It is terrible, but it is a start.

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[zmckenzie]

Nice foam wall! Looks great! Don't forget to replace your batteries!

 

[Fishfish0001]

How exactly does the back wall plumbing work? Im a little confused :spin1:

Best looking tank I've seen for a while. Awesome job!

 

[Vandal996]

Very, very nice job! That is the best foam/rock wall I have seen yet.

 

[T Diddy]

Nice foam wall! Looks great! Don't forget to replace your batteries!

Very, very nice job! That is the best foam/rock wall I have seen yet.

Thank so much for the compliments. I can't wait to get this thing completed, but I guess all reef tanks are a work in progress. :fun2:

How exactly does the back wall plumbing work? Im a little confused :spin1:

Best looking tank I've seen for a while. Awesome job!

Here are the plumbing shots:

This one shows directional flow for one pump (housed in eggcrate box at the top

Opposite direction for second pump

If you look closely, the two pumps are plumbed separately

The wall plumbing helps to keep dead spots to a minimum. I have added a couple of Koralias to the DT. The Koralias and the powerheads running the wall plumbing are all on timers, some run 15 minutes on/off, others run 30 minutes on/off. I had originally hoped for a wave like effect, but now flow in the tank is completely random

 

[mcmyeye]

like the fish and rocks. looks good.

 

[T Diddy]

like the fish and rocks. looks good.

thanks mcmyeye, if I had it to do over again, I'd use some finer grain sand rather than the aragonite.


Anyone have any input on what to do for supplemental actinics?? Should I go with regular output flourescent, T5 HO, or a few LEDs?

 

[Original Fin]

Your wall is truly inspiring. So much so that I'm having difficulty resisting the urge to experiment on a 29.

Great job! Would love to see some more pics of your equipment room, sump etc...

 

[T Diddy]

Your wall is truly inspiring. So much so that I'm having difficulty resisting the urge to experiment on a 29.

Great job! Would love to see some more pics of your equipment room, sump etc...

Thanks Original Fin, I look forward to seeing your pics/build. As for the shots of my equipment room, that'll have to wait a little while. It is a trainwreck in there right now. Once I get the refugium plumbed up and running I'll shed some light on the "back of the house". I hope to have that done soon, but it may take me a couple of weeks to get it all fixed up.

 

[Frogmanx82]

thanks mcmyeye, if I had it to do over again, I'd use some finer grain sand rather than the aragonite.


Anyone have any input on what to do for supplemental actinics?? Should I go with regular output flourescent, T5 HO, or a few LEDs?

HO T5 will give you the most bang for the buck. There are some really nice bulbs available. On the other hand you would lose your shimmer. If that's a big deal, you might want to look at LED.

 

[T Diddy]

HO T5 will give you the most bang for the buck. There are some really nice bulbs available. On the other hand you would lose your shimmer. If that's a big deal, you might want to look at LED.

Thanks for the reply Frogmanx82...I'm not getting rid of my MH, just want to supplement with some actinic to make the colors pop. That wouldn't affect the shimmer would it?

 

[joebo1717]

careful with the hy drive. resun pumps have a knack for impellers blowing out or pump failure. My ran for less then 6 months and after that with research i found out why. very regular cleaning and absolute level will help this

 

[syedjilani]

Very Nice.

Keep it up....

 

[Frogmanx82]

I'm not sure you would lose all the shimmer, but T5 bulbs will definitely reduce the affect.

 

[T Diddy]

careful with the hy drive. resun pumps have a knack for impellers blowing out or pump failure. My ran for less then 6 months and after that with research i found out why. very regular cleaning and absolute level will help this

Thanks for the tip. I'll keep my eye on it. It's as level as it's gonna get, but I can pop the impeller out and clean the housing every once in a while.

Very Nice.

Keep it up....

Thanks

I'm not sure you would lose all the shimmer, but T5 bulbs will definitely reduce the affect.

Gotcha. I was wondering about maybe doin a T8 for the actinics... the bulb selection probably isn't as good, but I don't really think I neeed the extra intensity. I just want the colors to look their best. Maybe do one that peaks at 420nm and one that peaks at 460nm?

 

[Meus]

Just want to say that your aquarium is awe inspiring.

As for lighting, you could try making an all blue led strip, I think if you have it a few extra inches high it should shimmer a little instead of blanking it out.

Good luck, can't wait to see it all purple and full of coral.

 

[T Diddy]

Thank you very much Meus! As for the supplemental lighting, I'll probably just go with whatever is least expensive...it is just for color anyway.

Right now, I'm on my way to get a rubbermaid tub that I've been wanting. Thanks for tuning in!

 

[T Diddy]

I haven't updated this thread in a while, but today's near disaster was worth mentioning. I came in to my office and noticed that the tank looked a little dim on one side (weird)...left the room and came back later to find the entire room dark. One of my 400 watt MH decided to short out and tripped the circuit breaker. Luckily I have the return pump and koralias/power heads on separate circuits. The return pump kept the water moving even with the tripped breaker for my fish room.

I had been contemplating taking down the MH and replace with T5 and LEDs. After today's events, I have a little more of a need to get the lighting situation resolved.

The question now is bulb combo/configuration. I have a (6) bulb fixture and will be adding (16) royal blue 3 watt LEDs. My LFS has ATI and KZ bulbs in stock. What combination should I use for the six T5 bulbs?

 

[Rainman69]

Excellent job on aquascape. I've been building a 120 in my head. Now i think i want the extra depth. Did they take back the broken tank.