Hey guys ...
Well lots of work has been done in the tank. All the plumbing is up, the electrical is great and all the corals have been attached to the rocks. The wall has been painted and the picture frame installed ... Looks awesome IMO. Pics coming soon.
Unfortunately, many sps corals did not like the stress, most have browned up and a few show signs of bleaching. Also, my Regal tang has a few specks of ich. The regal and PBT have often had a few spots off and on in my previous tank but i have always just let them be... not worth the stress to them to treat in any way IMO.
The fish LOVE the new tank! The naso, now can swim in circles instead of turning from left to right. Also, they love the new flow created due to going BB. They will sit in front of a stream and "ride the wave"... I will have to take some video of that.
Also, i got to play around a bit with flow. I am getting an awesome 1.5" wave using the TUNZE and the aqua surf controller. Seems like going with an open aqua-scape allows the wavemaker to shine. I am still waiting for a part to my Gen-X 55 which should add even more flow, but i am really happy with what i am getting off the QO6000 and penductors... it may not be worth the noise and power to switch. We'll see. I will try to get some video of the wave in action!
A big concern that i had with this build was the noise inside and out of the fishroom. So far i have been able to keep it to a minimum, but i still think i could accomplish better.
Here is what has been done to reduce noice:
1. used a glass-holes overflow, which ROCKS at reducing noice.
2. Attached a piece of styrofoam to the bottom of the QO pump so it does not sit on the glass. Is styrofoam reef safe? I have researched that it is, but still not 100% sold.
3. Used flex spa between the pump output and the rigid pvc to dampen vibrations.
4. Installed elbows on the output of the overflow at the waterline... no splashing noise!
5. I was able to reduce the air-sucking sound of the skimmer by adding a piece of bigger dimension tubing to the air intake tube to act as a muffler. This works well.
Here is where noise problems are now:
1. Water rushing down the overflow pipes. Since the overflow is so quiet i can actually hear the water through the PVC pipes on the back. I am thinking a simple box with insulation to fix this.
2. Skimmer. The most noise comes from the skimmer. I am getting a hum from the pumps. I wonder if this is vibrations caused by a hollow box that it sits on to raise it up a bit. You can see this in the pics.
3. Sound through the wall. I want this system to be absolutely quiet in the living-room but i still hear a slight hum and noise of water through the wall. The equipment and sump is behind the drywall so i am thinking that attaching some insulation to the drywall will fix this.
I should be receiving the parts i need for the top-off and water change system today and i already picked up one of the BRUTE cans. FINALLY i will be moving from the risky RO to solenoid approach i have been using. So more info coming soon on that.
Hope you guys are enjoying the build... I AM!!!!
