205G Tank Build

[Fish4Me2]

Thanks! I am definitely excited about the possibility of water soon. I"m hoping to have the plumbing done by the end of January, and the electrical wired by the end of February.

As soon as the plumbing is done, my existing fish go into quarantine, so that I can start this tank in ick-free shape.

 

[Fish4Me2]

Happy Holidays to you all as well. According to NORAD, Santa should be here in another few hours! :wave:

 

[Fish4Me2]

Well, she's officially up and running!

Plumbing has never been my strongest suit, so I've always appreciated build threads that showed plumbing details, for the sake of learning. With that in mind, I'll give the details of this build, so it might help someone else. Here's a picture showing the sump:

The tank was drilled for a primary 1.5" drain, and a backup 1" drain. The 1.5" drain is tee'd off, with a ball valve and reducer, dropping the size down to 3/4", to feed the bubble tower in the 'fuge chamber of the sump. Here's a picture:

The other side of the tee is plumbed with spa-flex, and runs down to the bulkhead in the sump for the filtersock. This photo shows that.

I mounted a 1 x 7 on the back leg of the stand, to use for pipe support, and so the 1.5" spa flex run is zip tied to that.

 

[Fish4Me2]

On the return side of the plumbing, my goal with this tank was to have as few bulkheads as possible, so I opted for an in-sump pump. I had a Dart on my previous 180, and while it was a great pump, it took up a lot of space, and could have been more quiet for being in my living area. So this time I went with an in sump pump, the laguna max flo. So far, I'm really happy. It is *quiet*, and right now, without the piping for the chiller, it's running quite a bit of flow.

The max-flow needs to power both the return, and the chiller, so it runs out to a manifold. The manifold has ball valves to control both the amount coming from the pump, and the amount going to the chiller. The bottom ball valve comes straight from the pump, and the top ball valve is the future chiller line. Everything is zip-tied to the board behind, for stability.

The tee at the top of the manifold leads to two 3/4" return lines, that enter the tank through bulkheads in the eurobracing.

Right now I'm really happy with the pump, and with the return plumbing. There are probably two things I wish I would have done differently: I used hard PVC from the tee on the return line up to the bulkheads in the tank, and I wish I would have used spaflex. It would have made things much easier, in terms of getting everything aligned correctly.

I also still need to work on the drain, because the durso is still pretty loud. I'm hoping with actual salt water, and a bit of algae/slime, it will quiet down, but for now I'm getting too much gurgling.

Next up: drain, fill with RO/DI and salt, and start working on the rock structure.

 

[Fish4Me2]

For today's update, a bit about what I learned while mixing salt in the tank: two 6105s, a decent return pump, and a 6055 are nowhere near enough flow for a 205! I had planned on using 4 6105's on this tank, but I'm going to have to re-think that. When I added the salt, the two 6105s plus a 6055 could not keep the salt off the floor of the tank. If I'm trying to prevent detritus from building up, and make sure my SPS have enough flow, I don't think the 6105's will cut it.

Looks like it's time to start saving for a 6205 or two.

 

[Fish4Me2]

Apparently I may need to rethink my initial impression of the system pump, a laguna max-flow 2900. Sometime between 9:30 when I went to bed, and 1 am when I woke up, the pump stopped working. So far it won't restart. Since the tank is still clean, and this pump has been running for less than a month, I'm not happy with this type of performance. I'll take it apart for repair today, but in my opinion, that shouldn't be necessary this early in the game.

Anyone have other submersible pump suggestions that have about the same wattage and GPH?

 

[Fish4Me2]

Updates for the weekend:
The old pump died, and has been replaced by another max flow, while I wait to have the original repaired. I couldn't find another alternative that I could put in place quickly enough.

The other big event was getting the rock into the tank. Prior to starting, I bought a 5/16" masonry drill bit, and 1/4" fiberglass rods. I used a regular corded drill (not a hammer drill). After that, I taped out a 72" by 30" section on my driveway so I could create the structure in perspective.

I pulled each of the rocks out of the vat where they had been cooking, and worked on making the structures look the way I wanted. Once I was happy, I held the rock in place while my spouse drilled it. Because the rock was still wet, there was no dust. With the holes drilled, I dropped the fiberglass rods in, and then used a dremel to cut them where I wanted them. Here's a shot of the rocks in progress:

 

[Metal Man 1221]

I wish i did that with my rocks, every time i have to get a fish out i get really PO'ed because i can never the the rock back how it was

 

[aleonn]

Love how the build looks so far! I'm surprised about the performance of your Laguna pump. I heard great things about that brand, but ultimately chose the Water Blaster HY-7000 for my 180g. I was happy with my return pump in that it had no heat transfer, limited noise, and no restart issues.

Unfortunately my 180 sprang a leak a month ago and I'm looking at manufacturer alternatives in Socal. After looking at your build again, I'm considering a tank in your tank dimensions, possibly a Lee-Mar. May I ask the glass thickness, and where I should go to order?

 

[Fish4Me2]

Metal Man - I feel your pain! In my last tank, I knocked over rocks at least monthly when trying to glue frags or siphon sand. I had used epoxy putty, but it never really did much to help. I vowed that I'd find a less annoying solution this time!

It was actually much easier than I thought it would be. I'd really recommend for anyone who is willing to pick an aquascape and stick with it.

 

[Fish4Me2]

Aleonn - a leak in a 180 is awful. That sucks. What have you done with your livestock? My last tank was a 180, and it was a great size and shape, but I couldn't have anything quite as tall in our new house. I got to "compromise" by going for greater depth! :bounce1: I love the footprint so far.

I'm really happy with the finished product from Lee Mar, and with the great help I got from them on delivery day. The communication in between ordering and getting the tank was a bit spotty. I wanted to confirm the exact location of the bulkhead holes, and I didn't get a solid answer from them. I purchased through Amazing Aquariums and Reefs in orange, and with the tank here in place, I have no regrets.

 

[Fish4Me2]

I thought I'd share some pictures of the rock structure, now that it's in place. Please excuse my inexpert pictures. I have no software on this computer to correct the color. Overall I'm happy with the front view, but will probably continue to play with the left most island.

Front view:

Side view

Left side view:

At the moment, the rock is sitting on plastic cutting boards. Those will be replaced with sand colored starboard when it arrives.

 

[Metal Man 1221]

Well when I have money to burn, Ill have to try and get the equipment to "redefine" my aquascape

 

[Fish4Me2]

The best thing about this aquascape is that the fiberglass rods were less than $10 total from McMaster-Carr, and the drill bit was less than $15. So total cost was under $25, and for the first time ever, I'm not worried about tipping my rocks off each time I place a coral.

 

[Fish4Me2]

Sadly, I have no pictures from this weekend's work, but I did manage to build a platform for my skimmer and get it running, and get my ATO up and working. The skimmer has already pulled out several cups of brown ick, despite having "cooked" the rocks for weeks.

I also now see pods on my glass, and the start of a diatom bloom, so I think the cycle is going, although ammonia is still barely detectable.

 

[Fish4Me2]

Going on the theory that a thread is nothing without pictures (and because someone wanted to know how to build a platform for their skimmer), here is my updated sump:

The white PVC pipe to the left of the skimmer keeps the ATO hose above the ATO water line, which stops the siphon. So far, so good.

 

[Metal Man 1221]

very nice so far. I like the clean plumbing, it makes a system look so much nicer.

I will also have to check out the acrylic rods. What type of bit did you use and where did you get it?

 

[Fish4Me2]

very nice so far. I like the clean plumbing, it makes a system look so much nicer.

I will also have to check out the acrylic rods. What type of bit did you use and where did you get it?

Sorry for the slow reply: work has been crazy and I haven't spent much time here. The bit I used was the Vermont American brand they had at Home Depot. This isn't the exact size, but it's close: http://www.homedepot.com/Vermont-American/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1kp/R-100034996/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

For the rod, I purchased both acrylic and fiberglass, and the fiberglass worked MUCH better for this. I got that from McMaster Carr. If you search their online catalog for Fiberglass Rods, and then look under "Rods and Disks", you can find lots of options. A 10' length was less than $5. Probably the cheapest thing I've done for the tank! :rollface:

 

[Fish4Me2]

With many thanks to my amazing dad, I now have all the plans together for the electrical. My goal is to have most of the electronics equipment on the "dry" side of the wall, and run wire from my EB8 on that side to individually controlled outlets on the "wet" side under the tank. Here's an overview shot of the plans for the "dry side", with more detail below:

All of the EB8/DC8 outlets will run from the EB/DC into the wireway, and then into conduit, through the junction box, and through the wall. Specifics of what's mounted on that side:

On the wet side, the wire coming through the lower part of the wall will break into two groups. On the left side of the tank there will be 16 outlets, controlling most of the under-tank equipment, like the skimmer pumps, reactors, etc. On the right side, there will be 8 outlets, plus the controller itself. This will be mounted outside of the tank on the wall, and I plan to cover it up with a cabinet to match the stand. Some of these outlets will be running to an always-on DJ power strip, that's covered by a UPS. The goal is to make sure I don't ever fry my Apex or Litermeter if there's a power surge.

Here's the left side of the tank:

Here's the right side:

 

[Fish4Me2]

We've already cut holes through the wall, so the goal is that by the end of the three day weekend, all the wiring will be done. I guess that means I should get off the computer and get started!