300 gal reef re-do

[jnarowe]

Yeah I figured it was the picture. Looks like you have nice surface agitation too.

 

[pcostanzo]

Only thing I did today was keep figuring out my skimmer options.
Jonathan, I PM you my specs. Thanks for the input on "going square"

 

[jnarowe]

so many ways to do it...I have seen square, wooden, Rubbermaid, becket, NW, airstone, etc. and all have their advantages. Perhaps using any skills you already have would be a good place to start. being a cabinet maker puts you in a different class than the average DIYer!

 

[pcostanzo]

The good thing about working with acrylic is using the same tools in my shop. I can just switch blades and cut acylic, joint the edges, route, bore holes etc...

 

[jnarowe]

I tell you what, if you have a jointer you wil be set. I did mine without one and it shows. You can also make acrylic scrapers on the jointer that work much better than the ones sold in the hobby.

 

[pcostanzo]

Those of you with acrylic tanks, do you have luck with removing scratches on the inside? Even when I get down to the 12000 grit I still see the fine scratches. Is that normal or am I missing something?

 

[jnarowe]

Paul,

I hand polished my tank and it was tough...you should be using a polisher with a very fine liquid abrasive for your final run. I used stuff from Micro Surface. They have an extensive selection of aircraft grade kits for acrylic as well as individual items.

I used Micro Gloss and the Anti-Static for my last two runs, applied with an angle grinder and first a buffer pad, and then a sponge pad. I also slowed the grinder down with a reostat.

Once the water is in the tank, you can still remove scratches with a magnet and various sandpapers like the Mighty Magnet Scratch Removal Kit. This simply consists of a magnet cleaner with extremely fine grade sandpaper glued to algae pads. It's a little over-priced, but I bought one and it works well. You may be able to DIY them once you see how they are made.

 

[pcostanzo]

Yes, I have a similar kit. After I finish with the finest grit, I still see very fine scratches. You can tell the difference between an area that has been repaired and one that hasn't. Do those very fine scratches ever get worked out or is that just the way it looks?

 

[sivert55]

pcostanzo, you have to follow up with a buffing compound. it's tough to do in a tank filled with water, but it removes small amounts of the surface material until you get down past the scratches. Looks better than new. Just use a hand buffer and Novus 3 followed by Novus 2.

 

[pcostanzo]

The Novus worked good for me on the outside. I'll keep plugging away at the inside with the finer grits. I hope this isn't a sign to upgrade to a 600 gal starphire.

 

[ReefingBuddha]

I think it is

 

[sivert55]

I've seen a 3 sided box used in the past that is similar in use to a koffer dam. You put in inside the tank over the scratch, then pump the water out of the space. the water pressure from outside the box created a pretty good seal and gives you room to work on the scratch without emptying the whole tank. The limitation there is the hight of the tank. If it's really tall or the scratch is towards the very bottom of the pane, your workspace would be very long and skinny.

 

[pcostanzo]

My new skimmer. Assembly required.

This is going to be a big boy. Its based on Barr Aquatics design for their "Ultra Skimmer" to be released this month, thanks Zeph for the idea. Its a dual beckett 48" high with an 8" main body and 2-2.5" injector tubes. It's going to be powered by a Sequence Reeflo Marlin.

 

[pcostanzo]

Here are the plans for the skimmer. I was first thinking of a needlewheel type but after talking to Jonathan and Sherman I started considering other options.

 

[jnarowe]

make the cup bigger dammit, or else it will compress the foam head!!

I really like my skimmer, but when space is at a premium, like for under tank installs, becketts are hard to beat. There's so many ways to get good skimming though.

I wish you could see mine in person! Did you see the videos I posted of it?

 

[pcostanzo]

Yes, I saw the video, pretty cool. Hard to beat the "TURD" shot, that is one of my all times favorites along with Barts plumbing shot.

At first I was thinking of running the skimmer off the manifold with the Hammerhead. If I did a smaller single beckett I probably could have done it. This one with the duel beckett and an 8" chamber, the Marlin is going to be way better. Its rated for 2050 gph and 37 feet max head.

Jonathan- the tube I have is 30". I need 24" for the body. I can only spare 6" for the cup. How about if I have the neck not run so far up the cup maybe 2" instead of 4"? The neck length will still be the same.

 

[jnarowe]

Yeah Bart's plumbing shots are the BOMB aren't they!!

I am not sure shortening up the riser is a good idea. In theory, if you are using a cup draining to a bucket, that might be OK, but I think you need more area for the foam to fall off the head.

You might be able to pull a couple inches out of your base box as well. What about cup width?

I have a modded Octo in my QT/Grow-out tank with a similar cup:

And from extensive experience, I know that once the cup is filled with foam, the skimming slows down because there is tension developed in the skimmer cup. And I am using a drain line to a bucket...So what I can do is run it with the lid off like you see in the picture. The downside to this is that the foam will dry so I have to clean the neck every day.

 

[pcostanzo]

The cup is 8" wide

 

[jnarowe]

Based on the drawing, making it wider would give you more fall off area and perhaps allow it to skim better. I also cut my riser top at an angle like Weatherson did to allow the foam to flow off more easily to limit downward pressure on the foam head:

This shot is from when I first fired up the skimmer at less than 5 minutes, and it' sthe only good shot i have ever had of the riser in action.

And even with the giant cup I built, with the lid off, you can ee the foam pouring out of it:

I don't believe anyone when they say the the typical collection cup is fine because "that's the way they are made"...I have posted now two pictures of foam heads rising well above the cup capacity and I don't believe there is any way someone can prove that the low lid design doesn't limit foam production. Just some thoughts for you to consider since you are building your own and can make changes in design to get better skimming.

 

[pcostanzo]

Today was one of those days. I was looking at the tank and saw the water dropping. I ran downstairs and the line to my skimmer came undone and was pumping water up in the air and onto the floor. :mad2: It figures that I am replacing this next week once I finish the new one.

Well the good thing is that I had to drain part of the sump anyway to drill the new bulkhead for the skimmer pump. I just wasn't going to drain it on the floor.