80 gallon rimless reef

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aaron1129

New member
After months of research and planning I am setting up my little reef. This will not be my first reef tank, but it will be my first "start from scratch tank" in almost a decade. :p My research has shown that technology has advanced a bit and equipment prices have came down a little, plus corals have gotten more expensive. I am glad I have a great LFS helping me out.

My plan is to have a rockscape with two piles off set, with a few fish (I am a fan of less fish more coral). I want to have a couple nice torch or hammer coral, a lot of sps, and zoas. I really want to grow a huge stag horn. I love tanks that have a massive staghorn rising above all the other corals. I would like to have a sweet "brain coral." Probably a favia sp. with larger polyps (I had one in my 125g that I grew from a golf ball size to bigger than a volley ball). I also want to have a montipora capricornus grow out over a ledge and make a nice shelf, I always thought that look so fascinating. Any tips on getting lps to grow into the "brain" shape is that a species thing or a enviroment thing?


I hope to keep this thread alive for a while maybe until the holidays this year. So, I would love for people to follow along and chime in whenever possible. I will post lots of pics and equipment list soon.

Thanks and happy reefing
 
Equipment list

Tank-Deep blue professional 80g rimless RR

Stand-DIY 49''x25''x36''

Skimmer-Reef octopus INT 110

Powerheads-hydor korlia (used) and a jebao pp-8

Return pump-Sicce syncra 3000

Light-reefbreeder photon v2 48''

Grow light for refugium- Taotronics screw in LED from amazon

Heaters- 200w and 300w aqueon.

Filter socks made by my grandma, she is mean with a sewing machine haha

Dosing two part. I have always used B-ionic by esv, but I may just have to try out the BRS two part.


I want to get a bio pellet reactor once I get some coral in the tank. I am also thinking about getting a ATO in the future. I like the idea of setting it up now and adding stuff as I go. It keep the project alive for me.
 
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gonna be a nice build love the DP 80s I almost went with one. but wanted a 36" tank for some reason..
keep the pics coming!
 
Devaji108 said:
gonna be a nice build love the DP 80s I almost went with one. but wanted a 36" tank for some reason..
keep the pics coming!
Click to expand...

I will, it is so easy now that I have photobucket on my phone. It just take picture and it's ready to go on a post in like 30 seconds.

So about the messy bucket, it is all old equipment I am sorting through, and the wiring under the ro/di is temporary as well.

I have been curing the rock since april 1st.

also I had 1L eheim pro bio media that i put into the bottom of the fuge, it is amazing bio media IME.
 
Okay, the tank finally arrived and I picked it up this morning. I am making ro/di in 5 gallon batches as I type this. My sand arrives on saturday and my skimmer and test kits should be then as well.

I have some pictures to share and I also have a couple plumbing questions. I had a really high quality bulk head I acquired and I made a rookie mistake and assumed since it was for 1'' pvc I would be able to use it in place of the bulkhead provided in the plumbing kit, but my bulkhead needs a 2'' hole and the one proved is 1.5'' so I had to use the one in the kit. the problem that creates for me is the bulkhead provided has a male hose fitting (I think that is what you would call it) and I want a 1'' in pvc fitting. Does anyone have advice on how to go from the hose fitting to pvc. I have a couple ideas, but I appreciate any tips from people who have been in this same situation before.



I bought the threaded 90 because that is what my bulkhead accepted. I have some regular 90's also.

thanks guys
 
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The bulkheads have those barb fittings already glued in place? Or are they actually part of the bulkhead?

If it were me, I would just buy some new bulkheads if the barb fittings were permanent, they are definitely cheap enough to not buy the ones you want to use.

Just did an SCA 80 rimless cube(34x24x24), its my first "real" tank with a sump and actual plumbing. lol

Following along, and good luck :thumbsup:
 
the barbed fitting is part of the bulk head. I may just go with a hose. What are the cons of using a hose instead of ard plumbing?
 
None that I can think of other then possible algae growth if the hose is clear. Spa flex is nice, its somewhat flexible, solid colored, and can be glued in place like regular PVC.

I used a small chunk of it to go between my hard plumbing and my pump to deaden the vibration noise.
 
Can I slip spa flex over the barbs and also glue in pvc fittings? If so I am about to go to lowes and get some spa flex. that sounds perfect. thanks for the tips
 
I also want to comment on the fit and finish of this tank. The silicon seams are beautifully done. They are clean, smooth, and even. The tank has a modern appearance. I am sure evap it going to be a pain in the butt, but that's why i have an RO/DI system. I intentionally didn't add too many pieces of equipment or systems to the setup because i wanted to wait till i had it up and running. I am going to make my observation and figure out what will benefit me the most and what I can live without. I am thinking an ATO will be something i quickly finding myself wishing I had.
 
Yes on the spa flex. Lowes sometimes has it, but any pool or spa center should also have it.

I would never do another SW tank without an ATO. Stability is the key, and not having to worry about my salinity, is one headache I'm glad not to have, especially when its so simple.

If I had to skimp somewhere, I would buy an ATO before a skimmer.

I consider an ATO essential equipment, like a heater or return pump. :D
 
I am 90% finished with the plumbing. I found a really cool fitting. It was a 1.25'' barbed to 1'' threaded pvc. So I used 1.25'' tube from the bulkhead to the fitting and hard plumbed the rest. The pipe is tee'd and then has a 90 dropping into the skimmer chamber, and then a set of 90's dropping into the fuge. I am feeling pretty good about everything. I made about 60 gallons of water from 12:00 till 9:30, and i called it a night. i am going to finish up the last bit of plumbing in the AM and make the rest of the RO/DI. If all goes as planned i will have a circulating system tomorrow, and then i will add the salt.

I am just going to mix it in the tank the first time around because I have all the pukani curing in the can i will use to make salt water in the future.

wish me luck for the first plug in.

I am a little bit confused on how this adjustable gate works on the overflow, and one with a deep blue RR have any advice on this one?
 
Its a herbie setup, no? 2 drains and a return?

What I do to tune my herbie in, shut the gate valve all the way. When water starts crashing down the emergency line, open the gate a little bit, then just keep opening it until the water in your overflow is just trickling down the emergency. You'll probably only end up opening it not even half way. So don't get discouraged if you only have to crack the gate valve. The idea is to equal out the flow coming into the DT from the return pump.
 
I have one drain and one return line. I have calculated the the gallons and I believe I am safe from overflow if/when i have an issue. My sump has 11.5 gallon to spare in case the tank flows and pump shuts off. And I have about 16 gallons to give in the top of my tank if the overflow clogs and the pump chamber is only 5.5 gallons.

I built the filter sock holder that cafereef built in his build thread.
 
sure is a good looking tank just love the size. makes we want one haha dont get me wrong i love my 3' 90 but sure do like these. I could not find anyone that carried them with in 4 hrs drive..

explain your plumping plz. I dont get it...haha
is the 2nd 90 just in case the filter sock get clogged?
 
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